> The End of the Beginning... of the End > by Obsidian Warrior > -------------------------------------------------------------------------- > Prologue: Discovery > -------------------------------------------------------------------------- Prologue: Discovery -Albatross- “Who are you?” Yes dear reader, I know exactly what you are asking. To begin, I am an Alicorn. Possibly the only one other than the 2 tyrants on the throne. I have a basic design. I have a mahogany body with dark white face paint. I have a golden and gray mane, with a black and white tail, along with a flaming hoof as a cutie mark. I lived most of my life in seclusion to the world, with very few friends and my daughter, Electra. It's not very hard living on my own, especially with years of experience in the Everfree. OK, I admit to hating living in seclusion, but what I would be risking if I told everyone I was an Alicorn. Hell, the media would be biting at my and Electra’s heels if they found out. Damn, she would be taken from me. I wouldn't put up with that crap, so I went into hiding. Okay, let's jump back a few months ago. Let's see... I was Chatting with my friend, Sunshine. Oh, little info on her, she's a necromancer (or at least a trainee). She is one of the nicest ponies you will ever meet (hence the name "Sunshine)”. Her fur is white, she had a straight mane and a tail the color of orange. She had a straw hat and diamonds on her legs, with a glowing star as her cutie mark. Anyway, what were we talking about. Damn, I have some memory loss... oh yeah! We were talking about something she found lying around (A book, as I recall). “Alba, you gotta check this out! It's Great!” Sunshine said with enthusiasm. The Undead: Necromorphs Necromorphs? Now, what the hell were those? "I really need to try this! Maybe we can both do it!" She again exclaimed. Yeah right. My only reply was “I’ll look into it.” Real clever Alba, real clever. "Great! Here, you can have it now!" She shoved the book into my hooves. And with that I was off. You idiot! You just let your child by herself! To be honest, She was at the point she could take care of herself. I trusted Sunshine with Electra. Plus, when I say Sunshine is thee nicest pony ever, I mean it! Yes she was somewhat dark, but she was nice as hell. In fact, she could make friends with the entire world if she wanted to. I rushed to see Pinkie Pie. Why do you ask? Well, it just so happens that she knows more than lots of ponies. My second bet was on Twilight Sparkle. If those two didn't know, no one knew. I hated to admit it, but we were screwed anyway. Still worth a try, eh? > Chapter 1: Findings > -------------------------------------------------------------------------- Chapter 1: Findings -Pinkie Pie- *Sigh* Don't even call me that. Everyone calls me by my real name: Pinkamena. It's felt like a thousand years since Dashie died (or better yet, I killed her). I feel rejected. I have very few friends, and my mane, once like cotton candy, now holds suffering and shame. I wish I could start over, dammit! I had been through way too much. First the "Cupcakes" incident, then a random necromorph outbreak, and now these damn hallucinations! Each hallucination is worse than the last. Once, before the madness of this tale ever happened, I was just attending to my everyday business, then those... bastards started to flood the kitchen! Those eyes... full of death. Hate. The desire to kill. One charged me, and... I wish I could explain it, I saw somepony familiar in those eyes, while at the same time the necro screamed "WHY PINKIE! WHAT DID WE EVER DO TO YOU?" That voice. Fuck! Dashie follows me everywhere, saying stuff like "Accept the fact that I'm gone. Why won't you?" Hell if I knew. Anyway, The thing pinned me down. All my struggles to get out were useless. She screamed once more "I. WILL. END YOU!" Hate to admit she was right. Her scythe/appendage thing was held at my throat; positioned to cut my jugular vein without any attempt. Then a voice called; a much kinder, but serious tone. "Pinkie! Are you here? Phew! Almost slit my own throat! "Yes, I'm here..." I didn't like that anyone was visiting, but I needed a friend. Badly. I wouldn't take this suffering much longer before i kill myself. "I need to tell you something." Alba, telling me some news? Probably that Royal Guard shit found me out, and was going to execute me. Finally, Redemption Day has come... Only that wasn't the case. "I need info on Necromorphs." Redemption Day has come. But I had to deny that fate, THAT will not be my redemption. I expect to be yelled at. Hated. Ha! I'm used to that. I can live with that. Haha! I'll wear that signature grin of mine! None has EVER ESCAPED PINKAMENA DIANE PIE! HAHAHA! "Pinkster, you OK?" Albatross woke me from my daydream of rotten insanity. I was enjoying it too... That's when regret swept me like a loud storm. "Need info on the necros? Y'ello?" Fuck! Really? This shit again? It must be a prank though. I was hoping it was. I could only think of how to kill them. Describing them was to much to handle. -Albatross- I anticipated the way of dealing with them, of course if Sunshine was to actually try that. Pinkie said "Sorry! Just having a moment... you know." "So Pinkster! How do I kill them?!?!" "Woah girl, chill out." "Sorry. I just want to know..." "But why?" She got me there. I only did it because I was worried about Sunshine. I heard that mages who reach a certain power level often will grow corrupt and let their alter-ego overcome them. I wasn't going to let that happen to Sunshine. Poor Sunny. She was alone when I found her. Beaten. Crushed under the pressure of hate. I decided to take her under my wing (figuratively and physically) and be friends. Let's just say it was the best decision of my life. "Alba, I'm your friend. You can tell me anything." Pinkie said with worry. DAMMIT! She was good with convincing! Ah well. No hiding things from her, especially what she has been through. I had to think about how to word it. "You... You know Sunshine right?" "The bright necromancer?" "Yeah! Her! Well... she found this book..." "And? AND?" Pinkie you annoy me sometimes. "Well, the subject is... necromorphs..." -Pinkie Pie- Damn! Are you fucking kidding me? Damn those... those... b-b-BASTARDS! First I thought it was just a prank, hehe, it would have been a funny prank too. Especially on Rarity. Haha! The look on her face when she realizes another outbreak is coming! But maybe it is a prank... No. By the looks of it, she was pretty fucking serious. -Albatross- Eeyup. Pinkster reacted just how I thought she would: She would damn them to hell. But I need answers, now! "Well?!?!" The Pinkster's response was also expected "I just wanna... j-j-ust wanna f-fucking... ARRRGGGH!" "Deep breath Pinkie. I don't want this to end up like last time." Funny story. When she gets angry, she tends to throw things, putting emphasis on THROW. Occasionally some of the projectiles would come straight at me. Being an alicorn was useful. Very rarely I get caught off guard. Long story short, I get sent to the ER. "Deep breath in, deep breath out." Pinkie did as I commanded. At least her rage has calmed. Now to find a way to get through that depression... "Thanks Albatross. I needed that." Said Pinkie. Now I was starting to doubt her. but she did utter something useful. "The answer to your question should be in that book," Pinkie went to retrieve a note, folded, once yellow, now covered in dried blood, in which the smell of death accompanied it. Damn. I would have gone to hell just by looking at it. She continued on. "If the answer isn't there, open this. ONLY! And ONLY if it's not there." Pinkie placed the note in my hooves, which I greeted with levitation. I levitated it over to my saddle bags and placed it there. "Now you'll need something to defend yourself..." I knew Pinkie had an entire arsenal of weapons. Whether it be kitchen appliances or not. I had only seen the weapons she keeps in her basement. Who knows what else she would be hiding! Pinkie appeared with a large kitchen blade singing a song Blood will be drawn once more Off we spread some gore I released you from your prison committing and redeeming our sins The beast we slain, we will slay again He has risen, and he will be condemn DAMNED TO HELL WITH HIM! Pinkie continued the song. I wasn't paying attention anymore. I heard she used to be cheery, now she's more depressed than a simple rock. -Pinkie Pie- I told her to run. Faster than she has ever gone. After I gave Alba the knife, she took off, flying fast as light out the window. By the looks of it, she could have easily pulled off a sonic rainboom. I looked off into the distance. And I saw the weirdest thing... It looked like... like... a... Marker? I thought we destroyed that tower on the first outbreak. But as the three dark tendrils met, a wave, like radio waves, went everywhere. Of course I wasn't affected. I'm Pinkamena Diane Pie for God's sake! I defy every scientific law known to whole ponydom! But everyone else seemed affected. I heard screams, I heard banging. It was the purest, yet most rotten insanity. My sanity was no where near repairing. The Marker wasn't helping. Thank Jesus I can block out those signals. Destruction was everywhere. I couldn't believe what was going on down below. I remember tears coming to my eyes. Fuck you! Only I was allowed to drive ponies to the point of insanity! -Albatross- That's when I saw HER. My FRIEND was casting some damn black magic! Sunshine will never learn about the rage I felt. I yelled over the noise. "Sunny! What the bloody hell do you think your doing!?!?!?" Her reply was shocking. "Why, what I always wanted to do. I thought you would figure by now." It wasn't her reply that shocked me. It was that she said it in such a cheery voice. She then started to change in a dark, blinding light. -Pinkie Pie- I then rushed to the Everfree, where Alba was possibly located. Then I saw it. A dark light was thrown across the forest. In the middle was a smiling Sunshine. Oh, I so hated her guts now. When the light dimmed, Sunshine was changed. Her fur was black. Now, instead of an orange, straight mane, it was replaced with an unruly mane of black and white. She had grown wings. The jewlery on her legs had been drained of any color, making them gray. Her tail was the same way as her mane, unruly, black, and white. Instead of a shining star, her cutie mark was now a super-massive black hole. Her eyes were gray and maniacal. -Albatross & Pinkie Pie- We ran. Fast as we could. We were scared of this new threat. But when an alicorn shows up, expect chaos. She said to us telepathically "Call me... Darkness." She laughed maniacally. Dead ponies started rising up and... started changing. They grew scythe-like appendages. Their skin was ripped and mutilated. But they didn't charge us. Instead they were behind their master, the one whom she called "Darkness" She must have been the former Sunshine. Fuck her to hell. > Chapter 2: Friends > -------------------------------------------------------------------------- Chapter 2: Friends -Albatross- Fuck you Sunshine. Fuck you. She's gone overboard with this "increase in magic" or whatever the hell it was. I honestly don't give a shit. My magic has passed the point of overdrive. But whatever. Anyway, we were running, running as fast as our little equine legs would take us. We found a safe spot away from that little creep, the alley way nearest to this building called Carousel Boutique, Yeah I'm slow, what do you expect from a mare who lived her entire life in seclusion? Of course with a few visits. We were panting like hell. Hell, I had ran at a speed that could break any barrier know to ponydom! Yes, that includes the 4th wall. Pinkie was the first to speak, but she was singing in a raspy voice: The beast we have found. All of Ponyville is spellbound. They were thrown into insanity. Like we all were lost with vanity. Our minds are in dysfunction. All because of one under corruption. Her song slowly drifted off to nothing more than an inaudible whisper. "It's hard to believe that's pretty legit. I'm just glad you aren't going insane." I said. "Well duh! I'm Pinkamena freakin’ Pie for Christ's sake!" "Seems legit..." "Now wait here Alba. I have to go 'retrieve' some stuff." She knocked at the window, and out popped the most beautiful mare I have ever seen. Let me admit this, I'm a fillyfooler. I had seen a lot of pretty sexy mares in my life, but my God this one has passed the point of sexy, and started to get past the point of over-driven excitement. She was a unicorn, had white fur, had a curly purple mane, and had the kindest, most pretty eyes I have ever seen. She had a beautiful VOICE too! "Pinkie, darling, wait is it?" The mare exclaimed. God, I would have melted there if I could. "Rarity! Dammit I wish I told you earlier, but the necromorphs are back." I saw the one Pinkie called Rarity mouth the word "fuck" and I got to see a little more of her features. Her tail was also curly, and... no. My eyes are playing tricks on me. I could swear I saw a heart shaped scar on her chest, along with a small circuit board on her front right leg, with smaller wires, almost like veins, connecting it to her neck. "So who's the other dear we have here?" She questioned while smiling. Damn, I could swear I was perspiring when Rarity addressed me. And blushing like hell. Pinkie gave me a well and dandy introduction. "Oh her? Her name is Albatross. She's an alicorn, and lived in the Everfree her whole life." Everfree... Everfree... E... Ele... ELECTRA! Goddammit! How could I have forgotten! Panic surged through me as I wondered about the fate of my precious daughter. I tried to run, only to be blocked by a digital-like force field. "Sorry sweetie, but we can't let that revolting statue of hell's signals reach here." Rarity said with sorrow. "Rarity, I'm an alicorn. A little drop of insanity won't hurt me. I can handle myself. Plus, I have a daughter to save." "Well, now that you put it, I guess you could." So I charged, not knowing what I would get myself into. This will be just another rescue mission, right? Hell no, I'm wrong again. -Rarity- I knew from the second I let her go, she was screwed to a terrible fate. But the darling had much determination, I guess that's what made me let her go. That Albatross was surely something. "So Rarity, mind if I come in and grab a few things?" Said Pinkie. "No need, darling. Look." I flipped a switch as I replied. After the last outbreak, I installed a switch into the boutique, which gave instant access to a whole arsenal of weapons. Oh my, Albatross was probably wondering about the scar and the cybernetics on my leg. None really complicated to explain. Awhile back, when it all had started, the fiends attempted to attack Fluttershy, then I jumped in front of her, taking the blow. It wasn’t the most pleasant things I’ve felt, but I was able to protect my dearest friend. The leg is easy to explain: my leg had taken a serious bite at the joint, and was so serious that I had to have it amputated; which it was later replaced by the robotic leg I have today. "Woah, That's super-duper Rarity!" Pinkie exclaimed as she saw the arsenal I had stored for us. It consisted of nail guns, chainsaws, and guns. Lots of guns. Pinkie picked out the sharpest objects she could find, some duct tape, and stuck it to an ACR 6.8. "Heheh, check this out!" Said Pinkie. Wow. Just wow. She had turned the assault rifle into a wonderful mix of pink, blood, and knives. Now I wasn't one with knives, but it looked amazing. She had Swiss Army Knives as bayonet tips, two sharp pieces of metal on both sides of the gun, also serving as bayonet tips. Pinkie then found some TYGER-class armor and threw it on herself. She was a force to be reckoned with. -Pinkie Pie- Damn! I felt great with this stuff on! This is so neato! Man, Alba should see me now. I would be unsto- "So how do you like it darling?" "Rarity, this is one of the best gifts ANYPONY could give me! Besides that time we had the party with Gummy." Remembering that day was magnificent. The party was to die for. "Life is a party, remember?" The voice didn't belong to Rarity. It was too Brooklyn-like. Rainbow DASH! "Finally remember huh? But why can't you forget me? I die, but you still hold on, why?" Now was Rarity's turn to talk. "Well I'll be inside if you need anything." "Ok Rarity." What am I doing alone with Rainbow Dash? "Well now. I see you got new armor." "Umm... y- yeah..." "TYGER-class, am I right?" "Y- yeah..." "Let’s see how well it will hold me off." Let's see how well it will do when I unload a mag on you. She grabbed me by the neck and slammed me against the wall. "WHY THE HELL WON'T YOU ACCEPT THE FACT THAT I'M DEAD?!?!? DO I HAVE TO SHOVE IT DOWN THAT SORRY EXCUSE OF A HEAD OF YOURS?!?!?" With that happy note, she pulled a small piece of glass. She thrust downward, nearly missing my head. I had seen her in hallucinations, her power was too much. I blurted out the first thing that came to mind. "BECAUSE IF I LET YOU GO, I WOULDN'T HAVE ANYPONY TO BE WITH!" That's when the tears started to come in. Rainbow Dash was having a hard time with the decision of gutting my head open mercilessly, or leaving me be. I swear I saw a tear of blood come out. “Thanks Pinks, and I forgive you. Now I’ll help you out” She then dispersed into a wisp of smoke and entered me via my nostrils. "We are now one. Your thoughts are my thoughts. And my thoughts are yours." "Dashie, that's really weird when you think about it." "I know, but think of me as an informant, or a fragment of your imagination." -Third Person- Darkness loomed over Electra. Her wild eyes flailed about, scanning the area repeatedly. "Little foal. Albatross made a mistake by leaving you with me." "Shut up! My mom will come back for me!" "Tsh, I'd like to see that happen. My little necros will hunt her down. She won't stand a chance! Hahaha! Haha! Heheh. Ring... around th- the ro- rosy Pockets f- full of posies Ashes... a- ashes We all f- f- fall down! She exploded with laughter as she fell to the floor. Her horn erupted with green fog. She intended on making alter-egos of our heroes to do her bidding. Oh, the joy she experienced when they were created! Oh, the horror Electra felt that same fateful moment. The Alter-Egos kneeled in front of the hysterical mare. "Queen, we await our orders." They said in unison. There voices were dark. They wore poker faces as they spoke. Darkness smiled manically at her creations. She gave a simple command: "Raise an army of the dead. But instead of just mere zombies, how about a more dangerous kind?" She looked at the Black Marker, and shot black magic at it. The Marker shot a wave of energy, and dead ponies started to rise. Their skin ripped in various places. Some grew large fangs, along with their legs and internals twisted together. Some had their chest, ribs, and face ripped completely off. They're the ugliest bastards you could think of. Darkness chuckled at the sight. "Now, hunt these down. They are just like you, but good. Search and destroy them. Their names are Albatross Extremo, Pinkamena Pie, and Rarity Diamant." Pinkie's clone was the first to speak up. "They are like us?" "I told you, yes, in a way." "We do as we are commanded." They said again in unison. With that, they were off. There was a long pause before the Mare of Darkness herself broke it. "Now tell me Electra, how are you enjoying yourself?" Darkness cooed. The yellow and gold filly simply backed up into a tree. -Albatross- Wow. Looks like they were right. A wave of energy hit me, and my wings closed. My sanity was breaking down, but I wouldn't let that happen. I pushed a little magic forward, and I was back in the sky. I proceeded to land safely near the Everfree. Then... what the hell? "Albatross Extremo, I will serve my master and end you." I was dumbfounded at who said this. It was me, but not me. "Uh, am I looking into a mirror?" That's when the circling began. I tried to keep eye contact with this clone. The only way to distinguish myself with her was the sickly green fog her skin gave off. The color tone was darker than mine. Her cutie mark- no, it wasn't like mine, it was an upside-down cross on fire. Damn! Am I going up against the antichrist? "Your time has come Albatross, now die!" Good news, black magic didn't hit me. Bad news, big artifact activated fus ro dah. Then a swarm of necros, or at least I think it was, started to appear. Holy shit! I almost threw up at how ugly they were! My instincts took over, and I instantly used my magic to make a sword-like elongation of my horn, and swiped in a circle, slicing each of the ugly bastards at the midsection. But they got up, crawling towards me, and I went under the intention that I was fucked. "Hahaha! Haven't you learned anything little foal?" My clone yelled with authority. I still had one resort. I knew of a teleporting spell that could also leave an explosion in your wake. My horn started to glow, and I began to be lifted off the ground. Then red tendrils started to swirl around me. Hell yeah! It was actually working! "Seize her." Those bastards started to pick up the pace, but not at a speed to actually catch me. That's when it happened. A large explosion ripped across the air, and I was gone in a flash. Only to reappear right in front of my old friend, Sunshine, now Darkness. "Hello Alba. Wonderful day we're having, eh?" "Go to hell." "Now is that a way to treat the Queen of Darkness?" "You're no queen. You're just some bitch who decided to come along and destroy my only friend." "Albtross, it's me, Sunshine. Can't you still see the good in me?" Past those maniacal gray eyes, I saw my old sweet Sunny. Damn, I just wanted this to end. "I miss you Sunny." I sobbed through my courageous eyes. "I missed you too, Alba, but I can't turn back. Look at all the great opportunities I get!" She opened a window to Ponyville. It was horrible. Death, murder, every crime you can think of here. The sky here wasn't different from now, dark red. "You see Alba, that's why I gave you the book, so we could do this together!" Oh, I see what she did there. "Fuck you, Sunshine" "W- wh- what?" "I said. Fuck! You!" "Refusing my invitation. I see how it is." Then all hell broke lose. She charged me, and hit me with her damn black magic. If there's one good thing about being an alicorn, It was that I had wings. So I opened my wings and attempted to take off. But nothing happened. None. Zip. "Like what I did there, Alba? I made it myself." I looked behind me, and there were no wings. So I'm guessing that if I win, I get my wings back. "Mhmm. Now how about this?" I charged her back. and returned the same spell. Only I edited it to push her into the sky so I could hit her in the air. Once it hit her, she went airborne. I used my magic to propel myself upward. And when I reached her, we had both used the sword-horn elongation spell I used earlier, and our horns clashed. After long minutes of falling and swinging at each other, we finally hit the ground. But I landed first which was followed by a piledriver to the back by Darkness. "Took me by surprise I presume?" I said. "Mhmm. And there’s a lot more where that came from." She got on her hind legs. Damn, I thought Lyra was the only one that could do that. So I followed after getting back up. In all honesty, it wasn't hard. "May I have this dance?" Darkness says the weirdest things. "Sure. Let's dance." Then I charged her. I managed to land a punch in her face, but it seemed she wasn't affected, as she just slowly turned her head toward me, smiling. The rest of her body seemed intact. Darkness proceeded to tackle me. Then she shot a stream of black fire on me, which spread from my body to a certain radius around us. I had learned to cancel out the effects of fire, now the black fire was just making me look cooler. "Come one sweets, I'm open right here!" "If you say so, Alba" She charged me again. Looks like the fire also gave me a boost in power, as I simply extended a hoof out before her horn could impale me, and it stayed there. Her horn was stopped by my hoof. I then threw her back, and combat initiated. Every thing was a blur. I could remember how badly the hoof-to-hoof combat had gotten, to the point of bones cracking. I got bruises and cuts from Darkness' damn spells, including one that quenched my fire. Shit. I wanted to keep that. I finally managed to bring her to the ground. Hard. "Sorry Darkness, but I gotta do what I gotta do." I then used my magic to shoot forth a hand. It grabbed her by the horn and I commanded it to yank back, which it did, and Darkness came tumbling toward me. I braced myself so I could grab her and swing her behind me and slam her on the ground. But something slammed me to the ground at break neck speed. I looked up to see Darkness standing before me. "But I thought... you were just... what the hell?" "Magic. Duh! I thought you were smarter than that!" She grabbed me by the neck and pinned me against the wall. That's when she did the least expected thing ever: She kissed me. Full on the lips. As much as I hated her, I was happy. At least for a few seconds. All it took was that moment of pure bliss, and I was in heaven. The feeling alone was great. When our lips parted, I was caught off guard in a bliss state. Something impaled me on the chest. Darkness had gotten a hold off my knife and stabbed me. My massive boost in health helped me here, the impact could kill somepony else in a matter of seconds, and because of that, I would live. I hated that look in her eyes. It was still full of insanity, but had a blissful look to them. Then I blacked out. -Rarity- I was starting to worry about the poor dear. She shouldn't be gone this long. Pinkie spoke up after a silence. "Where the hell is she?" "*sigh* I just hope she's Ok..." "Aw, now is somepony in love?" "No. O- of course not. I'm just worried about her." "Teehee. It's Ok Rarity, we all have secrets. like the time I had a crush on one of the flower ponies, or the time-!" "Pinkie dear, It's fine really..." I placed my hoof in the middle of the scar on my chest. "We... have our worries." I said. I did like the alicorn. She was a bit... ah... out-of-character for me. but she was nice. Then something, or somepony, broke down the door "Rarity Diamant and Pinkamena Pie. We will serve our master and end you both." Two voices said in unison. Strange. They looked like us, but they gave off a sickly green fog. My clone was nearly kept. Like me before I gave a shit for this. Pinkie's was also her old self, but it kept the same murderous look. "Lookey here now, we don't want any trouble, now just go off-" Pinkie, always being the first to speak. Her clone responded. "But you both are causing trouble by just living." "I didn't finish. Now go off, or I will have your head. It would be a nice addition to my shelf at home." "That won't be likely. I can tell your partner Albatross Extremo has been incapacitated." Fuck! Now I WILL HAVE THEIR HEADS! We rushed them. They rushed us. Same ol' trick I've seen Twilight use when she was corrupted and driven insane. Our hooves met, and we all were pushed backwards. All of us were circling each other. We quickly closed the gap, and we approached them with our knives. Then they drew their own weapons. It was a double edged sword, with multiple engravings. "Hey that's not fair!" Pinkie exclaimed. "Hey, you have a whole armory behind you! Use it for God's sake!" Pinkie's clone said. "Promise you won't back-stab us?" "I promise." Yeah, that smile said no, she doesn't promise anything. "Pinkie promise?" "Cross my heart, hope to fly, stick a cupcake in my eye." That look still screamed "Haha! I lied! I don't promise anything!" -Pinkie Pie- I was still wary of this newcomer saying "Hey! I'm gonna kill you now!" I replied with a simple "oki doki loki..." As I approached the armory, I looked back and gave them an "I'm watching you..." gesture. They simply giggled and looked back. "You do know they're gonna back-stab you, right." Said my conscience, AKA Rainbow Dash. "Duh, I have my Pinkie Sense for a reason." I replied. "Mmm. Do you know exactly when though?" "It took a while to master, but yes." "I bet that they’re behind those boxes." "No. The Pinkie Sense would have told me." "Damn, you are something." "Heheh. Thanks." With that I smiled. "Darling, who are you talking to?" Rarity said, breaking mine and Rainbow's conversation. "Rainbow Dash, why?" "How do you communicate with her if she's dead?" "Her ghost talks to me. She's now part of my conscience." Rainbow then pitched in. "How are going to deal with them?" "Remember the last time somepony broke a Pinkie Promise?" "Um... yea." I simply smiled darkly into the air. "Oh! I like where this is going!" I could hear Rainbow laugh insanely. That was a joy to hear finally. We approached the armory. Then my knees started getting twitchy, and pulled out my ACR (which, unfortunately, didn't have ammo. I had been waiting for Albatross to get back before I got any ammo). "Rarity, knees pinchy, Pinkie Sense going off." "When do we evade?" "Right. About. NOW!" We jumped out of the way as swords impaled themselves into the wall. The owners went to retrieve their weapons. Then, being me, I came from the side and used my ACR like a baseball bat, my clone getting a face-full of metal and sharp glass. Her face was badly bleeding and beaten, one of her eyes was rendered useless, and her fur was matted in blood. Damn, I must not know my own strength. We all rushed each other, and we went into a full head-on knife battle. I couldn't complement on Rarity because I couldn't look at her without being hit. We had been tussling for a long time until I heard a scream. Rarity had been stabbed in the back. I knew anatomy, and the injury wasn't fatal, missing her lungs by mere centimeters, but then I was pinned down. "Sorry Pinkamena, but this is were it ends!" Now, I was angry. Not only because she hurt my friend, but because he also broke a fucking Pinkie Promise! "You. Fucking. Broke. A. Pinkie Promise!!!!" "So?" "Do you know what I do to ponies who break Pinkie Promise!?!?!?" "Just fucking spit it out so we can get this over with." "Teehee. Ok!" I bucked her. As hard as I could. And she went airborne. When she came back down, I had a knife ready. Then I stuck in in her chest. Oh I miss the sound of metal cutting through flesh! It makes me feel all giddy inside! I gave her a quick glance, and said "Smile! You’re going on my shelf tonight!" Then I started to gut her, stabbing mercilessly. Blood was splattering everywhere, Filled with screams of the damned. Yep, I'm in heaven. When I reached a point where my clone should be dead, I stopped. "Man you put up quite a fight, but you were no match for Pinkamena Diane Pie!" There was no response. Only a wisp of smoke flying through the air. That's when Rarity's clone was about to finish her. She looked more beaten than bleeding. Rainbow Dash spoke to me, telling me what to do. "Release me." "How?" "Stick your front legs out." "Simple as that?" "Yes, but you have to concentrate on me and your target." I did as I was told. I was concentrating. Hard. Perhaps this is what it feels like to use unicorn magic. When, just as Rarity was about to be killed, Rainbow was shot forward, and tackled the clone. They didn't tussle for very long. Rainbow Dash was way too strong. So the Rari-clone ended up on the wall, in a helpless position. Rainbow wrapped her hooves around the clone's neck, then snapped it at a force that decapitated the clone. Again, the same wisp of smoke left the body. "Ah. It's good to be back." Said Rainbow as she stretched. "Well Rainbow, we could use that strength of yours." Rarity said while still on the ground. "Well, now with me back, they are so fucked." And fucked they were.