On the Run
Approximately three years ago my best friend and I were living as roommates, and we were swimming in debt. We both worked two jobs and would always come back to our cramped apartment, usually late. She would work during the day, and I would work in the night. However, we both were passionately into the children's show My Little Pony. We would watch it in the evenings, squandering our few hours together sitting on the couch. I would be eating Cheerios, she would be eating leftovers. I constantly wish for my days to be like that once more, but those times are long gone.
One day, while riding home on my bicycle, watching the first rays of dawn peek around the buildings, I noticed a small, leather bound book sitting in the gutter, like it had been thrown there. I thought it looked interesting so without a second thought I picked it up and threw it in my ever-present backpack. Later, when I got home I showed it to a groggy and disheveled Rachel. I was tired, so I tossed it onto an old pizza box and sat down on the couch to watch the latest episode of season six.
That evening when I looked up, I saw it sitting on my lamp stand. I opened it and was surprised to see something that looked like it was out of a fantasy book, with runes and strange gibberish words describing spells or whatnot. I was never really enthusiastic about that kind of fiction and stuck to starships and space marines. All science fiction for me, baby. Rachel was more into that stuff. She and I were both avid readers, and we had a small, compact bookshelf in our already crammed apartment.
I took the book with me to my first job, a cashier at a local burger joint. The place didn't see much action during the day and I had long periods of time to examine the book. It was mesmerizing, with multiple crude drawings of horses, spiders, and other unrecognizable creatures. The words were written sloppily on the page, and through much deciphering I discovered that the notebook's subject was on portals. Specifically, portals to other realities. It seemed like it could be a good read, so I decided to give it to Rachel after my job at Happy Sushi.
Rachel, to say the least, was mesmerized. She told me the evening after I gave her the book that the markings along the edge of the pages were actually mathematical sentences. Rachel was convinced it was an actual method of traveling to other, alternate realities! I, of course called bullshit immediately. She pulled out a wrinkled sheet of scratch paper and said the words written on it, and a large hole literally opened up in the air in front of me, illustrating a lush forest. Needless to say, I screamed, and Rachel laughed, saying some more words and closing the portal.
We spend the next few weeks devising and executing the plan to get us out of our old, monotonous life by studying the book, which we named the portal book. I discovered how to "tune" the portals and aim which world we were going to. We decided on Equestria shortly after. It was our dream, to venture into another world entirely, with a blank slate and a bright future. When we finally were able to open the correct portal, we made physical preparations. We spent our hard earned money on bigger backpacks, clothes, food and supplies. I got an old smart phone, the solid touchscreen kind and bought a bunch of old programs such as my favorite video games from my childhood. Rachel got us an EBook, and got about fifty stories and some nonfiction ones for us. I made sure to bring two solar chargers.
Lastly, we packed our most treasured possessions. For Rachel, a large, solid glass ball with a swirl of colored glass in the middle that had once belonged to her mother. For me, my dad's old six shot revolver. Rachel didn't want to bring it, but I convinced her it was purely for self-defense. I brought six bullets with me. Finally, we stood in front of the open portal, ready to abandon our empty apartment. The items had since been sold to finance our one way trip. The Equestrian plains beckoned, and we were mentally prepared to go in. I had lost the Rock Paper Scissors game so I had to step through first. I took a deep breath and fell into the gaping hole in the world.
---
I fell out onto a grassy, soft surface. I could smell the damp soil. It had just rained, and the sky was a beautiful blue. A few seconds later, I heard”Oof" slightly to my left. I moved myself into a sitting position and looked around, and Rachel did the same. To our right was the Everfree Forest, and to our left was the small town of Ponyville. Off in the distance one could see Canterlot. I was giddy with excitement. We had actually made it!
Rachel and I rolled around on the ground, laughing our hearts out for about five minutes. Eventually, we got to our feet and started walking towards Ponyville, not a care in the world. As we walked, we joked and talked about our plans for our new life in Equestria. Where we would live, what we would do, stuff like that. We sauntered into Ponyville, only to find the streets completely devoid of ponies.
After listening carefully, I heard a sort of talking noise coming from what appeared to be the other side of the town. Rachel and I set off toward it, and eventually the noise clarified enough to be identified as a party or fair. We turned a corner and were greeted by the sight of a large group of ponies all looking toward a stage, where there were some ponies on the stage playing various instruments. The ponies laughed and cheered. We could see over the waist-tall crowd easily. And then a small mint green mare turned around.
Her scream was so loud I was sure it echoed through all of Ponyville. All the heads in the area turned to look at us. I blushed and stammered a weak "H-hi?"
"Oh, no! Monsters!!"
"The monsters are gonna kill Lyra!"
"Stop them!"
Without us realizing what had happened, the crowd had turned into a full-fledged mob and was charging toward us.
"Rachel, run. Like, right now."
Rachel and I turned and ran towards the distant cloud that signaled the Everfree. We turned and dashed around buildings and
through confusing alleyways until we reached the outskirts of Ponyville. The crowd was close on our heels.
"Izzy?"
"What?!"
"I think now would be the best time for your 'self-defense'"
"Good idea."
I turned around and pulled the revolver from the holster on my hip. I couldn't fight off the crowd, so I did the next best thing. I aimed it over the crowds head and fired. The revolver bucked backwards, and I nearly dropped it. The crowd screamed and most turned tail and fled. I grabbed my wrist in agony until Rachel shook my shoulder.
"Watch out!" She said pointing up to the sky. A multicolored bullet was speeding towards me. I didn't even have a chance to yell before she hit me, throwing me to the ground. Rainbow Dash pummeled me with her hooves shouting things like "Take that!" and "Don't eat my friends!" I struggled under her grip, thrashing around. I managed to get a hold of my gun by the barrel, and push Dash's head up with my free hand. With her head in direct view, I swung my pistol so that the solid wooden handle smashed across her face. She screamed and rolled off me, clutching her muzzle tightly. By this time the mob had regrouped and was charging toward us. I got up and yelled out "The forest!" We took off because our lives probably depended on it. Even after we made it past the Everfree tree line, we kept on going.
We didn't stop running for a long time.
---
We lay on the ground, catching our breath. After pistol-whipping Rainbow Dash, we had sprinted into the forest, taking a sharp turn shortly in. Rachel and I knew the dangers of the forest, and we didn't want to head too far in. About five minutes of sprinting, running, and then jogging later, we stopped in a small clearing. I plopped down on the dusty ground, looking at the lush growth around us, and panting.
"I think we're safe." I gasped to Rachel, who was doubled over beside me. "At least, for now."
"Yeah," she said. "For now."
I saw the shadow of a pegasus flit across the ground and looked up.
The pegasus in question was wearing golden armor.
"What?!" I cried, and then slapped a hand over my mouth, and swore under my breath. Rachel looked over.
"Why what?"
"I think the royal guard is after us. We need to get out of here. I just don't understand how they got here so fast."
"What if they're the Ponyville Guard?" Rachel suggested. "Ponyville has a princess, after all."
"That’s probably right. Now, we need to get as far away from ponies as possible." I said. "I bet we're criminals."
"And then what? Starve to death? We need to get supplies." she said.
"Good idea. We can find a convenience store and sneak in. I bet they have what we nee-" I said, before Rachel cut me off.
"No. I'm not comfortable with stealing from other ponies."
"Why not?" I said.
"Because, Izzy," she replied. "It’s not like it's their fault Ponyville ran us out of town. They don't deserve it."
"Well, Rache, how are we gonna pay for it? Assuming they let us into their store without calling the guard."
"We can sneak in and take it, and leave some bits on the counter or something." Rachel said.
"Oh? And how exactly are we gonna get bits?" Her brow furrowed.
"What about that corrupt banker from season five? The town's not too far from here."
"Yeah..." I grinned. "There's a thought..." Another pegasus flew overhead.
"Crap! We gotta get out of here!" I just nodded.
---
That evening we sat outside the outskirts of the town closest to Ponyville. In a season five episode, there was a corrupt banker who owned the only bank for miles around. He had something of a monopoly, and the episode concluded with him getting a stern talking-to from Fluttershy. I suspected he didn't really change, and my speculations were proven right when we watched the bank for a while and saw hopeful ponies entering, then exiting either angry or crying.
"What a dick," I whispered to Rachel, who giggled softly. "I can't wait to lighten this guy’s load." When it got real dark, we snuck in the back door. We were lucky, as it was a cloudy night and when the jerk banker left through the back after hours, we were able to stop it from shutting completely, and slip in. when we looked around for a bit, we found his two vaults filled to the brim with bits. He had left several bags out, and we quickly snatched a few up. Then we heard the door open.
"Hey! Get away from my bits!" The banker yelled. I decided to play it cool, and whipped around, drawing my gun and pointing it at his head.
"Make me." He then levitated a large looking machete from a corner where I hadn't seen it, and pushed it against my neck.
"I know you," he said cockily. "You two are the monsters that tried to eat a Ponyville mare and attacked one of the Element Bearers!" He smirked. "I'll be rewarded handsomely for this. Rachel sputtered, no doubt to complain about how it wasn't our fault in the first place, but I hissed her name through gritted teeth. She stopped.
I smirked right back at him. "So... you think you're hot shit, huh?" He snarled at me.
"Shut up you freak while I call the guards!" I frowned.
"I don't think so, Shining Coin." The banker sputtered, surprised that I knew his name. I took the opportunity to pull the trigger.
There was a loud bang and a meaty crunch as blood was splattered on the wall. The banker screamed and dropped the machete, gripping his mangled horn. I scooped up the now bloody machete, holstered my pistol, and forced myself not to look at the gruesome sight. Rachel, however, could not and I heard her retch beside me. Shining Coin started yelling for the guard.
"Rachel, we gotta get out of here!" She didn't respond, so I grabbed her hand, and pulled her out the door. We avoided the writhing stallion on the ground. We ran out the back, and were greeted by a guard, who leveled a spear at us.
"You aren't going anywhere." he said. I looked at the bloody machete in my hand, then the bag of bits Rachel was carrying. I plunged my hand in and grabbed a handful, then threw them at the guard. Apparently it was a lot, and he lowered his spear, gathering up the coins with his magic. He also turned his back. I took off toward the Everfree, with Rachel following me. We could hear the yells of the guards and the screaming of the banker. We got a good distance into the Everfree forest, where I promptly stopped, doubled over, and threw up.
It was hard to believe it had only been a day since we entered Equestria.
---
After we came into Equestria, not a lot happened for almost a year. After we became nationwide wanted criminals, we wandered around Equestria, slowly heading north. Every so often, we would steal some supplies, leaving some rare herbs and grasses on the counter as payment. The bits we store were heavy, and we spent them quick. Through that time, we would forage and hunt for our food. My revolver stayed put.
For months it went like this, scavenging and trading, never staying in one place. Eventually, we reached a large, open land with rocky ground and few trees. Tundra. It was our first sign that we were making progress north. For what? I didn't know. It was June then, and there were fewer towns. We kept going north.
Rachel and I never really set a goal for ourselves, we just kinda started going that direction. We also "traded" for books every so often, and I got quite educated on the subject of magic, If I do say so myself. Rachel taught herself things like sewing and cooking outdoors.
There was a late winter in Equestria that year, and apparently the frozen North’s ecosystem wasn't micromanaged. We were caught in a blizzard that august, and I was glad that Rachel had modified the coats and pants we acquired so that they fit us.
Also, there are huge wolves in the frozen north.
It was a snowy day, and we were hiking through shin-deep snow from the recent snowstorm. We both wore snow goggles, which were essentially pieces of cardboard that had slits in them so we wouldn't get snow blindness. We had scarves over our mouths and we weren't talking much. That was when I got the feeling that we were being watched. I stared out into the lightly falling snow, and saw a pair of eyes staring back at me. Upon further inspection, I realized that there were multiple pairs of eyes and they were getting bigger. And then the first wolf emerged from the curtain of snow.
It was big, and its eyes were yellow. Not unnatural yellow, just yellow. They weren't glowing or anything. It crept toward us. I drew my machete and opened my mouth to say something. Rachel beat me to it.
"I'm getting out the torch." We were both familiar with this situation, just not in the snow. An animal would try to eat us, and we would use a lit torch to fend it off.
"Rache, get out two, will ya?"
"Will do." She pulled out two sticks of wood with a special cloth on the end and handed one to me. The wolves were closer now.
"Hold this while I get out my lighter." I took hold of the torch she waved at me and she jammed her hand in her crude pocket to retrieve her old Earth lighter. It was able to use Equestrian lighter fluid, which was a new development, in Equestria. We had never lost that old machine.
The wolves crept closer. It was obvious now that they were in a sort of ring around us. The wind started to blow. The beginning of a blizzard. "Rachel, anytime now..." she finished fooling around with her lighter and got a steady spark going. I held my torch to it and a flame leapt to life. She clicked the lid over the lighter flame and I lit her torch with mine. We stood back to back.
Something was different now. Usually the animals were scared of the flames, but the wolves weren't. As they stalked toward us, they showed no sign of fear at the flames. I swung my torch at one that came a little too close, but all it did was snarl, back up a bit, and resume its approach. Then, the biggest wolf walked forward.
He howled. All hell broke loose.
The wolves came at us from all sides, barking and growling. Rachel and I batted them away with our torches, but we were only managing to give them minor burns. This did not hinder them in the least. The wolves were hungry.
I could see their ribs through their thin fur, and when one jumped on me, I felt them before shoving my torch under its jaw, causing it to leap away, whining. The big wolf crept forward in all the pandemonium. And it wasn't going towards me.
I heard Rachel's scream as I fought to bury my thick leather boot into a wolf’s jaw in an effort to make it retreat. I swung my revolver to point at the wolf. It was a pretty big target. He was the biggest of the pack.
Without uttering a single noise or phrase, I ended the wolf's life with a flick of a finger and a bang. I cringed as I saw blood, bone and grey matter splatter across the pure white snow as the wind howled around me. At the sound of the gunshot, the other wolves turned toward me, and saw the sight of their leader with the upper half of his head gone. With a fearful look at me, they decided to find other prey and quickly ran off. As for the corpse, it remained standing for a moment before crumpling onto Rachel.
She shrieked and I rushed over as fast as I could, holstering my gun. The red shown on the snow like it was on fire, as I heaved the huge corpse off Rachel. She shivered as I pulled her up out of the snow, wordless at the sensation of blood that wasn't hers running down her jacket.
I sighed, and, wrapping one of her arms around her shoulder withdrew a compass from one of her many pockets. I held it in front of me, and pulled up a mental image of a map we had looked at a few days before. There was a town close by called the crystal kingdom or something. We were in need of new clothing and food, so we would head there. I set off, her leaning on my shoulder, into the blizzard of the frozen wastes, but not without one final look back.
The blood and the corpse were beginning to be covered by falling snow.
---
The wolf's blood had soaked into Rachel's clothes and had dried cold, and she was showing it. I was pulling her more than I was supporting her and we weren't halfway by the map I had memorized. I had become pretty good at memorizing maps.
As we trudges along I saw a sliver of black in the snow. I thought that it might be a cave and I rushed over as fast as I could, which was a slow stumble. we arrived at the sliver and it indeed was a cave, but it was smaller than I had hoped. I dragged us inside and sad Rachel down, and then rummaged around in my worn backpack for the last of our firewood.
I found it, only two pieces, and started a meager fire in the middle of the cave.
"Rachel, stay here. I'm gonna go on ahead and see if I can find this place. We can stay on the outskirts when we get there, and I can get you some new clothing and hopefully some medicine." I said. Rachel replied with a mumble, scooting closer to the fire. I merely nodded and left the cave. Going was much quicker now that I wasn't dragging Rachel along.
The blizzard had gotten worse since our little wolf encounter but after ten minutes I saw a shimmer in the air. I walked towards it, and before I knew it I was through.
When I entered the large bubble, I tripped when I stepped off of a foot of snow but I managed to avoid a broken ankle. I smiled, and turned around. I wanted to get back before the blizzard covered my tracks.
---
Candace was sitting in her room, reading a love novel when she felt a disturbance. Something that wasn't a pony had entered the Crystal Empire. Cadance then felt it leave. Not two moments later her husband, Shining Armor came bursting into her chambers. "
"Candance?" He said. "I felt it too."
"Good thing Twilight and her friends are staying for the week. Gather them, it might come back."
---
I hauled Rachel out of the cave, with the fire still flickering out. She leaned on my shoulder and we walked in my footsteps. It took a little linger but we eventually reached the crystal Empire.
We stumbled through the field, and saw that it was a sunny day in the dome. There were birds chirping and a soft breeze rolled through the area.
I quickly shook myself out of my stupor and pushed forward. Rachel could walk easier now, and didn't lean on me as much as we traveled to the nearest back alley. It was a ways away and our short trip took a few minutes. However, we made it to an alleyway that had one enter acne and no doors leading into it. I pulled out a fuzzy blanket made from a bear pelt that we had nicked in a town we had come across. It was the only town I'd seen with a majority of griffins in its population.
I sat her down in the alleyway and started yanking off her soaking jacket and boots. She covered herself in the blanket, sneezing every so often. As I pulled off her blood soaked left boot, she grimaced. I removed it gently and saw a foot that had been clumsily twisted. It must have happened when she got knocked down by that dead wolf. I bet that it was covered with snow, and numbed.
A few months back I remember getting sick. I got a horrible fever, and I couldn't remember much but Rachel told me that she had stolen medicine from a local pharmacy, and tried it on me, as a last ditch effort. The pony medicine actually worked, and I was running from the Equestrian Guard in a few days.
I remembered this and left Rachel with my blanket. The sun was setting, and the twilight fell over the crystal town. I wandered the streets for what felt like an eternity, avoiding the occasional guard or late night pony. Eventually pharmacy, and quickly picked the lock. It took longer than usual because my fingers were still numb, but I managed.
I opened the door just wide enough to slip in, and jammed a nearby rock into the doorway. It was dark inside the store, and I had a hard time avoiding shelves and looking for the medicine I needed. After about fifteen minutes I found the medicine for fevers and nicked an armful, then shoved them into my pocket, turning around to find my way out. After hesitating, I dropped a few bits on the shelf, and immediately regretted it. The clink was deafening, at least to me. I waited a few minutes, and started to sneak out. The light clicked on, and I heard a voice.
"Who's there?" I flinched, and started to hurry towards the exit, but I heard hoofsteps and turned around. I had a much easier time navigating because the lights were on. I sneaked towards the exit, but every time I tried, the stallion seemed to be in between me and it. Finally, he wandered away, and I decided to make a run for it. Rachel's life was in danger, and I couldn't wait any longer. I Ran towards the door, and I heard a panicked "HEY!" from behind me.
I had barely made it out the door when I heard a call for the guard. I looked around in a panic, and spotted a convenient box underneath a balcony in an alleyway. I sprinted over and climbed up onto the platform. It extended across the building and I ran across, over the crystal guards under me. I reached the edge and dropped down, grunting as I hit the ground. Picking myself up, I hastily retraced my steps. I left the guard behind, and quickly found the alleyway. Rachel was still there, and I rushed over, pulling the medicine from my jacket. I quickly gave it to her, and crossed my fingers. I fell asleep with my back against the smooth crystal walls.
When I awoke, Rachel was still asleep, but her breathing was much less pained. I stood and stretched, and then sighed. We needed food, and I had to venture into the crystal city. I walked out of the alleyway.
"Stop right there!" I looked around, and was greeted by the sight from my worst nightmares. Twilight Sparkle, Pinkie Pie, Fluttershy, Rarity, and Applejack stood in a circle around the alleyway exit, accompanied by a dozen guards. The Elements. My eyebrows furrowed.
"You are under arrest under the authority Princess Cadance and the Crystal Empire for multiple crimes of theft and assault!" declared Twilight, staring daggers at me. The others did the same, excepting Fluttershy."Now surrender yourselves easily and release from your life in prison will be considered!"
"Fuck you!" I said. "The hell I will!" I drew my revolver from its holster and pointed it at her horn. The guards crouched and Twilight's frown deepened.
"So be it." She charged up her horn.
A few things happened.
I realized Rainbow Dash was missing from the group.
Twilight realized my intentions.
I pulled the trigger.
Twilight cast her spell.
Twilight's horn exploded
The spell hurtled towards me
I heard a yell from behind
I got pushed.
I twisted around just in time to see Rainbow Dash hit Rachel where I had been standing, colliding heads with her.
Twilight screamed.
Twilight's spell hit their heads.
A blast flew out from the collision point, driving everyone apart. I sat up shakily, and looked around. I had been blown away from most of the group, except one. Rainbow Dash, who was out cold, lay a few feet away from me. Towards the other end of the street, I saw about seven of the guards, the other elements, and Rachel. All but Rachel, Twilight and Dash were groggily sitting up as I got to my knees.
"Rache! Get up! We gotta go!" I yelled. She did no such thing. The other Elements got up, and formed a line between me and Rachel.
"We got yer little friend too, y'hear? Surrender!" said Applejack. I glared at her.
"An eye for an eye, you half-assed horse!" I scooped up Rainbow Dash and ran started to run away. Rainbow was lighter than I expected, probably a pegasus thing. I turned a corner and was greeted by the most miraculous sight I had ever seen. A train station. I heard some pony yell "All aboard!" and Sprinted for the train. It gained speed strangely fast, and was quickly exiting the station. I made it to the caboose just in time and heaved my unconscious cargo onto the car. I ran beside it for a few seconds until I grabbed the bar and hauled myself onto it, after which I collapsed onto the floor of the caboose. Turning my head looked at the unconscious Rainbow, and saw there was a scar across her cheek.
I heard angry yells as the train left the Crystal Empire, but didn't bother to sit up. The train picked up speed, and they faded into the distance.
Two left.
---
I jumped off the train before it reached the nearest town, allowing me to sneak away carefully. Rainbow Dash was still asleep, so I carried her to the nearest safe spot, a clearing on the edge of the forest, and then it hit me.
I had left Rachel behind.
I had left her behind!
As the full circumstances of the situation hit me, I looked over at the peacefully sleeping Rainbow Dash. The Elements were useless, without her. When I looked at her flank, I noticed her cutie mark was gone. I buried my head in my arms, and started to cry. I hadn't cried in a long, long time.
As I sobbed softly, I thought about Rachel. My friend through all this. What were they doing to her? Would she forgive me? Could I forgive myself?
"Hello?"
I jerked my head around, my eyes red and puffy from crying. There was Dash, sitting up and looking at me. When she saw my face, she jerked back a little.
"Who are you?" She uttered. I realized she had never known my name, so I told her. It didn't matter, anyway.
"I'm Isabella. I suppose you-" I gasped a little. "You're going to tie me up and take me away." I had given up. There was no use anymore.
"Why would I do that?" She said, perplexed.
"You're messing with me." I deadpanned. "Stop."
"No, I'm serious! I don't know who you are! Well, I know your name, but-" Wait a minute. Either she was a really good actor, or Twilight's spell had done something to her. It had hit her in the head, after all. I looked at her to see why she had stopped. She was staring all around her, at the dense foliage. If what I thought was true, she had never seen the Everfree at night.
"Look, I know we're in a scary place, but we're safe. Understand?" The situation could go one way or another. She could boast she wasn't afraid or-
"O-okay..." Or it could go that way. I grabbed her shoulders gently, and put her in a sitting position facing me.
"I' going to ask you a few questions now. It that okay?" She nodded uneasily.
"Good. First, what is your name?" She perked up.
"Oh that's easy! It's..." She frowned. "It's... I think I'm..." She started to hyperventilate. I placed a hand on her shoulder.
"It's alright. Your name is Rainbow Dash. Got that?" She relaxed, and her breathing steadied.
"Y-yeah," She stuttered. "Rainbow Dash... My name is Rainbow Dash. Rainbow Dash."
"Look, what you're going through must be tough, but it’s gonna be alright." I patted her shoulder. God, I was horrible in these situations.
"Rainbow Dash..." She muttered.
"You ready for number two?" I asked. "We can take a break if you want."
"No, it’s-" She wiped her nose. "It’s okay."
"Okay. Do you know where we are?" Rainbow opened her mouth slowly, before closing it. She gave a tiny shake of her head.
"That's Alright. We're in the Everfree forest. It looks a little scary, but we'll be fine." I smiled a little, and it made me feel better. I wiped my eyes.
"Why were you crying?" The tears came back, brimming at my eyes. I didn't know what to say.
"I-" I stopped. What could I tell her? "I lost a friend." And it was my fault. I looked away.
I felt something wrap around my waist and I looked at it, discovering a cyan foreleg. Rainbow Dash had her face buried into by thick winter coat. It still had wolf blood on it. Hesitantly, I returned the hug.
"It'll be alright."
---
About two weeks passed. Rainbow Dash and I wandered from area to area, going south. The frozen north could go fuck itself. I stayed away from towns for the time being. I had asked her if she knew the names Cloudsdale or Ponyville and she said she didn't.
I had no doubts. Rainbow Dash's memory had been erased. I had asked her if she knew Twilight, Applejack, even Pinkie Pie and she gave me blank stares at the mention of every name. This realization worried me. It had hit both her and Rachel's head. Was her memory erased? Did she remember me?
I had avoided that particular train of thought for a few weeks; there was no need to follow it now.
Then there was the problem of Equestria. Don't get me wrong, I hate the elements, and the princesses. Well. Most of them anyway. But the Elements were no longer functional, as I had the element of Loyalty with me. They were one of the main defenses for the nation, and I didn't want to see innocent beings of any kind get hurt. I had no idea what to do. Should I give back Rainbow, and hope I can get Rachel back.
Rachel.. Did she even exist?
No. I can't loose hope.
---
It was almost three years after I entered Equestria when I found out what happened to Rachel. Rainbow preferred to be called Iris, so that's what I called her. Her favorite color was green, and she didn't have a cutie mark. Even after a year and a half of raiding she was still introverted and quiet, unless either of us was in danger. The spell had not only erased her memory, it had erased her personality. The old Rainbow Dash was completely gone. Not that I would want her back. I had told this to her. I couldn't resist telling her the truth.
She had gotten used to "paying" for the goods we stole and had noticed that other ponies had marked on their flanks, and she didn't. She asked me why, and I told her I didn't know. We shared a cry after that.
We were nearing the end of one of our nighttime raids when I noticed a newspaper lying on the ground. I picked it up and tucked it under my arm as we made our way out of the town. When we got back to our camp I waited for Iris to fall asleep, then sat on a log and read it.
NEW HERO OF EQUESTRIA!
I grew confused when I read the headline and looked at the picture under it. It was a fuzzy photograph in what I recognized as Canterlot, aimed at a balcony holding two large horses and a human.
A human? Rachel! I read on excitedly read on.
When the mysterious creature known as Golden heart was captured she was imprisoned. However, she showed great compassion and care and was released by the princesses of Equestra after deemed reformed. She used to be part of a bandit group known as the Horrendous Humans until she was captured in the Crystal Empire. Now she exhibits excessive bravely and loyalty to the throne. More on page six.
I couldn't believe it. Reformed? My Rachel would never do that, she was stubborn. But then I got an idea. Iris showed some remnants of her former self when she or I was in danger. Maybe I could talk to Rachel. I just needed a chance, just to talk to her.
When I Iris woke up, I told her all about it. She agreed, and the next day we packed for our trip. We were headed for the capital.
---
The journey took about a week of traveling, mostly to Ponyville. We hitched a ride to Canterlot there. When we got there, we faced the problem of travel to the castle. We decided to travel down the darkest alleyways at night. It took us two days to get to the castle, and another to sneak in. we had to watch the guards and servants to find out when we could get in. Our method of entrance resulted in a maid gagged in a closed, but unharmed. We stole her uniform, which Iris put on, and her towel cart, which I hid inside. Iris hid her rainbow mane in her cap, and kept her tail tucked between her hind legs.
We had to ask a guard for directions to Golden Heart's chambers, and we traveled there fairly easily. We arrived and Iris practically tore of the stifling dress, and I burst out from the towels, sweating and sore for staying still for so long. I gently pushed open the door to her room, and without revealing myself I spoke.
"Madam? Delivery for you."
"You may come in!" Rachel's voice drifted out. I pushed open the door and was greeted with the sight of Rach- Golden Heart sitting on the bed. She wore a simple white dress and had a book propped open in front of her, she looked open and her face lit up.
"Fallen Heart!" She jumped off the bed and rushed over to me.
"Oh, Fallen! I've been waiting for this day for so long! Now you can be redeemed! Did you bring your prisoner? Oh, you look so beautiful!" The barrage of questions confused me and she promptly placed a kiss on my lips. I pushed her away.
"What the fuck!?" She looked at me, tears in her eyes, and I felt the most guilty I had ever felt.
"You- You don't love me?" It all came together. They thought we had been lovers, and that they told her. She had probably imagined this moment for most of her life, all year-and-three-quarters of it.
"No. We were never lovers, not even before your, ah, 'redemption'" She burst into tears and there was no longer any doubt. Rachel was gone. Gone forever. I started to cry. All my hopes had been dashed. A yell came from the hallway.
"Look! It’s Rainbow Dash!" I swore under my breath.
"I'm sorry, but I have to leave. I dashed out the doorway, to a waiting Iris. A shout came from behind me.
"Wait! Come back!" I didn’t respond, but instead turned to Iris.
"We gotta get out of here!"
"Where?"
"Just run!" Iris and I took off down the hallway and burst into the courtyard. As we sprinted past half a dozen guards, six exclamations followed us. We ran across the castle, barging through guests and nobles, and avoiding guards. Our group of followers grew, and we continued to run. We ran down tunnel and I spotted an open door.
"In here!" I turned into the doorway and dashed up the spiral staircase behind it. I could hear the guards clomping up the stairs behind us. We reached the door at the top and rammed it open, bursting into a circular room that had a nice looking balcony.
The room contained Celestia, Luna, Twilight, "Golden Heart", Applejack, Rarity, Pinkie Pie, and Fluttershy. I looked at Twilight, whose mane was disheveled and was flanked by two guards. Her pupils shrank below her mangled horn when she saw me.
"YOU!!" She tried to gallop at me as the guards pushed into the room behind us but her guards grabbed her. I felt a point push into my back.
"DASHIE!" Pinkie Pie bounced over to Iris, and hugged her. Iris pushed her away, and looked at me.
"Which one was that?" she asked.
"That would be Pinkie Pie." I replied calmly, as Twilight struggled against her personal guards, yelling obscenities at me until her mouth foamed.
"Ah," said Iris. "I knew that."
"SILENCE" The Royal Canterlot Voice caused us all to look at Celestia.
"You, Fallen Heart, are charged with crimes of attempted murder and murder of multiple sentient beings, theft, and the foalnapping of an Element of Harmony. What say you?" I got mad. Celestia was blaming ME for what had happened? Screw that. I walked right up to her.
"First of all, my same isn't 'Falling Heart' or the 'Black Bandit' or whatever the hell you think it is. It's Isabella." I Iooked at Golden Heart, for any spark of recognition but there was none.
"Second I need to eat meat. If I have to hill a few animals to do so, so be it. Cry me a river." I glared at Celestia.
"Even so, you have still kidnapped Rainbow Dash." she looked at Iris. "Rainbow, are you quite alright?" it took a few seconds for her to realize she was being addressed.
"Yeah, I'm fine." she replied.
"Come, join us then."
"Why would I do that?" Princess Celestia grew worried.
"Do you not enjoy being imprisoned?
"I'm not a prisoner." She said. Pinkie pie started to cry.
"She doesn't remember us..." She sobbed. Fluttershy moved to comfort her.
"It’s alright, she's an element of harmony, I'm sure she remembers you."
"I don’t remember anybody here but Izzy."
"Don’t you want to come back to us? I'm sure we could restore your memory!" I couldn't let Iris live the life of a criminal after I was gone. I kneeled down to look her in the eye.
"Listen, Iris. You can have a whole life here. You don't have to run and sneak and steal anymore. You can go back to ponyville and make friends. You can have a family!" We started to tear up. "I'm sorry I have to make you do this, but it’s either them or me. Choose them, please." I stood up, and she looked between me and the Elements. Lowering her head, she walked towards Pinkie Pie. Sadly, I prepared to complete the last part of my plan.
"So that’s how you want to do it, huh? Fine." I glared at her and took a step towards her. Two shields immediately appeared over the group of ponies, excepting the princesses. I drew my gun and aimed it at the Princess. This was all her fault. she had a chance two stop this. She had three years. With a loud bang, the revolver bucked backward and forced a bullet between Princess Celestia's eyes. Her shield disappeared, and she stood for a moment before falling to the ground.
"SISTER!" Luna rushed over and knelt behind her, with no hesitation I sprinted to the balcony and jumped over the railing. It was finally over. I was finished.
-Iris' POV-
My heart stopped as I watched Izzy jump over the railing and ran over to the bar. Nobody noticed as they all crowded around Celestia. I jumped over, yelling Izzy's name. Below me were the green landscape and a tiny twisting river, far, far below. I saw Izzy falling below me and I beat my wings to catch up. We sped towards the ground. She saw me rushing towards me and yelled up to me over the wind.
"Iris! You have to go back!" Don’t worry about me!"
"I can’t let you die! It’s not worth it! You're my friend!"
"No- You have to go back..." I grabbed onto her.
"If you won’t let me take you back, I won’t go back! We're in this together!" As the ground sped towards us, I saw something approaching us out of the corner of my eye...
Then, black.
-THE END-
A Short Epilogue
ASSASIN DISAPPEARS- CELESTIA INJURED
CELESTIA CRIPPLED, LUNA ASSUMES CONTROL
ELEMENT OF LOYALTY ACCEPTS NEW BEARER
GOLDEN HEART HERO OF EQUESTRIA
GOLDEN HEART DISAPEARS INTO EVERFREE
SEARCH FOR GOLDEN HEART ENDS- FUNERAL HELD- COUNTRY IN SHOCK