Felled

by RazgrizS57

Chapter IV

When I reached the outskirts of the town, I appeared at the edge of a small cottage bordering the forest. The thunder and lightning had kept up, but the wind and rain had settled down a bit. They weren’t as harsh as they had been, but my fur had already been soaked and my hooves muddied. The cloak didn’t seem to do anything to protect me, but I still wore it to conceal myself in the darkness. Night was already here, because I could see the thick of the village ahead of me, and more than half of the buildings were lightless. The cottage, however, was still alive.

I stalked low in the grass on the edge of the property. Inside, there was a pegasus walking around with a bag of seed. She was probably feeding her pets. It took me a second to realize who she was, and another to remember she was one of Twilight’s closest friends. In addition, she bore one of the Elements of Harmony. His Highness didn’t give me any express orders about her. He wanted Twilight so the Elements of Harmony would be unable to function. But wouldn’t they collapse if I removed any one of them?

No, His Highness wanted Twilight specifically. I wondered if I could use her friend for leverage, to better convince her to join our side. But after some thought, I decided against it. She’d be an unnecessary complication, one way or another, especially if it came to bringing Twilight back. I should just do what I’d been told to do.

I think her pet—or one of them, I guess—spotted me, standing there on the windowsill. A little white rabbit with a hard look in its eyes. That was my signal to get going. I turned and left the cottage, heading straight into the town. Even though most of the buildings were quiet, that didn’t mean I couldn’t be noticed, an oddity against the flat streets and straight walls. Most of them probably wouldn’t think twice if they saw me, taking me for just another townspony minding their own business, but I made an effort to stick to the shadows anyhow. That reminded me to reposition my wings beneath my cloak, since alicorns are a bit of a rarity. I hoped nopony saw me before then. What is with my lack of foresight lately? I cursed myself and quickened my pace towards the center of town, where the library stuck out like the horn on my head. I snuck up to the front door to find it locked. As if that mattered; I waited for a crack of lightning and quickly teleported inside.

It was dark; Twilight was probably sleeping, if... if she was here, and not called in to Canterlot by the princesses to help with their planning. Regardless, I had to start somewhere. This was where she lived. I bet I’d find something here to point me to where she’d gone here, or could devise some reason to bring her back. An injured friend perhaps? Suddenly revisiting that cottage seemed like an appealing idea. But first, look around here.

I used a simple spell to light my horn, illuminating the foyer in a gentle blue light. I took the cloak off my back and started wringing the water out of it, and I took a few absent steps towards the center of the room, when suddenly all the lights came on.

“Cadance?”

I snapped my head back and blinked in surprise, but quickly steeled myself and turned towards her voice. Twilight Sparkle stood at the top of a staircase, her mane disheveled but otherwise she was wide awake. Her eyes were filled with just as much surprise as mine had, but unlike me she kept it, twisting the expression with a bout of confusion.

“What are you...” she started, struggling for words. “Why... ar-are you okay? Is something wrong?” she asked, concern clear in her tone. “What happened to you?”

Perhaps that was why I had kept my guard down lately; after some thought, I wasn’t expecting to fight. Of course Twilight would be so unassuming, as she always was. I didn’t turn my back on Equestria until His Highness showed me how bitter they truly were. As far as she knows, we were still the best of friends. Maybe we still were. But she was a threat to the Empire, whether she knew it or not, and one way or another, I had to ensure that changed. I parted my soaked mane out of my face and returned the wrinkled cloak to my back. I chuckled dryly and said, “Oh, I just had a run-in with a pack of timberwolves...”

But before I could continue, she had already descended the stairs. “Oh my goodness,” she interrupted, running up to me. “Are you hurt? Why are you—”

I extended a hoof and caught her at the breast. She stopped and nearly tripped into me. “Quiet, Twilight,” I hissed. “I am fine. But this doesn’t concern me. I’m here to take you home.”

“Home?” Twilight whispered, nonplussed, as if it was her first time saying the word. “I’m not... what? Cadance, what’s going on?”

“The Crystal Empire is under threat from Equestria’s princesses,” I told her, restraining myself. She frowned in confusion at that, but held her tongue, settling to stare at me quietly. I continued. “As you know, the Empire returned just a few short months ago.”

“We fought to safekeep the crystal heart from King Sombra,” Twilight said, her gaze stern but worried. “We won.”

“...correct,” I conceded after a pause. “But... no, no no. The Empire barely survived the—our defense, and it’s still but a figment of the majesty it once embodied long ago. We have yet to truly recover, to assemble a proper army, and were Equestria to attack us now, in all likelihood we wouldn’t stand a chance. So I need you, Twilight, to come back with me, to the Empire, and help ensure it never falls again.”

Twilight’s brow furrowed, her confusion seeming to deepen. “Why would Equestria attack the Crystal Empire?” she asked.

“To assure their dominance in the region?” I offered. “Whatever the princesses’ motives are is pointless. What’s certain is they won’t sit quiet until one of their surrogates sits atop the Crystal throne.”

“Surrogates?” Twilight asked, scrunching her nose. She shook her head and said, “But the Crystal Empire is already led by...” Her breath caught in her throat and she staggered a step back. “Kuh... King Sombra?”

I nodded, but I couldn’t help but frown at her reaction. “My loyalties lie with His Highness, and he is the rightful ruler of the Empire.”

“B-but we defeated him!” she exclaimed. “You defeated him with the crystal heart! He exploded and everything! How can he be back? He can’t! Why is he...!” Her pupils turned to pinpricks and she stared at me, her voice going quiet. “Where’s my brother? Why are you here?”

I took a step forward. “His Highness wishes for me to persuade you to come join us, Twilight. And if you can’t be persuaded...” I withdrew my sabre and floated it up off to the side. The red blade sparked to life. “Well, I’m really hoping I can persuade you.”

“What’s tha... How...” She stumbled backwards, searching for a thing to say. She tripped over herself and fell onto her rump, nonetheless she kept scooting back. “C-Cadance, snap out of it! You’re not yourself! This isn’t the pony I know!”

“My name is Anmity now,” I hissed at her. “I am only doing what is necessary! The Elements of Harmony are an insurmountable threat to the Empire, and one way or another, they must be removed from Equestria’s disposal. I will do whatever it takes to protect my Empire and His Highness.”

“King Sombra is gone!” Twilight yelled. I didn’t even think she knew what she was yelling at, seemingly on the verge of turning into a sniveling mess. She backed into the far wall and continued to ramble, “He’s gone! There’s no possible way he could have returned! How... how did you... how did he...”

“Twilight...” I mused, steadily approaching her, the tip of my sabre burning a line in the floor behind me. “His influence is already inside you,” I said, pointing a hoof at her. “You know this. The dark magic burns within you like an ember, waiting to become a fire.”

I think she bit her tongue. “Dark magic?” she whispered, and her eyes went wide. “N-no, that’s not... that’s...” She waved her hooves at me. “Under the throne room, there’s a door. Cadance, there’s a door. Did you a-at all open it?”

I frowned at her. “What are you getting at?”

“Y-you’re just sick!” she blurted. A shaky smile appeared on her lips and she tried to stand. “That’s it! King Sombra’s magic must still be infused with that door! You’re only seeing what he wants you to see! I-I—we just need to fix that and everything will go back to normal!”

I leveled my sabre at her, and she fell back against the wall. “I’m not playing games with you, Twilight. I still have a bit of heart for you, but insulting His Highness and trying to goad me into treason makes that heart run still.”

Sweat started trickling off her. “Cadance...” she murmured, glancing around the room. “Don’t do this, please...”

“I’m giving you one last chance, Twilight,” I said with a sigh. “Come join us or—”

If I hadn’t already had my sabre drawn, I probably would’ve been blown back against the room. Twilight suddenly gathered an enormous draw of magic into the tip of her horn and let all out in my direction in a single, awesome beam. I threw the sabre in front of myself and it absorbed the entirety of the attack, but all that power still pushed into me. I slid across the floor, leaving gouges in the hardwood with my hooves. As soon as the attack ceased, I could see the wild fear in Twilight’s eyes. She leveled her horn for another strike, but I was already running up to her.

I grabbed her by the leg with a hoof and tossed her at a bookshelf. But her spell turned into a teleport and she appeared right behind me, running. I dodged her easily and twisted, removing my cloak with a burst of magic and throwing it into her face. She stumbled and I pulled back on the cloak, causing her to trip and fall. Her head popped out from beneath, gasping for breath, and I kept the cloak wrapped around her neck and pinned her to the floor. Her legs waggled uselessly, fighting for traction but she just couldn’t even bring herself to stand.

“Quit squirming,” I hissed at her, walking up to the tip of her nose. Silence fell except for the sabre’s gentle hum and she froze, staring up at me as best she could with wide, trembling eyes.

“C-Cadance...” she quivered, and her eyes began to water. Her horn flared to life again and I immediately kicked it. She cried and the spark went out.

“I see you’ve made your choice,” I droned. “But still, I hesitate.” I stepped on her horn, forcing her head onto its side. I brought my sabre over and slowly drove it into the floor all the way to the hilt. The wood flashed with a tiny flame as I dragged it across, stopping inches from the base of her horn. “I’m giving you one last chance, Twilight. Come willingly or don’t come at all, but I will make sure the Elements of Harmony do not threaten the Crystal Empire. You get to decide how that happens.”

Seconds passed by and she said nothing. She only sobbed. I sighed; she’d never last with such a lack of discipline, anyhow.

But then she did something unexpected. Her hooves reached up and grabbed at my legs, and she hugged them as best she could, trying to pull me down on top of her. Her grip was tight and her eyes were full of water, and as she stared up at me she whispered quietly, “I love you,” repeatedly.

I stood there frozen, completely caught off guard by the gesture, when a bit of movement caught my attention. I glanced aside, and up the stairs sat Spike, his claws over his mouth and tears in his eyes. We stared at each in a moment of silence, then suddenly he coughed up a spark, and everything went white.