The Titans' Orb: Breaking Dawn

by Mister Horncastle

Chapter Two: Daughter

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“Oh, Rainbow…” I breathed.

At long last, she remembered, and as I had feared, it was no merry occasion. Rainbow Dash now possessed the memories of two separate lives. She now had two childhoods, and two fathers. It was no wonder she had been crying so much, the emotional toll this had surely taken was nothing a mortal mind ought to bear. I hadn’t expected her to remember, as I had believed Princess Celestia had erased such memories. Now I knew they had only been suppressed, with all this time on Earth, well, unearthing them, as it were. At that, I couldn’t help but feel responsible, for my human presence had almost certainly expedited this moment.

Putting my arms around the mare, I held her close, doing what I could to comfort her. She allowed it for but a moment, before pulling back and staring at me, her lips raised with confusion and anger.

“You… You knew.”

Swallowing, I said nothing, at which point she repeated herself with greater emphasis.

“You knew about this.”

“Yes.” I sighed.

“How could you… Why didn’t you… say anything? Why didn’t you tell me?”

Hanging my head, I told her the very same thing I had said back on our first day together, when I had alluded to my knowledge about the girls’ last visit to my planet. With an outward breath, I explained how it had been Celestia’s decision to remove the memories, likely under the belief that two entirely separate lives, on two different planets no less, would have been far too much for the pegasus to handle. Such an overabundance of information could very well have damaged her brain, and so the Princess had chosen to suppress the life that never should have been. Knowing this, I had supported the decision, and retained what I knew as my own personal burden, not just because telling the truth would have been an act of defiance to Celestia, but also because I feared the damage such knowledge might cause.

In truth, given her bullheaded nature, I expected Rainbow to lash out at me, to heed no reason and resent me for withholding such information, regardless of the motive. However, be it how rattled she was, or just a rare instance of her taking the facts into account, Dashie’s hostility subsided, or at least, towards me it did. Sniffing loudly, she looked away and wiggled her jaw, as she often did when she was irate. I could tell she was angry with the Princess, and felt as though she had been lied to, and who could blame her? If I suddenly remembered a secret life, obscured by my holy ruler, I for one would be outraged. Thankfully, her bitterness was short-lived, for her mind dwelled far more on trying to process her newfound past. As for me, my attention shifted to the blood, still oozing down from a cut at the top of her bruised forehead.

“Sweetheart, what happened here?” I asked gently, gesturing to the wound.

“I… I don’t… I was just… I didn’t know what was happening.” she murmured shakily, tearing up again, “I didn’t understand, and I wanted it to stop.”

Clenching my jaw, I realised that the poor thing was so overwhelmed that she had been hitting herself, as though she had tried to quell her distress by way of bashing her brain into submission. She needed medical attention, but before I could suggest heading back down to see Fluttershy, the mare regained a degree of focus, and spoke of a far more pressing matter.

“I need to see him. I need to see my daddy!”

I didn’t know what to say, but I knew this was a problem, and a big one at that. I could only imagine what Rainbow was feeling right now, and I wanted nothing more than to help. If she wanted to see the man who raised her for fifteen years, then who was I to deny her? And yet, this company was here on a mission, in a race against time whilst under the pursuit of a living Calamity. Did we have time for such a detour? Could we bear the expense of travelling to the United States, all to reunite two individuals who by all rights, shouldn’t have met each other in the first place?

It was quite the call to make, and as both the Titans’ Champion, and designated guide for the group, I had a feeling that the decision would fall to me. Putting my mouth to one side, I settled on making no such decision any time soon, not without making the others aware first and heeding their counsel.

“Alright, well… let’s talk to the others first.” I suggested.

“I don’t care what they have to say.” she growled back, “If they won’t let me see him, I’m done with this mission. You can all keep looking for the Orb, and I’ll go find my dad by myself!”

“Hey, it doesn’t need to come to that.” I said gently, “But before we make any sort of decision, the girls need to know what’s going on, and you need to let Fluttershy take a look at that cut. After that, we can plan our next move and see where the road takes us, yeah?”

She seemed to take that answer well enough, and with a slow dip of her head, she followed me back down to the oasis. Upon reaching the camp, the others saw her and began to swarm around, fussing over the poor thing. Needless to say, she didn’t take the attention well, shoving away Applejack and yelling for everyone to get away from her. Twilight was woken up by all the commotion, and stumbled out of her tent just as Fluttershy had started applying some Oozima to her head wound.

“What’s going on?” the unicorn inquired.

I opened my mouth to speak, only to halt myself and look at Rainbow Dash. I gave her an expression as if to ask for permission, and with her glassy eyes darting around, halfway lost in the past, she gave it with a barely perceptible nod. At that, I beckoned everypony close and cleared my throat.

“I need to tell you all something. Something that, until today, you weren’t supposed to know…”

And so it was that I told my friends the story.
The story of My Little Dashie…

By the time I’d brought the story to a close, everyone was speechless. The very concept that this had happened to their friend, let alone for them all to forget about it, shocked them to the core. What’s more, was that throughout the story, Twilight’s memories had returned to her as well, or at least, some of them. It was still dreadfully hazy for her, but upon hearing the retelling of events, Twilight had recalled the weather incident, wherein her spell had clashed with a bolt of lightning, resulting in Rainbow Dash disappearing from existence. At first, she thought she had killed Rainbow, and had been beside herself with grief-ridden guilt, only to discover fifteen days later that her friend was still alive, having been displaced on an alien world.

She didn’t remember much after that, for whatever Celestia had done to suppress the girls’ memories, it was still working to some effect. Either way, this wasn’t about Twilight, something Rarity was quick to point out. We continued to dote on the cyan pegasus, who once again demanded she be allowed to visit her father. This quickly devolved into a heated debate, with the girls voicing similar thoughts to my own. There were notions of support from Applejack and Pinkie Pie, who said that if this was something Rainbow Dash needed to do, then none of us had the right to stop her. Of course, this was met with conflict, with Twilight and Rarity both standing by the fact that we didn’t possess the luxury of a detour.

“A detour? A detour!? Seeing my dad again is more than just a freaking detour, asshole!” Rainbow shouted.

“I didn’t mean it like that.” Twilight insisted, “I just mean we can’t afford to sidetrack our mission.”

“Hear, hear.” Rarity concurred, “Have you forgotten there’s a monster on our tail? Could you imagine if that ghastly beast found us, all because you led us astray for a personal errand?”

“Then I’ll leave without you!” Dashie barked, “You keep looking for the Orb, while I go find my dad. Once the mission’s over, you can come find me.”

Fluttershy then boldly spoke up, insisting that whatever we did, we did it together. If Rainbow went alone, she could find herself injured, or captured, and without Fluttershy’s medical aid, or my protection for that matter. Everyone supported that, nodding their heads and humming in agreement.

“Then that settles it, we’ll find my dad.” Rainbow ordered.

“That is not decided yet.” said Twilight, hoping to retain her authority as company leader, “It’s also worth noting that he’s not your father. Sure, he looked after you, but your dad is Bow Hothoof, and frankly, I’d be devastated if he could hear you now, calling some human your dad.”

At that, Rainbow Dash stood up and pounded the floor with a hoof. With her wing feathers ruffled, she glared at Twilight with contempt.

“Shut up! You can’t tell me who my dad is or isn’t! They’re both my dad! I have two lives now, and they’re both just as important to me! I need to see him, okay? If you won’t give me permission, then I’m going, with or without you!”

“You can’t just do that, Rainbow.” Twilight clapped back, “By order of Princess Celestia, you belong to this company, and you are bound to it until you’ve upheld your duty, just like the rest of us!”

The arguing continued, and all the while I remained quiet. Maintaining a sense of calm, I listened carefully to each opinion, reason, and point, all in the hope to gauge how best to tackle this. Eventually, I settled on something of a solution, and not a moment too soon, as Rarity passed me a cautious expression and brought me into the fold.

“You’ve been awfully quiet, Callum. What’s your take on this?”

Inhaling through my nose, I finally gave my tuppence-worth to the debate.

“I think, so long as we’re making headway to the next Orb fragment, we can afford to see Rainbow’s dad. After all, it wouldn’t be the first sidetrack we’ve been on. From being captured by Inigo’s cartel, to me being separated in Portugal, we’ve proved that we can handle a few extra bumps in the road. I spent weeks trying to free Bunnie and her mother, so how can I now in good faith deny Rainbow some time for her own cause? Now more than ever, we can appreciate the difference in time between our worlds. I know this mission is vital, but we have time, and I think after all we’ve suffered so far, Rainbow deserves this.”

Twilight opened her mouth to object, but I continued before she could.

“However… if the next Orb piece isn’t near America, then Rainbow must accept that the mission takes priority, and only after retrieving the next fragment, may we then pay her dad a visit. In addition to this, she must agree that we aren’t to dally. We’ll find him, you can say hello, have a little reunion, and then we press on to the last fragment, as a unit. Am I clear?”

There was a small silence, before all parties agreed to the terms. One way or another, Rainbow would have her wish, but its impact on finding the Titans’ Orb had to be minimal. With that, Fluttershy changed the subject by asking how we were supposed to even find the next fragment. Between Twilight having no magic, and Hawnu Rey’eng seemingly not coming to help, we were stuck in the middle of nowhere, and without a feasible destination.

“I think I have an answer for that.” I replied, “When I fought Stardust in the Crucible, I could harness magic with this sword. I can’t cast spells or anything, but I was able to absorb a few of Stardust’s. The old bastard was fond of lightning attacks, and he shocked me quite a few times, but with the sword in hand, I could somewhat absorb the spell and send it back at him. It’s almost like, when it’s charged with a spell, I can use the sword like a wand, or a staff.”

“That’s incredible!” Twilight exclaimed.

Agreeing, I turned to Rarity and proposed that if she were to enchant the sword with her gem finding spell, I might just be able to harness it. In other words, I could act as a living wayfinder of sorts, with the spell potentially granting me a sense of where the next fragment was, or at the very least, knowing which way to go.

“That sounds dangerous.” said Twilight, “Enchanting living creatures rarely goes well. It’s been known to cause adverse reactions. We’re talking seizures, haemorrhages, comas… even death!”

“Oh yeah, didn’t you kill a bird once by trying to enchant it?” Rainbow Dash reminded her.

At that, Fluttershy jolted uncomfortably, clearly aware of the incident, and Twilight gave Dashie a stern glare.

“We agreed never to bring that up.”

Gulping, I redirected us to the matter at hand, and assured Twilight that Rarity wouldn’t be enchanting me, only the sword. She wasn’t all too convinced, but without much of a choice, she conceded to the idea. We got started right away, for despite still being rattled over today’s great revelation, everyone was eager to know if it would work, especially as it determined our next heading. With that, I withdrew the sword. As I did so, the blade grated against the innards of the void sheath, resulting in a crystalline resonance that inspired as much might as it did magnificence. The high-pitched sound caused the girls to momentarily flatten their ears, but they remained no less enthralled by the glowing azure relic. Raising it aloft, I let them bask in its majesty for a moment, before sinking to my knees and holding it out in front of me.

“Let’s do this.” I muttered.

Stepping forward, Rarity prepared her gem finding spell, and in the form of an enchantment, she cast it onto the Titans’ Sword. It glowed brighter in response, and I clasped the handle tightly in anticipation. I then felt a faint buzzing in my fingertips, indicating that it was working.

“Are you okay?” asked Twilight.

“Yeah, I’m feeling something. Nothing much, just… ah!”

Inhaling sharply, the girls leaned closer towards me. The buzzing had spread into my hand, and had grown more intense, evoking a sensation not unlike pins and needles. It started to travel up my arm and into my chest, where I could feel my very innards tingle.

“Ugh, this is weird.” I grunted.

The sensation continued to grow in severity, until it was objectively painful. Gritting my teeth, I started emitting faint grunts and hisses, trying my hardest to endure it.

“Put it down, you’re hurting yourself!” Twilight demanded.

“She’s right, let go!” Fluttershy agreed.

“It’s fine, I can handle it!” I huffed, twitching from head to toe.

I then loosed an outward gasp as my vision was stolen from me, leaving a dark, infinite nothing. Twilight asked me what was happening, and her voice seemed distant. It was as though the spell was numbing my physical senses, save for the agonising buzz that now swathed every facet of my body.

“Darling, talk to us!” said Rarity.

“I… I can’t see… I… wait!”

My sight returned to me, but I wasn’t with the girls any more. I was floating, and above and below me dwelled the terrifying beauty that was the outer reaches of space. As for what lay ahead, I was met with the great ball of dirt and water which I called home. Planet Earth loomed before me in all its splendour, like a god in its own right. With a heavy breath, I announced to the girls what I was seeing, and by the Titans, what a view it was…

The spell had been more effective than we ever could have hoped for, as I found myself spirited away to see the world. However, the view couldn’t be appreciated for long, as I began hurtling down towards the Earth at great speed. I could only speculate where I was going, but it appeared to be Australia. The wind in my ears was deafening, and I could feel it rushing against my skin. It was as exhilarating as it was overstimulating, and I could barely believe it was happening at all.

Like a missile, I streaked across the sky, and just when I thought I was nearing a destination, I found myself going further southeast, with Australia quickly becoming a thing of the past. This left only one major country available, and it was where my father had died.

“I think it’s in New Zealand.” I murmured, “I can see it now. Looks like… wait, what!?”

Just like Australia, the twin-island country drifted away from me, until it faded beyond the horizon. I was now gliding across the open ocean, not knowing where in the world I was due to stop.

“Where in the blazes are we going?” I muttered.

And then, slowly but surely, my speed was reduced, just as an island appeared up in front of me; surely this had to be it. As I came up to the landmass, I found that it was mostly barren, sporting only a handful of forests here and there. The only noteworthy detail was that of a lonely mountain, which, as I continued to descend, I found myself drifting towards. This was it, without question, and with that, I decreed that the next Orb fragment was on an island in the South Pacific, somewhere slap-bang between New Zealand and the Americas.

“I’m heading towards a mountain.” I elaborated, “I think… I think I can see a cave.”

I was right, and as I neared the mountain, I began soaring towards the opening, embedded not too far from the peak. It didn’t take long to reach it, and as my flight became more of a gentle float, I drifted inside. Darkness soon became my only image, until I spotted something in the shadows. It was a pair of eyes, bright and yellow, and they were staring at me.

“What are you?” I breathed.

And then, without warning, the creature lunged at me. I was met with a parted maw, lined with a row of sharp teeth. It was enough to spook me, and with a shout, I fell back and let go of the sword. The enchantment was broken, and my entire body twitched as my senses recalibrated to the here and now. Every fibre of me tingled, and as my sight returned to me, I found the girls all crowded around, their faces rife with alarm. Pinkie Pie then took the liberty of jumping on me, and proceeded to shout directly into my face.

“Big scary lizard!”

“Get off him!” Twilight barked.

Still dizzy and shocked beyond words, I remained motionless as Applejack helped to remove Pinkie. I then sat up and shook my head, blinking rapidly as I took Vitra ‘Aku and slotted it back into the void sheath.

“What happened, darling? What did you see?” asked Rarity.

“What she said.” I replied, gesturing to Pinkie with a thumb.

“A lizard?”

My response was that of a distracted grumble, for my attention dwelled more on the vision than on anypony in front of me. Twilight then asked me to describe it.

“I didn’t get a good look.” I confessed, “It was just some creature with yellow eyes and sharp teeth. The Orb fragment’s definitely there though. I’m not sure how we’re going to get there, especially without magic.”

“Why? Where is it?” asked Fluttershy.

“On the other side of the planet.”

Everyone gave mutters of disbelief, and Rainbow inquired as to how this played into seeing her dad. Breathing in deeply through my nose, I quickly assembled a plan within my mind for the road ahead, and soon settled on something that I considered to be the best option.

“If we head west until we get to Morocco, we can travel to America by sea somehow. When we get there, you can search for your dad. After that, we’ll head to the West Coast, and once again we’ll travel by sea until we find the island.”

“That there sounds like a plan.” Applejack stated with a grin.

“Pony party world tour, yay!” sang Pinkie.

I, however, wasn’t quite so chipper.

“Guys, this isn’t going to be a little fortnight gallivant. This is going to be a long journey. It could take us months just to get as far as Morocco, let alone America.”

Putting her mouth to one side, Twilight asked if this was truly the best route, and not just some detour to find Rainbow’s dad. At that, I gave her a nod, and said that the only alternative would be a far riskier trek through Egypt, the Middle East, southern Asia, followed by repetitive island hopping all the way from Malaysia to Fiji. No, a western excursion was safer, and would allow us to visit the man who raised Rainbow Dash. It would, however, mean resuming our sun-baked slog through the Sahara, which no one was looking forward to.

“What if we found a vehicle out there?” asked Twilight, “If we had a car or something, it would take weeks off the journey, right?”

“Yeah, but the chances of finding a car out there are almost zero.” I pointed out.

“What about those bad guys we killed a few weeks ago?” said Rainbow Dash, “If dudes like that are out here, surely they have a way of getting around, right?”

Humming, I supposed she had a point. Since arriving in Egypt, we had almost certainly walked far enough to be on the Libyan border, if not in Libya itself. This meant that we were in a hotspot for more black market runners, not to mention potential terrorist cells. If Rainbow were to do some scouting, perhaps she might spot some humans, and with them, a means of locomotion. Though my confidence hardly spiked, I decided it was our best bet, and with that, I laid out the plan.

Today, we would rest, and give everyone time to recoup from the shocking revelation of Rainbow’s second life on Earth. Tomorrow, Rainbow would go scouting for human activity, under the strict order to remain out of sight, and not to engage. In the lucky event that she found a vehicle, I would set off with Rarity to retrieve it. At that, ponies started asking why Rarity, to which I elaborated.

“After what you’ve learned today, Rainbow, I don’t want your mind going through any more trauma. You’re to scout for us, but I’m not having more blood on your hooves. Besides, a single bullet is all it’d take to snip you out of the sky, and I’m not running that risk. You can stay here, and I’ll keep in contact with everyone via Twilight and the collars. As for Rarity…”

Turning to face the pearly unicorn, I raised my chin and beckoned her towards me, gazing upon her with a look of stern admiration. She approached me nervously, and awaited my command.

“In Brazil, you saved my life. You took Vladimir’s knife and you drove it into his neck, with the full intent to kill him, and it was thanks to that dedication that we got out of there alive.”

The reminder of such a harrowing event seemed not to faze her, which was exactly what I had hoped for.

“Would you show that dedication again, at a moment’s notice?”

Gulping, she nodded.

“I’ve come a long way, darling, and I’d quite like to go home. Whichever route gets me there, I’ll take it, even if I’m to get dirty. If you’re asking if I’ll kill for you, dear, the answer is yes.”

“Good.” I replied, “Then I would like you to be our company marksman.”

“I… I beg your pardon?”

Raising my brow, I professed that although I was a half-decent shot, I was more confident that Rarity would be a better fit for the Piercing Shot Rifle that Hawnu Rey’eng had given us. Her lifetime in fashion had given her fierce visual accuracy, not to mention flawless coordination. With a faint huff, I said that she could likely thread a needle with her eyes closed. As such, I wanted her to assume the role of our long-range combatant, and to accompany me when I went searching for a vehicle.

“Um, d-darling, I’m not sure.” Rare stammered, “I’ve never used one of those things, I-I don’t even know how they work!”

“That’s why I’m going to teach you before we head out.” I assured her, “Look, if I’m going to live up to my new role as Champion, then I need to get accustomed to using this sword, wherever possible. But if it comes to a firefight, then I need someone I can rely on to cover my arse. Can you do that for me, Rare?”

After a brief silence, she nodded, ready for the challenge and willing to do her part.

“Well alright then.” I said, dipping my head, “We’ll practice later, and then the rifle’s all yours.”

With that, the group dispersed, with Rainbow Dash asking if she could talk to me in private. Happy to oblige, we went for a walk, pacing around the outskirts of the oasis. I asked her if she was okay, at which point she scoffed.

“What kind of question is that? Of course I’m not alright!” she snapped.

“I’m sorry, that was a stupid thing to ask. I meant… are you as okay as you can be?”

Sighing, the pegasus broke eye contact and looked at the sandy dirt around her hooves.

“I don’t know. Everything feels… so fucked up. I keep trying to put the pieces together in my mind, but I can’t. Everything’s out of order.”

“How so?” I inquired.

“Like, when I think back to my childhood, it’s not like I remember one life after the other. It’s all smushed together. One minute, I’m at flight camp with Fluttershy, and the next, I’m stuck indoors because I’m not allowed to go outside. It’s like… everything’s blurred together now, and it’s making it hard to remember things clearly. I remember it all, but at the same time it’s like… I can’t remember a thing!”

Her eyes filled with tears, and my heart sank. This was the damage Celestia had tried to undo. With two sets of memories across the same time in her life, everything was overlapping. I didn’t know if this would be permanent or not, but in the meantime, the poor thing was suffering from serious neurological distortion. Bending down slightly, I tried to comfort her with some gentle touches, at which point she stared at me with wide eyes.

“I don’t… I don’t think we can do stuff together any more. Looking at you… it feels like looking at my dad, and I’m not into that whole ‘daddy-daughter’ shit, okay?”

Exhaling heavily, I smiled at her and shook my head.

“Rainbow, sweetheart, that’s absolutely fine. In fact, I completely agree. You need to clear your head and process all this, and if us sleeping together is going to mess that up, then I’m not interested. Besides, we’re just friends anyway, it’s not like it’s a breakup. We just had some cheeky benefits on the side.”

With a reassured sigh, Rainbow planted her forehead into my chest, relieved that I wasn’t upset with such a decision.

“Thanks, dude. You’ve always understood me.”

“You’re easy to understand.” I said back teasingly.

“Am not!”

“You so are.”

“Go on then, sum me up.” she challenged.

“You’re a free-spirited thrill seeker with an underlying anxiety problem. You’re insecure about yourself as a pony, which you cover up with boisterousness and daring acts of bravado in a desperate attempt to be respected, and to be seen without weakness. But in truth, you’re a scared little filly who doesn't really know who she is just yet. Sure, you want to be a famous Wonderbolt, but what lies beyond that? Who is Rainbow Dash? That question haunts you, and instead of looking for an answer, you just keep on running.”

With her mouth agape, Rainbow Dash stared at me, before shaking her head and frowning at me.

“Yeah? Well… eat a dick!”

Raising an eyebrow, I raised my hands to my chest and responded with a dryness that left the desert above seeming moist by comparison.

“I admit defeat, my dear. Your original and well-thought-of insult has wounded me to the core.”

She laughed at that, and we continued to plod around the oasis together.

“So, how did your memories even come back?” I asked her, “Was it in a dream, or did you wake up with them?”

“It was mostly in a dream, but also kind of both.” she explained, “I had this crazy nightmare about the weather incident, when Twilight’s spell hit the lightning. I was caught in the blast and it felt like I was on fire, I could smell my fur burning, and everything hurt! Next thing I know, I’m in a room somewhere. It was dark and grey, and I was lying in a bed, and there was a guy…”

“A guy?” I murmured, “Your dad?”

“No, it was someone else. It’s super hazy, but I think he was holding a box, and he was writing something on it with a marker. Then he came over to me and… his hands started glowing, and then everything went black.”

Our walk came to another standstill, and Rainbow Dash continued to gather her thoughts, before relaying the rest of the dream to me.

“The next thing I remember was waking up and seeing this giant creature looking down at me. I didn’t understand what was happening, only that I was scared and confused. I was cold, and that’s when he picked me up, and I realised he wasn’t going to hurt me. As far as I was concerned, he was my dad now.”

From there, she told me how her life with her human father had played in fast motion, with the days, weeks, months, and years, all flickering before her eyes. And then she woke up, and after a few seconds, what she thought had been a dream started to flood her waking mind. A dam had broken, and it had broken Rainbow Dash with it. In a panic, she had charged off, hoping to reach the surface and fly away, only for the memories to resurface in greater force. By the time she had reached the throne room, she was in a state of wild hysteria, and ran to the darkest corner she could find, and had proceeded to weep, wail, and bash at her own head with a hoof, desperate for the experience to stop.

“That’s when you came along.” she sighed, her frame sagging with defeat.

I looked at the raised bump on her forehead, now capped with a dry scab of Oozima, and with a sigh of my own, I lowered myself down and opened my arms for a hug. With tears in her eyes, she put her forelegs around me and let me hold her, and with a crack in her voice, she told me how scary it had been.

“I didn’t understand what was happening to me!”

“Sshh, it’s alright…” I hushed softly.

I held her for a while, until her crying came to a gradual halt, and for a little while longer, we trudged around the oasis, until Applejack summoned us all to a late lunch. As we ate, I pondered on the underlying darkness that now surrounded us. Rarity was all but battle-hardened by this adventure, to the point where not only was she willing to take life on command, but that I had little problem giving it to her. Then there was Twilight, more damaged than all of us put together, ravaged and ruined by the shade of Nah’Lek, and would likely never be the same pony again, even if Celestia dared tamper with her memories. And now, we had Rainbow Dash, dealing with her second great trauma since coming to Earth. From having her wings plucked in Brazil, to the sudden unveiling of fifteen years’ worth of memories on this planet.

The others too, had suffered on this trip. As Rarity had reminded us in Portugal, all six of them had been stuffed into cages and starved for weeks, forced to lie in their own filth. They had witnessed death, and we had all suffered loss, with poor Fluttershy still continuing to silently mourn for Blu, our beloved talking parrot. Though we still all functioned well enough on the surface, the majority of us held a glint of pain in our eyes. It was as I had feared, this journey had changed us; well, most of us. By some miracle, Pinkamena had remained unaltered by our exploits, and with her usual merry self bounding around and doing what she could to make us smile, I knew it was her that held us together.

Without her, I could only imagine what the rest of us would look like by now…

After lunch, I went and retrieved the Piercing Shot Rifle from Twilight’s saddlebag, and after setting up some makeshift targets, I presented Rarity with her new armament, and her training began. We went over all the basics, from the safety to the various fire modes, along with how guns worked in general. She picked things up quickly, understanding everything I said to her with ease. All she needed to do now was fire.

“Now, you don’t want the scope too close to your face. Even with this thing’s good recoil, it jumps back when you shoot it, so you need to hold it an inch or two forward, or it’ll take your eye out.”

“Got it.” she said, nodding.

“It’s also worth noting these are the only bullets we have.” I continued, “Well, unless you’ve got a good duplication spell. In other words, let’s hope you’re a bloody natural.”

“No pressure then, dear?”

“None at all.” I teased.

Chuckling nervously, Rarity levitated the gun with her telekinesis and aimed at one of the targets, breathing steadily and remembering all that I had taught her. She then distributed some of her magic to slowly pull the trigger.

Bang!

The bullet struck true, obliterating the selected target and sending it scattering across the ground. Catching the rifle from a startled Rarity, I looked at her with a grin and cheered.

“Bloody good shot, madam! Bloody good shot!”

“That was… incredible!” she exclaimed.

The others all praised her as well, with Rainbow Dash saying that she made it look easy. Brimming with pride, she said that she had just listened to all my advice, and focused on threading the target like a needle.

“Well, you damn-well threaded it alright.” I said.

Tightening the shoulder strap to suit the mare’s size, I returned the rifle to its new owner, and said that it was now rightfully hers, and called her our very own ‘markspony’. Happy with her new title, and confident in her natural talent, Rarity confirmed that she was prepared for whatever lay ahead. With that, we got into the mindset of travelling again, and spent the rest of the evening taking care of Rainbow Dash, while also eagerly looking forward to finally making progress to our mission again.

Tomorrow, we would ascend once more into the blazing sun.
The desert was calling us… as was our future.

---

Comments

[Titan Commander Sebaste]

Hmm... makes me wonder if the guy with the glowing hands was one of the Titans...

[PonyJoe1]

Oh damn the difference between the OG and this one was substantial!
The extra focus on Dashie and how shaken up and mentally damaged she is now was such a great change.
Also that picture was fucking breathtaking.

ALSO...

“Then he came over to me and… his hands started glowing, and then everything went black.”

Hold the fuck up and fuck the shut door...
HAWNU FUCKING REY'ENG!?!?!?
AAAAAAAAAA it makes so much sense! Even in MLD, it was never explained how she got in the box, with the story itself saying "who would give away a baby Rainbow Dash?" and now we have confirmation that our resident flappy man was behind it... 🤯

Consider my mind blown.
Can't wait for the next one!

PS: This damn picture though...
lh3.googleusercontent.com/pw/AP1GczNcagXgVXuaow_wg0Ru5bjMKbHxZzaBmEkoc0nRTzucw3FQO8MP_K2v5bCLJ2iUa4IHycHrwCATkEJqX1EZZgJuE_Nuy0Tlp0ciUIdJTl4qQ_j_Qa4ZWzV19MLn3XaBA23hETIsAqVOLVoxjXM4U7wz=w1800-h1200-s-no-gm?authuser=0
Now THAT is a certified beauty...

[Mister Horncastle]

12145152
I mean, aside from their contained duplicates in the Divine Crucible, the Titans have been established to be just a little bit dead at this point, and have been for thousands of years, so it would be very unlikely.
But I very much admire you thinking outside the box.

I think it's safe to say that PonyJoe's guess is more on the right track, though I shall neither confirm or deny if it's correct at this point in time.