Their Fates
Scootaloo yawned, looking through the window of the train. The station behind was Canterlot, but she wasn’t going to leave the train there. On the opposite seat, Archer was solving a crossword in her newspaper.
“A form of dungeon only accessible from a hatch in a high ceiling?” Archer asked.
“Oubliette,” Scootaloo replied. “It was on my word of the day calendar last week.”
Archer nodded and wrote the word into her crossword. “Why are we even going to Baltimare?” she asked.
“It’s simple,” Scootaloo said. “Sweetie Belle’s New Years’ Eve show.”
“Is it why you told me to take a crossbow?”
“Louder...” Scootaloo muttered. “There’s a lot of ponies in this carriage who didn’t hear you yet...” She shook her head.
Archer looked around, but saw that nopony was listening to them. Not many ponies were travelling anywhere just a few days after the Hearth’s Warming Eve. “You’re overreacting, Scoots... The thing is, I have a feeling that we’re gonna get in trouble. After all, the whole Baltimare is looking for Babs now, huh?”
“Yes, but it has nothing to do with that,” Scootaloo said. “We’re just going to a show...”
“I can shoot her drummer,” Archer muttered. “Sweet Celestia, this guy is fugly...”
“If everything goes well, you won’t have to shoot anypony.” Scootaloo sighed and lowered her voice to a whisper. “We’re going to catch Featherweight’s killer...”
Archer smirked and patted the bag lying next to her on the seat, where she kept her crossbow. “That’s something I approve of, cousin,” she said. “Let’s do this...”
The train kept going through the snowy plains.
Lightning Dust sighed and looked around the old barn full of empty crates and remains of rotten cherries. The sweet smell was permeating the air. “Okay,” she said. “I guess we’ll have to set some house rules...”
“More like barn rules...” Babs muttered, chuckling. She was sitting on a crate, watching Diamond Tiara lying on her coat. She saw Diamond had bags under her bloodshot eyes, yet she hadn’t seen her sleeping since they’d met Lightning Dust. She wondered if it was healthy.
“Rule one: Babs doesn’t play a smartass...” Lightning Dust deadpanned. “Anyway, one of us has to go to the town to get food and meds for Diamond... We can’t guard her all the time...”
“Yeah, goin’ to the town will be easy...” Babs said. “After all, only three of us are wanted...”
Lightning Dust approached her. She was only slightly taller than Babs, but when she looked into her eyes, Babs backpedalled. “One more remark and I’ll add a nice bruise to that collection of burns... Where did you get that? Steam from the boat?”
“Yeah...” Babs muttered, scratching her face. The burns were itching and she could barely contain herself from screaming.
“How typical of you...” Lightning Dust shook her head. “Putting your hoof between the door... Touching the pipes to check if they’re hot... Doing first, thinking later. If ever.”
“Fuck off,” Babs spat. “Don’t ya remember what happened to me?”
“What that has to do with anything?” Lightning Dust asked, rolling her eyes. “Also, rule number two: no swearing, rule number three: no playing the victim. You seem to forget how much shit you did in your life, starting with–”
“So, I deserved that, right?” Babs ran to Lightning Dust, tears welling in her eyes. “You think it was my fault that those guys–”
“I didn’t say that,” said Lightning Dust coldly. “That is only his fault. His death is my fault. Mugging ponies... Drug delivery... Murder... Those are your fault. Think about it, Babs. And don’t tell me that you had no choice.”
“I hadn’t!” Babs exclaimed. “It’s a jungle, Dust. Only the strongest survive...” She inhaled the air to add something, but before she could open her mouth, she was interrupted by Lightning Dust’s hoof hitting the burnt side of her face. The pain stunned her; she fell off the crate and hit the ground, groaning. She got up and charged at Lightning Dust blindly. The pegasus took off, somersaulted above Babs’ head, and hit her in the back of the head, sending her on the ground again.
“Stop it!” Diamond Tiara screamed. She tried to get up, but then her legs gave up and she collapsed back on her coat. Her eye twitched; she tried to move, but her hooves were stiff.
Babs rolled on her back, rubbing her face and muttering curses under her breath.
“The strongest, huh?” Lightning Dust panted. “I’m sorry, Babs, but I had to use an argument you’d understand.” She offered her hoof to Babs.
“Blow me.” Babs stood up by herself and trotted, limping, to the other corner of the barn.
“No way,” Lightning Dust muttered. “You didn’t deserve such a pleasure.”
Babs said nothing.
“I’ll look after Diamond till the night comes,” Lightning Dust said. “Then I’ll go to Dodge Junction to look for those meds and you’ll be checking if Diamond doesn’t want to kill anypony.”
If Babs heard that, she didn’t show that.
“It was really nice to meet you too...” Lightning Dust sighed.
Diamond Tiara could barely catch a breath. She rolled on her back; it felt as if Curtain Call was sitting on her chest.
“Let me tell you one more time,” Curtain Call said. “You’re getting up only when I tell you. Got it?”
“I... I thought you wanted to kill Babs...” Diamond Tiara muttered.
“But not when this featherbrain is watching,” Curtain Call replied. “Have you seen what she did to Babs? She’d change us into a red and pink spot on the floor in no time.”
“So what are we gonna do?” Diamond Tiara asked, trying to free herself.
“We’ll wait till the night...” Curtain Call whispered into her ear.
With a silent click, Babs opened her knife. She remained motionless in the corner of the barn, trying to be as quiet as possible. Lightning Dust had left only recently and she could still come back at any moment. Diamond Tiara also wasn’t making any sound. Babs clenched her hoof on her knife and slowly lifted her head.
Two’s a company, three’s a crowd, she thought. But I’d rather be alone...
She turned her head to check out the rest of the barn. In the dim light she saw the silhouette of Diamond Tiara still in the same place where she’d been before. Babs looked carefully if nopony was lurking in the shadows and got up.
Fuck Lightning Dust, I’m goin’ to Hayseed Swamps. Babs took the first step. The ground and rotting hay were muffling her hoofsteps, but she had to be careful. Diamond Tiara looked like she was sleeping, but Babs knew that insomnia was one of her symptoms. Also, Diamond’s hearing was perfect.
Babs stopped few feet from Diamond Tiara and took a deep breath. Then she jumped forward, rising her hoof and lowered it, stabbing the lying lump, covered by the red coat.
She almost tripped, feeling much less resistance than she expected. The knife’s blade nailed the coat to the ground. Babs looked at it and felt her innards freeze when she saw several straws of hay protruding from below the fabric. She reached to retrieve her knife, when a powerful kick sent her rolling on the floor. She smashed the old crate and skid to a halt. Every breath was like a needle piercing her side. She was sure some of her ribs were bruised, maybe even fractured, but she had no time for checking them.
She darted to the side and saw her own knife swinging inches from her. She didn’t wait for another attack; letting out a powerful scream, she tackled Diamond Tiara. The knife fell out of Diamond’s hoof. Babs felt that she had an upper hoof; she could feel that Diamond was not even half as fit as her. She could thrash and smack her with her hooves as much as she wanted; Babs’ body survived much worse.
It didn’t mean, however, that Babs was going to let Diamond Tiara beat her. She headbutted her, feeling her burns explode with pain. However, when she raised her head, she smirked, seeing blood pouring from Diamond Tiara’s nose. She raised her foreleg and hit her again, feeling Diamond’s teeth cracking under her hoof. Panting heavily, Babs punched Diamond again and put her hoof on Diamond’s throat.
“I’m done with ya...” she muttered through gritted teeth. “See ya in Tartarus, psycho...”
Diamond thrashed, trying to catch a breath.
“Don’t worry...” Babs whispered. Her vision was darkening; the wounds she’d received were taking their toll. “Soon I’ll send Lightning to ya... Ya’ll have eternity to talk...”
Diamond Tiara thrashed, causing Babs to release her for a moment. Before Babs managed to grab her again, she caught a breath and landed a surprisingly nasty right hook on Babs’ temple. Babs staggered, but held Diamond firmly, leaning closer to her.
“Ya’re right...” she panted. “Pests like ya need to be killed quick...”
She turned back and reached for her knife. Before she could grab it, she felt Diamond Tiara sliding from under her.
Then, Babs screamed. Her vision blacked out completely for a moment. She collapsed on the ground and lay there in a fetal position, trying to catch her breath.
Diamond Tiara spat on the ground. A mix of snot, blood, and saliva was running down her face. “You didn’t think being kicked there only works on colts?” She chuckled. “Oh wait, you know something about that...”
Babs tried to get up, only to almost throw up, when the world started to spin around her. Her mouth was completely dry. Diamond Tiara limped towards her. The knife was out of her reach. Diamond Tiara stood on her hind legs, ready to crush Babs’ skull under her hooves.
Babs closed her eyes, thinking about White Dove and Carnation. Would she see them again? Or maybe she’d have to spend the eternity with Golden Sunset, Raspberry, Jet Set, all those ponies and griffons she’d killed? She didn’t exactly believe in afterlife, but that perspective scared her. Just having to look into their dead eyes would be too much for her. When she thought about it, she realised that it wouldn’t be better even if she met White Dove and Carnation.
She felt a cold wind. So, that’s how dying feels like? she thought. Then she heard the sound of something heavy hitting the ground. Another sound of a hoof hitting something and everything went silent.
“Babs, you okay?” Lightning Dust asked.
Babs opened her eyes and groaned. “I’m okay...” she tried to roll on her stomach, only to bite her lip when she lay on her injured ribs. “Or maybe not... How’s Diamond?”
“I think I knocked her out...” Lightning Dust poked Diamond Tiara with her hoof. “But she’s breathing. I have meds for her. When she wakes up, she might be a little hazy... I have no idea if we can give them to her just like that, but I guess we’ll have to try.”
Babs nodded. Her vision was darkening again. The pain between her hind legs was unbearable.
“I also took some things useful if we’re going to stay here... I even thought about your burns.” Lightning Dust continued. “Bandages, antibiotics, vitamins...” She looked at Babs. “It seems that painkillers will be useful...”
The show was great. Even Scootaloo, who didn’t usually listen to that kind of music, loved it. After all, Sweetie Belle was her friend. Archer, on the other hoof, liked everything she could dance to, so she enjoyed it greatly. Now they were trotting through the crowd of ponies.
“Where are we going?” Archer asked.
“First to the cloakroom to retrieve your bag,” Scootaloo replied. After a few attempts of pushing herself through the crowd, she took off, causing her cousin to utter something that sounded like “unfair”. Not that it made it any easier; several other pegasi already got that idea.
“And then?” Archer asked, when she finally found a way through the crowd.
“Next stop, backstage,” Scootaloo replied.
“We’re gonna meet Sweetie Belle and find a few new uses for my crossbow with her?” Archer laughed.
“I guess Button wouldn’t be happy about that...” Scootaloo said. Not that he’ll be happy after what we’ll do tonight... she thought.
“Oh, come on.” Archer rolled her eyes. “I’ve met him. I’m sure he enjoys such stuff...” She suddenly made a serious expression. “Yeah, that... And he seemed so cute...”
“Exactly.” Scootaloo sighed.
Archer took her bag and they went out of the building. They circled it and stood in the dark backyard, hidden in the shadow of the wall. The air smelled of rubbish and alcohol.
They were waiting for ten minutes. Archer took her crossbow out of her bag and loaded it. She grabbed it with her mouth and aimed it at the ground, making sure that the safety was on. She knew the plan – it was their last resort.
Suddenly, Scootaloo patted Archer’s back and pointed at the dark silhouette approaching the club’s backdoor. She prepared a torch, her hoof on the switch.
“Now,” she whispered, turning the torch on and blinding a pony in front of them. He covered his eyes with his hoof and backpedalled. Archer aimed her crossbow at him.
Scootaloo smiled grimly when she saw who he was. She expected it, but still it was a shock for her. “Hello,” she said, trying to keep her voice steady. “Don’t move. You know Archer can be a bit trigger-happy sometimes.”
The pony said nothing, looking at Scootaloo, his mouth agape.
“Now you’ll tell us...” Scootaloo’s voice faltered, “Why did you kill Featherweight...”
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Oh! That cliffhanger!
And I think I speak for everypony when I say we all saw that fight between Diamond and Babs coming from a mile away...
5224215
Yeah, sooner or later it just had to happen...
I do hope Dusty listens to DT's side.
Who killed Featherweight? How long will we have to wait to find out?
5226130
I was planning to focus the next chapter entirely on Babs, Diamond, and Lightning Dust, but I eventually decided against it...
Why is Babs still dragging DT along anyways? She's already figured out that DT is a burden. Were I Babs, I'd tell her some crap about making a break for Griffonia, then leave her unconscious on a police station doorstep. And then haul ass for Zebrica.
5233003
Spoilered because it's in the next chapter:
Babs thinks that if Diamond was found in Dodge Junction, it'd be clear that they're not in Baltimare.
bout the only one who doesnt want to kill the others is Lightning Dust. i don't get what Babs said she was going to kill Lightning to? I mean some gratitude. Actually thats pretty par for the course for Babs. Thats how she treated DT and Silver Spoon in canon after betraying her own family and then turning back to them.
I really REALLY HATE Babs Seed!