Dawn of a New World

by KingBrony

Sweetie Belle 1 - Aftermath

Sweetie Belle.

The filly opened her eyes. She took a small breath, wondering if she was alive or not. Her tail felt wet, and she heard the sound of flowing water. After thinking for a moment, she realized her tail was in a river.

"What...?" She sighed as she struggled to get up. The filly blinked a few times, trying to remember what happened.

Rarity.

Rainbow Dash.

Everypony.

Sweetie Belle screamed as she remembered the events of the previous night. Frantic, she looked around. "Rarity!?" She called out. "Where are you!?"

There was no response. Sweetie Belle was alone. Alone just like that night the meteors hit. She didn't know what to make of any of this, but she knew she could get nothing done by staying where she was. She decided to explore.

After taking one step, Sweetie Belle's stomach growled as an incredible feeling of hunger overwhelmed her. "Oh...I need something to eat..." She groaned, looking around once more.

The river was unfamiliar to her. It was surrounded by trees, different than the ones in the Everfree forest. No, she knew she was somewhere else. Sweetie Belle wandered along the river for a few minutes before coming to a pear tree. It loomed above the river, with only one fruit remaining on the tree. It hovered over the river, out of the filly's reach.

Sweetie Belle's stomach growled once more, prompting the filly to resort to the only resource she had: magic.

Our magic can work again, right? She asked herself. I may not know much, but that doesn't matter now.

Her horn lit up in a green tint as the same color surrounded the pear. Sweetie Belle squeaked in delight as she lifted the pear gently off of the tree. It floated down like a feather before Sweetie Belle had a sudden urge to cough. Upon doing so, her grip on the pear loosened and it fell into the river.

"No!" She screamed as she tried using her magic again to retrieve the pear. She missed the first beam but landed the second, gripping the pear and bringing it right to her. She squeaked once more as she took a bite. It tasted so good.

The filly heard a roar in the distance, similar to the creatures she saw the night before...in fact, Sweetie Belle couldn't tell what time it was now as the land was enveloped in a grim twilight. She looked to the horizon between the trees, seeing the sun poke up halfway, mostly obscured by trees.

A bead of sweat formed on Sweetie Belle's brow as the roar grew louder...as if it were right next to her.

"Rarity, is that you?" The filly asked innocently, hoping that it was some joke played by her sister. She hoped that everything that happened was only a joke, a bad dream that she'd wake up from soon enough.

"This isn't funny, Rarity!" Sweetie Belle panted as she began to run away, into the forest. She turned at every tree she ran into. Some trees she felt she had already passed, making the lost filly dazed and confused.

Before she knew it, the roar caught up to her. It was a Sleipnir - a smaller one, but a Sleipnir nontheless.

"The Sleeper!!!!" Sweetie Belle incorrectly screamed as she turned to escape. She heard a boom and found herself running into the Sleipnir again. It roared once before motioning to bite the poor filly when a rock came hurdling out of nowhere to hit the beast right on the head. It was enough for Sweetie Belle to break free and run away.

"Sweetie Belle!" A familiar voice sounded.

"...Rarity!? Rarity!!" Sweetie Belle was overjoyed to see her sister again as she ran to the unicorn. Rarity looked very disheveled: her mane was unkempt, her fur dirty, and bags formed under her eyes. Still, Sweetie Belle was glad to see her.

"Don't you dare hurt my sister!" Rarity shouted as the Sleipnir regained its focus. "Now, Spike!"

The purple dragon emerged from behind a tree and threw more rocks at the Sleipnir. "Take that!" He yelled as the Sleipnir was hit by a barrage of rocks. Being too small to pose much of a threat, it ran away soon after. When it was all clear, Rarity hugged her sister.

"I'm so glad you're okay! Oh, Sweetie Belle!" Rarity cried as they embraced. Spike approached the two and joined the hug.

"How did you find me?" Sweetie Belle asked after a moment of silence.

"Last night, those things teleported the three of us at the same time. I ended up with Spike, so I figured you wouldn't be too far away...oh, are you all right?"

"I'm fine." Sweetie Belle broke the hug and stood her ground. "I am glad to see you're okay, sister!"

The filly's head drooped soon after. "Did Rainbow Dash really..."

Rarity's eyes filled with tears. "Everything will be okay." She lied.

But, Sweetie Belle knew the truth. Nothing will ever be the same again.

Rarity focused her attention on Spike. After all that had happened, she never noticed how much the dragon changed. He grew a few inches taller and his scales were darker. His teeth grew long and sharp, but he still maintained his cute appearance.

"Thank you, Spike." Rarity smiled. Spike smiled back.

"I have to do what I can to protect you. All of you..." Spike said, thinking about Rainbow Dash. Rarity gave him a hug. The two embraced like they never have before. Time seemed to have stood still as Spike cherished the moment.

As with all great things, it came to an end when Spike's hunger kicked in. "I don't suppose you have food, do you?" Spike laughed.

It was a good reprieve after what happened. The three returned to the river, where Sweetie Belle found another pear tree filled with fruit. She started up her horn when Rarity stopped her.

"Wait!" She snapped. "Remember what happened? Whatever those things are, they are attracted to magic. It's best if we do it 'safely'..." She said as she looked to Spike. He quickly got the memo and climbed up the tree, pulling three succulent pears out. It wasn't a full course meal, but it would have to do.

As Sweetie Belle ate, she couldn't help but notice her sister. At first glance, Rarity seemed calm and cool over what happened, but she could tell that Rarity felt different. Sweetie Belle had a feeling that Rarity was slowly going mad, as her posture and mane demonstrated. Rarity would never let her mane get that dirty, no matter what happened.

"Rarity.." Sweetie Belle started.

"Yes, dear?"

The filly paused for a moment. "Will we see the others again?"

Rarity looked to the purple gem hanging around her neck, then smiled. Sweetie Belle hugged her sister once again and buried her face into the unicorn's fur, closing her eyes as she did. "I believe so." was what Sweetie Belle heard, but she felt her sister tremble as she said it, followed by the drop of a single tear.

The group decided to get some rest right there, although Sweetie Belle wasn't able to get much sleep. All on her mind was Rarity.

Before long, Rarity shook Sweetie Belle awake. "It's time to get moving. We can't stay here for long." She said as she made her way towards the sun.

"Do you know what direction we're going?" Sweetie Belle asked as she rubbed her eyes.

"Honestly, I have no idea where we are..." Rarity said. "Spike, any ideas?"

The dragon shook his head. As he did, he began to cough. "Spike, are you okay!?" Rarity gasped as the dragon belched out green flames, revealing a letter.

"What?" Rarity asked as she grabbed it. "Is this from...no, that's impossible!" She opened the letter and read it out loud:

To my faithful companion, Spike, and whoever is with him,

This is Princess Twilight Sparkle. If you're reading this, then my letter spell worked perfectly. I am currently in the Crystal Empire. Everything is okay here, so no need to worry about me. All I know is that you must do your best to never use magic, no matter what the circumstance. The Sleipnir are attracted to it, so for your safety, please keep the casting to a minimum.

My advice would be to come up north to the Crystal Empire if you can. Try to tell anypony you see to do so, but not to go in large groups. From what I experienced after waking up here, the Sleipnir are very good hunters...

Please, girls, if you read this...don't give up hope. If you can, try to send a letter back to me. Please, it may be the only thing to keep me from losing hope myself...

Princess Twilight Sparkle

Rarity stopped for a moment, letting the words sink in.

Crystal Empire, Sweetie Belle thought as Rarity handed Spike the letter.

"We have to go north..." Rarity calmly said, looking to the others.

"But, how can we get there? What if it's too far? We don't even know where we are!" Sweetie Belle stammered. She wanted to go back and see her new friend Berry Bunches, but...

Rarity replied. "We'll find out soon enough. For now, we just keep walking."

It took a while, but the three soon made it to the edge of the forest. Nothing much happened besides Spike finding a few gems buried in the ground. He ate them before Rarity could check their worth. Making it to the edge, Sweetie Belle could see a city in the distance.

The skyline wasn't destroyed, so she knew it wasn't Manehatten. The buildings still looked gloomy and worn, even from a distance.

"Where do you think this-"

Rarity cut off her sister and pointed north. Sweetie Belle turned her head and gasped. In the distance, she saw something she had seen before. Something she never wanted to see again.

The Applewood Sign.