Sigil of Souls, Stream of Memories

by Piccolo Sky

Daybreak: A Bringer of Hope

Author's Note:

Nope, still alive and still writing. Just got off of grad school for the semester to do more. Next semester starts soon so my momentum probably won't last long, but enjoy while you can. :)

“Sooo….Rainbow Dash?”

“What is it?”

“So long as we’re out, can we pick up some fruits to take home with us? I can’t wait to make a strawberry banana cake once we get back to Canterlot!”

The Huntsman rolled her eyes but kept walking. “You’ve already weighed us down with a couple crates, Pinkie.”

“I know, but when will we get another chance to get all of this fresh Southern Equestria fruit?”

Dash glanced around herself, in particular to one of the buildings nearby. It was a Knickerbocker branch office, and she happened to notice that it had two Trottingham soldiers in front of it. Both of them were armed with guns and were rather stone-faced.

“…Probably not for much longer.”

It had been a couple days since they arrived in Southern Equestria, and while their stay at the manor house was pleasant enough, the same couldn’t be said for the rest of Somnambula. While Matilda tried to keep it quiet, between Cranky’s yelling every time he came home and Gallus passing along the info to them every day, they soon realized that things were deteriorating. Every day there were more riots, and for the past two days there had been a progressively growing demonstration outside of the Knickerbocker’s main office. Yesterday, a chant had broken out that had nearly erupted in violence, and in spite of the local authorities attempts to disperse the crowd there had been people camping out all night to start up the clamor fresh the next morning.

The markets weren’t much better. By now, protests and small mobs were moving through them with such regularity and starting so many fights and disturbances that the local government had been forced to impose checkpoints and a curfew. This only made things worse when the locals complained about how it was disrupting their way of life to a largely deaf set of guardsmen.

Needless to say, by now, the roads were much thinner than they had been when they started. And what people were walking along were mostly quiet or looking about tensely, especially whenever a squad of local soldiers would march by.

At least Pinkie seemed fairly oblivious to it. She was hopping and skipping around as merrily as ever. After a bit further it made Dash look at her oddly. “How can you do that?”

“Do what?”

“Be so casual? You’re not at all freaked out by how fast this place is going to martial law?”

“Oh, this is waaaay better than back in Trottingham, Rainbow Dash! At least here I can walk down the street without getting arrested! And I can buy stuff without mysteriously disappearing!”

She grimaced. “Yeah…I suppose when you put it that way, it’s a matter of perspective…”

Suddenly, she let out a gasp. “I almost forgot! I know what we can do today! Let’s go see the Sphinx statue! Matilda told me it’s the biggest sight in Somnambula! We can even pay someone to take our picture!”

Dash shrugged as she kept walking down the road. “Might as well. If we’re just going to be sniffing around looking for more brawls to break out, then I guess that place would be as good as any. Know where it is?”

“Sure! Just head to main road and keep going south! Matilda said you can’t miss it!”

“Alright. Lead the way.”

“Yay!” she chirped, beginning to skip along. Dash followed close behind, though not nearly so brightly.

However, they didn’t get too terribly far. As they approached the next intersection, both of them heard a rush of boots. Dash looked up and saw a group of soldiers coming down the road. There were two other magistrates posted at the corner, and one of the group stayed behind and ran over to them. Dash’s eyes focused on the three as the soldier said something to either of them. Following doing so, she noticed that he made a cutting motion around his neck. Both magistrates looked rather uneasy at that and soon left their own positions to run after the soldier down the road.

Dash frowned, although Pinkie hardly seemed to have noticed it at all.

“Say, uh…why don’t you run on ahead to that statue? I’ll catch up with you in a little bit.”

“Okie-dokie-lokie! Don’t be long! I still want that picture!” Pinkie cheered back, not minding one bit as she kept hopping down the road once they reached the intersection. As for Dash, she turned at the intersection and headed after the soldiers and magistrates.

---

Matlida was right about the monument. Only about a mile down the street, the road widened and the buildings shifted outward, gradually giving way to a long patch of dirt ground. And rising right in the midst of it all was a very large, old, and conspicuous statue. Pinkie had never seen the like before as she approached, and it immediately caught her awe and attention.

The beast was massive—bigger than a Steel Lion, even. Its head was that of a human wearing an old Southern Equestria headdress, but the body was that of a lion, and it sat crouched in the middle of the plaza for all to see. However, there wasn’t exactly anyone present to see it at the moment. The town was void of tourists. The locals were trying to keep off the streets as much as possible, so no one was using the surrounding area or grounds and only a few pedestrians were passing by. Worst of all, as Pinkie neared, she saw the tent area for photographers had been struck.

“Aw… I really wanted to get a picture with Dash…”

She tried to look around a little, to see if there was anything else she could get to note the trip, and after a short while she noticed there was at least one vendor still there. An old lady, hunched over, withered, and beaten by sun and desert stands, had a very small stall barely big enough for her nearby. Pinkie turned to her and began to hop over. She soon noticed what she was selling—small trinkets in the form of necklaces and bracelets that were made with bright green moonstones.

“Ooo!” she exclaimed as she got near, quickly scooting up to them, leaning in, balling her hands up into fists near her face, and examining them with glee.

“Hmm?” the old lady spoke up, apparently not noticing her until then. “Oh, hello there, young lady. I’m sorry…I’m not used to getting customers anymore. Would you care for some glowpaz jewelry?”

She looked up. “Glowpaz?”

“Yes. Somnambula is famous for it.” She looked down a little, sighing. “At least, we were when there were still tourists coming in regularly… It’s a rare moonstone that glows in the dark after exposing it to light.”

“Really? That sounds neat! How much for a necklace?”

“Only five bits. Two for nine.”

“Wow! That’s cheap!” Pinkie exclaimed as she began to reach into her pocket.

“Well, they were used as money many, many years ago, but they’re only a little rare nowadays. Still…” She sighed. “The price has gone down over the past few years… I’m lucky to even sell one or two some weeks, and I’m one of the fortunate ones. Before the Lunar Fall, there would be twenty vendors selling a hundred a day each day.”

Pinkie managed to get out her bits and started to dole them out. “So how come everyone visits this big statue? Did there used to be big mancats running around out here?”

The old lady chuckled. “Oh no…not outside of fairy tales, young lady. Somnambula was a woman who served as advisor to the Pharaoh and whose advice and spirit enabled him to withstand two famines and three foreign invasions. ‘The Bringer of Hope’, that’s what they called her. She’s so legendary that a lot of myths have arisen about her over the years. One is that one of the famines was caused by a Sphinx that came to the city, and how she drove her off by answering her riddle and then walking a hundred yards while blindfolded over a pit filled with poison. This statue was erected in honor of the legend. As for the glowpaz, she came from a family of glowpaz jewelers, and she donated all of her holdings to help the Pharaoh withstand the first famine.”

Reaching over, she took up the money and, after counting it, put it underneath the stall. “Now, which two would you like?”

“I’ll take…that one and that one!”

The old lady plucked the two from the others and handed them over. Pinkie quickly put one on herself but eagerly stashed the other in her poofy hair. “This is great! Now Dash and I will both have something to remember this trip by even without the photo!”

“This is the third day in a row I’ve made a sale, young lady. Here’s hoping what I saw a couple months ago was a good omen.”

Pinkie looked up curiously. “Huh?”

“Oh, about two months ago, I was out here after a long day holding out for another tourist when the sun went down, and I decided to give up and go home for the day. I was halfway through packing everything when I saw a shooting star. Only it wasn’t like any shooting star I had ever seen before. You know…I’m sure I was just tired now when I think about it, but I almost thought I saw it actually land right there at the base of that Sphinx monument. It must have…”

She trailed off, for she noticed that no sooner had she said that than Pinkie spun around and curiously began to skip toward the monument itself.

“Um…young lady? You aren’t allowed to actually get that close to the monument or touch it…”

Pinkie didn’t seem to hear and, while the place would have been guarded seven years ago by local authorities to make sure no damage came to the precious monument, they had all long since redeployed in the city itself. The old lady’s cries were of no avail as Pinkie hopped up right to the base of the Sphinx itself and looked down in the space right in between its massive forepaws.

“Hmm…I don’t see any shooting stars…”

She bent down, stuck her tongue out, and opened one eye as large as she could to look in closer.

“Maybe I’m just not looking at it right…”

She began to glance upward instead, looking back at the Sphinx statue itself. She looked about the paws on either side of her, the main statue, and even up to the human face for a few seconds, all the while the little old lady was calling to her, but didn’t risk going out to try and grab her and pull her back.

She looked for a few seconds more before something caught her eye. A prismatic gleam shimmered over her face, causing her to look back at the ground again.

“Huh?”

---

“Keep it moving, folks. There’s nothing to see here.”

That, of course, was the biggest lie that Dash had heard since she arrived in Southern Equestria. There wouldn’t be twenty soldiers and magistrates surrounding a public square with even more civilians crowding around trying to get a look at what it was without there being something up. Fortunately for the Huntsman, she knew her way around pushing into and about crowds of people, and it didn’t take her that long to work her way to the front. There weren’t enough to soldiers to fully block the sight or those investigating it, and so she soon saw the cause.

Based on the skin tone and the facial features, Dash assumed the victim of the incident had been not only someone from Greater Everfree but some sort of local official. From the looks of him, he had been beaten to death, but that appeared to be incidental. The true aim had originally been public humiliation—as evidenced by the fact that he was covered with some sticky, blackened substance and a great deal of feathers. Obviously she wasn’t allowed that close to see more, but Dash had seen incidents of public shaming before and this definitely didn’t look like tar.

She moved up to the nearest soldier. “So…what’s the story here?”

“Nothing that needs to concern civilians. Move along.”

“Might have been someone I was coming down to see. Could you level with me on that?”

“Unless you were headed toward the local custom’s post, then unlikely. Move along.”

Dash backed away soon after. She wasn’t a detective by any means, but the soldier had said all she needed to know. The local custom’s post. In other words, a place that regulated the trade of the area. And someone who had been publicly shamed, not by tar but by something very viscous and likely served up boiling just the same, who worked out of there. No doubt one of the staff. And from the look of the whispers along the periphery of the crowd, someone who had no doubt been meant as a message.

She moved over closer to some of the whisperers, trying to overhear what they were saying. It wasn’t long before she got an answer.

“I’ll bet it’s for those three they arrested last night…”

“Things are getting worse around here every day. We should hit the next boat…”

“Might be too late for that already…”

Dash would have listened in a bit closer, but at that moment something caught the corner of her eye. She turned her head and looked up, just as someone on the edge of the crowd opposite her turned and vanished down the nearest street. Before she did, however, she caught a glimpse of her hair. A style almost as striking and unique as her own.

Eyes narrowing, Dash forgot about the people nearby and began to push through the crowd after her. “Well, well…fancy seeing an old friend around here…”

Dash was only slowed down until she managed to clear the crowd. As soon as she was free, she went into a much faster gait, quickly turning down the same road. She didn’t see the woman right away, but after tearing down in one direction in a run she managed to catch a glimpse of her at the next intersection. Immediately she darted down that way, going into a fast walk instead. Although this allowed her to be much more silent than before, she hardly lost her pace from one of her normal jogs, and when she spotted the woman again she was much closer.

She continued to pursue her a bit farther, until she noticed a flex from the woman. When that happened, she quickly darted down an alleyway, right before she turned around and looked behind her. Not wasting the momentary pause, though, Dash quickly went down the alley and out the other end, then turned up the next street to try and head her off. As she came around the block, she saw her move was a good one. She caught sight of her just as she was emerging from another road. She paused just long enough for her to look her way and see nothing, then sprung out after her.

At long last, she caught up to her just as she was turning down one short roadway leading up to the main street. As she turned the corner, Dash increased her speed and fell in right behind her. The woman heard her at that point, but it was too late. She turned around just in time to have one of Dash’s hands clamp over her mouth and her arm push against her chest. A second later, she pivoted the woman around and slammed her against the nearest wall, out of view of anyone around.

The woman was shocked and nearly tensed up to fight back, until her eyes recognized the face glowering at her. As Dash pulled off her hand, she smirked instead. “Well…as I live and draw breath…if it isn’t ‘honorary Fillydelphian’ Rainbow Dash herself. Funny running into you way out here in the sticks.”

“I was just about to say the same thing, Lightning Dust,” Dash grumbled back as she slowly released her, but stayed positioned in front of her as she leaned up and adjusted her clothing. “I could’ve sworn it was your voice I heard all the way back at Rider’s Island.”

She raised an eyebrow, then smiled even wider. “Oh-ho…so you were the special VIP prisoner they had during that attack? You really get around, don’t you, Dash? Even as a retired veteran.”

“And you get around as an imitation Wonderbolt working for the Fillydelphian military. What are you doing here, Dust?”

“Oh, sorry Dash, I’d love to catch up, but I’m on the clock. Nice seeing you again!” She made a move to push past her.

Dash halted her by placing her palm on her chest and not-too-gently pushed her back against the wall. “Not so fast. Let’s catch up a little first.”

Dust took a moment to compose herself, not looking quite as casual as before. “You really want to risk causing a scene right here? There’s a lot of soldiers around trying to keep the peace…”

“Something tells me you’re the one who’s more worried about being caught by them. Quit beating around the bush and spill it. If you’re some new ace flier, what’re you doing across the ocean?”

“First off, I’m more than ‘some ace flier’. Or don’t you remember how I almost beat several of your records? That was years ago. I’ve been in the air ever since, unlike you. Second,” She shrugged. “What can I say? The life of a pro like me takes me in a lot of different directions. Or didn’t you ever have to do the same back in Cloudsdale?”

Dash grit her teeth but ignored that part. “You were skulking around that customs official who got whacked.”

“Oh yeah, I was, wasn’t I? Well, who wouldn’t be? Even in this part of the world, murder in the middle of the street isn’t business as usual.”

“He had gotten tarred and feathered, but not with tar.”

“Heh, well, syrup is a lot easier to find around these parts, isn’t it? What with the Knickerbocker running it like their own little Sugar Republic, eh?”

Dash’s eyes narrowed. “With molasses.”

Dust went silent.

“The kind you get from sorghum in Fillydelphia?”

She was quiet a second longer, but then smiled again—this time with the kind of look of someone grinning off that the “jig was up”. “Well, well…after all these years, you ended up becoming educated, eh Dash?”

“More like I could never forget the scent of that crud after eating it once. So are you ready to fess up?”

“There’s nothing to fess up to, Dash. Things are just playing out like they were going to. Maybe a bit faster than they would have if not for a thing or two, but they’re still playing out.”

Dash looked angry again. “Fillydelphia is trying to needle the locals into revolting, aren’t they?”

“Pft. We’re needling them into revolting? Oh sure. It couldn’t possibly be the fact that the Knickerbocker relocated to Southern Equestria not just because it could buy up all the land and force the farmers to either work for their sugar plantations or starve, but because they still allow legalized slavery. Like I said, this was all going to happen one way or another. And no one except for some fat cats and politicians on the take is going to miss it in the long run.”

“And what about the short run?”

Dust shrugged. “The Knickerbocker goes out of business and Greater Everfree has to get used to eating bland pastries for a little while as things sort themselves out down here.”

Dash balled her hand into a fist and punched the wall next to Dust’s head, although she didn’t react. “And while that’s going on, the shipping companies go under. The freighters go under. The sugar trade goes under. The bakeries go under. And everyone who still has a fix for sweeteners turns to the next best thing…sorghum from Fillydelphia. Meanwhile, the biggest pusher of the sugar trade, Manehattan, takes a financial beating. And all of this because of Fillydelphian interference.” She snorted. “Why am I not surprised? The Fillydelphian government never misses a trick, does it? And I suppose whichever warlord in Southern Equestria gets control of the sugar cane is going to be ready to make a deal with Fillydephia to distribute it?”

“Heh…that’d make a nice bonus, wouldn’t it?”

“And meanwhile, nothing changes as far as the slave trade or the farmers earning nibbles on the bit either, right?”

She shrugged again. “That’s Southern Equestria business, not ours. If they lived as serfs while under a protectorate for decades just to turn around and sell their own citizens back into slavery once Manehattan is out, who are we to judge? So long as it keeps cheap sugar flowing? No one up north will complain.”

“And I guess the locals that end up getting caught up in the crossfire don’t matter either?” Dash retorted, only to snort. “Of course they don’t. Fillydelphia didn’t care if one whole country got burned to the ground practically overnight. What’s one port city?”

Dust looked at her for a moment before swishing her mouth. “Oh…so that’s what this is all about.”

Dash blustered, but simply looked to the ground.

“Look Dash…things may have gone a bit worse in Cloudsdale than anyone wanted, but at the end of the day everyone else was better off for it. All we needed at the height of the Lunar Fall panic was that murdering nutjob taking over the government. She wasn’t even a native of Cloudsdale, for crying out loud! What? Did you want a repeat of the Cirrus disaster to take place over half of Greater Everfree?”

Dash let out a sigh.

“…Did you?”

“No…”

“Everyone only gets a happy ending in the fairy tales, Dash. You know it, I know it, and everyone else in the world has to know it. In real life, if you want a happy ending, it’s got to come from someone else’s tragedy.”

She looked up and frowned. “I’m blowing the lid off of this right now. I’m heading straight to the governor’s office and letting him know.”

“It’s too late for that.”

“What do you mean?”

“This has been building for weeks. They just sent us in to drop off the last bit of supplies since we can fly in and out easily and see if it was going off, and now it is. As we speak, the local magistrates and army officials are hunting down the families of the ones who killed that customs official. If the past is any indication, they’ll capture or kill the wrong people yet again, and that’ll be the final match in the powder keg. There’s already a mob getting ready to storm the jail. Once they break in, things will escalate until they set fire to the main office of the Knickerbocker itself, and this whole port will turn itself inside out. It’s beyond our control. If I were you, I’d get on a boat out of town right now if I could.”

Dash grit her teeth, tightening her fists in frustration. “Which way is the city jail?!”

Dust frowned back. “Now come on, Dash. You don’t want to get mixed up in a local mob riot, do you? Even you can’t stop them all. And I know you don’t want me running back to Greater Everfree telling them their honorary citizen decided to repay their clemency by betraying our interests…”

She fumed back before she took a step forward and got in Dust’s face. The latter recoiled a little, but then stood firm and stared back.

“I’m going to do something I should have done years ago—renounce my citizenship with Fillydelphia.”

“Think about what you’re saying. Don’t do anything you can’t take back.”

However, she didn’t say another word. Turning about, she made for the main road.

“Dash! Don’t do anything stupid!”

The cry fell on deaf ears. She turned a corner and was gone.

---

As usual with this sort of thing, Dash had charged into it not exactly knowing where to go or what to do next. She only ran right into the road and immediately began to look around almost aimlessly for the nearest road to the city jail. She didn’t even think to ask anyone as she started running up and down streets with an eager and almost frantic look on her face.

Fortunately, or perhaps unfortunately, she didn’t have to search for very long.

She never did find the jail itself, but she had only been searching for about ten minutes before she began to hear an echoing murmur on the streets. As it quickly grew louder, she didn’t have much trouble pinpointing where it was coming from, and, sure enough, when she turned toward it and began to run in that direction, she saw that many of the streets had cleared out around it—as if the locals knew what was coming and were either joining in or staying well out of their way. Realizing they wouldn’t bother hiding out on the side streets, she rejoined the main road. Only a few blocks later, she ground to a halt and looked down the street.

Dust wasn’t kidding about the oncoming mob. She almost thought she was seeing another crowd at a marketplace when she spotted them, considering how many were there and how densely packed together. There had to be almost three hundred of them already with more getting whipped up in the growing frenzy and coming out to join them. Many of their faces were tight and angry. They were beginning to whip up chants. Worst of all, many of them had taken up sticks or rocks. And with more joining them all the time, she knew that once they reached the jail one panicked shot would be all it would take to get things to boil over.

With that in mind, she planted her feet, turned around, and cupped her hands to her mouth to shout out to them.

“Hey! Break it up! Clear out of here!”

Of course, that accomplished absolutely nothing. It was unlikely most of them could even hear her, and if any did it was equally unlikely that they could understand her language considering the fact they were beginning to shout and chant in the native tongue. And even if they could, what then? She was just a foreigner. Heck, if she had been a member of the local magistrate or consulate, that probably would have made them angrier. They were approaching fast and only swelling in numbers. They seemed to have grown to four hundred in just the time it was taking them to go down the block.

Realizing there was nothing else for it, Dash sighed. Gritting her teeth, she looked again with reluctance and regret at her hand before, muttering to herself, she held it up. “Member of my house, I command you to come to me! Leader of the Wonderbolts—Captain Spitfire!”

An eruption of aura later, and she was back in the Role of the Disciple. She had a fool’s hope that simply seeing a transformation like that would have been enough to at least slow the crowd, but no such luck. And at this point, even if the local militia showed up, they would be too revved and in too great a number to halt them. It was up to her.

“Alright!” she shouted again, holding her hand out at them. “I’m warning you! Break up now!”

Still no answer or reaction, other than the continuous growth of the chanting.

Groaning one last time, and seeing them nearly in striking range, and that some of them were eyeing her as if assuming she would try to do something…and not liking it…she finally gave in. “Alright, you asked for it!”

Darting forward to meet them, she leaned in, formed a palm, and drove it right into the middle of the nearest member of the mob. It connected solidly and, compared to some of the things she had been dealing with lately, the result was more than pleasing as she effortlessly batted her right off of her feet and sent her crashing into several of the mob members behind her to knock them down as well. Doing so created a “dam” in the mob, and she used the moment to quickly lash out to the left and strike another one down, then pivot back to the right and kick another one aside. Once again, in both cases, the targets were sent crashing into their companions, knocking down more and keeping them back.

Unfortunately, even with her strength and speed, that was the farthest she got unopposed. Seeing they were being struck, the volume raised into an angry roar and soon the people were coming in on her on either side. That was just how Dash liked it, however. Being the new target of their anger. She easily darted under and away from the first attempt to tackle her, and easily leapt over the second from the other side. She caught the fist of a third and, while holding onto her, leaned over and raised up her leg to give another powerful kick to a fourth before yanking her in and striking her down with a headbutt. The next four that came in were very quickly dealt with, as she quickly applied her speed to dart around them and struck as pressure points on each one. Soon she was accumulating a pile of disabled mobbers in front of her.

Yet there were more besides, and they kept coming—filling the entire street. One suddenly lunged at her from behind and jumped onto her back. Before he could get an arm around her throat, she quickly leapt up, arched back, and let herself fall on the ground to smash him underneath her. Yet even that move allowed three more to sweep in on her at all sides, trying to put her down. Her feet quickly shot up and swung out three ways, kicking each one deep in the gut and keeping them back just long enough for her to snap back up to her feet…

A loud cracking went out from her back and she winced slightly. One of the mobbers had smashed her in the back with his own stave hard enough to break it. If not for her Anima Viri, even she would have been hurt from that. As it was, she quickly snapped her arm back, looped around his neck, and got him in a headlock. She yanked him about and started to swing him around, using him to keep the others back as they pressed in on her. One managed to get out a punch that graced across her cheek, but in her enhanced body it was meaningless, and soon she threw the individual into him to knock him down.

Unfortunately, by now, she was surrounded and the crowd was pressing in, grabbing out for her arms and legs to try and hold her back. She was strong enough to pry herself free each time, but they served to deaden the force of her blows as she kept lashing out to try and hit them away. And soon they were crushing in so much that she couldn’t get the leverage to use her kicks. She struck away five more of them before she felt another weight on her back as yet another local jumped onto her. This one was at least smart enough to put his arm around her neck to try and choke her down. She nearly dealt with him, but him as a burden immobilized her long enough for others to run in. Two more with sticks lashed out and tried hitting her in her abdomen and kidneys while others tried to seize her arms and legs again. Gritting her teeth in anger, she snapped her body down and flipped the one on her back off before lashing out with both arms at once, seizing either stick, and then yanking them back to start swinging around her. Soon she was breaking the knuckles of hands reaching for her and driving the mob back a precious few feet.

However, in the midst of this, she noticed that she was now “encapsulated” by part of the mob. The bulk of them were going around her and continuing onward, with more still coming out of the streets and joining them. Just as another mobber struck a useless, yet still slightly painful, blow to the back of her head, she grit her teeth in frustration. Even with her Anima Viri, she couldn’t stop hundreds…assuming they weren’t going to swell to over a thousand. Especially if she was just trying to disable them rather than do some real damage.

She glanced again to her hand, and to her second Anima Viri. Internally she winced. A knot began to form in her stomach. She wasn’t sure if she could hold that form for that long or even what it would be. Nevertheless, she bit down and nearly began to, albeit reluctantly, try speaking the words for the second…

However, as it turned out, she didn’t have to. In the middle of her deliberation, she suddenly realized the crowd wasn’t grabbing for her anymore. What more, the ones she were striking weren’t fighting back or trying to avoid her. She halted right before she could punch another, realizing that he wasn’t even looking at her. His eyes were up ahead, transfixed on the road. A quick glance around revealed it wasn’t just him. The entire mob about her had slowed to a halt. While those in the back were still moving forward, they were as puzzled as Dash to see the crowd had stopped in the middle of the street. They had ceased their chanting, lowered their arms, and, to be honest, were gaping in front of them like a gaggle of idiots.

Dash scrunched her face and looked at this in puzzlement a moment longer, before, over the new silence, she heard a familiar voice.

“Alright, everybody! Keep watching me!”

She perked up in surprise. “…Pinkie?”

It took a moment of looking through the crowd of people, and she ended up wandering forward a bit to get a better look, but what she saw made her jaw drop.

Pinkie had…changed. She now wore nothing on her chest except a top closer to her neck, her arms were clad in ornamental bracelets and sleeves over her forearms with long, graceful, silky trains. That went the same for her waist, which now had an equally colorful and silky-fabric skirt, tied with an ornamental belt and sash. She wore only sandals on her feet, although they were of such thin material they were practically fabric. Most noticeable was her hair and face. The latter had been done up in makeup and jewelry, while her hair was tied back and had tripled in length to a long, waving tail behind her.

While she had her normal, smiling, happy face, she was now dancing in the middle of the street. Rather gracefully and strikingly too. Her skirt billowed up and around along with her silken trails, while her hair swung about one way and the other along with her hips and shoulders. Nothing like her normal happy prances or skips. Enough to be…alluring. Sensual, even. It took Dash a second, but when she found her own eyes glued to it for several moments before she had to force herself to look away, she realized she was the one attracting everyone’s attention.

Dash couldn’t help but still look astonished. “Pinkie? Is that really you?”

Not breaking her stride, although she was sweating a little in the bright sun, Pinkie turned to her and smiled. “Oh! Hi, Rainbow Dash! Um…I’d appreciate it if you didn’t tell ma, pa, Maud, Marble, or Limestone about this. I’m pretty sure dancing like this is something Gaia Everfree doesn’t approve of…”

“What…what are you doing?”

“Well, I just finished putting on my second Anima Viri when I heard all of these big, loud, and angry people coming down the street, and I suddenly thought maybe I can distract them so that they’ll forget about what they’re planning to mob! And all of the sudden, I just felt like dancing like this! And it worked!”

“Wait…‘second Anima Viri’?” Dash glanced down at her hand and, sure enough, two symbols were blazing on it at once now.

“Yeah! I went over to visit the big statue of a sphinx like I said I wanted to, and all of the sudden I saw a rainbow glow at the bottom of it, and so I thought ‘hey, they called Somnambula the Bringer of Hope so why don’t I try and get it’? And it worked! Now I got a brand new Role! What do you think this is? The Dancer?”

Considering how alluring the dance was and the amount of skin exposed, Dash could think of some other choice and not-so-savory names for it, but she decided to let that pass. “How much longer do you think you can do that? Another half a minute if you push it? We really need to calm these people down!”

“Oh, tee-hee! I can keep this up for hours, Dash! I’m feeling bursting with energy after eating all those pies last night!”

Dash’s face fell at that. “Wait…really?”

“Yup! There must be something great in the sugar around here!”

“But…but Fluttershy and Rarity can only hold theirs for a few-”

She wasn’t able to say any more. At that moment, far in the distance, a loud crackling and popping rang out. Loud enough to where some of the people, transfixed on Pinkie’s dance, were able to break out and look up. Fortunately, they didn’t go on with their mob but turned and ran off. Pinkie herself slowed soon after on hearing the noises, and as she stopped her dance the others in the street slowly snapped out of it as well, but it seemed to have done its job. They were indeed calmer and more bewildered that they had been, and had halted at least for the moment.

Dash ignored them on seeing they weren’t resuming the riot and instead focused on the noise. Not long after, she pushed her way through the others and went up to Pinkie’s side, gritting her teeth. “Damnit… I should’ve known.”

“Huh? Should’ve known what?”

“A town this big, there was more than one place where the mob was forming. They were going to converge on the city jail…” Balling her hands into fists, she tapped Pinkie with one before taking off. “Come on!”

“Oh, wait, wait! I can’t run that well in these shoes!” Pinkie protested before taking off after her. “Or this dress! Or these sleeves! Or this jewelry! Or with my hair so long! Where are we going?”

“Up to those gunshots!”

“Sure! I don’t see anything wrong with going that way!”

---

Naturally, it wasn’t very far into running before Dash pulled considerably ahead of Pinkie, even with her agility and her enhanced body from donning two Anima Viris. The gunshots themselves didn’t last much longer other than when they initially heard them, but by then Dash had the direction and kept heading that way. After closing in a few blocks, she spotted a few people running the other way. Most of them were civilians and looked panicked. A bit closer, and one of them had blood on them.

Two more blocks and Dash was forced to stop. Up ahead was nothing but chaos. A mob that was mostly soldiers and local magistrates were there, along with the remains of debris and crude weapons. The few locals that were still present were either being lined up or were on the ground—some of them looking injured. They appeared to be surrounding the front of a building but Dash really couldn’t tell. She slowed down, allowing Pinkie to catch up at her own skipping rate (which seemed to work better than running), and came to a stop by the time they were only a block away.

“Let’s drop our Anima Viris here. We don’t want to freak people out.”

“Good idea! If mom saw me in this, she’d make be pray ‘Great Gaia’ 300 times!”

Dash quickly returned to her “normal” state along with Pinkie, before resuming running once again. There was more noise and commotion as they got closer, with more soldiers arriving and struggling to get people out of there. However, they only got two thirds of the distance before two of the soldiers, both armed with rifles, stepped out to them with their hands up.

“This road is closed. Move along.”

Dash frowned. “What went on up there?”

“Nothing that need concern you. Move along.”

She sighed. “Look, we’re staying with Governor Doodle, and we’ve got something way important to tell him.”

“Ma’am, I’m asking you one more time to clear the road.”

“Look, could you just tell us where he is? He needs to hear this!”

“You’re not getting through here! Now move along!”

Dash hissed in frustration. “Listen, you-”

“Ms. Dash! Ms. Pie!”

Both ladies turned. Pushing her way through the magistrates, looking rather strained and haggard, was one of the officials that had accompanied them on the ship to Southern Equestria. It took her some struggling, but she managed to get up to the officers. They immediately turned and tried to stop her.

She sighed. “I’m on a diplomatic mission from Manehattan and so are they. They’re with me.”

The two magistrates frowned but reluctantly stood to one side. The way now clear, the official quickly stepped up to both of them. Dash sighed in relief. “Great to see you. Listen, we need to talk to-”

“I’m glad I ran into both of you,” the official cut off. “Alright, you need to head back, gather your things, and get to the docks as soon as possible. You have two hours.”

Both ladies looked rather puzzled. “Uh…say what now?”

“There was a march on the local jail and police station. Even with half the mob being cut off, there were so many rioters that the soldiers guarding the place panicked and opened fire. Seven locals are dead. The rest of the crowds have dispersed, but if they organized for a mob this large then the local government isn’t taking any chances.”

“What do you mean isn’t taking any chances? What’s going on?”

The official exhaled. “Since they can’t get any support from Manehattan with that strait being compromised, they’re putting the city on lockdown. That includes the piers. It’s effective in three hours. If we aren’t on our way back to Manehattan by then there’s no telling when we will be. The talks are aborting. Now hurry back, both of you. I need to get back to the consulate while there’s still time…”

The official turned and began to head back to the officers, but Dash grit her teeth in frustration, reached out, seized her by the shoulder, and spun her back.

“Listen to me for ten seconds. We need to talk to the governor right now! There’s Fillydelphian agents here! They’re spurring these mobs on!”

“That doesn’t matter anymore.”

Dash looked wide-eyed. Her hand jerked back. “Wh…what?”

“The local soldiers have already fired the first shots. Things were getting worse by the day here; now they’re getting worse by the hour. Fillydelphian influence or not, exposing them isn’t going to change anything now. This is happening with or without them. And right now, there’s not enough local law enforcement or military to watch the entire city at once. Any minute now this city is going to explode and the first thing they’ll storm is the local government offices. Two hours might be too much as it is.”

Dash held still for a moment, looking back expressionlessly at the official. Her hand remained extended but she moved no more. A faint, fading look was on her face. “You mean…we can’t do anything?”

The official sighed. “I’ve already given the last word on it. I need to get back. Remember…two hours. Less now.” With that, she turned and headed back into the crowd.

Dash was left standing there. She didn’t say any more and didn’t move. Just had the same faded look on her face as she stood and watched. Finally, she turned around, looking back at Pinkie Pie. On her part, she had a hurt expression on her face—looking on the verge of tears.

The Huntsman sighed. “Pinkie…it’ll be alr-”

“Now I’ll never get the chance to shop for fruit and sugar to bring home!”

Dash grimaced a little at her bawling, but then sighed and turned around. “Come on, we’ve got to get a move on.”

Pinkie sniffled one more time, but then seemed to forget all about it before she bounded after her. “Sure! Where are we going?”

“Where else? Back to the governor’s house!”

“Oh, right! We need to pack, don’t we?”

“We’re not going there to ‘pack’; we’re going there to pick up more passengers for that boat…”

---

Even without their Anima Viris equipped, at a full speed run, it didn’t take Rainbow Dash more than fifteen minutes to make it back to the house in spite of it being on the outskirts near the river. She realized Pinkie was somehow able to keep up with her that entire time, but considering she now knew her true nature she didn’t dwell on it. Instead, no sooner had she reached the front of the house than she tore up the front step, practically bashed the door in, and ran straight through until she went out the back porch door again.

Much as she had hoped, both Matilda and Gallus were there, with the latter serving the former what looked like afternoon tea. However, he dropped it in alarm when Dash nearly broke through that door as well, and Matilda looked up with some surprise of her own on seeing her sudden appearance. She clutched for her chest a moment later before calming down. “Ms. Dash…you gave me such a start. What in the world-”

Dash cut her off, having only been quiet long enough to look around for Cranky before turning to them. “Both of you. Up and start packing. Make it light and quick. We’ve got to leave the house in twenty minutes.”

Gallus looked rather baffled and Matilda blinked in confusion. “Ex…excuse me?”

“Pinkie and I are moving you out of here. Right now. Now get up. Afternoon tea is over. We’ve got to move.”

Gallus was picking up on the urgency in Dash’s face, but Matilda still hesitated in confusion even as she set her teacup down. “I’m afraid I don’t understand. What’s going on?”

“What’s going on is that Southern Equestria isn’t safe anymore! Especially the port of Somnambula! And it’s going to be suicide for someone like you to be all the way out here in the open once things turn upside down! So come on!”

“Why…what? What’s going on? What happened in town…?”

“Oh, Rainbow Dash!” Pinkie’s voice called from behind her in the house.

The Huntsman rolled her eyes and groaned in frustration. “Not now, Pinkie! I’m trying to convince these two to get a move on!”

“Okie-dokie-lokie! Just tell Gallus that I didn’t let these two men in! I don’t want him to think I’m just opening the door for anybody!”

Her frustration turned to puzzlement. “What?”

She turned around, and a moment later hopped back. She was nearly bowled over as a pair of soldiers, bearing the insignias of the foreign division of Manehattan’s military, practically marched right past her and into the outdoor area. Growing more confused and a bit distraught, Matilda looked at them as they halted in front of her.

“Ms. Matilda?”

She hesitated momentarily. “Y…yes?”

“We’ll have to ask that you come with us immediately. We’ve been sent by the governor himself to bring you and your slave to the embassy at once.”

“The embassy…but…but why? What’s going on?”

“The situation in the city has grown dangerous. For your own protection, he asked that we bring the both of you there immediately. We can bring some personal items and clothing, but please pack quickly. Time is of the essence.”

Dash frowned and stepped forward at this point. “Sorry guys, you’re a bit late to the party. We’ve already got this handled. We’ll get them away on a ship.”

One of the soldiers turned to her. “The port is being closed.”

“Well then, it’s a good thing we got the last ticket, isn’t it? They can get out with us.”

“I don’t understand…” Matilda spoke up. “What do you mean the city has grown dangerous? Where’s my husband?”

“Ma’am, we really don’t have much time to waste.”

Pinkie, at that moment, chose to bound in and answered for him. “There’s a bunch of people in town who are really, really, really mad about the sugar trade and they’ve started arguing and one thing led to another and now there’s a bunch of people who got shot at in town and they’re putting themselves together into a mob that may or may not be thirsty for blood and the first thing they’re probably going to do is show how angry they are at the local officials. And they’re probably not going to use their words but more like use their hands and feet…to break things. Lots of things.”

Matilda, Dash, and all others stared blankly at Pinkie a moment.

“But…maybe they’ll calm down by tomorrow?”

Dash sighed and turned back to Matilda. “More or less what Pinkie said. Now can we please go?”

The older woman still looked befuddled for a moment, but what was being said seemed to be sinking in. She glanced between the soldiers and Dash before she held a hand to her head. “If…if everything you’re saying is true, then…then I’m not leaving without my husband.”

“That’s what we’re here for, ma’am,” the soldier spoke up again. “We’re trying to relocate you to the embassy right now. It’ll be much safer there.”

“The hell it will!” Dash snapped back. “This place is a powder keg ready to blow!”

The soldier frowned and turned to her. “Ma’am, would you please stand aside. We will handle this. We are simply relocating people to the embassy. It will be safer and secure there.”

“Uh, no it won’t! Look, I don’t know what your superior officers told you or whatever, but Fillydelphia is involved in this! Don’t you all get it? This is just what they did to Cloudsdale! They waited until a time like this! You’re cut off from any support from Manehattan! They’ve whipped up the locals into a frenzy! This isn’t some riot, this is a revolution! And they’re going to do to everyone in power what they did back in Cloudsdale! Staying here is suicide!”

The soldiers didn’t say anything. However, they didn’t need to. That last tirade had broken some of their decorum and composure. It was now leaking through on their expressions that they knew more than they were letting on and they were frightened. Dash turned fully to Matilda, who was looking more worried all the time.

“Listen, you need to come with us right now. Pinkie Pie and I have these…ugh, just know that we can get across the ocean! You and Cranky and Gallus need to get out with us now! They’re not going to wait much longer!”

Matilda hesitated. She looked back to the two soldiers anxiously. “Is…is what this lady saying the truth?”

Both of them were silent for a few moments. “Ma’am…we have our orders. This house is not safe.”

That was all the confirmation she needed. “What about my husband? Where is he?”

“He’s holding his ground, ma’am.”

“Wh…what?”

“The governor already stated that he intends to uphold his mandate which is to maintain authority at Somnambula until relieved of duty.”

“Well,” Dash immediately interjected, actually stepping in between the two and putting a hand on Matilda’s shoulder. “I think he’ll be alright if he knew we were taking his wife and slave somewhere a lot safer than the embassy…like back to Manehattan! Now let’s go!”

“No.”

Dash was struck silent. Until a moment ago, Matilda seemed confused and bewildered about all of this. However, all of the sudden, her face had become firm and her voice steady. She looked forward with a new resolution in her eyes.

“Pardon…?”

Matilda took in a deep breath, then turned to the soldiers. “Take me to my husband.”

The men were a bit surprised at her sudden change, but nodded. The older woman composed herself further before she began to rise from her chair. Gallus, after standing stunned for a moment, not looking much better than Dash, moved forward to assist her.

“Haven’t you been listening?” Dash nearly shouted at this point. “You can’t stay here! This is a death trap!”

Gallus began to tense up further himself, but didn’t speak against his mistress as she fully stood. While it was clear she was still trying to accept everything that was happening right now, she forced her head high and tried to look as composed and dignified as possible.

The Huntsman was grinding her teeth at this point in frustration. “Ugh! Why won’t you-”

“Ms. Dash? Ms. Pie?”

In spite of the situation, Matilda was very composed and calm when she spoke, even if she struggled a bit to pull it off.

“I’m so sorry, but I have a request for you, and it’s a rather tall one… Please take Gallus with you back to Manehattan.”

The Griffonstone native turned to her in alarm, looking far more surprised than either woman did. “M…Madame…? What-”

“There’s no need to worry about papers or anything. Slavery is illegal in Greater Everfree. He’ll be a free man as soon as he sets foot on Manehattan soil. It’s just…” She hesitated, a note of fear as well as anxiety creeping over her. “I’d…I’d prefer if he was there. He’s been very good to me in my later years. Dependable and loyal. I know it won’t be easy on him, but I…I feel he has a much better chance at a good life there than here now.”

“Mrs. Donkey…” Gallus began to speak up, his normally ill-mooded or blasé face having changed to concern. “You’re not…?”

“Oh, I’m sure the boat has enough room for all three of you!” Pinkie chimed in happily. “There’s no need for you two to stay behind! Rainbow Dash can just run really, really fast to the embassy, tell Cranky that we’re going, and he can come with!”

Matilda smiled a little at that, but it was only the smile of an older woman humoring a child. “I’m sorry, young lady. I know old Doodle has already decided. And once he has, he’s more stubborn than a mule. He’ll give me an earful for staying behind too once I let him know there was one last boat, but I can be just as stubborn in the right situation. But I know what will make him feel better is knowing Gallus is safe, even if he won’t show it right away.”

The young man’s jaw dropped. He looked like he wanted to say more but he couldn’t.

Dash kept frowning. “Look, ma’am… I’m not kidding. If you stay here, you’re probably going to die.”

The older woman let out a sigh. “If I’m probably going to die, that means that Doodle is definitely going to die, doesn’t it?”

Now it was Dash’s turn to be caught. She didn't answer.

“You’re an old war mare yourself, Ms. Dash. I’m sure you know better than anyone that Doodle would rather die than abandon his post. He knows too many of those people at the embassy. He’d never desert them to save himself even if he knew there was a way out. And I’m sure that the boat ride that you’re offering us doesn’t have enough room for everyone in Somnambula, does it?”

Dash didn’t answer this either. However, she did bow her head and begin to look very uncomfortable. Especially when Matilda spoke of her knowing better.

Matilda forced herself to smile a little more. “It’s…alright, dears. I’d be lying if I said I wasn’t scared, but…I had more luck than I should have. When most of Greater Everfree was in crisis I was safe out here, living my life as usual. A lot of younger people died before their time while I lived on. I’ve lived here too long to just pack up everything and try and make it somewhere else. This is my home, and I honestly can’t see myself making a new life anywhere else…and especially one without Doodle.”

She inhaled again, but smiled a bit more genuinely.

“You don’t worry about me. You just take Gallus on out of here. You will…won’t you?”

“Ma’am…” Gallus managed to say, but nothing else.

Pinkie swallowed. “Um, are you sure you won’t reconsider a teeny, tiny-”

“Ok, we will,” Dash interjected. If anything, she looked even more antsy and uncomfortable than before. “But…but think about what you’re saying…”

“I’m afraid my mind is made up. Thank you both for keeping an old woman company for a few days. It means more to me than you know.” She took a step toward the soldiers, who turned to leave, but then stopped again and looked at Pinkie.

“Oh…I’m sorry we didn’t have more time for baking, dear. But you can help yourself to anything in the pantry to take back with you. Or the house, for that matter. I think I’d prefer if they went with you and Gallus back to Manehattan. I dare say they’ll get more use there than they have in the past 20 years here.”

---

It started again the moment they cast off from shore. It was night by then, and while the city had been on lockdown and blackout, lights began to glow from one street in the distance. Ones that looked like fire. Before they finished pulling away to sea, they began to hear the sounds of voices that were being drowned out by the waves, and one whiff of smoke reached their nostrils before it was overcome by the waters.

Dash and Pinkie were still on the deck at the stern watching as they pulled away. The former had her arms crossed, and was looking to one side and frowning and mumbling. The latter looked out anxiously at the port as it slowly vanished. In addition, their newest charge was standing near the railing and looking out. Gallus had hardly said a word since they had left. He seemed to almost be in a daze when they pulled him away from the house. However, after getting everything sorted out and putting him on board, he still hadn’t said anything. He hadn’t even said goodbye when he left; only stared at his former owner until she had gone.

Pinkie offered a small smile. “I’m sure they’ll be alright! They, um…probably thought Gallus would be safer with us until everything blows over! I mean, this is the home of Somnambula, which means it’s full of hope!”

Dash merely grunted and flicked her fingers over the rail. Pinkie’s face sunk a little at that.

“I, um…better go say a prayer or two…”

“I thought I’d be happier if this ever happened.”

Pinkie and Dash looked up and to Gallus. He was still facing the port, but his head bowed.

“I mean, what slave wouldn’t? But…now that I’m standing here…I realized it wasn’t really that bad. I definitely didn’t have to work as hard as the field slaves. And Mr. and Mrs. Donkey were so neat and tidy already that I barely had to do much for them most of the time other than stand around and wait for me to pour some tea or get them their favorite book. And…”

He exhaled, bowing his head a little.

“And…to be honest…I almost think I kind of liked it. What was I going to do without them? Toil away for sugar beets? Head back to Griffonstone and live in a gutter? I mean, at least with them, I wasn’t living up in Greater Everfree. I didn’t have to worry about starving or being cold. Things were quiet. I may not have ever really liked it, but I never hated it either. Even if they were my owners, they treated me better than anyone else ever did…” He snickered. “How pathetic is that? Then all of the sudden, they free me just like that. I didn’t even know what to say. I couldn’t say anything. And…and I bet I never see them again…”

Neither lady could say much in response to that at first. However, Pinkie eventually brightened up and practically skipped over to him and put a hand on his shoulder, causing him to look up.

“Aw, don’t worry! You’re with us now! And we’ve got a whole bunch of friends who are with us too! You’ll meet all kinds of new people soon from all walks of life! I’m sure that you’ll make lots of friends and find all sorts of new things to do all over Greater Everfree! Plus, all the Light Eaters are gone, so things have got to be better! And we’ve got Gaia Everfree looking out for us, so what could go wrong?”

Dash hesitated a little longer, but then leaned up. “Pinkie’s right. Besides,” She smirked. “Now that you’re not a slave anymore, you need to start thinking like a winner. Defeat’s only temporary. I’m sure in no time flat Manehattan will have a way to get around whatever’s causing all this trouble on the ocean and then we’ll be headed back to Southern Equestria in a heartbeat. And in the meantime, you’ll get to enjoy not being baked by the sun or eaten up by flies. Plus, don’t have to worry about cleaning any bathrooms anymore, eh?”

That did finally prompt a reaction from Gallus. He cracked a small smile at that, however briefly. “Well, I guess that would be a plus. Maybe it won’t be so bad. But where are we going once we get to Greater Everfree anyway?”

“Oh, we’re staying in a big old castle!” Pinkie cheered. “Right smack dab in the middle of Equestria!”

Gallus’ small grin instantly turned to a deadpan stare.

“…Are you two sure we wouldn’t have been better off with the bloodthirsty revolution?”

Comments

[dannny43]

Ah hell yeah, it be back baby.