Raven's Song
Chapter 10
Raven’s Song
“Twilight?”
Twilight looked up, and held up one hand against the light of the torch in Lightning’s hand. “Lightning…could you turn that down, please?”
Lightning Dawn lowered the torch. “So what are you doing down here so late?”
“Research,” Twilight replied, turning back to the crusty, crumbling manuscript in front of her.
Lightning looked around the ancient archive. He coughed as some of the dust got up his nose. “In here?”
“The knowledge of the ancients should not be dismissed out of hand,” Twilight murmured.
Lightning shrugged. “So what are you working on?”
“I’m just looking into the origins of the Unicornicopians, their early history,” Twilight said. “Some of it is fascinating.”
“So much going on,” Lightning said. “And the dead past is what interests you.”
“It’s because there’s so much going on that I started looking into this,” Twilight replied. “I happen to find this relaxing.”
Lightning, who had found himself unable to relax lately, said nothing. If Twilight could find some relief from doubt and crisis then more power to her. He wished that she could have taught him how to do the same.
No, you don’t. You just want any excuse to…you need to stop this. You’re an engaged pony, by the Grand Ruler. Stop it!
“Did you know,” Twilight said. “That the powers of the space ponies all ultimately derive from what particular raw material His Majesty used to create them.”
Lightning frowned. “That’s it?”
“What did you expect?”
“I was taught that it was a reflection of your calling,” Lightning said. “Kind of like a cutie mark.”
“That’s not what it says here.”
“Then that must be wrong,” Lightning said sharply. “The Grand Ruler says otherwise, and to question him verges on blasphemy.”
Twilight looked at him as though he had just sprouted an extra head. His words, he realised, were that completely alien to her way of thinking. “I understand that he’s your teacher, and you’re loyal to him. Really, I understand that. But the pursuit of knowledge is a sacred thing in and of itself, it can never be wrong to search for the truth.”
“Would you contradict Celestia’s teachings then?”
“Celestia would never want me to prop up lies and deceit simply to spare her reputation.”
“Perhaps not, but…” Lightning hesitated. “Twilight, be careful with this. If you spread this around, some will…His Majesty’s pride…be careful.”
Twilight shook her head. “It’s just a few mouldy old books. Compared to everything else in our lives right now, how am I supposed to believe that here is where the danger lies?”
Starlight Glimmer pressed her thumb onto the scanner, and waited about three seconds for the door to her apartment to unlock and slide open. She strode in, her boots thumping on the white linoleum floor of the front room.
From the living room, she could hear the familiar unrestrained tones of her girlfriend.
“The Great and Powerful Trixie’s Comeback Tour! No, only losers need to make comebacks. The Great and Powerful Trixie’s Re-Introduction Tour! Too much of a mouthful. Starlight, is that you?”
“Yeah, it’s me,” Starlight said, strolling into the living room. She walked over to the monitor stuck to the wall and turned it off with a flick of the switch. One of the perks of her high rank was that she could turn it off, which was more than most folks could say (if Trixie tried to turn it off, then she’d get a visit from Starfleet Security wanting to know why). The privilege of her rank was also why Starlight was able to decorate her apartment – or rather, allow Trixie to decorate their apartment – in the somewhat lavish way that it was: the walls were covered with posters of Trixie’s tours, as well as some rather more faded posters of the old magic shows that had inspired her to take up the art in the first place. Looking around, one might be forgiven for thinking that this was Trixie’s apartment which she shared with Starlight, rather than the other way around. Trixie’s stuff was everywhere, her hats, her capes, her tricks and tools of the trade, her knick-knacks and her pictures. Starlight’s stuff…Starlight didn’t really have any stuff. In that, if in not much else about the state of her place, she was the very model of a Starfleet officer: duty-bound and lacking in personality.
If only they knew.
“Hey, Starlight,” Trixie said. “How was work?”
Starlight muttered something indistinct. She didn’t really want Trixie to get involved with her work, or even to know that much about her work. Trixie was her sanctuary from all that, the cells and the arrests and the ass-kissing and all of it. She didn’t want Trixie to know that at work she was a snivelling brown-noser, that she sucked up to a monarch she despised, that she had to do things every day that made her soul shrivel up. She didn’t want Trixie to see that side of her.
Everything I do, I do for a good cause…but that doesn’t mean I want my girlfriend to know that I’m doing it.
She walked over, and kissed Trixie on the ear. This was probably the biggest reason why she was grateful for the ability to turn off the monitors in her home. What so many Starfleet officers called ‘unnatural practices’ – seriously, people, it’s called being gay, get over it – was not exactly illegal…but it wasn’t exactly permitted either. The laws of public morality and decency which the Grand Ruler had instituted prohibited a range of things, including any public displays of affection steamier than a hug, but their attitude to homosexuality was so tortuous that Starlight wouldn’t have been surprised if a lot of people fell afoul of it by accident, and she didn’t want to really take the risk. It was easier to just turn off the monitor and tell her superiors that Trixie was just her roommate, and it was a totally platonic arrangement where they slept in separate rooms. Trixie did have her room, as it happened, but if she ever slept in it it was news to Starlight. “What about you? How are things?”
“Awesome!” Trixie cried. “Trixie just got the first venues booked for her new tour!”
“Really?”
“The Lyceum Theatre in New Manehattan and the Landmark Harbour East Theatre in New Baltimare!” Trixie said. “Now you can help Trixie come up with a name for her new tour.”
“Okay,” Starlight said, draping her arms over Trixie’s shoulders. “Is there a theme for this tour?”
“Well, it is Trixie’s first tour of United Equestria since somebody’s new company got the old one destroyed-“
“We’re very sorry.”
“So Trixie kind of wants the name to reflect that.”
“Hmm,” Starlight murmured. “How about ‘The Whole New World Tour’?”
Trixie blinked. “The Great And Powerful Trixie’s Whole New World Tour! Starlight, you’re a genius!”
“And you’re awesome enough to deserve all your fancy titles,” Starlight said. She kissed Trixie on the tip of her horn. “Listen, I can’t stay very long. I’m just going to grab a bite to eat and then I’ll be out again.”
“When will you be back?”
“Not sure. Late. So don’t wait up, okay?” Starlight began to head for the kitchen
“Okay,” Trixie murmured, lowering her eyes a little. “What are you doing that’s going to keep you out so late?”
Starlight hesitated. “I…I’m taking someone where they need to go.”
“Can’t you get someone else to do that?”
“I could, maybe, but this guy is an old friend of mine,” Starlight said. “Which means this is something that I have to do myself.”
“Sunset!” Leilani leapt off her seat, a bright smile illuminating all of her face that was not obscured by the mask her father made her wear. “You came!”
Sunset put down the two bulging bags of supplies that she had levitated in with her. “You came? What, did you think I wasn’t going to show up?”
Leilani looked down at the ground.
Sunset frowned. “You thought I wasn’t going to show up?”
Leilani looked away. “Once…a long time ago…I asked Lieutenant Stern if my father would come and visit me. I so wanted to see him. I…I wanted to give him a hug, and tell him that I understood why he had to keep me here, for the good of everybody.”
“Leilani-“
“And Lieutenant Stern told me that he would speak to him, and that my father would come. But…he never did.”
“Did you mention it to Lieutenant Stern again?”
Leilani nodded. “He said my father was too busy. He said he didn’t have time for a mistake like me.”
Sunset said nothing. The reason was not because she had nothing to say but because she had far too many things to say and most of them unsuitable for a sweet child’s innocent ears. She fought to control the rage that was boiling like an unwatched cauldron within her spirit. The last time she had felt this angry she had made human Twilight cry…no, scratch that, the last time she had felt this absolutely furious she had transformed into a demon and tried to take over two worlds. But that had been the selfish rage of an entitled child; this was the righteous anger of somepony who could see a grave injustice and yet was powerless to stop it. It rankled with her, it rankled more than words could say, that the best she could do was sit here and tell this poor girl a few stories of a world that she would never know, where a sleepover was the highlight of her life…and yet she had to stand by and watch her be mistreated by he who should have loved her best. It was…if Lieutenant Stern and his high and mighty Grand Ruler-ness, blessed be his omnipotence or whatever…Sunset might not have been responsible for her actions.
“Sunset?” Leilani asked tremulously. “Are you okay?”
Sunset forced herself to smile. “I’m fine, sweetie.” This wasn’t the time for anger. All that would do was ruin Leilani’s special night, and she didn’t deserve that. “Are you ready for your first slumber party?”
“Definitely!” Leilani yelled. “Do you think it will be as fun as the Little Princess’ first slumber party, with fashion pony and country pony?”
“I can’t guarantee it, but I hope so,” Sunset said. “And just to help us along, I even brought the book.” She levitated Everything You Ever Wanted to Know About Slumber Parties, But Were Afraid to Ask out of one of her bags and set it down in front of Leilani.
Leilani beamed, and Sunset felt her anger melting like snow before the heat of Leilani’s joy. “So, what are we going to do tonight?”
“We can do whatever you want,” Sunset said. “But I do have one very special idea planned which I think you’ll like.”
“Ooh, what?”
Sunset grinned. “Well, I have been talking to your mother, and she has agreed that I can start to teach you magic.”
For a moment, Leilani’s blue eyes widened, and were filled with such a light of hope that it rivalled the moon for its brightness. Her mouth dropped open as she gasped in shock. But then…the light in those eyes died. Her mouth closed, and she looked down at her feet.
“Oh…are you sure that’s such a good idea.”
Sunset’s brow furrowed. “I thought you’d be excited.”
“I…its just that I probably can’t do any magic, so I don’t want you to waste your time.”
“My time? I’m here for you, Leilani,” Sunset said. “But if you don’t want to, then that’s fine.”
“It’s not…” Leilani hesitated. “My doctor says I won’t ever be able to fly or do magic.”
“Unicornicopian magic, I’m talking about Equestrian magic, unicorn magic; your mother’s magic, not your father’s.”
Leilani looked up. “What makes you think I can do Equestrian magic?”
“Because I don’t believe that the reason you can’t do Unicornicopian magic has anything to do with your wings, or your illness,” Sunset said. She wondered how much detail she ought to go into, she didn’t want to bore the kid after all. “Basically…when your father created the first space ponies he used a mixture of his own blood and…stuff that he found lying around: soil, flint, clay, straw, sand, wood, grass. He created ponies out of these elements plus his blood, and then used his powers to give them life. When he did so, the magic that he had used, the magic in his blood, fused with the raw materials of the bodies and bestowed upon those first space ponies their Unicornicopian powers.” Sunset would have been willing to bet a great deal that she knew more about the creation of the Unicornicopians and the genesis of their peculiar abilities than most of them did. Twilight had done most of the research, delving into dust archives and ancient texts, determined to find out what the powers exhibited by the Unicornicopians were so different to the ones possessed by unicorns. She had kept Sunset abreast of her progress, and Sunset had continued her research, though she hadn’t found out much extra yet. She wasn’t yet sure exactly what it meant, but it was interesting, and Sunset was certain that it meant something.
Twilight had thought so, after all.
“And so,” Sunset continued. “You can trace the powers that the modern space ponies have broadly, very broadly, to the original materials that their ancestor was created from.” She decided to leave out the bit about how the early Unicornicopians had organised themselves in tribes – The People of the Treebark, the People of the Sand, the People of the Flint, the People of the Clay, the People of the Earth – before the People of the Bronze had risen up against the Grand Ruler, and been destroyed; the tribes had been disbanded in consequence. That might have removed alternative sources of authority to the Grand Ruler, but it made predicting the powers of space ponies next to impossible. No wonder the knowledge had been forgotten. “Your father, however, is not a space pony, he just created them, and so he has none of their magic.” Again, Sunset decided to be diplomatic and leave out the fact that he didn’t have any Equestrian magic either. “And since you are his natural child, not his creation, it is only to be expected that you don’t have that magic either.”
Did he ever expect that she would? How do you forget where the powers of the people you created come from?
Will he be disappointed if his son doesn’t have those powers either?
For a moment Sunset wondered what might befall Prince Castor if and when his father realised that he too was not the perfect child he had longed for. But that was all in the future, and her concerns were focussed on Leilani.
“But you think I do have some Equestrian magic?” Leilani asked.
“You are the daughter of Queen Celestia, first and greatest of the alicorns,” Sunset said. “I am certain that you have some trace of magic in you, if only enough to enable your special talent.”
“My special talent,” Leilani murmured. “No, I can’t have a special talent, because I’m not special. I’m just the opposite.”
“Leilani, look at me,” Sunset said, placing a hoof on the little princess’ shoulder. “Look into my eyes.” Leilani did as she was bidden, her blue eyes locking into Sunset’s green.
“Have I ever broken a promise to you?”
“No.”
“Have I ever lied to you?”
“No. You promised that you never would.”
“And I won’t,” Sunset said. “I won’t lie to you, I won’t break my promises to you, I won’t tell you that I’m going to show up and then not. I am here for you, Leilani, and I will always be here for you, so I want you to listen to me very carefully and keep this in your heart: ignore what your father’s people tell you. There is no especial worth in violence, or in soldiering for a living. There is no especial worth in strength, either physical or magic. There is great worth in all of us, in all living things, and each and every one of us has some specialness that is ours, some great gift for the world that only we can live. Your mother has it, the Little Princess had it, I have it and I know, I know, that you have such a gift within you as well.”
“Really?”
“Without a doubt.”
Leilani smiled. “What is your gift?”
Sunset laughed. “That is a very good question.” She looked back at the blazing sun upon her flank. “I used to think…I didn’t really use to understand what this meant, and so I used my powers in the wrong ways, ways that were arrogant, even cruel.”
“I don’t think you could ever be cruel.”
“You only say that because you know me now, after someone showed me the error of my ways. After that…I realised that my purpose in life, my gift to the world, was to help others, the way that the special pony had helped me.” She smiled. “And maybe, just maybe, my destiny was always to be here for you, to be a friend when you need me.”
“Why would that be your destiny?”
“Because your destiny is something greater still,” Sunset suggested. “And you need a friend to help you get there.”
Leilani smiled, looking as though she would like to believe that, but dared not. “What was the name of the pony who helped you?”
“That,” Sunset said. “Is my little secret. Now, do you want to try and learn magic.”
“Yes please!”
“Then we’ll get started tonight. But first, let’s have some fun, shall we?”
The Starfleet rover sped down the turnpike from New Canterlot to Neighfolk, the dark road illuminated by the bright beams of the headlights.
Starlight Glimmer said very little as she sat uncomfortably in the driver’s seat, one hand on the wheel and the other hovering near the gearstick. She didn’t particularly like driving, and in ordinary circumstances she would have done as Trixie suggested and ordered some unlucky sergeant to take care of a simple prisoner transfer like this, but these were not ordinary circumstances. Another Starfleet officer might offer resistance, and that was the last thing she wanted.
“Where are you taking me, Starlight?” Sunburst asked from where he said, his hands in shackles, in the passenger seat next to her.
Starlight frowned. “I’m taking you where you need to go.”
“That’s not an answer.”
“It’s the best you’re going to get from me, I’m afraid,” Starlight muttered. The truth was, despite the fact that she undeniably curious to find out, she had very little idea of where Sunset’s resistance movement had set up their safe-houses. That was probably for the best. As much as the idea of being able to hold the knowledge over Sunset Shimmer’s diminutive head appealed to her baser instincts, what Starlight didn’t know she could not reveal, or be forced to reveal should she fall from grace.
Not for the first time that night, she wondered what in Equestria – or even in United-Equestria – she was doing. It wasn’t as if she had great faith in Sunset’s little band. As a matter of fact she didn’t really rate them at all. They had achieved some successes in stealing supplies from Starfleet convoys, but not much else so far. Sunset Shimmer would probably claim that they were still in the set-up phase, to which Starlight would have asked when they were going to stop setting up and start doing something. The truth, she strongly suspected, was that there weren’t enough of them with the nerve to actually do anything. It was easy to call oneself one of the Queen’s Mares, to wear the gold, to say that being in a club meant that you were doing something against those awful Starfleet. It was harder to actually put your life on the line to resist oppression.
And yet she was about to trust them with Sunburst. Because she had no other choice. Starlight might consider her own plan, her careful accumulation of influence, the establishment of a rival source of power within Starfleet under the very nose of the Grand Ruler, to be the better option, much more sensible than the fantasy that one day you would hear the people sing, but she could not trust Starfleet officers to keep her friend safe.
For that, she was forced to rely on the kind of blustering ponies that she did not believe were capable of overthrowing the Grand Ruler if they tried.
“Starlight, what’s going on,” Sunburst said, sounding like he had the nerve to sound concerned about her, when he was the one who had been thrown into prison.
“Worry about yourself,” Starlight snapped. “You’re the one in the shackles.”
“I’m not the one who sounds full of regret.”
Starlight snorted. “I’m doing what I have to do.”
“Doesn’t mean you have to like it.”
“I know,” she snapped. “But…just…let’s not talk, okay. This will be over soon.”
Almost as soon as the words left her mouth, the light from the headlights illuminated a tree trunk – obviously cut down – lying across the road. Starlight smiled slightly as she brought the rover to a halt. Sticking with the classics, I see.
“What’s going on?” Sunburst asked, sounding suddenly nervous.
“Get out the car,” Starlight said. “Don’t worry, everything is going to be fine.”
She flicked the button that set both doors rising upwards on their rooftop hinges. She climbed out, letting her long black coat fall down to her calves, as Sunburst clambered from his seat with rather more difficulty, thanks to the restraints on his hands. Starlight looked around. It was so dark she couldn’t see a thing. There were trees all around that worked to further obscure her vision. She knew there was someone out there, but could neither see nor here any sign of them. All that she could hear was the hooting of an owl in the trees.
Starlight strolled easily around the back of the rover, keeping her hands where any observes from the woods could see them, making doubly sure to keep them well away from her sidearm. She didn’t want anyone to get the wrong idea, after all.
Sunburst shivered in the darkness. “Starlight?”
Starlight said not a word as she undid the shackles on his hands.
Sunburst’s eyes widened in surprise. “Starlight?”
“It’s going to be okay,” Starlight said. She smiled, and hoped that she was not so far gone that he could not still see in her his old friend, who wore her hair in pigtails with little blue ribbons. “Trust me.”
Sunburst stared at her for a moment, his eyes half obscured by the cracks in his lenses. This the tension in his shoulders seemed to ease. “I trust you, Starlight.”
“Well isn’t this nice,” a voice cried out from out of the darkness. “Looks like we might have found the only officer in Starfleet with a heart.”
Starlight turned to face the night. “Took you long enough. Why don’t you come out where we can see you?”
“What, so you can put our names on your wanted list?” the voice replied. Nevertheless, three figures did appear out of the night, materialising like wraiths out of the darkness, like shadows suddenly becoming real and solid.
They wore masks and bandanas to cover their faces, but that only took them so far. She could still tell that one of them was a griffon, with tawny wings stretched out behind him and feathers covering his body, and that another was a blue unicorn with his frizzy black hair tied back in an elaborate ponytail. The third was an earth pony, well built, with a woollen cap hiding his hair.
“Yo,” said ponytail. “You’re Sunburst, right?”
“Um…yes,” Sunburst stammered. “Who are you?”
“Sons of liberty, your new best friends,” said woollen cap.
Starlight snorted softly. Sons of liberty? Fighting to restore a princess to power? Isn’t that some sort of oxymoron.
“And you must be Colonel Starlight Glimmer,” ponytail said. “The spy with a heart.”
“A black one anyway,” woollen cap spat.
“Mon ami, why waste your breath on such a one?” the griffon asked, his accent thick and his tone dismissive. He advanced upon Starlight, a crossbow held loosely in his talons. “You are aware of what is to happen next?”
Starlight nodded. “You’re going to make it look good, right?”
The griffon nodded. “Trust me, zis will look very good. Tell the Grand Ruler ‘casse toi’ for us, oui?” Before Starlight could respond, he hit her in the face with the stock of his crossbow. She collapsed to the ground, the searing pain giving way to all-encompassing darkness.
“Welcome to ze revolution, Sunburst,” the griffon said.
The prison corridor was white, clean and sterile, a mixture of metal and plastic that reverberated with the sounds of the officers’ boots.
Rainbow Dash followed Cerise Wonder, walking side by side with Lieutenant Havoc as they followed the gently curving corridor towards an as yet unknown – to Rainbow, anyway – destination. She had a feeling that part of the reason that their destination remained unknown to her was because she wouldn’t particularly like it if she knew what that destination was, but she couldn’t prove that and there was no point saying anything. What was confusing her a little more was why there was a prison on United-Equestria in the first place. Weren’t they all supposed to be on far away prison planets, in order to keep the undesirables far away? Who were they keeping here?
Rainbow’s first thought was petty criminals, the kind who were going to be released soon, and didn’t present any kind of danger to society. But she wasn’t entirely sure that such an approach was wholly in keeping with the Starfleet attitude to offenders, and so it probably wasn’t that.
And even if it was, why would a Starfleet major be visiting some petty thief? And why would she had explicitly ordered Rainbow to come with her.
She glanced at Lieutenant Havoc by her side. The aide-de-camp wasn’t offering any answers. His face was grim, and he looked as uncomfortable about this as Rainbow felt uneasy. It was weird, and it was starting to freak Rainbow out just a little bit.
She coughed into her hand, or into the glove the enfolded it anyway. She had just come from a training exercise, and so was wearing the awful field uniform with that terrible pseudo-spandex armour. Perhaps that was why she didn’t feel right: the armour itched like crazy, and half the time she was afraid she was going to take it off and find that it had given her a rash. Rainbow didn’t even think it served particularly well as armour. It certainly hadn’t kept Twilight safe.
The other reason for her less than enthusiastic mood was the training session that she had just come from. It wasn’t…it wasn’t going terribly, but it wasn’t going very well either. The pegasi were enthusiastic, but the truly good fliers were the ones that Rainbow recognised a little too much of herself in: hot shots eager to make their mark, but lacking the humility to play as a team. Pegasi like Lightning Dust, in fact. There were a few who were better at the teamwork aspect, but they also tended to be the second-rate fliers, something that Lightning Dust had been quick to pick up on. If they could bond as a unit, then they might be able to achieve something, but that would require some of them to let the air of their egos a little, and at present there was little sign of that happening.
And then there were the space ponies. Arrogant, full of themselves, convinced that they were better than they were, it was all that Rainbow could do to get them to follow her orders, let alone take the ideas of this unit seriously. At this rate the company would never be ready for a field operation; certainly the last couple of exercises had all deteriorated into embarrassing fiascos, and the worst part was that it was mostly her fault. Major Cerise’s ground element was performing capably, if in a rather conventional manner, but Rainbow’s aerial element, the part of the unit that was meant to give them an edge, just wasn’t up to scratch, and that was Rainbow’s fault.
It was. She was the leader; it was her job to get everyone in line and working together. She had taken this job because she had wanted to believe, in spite of her better judgement, that Twilight’s dream could become a reality. She had taken this job because she wanted to believe in Twilight.
Instead, all that she had managed to achieve was to prove, in the words of one contemptuous Starfleet officer, that ‘Princess Twilight was a fool all along’. If Lieutenant Havoc hadn’t come to get Rainbow at that exact moment she probably would have punched his teeth in.
But now, instead of being chewed out for her incompetence, she was being led here, through this facility the purpose of which she did not know. And she couldn’t figure out why.
Rainbow coughed again. “Hey, Major? What are we doing here?”
“I’m taking you to meet an acquaintance of mine,” Cerise said. “Someone…well, I can’t say that you’ll very much want to meet them, but you should listen carefully to what they have to say.”
They arrived at the end of the corridor, at a sealed door with a big yellow warning sign on it proclaiming RESTRICTED AREA: SUBJECT EXTREMELY DANGEROUS.
Not petty criminals then.
There was a guard on the door, who saluted at Major Wonder’s approach.
“ID, sir?”
Cerise, in a tone that suggested she had done this many times before, replied, “Major Cerise Wonder, ID R0YM2, here to see the prisoner.”
“Roger that, sir, you’re cleared for entry.” The guard turned away, and pressed a couple of keys into his keypad. The metal door slid open with a hiss, and Major Cerise strode inside. Rainbow and Havoc followed.
The corridor continued, but instead of the metal or plastic wall there was a large panel of glass or see through plastic, with a few airholes, a mailbox that opened at both ends allowing items to be deposited into the cell, and another slot – Rainbow noticed that this one could be locked – that looked about the right shape for meal trays.
And inside the spacious cell on the other side –
“Major Wonder, you’re back! If you keep coming to see me like this I’m going to have to ask you what you’re intentions towards me are. And you brought a new friend! Let’s see: cyan coat, magenta eyes, pegasus…and that hair. Why, you must be the great Rainbow Dash. I’m delighted to meet you! After all, I did know your friend Twilight rather well.”
Rainbow’s face contorted into a scowl as her hands clenched into fists. “You…” she rounded on Major Wonder. “What the hay is this?”
Raven laughed. Raven, who had tried to murder Celestia. Raven, who had shattered the pattern of their lives beyond repair. Raven, who had destroyed the last hope for a better future for United-Equestria.
Raven, who had killed Twilight. She stood in the bare but spacious cell, her blue cloak and black catsuit replaced with a white prison uniform, that left much of her grey coat visible. Her dark blue mane was longer now than it had been, and less tidy, growing in an unkempt fashion down Raven’s back and half obscuring her face. Only one of her violet eyes was visible, the other hidden behind a drooping bang. Her bat-like wings protruded out from her back, flapping lazily, while a glowing ring surrounded her golden horn, and prevented her from using the Uniforce to just blast a hole in the prison and escape.
She had murdered Twilight. She had killed her, for no reason at all. And now here she was, laughing in Rainbow’s face.
“Surprised to see me?” she asked. “Well, perhaps you should take it up with Sunset Shimmer if you’re so mad. She’s the one who didn’t kill me when she had the chance.”
“I knew that you were alive,” Rainbow snapped. “I know that Sunset brought you in alive, and I know why.”
“Because of morality or something, because dear Twilight wouldn’t have wanted Sunset to become a killer like me. Boring,” Raven said. “I much preferred the way the movie version handled it: Celestia taking her revenge and ending my life. Glorious. Have you seen Twilightfall? Major Wonder arranged for me to be able to watch it as a reward for telling her some stories. I thought that the actress playing me did an excellent job, even if she was let down by a thin script at times. Apparently I was played by a professional gladiator. It certainly lent my fight scenes an air of veracity, especially my fight against Twilight. It seemed…very believable that I could beat her to death, especially since dear Tara is not a trained fighter. She looked completely out of her league. Which, of course, she was.”
“Shut the hay up,” Rainbow snarled.
Raven smirked. “Now why would I want to do that? Why did you come here, except to listen to me? There’s no one else around to talk to.”
“I said shut up!” Rainbow said, striking the glass with her fist.
Raven tsked. “Temper, temper, Rainbow Dash. You’ll upset me.”
“That’s enough, Raven,” Cerise snapped. “You know we didn’t come here to listen to you prattling on. We’re here to talk business. Rainbow, don’t let her get to you.”
“Don’t let me get to her?” Raven giggled. “I killed her best friend and you expect to be able to keep me from getting under her skin. What is she, a sociopath?”
“Raven-“
“By the way, Lieutenant Havoc, have you confessed your feelings to Major Wonder yet?”
“What?” Havoc gasped.
“That’s a no, then. You know, no mare likes a guy who sits back and waits for her to make the first move.”
“Raven!” Wonder snapped. “That’s enough!”
Raven sighed. “Very well, if you’re determined to be tiresome. What do I get in return for spilling all of my secrets to angry Rainbow Dash?”
“What do you want?”
Raven pondered for a moment, folding her arms across her chest. “It’s my anniversary coming up, and I’d like a nice dinner. There’s a restaurant that we used to go to: the Bella Noche. It has a version in New Canterlot. I want three courses, anything I want from the menu, prepared here so that it doesn’t get cold…and wine, course. A fancy dinner without wine is…well, it’s a contradiction in terms, isn’t it. Quite uncivilised.”
“Of course,” Wonder muttered. “I’ll see what I can do.”
Raven clapped her hands together. “You see, Rainbow Dash? Major Wonder understands the value of courtesy. She understands that you can get further with a kind word and a couple of favours than with a raised voice.” She clasped her hands behind her back and began to pace up and down. “Now, what would you like to know?”
“Why did you kill Princess Twilight?”
Why? She didn’t have a reason, she just did it?
Raven stopped pacing, and glanced at Wonder. “Haven’t we been over this already, Major?”
“For the benefit of Captain Rainbow Dash,” Wonder said. “Why did you kill Princess Twilight?”
Raven shrugged. “People die in battle. You ask that question as if I targeted her on purpose. She was the one who pursued me, she was he one who acted recklessly. She was the one…who got in my way. Celestia was my real target. Can I just say, that was one aspect of the script I found a little lacking. Those notes that I sent for Celestia. ‘Die, Celesita, Die!!!’ Very vulgar, almost comical. No class or taste, not my style at all.”
Rainbow scoffed. “You sent a note saying exactly that. I saw it.”
Raven blinked. “Did I?” she seemed confused. “I must have…” she shook her head. “Does that answer your question, Major? Captain?”
“No,” Wonder said. “So I’m going to ask you again. Why did you kill Princess Twilight Sparkle?”
“I didn’t,” Raven yelled. “Celestia was my target, it was all about Celestia.”
“Why was Celestia your target?”
“Because she killed my husband!”
“Your husband of whom no records exist?” Cerise demanded. “The same way that no records of you exist prior to your attack upon the royal family?”
“I didn’t go by Raven then.”
“Really?” Cerise said. “I haven’t heard that before. What name did you go by?”
Raven exhaled loudly. “I don’t want to tell you,” she said through gritted teeth.
“What was your husband’s name?”
Raven turned away. “I don’t think I want to speak to you any more today, Major.”
Rainbow shook her head. “You know what I think. I think you’re full of it and you know it.”
Raven turned back, her visible eye blazing with anger. “What did you say?”
“You can talk about how a dinner has to have wine. You can critique the performance of an actor playing you,” Rainbow said. “You can pretend all you want to be cultured and civilised, but I’ve know real class and real culture and you haven’t got either. You’re a common murderer and we both know it.”
Raven started to breathe very heavily. She looked as if she was about to double over from shortness of breath. “Careful, Rainbow…Dash…you might not like me when I’m…angry.”
Rainbow smirked. “Why don’t you come out here and say that? Oh, wait, you can’t because you’re in prison.”
“Your attempts to kill Celestia were amateurish,” Cerise said. “And if you wanted her dead, why not face her in battle? Because Twilight was your real target, wasn’t she?”
Raven shook her head. “You’re too short for this ride, Major. All of you, you don’t want to go meddling in these affairs.”
“The hay I don’t, tell me!” Rainbow yelled. “Tell me why you did it! Tell me why Twilight had to die!”
Raven blinked three times, and her demeanour changed as if by the flick of a switch. Her voice became higher, almost babyish at times. Her shoulders hunched, she bent half-double, hugging herself as if she was cold…or afraid.
“My daddy taught me how to fight,” she said. “My daddy said that I had to work real hard at it, else he’d be upset with me. I wouldn’t like it when my daddy was upset with me. No, daddy, please don’t lock me in the dark. No, daddy, please don’t leave me. I’ll be good, I swear. I’ll work hard, real hard. I’ll be the best fighter there ever was, even stronger than big brother. My daddy taught me how to fight. He said that I was real special. I’d got a rare talent for it, he said. Much, much stronger than big brother ever was. Faster too. Then…the one day he told me my training was all complete, that I was ready, and he had a job for me.”
“So your father ordered you to kill Princess Twilight,” Cerise said.
“Pony princess poking her nose into our business,” Raven said, still in that high, childish voice. “Daddy said she was going to ruin everything. Daddy said something had to be done about her, and soon.” She giggled. “So I fixed her. I fixed her up right good.”
Rainbow growled. “Your father, who is he?” I’d like to pay him a visit?
Raven shook her head. “You don’t want to be asking questions like that. You’ll make my daddy mad.”
“What business was Princess Twilight poking her nose into?” Cerise asked.
“I don’t know,” Raven said. “Daddy never told me nothing about that. He just gave me my orders.”
“One last question,” Cerise said. “Who is your brother?”
Raven hesitated. She twitched. She shook as though were about to have a fit. Her eyes blinked rapidly as though she was dreaming. “My…my brother is…you know him as…” she stopped blinking, and her normal voice returned. “I’m sorry, Major, was I saying something?”
“Your brother,” Rainbow said.
Raven snorted. “I don’t have a brother, Rainbow Dash, where are you getting these delusions from?”
“We’re done, thank you,” Cerise murmured. “I’ll see about that dinner.”
Raven bowed. “Always a pleasure to converse with you, Major Wonder. Until next time.”
“Yes,” Cerise said, sounding as though she wasn’t looking forward to it, before she turned and walked out of the room.
Rainbow rushed after her. “Just what in the-“
“Not here,” Cerise hissed, striding away and leaving Rainbow and Havoc to trail in her wake. Only when they had reached one of the rare spots in the corridor where there were no cameras directly on them did she turn and begin to speak.
“What you just saw in there happened the very first time I questioned Raven,” Wonder said. “I went to talk to her because so much didn’t add up: if she was so powerful, why try and poison Celestia? Why not engage her in combat as soon as the opportunity arose. It only made sense if the purpose was not to kill Celestia, but rather to draw out Twilight. I asked her about it…and you saw the results.”
Rainbow frowned. “So…what are you saying?”
“The official story is that Raven was a pony who lived a thousand years ago in old Equestria, where her husband was accidentally killed by Celestia. Raven swore revenge, was imprisoned in the Crystal Empire, became a demoncorn, and then attempted to kill Celestia, killing Twilight Sparkle in the process. That story is almost 100% false, the only thing that I believe is true is that she killed Princess Twilight.”
“Then who is she?”
“I don’t know for certain, but you heard what she said. Her father trained her in combat and ordered her to kill Princess Twilight because he felt that she was a threat to his plans.”
“And she has a brother,” Havoc said. “Someone that we know or someone who Raven thought we would know.”
Rainbow’s eyes narrowed. “So let me get this straight. You think…you think that someone on the inside wanted Twilight dead? And that they arranged for Raven to be sent to do it?”
Cerise nodded. “Twilight’s death is part of a pattern of bizarre events that don’t make sense. The war in Rangiveria is the latest example of unprovoked aggression from the part of Starfleet that only seems logical from the perspective of a desire to create as much chaos and bloodshed as possible. Over the years, inquisitive and free-thinking officers have been weeded out of the service, and a culture of unthinking obedience has been encouraged. The number of people held in prisons or mental institutions has increased by an incredible lately. Something is going on here, something…something that means no good at all, I’m convinced of that. I also believe that Princess Twilight uncovered something, or was on the verge of uncovering something, and that she was killed to keep her secret.”
“But what?”
Cerise smiled. “I was hoping you might know the answer that, Executive Captain, she didn’t confide in you?”
“No,” Rainbow said. After a moment, she added. “Or if she did tell me what she was working on, I didn’t really take it in. But I would have remembered if she’d told me anything about secret conspiracies or sinister bad guys.”
“She kept it to herself, then,” Cerise said. “That’s a pity. We’ll have to find out some other way.”
“Why don’t we just go in there and ask Raven who her father and brother are?”
“I’ve tried, and gotten nowhere,” Cerise replied. “Maybe she’ll tell me eventually, but until then…the truth is I learned nothing new in there, I brought you along so you could see for yourself, so that you would find it easier to believe me. This is why the work we’re doing is so important?”
“I don’t follow,” Rainbow said.
“Whatever is going on here, whatever deep game is being played, it’s going to be bad news for all of us,” Cerise said. “If we’re going to come out on top, we’re going to have to stand together. All of us, just like Princess Twilight wanted.
“So sort your team out, Executive Captain, because if we can’t work together we don’t stand a chance.”
“Yes, sir,” Rainbow murmured, though to tell you the truth she could hardly think about that now. Twilight’s death, which had seemed to be a senseless tragedy, was planned? Someone, someone unimaginably cruel and callous, had made the decision to end Twilight’s life because…because what? Because of what she knew? Because of what she might do with her knowledge? Because of what she didn’t yet know, but might find out.
I have to tell the others about this.
“I’d advise you not to spread what you’ve heard too widely,” Cerise said. “The more people know, the more people get put in danger.”
“But Twilight’s friends-“
“At present only we three know what I have told you,” Cerise said firmly. “We already know that our enemy is willing to kill anyone who gets in their way. Do you want to paint targets on the backs of your friends?”
Rainbow bowed her head. “No. Sir.”
“Then leave them out of this,” Cerise ordered. “Concentrate on your unit.”
“Yes, sir,” Rainbow said. But when I find out who Raven’s father is, when I find out who ordered Twilight’s death.
They’re going to pay.
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Twilight was doing research on the Unicorpains and their origins. Interesting, I love how you are taking the time to look at what the magic is supposed yto do and the difference with Cutie marks and those codes
Hmmm, there is that greco-roman theme that shows up. NAmely, I know that this is partlly based on the generations of man that the Greeks believed. I wonder, if that is a general idea.
True! This is something that ticks me off about Starfleet's stories, they treat idivualty and specialness like it is a bad thing. Heck, even Grand Ruler's origin is all about how he was shunnned for being a special snowflake (And will somebody please tell me how they kept up legends on Nightmare Moon, and knew Discord's species, but not a golden tri-horned golden winged alicorn?)
HOLY CRAP!!! I did not see this one coming!
You have been watching Silence of the Lambs, havent you?
...!!!!!!!
You are just racking up the "HOLY CRAP" Quotient with this aren't you? I approve.
Oh, the intrigue, the plots. Oh, this is getting good!!!!!
Oh, now this is interesting. So a lot of the seasons have been movies so far? That is a very interesting spin on the idea.
Hmmm, I really like where this is going with Raven, and it is interesting to look at the back story for her. Actually some of what you have put here is very interesting indeded.
7400023
It's a combination of the actual Men of Bronze (who wiped themselves out in wars) and the titans/giants/various peoples that rebelled against the gods.
I decided that it was really OOC for Celestia to straight up kill someone, even (especially?) out of a desire for revenge, and it showed something that Sunset's presence had changed from 'canon'.
I can't really remember why I decided to give Raven the sort of Lecter touches...I remember it made sense when I woke up and couldn't get back to sleep, but the reasons I thought it made sense have escaped me.
My basic idea, and I have a fun notion for how elaborate on it if Legendbringer will agree, is that all of the Starfleet series and movies are propaganda pieces made by Starfleet, and some of them are more accurate than others. As I said, if Legendbringer doesn't mind I should have a fun scene with this later.
7400151
It's because her backstory, as written...doesn't really make a lot of sense. Nor, indeed, do her attempts to kill Celestia.
7400239
Neither her backstory, Dusk Shine's, or Grand Ruler's make any sense if you take in the past. Especially since Grand Ruler doesn't mention what he was doing during the unifaction of the three tribes.
7400754
I could forgive that, since that was before Celestia's time as well, but he never mentions what he did during Discord's time either, bizarrely, not to mention the way that his childhood 1,000 years ago seems just like an ordinary American childhood, with school sports and bullying...and a visit from the young princess to attend sports day.
How did I miss this update? Curiouser and curiouser. My initial impression of Starlight were false.
Blessed are the Truth Seekers Lightning, never underestimate them
7407231
Well...Starlight was originally going to be a lot more villainous, a sort of Littlefinger-type figure out for herself. But then she became a much nicer person in the show (remember, I originally started this before S5 finished) and so she got more positive qualities here too. The relationship with Trixie is something that I only decided to work in post 'No Second Prances'.
7409152
Kind of figured that.
Superb as ever, though you seem to have forgotten to indicate scene changes.
Say, are you going to explain why the Crystal Heart's shattering in Starfleet Magic didn't turn the Crystal Empire into a frozen wasteland?
Urge to kill celesto rising and oh my gosh! Raven is alive
There appears to be a conspiracy going on, and Twilight was killed to keep it secret. I can not blame Rainbow Dash for wanting to kill Raven's father for sending her to kill Twilight.
Nice to see that a Space Pony is trying to accomplish what Twilight tried to do.
I can't but wonder, will the Mane 5 get better uniforms?