• Published 25th Jan 2015
  • 384 Views, 6 Comments

The Vault Initiative - rockyrobben



Can the son of Twilight Sparkle overthrow his Diamond Dog overlords and return the missing Princess Celestia to power?

  • ...
4
 6
 384

Chapter 4

The Goddess of Night tried her best. She stood in direct sunlight, defying its rage with her stare alone. Inch by inch, she pulled on her sister's charge, willing it back to place. It resisted.

She tried and tried, standing in the sun for three whole days. Her flesh peeled like parchment, but it would not acquiesce to her will. She spent the last of her energy bolstering the natural flow, and restarted the natural cycle of the sun and the moon.


I wanted to hurt the Alpha, and I knew just how to do it. Amanita told me that the stories about the Matriarch were a lie. In reality, she had grown fat and lazy. Perfect for a little...disembowelling, I think. She was also the foundation to the Pack's hierarchy, so she had to be dealt with anyway. Although, I was sure that Amanita and I had significantly different ideas on how to do that.

I agreed that diplomacy was the most ethical option, but killing the Matriarch would hurt the Alpha no end. It brought a sneer to my face as I imagined his lone howling echoing through the caverns. He was finally going to know our pain. I could practically taste his tears.

I followed Amanita through the warren of brightly painted corridors and stairs, and realised that we were travelling on corridors I recognised. We were back on the ground floor, where the ceilings were high and the decor ornate. The sounds of growling, mewling and whining bounced its way into our ears, reminding us that we were back in their territory.

Amanita pressed me against a wall and pointed to the door to our right. "Follow me."

I nodded and followed her to the door. Unlike all others, these doors bore large scratches around the handle where oversized claws cut into the wood with ease. I pushed it gently with my magic.

Wow! This room was huge. Great chandeliers shone with beautiful gem light onto a large, imposing table covered in a huge sheet that used to be white. Many plates held grime and rotten foodstuffs. Long burnt out candles leaned in their stands with dry wax puddled on the cloth. My nose wrinkled from the smell of Dog and rotting flesh.

Amanita strode into the feasting hall, leaving me hidden by the doorframe.

The low rumbling tones of a dog broke the silence. "Ah, Pet. Broke free again? You need a stronger chain."

My heartbeat quickened as I poked my head around the corner. The Matriarch sat on a pile of cushions at the end of the table, holding a squirming pup in her giant paws. She wore a frilly white gown, which fit her form perfectly. But, by the amount of brown fur poking through the torn fabric, it had seen better days. Her long angular snout lifted at the backs to expose her yellow fangs. She poked some meat with a tiny fork that looked so dainty compared to her massive paws and brought the morsel for her tail wagging cub to chew on.

But the painting failed to capture her eyes. No ink or oil could capture the venom inside. They were all knowing, all seeing, and I found that all I could do was watch. Suddenly, the weight of everything crashed down upon me and I had to stifle an oncoming sob. How could I get past that?

There was no hope. Maybe I should just give up and plead for my life. I may even live through it; the dog whose blood I wore was basically feral.

No! I cannot give up. I will kill her!

"So," said the Matriarch, "Where Pet been? Playing in rubble? Finding more of your pack?"

"No, Mother," said Amanita in a flat tone. "You killed them all."

The Matriarch leaned back, allowing the pup to stand on her belly. The small creature lapped at her chin. "Did Train Station hide more Eggs?"

"No," said Amanita, dejected. "It looks like you succeeded. I'm the only one left."

The Matriarch shook the room with her mighty chuckle. "And you came back. Pet is a good pet."

"No," said Amanita. The Matriarch raised an eyebrow; she obviously did not expect any resistance. "I want to re-open negotiations for the Vault Initiative."

The Matriarch huffed and rolled her eyes.

Three tapestries hung from a tarnished gold rails with the pointy knobs on each side. They looked so grand hanging at the end of the room like that and filling what would have been a bland wall with pictures. The fabric looked worn and the colours faded, but I easily recognised that each one represented the different races.

The first had Amanita, with the green paint flowing down her chitinous back like a royal cloak. Her single-hoof-raised posture radiated strength while her endless blue gaze stared off into the distance. Underneath, I noticed the word, "Duty," stitched with dulled gold thread.

The second had the Alpha and Matriarch standing side-by-side, their horrible black eyes boring into me. Underneath, they had, "Family."

Like they even understood that concept.

But the last astounded me. The violet pony with dark blue mane and a pink stripe, whose horn glowed in the same pink hue as mine, was unmistakeable. Mum, surrounded by her closest friends, radiated light as if she were the beacon that drew every-pony closer. Underneath the small circle of ponies, I saw the word, "Friendship." Of course it would be.

To see Mother, so pure and innocent, fading away in a room that assaulted my nose with odours of rotting flesh, left me speechless. It was an insult, plain and simple. Ponies created this place to unite the races. And here was the Matriarch, living among the bones of her enemies, disregarding everything that my mother held dear.

It was time to change the plan. Diplomacy was not an option; this dog did not deserve another chance.

I rounded the corner and faced the monster whose life I deemed to be over. Our gazes locked on the Matriarch as she scanned and dismissed me with a wave of a paw.

"You brought friend?" it asked with a smirk, "You think this changes things?"

Do not just dismiss me you wretched mess of hair.

I took a couple of paces forward, horn ablaze. She noticed me then.

The Matriarch opened her maw and revealed her fangs. "Does pony wish to fight?" She gently placed the pup by her side and then picked at something in her teeth with a claw. "I not hunted in a while."

"What do you have to say for yourself?" I asked, not expecting or caring for an answer. "What are your final words going to be?"

The dog's predatory smile was all the answer I needed. "Ah, you're the water-pony who think it can hide from Diamond Dogs? You killed one of us..." She sniffed. "...And you wear his blood to fool our noses. Clever pony."

"Do you even feel remorse?" I kicked a water bucket as I approached. it crashed against the wall and spilled its precious contents. "Or guilt? Or any emotion for enslaving an entire nation during its time of need? Do you feel big? Or brave? Or are you just a monster, preying on those less fortunate than you?"

The creature chuckled so deep that it reverberated in my bones. She slowly rose from sitting onto her haunches, as if ready to leap. Her focus was solely on me. "Ponies wanted peace from bad sun. We grante..."

A loud twang filled the room as my magic finally pried the tapestry off the wall.

"You are a monster!" I screamed, "You deserve this!"

The dog looked up to see the point of the rail slam into her face. A gurgled cry filled the room as her skull cracked open. I pushed the rail deeper, its weight and gravity making it easy.

Amanita gagged as the stench of blood washed past me.

The pup whimpered as the Matriarch's body spasmed underneath it.

"You betrayed us!" I said. I screamed as I forced the pole further into the corpse, only stopping when I heard the metallic clunk of the pole on the marble floor underneath.

"I will end you all!" I said, grabbing the pup with my magic. The beast mewled as it stared at me with wide uncomprehending eyes. The creature had small pointed ears, a lithe, agile frame covered in soft grey fuzz and small paws that would grow to become large and ferocious.

How long would it be until it tortured and killed for sport?

It had to die.

I threw the creature with as much force as I could.

The pup collided with such force that it cracked the wooden panelling. It dropped slowly as a green haze gently lowered it, leaving a sphere shaped impression in the wall. The pup's chest rose and fell raggedly, but it did not rise.

"Don't stop me!" I said, turning to Amanita who had returned to her changeling form.

Her expression hardened. "Do not lay the blame of the parents on their children!" The pup floated in her sickly aura, until it lay underneath her. She lowered her horn at me.

"If we don't kill it now," I said, "then it will kill hundreds of ponies."

"You do not know that!" she said.

"They're monsters. Of course it will happen. Give it to me!"

Amanita stomped her hoof, "I will do no such thing. I will not allow you to murder an innocent pup! Think of what we're trying to achieve here."

I was achieving everything I wanted. And everything I wanted was eradicating any threat to ponykind. But she just stood there, resolute in her stupid morals.

"I'm achieving revenge!" I said. "I will kill those that have wronged us!"

"And when the Dogs find out that you murdered their young, how will they react then?"

"How will they react when they find out I have torn the heart from the Alpha? Answer is: they will go berserk. You cannot reason with those bastards, why can't you see that?" I approached Amanita, who cast a shield about herself.

"Do you not care about the plan your mother gave her life for?" she said.

"Of course I care," I said, "But alterations must be made. Those who cannot abide by the terms must go."

I pressed my muzzle onto her shield and felt her magic tickle the tip of my horn. "The Dogs cannot be trusted. They must die."

"Remember what we're trying to achieve," she said. "We can't unite the races if you kill off their children!"

"Don't patronise me!" I said. "You seek to rule us all!"

"Yes, and by ruling, I can unite everyone as a Brother in my hive."

"It won't work!" I said. "Ponies cannot be ruled by a Changeling."

"It is my duty to bring peace to my hive. I will make them if I have to."

"And then you will be no better than the Dogs that rule us!"

Amanita paused with eyes wide open. Her mouth moved and formed words, but no sounds escaped. Her focus fell from me and back to the floor. "If I must. Then I will."

I picked up the corpse of the Matriarch with my magic and trotted out of the room with it floating above me. The remains of the tapestry, not lodged deep inside the corpse, dangled over its face, dripping blood. "Fine. I go to end this."


The trip back to the train depot felt so much shorter than the trip to the den. As usual, the hallways were clear of dogs and I trotted by unimpeded. Amanita did not follow, but that did not bother me. She would only get in the way. She did not understand that these dogs had to die! They were monsters, every single one of them. There was no way they would accept an alliance, they would only betray us again, and all of this would be for nothing!

I towered over the great rectangular hole that made the window between the depot and the courtyard. Below, I saw a couple of dogs milling about in the vast, empty space.

I floated the Matriarch's corpse out of the hole and I tied her to a piece of hanging rope supported by an old crane. She swung there, barely recognisable as a dog. Blood dripped into the darkness below, pooling into one of the many tracks. With any luck, her blood would flow straight to the Alpha. Oh Celestia, Absent-as-Always, that would get his attention!

I stood as tall as I could and used my magic to amplify my voice.

"Ponies!" I said, "The Matriarch is dead. Celestia has risen! Rise up against your oppressors! Ponies, fight for your freedom! Fight for your Princess! Fight for a better life!"

"Alpha! You killed my mother, Princess Twilight Sparkle! By your customs, I challenge you! Find me at the Palace. I will have my revenge."

I picked up debris with my magic. A slightly bent steel bar whose end had sheared into a nasty point, and a large chunk of rock. These would do perfectly!

Howling echoed through the passageways and up to my elevated platform like a banshee's wail. The sound ebbed and throbbed as I watched Dogs run through the courtyard and into the Palace. The great stage was set. It was time for me to take my place.

I made my way to the back of the depot, where the massive doors stood like stoic guardians against the world outside.

The doors on the left side of the room exploded in a barrage of splinters as Dogs burst through. They swarmed the courtyard side of the train station. They paused around the rectangular window as they watched their mostly headless leader swing. A haunting whimper, like the reverberating hum of rushing sea-water, echoed up to me.

"Dog! Get out of way!" said the Alpha. I was just close enough to see his fur stand on end as if he were one of those creatures I once saw in a book...a hedgehog.

It was time. "Hey, over here you bastards! Meet your doom!" I said, throwing a brick with my magic.

The brick shattered a window on a wagon, spraying a Dog with glass.

He pointed at me. "Kill it!"

The others turned and they dropped to all fours. Their barks surrounded me and confused my twitching ears.

I span my weapons in the air. "I challenge the Alpha!" I shouted.

My heart thundered in my chest and my legs refused to move as I watched the Dogs jump over the carriages. It was like watching a wave of brown and grey consume the train yard.

I stamped my hoof in frustration. How dare they ignore me! I snorted and charged at the growing swarm of dogs.

Dogs had no honour. Yeah, because slaying the brood-mother to get at the Alpha was such a noble act. I pushed that thought into the back of my mind and focused on plan B.

I dropped my weapons as my magic tugged on the remains of a crane hanging from the ceiling. I pulled, but the bolts did not surrender. My horn sparked and burst into an intense pink light and I screamed as the strain pulled at my body.

The Dogs bore down on me with frightening speed; their bulks growing larger by the second. I refused to hear their claws scraping the ground and their vicious barks. The Alpha leapt from cart to cart, his gaze never leaving me.

I continued to pull with my magic, biting my lip as I poured more and more energy into my magic. I tasted copper which made my internals gag. It was not budging! No! Please! Break!

The fractured support beam cracked and split. Huge chunks of wood and rock tumbled onto the foul-smelling bucket cart. Small pieces of crumbling ceiling broke through the green-brown crust and released a plume that accosted my nostrils with a cloying, acrid smell and turned my stomach. My mind swam and I struggled to keep balance. Breathing through my mouth did not help as I heaved.

A huge chunk of ceiling collapsed onto the wooden crane sticking out of the skip. The cart tipped and crashed with a metallic clunk that resonated around the room. The foul substance glooped out like thick tar, carrying bits of crust with it.

My eyes watered and my jaw hung loosely as I desperately tried to find air. Oh Celestia, the air is green! The stench gripped the insides of my stomach with its fetid claws and turned it upside down. I staggered and spilled what little was left inside me onto the growing puddle of the crusty substance. It's on my hooves! Get it off!

I finally raised my gaze and I, amazingly, breathed a sigh of relief. My plan had worked. A few dogs turned tail and fled the smell, swaying this way and that as they struggled to balance. But the rest collapsed to the floor, whimpering and holding their paws against their muzzles. The Alpha fell from the roof of a passenger train and landed on his back.

It worked!

I approached the first dog, picking up my makeshift spear with my magic. He rolled and emptied his stomach on my hooves. His gaze crawled up my forelegs and ended in my face. Snot rolled out of his nose as quickly as tears from his eyes. He could not even wipe the sick from the corners of his mouth.

I fought my stomach as I brought my spear over his head. "For Mother."

The spear penetrated his skull and ended the whimpering.

I repeated the same mantra as I ended the lives of four more Dogs.

The Alpha clawed at me as I came near, and I danced out of the way. His paw returned to his muzzle as his feet pushed him into a sitting position. I floated the rock over his head, letting the spear clang on the floor.

"Do it," he said. "Dog accepts pony challenge. Dog accepts death. Pack is yours." He laughed then choked on the reek. "Pack will die. Herd will die. Hive will die."

I wanted to drop the rock so much, but a small part of me resisted. "Why did you betray us?" I asked through gritted teeth.

His stare hardened. "Your Ponies promised...prosperity. But, Pony brought death. Pony brought war into den. Dogs died...to keep peace." He pointed to everything around him. "Dogs protect...Dogs. Family..."

The fire roared inside me. I brought the rock down on his head.

He howled as the sickening crunch reached my ears.

I lifted the bloody rock and dropped it again. The dog fell onto his back as I cracked his skull. Blood poured from his wounds. He gave me one last glare and kept his lip curled up and his teeth revealed.

It was the same expression he had always given me. I remembered my life falling apart as Mum told me to stay in the library. I remembered the sounds of battle: the sounds of death. And I remembered the endless screams; Mum's pierced through everything, including my soul. I remembered the vow I made that day: to hurt those who had hurt me. It all burnt in the pyre inside me. A monster to the end. I lifted the rock one more time.

I crushed his skull in a splatter of blood. I kicked his twitching body as I stepped over. My ears swivelled as I trotted towards the rectangular bay. The sounds of fighting raged far below in the courtyard. But, standing in the rectangular hole, was a Changeling painted in green.

"The reign of the dogs is over! Celestia watches over you! Salvation is here! Their leaders are dead! Fight! Fight! Fight!"

She turned to me, "Is it done?"

I nodded.

Sharp, blazing pain erupted in my chest. I looked down to see a jagged shard of metal poking out of my side. Why can't I breathe?

It took me a moment to realise that the blood bubbling out of me and onto my waiting hoof was mine. It took me longer to realise the owner of the green glow surrounding the shard.

"Why?" I asked. "I'm on your side."

Amanita hugged me, sobbing. "I'm sorry. I'm so, so sorry."

I felt light. I was scared that if I jumped, I would float away. I sank into her embrace as my foolish legs just would not hold me up anymore.

She burst into tears. "Twilight...please forgive me. I have to do it. He would kill every Dog and Changeling if I did not."

I unleashed a fit of bloody coughs that stained her paintwork.

"I have to unite the hive." she said, sobbing. "I have to bring all the races together. Even if it means...breaking your promise."

She lowered me to the floor. Her tears dampened my mane. "You got your revenge. You brought the fury of Celestia to those that deserve it."

I closed my eyes and listened to her sweet, if a bit scratchy, voice. "You have done what you needed to do. Go to sleep, find your Mother, and be happy."

The haze in my mind thickened. "You..." I heard in my own voice, but I could not find the words in me to continue. I knew I should be furious, but I could not find my magic anymore. In fact, her face was merely a black and blue haze. What was happening? More wetness hit my face, cooling my burning body.

I coughed up blood, the pain barely recognisable to me anymore. My rage, anger, and hate lost itself in the mists of confusion. My body barely felt like mine anymore.

I realised something. I was scared...and I had always been scared. And now I watched the blackness take what little vision I had left. That feeling compounded upon itself until it was like lead, dragging me into the abyss.

I was helpless to the terrifying thought of finality.

"Rest..."

I flailed in the endless black as the nothingness swallowed me.