> Crusaders of the New Lunar Republic > by ShadowBrony > -------------------------------------------------------------------------- > The New Crusade > -------------------------------------------------------------------------- Chapter 1 It was 8:00 and the sun had already set. That meant that anypony outside was past curfew. No pony in Ponyville, nor anywhere else was allowed to be outside at night. Not anymore. But if somepony was outside they might have caught sight of a mare running past with a brown cloak wrapped firmly around her whole body and a hood blocking anypony from seeing her face. She also appeared to have strange wings poking out of it as well. They might have also have noticed her running farther and farther toward the outside of the town. The mare in question was doing her best reach her destination and her paranoia of getting caught wasn't helping. That was why she was running like a mad mare. Her breathing was hard and labored, but if she were to be caught outside, being able breathe would be the least of her problems. She stopped just as soon as she could see the red barn in the distance. She gave a sigh of relief. Then she heard talking coming from just up the road. Without thinking the mare dove for the nearest bush. She had just enough time to pull her prostatic wings in before she heard the guards as they made their way past the bush. She didn’t bother to listen in on what they were saying. All she cared about was them not being able to see her. She hoped her orange colored wings would not be seen through the green bush. The mare also hoped that her friend would forgive her for messing up her wings like this. She was literally sitting on them in order to hide them the best she could. The mare sat quietly in the bush long after the guards had past. She wanted to be sure that they were truly gone. The last time anypony was caught out after curfew was so badly beaten she continues to walk with a limp to this day. The mare slowly and quietly got herself out of the bush before sprinting to the barn. Just before she reached the door, she stopped to catch her breath before knocking. She knocked three times, waited 5 seconds then knocked twice. A small slit in the door opened for a second before quickly closing. Locks could be heard on the other side unbolting before the door swung open. The mare jumped inside and quickly shut the door behind her. As soon as the mare turned around she found her face just inches from a crossbow. The inside of the barn was dark but the mare could clearly see the shiny tip reflecting off a small lantern. The mare holding the crossbow spoke, “what is the password?” The mare in the brown cloak grinned as she removed the hood revealing a teen version of Scootaloo. She continued to smile as she spoke, “Rainbow Dash is best Pony.” As soon as she said this, all of the barn was lit up as the lights were finally turned on. It revealed a big work station filled with contraptions and inventions, maps and diagrams lining the walls, a radio sitting on a table with three chairs and yellow mare with red hair wearing a Stetson holding a crossbow right in front of her. Scootaloo lifted up her hoof and she began to remove her cloak. “You can put that crossbow down now,” she said as she threw it onto a hook sticking out of the wall. Apple Bloom rolled her eyes, “I thought we agreed that the new password was going to be AppleJack is best pony.” She set her crossbow on the table. It looked just like a regular crossbow only this one had to be launched by holding it in ones hoof and firing it by biting down on the trigger in the back. Usually unicorns could use regular ones no problem but since Apple Bloom is an earth pony, she had to modify it just a bit. Scootaloo laughed, “Well it’s true. And if Rainbow Dash were here she would agree.” Scootaloo bit down on her tongue as soon as the words left her mouth. Apple Blooms face fell like a rock. “If my sister where here she would not only disagree, she might also know what to do about the princess.” Scootaloo knew she had just hit a sore spot. “Sorry Apple Bloom, I just sometimes forget that while I lost an adoptive sister, you lost a real one you grew up with.” Scootaloo put a hoof on Apple Bloom’s shoulder as they both sat down on the floor. Scootaloo looked up at the wall and noticed a picture of them and Sweetie Bell back when they were younger. Scootaloo then threw a hoof around Apple Blooms neck. “Hard to believe it has been 10 years since we had that picture taken. It was just two days before those awesome six ponies left on a big mission for the princess. Back then things seemed so simple. Get our cutie marks and have fun while we waited for them to come home. Well eventually we did. Not long after they left we all got ours around the same time.” Apple Bloom smiled a bit. Scootaloo then smiled back before continuing. “Remember how excited we were for them to come back so that we could show them off to everypony? We thought our sisters were going to be so proud. We waited for weeks.” Scootaloo felt her own mood darken just a bit. “But then weeks turned into months and still we didn’t see them. Soon after, princess Celestia began to act kinda funny. She sent out her guard trying to find them but came up empty. Luna even went out herself to try and find them. That was when things really went downhill. She, like our sisters, never returned. Then the princess wasn’t our princess any more. She became our one Queen who ruled above everypony else with an iron fist. At first we thought she was doing this to protect us and that her weird behavior was just her trying to cope. But then she got worst as she started hurting her own subjects. She even started to banish those who questioned her or tried to get her to stop. She became a tyrant who was willing to hurt her own subjects just to protect them. Now guards walk down every street and punish anyone who wishes to defile the crown. No pony was innocent. After all, the royal guard doesn’t hurt the innocent. Then the biggest change came. That’s when everypony realized that the era of Equestria had ended. We now all live in a place called the Solar Empire. Or at least that is what Queen Celestia calls it.” Both mares felt tears rolling from their eyes. They didn’t even notice that a third mare had walked up behind them until she placed a loving hoof on Scootaloo’s shoulder. Both mares turned to see Sweetie Belle smiling at them. She then turned and pointed at the blue flag hanging on the other side of the barn. It had a sideways moon with a star in the middle surrounded by light blue wings. She then spoke up, “That is why we started all this. We now lead a resistance to find out what happened and to reclaim Equestria. We have friends all over working together to accomplish this. Remember how we used to call ourselves Crusaders? Well we still are only now we are leading a whole new revolution. Come on girls.” She took a few steps toward the flag and raised her hoof. Scootaloo rubbed the tears from her eyes as she got up and extended her wings. She raised her hoof and touched the end of Sweetie Belle’s while still pointing at the flag. Apple Bloom shook her head quickly and then used her hat to dry her tears. She then got up, walked over and placed her hoof against Sweetie Belle’s and Scootaloo’s hoof. They altogether then chanted at the top of their lungs: “For the New Lunar Republic. Our goal: finding the true queen of Equestria and finding the truth about what happened to the Elements of Harmony and bringing real peace back to our land.” They then laughed with joy as they felt their spirits lift again. They soon became quiet again though, as just then, a heavy pounding could be heard coming from the barn door. > Diamonds and Demons > -------------------------------------------------------------------------- Chapter 2 Diamonds and Demons The CMC all turned toward the door as the knocking became faster and more desperate with each passing second. With a sigh, Apple Bloom made her way toward the barn door, unbolted it and opened the door. A grey blur shot inside and slammed the door behind it. Upon leaning up against the door catching her breath, the grey blur revealed itself to be a grey mare with blond hair. She was a unicorn and the CMC immediately recognized her as Dinky. Apple Bloom rolled her eyes, “Dinky, remember what we told you? It was knock three times, wait five seconds, then knock twice.” Dinky shook her head, “Sorry, but I need to warn you. Some of the Revolution Cleaners are in town and they are heading in your direction. We have 2 minutes at best.” Both Scootaloo and Apple Bloom froze as they took this information in. Revolution Cleaners were put into effect after Celestia had become there one true queen. There had been protesters and arguments already about how Celestia was running things even before then, but soon their Queen grew tired of their rebellion and forced a new law that prohibited anypony from so much as spiting in the direction of the crown. Ponies could no longer speak ill of their queen. Free speech, in essence, was no more. Then to enforce it, volunteers from both the royal guard and even those of her own subjects (mostly nobles and the very wealthy), came together to form the Revolution Cleaners. Soon almost all will to fight was gone as ponies soon found themselves being thrown from their homes and searched for anything the was considered treasonous toward the crown or her kingdom. Weapons, posters, or anything that did not reflect their queen in a good manor was considered hierarchy. Anything found was thrown into a big bon fire that was started in the middle of all towns and cities in Equestria. Many homes themselves were burned and ponies found guilty of their treason soon found themselves beaten. Any that tried to fight back were thrown in jail. Ponyville was hit hard and lost a lot of good ponies that day. From then on, that day was forever known as the Fall of Equestria. Since then however, the Revolution Cleaners continue to find small pockets of rebellion amongst the pony society, so they continue to lead there charge. So if they were coming here, things were not going end well if they found anything. Sweetie Bell, instead of being frozen in shock, dashed around the barn. Switches were pulled and buttons were pushed as brown sheets feel from the roof covering up their inventions and weapons. Secondary walls fell over the existing ones, hiding their maps and posters. A very large sheet unrolled on the side of the barn covering up their flag. Then buckets of flour were dumped giving everything a dusty look. In just under a few seconds, the barn looked like an average barn except for the table and chairs in the middle. Sweetie Bell ran over to the table and with her magic, threw the cross-bow under one of the already covered contraptions. As soon as she had done this, there came a heavy pounding on the door. This time, it was a lot less frantic sounding and more affirming of power. Apple Bloom, feeling like she had no choice, opened the door. Two ponies immediately pushed their way in. One was pink with purple curly hair with a white stripe running threw it. The other was silver coated with whitish-silvery hair. Both had aura of power and wealth surrounding them. “Diamond Tiara and Silver Spoon,” Dinky whispered. Diamond Tiara scoffed as she looked around the barn before acting like she just now noticed the ponies standing around her. “Well, if it isn’t the sister-less bunch and their grey friend. I had heard rumors that you are all leading a rebellion. Of course I knew it had to be false. You’re all too stupid to lead one anyways.” Diamond Tiara's eyes filled with satisfaction as she watched Scootaloo squirm where she was standing. Diamond knew that whatever she said, she could get away with due to being a messenger of the queen and her guards standing outside. It was time to have some fun with the ex-blank flanks. She casually walked over to Apple Bloom. “It’s so good to see you again. How long has it been?” Before Apple Bloom could answer she continued, “I’d say since your sister up and left you. She abandoned you and your family. Either that or she’s dead. Not a very good sister if you ask me. Not to mention a lazy worker who complained when my father asked for more crops. More like a troublesome adult who made it difficult for all of us to have fun when we were young. She was annoying wasn’t she?” At this point, Apple Blooms face matched the color of her hair. It was taking all her will power and then some to not attack her where she stood. Diamond raised an eye-brow as she stared into Apple Blooms face, daring her to strike. When Apple Bloom didn’t move, Diamond shook her head before moving on to Scootaloo. “Let’s not forget that moment we last saw each other; you had just gotten your cutie mark. You had told me you were going to show it to Rainbow Dash and that from then on, your life was going to be awesome. Well I guess she never saw it. Oh well, that's life. You know, I think those adoption papers might make good fire wood; doesn’t matter if there is a bit of ink on them.” A tear fell from Scootaloo’s face but she managed to hide it behind her look of pure rage. Diamond continued, “And those fake wings, I am sure that only some pegasi call you a freak now. But I say they fit you perfectly. After all, they do a great job of covering up what a real freak you are on the inside.” By this point, it was taking all of Scootaloo’s will and Apple Bloom holding her back just to keep her from killing Diamond Tiara on the spot. Diamond Tiara giggled at the sight before moving on to her next victim, Dinky. Diamond grinned as she began talking to Dinky, “So I believe we have yet to really get to know each other yet. I know so much about you but you know so little about me. For example, did you know that it was I who threw you’re mother in jail? That’s right, the day that she decided to assault me. Oh of course she said it was an accident that she bumped into me, but we both know that she was purposely trying to attack me. Those guards however can be so brutal though. It makes me wonder if she got those weird eyes before or after the guards were done with her. Oh well, at least you seem like a nice pony, unlike your mother who is currently going to spend the rest of her life in the dungeon. I think the last words before the hulled her off was 'It's going to be ok, Muffin'. I wonder who that is?” Dinky felt her legs give out from underneath her. She fell to the ground in a fetal position as tears fell from her eyes. Diamond stared down at the poor mare before finally moving on to her last bit of fun. “Oh Sweetie Bell, your sister was always loved by my family, to bad she had to be mixed up in the crowd of ponies who got lost and never came home. If only she had a better sense of direction. She always did end up in the wrong crowd. I guess she will always be nothing a peasant at heart. After all, her dresses just never could compete with the ones my daddy used to buy for me. But at least her shop did come in useful. After all, we needed something to start that big bon fire.” Sweetie Bell grimaced but held up her hoof. Diamond stopped her banter as she looked at Sweetie Bell in surprise. Sweetie Bell took a deep breath then stared at her in a menacing look, “You talk as though if my sister was dead. Well I have news for you, she isn’t. I am Rarity’s sister and as such I can feel when my sister is in trouble or if she is alive or dead. And right now I feel her. She is faint but still out there. And I can promise you that as long as I continue to feel her presence she remains alive.” She pointed her hoof at Diamond Tiara with a look of hope beaming from her face. “You came here to break our spirits, but guess what? You instead have done the complete opposite, I am ready to go out and find her now more the ever. So you can take your insults and stick them up your rear because a bitch like you isn’t going to come between me and my sister.” With that, she brought her hoof down smacking the floor with a look of triumph. Diamond Tiara growled before turning and walking out the door. Once outside she yelled for Silver Spoon to follow her. Silver looked at Sweetie Bell before going up to her slamming her hoof into Sweetie Bell’s side. Sweetie Bell fell to the ground as she felt precious air leave her longs. She then whispered something to Sweetie Bell before leaving and slamming the door behind her. Apple Bloom broke from Scootaloo once the door had shut. Scootaloo smacked the door with her hoof as hard as she could a couple of times while Apple Bloom went to check on Sweetie Bell. Apple Bloom bent down but Sweetie Bell was already getting to her feet as she felt air return to her lungs. “Are you alright?” Apple Bloom asked. Sweetie Bell nodded her head before handing her a piece of paper she was holding against her chest. Apple Bloom began to look it over as Sweetie Bell walked over to Dinky who was still curled up trying to hold back any more tears. She sat down and rubbed her back, trying to comfort Dinky. Scootaloo stopped pounding the wall as her hooves were starting to hurt, and went over to her friends. “Well that sucked,” she said as she sat down beside Dinky, trying to regain some of her toughness back (though a tear still fell from her face). Apple Bloom shook her head, “I know that what just happened hurt a lot of us, but there is at least some good news to all of this. Sweetie Bell nodded as Dinky, having finally gained some control over herself, looked up in confusion. Scootaloo shared a similar expression. Apple Bloom and Sweetie Bell smiled. Apple Bloom handed Scootaloo the piece of paper, “We may have just been given the final clue needed to find our sisters and the rest of the Elements of Harmony.” > The Gathering > -------------------------------------------------------------------------- Chapter 3 The Gathering Scootaloo scanned the paper before handing it back to Sweetie Bell, “I am not sure I understand, it’s just a letter.” Sweetie Bell rolled her eyes. She grabbed the letter and then handed it to Dinky. The blond mare’s eyes grew wide as she read it. Both Sweetie Bell and Apple Bloom nodded their heads at each other. Sweetie Bell crouched down to Dinky’s level, “I am going to need to ask you a favor Dinky.” The grey mare stopped reading and handed the paper back to Sweetie Bell. She then stood up and saluted. Sweetie Bell blushed at the gesture before gathering herself, “I need you to tell the other members that a meeting will be held in one hour at the old club house.” Dinky’s eyes grew wide again as she realized this meant that something big was about to happen. She saluted again before rushing out the door in a grey blur. Apple Bloom shook her head, “you’d think she would have gotten her cutie mark in speed not delivery.” Sweetie Bell sighed as she knew they were going to need to prepare for tonight. She turned toward her group, “Alright everypony, I will meet you all there. I have something that needs to be done before later tonight.” Scootaloo and Apple Bloom exchanged curious looks as Sweetie Bell left the barn. Once she left, she carefully but quickly made her way toward the Carousel Boutique. Even though it wasn’t far, it still took her awhile to get there having to jump into certain hiding spots every time a Solar Empire guard made their way past. Upon reaching it however, she had to take a minute to look over the damage that had been done to it during the Fall of Equestria. It was a miracle that half of it was still standing. The top floor was gone however. Black marks surround it and the once beautiful boutique was now just a sorry reminder of that awful day. But she still considered it her home and not just because her parent’s house had been lost as well. As she made her way through the front door, Sweetie Bell was met with the jingling of the bell above the door. She smiled as happy memories flowed through her. She closed her eyes remembering all the good time she and her sister had in this wonderful place. But it could not last, for when she opened her eyes, she was met with the ruins of the shop. Most of the dresses had been burned and any left were too damaged to be recovered. The white mare made her way through the rubble towards the back of the shop. Upon reaching one of the many changing rooms, she stopped and opened the one in the middle. Inside was where Sweetie Bell had kept all that had been saved from the fire. As she made her way into the small room she glanced over all that she had saved. From the dress the Rarity had made for herself for Gala, to an exact replica of her Element (made with real gold and sapphire) and then towards the rest of her designs she had made on paper. But what Sweetie Bell felt was the most valuable treasure, was the picture of her and Rarity she had made out of Rarity’s special diamonds and crayons. It was just before the Sister Hooves social and while the day may have started out bad, the ending was one she would never forget. Sweetie Bell touched her hoof to the drawing. “Someday we will be together again, I promise.” She felt a tear roll down her face. She did her best to wipe it away before taking a deep breath and leaving the small room while gently closing the door behind her. *** Scootaloo made her way home by flying through every cloud she could find. She did her best to not be spotted in the air even thought it was dark. Her wings made her feel like a real Pegasus as they were technically connected to her small wings underneath. As she glided from cloud to cloud, she couldn’t help but thank Apple Bloom over and over in her head for making these. It was Scootaloo's cutie mark that made them easy to figure out however. Her ability is to adapt to just about anything was her special talent. That is why she was always good at her scooter because she could perform her trick by adapting to her surroundings and pulling it off. It also made it possible to quickly learn how to wield certain weapons and other gadgets as well. Her thoughts ended as her home came in sight. The full moon made it easy to see. But it wasn’t just a simple cloud home. It was Rainbow Dash’s home. It was also the last place she saw Rainbow before she left. Though it pains her every time to have to be reminded of that, it was still a home and she believed like Sweetie Bell, that someday her sister would return. As she went through the front door, she took a deep breath and made her way into Rainbow Dash’s old room. Scootaloo had made sure to leave it exactly like RD had left it. She went in and walked toward a picture sitting on a small table beside the bed. It was a picture of her and Rainbow Dash taken just a few days before she left. It was the day that RD had taken her under her wing not only as a sister, but a legal guardian as well. It was the happiest day of her life. Scootaloo could still feel Diamond Tiara’s words burning in her mind, but as she touched the picture and thought of RD, her words seemed to melt away. Scootaloo looked out the small window and even though it was cloudy, she could still see the moon clearly. Scootaloo felt a bit of determination stir within her as she looked back at the photo. “You promised me one day we would fly together. And I am still holding you to that promise.” Scootaloo smiled as she got up to leave and prepare for the meeting later that night. *** Apple Bloom stuck around in the barn after the other mares had left. It took her a few minutes but eventually she left and made her way toward the house. Along the way she decided to stop at a certain old tree. She stopped in front of it and sat down leaning up against a big slab of stone sitting nearby. She cocked her head back looking up and seeing the branches in the moonlight. “Hey Big George, it’s me Apple Bloom. I just wanted to tell you that we have found a big clue to where my sister is and felt you should know about that. You have been in the family for generations and Apple Jack said that you are here to give us fruit and help protect the farm. I want to apologize for earlier about calling you all those names a few days after that Fall of Equestria. I was just so mad at the time. Besides, Granny wouldn’t want me saying stuff like that to anypony or tree anyways.” She turned around put her hoof on the slab of stone, “Because I know that just like Mom and Pa, she's watching over us somewhere too.” Apple Bloom ran a hoof through her now watery eyes. “Just do me a favor George, make sure your still here when I bring Apple Jack back.” She then got up made her way toward her house where Big Mac was sitting on the porch. As Apple Bloom made her way up into the house, she was stopped by her big brother. She looked at him for moment. His tired eyes and aching body were clear as day but his warm smile was what shown through the most. They embraced as Apple Bloom felt tears running down her cheeks but she didn’t care anymore. They just sat there as family mourning for their losses but being happy for what they still had. *** The old club house looked like it was ready to fall apart at any moment from the outside. But from the inside it looked as good as it always had. After getting her Cutie Mark in crafting, Apple Bloom found that she could build just about anything she put her mind to. That included making the perfect camouflage for the club house. As ponies dressed in cloaks and capes made their way inside, Scootaloo made sure to keep an eye out for any guards. Though the chance of them coming out here was unlikely, it still was a good idea to be cautious. As the last pony made their way inside, Scootaloo ran all the way around the club house to make sure there wasn’t any spies before making her way in as well. The club house would have been too small to fit everypony had Apple Bloom not remolded it to fit them plus several other ponies as well. Sweetie Bell took to the stand at the front as both Scootaloo and Apple Bloom took their seats beside her. Sweetie Bell looked around her before taking a deep breath and beginning. “Mares and gentlecolts, thanks for risking your livelihoods and coming to this meeting. I assure you that what I have to say is very important and what comes next is going to need the help of everypony here.” Several of the ponies glanced at each other. Most of them kept their hoods up just in case they should be caught but were still there because they all believed in the Lunar Republic and that was time for a change. Sweetie Bell continued, “What I have here in my hoof was a letter given to me by our very own double agent. It is because of the risks she took that we might have the biggest clue to finding the bearers of Elements of Harmony and perhaps Luna as well.” She paused as some ponies murmured to themselves before continuing, “What this is, is a letter sent by Twilight to queen (then Princess) Celestia from the Castle of the Royal Pony sisters. It tells us that they were suppose to meet there as something important was about to happen. This is believed by our double agent to be the last known place they were at before they disappeared.” Sweetie Bell was met with silence as everypony took this in. “We believe that is extremely important that we go into the Everfree and hopefully learn more about what happened.” Some of the ponies in the room shuffled their feet unsure about going into the Everfree Forest. Scootaloo noticed this, “Don’t worry, we are not asking any of you to come along, however we are asking for your help.” Sweetie Bell nodded as she placed a large sheet in front of her, “I have the plan already made up on how we are going to do this. Now since queen Celestia has set up guards making it very difficult for anypony to go into the forest anymore, our first step is to make it past them.” Sweetie Bell searched the crowd of ponies before calling out a name, “Pip?” A pony sitting towards the front lowered his hood. He was a white colt with a brown patch over his eye. He wore a bandana. Hey raised is hoof, “Here miss.” Sweetie Bell nodded in his direction, “your father works as a guard for Celestia and his main area of protection is the Everfree Forest boundary. I want you to find out where the weakest and easiest access point is or where there is going to be the least amount of guards. Think you can do that?” Pip raised an eye-brow, “Hey if I have to choose a way to stick it to the queen, best way to do it is through my father. Two birds with one stone as they say. No problem.” Sweetie Bell thanked him as she realized there must have been some issues going on at home yet he still remained loyal to the NLR. She then started moving down the list, “Twist?” A pony near the middle of the crowd removed her hood. She had a red curly mane and had almost near perfect teeth. She wore round glasses yet still had freckles around her face. She waved her hoof in the air, “Here” she said with clear voice. Sweetie Bell acknowledged her, “I need you to make some cookies laced with sedatives and given to the guards that Pip will deem the easiest targets for our passage into the forest.” Twist grinned and nodded her head several times. Sweetie Bell searched the crowd again before calling out another name, “Dinky?” A grey hooded mare raised her hoof before realizing her hood was still up and lowered it. “Yes?” she said as she stood up. Sweetie Bell looked back down at her plans, “We need somepony who can keep track of what goes on in Ponyville while we are gone. Do you still have that two way letter sending spell that Twilight taught you?” Dinky thought for a moment before nodding her head. Sweetie Bell thanked her before moving down to the last most important thing. “That’s it for the plan wise. The rest of you, if you have any supplies you can spare it will be a huge help. If you don’t that is fine, just your support is enough to help keep us going. Now before we end this meeting, does anypony have any questions?” Dinky raised her hoof again, “um, so it’s just you three going into the Everfree Forest? Are you sure you’re all going to be alright?” Sweetie Bell smiled, “Actually it’s not just us three, there is another who will be joining us as well. I couldn’t imagine not bringing him along nor facing the forest without him.” She gestured her hoof toward the door where right beside it, a reptilian creature was leaning his back against the wall with his arms crossed. As soon as all eyes landed on him, he removed his hood revealing a teenaged dragon with a purple face and green pointed scales. He had a scar across his left eye and both eyes appeared to be glowing in the dim light. He grinned at her and Sweetie Bell blushed just a bit, “Spike?” she asked, “Are you ready to find Twilight?” Spike closed his eyes as he smiled to himself, “Been ready since the day she disappeared.” Sweetie Bell smiled, turned around, and removed a brown cloth hanging against the wall. As it fell away a flag with the same image as the one on the barn wall appeared. Sweetie Bell and the rest of the ponies in the room raised their hooves as the all chanted, “To the New Lunar Republic. To the NLR!” Once the chanting ceased Sweetie Bell turned and faced everypony, “Meeting adjourned…”