The Tyranny of Queen Twilight Sparkle

by Gherkin

05: Freedom Fighter

No, this isn’t right. Nope. No way, no how.

Seriously, I should not be up this early. It’s not even seven in the morning yet! Celestia- sorry, Twilight, or whoever does so in this crazy world, hasn’t even raised the sun yet! I swear, this is madness. I can’t be at my best unless I’ve gotten a decent night’s sleep, and, well, recent events haven’t afforded me the luxury of pleasant dreaming. I stifle a yawn, and try to shake myself out of my tired stupor. I’m not sure if it works. Probably not.

“Hey Applejack,” I call out as both Thunderlane and I follow her along the train tracks, where we were supposed to meet with more of her rebel friends. “I’ve been wondering about something.” It’s a question that’s been gnawing away at the back of my mind, and I need something to do right now to distract myself from my own lack of sleep.

“What’s that, sugarcube?” the farm mare asks, casting a glance back my way as we continue to trot along.

“Well, you know how I killed that griffon diplomat, right?” She nods, and I continue. “How does that change anything? Can’t they just send another?”

She shakes her head. “I can see why you’d think that, but no. I guess I must have forgot to tell you that relations between Twilight and the griffons were already kinda strained. This would have been a mutually beneficial deal,” she explains. “The good queen gets griffon soldiers, and, in return, they get some resources that ain’t available in the Griffon Kingdom.”

“So, when I killed him, that was the final straw?”

AJ pauses for a second, then shrugs. “I guess you could put it that way. The griffons aren’t going to trust some of their best soldiers to Queen Twilight if she can’t even protect them from one measly rebel, are they?” She smirks over at me, and I chuckle.

"Heh, I guess not." I look over at Thunderlane for a second, who smiles and nods, but remains silent. I smile back and find myself blushing slightly again, so I turn back to Applejack. "So, what, is this supposed to be the final nail in the coffin or something?"

"Not quite," she answers, hopping over an exposed tree root beneath her hooves. "But she'll feel it, that's for sure. Hungry soldiers ain't fighting soldiers, that's for darn sure."

"This is a supply train carrying food for the soldiers, then?" I ask, casting a glance at the train tracks we were following. “How does taking it out help us directly?”

“Well, to be exact, we’re killing two birds with one stone,” the farm pony begins to explain. “This is one of the biggest supply routes in Equestria. Not only does it carry supplies, but this line is the only major route in and out of Canterlot by train, seeing as Ponyville is pretty central.”

I nod, beginning to understand, and motion for her to continue. “Uh huh.”

“So we’re not just taking out the train, we’re taking out the entire line as well. After we’re done, there ain’t hardly gonna be any guards or soldiers coming in or out of Canterlot for the foreseeable future.” She looks back at me and smiles. “That bitch ain’t gonna know what hit her.”

I frown and pick up my pace slightly, trotting forward so I’m side by side with her. “Sorry to burst your bubble, but ‘that bitch’ is my only way of getting home. How am I going to get to Canterlot if we’re blowing the train line to smithereens?” I turn and glare at her.

“Ya got wings, haven’t ya?” She replies bluntly.

Are you serious? “What, you expect me to go up there alone?”

She stops and sighs, before turning to me. “Look, sugarcube, we just don’t have enough ponies to launch an attack on the Royal Palace...”

“Save it!” I shout, louder than I probably intend. “I’m going up there as soon as I can, okay?” I point a hoof up towards the city on the mountainside. “So are you going to help me, or let me end up like your brother?”

AJ gasps, and scowls at me. “Don’t you even think of bringing my brother into this!” she yells, flaring with anger. “We can’t go to Canterlot now, there’s still work to be done here! We can’t take the fight there if it ain’t done here!”

“This isn’t my fight, Applejack,” I remind her. “I don’t belong here. Please, I just want to get home. To see my friends again.”

The farmpony goes to shout something back, but pauses, and sighs. “Yeah... I know, RD.” She looks at the ground for a few seconds, thinking, before looking back up at me again. “I might have an idea, but it ain’t exactly ideal.”

Any idea is better than nothing. “Well, okay, let’s hear it,” I say to her as we start trotting again. Thunderlane gives me a concerned look, but I ignore it.

“Well, if one of us can, uh, requisition one of the guards’ chariots, we might be able to get a small group into Canterlot undetected,” she explains. It doesn’t sound too bad, I guess. “Sneaking through the castle is gonna be a lot harder, though, but the odds are better than trying to storm in through the front door.

I feel a hoof tap me on the shoulder, and I look back to see Thunderlane smiling at me. “Just wanna let you know I’ve got your back, cap,” he tells me. “And that I’ll come with you to Canterlot. I got some, well, issues with the current monarchy as well, just like everypony else.”

“You know it’s probably gonna be a one way trip, right?” I warn him, looking up into his eyes as we trot along.

“Maybe. Maybe not,” he muses. “Either way, I don’t care. Besides, it’ll take more than what they can throw at me to keep me down.”

Chuckling, I give him a friendly punch on the shoulder. Yep, that’s still the same cocky weather colt I know. “Heh, I guess not. Thanks, Thunderlane.”

“Any time.”

“Are you two done?” I hear Applejack call out to the two of us, smirking slightly. “‘Cause I reckon we’re just about here.” Sure enough, the three of us trot through some thick bushes close to the train tracks to see about ten ponies waiting around for us, most of which I recognise. The twin sisters on my weather team, Cloudchaser and Flitter, are here, alongside Applejack’s forgetful farmhoof, Caramel, and a mint green unicorn. Lyra, I think her name was. I always thought she was kinda weird, but hey, we need all the help we can get. The rest of these ponies, I don’t recognise, though I’m sure I’ve seen them around Ponyville at some point, tucked away in the background.

“There you guys are,” Cloudchaser announces, gliding over towards us. “You took your sweet time. We’ve been sitting on our flanks for over half an hour waiting for you.”

“Well someone decided it would be a good idea to oversleep,” Applejack says to her, casting a smirk my way. I roll my eyes and chuckle slightly. What can I say? A mare has to get her sleep, right?

"Ah, you know me, AJ," I tell my friend, punching her in the shoulder lightly. "Besides, I'm here now, right? And don't worry, I'm not gonna doze off or anything."

"I should hope not, Dash." The farm pony turns and smiles at me, before looking back at the pegasus in front of her. "Are the explosives in place?"

Explosives? Really? Well, come to think of it, I really shouldn't be surprised. After all, we're not going to take out an entire train line by stabbing it with tiny blades, or by glaring at it moodily. So much for discreet assassins, though.

Cloudchaser nods. "Sure do. If you can believe it, Caramel didn't forget about them!" She receives a glare from the stallion, and sticks her tongue out playfully in response. “They’re all pretty much set up by now.” She points towards the tracks, and I spot quite a few sticks of dynamite, all wired up to a detonator hidden behind the bushes next to us. “All we gotta do is wait for the train to roll through, and ka-boom!” She flaps her wings and leaps into the air to emphasise. “The whole thing should go up nicely.”

Applejack inspects the set-up, before turning back to the pegasus and nodding. “Well, everything seems to be in order, by the looks of it. All that’s left now is to play the waiting game.” Trotting away from the tracks, she rolls up a sleeve on her coat and checks a watch wrapped around her hoof. “It should be coming through any minute now. To your positions, everypony!”

The ponies scattered around nod, with a few giving mock salutes, before jumping out of sight behind bushes or trees, away from the explosives laid out on the track. Taking one last glance at the tracks, I pull my hood down over my head before following Applejack behind a large rock where the detonator is located. She gives me a knowing nod, but returns her gaze to the train tracks, never once averting her eyes from the corner that the train was due to come around at any moment.

“This isn’t going to be easy, is it?” I murmur, making sure that I stay out of sight. “I mean, there’s bound to be security on that train.” I look up at my friend, who casts a brief glance my way before returning to staring down the tracks.

“Yeah, there probably will be,” she admits. “And it probably ain’t gonna be easy. Hopefully this explosion will take out most of them, though. The rest of ‘em should be easy pickings.”

“Should be?”

“Good gravy, girl, will you relax?” AJ snaps, before calming herself a little. “I think you’ve proved yourself more than capable, wouldn’t ya say?”

“Doesn’t make it any easier,” I retort, glaring up at her.

“Never said it does.” She pulls her hood down as my ears perk up. In the distance, I can hear the train, approaching rapidly. “Look alive, everypony, this is it!” Applejack whispers, just loud enough for everyone else to hear. I close my eyes and take a few deep breaths, trying to keep myself calm. I’ve been getting into way too many life or death situations in the last few days. It felt like only yesterday that my only worry in the world was whether I was going to be able to beat my previous flying record. Oh, how things have changed.

I hear the train’s whistle blow as it comes barreling around the corner at full speed, smoke billowing from its engine. Well, here we go, I guess. I look towards Applejack, who gives me a determined nod, before she sets her hoof on top of the detonator. Dear Celestia, what in the hay are we about to do?

It’s way too late to back out now, though. Like it or not, I’m in this for the long haul. I duck down and brace myself as the train passes us. Applejack waits for a few brief moments, before slamming her hoof down on the detonator.

“Take this, you no good sons of bitches!” she screams, as the laid out explosives all go up. There is a deafening roar, and screech of metal, and the train derails catastrophically, almost flying completely off the tracks. The engine and a few front carriages flip onto their sides, sending some of its occupants flying into the dirt. I peek out from behind the rock to survey the damage, and gasp in shock as I see an injured stallion, screaming in pain, get crushed by a toppling train car.

“Come on!” I hear AJ bark through a ringing in my ears. “We ain’t out of the woods yet!” She grabs me by the shoulder and heaves me onto all four hooves. “The back carriage wasn’t as damaged as I expected! The guards in there are only gonna be shaken up. We need to take them out before they realise what’s goin’ on!”

“Y-yeah, okay, alright,” I mutter, probably more shaken up than the guards are. This is getting too much. “Come on, you can do this,” I whisper to myself as AJ leads both me and the rest of the assassins to the back of the train.

“Be ready for a fight,” the farmpony warns as we reach the back of the last carriage. “No witnesses, okay?”

Thunderlane smirks and takes to the air. “Oh, I was born ready. Bring them on.”

“Here we go, then.” Applejack climbs onto the back of the train car and turns around. She leans forward, before kicking backwards with her powerful hindlegs. The power of her hooves are enough to send the door flying off its hinges, and, if the pained yell from inside is any indication, right into one of the recovering guards.

“We’re under attack!” I hear one of them shout as the rest of us charge into the carriage. Unfortunately, it appears to be some sort of barracks, so there are about ten ponies in here, not counting us. It’s way too cramped to even move, let alone fight, so I decide to engage one of these guys on my own terms. I find the nearest dazed stallion and tackle into him mid-flight, sending us both through one of the train’s windows and out onto the glass outside.

He has quicker reflexes than I thought, though, and manages to push me off of him before I can get a hit in. He shoves me to the side, sending me sprawling onto my back. He rears up, intending to kick my skull in, but I roll to the side as he brings his hooves down. Springing up, I use one of the hidden blades to stab him in the leg. He yelps in pain and staggers, so I quickly jam the other blade into the back of his neck to end his suffering.

Looking back up at the train, I’m treated to the sight of Thunderlane kicking another guard through the window that I just, well, opened. He nods towards me, shouting, “Here’s another one for you, cap!” I go to shout something back, but just gasp as another guard tackles him out of sight. I’m worried about him, but he’s the least of my worries right now as the guard he sent my way staggers to his hooves. I dive towards him in an attempt to surprise, but he sidesteps and I almost crash to my hooves. He tries to kick me while I’m down, but I grab his hoof and throw him into the side of the train. I go to buck him into the train to finish him off, but he rolls out the way and comes at me again. Unfortunately for him, it’s a lazy swing. I block it easily with one hoof, before slashing my blade across his throat with other. I wrap one foreleg around his neck, before shoving the blade into his chest about four times. As the last breath escapes his lips, I throw him onto the ground.

I take a breather, before turning my attention back to the train. Hopefully we should have thinned out most of their ranks by now. I give my wings and flap and take off, diving through the broken window I created. In a stroke of luck, a guard that Applejack is fighting moves in front of it at the last second, so I tackle him to the ground and stab him before he even realises what is going on.

“Heh, thanks for the backup there, partner,” AJ compliments. I smile slightly, before frowning as she gasps in horror. A pained scream, in a voice that’s all too familiar, attracts my attention to the other end of the train carriage. I’m not sure if I want to see, but I look anyway. What I see only makes my heart sink like a stone.

“Thunderlane!” I scream, looking on in horror as he is impaled through the back by one of the guard’s spears. In a fit of rage, Flitter tackles the stallion into the wall, but it’s too little, too late. My pegasus friend falls to the floor beside the bloodied spear, coughing and gasping for air in a pool of his own blood. I feel tears begin to well up in my eyes as I dash over to where he fell, paying no attention to the final, lone guard that Flitter was beating to a bloody pulp.

I land next to him gently, lowering my hood as Flitter finally finishes off his attacker, stabbing the guard through the eye while letting out an anguished scream. He looks up at me, fear evident in his eyes, as I cradle his head in my hooves.

“Hey, cap,” he manages to murmur, trying his best to smile despite the fact that we both are crying. “Looks like that son of a bitch got lucky, huh?” He coughs violently, before spitting out blood.

No, this isn’t happening. “Please, Thunderlane,” I mumble, looking down at him. “Please don’t do this. It’s not fair.”

He looks me in the eyes, and smiles silently, before going limp. A final breath escapes his lips, and his eyes lose focus, forever staring towards the sky, completely lifeless. I sit there, completely numb, for a few seconds, before gently brushing his eyelids closed with one of my hooves. Oh Celestia, why is this happening? What did I do to deserve this? What did anyone do?

I can’t take it anymore, and completely break down, openly weeping over my lifeless friend as the rest of them look on in silence. This world, dimension, reality, or whatever the fuck it is, I just can’t take it anymore. There’s too much death, too much destruction. I never asked for any of this madness. I just want to go home.

Comments

[Gherkin]

3558796 No, I only dream of having that kind of artistic talent. You can find the source of the image by hovering your cursor over it.

[Rainbooms]

DAMNIT.

I was hoping we could get through without a main character dying.

[Treble_Sketch]

I have decided to make a book with a collections of stories from fimfiction. And you are one of the stories that is featured in it. But just need you permission before I add it in the book. Would it be ok?

[Treble_Sketch]

I have decided to make a book with a collections of stories from fimfiction. And you are one of the stories that is featured in it. But just need you permission before I add it in the book. Would it be ok?

[Gherkin]

3684300 Um, sure I guess. Might want to include stories that are finished, though.