Wings of Tomorrow ~ Lament of the World

by Keeper of Jericho

22. Departure

Wings of Tomorrow
Lament of the World

22. Departure

“We’re here,” Rainbow Dash announced, as she emerged from the dense foliage of the Everfree Forest into a clearing deep in the heart of the woods. It was well past midnight, and though she hadn’t slept a single hour that day and had just marched for a few hours with somepony on her back, Rainbow Dash didn’t appear tired at all.

The same could not be said for her friends, however, aside from Twilight Sparkle who had been carried by the pegasus admiral the entire way. The purple unicorn had wanted to walk herself, but Rarity and Fluttershy wouldn’t hear any of it, knowing that their friend had already overexerted herself today and that she hadn’t fully recovered from her injuries yet. Now Twilight glanced at her friends from atop Rainbow Dash’s back, and she felt a bit guilty.

Pinkie Pie looked more energetic than ever, which was odd and thus a good thing, but Rarity and Fluttershy looked beat and tired. Especially Rarity, which didn’t come as a surprise to Twilight, for her fellow unicorn was still recovering from injuries as well. It didn’t help that Rainbow Dash had taken them into the Everfree Forest, putting them all on edge. The cyan pegasus may perhaps no longer fear the forest, but the same did not go for her friends.

“Here?” Rarity echoed, looking around the clearing with her tired eyes. When she saw nothing but grass and trees, she wasn’t impressed. “I didn’t think to ask about how exactly we were going to escape the Republic when we left, since I trusted you knew what you were doing, Rainbow Dash, darling.” She glowered at the cyan pegasus. “So when I followed you into the Everfree Forest, of all places, what I expected at the end of our trip was to find…” Rarity looked around the empty clearing again and frowned in distaste. “Well, something, at least, as opposed to nothing.”

Rarity knew she was irritated and probably being unfair to her friend, but she didn’t do it on purpose either. It was extremely late, she had been up all day, was still recovering from the events in Canterlot and her injuries, and she was tired and exhausted. She practically fell asleep on the spot, and she wanted nothing more but to find a soft place where she could drop down and sleep.

Rainbow Dash looked over her shoulder at the tired, white unicorn. “Don’t forget that for a royalist like me, this is enemy territory, Rarity,” she replied calmly. “Leaving our escape ship in plain sight wouldn’t be a very smart thing to do.” The cyan pegasus flashed her friend a comforting smile. “Our ride’s simply hiding. Don’t worry, Rarity, you’ll be able to rest soon enough.”

This being said, the admiral looked back at the clearing in front of her, and then glanced up towards the sky. None of her friends could tell what she was looking for, or if she could even find whatever it was amidst the black sky of the night. Rainbow Dash tapped her chin thoughtfully a few times, and then turned her head to glance at her back, upon which Twilight was still sitting.

“Sorry, Twilight, but I’m afraid the ride’s over. Can you get off?” she asked on a friendly and good-natured tone, making it clear that she didn’t want her friend to get off because she was getting too heavy. With a curious glance at the pegasus, Twilight climbed off of her back to give Rainbow Dash the room for whatever it was she wanted to do. Once her back was free again, Rainbow Dash reached with one of her front hooves under her cape and pulled a peculiar looking stone from under it.

“Oh, ehm, isn’t that the same stone you used in Canterlot to contact those ponies who helped us?” Fluttershy asked quietly, and she came closer in order to see the stone held by her friend. The rest of her friends followed her example, and they crowded around Rainbow Dash to take a good look.

“Yeah, it is. This is a piece of manufactured magicite, though the quality is nowhere near as good as the natural stuff. But it’s works for simple things,” Rainbow Dash explained, and she held up the stone a bit higher to give her friends a better view of it. The stone had the shape of an egg and looked a bit like a piece of red crystal, only rough and dull instead of smooth and shiny. “The magic inside of this pebble lets me talk to every pony who holds a stone linked with this one. Much easier and practical than sending scrolls, trust me.”

Twilight’s eyes were fixed on the magicite shard and shone with curiosity. “That’s amazing,” she whispered, looking at the stone in awe. “It’s such a simple but brilliant concept, I’m surprised nopony thought of it before! And you said this magicite was manufactured by ponies? I’ve never heard of such a thing! How do they do that?”

“Eh, I’ve got no clue,” Rainbow Dash replied, and she shrugged casually. “I’m not a unicorn, so I’m not involved with all that magic and enchanting stuff. I know how to use my own magicite and that’s all I need.” When she saw Twilight’s eager grin turn into a sad frown, Rainbow Dash patted her friend comfortingly on the back. “Cheer up, Twilight. Once we’re in Cantropolis you can study the ins and outs of magicite as much as you want. Just be patient for now and let me call our ride.”

The pegasus admiral walked to the centre of the clearing and activated the stone, causing a soft light to appear within it. Glad that it seemed to still work, Rainbow Dash held the stone close to her mouth. “This is admiral Rainbow Dash calling the Wonderbolt,” she began, her voice even but firm. The pegasus had slipped back in her role as a royal admiral. “Requesting response immediately.”

There was a brief moment of silence, then a voice of a male pony sounded from the magicite shard. “Chains may bind the Sun, admiral Rainbow Dash,” it said. The words puzzled the four mares the admiral had brought with her, for they seemed random and entirely pointless. Rainbow Dash herself, however, remained serious and unfazed, as if this had been the reply she had expected.

“But they cannot stop the coming of dawn,” she replied firmly, her face set with grim determination.

“Confirmed. Welcome back, admiral, ma’am,” the unknown pony answered through the stone again. “Your orders?”

“I have four civilians here with me who need to be brought aboard immediately. Have some accommodations prepared in my cabin, they’re about to fall asleep where they stand,” Rainbow Dash commanded. “Have the pilot ready the ship for departure and our course set for Cantropolis. We’re going home.”

“Understood, admiral Rainbow Dash, ma’am. Vice-admiral Rose Thorn has been waiting for your return, he will be with you immediately. This was the Wonderbolt, over and out,” came the reply, and then the light in the magicite faded, leaving the stone dull and lifeless. Satisfied, Rainbow Dash put it back under her cape and turned around to face her friends.

“Somepony will be here shortly to teleport us to the ship, where you can rest,” she said, smiling. Her friends were visibly relieved by this news, though Rainbow Dash could see it in their eyes that they were still confused by something.

“That’s wonderful news, darling,” Rarity said. “Though I’m afraid I must ask why in Equestria they spoke about the Sun being chained, and what this ‘Wonderbolt’ is? Tis not a group of pegasus stunt flyers, I take it?”

The white unicorn’s last question caused Rainbow Dash to laugh. “Of course not,” she replied in between chuckles. “The Wonderbolt is the name of a ship. My airship, to be precise. It’s the flagship of the Royal Guard’s second division, under my command.” The cyan mare pushed her chest forward proudly. “You won’t find a faster warship anywhere in the world. She’s as agile as a bird, with an artillery battery of twenty cannons strong, and three steam engines with a thousand wingpower each!”

Twilight frowned curiously. “Why would an airship need that much wingpower?” she asked, a bit hesitatingly. It was obvious that Rainbow Dash was very proud of her ship and its capabilities, and she didn’t want to offend it or her friend. “I’m certain the ones I’ve taken a ride on before were only something between the six and eight hundred.”

Rainbow Dash merely waved her hoof dismissively as if it was no big deal. “Well, duh. Civilian airships only need to carry the weight of their cargo. They’re not armoured and don’t have much, if any, weaponry aboard, unlike a warship,” she explained. “A warship is strengthened with steel plating to withstand cannon fire and has an artillery battery and ammunition aboard on top of its crew and supplies. They’re heavier by design, so they need stronger engines to stay in the air and to attain speed. That’s why I said that the Wonderbolt is the fastest warship, not airship.”

The cyan mare turned her attention to Rarity. “As for that whole ‘chains may bind the Sun’ thing, it’s just a password. It is always possible that one of our talking stones falls in the wrong hooves, so when we contact each other with them, we exchange passwords. If somepony doesn’t know them, that means he’s not one of us, and then we sever the link between the stones.” Rainbow Dash let out a sigh. “You can never be too careful, not in this line of work. Experience taught me that much.”

Rarity nodded in understanding. “That does make sense,” she admitted.

The white mare was about to say something else, but was interrupted when somepony arrived in the clearing with a soft ‘bang!’ and a flash of light. It was a unicorn stallion, with a blood-red coat and a black mane and tail. He wore a light suit of silver armour, and in the bracelets he wore around his forelegs glowed shards of true magicite. Just like Rainbow Dash, he wore a white cape with his cutie mark on it: a thorny rose with black petals.

The newcomer took a second to observe his surroundings, until his gaze finally settled on Rainbow Dash. He turned to face her, adjusted his posture and then saluted. “Vice-admiral Rose Thorn, at your command, admiral Rainbow Dash, ma’am,” he greeted her. He spoke with a quiet, soft voice that was slightly hoarse, but regardless he sounded calm and confident.

Rainbow Dash returned his salute. “At ease, vice-admiral,” she said. “I trust there were no problems during my absence, and that we are ready to depart the moment we board?”

“Yes, to both, admiral, ma’am,” Rose Thorn confirmed. He glanced briefly at the four mares gathered behind his superior. “Are these the ponies you insisted on collecting before our return to Cantropolis?” he inquired curiously.

“Four of the five, yes,” Rainbow Dash replied. She stepped aside and looked at her friends while gesturing at the unicorn stallion. “Girls, meet Rose Thorn, vice-admiral of the second division of the Royal Guard, and my right-hoof pony.”

One by one the four mares muttered their greetings, and Rose Thorn responded in kind with a polite tip of his head. “My greetings to you all,” he said, but he paid them no further heed. Instead, his attention once more went to his superior. “Might I suggest we depart swiftly, admiral? Though they have not said anything, I know the crew is getting anxious due to being in enemy territory for this long.”

“Not exactly unexpected,” Rainbow Dash replied, and she nodded in understanding. “Well, I think we’re all set on this end,” she continued, glancing briefly at the tired forms of her friends. She gave Rose Thorn a confirmative nod of her head. “Take us to the ship, vice-admiral.”

“Understood. Everypony stay close to each other, then this will be done in the blink of an eye,” the stallion announced. He bowed his head and closed his eyes in concentration, and his horn began to glow with a grey light as he charged his spell.

“Hold it! Y’all ain’t goin’ anywhere without me!”

The suddenly shouted words broke the vice-admiral’s concentration, and his eyes shot open in confusion. Around him, Rainbow Dash and her friends were turning themselves in the direction of the voice as well, just in time to see an orange earth pony mare emerge from the woods and into the clearing. Her mane and tail were coloured like straw, and on her head she wore a very familiar hat that obscured her face.

The new arrival was breathing hard and her coat was matted with sweat, as if she had just ran an entire mareathon. Blood Thorn’s training immediately kicked in and he took on a defensive stance, ready to take down this potential threat, but Rainbow Dash held out her hoof to stop him. Confused, the vice-admiral stood down and watched as Pinkie Pie tackled the orange mare to the ground.

“Applejack!” the pink pony exclaimed happily, while hugging the apple-farmer tightly. The rest of her friends rushed over as well, their tiredness momentarily forgotten.

“Whoa, knock it down a peg there, Pinkie, and let me breathe,” Applejack said, managing somehow to squeeze the air needed for speaking from her lungs. “Ah just ran from Sweet Apple Acres all the way ‘till here in one go. Ah need to catch mah breath fer a while.” Nevertheless, she was still appreciative of Pinkie’s hug, and patted her fellow earth pony on the back to return the gesture.

“But why are you here, Applejack?” Twilight asked, puzzled, once Pinkie had gotten off Applejack to allow her to get her much needed air. “I thought you said you were staying in Ponyville to take care of your family?”

The orange mare slowly climbed to her hooves and picked up her hat that had fallen off when Pinkie had knocked her to the ground. She dusted it off and placed it back on her head, taking more time to do so than was truly needed, as if she was trying to delay answering Twilight’s question for as long as possible. Finally, Applejack sighed and gave in.

“Ah was, but Ah felt guilty ‘bout it all the way when Ah walked home. When Ah arrived back at the farm, mah brother was there waitin’ fer me. Now mah bro knows his sis, so he noticed somethin’ was off, and Ah kinda spilled the beans,” she explained, still wheezing a bit. Applejack bowed her head, hiding her eyes behind the rim of her hat. Her friends glanced worriedly at each other, but patiently waited until she was ready to continue.

“Nearly bucked me on the head when Ah was done, he did,” Applejack continued, and she chuckled softly at the memory. “Said he couldn’t believe Ah turned mah back on mah friends. Ah told him Ah didn’t like it either, but Ah couldn’t leave him alone to take care of the family and the farm.” She sighed again and pawed idly at the ground. “He said it was good of me to think of mah family first, but that Ah didn’t think it through. He could take care of the family, and as fer the farm, all he’d have to do was hire some extra hooves to help.”

The orange mare looked about ready to kick herself. “Ah should’ve thought of that mahself, but Ah guess mah brain was already sleepin’ when Ah had to make mah decision,” she said ruefully, and she shrugged helplessly. “Big Mac told me the family and the farm need me, and there ain’t no denying that. But mah friends need me more, he said. If Ah’m not at the farm, Ah can be replaced, if only fer a while. Mah friends, however, can’t replace me as easily.”

Applejack looked up and glanced worriedly at her friends. “Well, at least Ah think you can’t,” she finished quietly.

“Of course we can’t, Applejack,” Rarity replied with a genuine smile. “There is only one of you, and you are irreplaceable.”

“Wouldn’t have it any other way either,” Rainbow Dash added with a grin.

Applejack looked relieved upon hearing their words, and she answered their smiles with a careful one of her own, before continuing her story. “So, Ah realized Big Macintosh was right, and that mah place was with y’all. He’s gonna explain everythin’ to Granny Smith and Apple Bloom, and give ‘em mah apologies fer leaving so suddenly without sayin’ a word.” She turned her head to look at Rainbow Dash again. “We also agreed to do what you suggested, sugarcube. He’s gonna report mah disappearance to the authorities first thing in the mornin’, so hopefully that’ll keep the Republic off their backs.”

“That’s a wise decision, and it should be enough to keep them safe,” Rainbow Dash commented, her expression and tone just as serious as Applejack. The pegasus understood perfectly that the safety of her family was very important to Applejack, and no light matter in the slightest. “I’ll give orders to our contacts in Ponyville to keep an eye out, just in case, though.” She glanced at Rose Thorn, who stood quietly at his superior’s side. “See that it’s taken care of as soon as we’re back on our home turf.”

“Yes, ma’am,” the vice-admiral responded earnestly, with a curt nod of his head. Then he stood back quietly again and waited until Rainbow Dash provided him with further orders.

“Thanks, sugarcube, that’s mighty kind of ya,” Applejack said gratefully, and a look of relief appeared on her face. “Ah mare can’t help but worry fer her kin when she goes away from home, you get.”

Rainbow Dash waved her hoof dismissively. “Don’t sweat it. Like I told Rarity, it’s standard procedure,” she replied casually. “I’m impressed you managed to catch up with us, though.”

“I’m impressed she managed to track us down here in the first place,” Twilight chimed in, who was decidedly impressed with the earth pony’s achievement. “How did you do that, actually? It’s night, and this is the Everfree Forest.”

“Well, it sure was hard, Ah admit,” Applejack replied. “Y’all had a big lead by the time Ah left the farm. Ah ran back to Fluttershy’s place and followed managed to pick up yer trail from there. Though it ain’t easy to do that in the dark while yer runnin’ as if ya got a pack of Timberwolves on yer heels, let me tell ya.”

“But, Ah guess all that matters is that Ah made it in time.” The freckled mare focussed her attention on Rainbow Dash once again. “Dash, back at Flutters’ ya asked me fer mah help. Now Ah’m here to offer it to ya, if ya still would have it.”

A wide, triumphant grin spread across the cyan pegasus, who looked as if somepony had just told her she’d been accepted in the Wonderbolts. “Do you even have to ask that?” she replied with a smirk, and she extended her right hoof towards Appeljack. The orange pony didn’t hesitate for a second and locked her own hoof with Rainbow’s, after which the pegasus promptly pulled her in a friendly embrace with her other foreleg. “Glad to have you with us, AJ.”

“Glad to be here. Wouldn’t wanna be anywhere else right now,” Applejack answered. She looked at the rest of her friends and smiled. “Ah guess that makes six of us, don’t it?”

“It does! We’re all together again!” Pinkie piped up from where she sat, and she looked as if she could barely contain her excitement. “You know what this calls for?” she asked, with a mischievous look in her eyes. Before any of her friends could answer, she loudly exclaimed: “A party!”

A shock went through four of the five other mares in the clearing, and they gaped at the pink mare with wide-open jaws. Twilight, Rarity and Applejack immediately noticed that something about the pink pony had changed. She had the biggest of grins on her face, her mane and tail had turned a bright shade of pink and they were poofy and curly, as if she had put her hoof in a steam engine’s power outlet. Fluttershy noticed the changes as well, and all four ponies realised with a start that Pinkie Pie had regained her usual appearance. She looked normal, like how they remembered her to be from their previous lives.

Rainbow Dash, who knew nothing about the many years Pinkie Pie had lived being permanently depressed in this lifetime, didn’t share the amazement of her friends. To her it looked as if Pinkie Pie was simply being Pinkie Pie, something she definitely had missed but wasn’t worth getting all startled and shocked by. She didn’t understand the reaction of the rest of their friends, but decided to let it be for now. She’d ask about it later, when they were on safe ground again.

“I agree the occasion calls for a party in classic Pinkie Pie style, Pinkie,” Rainbow Dash said with a grin. “But this really isn’t the right time or place for it. It’ll have to wait until we’re back in Cantropolis, so I hope you can hold out until then.”

“Sure thing, Dashie! I have more time for planning this way, since I haven’t thrown a party in a looong time, and I wouldn’t be able to throw one here right away anyway, since I don’t have my party cannon. Hmm, note to self: reacquire party cannon.” By the time she spoke her last sentence, the energetic earth pony was no longer even looking at Rainbow Dash, apparently lost within her own mind as she tapped her chin thoughtfully with one of her hooves.

“You wouldn’t believe how much I missed her rambling,” Rainbow Dash whispered quietly to Applejack, trying to look inconspicuous.

“Ah believe ya, sugarcube,” Applejack replied, just as quietly, while looking at her fellow earth pony with a touched smile on her face. To see Pinkie behave as she always had brought forth strong feelings of nostalgia within her that nearly moved her to tears. “We missed it just as much, we did.”

Rainbow Dash frowned at that last bit, not understanding it, but once again decided to ask about it later. She scraped her throat to gain everypony’s attention. “Well, now that AJ is here, I think we’re all set to leave?” she asked, looking at the faces of the ponies assembled around her one by one. When each of them gave a confirmative nod, Rainbow Dash turned to Blood Thorn. “In that case, vice-admiral Rose Thorn, take us to the ship.”

“Yes, admiral, ma’am,” the stallion replied. He closed his eyes again and began to concentrate. The magicite shards in his armour flared to life and fuelled his magic with extra power, which made teleporting a group of ponies this large an easy feat. Much faster than a normal unicorn could, Rose Thorn had charged his spell and released it. There was a loud ‘bang!’ followed by a flash of light, and the seven ponies in the clearing had vanished.

---

A few short but loud knocks on the door of her office made Derpy Hooves look up from the papers she was studying. She placed them down on her desk and gave permission to whoever had knocked on her door to enter. Almost immediately, the door swung open and a royal guard, dressed in the attire of the Lunar guards, walked inside the room, stopping at a respectable distance from the Grand Admiral’s desk.

“Grand admiral, ma’am, we’ve received word from admiral Rainbow Dash,” the guard reported, after he had saluted his superior officer. A raised eyebrow from Derpy bade him to elaborate. “The admiral reports that she has successfully completed her mission and has set course for Cantropolis. She’s estimated to arrive tomorrow afternoon, at five o’clock.”

“I see. That is good news indeed,” Derpy said curtly. She gave the guard a questioning glance with her single eye. “Was there anything else?”

“Yes, ma’am,” the guard confirmed with a short nod of his head. “The admiral also reported that she is bringing along five civilians from the Republic who apparently wish to join our cause. She has requested if you could arrange a meeting with the High Chancellor for them.”

“That is a most unusual request,” the grand admiral said, with a deep frown on her face. She could not fathom why Rainbow Dash would ask it in the first place. Nopony, aside from the steward, the grand admiral and the three admirals, were allowed to know the High Chancellor’s identity, let alone meet her. Rainbow Dash knew this, leaving Derpy puzzled as to why she would ask five Republicans, of all ponies, to meet the High Chancellor. The grand admiral focussed on the guard again. “Did she say why?”

“The admiral said the High Chancellor has expressed a desire to meet these five particular ponies to her in the past, and that the Chancellor would be most delighted to see them,” the guard replied. “She refused to elaborate more in a message.”

“A wise decision,” Derpy admitted. “A message may always be intercepted, so it is wise to keep the details vague until they can be relayed in person.” The grand admiral sighed and rubbed her forehead with one of her hooves. “Very well, I’ll see what I can do about her request. I will talk to the High Chancellor in the morning.” She paused for a moment, then looked at the guard one more. “Was that everything?”

The night guard nodded affirmatively. “Yes, ma’am,” he confirmed.

The grand admiral gave a grunt of approval. “Very well. Thank you for the report. You are dismissed,” she said. The stallion saluted and then left the office, closing the door behind him. Derpy kept staring at the door for a while, lost in thought. She was glad to hear that Rainbow Dash had successfully completed her mission. It was the first good news she had received in a while. The civilians the admiral was bringing along bothered the grey pegasus, however. She didn’t like it when Rainbow Dash did things without informing her of them beforehoof.

Derpy shook her head and sighed again. There was no point in worrying now, she told herself. Rainbow Dash was a capable pony and though she may act rash at times, she had matured enough throughout the years to not do anything stupid that could endanger the entire kingdom. She understood the responsibilities that came with being an admiral and carried out her duties well. She wouldn’t bring anypony to Cantropolis that couldn’t be trusted.

The high commander of the entire royal guard tried to return her attention to the papers on her desk, but gave up after only a few minutes. Her eye hurt and she felt tired. A quick glance at the clock revealed it to be more than three hours past midnight. Due to the upcoming invasion, Derpy hadn’t had a good and long sleep in ages, always working from early in the morning till very late in the night, never getting more than only a few hours of sleep.

“Since Rainbow Dash has succeeded in getting the plans, and our agent in Canterlot already confirmed them to be the genuine thing, I guess it wouldn’t hurt to call it a day for now,” she thought idly. She breathed in deeply and exhaled slowly while climbing out of her office chair. She extinguished the candles on her desk, grabbed her cape from its position on the coat rack and left her office.

Slowly Derpy walked through the dark, quiet castle, occasionally coming across a few night guards patrolling the halls, who saluted her whenever she passed them. She always gave a nod of recognition in return, not wanting her subordinates to think that because she was the grand admiral she was above giving normal soldiers a greeting.

Derpy didn’t think herself better than any other pony because of her rank. She herself had come from humble beginnings as well, a simple mail mare in Ponyville. That she had managed to climb to the highest rank in the guard in only a decade simply proved that every pony could achieve whatever they wanted if they worked hard enough. And worked hard she had, and still did. She wouldn’t rest until she had completed the very objective she had joined the guard for, all those years ago.

She climbed a few stairs and crossed some empty halls until she arrived at her private quarters in the castle. There were no guards stationed at her door, not at night at least, as per her own request. Unceremoniously the dead tired pegasus pushed open the doors and kicked them close again behind her. Derpy stood in a small, short hallway, at the end of which was a spiralling staircase that led to the bedrooms on the floor above. She wanted to go there immediately, when she noticed there was still light coming from beneath the door that led to her living room. Shaking her head, Derpy went there instead.

As she entered the room, she immediately found who she was looking for. “It’s late, Sparkler, you should be sleeping,” Derpy said with mild disapproval. Her single golden eye looked at the royal admiral who was laying on the couch, reading a book with barely any interest in its contents.

The purple-haired unicorn closed the book and sat up, meeting Derpy’s stare evenly with one of her own. “Like you’re one to talk, mom,” Amethyst Star said, with just as much disapproval as Derpy had used against her a moment before. She gestured at the antique grandfather clock that stood against one of the walls. “This is the ninth time in a row that you’ve worked more than an hour past midnight. It’s not healthy. If you continue like this we won’t even need the Republic to knock you out.”

“There’s a grand-scale invasion coming up, sweetheart,” Derpy replied with a sigh, looking sadly at her daughter. They had had this conversation before, and she really didn’t feel like doing it again at this moment.

“And a physical breakdown for you if you keep this up,” Sparkler retorted effortlessly. The unicorn sighed as well, rubbing in her tired eyes. “Have you forgotten that I’ve attended all those strategy meetings about the invasion with you? I’m an admiral, mom, I know what’s at stake. That’s no excuse to hack away at my own health, nor is it for you.”

Derpy remained silent and refused to look at her daughter. She knew Amethyst Star was right, but didn’t want to admit it, so she said nothing. An uneasy silence hung between the two of them, until Derpy decided to break it. “Rainbow Dash sent us a report. She has the plans,” she announced, while studying the curtains as if they were the most fascinating thing in the world.

Sparkler scoffed at her mother’s poor attempt to change the subject, but gave up on trying to pursue it. “That’s good news,” she admitted joylessly. “Guess that means you’ll be working overtime even more now?”

“Somepony has to do it,” Derpy replied, shooting a sharp glare at the unicorn. “I’m the grand admiral. The defence of the kingdom is my responsibility. If we withstand the invasion or fall to it will depend entirely on me and the decisions I take.” The grey pegasus snorted. “Suppose I didn’t, and we fail, what would you have me say? ‘Sorry for making us lose the war, but my daughter made me go to bed on time’.”

“That’s no worse than saying: ‘Sorry for making us lose the war because I was too tired to fight’,” Amethyst Star answered, just as sharply as Derpy. She made a helpless gesture with her hooves and sighed. “I’m worried about you, mother, and about your health,” she added on a softer, gentler tone.

Derpy sighed as well and hung her head. She rubbed her tired eye with her hoof, but the fatigue would not go away so easily. “I know, sweetheart, I know, but I…”

The pegasus was interrupted midsentence by the door of the living room opening again. Mother and daughter both glanced at the door opening, to see a young, small filly standing there. She was the spitting image of Derpy, the only difference being that the filly was a unicorn instead of a pegasus, and she didn’t have a cutie mark yet.

“Mommy, were you and Sparkler arguing again?” the filly asked quietly, her eyes fearful.

Derpy managed to give her youngest daughter a tired smile. “No, my little muffin, mommy is just tired, that’s all,” she said warmly, to try and soothe her child. “Why aren’t you sleeping? It’s waaay past bedtime for little fillies.” The grey pegasus suddenly frowned worriedly. “Could you not sleep? Did you have pain again?”

Dinky Hooves shook her head. “No mommy, the new legs the doctor gave me are a lot better, they don’t hurt anymore,” she replied. The little unicorn walked away from the door and towards her mother, moving out of the shadows and into the light so her body became visible. As they watched her approach them, Derpy and Sparkler had to fight hard to resist the urge to wince and look away.

Amethyst Star had to witness with pain how her little sister, only a filly, limped heavily while making her way to their mother. The reason for that became obvious as soon as anypony looked at Dinky’s right side. Her entire right foreleg was gone, and her right hind leg was missing from beneath the knee. Both had been ripped clean off by an explosion caused by Republican cannon fire, when the young unicorn had been less than a year old, almost a decade ago. The filly’s right side still bore many other hideous scars and burns, which would remain there for the rest of her life.

Dinky’s missing limbs had been replaced by mechanical prostheses, skeletal metal legs embedded with tiny magicite shards filled with a spell that linked the prostheses to the filly’s mind. This allowed her to steer and move them. Prostheses such as these were very new and recent, but still far from perfect. They were ungainly and difficult to move, especially for a pony so young, making walking a difficult struggle for the filly. Running was impossible. Furthermore, because she had lost her legs when she had been naught but a foal, she outgrew her prostheses as her body grew up, causing her pain until they could be replaced.

Derpy met her scarred little muffin halfway and swept her up in a warm, loving hug that only a mother could give. “That’s good to hear,” she said with a smile, flying the two of them over to the couch, where they sat down next to Amethyst Star. “But if your legs weren’t hurting, then why aren’t you in bed, my little muffin?”

Dinky crept close against her mother, burying her face in Derpy’s familiar and comforting grey fur. “I had a scary dream,” she mumbled. “There was fire and noise and it was dark and smoky. I called for you and Sparkler, but you didn’t come and I was all alone…”

“Shh, it’s alright, my little muffin,” Derpy soothed, caressing her child comfortingly over her back. “It was just a dream, it wasn’t real. Mommy and Sparkler will never leave you alone. We’ll always be there for you.”

“Promise?” the filly begged, looking up tearfully in her mother’s kind eye.

Derpy nodded affirmatively. “Promise.”

That seemed to satisfy the small pony, and she snuggled closely against Derpy’s warm figure again. The grey pegasus cuddled her little filly, brushing through Dinky’s mane with her hoof. She carefully avoided touching the mechanical prostheses the Republic had cursed her filly to live with, for she would not be able to bear it. The skeletal legs pained Derpy and Amethyst Star as much as they pained Dinky, and served as a reminder of what they were fighting for every time they saw the little filly struggle to walk with them.

The family Hooves sat together like that for a while, Derpy and Sparkler watching the little unicorn in their midst warmly and lovingly. When Dinky opened her mouth and yawned loudly, Derpy couldn’t help it and laughed.

“I think my little muffin is tired,” she teased, poking Dinky on the nose. The small filly giggled, or at least she tried to, but halfway she got interrupted by another yawn. “Let’s get you to bed, little missy,” Derpy chuckled, and she picked her foal up in her legs while spreading her wings.

“But what about the scary dreams?” Dinky protested, suddenly afraid again.

“Don’t worry about those. Mommy and Sparkler will chase them away,” Derpy replied confidently. “No bad dream will dare to enter the bedroom of the grand admiral’s little muffin!”

Her brave words put the small unicorn at ease, and she snuggled happily against her mother again. After a few seconds, though, Dinky opened her eyes again and hopefully looked up at Derpy. “Will Sparkler tell me a bedtime story?”

The grand admiral cast a questioning glance over her shoulder at her oldest daughter. Amethyst Star merely smiled and nodded. “Of course, anything for my little sister,” she said. Then she got a thoughtful look on her face and tapped her chin with her hoof. “What story should I tell you, though?”

“I want a story about Princess Celestia!” came the immediate, eager reply of Dinky. “Those are my favourite!”

“Of course,” Sparkler said, smiling. She trotted slowly behind her mother, accompanying her as the grey pegasus carried the filly up the stairs and back to her bed. It was extremely late, and Amethyst Star longed to go to bed herself, but she knew that would have to wait. First, she had to tell her dear, beloved little sister a bedtime story, and there could be no better reason to delay her bodily needs than that.

---

Far away from Cantropolis, in the skies above the Everfree Forest, there was another pony who lay wide awake despite the late hour. Twilight Sparkle lay on her back on a small bunk and stared at the wooden ceiling above her. She was tired, to the point of exhaustion even, and yet sleep refused to claim her, despite the fact that she had the most comfortable bed of all of her friends.

When they had arrived on The Wonderbolt, they had quickly been guided towards Rainbow Dash’s cabin, the captain’s quarters of the ship. Though that was the largest room aboard the entire ship, it was still a bit too small to accommodate five ponies. What little furniture there was had been shoved aside to make place on the floor for four makeshift beds, though those were nothing more than a few blankets with a pillow. Given how tired the lot of them had been, however, none had complained. They could have been given just the floor to sleep on, and still they would not have complained, they had only wished to sleep.

Rainbow Dash had surrendered her own bed to one of the friends, saying she wouldn’t be sleeping much tonight anyway. The rest of her friends had unanimously decided that Twilight would get it, given the fact that she was still recovering from some serious injuries. Even Rarity had insisted that Twilight take it, and the lavender unicorn had accepted because she had simply been too tired to argue. Her friends had made themselves as comfortable as possible on the makeshift beds on the floor, and had quickly fallen asleep.

Only Twilight still lay awake. She really wanted to sleep, but couldn’t. She was aboard a royal airship heading towards Cantropolis, the capital of the kingdom. She had chosen a side and was on her way to give whatever aid she could to the royalists. The civil war was rapidly approaching its long awaited climax, and she was going to play a part in it. At long last, she had decided to act, had decided to do her best to aid in the freeing of Princess Celestia.

The injured unicorn looked through the windows of the cabin to the star-filled night sky that was passing by outside. “Don’t worry, Princess,” she whispered quietly to the stars. “From now on, I’m going to do what I can to free you. Just be patient for a little while longer…”

Nopony heard her quiet pledge, but Twilight was fine with that. She let out a deep sigh, and listened absentmindedly to the steady, monotonous humming of the airship’s engines. Her tired eyes kept watching the stars and the beautiful moon, until at long last they closed and Twilight fell asleep.

End of chapter 22.

Comments

[Keeper of Jericho]

I feel great knowing I've trolled you all into thinking Applejack was staying behind.

[SentientHydra]

Applejack's going to be a spy.

I just know it. The evil guys will threaten her family or something and she'll turn traitor

Otherwise, good story bro

[Hoof of Approval]

SHIT JUST GOT REAL ALL SIX IN ONE PLACE PINKIE IS FULL ON HYPERMOAD

This is my face right now:

[Barbecue Sauce]

1219911Successful troll is successful.

Anywho, good chapter! Also nice to see the republic isn't as much of a Villain Sue as I thought, given how it seems they haven't been tracked yet.

[Dead Turtle]

Welp. Forget about what I said then. Applejack is coming after all.

[BrackMadar]

i kinda want to say that the High Chancellor is either Cadence or the spirit of Luna, that chapter where Cadence said that she hope that Shinning would forgive her kinda implies something, and the way you put Alicorns in this story kinda make me thing that Luna body is gone, but as you implied they where mere mortals, more than capable of destroying flesh but i´m not so sure about the spirit, also, i´m digging this foreboding towards Nightmare Celestia

well onwards to the next chapter, maybe i´ll find a couple of answers

[Fury of the Tempest]

... First. You Troll.

Second... that dream is worrying me... worrying me greatly...