Chapter 16: Those We Leave Behind
Ponyville
Applejack winced as Nurse Redheart finished tying the sling in place. “Is this really necessary? It’s just a split horseshoe.”
The white earth pony, looking haggard and tired from helping so many injured ponies, sighed. “We can’t take any chances. I’m already seeing signs of infection from some of the Changeling’s more… personal attacks. Everypony is getting the most treatment they can for every injury.”
Applejack huffed as she adjusted to standing on her three legs. “Well… thanks I guess.”
“No. Thank you.” The nurse shocked Applejack to her core by tilting her head in a small bow. “I saw what you did. I know it was you who stopped those monsters.”
“I-I don’t know what yer talkin’ about.” Applejack hurried away. “You just don’t be blabbin’ to ponies about things you don’t understand, alright?” She hurried away from Redheart and found herself at the base of the fountain where she had rallied the ponies to fight back. She looked into the still clean waters and frowned. There was something about her face she didn’t recognize. She shook her head and looked again. The mystery mare was still there. Her face was harsh and unyielding, yet kind and understanding. Her eyes, though, were hard and unforgiving. “What have I done?” She asked her reflection.
A blue mare joined her reflection and smiled. “You saved us. I don’t know how, but you saved us.”
Applejack sighed heavily and sat on her haunches. She pulled off her hat and looked around at the devastation.
Downtown Ponyville was wrecked. From the Town Hall to the Shopping District, there was damage as far as the eye could see. The flames had finally been doused thanks to timely assistance from Rainbow Dash and the Weather Team conjuring up a brief rainstorm, but now there was the unfortunate side effect of the mud. Now the ponies of Ponyville were shocked, injured, and filthy. Those not recovering in Town Hall or being transported to the hospital wandered the square, eyes wide at the destruction wrought by the Changeling invaders.
“How bad is it?”
“Bad.” Rainbow Dash knew her marefriend wouldn’t appreciate sugar-coating in a situation like this. “Really bad.”
Applejack’s eyes found Rarity, still cuddled up to Spike’s body. “How many?”
“There’s… there’s no way to tell right now.” Dash leaned down and lapped up some water to soothe her dried throat. “Those new Changelings didn’t leave much behind but bones. It’s going to take us weeks to check dental records. Thank Celestia they didn’t get to the hospital.”
Applejack couldn’t help a derisive snort at the alicorn's name.
“Caramel fought off a pair that were raiding the cemetery.”
Applejack turned sharply at the mention of her cousin. “Is he…?”
“He’s fine. He’s with Derpy. They’re going door to door, checking to see who’s still hiding.”
Applejack let out the breath she’d been holding. “What else?”
“They got the Riches. Well, Filthy and Suri.”
“Diamond Tiara?”
“Hiding under the train… which was loaded with everything the Riches owned.”
“Is that so?” Wheels began to spin in Applejack’s head. “What else?”
“Button, Pipsqueak, and Rumble volunteered to check out the manor house. They said there were a ton of tunnels down there.”
“Like an ant's nest.” Applejack muttered. “That’s how they were able to move around.”
“There’s more.” Rainbow Dash took a steadying breath. “They found… cocoons. With ponies in them.”
“And?”
“Some of the ponies were just shell-shocked. They’d only been snatched for a day or two. But some of the others…” She closed her eyes, remembering what Button Mash had described. “They were being converted into Changelings.”
Applejack’s jaw dropped. “Are they…?”
Dash just nodded. “Every single one that was in mid-change is dead. Their cocoons all just exploded and they died right there, screaming.” A tear rolled down Dash’s face. “One of them was Thunderlane.”
“Aw horseapples.” Applejack breathed. “Rumble saw, didn’t he?”
Dash nodded. “Passed out right after. They took him to the hospital already.”
“Who else?”
“Lotus, Lily, Amythest Star, the Puppet Pony, Cup Cake, Mr. Quills, Featherweight…”
“Stop.” Applejack held out a hoof. “Please.”
“There’s more.”
“A'course there is.” Applejack leaned her head against the fountain. The cool stone comforted her somewhat. "Why wouldn't there be?"
“There’s a group of colts and fillies missing. Fluttershy said the last time she saw them, they were being taken to the school-house by Cheerilee. Crescendo volunteered to go check on them.”
Applejack looked over at the Town Hall again. A colt and a filly were sleeping on a cart next to a snoozing pair of mares. “Is that the Cake Twins over there with Lyra and Bon Bon?”
“Yeah. They volunteered to watch them until we find Carrot Cake.”
“We just found Carrot Cake.” Fluttershy joined her best friend and sister-in-law by the fountain. She lapped at the water and sighed.
“Well?” Applejack pressed her. “Where is he?”
“A-all… all over the place.” Fluttershy broke down, sobbing loudly. Her tears fell into the fountain like raindrops.
Dash pulled her close and shushed her. “It’s gonna be okay Flutters. You’ve done enough searching for right now. Why don't you go check on Mac.”
Fluttershy sniffled, nodded, and was gone with a flap of her wings.
“Is Mac okay?”
Dash nodded. “He’s gonna be scarred. And his right eye’s gone. But he’ll make it.” Dash looked down at her soot and blood spattered fur. “We took a beating on this one, AJ.”
“Some of us more than others.” Applejack was looking again at Rarity and Spike…
…when Twilight Sparkle appeared before her in a flash of light.
“I came as soon as I saw the smoke. Well, not as soon as I saw the smoke. I went to Cloudsdale first to see if I could bring some rain but it looked like they had that covered. Then I…”
Applejack stopped the alicorn’s babbling with a hoof. "Twilight. Breathe."
Twilight pushed the hoof away and looked at the ruined town. “What happened here?”
“Changelings happened, Twilight.” Dash shook her head disbelievingly. “Where have you been? We really could have used you back there.”
“Changelings? But how? I mean…” Something in Dash’s tone stuck in Twilight’s craw. “Well, if you needed me so badly, then why didn’t you send a letter through Spike?”
Applejack and Rainbow Dash shared a look.
“Come to think of it, where is that dragon? He should’ve known to alert me as soon as he…” Twilight noticed the two mares were no longer looking at her, but behind her. She turned and saw the huge purple mass laying in the mud being attended to by a white unicorn. “…Spike?”
“Twilight…” Applejack reached for her but she was already gone, winking across the courtyard in another flash of light.
Twilight reached a hoof towards Spike even as her eyes remained focused on the burn wounds across his chest. “Spike?” She touched his scales and she was thrown back to her first days in Celestia’s school. She remembered the baby dragon cooing under her desk as she snuck him small gems during lectures. There had always been a latent heat to Spike’s scales, even then.
They were so cold now.
“Spike?” Twilight’s face caved in on itself as the tears came.
Rarity twitched at the sounds of Twilight’s crying. She pulled her head away from Spike’s body and stared at Twilight with something like amazement. “Twilight? Is that you?” The amazement quickly faded into suspicion.
And then to anger.
With a cry of rage, Rarity tackled the purple alicorn into the mud. Twilight offered no resistance as the seamstress began slapping at her face with her hooves. “Where were you?!” Rarity demanded. She grabbed Twilight’s shoulders and started shaking her. “He would still be here if you’d been here to help us. IF YOU HAD BEEN HERE, HE'D STILL BE ALIVE! WHERE WERE YOU?!” She was screaming now, her running mascara painting a mask on her face. “WHERE… where were…?” She fell onto Twilight’s chest and started sobbing into her fur.
Twilight, who had not stopped crying, just wrapped her hooves around her friend and held her tight.
Applejack and Rainbow Dash turned away from the crying mares and leaned on each other. They closed their eyes and took a moment to calm their nerves. They breathed deep, trying to relax...
But every breath filled their muzzles with the smell of smoke and death.
"How's the farm?" Applejack asked.
"Nopony's checked it."
Applejack started and climbed to her hooves. "Land's sake, Dash; Applebloom and Scarlet are out there!"
"Relax, AJ." Dash rolled her eyes. "I highly doubt any of those monsters made it all the way out there. I'm sure they're fine."
Applejack adjusted her hat and began trotting towards her family home. "Somepony should still go make sure."
"Want me to come with?" Dash flapped her wings and floated alongside her marefriend.
Applejack shook her head. "You stay here and keep an eye on things. Keep getting the injured to the hospital." The wheels involving the Rich Family continued to spin in her mind. "And send somepony to search Filthy Rich's office. See if they can find the deed to the manor he sold that King fella. I'll be back in a jiff." She kissed the pegasus lightly and gave her a reassuring smile. "I love you."
Dash returned the smile. "I love you too." She stopped and watched as the mare started galloping towards Sweet Apple Acres as fast as she could manage with only three usable hooves.
"Rainbow Dash? Is that you? Or another winged mare with a coat of blue?"
Dash turned in amazement to see Zecora exiting the perimeter of the Everfree Forest. The zebra adjusted the satchel hanging from her neck and stared at the damage to Ponyville in shock and disbelief. Dash flew over to her and pulled her into a quick hug. "I was getting worried about you, Zecora."
"Worried? About me? The scared one should be me." She gestured at the town. "I have never seen such devastation. Tell me; responsibility falls to what creation?"
"Changelings. They were different than the ones we faced before. We... we lost more than a few ponies."
"We will mourn the lost and toast to their names." The zebra put a hoof on Dash's shoulder. "But now it seems one problem remains."
"What's that?"
"A ghastly commotion called me from my hut. I followed the trees and the path that I cut. I found something strange, maybe you can tell me; would you know who these ponies might be?" She gestured into the woods behind her.
Dash watched as dozens of ponies nervously stepped into the light. They were emaciated, like they hadn't eaten in weeks. They were skittish, their movements quick and unsure.
Most of them were children.
Seeing Dash's confused face, Zecora reached into her satchel. "They were surrounded by pieces like these." She removed a large chunk of thin black armor from the bag and held it out for Dash to touch. "The feel of it fills me with a sense of unease."
Dash touched the armor and shuddered at the texture. "Zecora." She looked at the motley gathering of ponies. "I think they're the Changelings."
///////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////
Crescendo was sure that his heart stopped when he turned the last corner and saw the body laying out in front of Ponyville's school-house.
The unicorn bolted the rest of the way, not heeding the burning in his lungs or the pain in his still very sore legs. He slid to a stop a few feet from the body.
The fuchsia mare lay face down in the dirt, her fur patched and ripped from a number of bites. The breeze ruffled her tattered mane. The ground beneath her was soaked in blood. The earth surrounding her looked freshly moved, evidence of something rising from beneath and returning to the depths. He considered rolling her over, to see if her lovely face was locked in peace or anguish, but decided against it.
Crescendo sighed and let his head droop. "Oh, Cheerilee..."
"Dad?"
Crescendo looked up sharply and saw his Diminuendo standing in the open doorway of the school-house. He ran up the stairs and pulled his son into a hug. "Dimmy!" He pulled back and looked over him for injuries. "Are you alright?"
The colt sniffled and nodded, reaching a hoof under his cracked glasses to wipe at his eyes. "Miss Cheerilee saved us."
For the first time Crescendo noticed the group of young ponies hiding under their desks in the room's center. Some were crying. Others had already cried themselves to sleep. He looked back to his son. "What happened?"
"They attacked us right when we got here. Miss Cheerilee pushed us all inside and told us to hide." Tears began to run from the little unicorn's eyes. "S-she fought them, Dad. Th-they were trying to g-get inside the door b-b-but she blocked it with her body and she fought them. She m-managed to fight them off the porch. Sh-she kept screaming that she wouldn't let them get to us. And then two more showed up and-and-and..." Dimmy broke down completely as he remembered the horrible scene just before the plants had come out of the ground just moments too late.
Crescendo held his weeping son and patted his back until the initial storm had passed. He stood Dimmy up and ruffled his mane. "You go and sit with your friends. I need... I need to tend to Miss Cheerilee."
Dimmy nodded and rejoined the group.
Crescendo searched the room and quickly found a large tarp typically used to cover the chalkboard during summer. He carried it outside and spread it over the teacher's body. Electing not to use his magic, he carefully tucked in the edges and rolled the stiff mare into the protective cloth. He sat heavily beside and and knelt his head in reverence. "Thank you... for my son. You were an incredible mare, Cheerilee." He kissed his hoof and put it on her head. "Dies autem, magister. Ut flores requiem tuam. Ut non obliviscar nomen tuum. Ut non obliviscar tui. Requiescat in pace."
The stallion was ashamed that no matter how he tried, the tears would not come.
After today, he found he had no more tears to shed.
///////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////
The first thing that struck Applejack about Sweet Apple Acres was the quiet.
There was no birdsong, no ambient farm noise, nothing at all. Just dense silence.
She made her way to the front door of the house and started breathing fast when she saw that it was already cracked. She gave it a nudge and it swung wide.
The living room was in shambles. The walls were lousy with holes. Splashes of blood, red and green, stained the wood everywhere from floor to ceiling. Furniture was flipped and broken into kindling.
She stifled a scream as something snapped and a black shape fell to the floor in front of her. It was one of the heavy Changelings. It stared at her with bulging eyes. The rope that had been holding it to the ceiling fan was still wrapped around its broken neck. She glanced up and saw the broken blade of the ceiling fan that had been holding the beast.
Whining came from under the couch.
Applejack lowered herself and peeked under the suspiciously untouched piece of furniture.
Ryder and Willow saw her and wagged their tails. Between them, fast asleep, was Winona. Snuggled up to her, also asleep, was Scarlet.
"Oh thank Celestia." Applejack exhaled before she could stop herself. She looked at the younger dogs. "Where's Applebloom? Where's Judd?"
The dog's tails stopped wagging and their ears drooped. They looked towards the kitchen.
Applejack quickly and stood and headed across the room. She noticed the trail of blood stretching from the living room rug to the tiled kitchen floor, like something had been dragged...
Her breath caught in her throat as she crossed the threshold of the kitchen.
Applebloom was on her side, Judd cradled in her forelegs. Winona's oldest whined pitifully. Applebloom's ribbon was tied around his front left leg, the fur caked with dried blood.
The yellow mare shushed him and stroked his head. She looked up and smiled weakly at Applejack. "He fought so good, AJ. He saved me and..." Applebloom looked at the living room in panic. "Is Scarlet...?"
"She's fine." Applejack hurried across the room and knelt by her sister's side. She took the dog from Applebloom and hugged him close, minding his injury. "Good boy, Judd. Let me check on Applebloom, okay?"
The dog licked her face and managed to wag his tail twice.
Applejack set him down and bent to look her sister over. The younger mare was covered in scratches and bites, but nothing appeared too deep...
"I'm glad you showed up when you did." Applebloom chuckled. "I was... I was gettin' kinda light headed."
"You've always been a little airhead." Applejack laughed as she went to push Applebloom up so she could check her other side. "Why should today be any... any..." Applejack's mind went blank when she saw the jagged, still bleeding tear in Applebloom's side.
"One of 'em got me pretty good while I was hoisting his brother up to the fan." Applebloom coughed and a light spatter of blood went flying. "Can't be too bad, right? I mean, I can barely feel it." She chuckled again. "Can't barely feel anything right about now, actually."
Applejack stared at the pooling blood, only now aware that she was kneeling in a spreading pool of the sticky liquid. Her mind raced, trying to figure out what to do. She needed to plug the hole, needed to stop the bleeding... She snatched the hat from her head and pushed it towards the wound.
Applebloom pushed her hoof away with what little strength she had left. "Don't get blood on Pa's hat, AJ. What's wrong with you?"
Applejack tossed the hat away and tried to heft her sister onto her back. "C'mon, little bit. We've gotta get you to town. We've gotta get you to somepony who can help you."
"I read the journal, AJ."
Applejack stopped struggling with her sister's dead weight and collapsed next to her. She pulled her head into her lap and stroked her mane. "I... I told you not to..."
"I know." Applebloom sighed. "But I had to know." She looked up at Applejack, her eyes cloudy. "Why, AJ? Why didn't you tell me?"
"Because I didn't want to know. It's a damn curse, is what it is!"
"Applejack... you saved everypony. When I saw those vines, I knew it was you." She sighed happily. "You saved us."
"You saved Scarlet, little bit. You were so brave." Applejack sniffled. "I'm so proud of you."
Applebloom smiled and closed her eyes.
A breeze pushed the kitchen door open. It came from the older part of the orchard, bearing the smell of apples.
The wind brushed through Applebloom's mane with a caress not unlike the gentle touch of a mother. She opened her eyes and looked in confusion at the door. "Applejack?"
"Yeah?"
"Who's that pony in the door?"
Applejack looked up but saw nothing but an empty doorway.
Applebloom looked at the mystery mare in confusion... then smiled wide in understanding. "...Mama?"
Applejack felt the wind die as Applebloom went limp in her forelegs.
The mare pulled her sister close and wept into her mane. "You come back, little bit. You come back right this instant. You can't go. You can't." She whispered into the red curls and remembered how she had held her that first night out in the orchard. How small she had been. "I promised Ma I'd protect you. I promised. Come back, little bit. Please come back. I can't lose you too. I can't... lose..."
Her words faded into unintelligible, wracking sobs.
The smallest of smiles remained frozen on the cold face of Applebloom Apple.
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this is terrible
7480339 Care to, ah, elaborate?
That was quick. Good thing too, after that blog post.
Well, shoot.
Guess the worst wasn't quite over.
...On the other hand, it's bittersweetly convenient that Crescendo and Rarity have both lost their love interests.
7480341 stories that just slaughter everybody are terrible.
Is that clearer?
7480345 I think you're taking this the wrong way. I'm not 'slaughtering everybody.' Every death in this story, no matter how small, is a necessary evil in some form or fashion. Patience will be rewarded, as longtime readers will tell you. I have a habit of tying things together nicely in the long run.
7480343 I told you. I told you there was one more. NOW the healing can begin.
7480356 there's no such thing as necessary evil, and characters I like aren't chess pieces and tying things together doesn't bring characters back
So, um, that's a very long list of very dead ponies.
Yeah, uh, even with no context of the greater story, I have to admit that I'm finding it very hard to remain neutral on this. Just as the characters I know them as, these are not characters that I would expect to just randomly find dead.
And yes, I know it's bad form to read the latest chapter of something with no wider context.
I actually understand the nessesity of all the se deaths, i suppose happy ending are great and all, but life is not like that, i would be upset if no important character had died on the last chapters....
Holy crap this entire arc.
AB too?? Geez! :(
7484002 ...Yes.
Damnit. I knew it was coming and I still cried.