Chapter 9
“I don’t understand; she should’a been back by now.”
Apple Bloom had already cleaned up after her cooking attempts, more than a little proud she’d managed to avoid burning anything this time. Now she was pacing back and forth across the kitchen impatiently. Her trademark pink mane-ribbon was loose and lopsided without her sister to tidy it up. Applejack’s breakfast plate was still untouched, and Zecora’s bundle of herbs lay unused on the nearby counter-top.
“Did Zecora say how long Applejack might be?” Spike asked. The green and purple baby dragon had almost finished his own hearty third helping of pancakes with maple syrup and powdered gemstones.
“No,” Apple Bloom grumbled, “just that she had another errand and would be back soon.”
“She probably got held up, then.”
“But it’s been hours!” Already it was far past their normal start time; this delay meant she wouldn’t be done in time to play before bed. “I don’t know how to do the wrap for Darla’s leg, an’ we got ‘bout a hundred trees that need trimmin’, among other things. You an’ I won’t be able to do all that by ourselves.”
With a final massive bite, Spike cleared his plate. “Well, we could try and get started at least,” he mumbled over the mouthful of pancakes. Apparently finished with breakfast, he quickly washed and put away the dish, then returned to the table.
After a brief moment, he pointed at Applejack’s plate. “Do you think she’s gonna want that?”
“Just put a towel over it, so it stays warm.”
“But it’s already cold. She hates cold pancakes.”
Apple Bloom rolled her eyes. “Go ‘head I guess. Probably be lunchtime before we see her again, at this rate.”
Foregoing any toppings, Spike grabbed one of the cooled pancakes and began eating it plain. “So what should we do?” he asked between bites.
“I dunno,” Apple Bloom said, sitting on her haunches and absently fiddling with the mane-ribbon. Her big sister was one of the most dependable and responsible ponies she knew, and being gone for so long without explanation was unusual. “Truthfully, I’m mighty worried.“
“Do you think we should go looking for her?” Spike asked, taking another cold pancake.
“Maybe, but where would we start? She could be anywhere.”
Spike shrugged. “Could ask Zecora; she’s the last one we know AJ talked to.”
“Well, maybe if we leave now we can catch her before she goes mushroom huntin’ or the like,” Apple Bloom agreed. She pondered for a moment, and her hooves finally got the ribbon tied into a decent bow. “I s'pose the trees can wait a bit longer to get trimmed… ain’t like they’re goin’ anyplace.”
“And you know I’m always up for a break from farmwork,” Spike said, hopping off his chair and clearing Applejack’s dish as he swiped the last pancake.
Apple Bloom giggled. “Yeah, I know,” she said. Spike was a hard worker when properly motivated, but sported a lazy streak a mile wide if any chance appeared. “Why don’t you finish tidyin’ up? I’ll make sure the barn’s locked before we go.”
“Can do!”
On most days Zecora and Fluttershy’s cabin was a 20-minute trot from the Apple family farm as the crow flies. Apple Bloom often traveled straight route with Applejack, but that meant cutting across a large swath of the dark, predator-infested Everfree forest, something she wasn’t keen on doing without an adult.
Instead, Apple Bloom and Spike opted to go the long way around, looping down to the border of the farm property near Ponyville then backtracking along the edge of the woods. It added nearly an hour to their trip, but they both agreed it was better than being possibly attacked by timberwolves or hydras.
Upon arriving at the cottage, they could see the windows were all wide open. Curtains were pulled back, illuminating the interior with bright sunlight. From somewhere inside a breathy voice was singing brightly.
“Sounds like Fluttershy’s in a good mood,” Spike observed as they walked up the front steps onto the porch.
“Yeah, my sister says she hates the dark.” Apple Bloom raised a hoof and tapped on the door. “I reckon she’s enjoyin’ all the sun we’re gettin’ finally.”
Almost immediately the singing cut off. A moment later, hoofsteps delicately approached from inside. “Um… who is it?” a quiet voice called.
Spike chuckled softly and pointed toward the corner of a nearby window. Leaning to the side slightly and craning her neck, Apple Bloom could see a single butter-yellow ear and pink mane barely visible above the windowsill.
“Fluttershy!” Apple Bloom called loudly. The ear flattened away out of sight and Spike held back another laugh. “It’s us, Apple Bloom an’ Spike!”
“Oh!” The hoofsteps came to the door, and a latch unlocked. Fluttershy peeked out quickly before opening the door fully. “I’m sorry, I wasn’t expecting visitors,” she said, smiling down at them. “Would you like to come in?”
“Maybe just for a minute, we don’t want to intrude,” Apple Bloom said. She stepped inside, followed by Spike. “We’re just lookin’ for my sister; have you seen her ‘round here?”
Fluttershy’s smile faded as she closed the door behind them. “She’s… not back yet?”
“We haven’t seen her since before the sun came up,” Spike said. He shrugged. “Although technically I haven’t seen her at all because I was still asleep.”
“AJ had Zecora tell us she was goin’ on an errand,” Apple Bloom continued, “but she ain’t never been gone this long without tellin’ me where she’ll be or when she’ll be back.”
“Oh my, that’s not good.” Fluttershy sidestepped nervously. “I knew she shouldn’t have gone alone!”
“Gone alone?” Apple Bloom cocked her head to the side, eyebrow raised. “Where’d she go?”
“Well, um… I’m not sure I should say…”
“Why not?” Spike pressed.
“Because… um… well…”
“Please, Fluttershy? I’m really, really worried ‘bout her.” Apple Bloom widened her eyes, pouted her lips slightly, and put on the cutest, most pleading face she could manage. Applejack hated when she did this, but Fluttershy’s resolve was weakening and Apple Bloom knew she would be completely unable to resist.
Besides, she actually was worried about Applejack, so in her opinion the ends justified the means.
Fluttershy managed to hold Apple Bloom’s gaze for less than a second before cracking. She winced almost as if in pain. “Well, I suppose it couldn’t hurt… I’ll tell you where she went, but you have to promise not to follow her, okay?"
Spike and Apple Bloom both nodded eagerly.
“Okay...” Fluttershy took a deep breath. “Zecora told me that Applejack went into the Everfree Forest this morning.”
“The forest? Why?” Worry crept into Apple Bloom’s stomach. Every time Applejack ventured into the Everfree alone, she left detailed instructions so a search party could find her in case something went wrong or she didn’t come back on time.
“She went to follow Twilight Sparkle, I guess. When she came over to get the herbs—”
“Wait—” Spike waved a paw to to cut off Fluttershy. “Twilight’s back? Why? When did she get here?”
“She arrived yesterday.” Fluttershy shivered as if recalling something unpleasant. “I don’t know exactly why she’s back, but something strange and scary is happening at the old castle, and Applejack thinks Twilight knows what it is.”
The mention of “strange and scary” in the context of the old Everfree castle did nothing to ease Apple Bloom’s apprehension. “Why would she go without tellin’ me?”
Fluttershy shook her head. “I’m sorry, I’m afraid I don’t know.”
Apple Bloom’s face contorted in concentration as she tried to think of what might be so important that her big sister would forget to check in. It must have been something that couldn’t wait, or maybe she thought it wouldn’t take too long. But if she hadn’t planned on being gone so long, then why was she still out there?
“Maybe somepony should go looking for her,” Spike suggested. “AJ can usually take care of herself, but if she’s been gone this long then maybe something happened.”
“Perhaps…” Fluttershy hedged, avoiding eye contact. “Normally I’d ask Zecora since she’s so familiar with the forest, but she left to go somewhere too, and probably won’t be back for a while.”
“Then we should go!” Apple Bloom exclaimed, concern for her sister overriding any caution. “You’re an adult, Fluttershy, you can go with us.”
Fluttershy quailed. “Oh no, I couldn’t. I mean, I know a bit about the forest, but the animals are too dangerous, and I can’t understand them like the ones here. Besides, a lot of them—” she gulped. “— eat meat.”
“I know, but that’s all the more reason we need to find her!” Apple Bloom stomped a hoof for emphasis. “She could be tangled in a ginormous spider web, or tree’d-up by a pack of timberwolves, or trapped in an Ursa cave—”
“I know, I know!” Fluttershy’s ears flattened against her head. She seemed to be struggling not to flee the room. “I want to find her as much as you do! It’s just… I mean... I can’t…” She sat back on her haunches and covered her face with her forehooves, gasping for breath.
Apple Bloom and Spike glanced at each other in surprise at Fluttershy’s unexpected outburst. Lost for words, Spike shuffled restlessly, and Apple Bloom took a sudden interest in the surrounding furniture as they waited for Fluttershy to regain her composure.
For a few minutes the room was filled only with the sound of shaky breathing, but gradually Fluttershy seemed to calm down. She sniffled and rubbed her nose. “I’m so sorry, I got a little overwhelmed.”
“That’s okay, Fluttershy,” Apple Bloom assured, feeling more than a small twinge of guilt. She hadn’t realized how hard she’d been pushing until it was too late. “I’m sorry, I’m just really worried about AJ, and I feel like we gotta do somethin’ in case she’s—”
A loud crack split the air, making all three of them jump.
“Whoa, what was that!?” Spike exclaimed, glancing around as if he might find the source of the sound before the echo faded.
“Beats me,” Apple Bloom replied. “T’wern’t thunder… Sounded more like when Rainbow Dash does her ‘sonic rainboom’ thing.”
Fluttershy’s ears were folded back against the sharp noise, but perked up hopefully. “Oh, I hope that means she’s back in town; I’ve been worried about her.”
“Well, that should be easy enough to see,” Spike said, jogging over to one of the windows facing Ponyville. “If that was her then there should be a rainbow over...” He trailed off as he leaned over the sill and looked to the sky.
“Spike?” Apple Bloom had started walking toward the window but stopped short when she saw the spines on the dragon’s back bristling. “What’s wrong?”
“Uh… You may want to see for yourself.”
The two ponies glanced at each other before following Spike to the window. Apple Bloom put her hooves on the sill to get a better view.
There was no rainbow-tinted shockwave washing overhead like she had expected, and Rainbow Dash was nowhere to be seen. Instead, there was another pony in the distant sky: A huge, midnight-blue pegasus, wearing battle armor and surrounded by pulsing swirls of dark, glowing magic. Magic that was slowly growing like a balloon to fill the sky above Ponyville.
Apple Bloom’s head tilted. Something wasn’t right; pegasi couldn’t use magic like that. Moreover, there was an aura about the mare that reminded her of something.
“Oh no, it’s her!”
She glanced back to see Fluttershy backing away from the window, eyes wide with fear.
“What?” Spike asked, watching Fluttershy with concern. “Do you know her?”
“No!” Fluttershy squeaked, still staring outside. “I… I mean not personally, and I might be wrong…. But if she is, then that would mean…. Oh Discord, I hope I’m wrong!”
“Who?” Apple Bloom prompted. She was trying to split her attention between Fluttershy and the growing cloud of dark magic. A tickle at the back of her mind kept telling her she already knew the answer, but couldn’t quite put a hoof on it. “Who is she?”
Fluttershy dropped to the floor and hid her face with her forelegs. “The N-Night-Mare!” she half-wailed, half-whispered.
The words triggered Apple-Bloom’s memories. All the stories and legends flooded into her consciousness, and she finally saw the horn on the pony’s forehead, which made her an alicorn just like the ancient princesses. Apple Bloom had asked Applejack for a bedtime story about the Sky-Mares only a few days before, and now one of the villains from the story was suddenly here, ready to wreak Discord-knows-what kinds of havoc on Ponyville.
The realization took a few moments to sink in, but her mind quickly caught up to the implications. “Great flyin’ haybales! We gotta warn everypony!” She turned and bounded toward the door of the cabin.
“Wait!” Spike shouted, nearly tripping as he tried to follow. “We don’t know wha—”
“CITIZENS OF PONYVILLE!”
A booming voice hit the cottage like a shockwave, rattling the dishes in the cupboards. Apple Bloom skidded to a halt and clamped her hooves over her ears, pain coursing through her skull.
“HEARKEN TO THE SKIES! THY TRUE PRINCESSES HATH RETURNED, TO FREE THEE FROM THE CALAMITIES OF CHAOS!”
As the echoes of the last word began to fade, a low rumble filled the air. It wasn’t in the ground like an earthquake or stampede, but a pulsing vibration almost below what she could hear. Her legs and hooves began to tingle and pulse as the rumble grew in power.
The rumble reached a peak and something in the air popped, more of a feel than a noise. A subtle wind seemed to rush over her and the pressure in her head disappeared instantly, along with the rumbling.
Her legs were still on pins and needles, and she instinctively stomped a few times, trying to shake the feeling. She glanced behind to see Fluttershy preening her wings furiously.
“You girls felt that, right?” Spike asked, twitching involuntarily.
“If’in you mean the thousand lil’ parasprites bitin’ my hooves, I’ll say I did!” Apple Bloom growled in annoyance, although the sensation was already fading. “Whaddya reckon’ it was?”
“I think it’s alicorn magic,” Fluttershy replied, flapping her wings a few times. “I’ve felt it before, but never that strong.”
The last of the tingling dissipated, and Apple Bloom walked back toward Spike. “If it was magic, what did it do?”
Spike pointed out the window. “That.”
Apple Bloom put her hooves on the sill again, followed Spike’s pointing claw with her gaze, and gasped.
On any given day Ponyville was a fairly stable place to live; being near the Everfree forest counteracted a good portion of the chaos magic that covered the rest of Discordia. Still, colors and textures were always on the move, plants and objects were in constant flux, and the occasional floating or sentient building wasn’t uncommon. Even the sky itself was a technicolor mish-mash with weather patterns ranging from aggressively dangerous to fun-loving and silly.
But at this moment, the town looked unnervingly normal, or at least as normal as Apple Bloom could imagine it being. The main thing that tipped her off was the colors; instead of popping and fading from one shade and pattern to the next, they were all static. The grasses and trees were the same green as the Everfree, and a bubble-like dome of sky above the town was simple, pale blue, with a few benign white clouds drifting lazily in from the forest.
On the ground, ponies were beginning to wander out of buildings, looking around in bewilderment. Apple Bloom could hear the rising din of confused, questioning voices even at a distance. From above, the Night-Mare alighted on the roof of a tall building.
“Be not afraid, little ponies!”
The booming voice echoed over town again, slightly lower but still making Apple Bloom’s head ache. She briefly wondered with annoyance whether the Night-Mare had any knowledge of voice levels below “ear-splitting.”
“We come not to enslave nor conquer,” the Night-Mare continued, “only to cleanse the blight of Chaos from thy turbulent world, and bring again the joys of Harmony! Heed our words, and thy days shall be blessed!”
“Hmph, a likely story,” Spike grumbled with a scowl. Like Apple Bloom, he too had grown up on legends and bedtimes stories about Discord defeating the tyrannical Sky-Mares.
“She keeps sayin’ ‘we’ like there’s two of them,” Apple Bloom mused, “but far as I can see she’s alone. Where d’ya reckon the other one is?”
“P-probably at the old castle….” Fluttershy spoke from somewhere behind one of the sofas. “That’s where their statues are… or, were….”
In the distance, the Night-Mare lit down and disappeared behind the rooftops. Her booming voice came again, now muffled and unclear from the buildings. The growing crowd of ponies was filtering toward the center of town, and Apple Bloom could only guess that she had landed to greet them.
Spike turned away from the window and approached Fluttershy’s hiding place. “What do you mean ‘the statues’? Couldn’t this just be some kind of prank from Pinkie or somepony?”
“No, Pinkie Pie would never do something this mean,” Fluttershy said with the barest hint of confidence in her tremulous voice. “Besides, she’s an earth pony, and no unicorn in town has magic that powerful.”
Apple Bloom stepped away from the window as well, now that the Night-Mare was no longer visible or audible. She followed Spike to the sofa and saw Fluttershy huddled between a few propped cushions. It reminded Apple Bloom of the forts she sometimes made when playing Cowponies and Buffalos with the other fillies and colts.
“Well, maybe it’s Discord?” she said, reflexively pushing one of the cushions into a better-balanced position. “He loves pranks and random stuff like that.”
Again Fluttershy shook her head in the negative. “No, it can’t be. Chaos magic doesn’t work in the Everfree Forest, and I know what we saw in that old castle!”
“So what did you see?” Spike asked.
If it were possible, Fluttershy seemed to slump even deeper into her impromptu safe space. “The statue…” she whispered. “It came to life!”
BANG!
The front door of the cottage flew open and slammed into the wall. Apple Bloom jumped, then yelped as a sofa cushion blindsided her. White cotton stuffing exploded into the air. Fluttershy shrieked. Apple Bloom’s vision was a jumble of light and dark, interspersed with flashes of yellow-feathered wings beating furiously.
The chaos subsided a moment later, and Apple Bloom found herself on her back, staring at the ceiling. Pushing a ruptured cushion off her stomach, she twisted and and looked around for the cause of the commotion.
“Fluttershy, come quick, I have news to tell! I have been to the Forest, where things are not well!”
“Zecora?” Apple Bloom jumped to her hooves and bounded up onto the back of the sofa. “What in tarnation is goin’ on?”
“Yeah, you scared the flames right out of me!” Spike added indignantly, patting embers off a smoldering throw-pillow.
The zebra in the doorway did a double-take. “Apple Bloom? And Spike too? I did not expect to be meeting you!”
“We came to check if you knew where Applejack was,” Apple Bloom replied. “She ain’t been home since you dropped the herbs off this mornin’ an’ we been mighty worried ‘bout her.”
Zecora nodded. “For Applejack’s safety there is reason to worry; it is why I have come in such a hurry.”
Apple Bloom noticed Zecora was gasping raggedly through her mouth, flanks heaving and covered in sweat. It was the first time she’d seen the impossibly-fit zebra even close to out-of-breath. Combining that with Zecora’s pronouncement that AJ was in danger, Apple Bloom had to tighten her gut against the fresh surge of twisting anxiety that threatened to crush her heart. “What do you mean? Why is she in danger?”
“The ‘what’ I will tell you, though I know less the ‘why’...” Zecora glanced around the room, still breathing heavily. “...but first, where is Fluttershy?”
Spike cleared his throat and jabbed a claw toward the ceiling. Apple Bloom and Zecora glanced upward, eyes searching.
It didn’t take long to see. Fluttershy was wedged into a corner between two adjoining rafters, bracing herself against a hanging light fixture. White cotton stuffing clung to her coat and wings like downy feathers.
She smiled meekly. “Um, I’m sorry…. I’m afraid I’m a bit jumpy.”
With a humorless chuckle, Zecora motioned for Fluttershy to come down. “To be scared right now shows you have sense; that alicorn’s words are just a pretense.”
“Whadd’ya mean?” Apple Bloom asked. “I figure she’s up to no good, but what else do you know?”
“In the forest seeking mushrooms, I was out today,” Zecora replied, “and came across Applejack while on my way. Rainbow Dash and she were sitting by a brook, but when I thought to speak, the ground itself shook!” She reared back and stomped both hooves for emphasis.
“What was it?” Spike asked. “The Night-Mare?”
Zecora nodded. “From the sky she came with a powerful spell. If I were closer, I would be caught as well. The Day-Mare too, for she has awaken; Twilight, Applejack, and Rainbow Dash she has taken.”
“So the Day-Mare has my sister?” In spite of her attempts to stay calm, Apple Bloom began gasping for breath. Knowing the legendary evil princesses of ancient legend were alive and well in her hometown was bad enough; confirmation that Applejack was their prisoner was almost more than the filly could bear. Visions of dark cells and cold-blooded torture came unbidden to her thoughts. Apple Bloom was young, but she knew enough of the evils that existed in their world and right now her mind was imagining every single one descending on her older sister.
“We— we gotta do something!” she stammered, trying to speak, but words failed her as panic set in. She looked around at the others, gasping. Why were they looking at her so funny? Why weren’t they helping? Why—
Something touched her and she jumped.
“Shhh... it’s okay,” a gentle voice whispered in her ear.
Delicate hooves pulled her close. She tried to struggle, but the legs around her simply accommodated her without letting go. A pair of wings gently cradled her and soft feathers stroked her mane. “Just breathe, Apple Bloom, it’s okay. Just… breathe….”
The soothing voice reminded Apple Bloom that she was hyperventilating. She obediently forced herself to take a deep breath, then slowly exhaled. Her head began to clear, and she glanced up to see kind blue-green eyes smiling down at her. Fluttershy might be the most timid mare in Ponyville, but she was also the first to offer comfort even in the worst of circumstances.
A little embarrassed, Apple Bloom rubbed at the damp corners of her eyes. “I’m fine, I’m fine,” she protested, although the others didn’t look convinced.
Fluttershy squeezed gently. “It’s okay to be scared for your sister, Apple Bloom; I’m worried too.” She glanced at Zecora. “What should we do?”
“A rescue mission we could mount,” Zecora said with a shrug, “but for our success I have doubts.”
“That’s putting it lightly,” Spike grumbled. “Discord himself is probably the only one that could go paw-to-hoof with the Sky-Mares.”
Apple Bloom perked up. “Why don’t we ask him then? A fast pegasus could fly a letter there lickety-split!”
“No!” Fluttershy’s voice grew suddenly stern. “We are NOT asking Discord for help!”
Stunned silence fell over the room. Apple Bloom had never heard Fluttershy so assertive before, and honestly it scared her a little. At the same time, she was confused; Discord was their emperor, leader, protector. He was the one who had saved the world from the Sky-Mares before. Why wouldn’t they ask for his help?
Fluttershy must have seen the confusion on Apple Bloom’s face. She sighed. “I’m sorry. It’s just that Discord did something very bad, and I don’t know if I can forgive that.”
“But why? What’d he do?” In Apple Bloom’s eyes, the emperor could do no wrong, even if her sister sometimes complained about the blessings he sent.
“Do you remember when Twilight Sparkle was in town a while ago?”
Apple Bloom nodded.
“Well…” Fluttershy paused, as if trying to find the best words. “She might have seemed like a nice pony, but Discord had sent her to break up the friendship between Zecora and I, as well as other ponies like your sister, and Rarity.”
“But what’s wrong with that?” Apple Bloom’s face scrunched in confusion. “Friends break up all the time, it’s just how chaos works.”
“No Apple Bloom, there’s more to friendship than just being acquaintances or just playing together,” Fluttershy explained. “It’s like… It’s more like being sisters, and Discord and Twilight tried to take that away from us.”
Apple Bloom tried to wrap her brain around what Fluttershy was saying. “But… that would be like playin’ with the same ponies everyday. Doesn’t it get boring?”
“Not with the right friends,” Fluttershy explained patiently. “A good friend can be like a brother or a sister, not just somepony you play with sometimes.”
After pondering for a moment, Apple Bloom gave a sight nod. “I s’pose I can see that…”
Spike cleared his throat. “Not that this isn’t fascinating, but we’ve still got two evil alicorns on the loose and three captured ponies.” He gestured out the window, and as if to punctuate his words the Night-Mare’s distantly muffled voice rolled over the rooftops of Ponyville again. “Any ideas?”
The group fell silent for a moment. Fluttershy looked off into the distance, eyes searching some unseen thoughts. Zecora scraped a hoof and bit her lip impatiently; she’d already said her piece and didn’t care to repeat it. Spike simply folded his arms and waited; Apple Bloom knew the little dragon preferred to follow or provide a voice of reason; he’d decided long ago he was not a leader.
Despite Fluttershy’s comforting embrace, Apple Bloom’s insides still churned at the thought of her sister, imprisoned and at the mercy of the cruel Day-Mare. She knew none of the ponies here were even remotely strong enough to take on the alicorn princesses. She understood there was no way to even guess where Applejack might be. But even then, she couldn’t just sit back and do nothing.
Apple Bloom raised a hoof. “I vote rescue mission,” she said quietly.
Zecora nodded quickly. “With your idea I agree,” she confirmed, “we must act quickly to set our friends free.”
“But we can’t just go galloping into the Everfree!” Fluttershy protested. “There’s terrible creatures in there, and who knows what the Day-Mare is capable of?”
“Another plan you have to present? If it is better I will gladly consent.” Zecora was cordial, but her words carried a slight hint of sarcasm.
“Well…” Fluttershy’s eyes dropped to the floor. “...We could… try and talk to them.”
Spike’s jaw dropped. “You can’t be serious. They’re ancient evil dictators, you can’t reason with that!”
“That’s what the stories say,” Fluttershy agreed, “but what if the stories are wrong? Maybe they’re…” she gulped nervously. “... maybe they’re not all that bad?”
“And who’s going to do the talking?” Spike pressed. “You can’t tell me you’d be able to face that kind of fear.
“I would, to save my friends.”
Fluttershy’s voice quavered as she spoke, but Apple Bloom could hear the conviction beneath the terror. It seemed genuine enough, but unfortunately did little to convince her that talking their way through the issue was a good idea.
She gathered her own courage and stepped away from the warm, comforting embrace. “That’s all well and fine Fluttershy, but talk’s just talk.” Her left foreleg was trembling and she felt like she was about to lose her breakfast, but channelled her fear into confidence as best she could. “I’m goin’ to find my sister. The rest of you can do whatever you want.”
She stepped forward as if to head to the door, but paused as Zecora moved in front of her. She gulped and tried to look firm. “You ain’t stopping me, Zecora,” she said. “I’m goin’, and that’s that.”
Zecora looked her up and down for a moment before speaking. “In the Everfree Forest you should not go alone…” she smiled. “And I may have a clue where the Day-Mare has flown.”
Relief washed over Apple Bloom, and she hugged the zebra’s leg. “Thank you!” she exclaimed, then glanced over her shoulder. “You comin’ Spike?”
“Suicide mission to save a beloved sister from an evil all-powerful alicorn princess?” The dragon shrugged theatrically, but seemed enthusiastic about taking decisive action. “Why not? Count me in.”
As Spike moved toward Apple Bloom and Zecora, Fluttershy raised a hoof. “Wait!” she called plaintively, eyes filling with fear.
They paused, all staring at her. She glanced down, mouth working silently, then spoke in a voice just below a whisper. “W-w-what if you don’t come back?”
Apple Bloom didn’t have an answer, and she looked away awkwardly. Spike bit a claw, silent as well. The thought of failure was on both their minds, but neither of them dared to voice it. Somehow, saying it would make it a reality, and Apple Bloom didn’t think she could face the possibility right now.
Zecora stepped forward. Brushing past Apple Bloom and Spike, she wrapped Fluttershy in a tight hug. After a moment, Fluttershy returned the gesture and rested her head on Zecora’s striped shoulder, tears brimming in her eyes. They sat in silence, then Zecora whispered something that Apple Bloom could not hear. Fluttershy nodded silently and released the hug, blinking furiously to prevent tears from falling.
Zecora returned to the entryway and wordlessly nudged Apple Bloom and Spike to the door. Without another word, they turned and stepped outside, down the steps, and up to the very edge of the forest.
As they reached the treeline, Zecora stopped and spoke. “We will go now, but stay close to me; to separate is to die in the great Everfree.” The words were like the ones that Applejack spoke so often, and Apple Bloom nodded; she’d have no trouble following the instruction.
With that, Zecora stepped forward and practically disappeared into the underbrush. Spike followed, his green scales vanishing as he blended into the leaves.
Apple Bloom glanced back to the cottage; Fluttershy was still visible through the open door, sitting where they’d left her. From a distance it was hard to tell, but it looked like she was sobbing, her shoulders heaving up and down. It was almost enough to convince anypony that charging headlong into danger might not be the best option.
Steeling her fear, she shook her head to banish the feeling and followed Zecora and Spike into the shadowy dark of the forest.
“So it is that you have no need to fret, my little ponies,” the Night-Mare continued, basking in the undivided attention of all Ponyville, “and in truth you should rejoice, for the end of Chaos draws nigh! Gone are the days thy bellies ache as sustenance changes to stone, or thy homes collapse into soap bubbles!”
She smiled to herself at the latter, having seen it happen only an hour previous as she watched the town from a distance. Somewhere in the crowd, a unicorn with two foals dropped to her knees, sobbing, and the Night-Mare made a mental note to oversee construction of a new house for the pathetic little family. But first, there was the remainder of her speech to finish.
“For it shall come to pass, that the draconequus shall be defeated! His castle shall turn to ash, and his Agents of Chaos will rend their garments in mourning! On the wings of Harmony shall our armies go, consuming the forces of disorder in their wake! Let us lead you! Hearken to our words, and we SHALL NOT FAIL THEE!”
Cheers erupted from a few portions of the crowd, and the Night-Mare mused on how easily most of them were convinced. There were a fair number of faces that seemed dubious and a scattered few looked downright hostile, but that was to be expected when they’d spent their whole lives knowing nothing but Chaos. They’d learn the consequences of defying her, if it came to that.
She thought back briefly to the whipping she’d given that insolent earth pony, and satisfaction temporarily salved the dull ache in her bruised jaw as she remembered the screaming. It was the first whipping she’d doled out in over a thousand years, and by the heavens it felt good. Of course, such punishments would necessarily be rare to avoid drawing the ire of her subjects, but dissenters would be inevitable regardless and she relished the thought of dealing with them in like fashion.
At the moment, she basked in the admiring gaze of her subjects, for indeed they loved her. She was their savior, their hope for a better future, and she would not disappoint them. Yes, she would be feared, but she would also be loved, and both were better than either alone. She would be loved as her sister could only dream of being, would finally be the object of every accolade, every prayer, every adoring gaze, bended knee, and grateful smile that had been denied her.
She would be their goddess this time, and finally after all these centuries, she would be happy.
Pride and joy welling in her chest, she beamed and opened her mouth continue speaking, then paused as an unexpected movement caught her eye.
To her left, somepony was pushing through the densely packed crowd, a yellow pegasus with a pink mane. The mare wasn’t simply trying to get a better view, either; she was working her way to the very front, where she stepped past the ponies keeping a respectable distance.
When she stopped just past the line of the crowd, the pegasus looked up, eyes wide with fear. Her wings were trembling, her breathing erratic. Her face was streaked and damp, as if she had been crying recently.
The Night-Mare cocked her head to the side curiously. Something seemed familiar and she wondered if she’d met this particular mare before, either in dreams or in the flesh.
“Um… H-hello,” the pegasus stammered.
“Greetings little pony,” the Night-Mare replied, the power of her voice causing the pegasus to wince and cower satisfyingly. “Tell us, what is thy name? What dost thou seek?”
“M-my name is Fluttershy,” the pegasus replied shakily, “and I need to talk to you about my friends.”
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I'm sorry but with the struggle of living under chaos they should not be terrified of harmony.
They have no reason to view Discord positively
6729399
I kinda think of it as they've never known anything else. Discord has been ruling for a thousand years, and been shaping the narrative to make they Sky-Mares into the evil ones. If Lucifer suddenly showed up and proclaimed he was the good guy, we'd all be a little skeptical, I think.
I just feel like Discord should be a 0% approval rating guy
6729399 They don't know that harmony isn't absolute order, but more neutral good. They also have been brought up being told that Celestia and Luna embody Absolute Order.
They've also been told all their lives that things might be bad under Discord, but that Absolute Order is worse. Speaking of which, If Luna isn't careful, she'll play right into discord's claws by making it look like she is Absolute Order.
6729399
Super Stockholm's. Put a sapient in a situation they're forced to grow up in, and they'll adapt to that situation or die, every time. They've adapted to Chaos because they were born into it. As best as you can adapt to it, anyway - and because sometimes they are rewarded, Discord seems benevolent even though he's crushingly evil.
:rimshot:
Nightmare Moon: Bringer of Harmony. Really drives the point home that good and evil are not in any meaningful sense what this conflict is about, doesn't it?
6729912
This is a really good point. Discord is not a good ruler by any means, but it does seem like he has moderated himself slightly over the years, with things like leaving the trains largely alone. He's also done some pretty good propaganda work as well.
6734896
The Regal Sisters seem significantly different than they were before, they may be earning the Alt Universe tag here even before Discord beat them the first time. Luna seems pretty far gone into NMM at this point, and she may have been succumbing even before she was petrified. Celestia too seems a little darker, though that may just be the circumstances she's in. But there is the possibility that Discord's propaganda about the "Sky Mares enforcing absolute order" may not be without some truth in it as well, perhaps they really were Sombra-lite at the time Discord took them down. Either way, the more this becomes shades-of-grey and morally ambiguous, the more intrigued I am.
6735844
That it is made out to be more of a philosophical difference than an ethical one is really part of what I like about it, if I'm to be honest. Good and evil are pat little categories that make everything too easy and simple. This here, though, allows for something much more nuanced than that - even the characters themselves are divided on just who's preferable. Chaos isn't evil. Harmony isn't good. Chaos can screw you over, but it also allows for change. That bubble house could have just as well spontaneously turned into gold instead. Harmony is consistency - this can mean that things are consistently good for you... but it can also mean that things are consistently worse for some, with no hope of improvement in sight.
There is nobody here who is clearly and obviously in the right, no matter what Dimmet has to say on it, and that's part of what makes it interesting.
6735861 Clearly Discord isn't the best ruler ever, but it had just occurred to me in rereading the last two chapters and the comments, that all of us, myself included, had been assuming Discord's propaganda is entirely false and of course the Regal Sisters are better than him, since we know them from the show. But the Alternate Universe tag means anything is in play, the moral high ground is a metaphorical jump-ball, so to speak.
To be fair, part of why I like the idea of Discord being potentially the better ruler is I just love the concept of the Sisters as rulers with no willing subjects, its an interesting dilemma to force them into.
6735869
Yeah, I noticed that when I looked over the comments and I wanted to offer a bit of a counterpoint to that. The thing is, in a 'de facto' kind of way, we sort of have evidence that Discord's propaganda isn't entirely wrong. It can't be: he visibly rules over a vibrant and flourishing civilization that is in a lot of ways not that different from the canon setting, for one. If he was as bad as his show equivalent, there would be no Equestria left at this point. There is, by implication, enough stability and positive chaos in his realm to not only keep ponies going, but to keep them going well, for over a thousand years running.
I kind of want to see him in a positive light in face of that, really. Life is chaos. All is movement. We, personally, live in a world that's constantly changing all around us and it's not really a bad thing for most of us. Not all change is negative or destructive - change for the better, harmless change, those are also parts of chaos that may be more part of Discord's world than they are part of the world of the Sisters.
6735869
6735897
These kinds of comments make me smile! I'm not too skilled of a writer (this is my first major foray into serious writing, actually) but I absolutely adore complex characters with shades of gray, so I'm glad that's coming across well enough.
Thank you both for the serious ruminations on my amateur attempts; it's just the kind of thing I need to keep motivated.
6736843
You're certainly doing a much better job of it than most stories here that aim for this kind of thing. Also, if it makes you update more than once every three months, you can have many many more of these, my word on it.
6736843 Thanks! My experience on this site has taught me that the best stories often have unreliable narrators, and you need to dig deeper (this goes double for anything involving Discord). I do hope we get to see some of his thoughts and perspective at some point.
6737556
The thing about the very best of stories, whether here or just in general, is that they all reflect reality to a degree. Not just imitate it, but match it and expand on it. And that's the thing about the real world, really: there is never a simple answer and nobody has the whole truth about anything, even about themselves. Nobody ever calls themselves evil, not really. In their own mind, even a murderer is the hero of their own story. I believe it was Socrates who said that "evil" means to know the difference between right and wrong and then choose to do the wrong thing anyway - and that's something very, very few people ever do, from their own perspective.
6735844
I wouldn't say Luna has gone Nightmare. The story describes her as the Night-Mare, as in a female pony associated with nighttime and a contrast to the Day-Mare, and not necessarily someone associated with night terrors. Both Celestia and Luna seem to be products of a bygone age, with things like whippings being standard punishment -- and even so, Luna reduces Applejack's punishment from 40 lashes to 2 without any intervention by anyone else.
6771500 You're right, part of their actions are explained by the time they came from. But notice how Luna seems to be trying to keep her actions a secret from her sister, and she seems outright hateful to some ponies. To me that seems like she's pretty close to full nightmare.
This is, simply put, one of the absolute best AUs I've ever read. It throws enough twists to keep things fresh and exciting without turning into a maze. Up until Luna went all psycho on the ponies, I'd been assuming that she and Celestia were exactly like their canon counterparts, with Discord's story being nothing but propaganda, but that's been flipped on its head with Luna being more like Nightmare Moon than anything else.
Twilight's internal struggle and blind belief is written amazingly well, and so is the idea that no one is completely right and no one is completely wrong. It adds a refreshing layer of complexity to this fascinating tale. Every character is completely in character, while it is also clear that they aren't exactly the same as their canon counterparts. Discord is also surprisingly multi-dimensional as well. Rather than just being generic, evil, canon Discord, he's slightly benevolent, not completely evil Discord.
Carry on as you are, please. I'll be here, eagerly awaiting more.
6806620
Thank you so much for the compliments! :D i really appreciate it a lot, and I'm gonna do my best to get the next chapter out quickly.
On reflection, I think I have to favorite this simply because of the seamless incorporation of what appears to be genuine Old English.
On a related note,
Shouldn't that be "dost"?
6860292
Thanks! It's actually somewhat bastardized Old English, as I explain in this comment (http://www.fimfiction.net/story/233966/twilight-sparkle-bringer-of-chaos#comment/5722718) on Chapter 7. I'm not a linguist by any stretch, so it's basically a poor man's fake translation, but it gets the job done and it's fun to write.
It seems you are correct. Both forms are valid, but according to some random dude on Yahoo answers (the best I can find at the moment), "doest" would be a primary verb while "dost" is a helper verb. Thanks for the correction!
Welp, been nice knowing you Luna.
Great story and a great continuation from it's predecessor. Though I have to say, Luna's portrayal seem a bit too complacent toward the lashing, almost to the point that she appears more akin to Nightmare Moon that to the current cannon, I have to ask if that is intentional or not?
I guess the next chapter will clear that up.
6969665
Thank you for the compliments!
Yes, Luna's attitudes toward the lashing and other punishments are intentionally part of her character. Keep in mind, the Princesses we know in the show (at least Celestia) have had 1000 years to mellow out. The ones in this story are both still "stuck" in the past, and that kind of stuff was normal back then.
Has Luna gone Nightmare though? We'll see...
Looks like Night-Mare is a Nightmare.
6974906
So, I've gotten this far and, I must say, your story is VERY underrated. It needs more love from everyone on this site! There are hardly any mistakes from what I've seen, it's written very well, the flow is phenomenal, and I just love the story idea.
I'm going to check for more of your stories, and, if you're in need and would like, I can give ideas for future stories.
Again, love it. I've said my peace, so I'll keep reading.