After telling the mane six his story, they receive some horrible news. It seems as though that wasn't where the story ends.
After telling the girls about the events leading into his rule, the seven of them hear some terrifying news. It seems history does repeat itself.
The story reffered to in this story isn't really necessary to understand the events in this one, however, if you'd like to know what events are being spoken of in chapter one or would just like to know the story, please read it.
A single tear traced on the face of the reformed king. Though, reformed might be the wrong word. He regained his sanity thanks to a few ponies. Who were all conveniently in this room.
Twilight Sparkle, whom, at the finishing of the king's recounting, took a sudden and intense interest in her hooves. Rarity, who now held a hoof to her mouth. Applejack, with her hat to her chest. Rainbow Dash, looking at the saddened king with a look of horror. Fluttershy, who was crying after hearing his story. And Pinkie Pie, who was twitching.
"I... I had no idea, Sombra..." Twilight spoke up.
"It's... It's in the past, princess. Maybe I had overreacted," Sombra replied, wiping a tear off of his cheek.
"OVERREACTED!?" Rainbow Dash said, shaking herself out of her stupor, "You reacted EXACTLY like you should have! That wasn't right!"
"Was it anymore right to do what I did, Dash? It would have been one thing to just kill the ponies involved, but I forced them to suffer, I killed them in the most horrendous ways imaginable... I FORCED THEM TO SACRIFICE THEIR CHILDREN TO ME! Is that any more right then they were?" Sombra replied.
"Normally I'd disagree with Rainbow on this kind of thing, but I can't. Not on this matter, sugar cube..." Applejack said in a somber manner.
Sombra was surprised at hearing the element of honesty say that.
"I could have gotten the attention of the princesses... I probably should have." Sombra replied, tears threatening to spill over.
"You shouldn't beat yourself up over it, Sombra... I know that I'm usually scared of everything... But if I had been forced to watch them do that to Angel bunny and Harry... I might have mentally snapped and gone genocidal-maniac-bent-on-revenge as well..." Fluttershy said, her eyes miles away from this conversation.
This caused a near collective dropping of jaws. It was one thing to hear anyone else say that, but the embodiment of kindness? No one was prepared for that.
Pinkie just continued twitching.
Rarity spoke next, saying, "Oh! Dear Sombra, losing not only your loving wife, but a child you had with her, in such a terrible way too! The sister's would have more than understood, seeing as one nearly killed the other over depression!"
"Be that as it may, marshmallow, it wasn't nearly the extent I had dished." Sombra smirked as he saw Rarity recoil at her nickname. This caused a weak giggle to resound around the table.
"Pinkie... Are you okay?" Sombra asked, genuinely worried for the pink party pony.
Pinkie continued twitching. Both at the story, which had set her eyes to twitch, but in a series of seemingly random ways. When she spoke, there was no joy in her voice. Had anyone noted this, this might have scared them worse then Sombra's story.
"There's a doozy coming..."
No sooner than she had spoken these words, did a terrified and frazzled looking unicorn come barging into the throne room, where the seven had been sitting.
"Twilight! They've got Cadence and Flurry Heart!" Shining Armor said in a rushed manner.
"Shining, calm down. Who's 'they'" the princess of friendship replied.
The next words would send a shiver down their collective spines. They would deflate the party pony's hair. The sentence would set on Rainbow's face a look of steeled reserve. The princess of friendship would be shocked into silence, and Rarity would return her hoof to her mouth. Fluttershy would look terrified and Applejack would be mirroring Rainbow Dash. The king would be reminded of the story he just told, reliving every minute of the horror.
Something inside her snapped back at the castle. It was almost as if someone broke a pinkie promise. Except for this time... It was worse. No amount of apologies would make up for what they did to Sombra. No amount of saying you were sorry would bring his family back. That's why pinkie decided to go first in this mission.
"Okay Shining... What exactly do you mean by 'the crystal ponies have Cadence and Flurry?" Twilight managed, trying to hold onto some optimism.
"They said she was practicing black magic, and since Flurry was a child of such black magics, that they had to be burned. They're supposed to be put to the stake three days from now..." The stallion lost it. He started crying. "I... I failed her. I failed them. My wife and child... Please, Twily... Please save them."
Sombra slammed his hooves on the table. Everyone present looked at him, albeit somewhat surprised.
"Shining Armor, was it? You didn't fail your family. No one fails the ones they care about. Not when it comes to those damned crystal ponies. You were right to ask for help. I'll save your family." Sombra said, a look of resolve in his eyes. "I won't let them do this to someone else. I won't give them the option to do this ever again."
"Sombra... What do you mean someone else?" The downtrodden stallion asked, seeming more surprised that Sombra would do this for him than that Sombra was here.
"They took my family from me about a thousand years ago. I thought that they would have learned. Ms. Pie, I need those supplies for a party in which sunshine gets blown up." Sombra said, never looking away from Shining Armor.
Pinkie ran back to her house at this. She pressed the other banister. Not to be confused with the one that lead to her party cave. No. It lead into the room only three ponies really knew existed. Her, Sombra, and Pinkimena. She loaded the cart with crates, figuring that the girls would insist on joining as well. She grabbed Pinkimena's chainsaws and Sombra's armor.
She rushed back, still having not said anything other than what she had back at the castle.
Moments later, she was back at the castle, only to see that the girls had indeed insisted on coming.
"Umm... Pinkie...? What are those?" Rainbow Dash asked, her eyes wide.
"Oh... These? These are operation Bring Your Own Bomb." Pinkie said. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
She felt Pinkimena tug at the controls.
'Not yet, sweetie. We need to wait until we're at the crystal empire or we might hurt our friends.' Pinkie said to Pinkimena.
'Okay honey... I'll try to resist.'
(None of this interaction happening with herself was out loud.) ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ They waited on the next train in silence, their unspoken mission too heavy. Pinkie wore a grin somewhere between worried and excited, though why her face was like this she wouldn't know. A few minutes more of waiting and the train arrived. As Twilight began explaining the importance of this ride to the crystal empire, Pinkie began to pull the crates onto the train.
"Excuse me, Ms.Pie, But I'm afraid that you can't bring crates onto the train without a pass." The conductor said.
"I'm sorry, i was just SOOO excited for this party, because we were going to have a real good time." Pinkie replied, not skipping a beat.
Her and the Conductor had worked out a secret code. If she were running weapons from one city to another she would have replied with the code Sorry! I must have forgotten they were there.... And in those instances the conductor would have hidden them in a secret compartment on the train that only they could access. But as the case was, the code she fed him meant that she was going to war and needed these with her while strategy was talked.
Pinkie and her friends were escorted to a very special car on the train, and they didn't have to pay the usually outrageous price that most had to pay for this kind of luxury. They were alone, in a car especially reserved for Pinkie on occasions such as this.
"Pinkie... What-" Rainbow Dash had started before Pinkie cut across her.
"First, I'll explain this car of the train and why I was allowed to keep these crates. I'm the kind of pony that the gen pop passes off as strange and simply waves off everything I do as 'Pinkie being Pinkie'. That's both the truth and isn't. I was employed by government run organizations, who wish to remain anonymous, to run guns and fight wars, due in no small factor to my ability to get away with being suspicious without drawing suspension. This car was designed for me to plan said wars, and there is a hidden storage compartment to hide weapons. Second, those crates are filled with weapons. I think it's time for a wipe out of a certain nation."
All except Sombra let their jaws drop. Pinkie told him soon after he came to town, since he wasn't fooled by the act. She even taught him the codes. Most of which were references to songs...
"Now, let's get down to business. In these crates i have, of course, weapons and enhancers. Starting with me and working clockwise, we'll look in the crates and choose." Pinkie stated. She took only a moment to grab her reflex enhancer and the chainsaws.
Twilight grabbed an enhancer labeled magic. Fluttershy looked inside the crates and decided on a bag labeled Ancient Blood. No doubt planning on using Flutterbat. Rarity decided upon a bottle of pills written in a language only she, Pinkie, and Sweetie Drops could read. Rainbow Dash picked up a strength booster. Applejack grabbed a couple of guns and a pouch of grenades, along with the bullet belts and a utility belt filled with ammunition. Sombra finally got to choose. He decided on a magic enhancer as well as some armor upgrades. Everyone took a moment to brief themselves on their choices, asking Pinkie Pie how long the effects would last for the enhancers, finding that each lasted about fifteen minutes per ounce. She passed on the warning that they shouldn't consume more than 3 ounces per day, as that could get messy.
"Now that we have our weapons," Pinkie started, "We need to divide the city into sectors and decide who gets what sector. that will determine who gets off the train in what order. I'll take the most immediate area of the town, buying you six some time. Twilight, I suggest you take this area."
Pinkie divided the city into parts and showed each where they were to go. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Pinkie took three of her tablets, figuring that would be more than enough for her sector. She leaned back with a smile as she finished slipping her hooves into her chainsaws. She gripped the inside handles and pressed the buttons. As the motors on these lovely weapons of destruction started up, she reached into the dangerous part of her mind.
'Oh, Honey! It's all yours!' She spoke to herself. Pinkimena rushed forward and kissed Pinky. 'I promise i won't get us killed!' she replied before rushing towards the controls.
Pinkimena took the controls, guiding her hooves along the handles, overjoyed that her special somepony had remembered her preference. She felt the tablets Pinkie had ingested starting to kick in. She ran towards the first wave of the crystal militia.
She saw them pause on the street, staring at her while she stood staring at them. She felt their judging eyes gaze over her.
She decided to shout to them, because she was of the impression that if those ponies were going to die, they might as well hear something badass. Or maybe she just wanted to say it. Definitely one of those two.
"I've been thinking of branching out into rock candy cupcakes... Wanna help me?"
That's when all Tartarus broke loose. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Pinkie watched with glee as her special somepony began her dance with the crystal ponies. She felt somthing was missing, however... Music! She ran to their record player and put on some electro-swing music a friend had showed her. That's better Pinkie thought to herself. She returned her gaze to the viewing screen, pleased that she had chosen the right music. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Pinkimena gave out a demented chuckle as Lyre Le Temps' Looking Like This started playing. It was oddly an appropriate choice she thought as she ripped through a pony with her chainsaw. 'That's one of the reasons I love her'
Pinkimena swirled and twisted as spears and blades of all sorts whizzed towards her, easily dodging each. As she would move her head out of the way in this dance of death, she would lean in towards the attacker and shove her righteous chainsaw through their body. it would resist their crystal-like flesh for a moment, sure. But as the tiny blades whirled around on their conveyor belt, they would grab bits of the flesh and tear it away, causing it to quickly make it's way inside and rip apart their organs. As each of her dance partners got the chainsaw, splatters of blood would cover her coat. The smell of this great, life-giving liquid reached her nostrils. Ah~ she did love the scent of the iron and other minerals mixing round in the liquid. After all, she was a rock farmer at heart.
This reminder brought her to new levels of excitement. She was mining a new form of crystal her family would only ever dream of touching! Each kill fueled her adrenaline, but that didn't effect her pacing.
One crystal pony had decided to get a little cocky and throw an explosive while another was firing their gun. She danced around the bullets and gently batted the grenade back, causing the shrapnel to embed itself inside the bomber's brain. She continued dancing toward the gunner. She danced around him a moment before shoving a chainsaw through his middle, taking another to his neck. Slowly it made it's way through, causing no small amount of blood to splatter across her face. She licked her lips before returning to the more dangerous side of her mind. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
'Pinkie! I'm home!' Pinkimena announced. 'Did you have fun, sweetheart?' Pinkie replied. 'Of course! By the way, nice choice of musical accompaniment!' 'Who knows herself better than me?' Pinkimena chuckled as she kissed Pinkie. 'No-one.'
Twilight was running the fastest she ever had. Her niece and sister in law in the foremost part of her mind, her mind began racing to find a solution. One that didn't end with the annihilation of a nation. Nothing. A part of her mind answered her in the form of a reflection. She stared at her reflection for a moment as it spoke.
Get psycho. Give in... Decide..., the voice in the puddle said.
"I don't want to get psycho... I want to save them..." Twilight replied.
Give in..., the voice insisted.
"I... I want to save them!"
If that's what you want... You have to sacrifice something else. Equivalent exchange. To save a few, you must sacrifice the many. To save many, you have to sacrifice a few..
"I'd be no better than Tirek if I killed all those ponies!
But if you don't, you lose your precious family... You have the proper motivation, it will justify the ends in which you must go to save them.
"I'll find something else! Good day!"
There isn't anoth-
"I SAID GOOD DAY!" Twilight shouted, cutting the puddle off from continuing.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Twilight began searching her part of the city frantically, looking for any place the crystal ponies might have hidden her family. She had no such luck. The city was just to big to know for sure. She just came out of another house, after another failed attempt, when she heard a sound that made her ear twitch.
She whirled around and found herself facing a small armada of the ponies. Simultaneously, they all lifted their rifles, causing a sound much like a a collective snap. Her mind began racing again. They all looked down their sights and into their scopes. She looked behind her for a place to run. The only thing she saw was more ponies with their guns pointed at her. She began spinning round and round, looking for a way out. Each way she faced, she saw a new set of guns.
"READY!" One shouted to the others, "Aim!"
Twilight closed her eyes, very aware that she was about to die.
"FIRE!"
All around her she heard gunfire. The sound was deafening.
She felt something similar to that piano that fell on her. Only difference being it was more like hundreds of those hitting specific points on her body simultaneously. Then everything faded.
Twilight looked at the buildings around her. They were all uniquely the same. She started to think about what happened. She had been shot. She was aware of that. Then was this the afterlife? It must be. She walked around, tears threatening to spill from her eyes. I couldn't save them... They needed me... And I couldn't save them... She thought to herself.
"That isn't exactly true, Twi. We both know it isn't." a familiar voice rang out.
Twilight stopped in her tracks and spun around, to be greeted by a disobedient reflection. Her reflection smiled at her.
"You see... You are both dead, and not dead. This is neither Heaven nor Hell. This isn't Equestria, and it isn't Limbo."
"Then where are we?"
"Your head! I'll cut to the chase, because time is short. You're dying, Twi. You have only a minute left before you bleed out and die. However, you have a choice. Die a hero who stuck to her near-sighted ideals and refused to take a life to save her own and her family, OR live a hero who killed a hundred ponies to save herself and her loved ones, but you risk living with guilt for the rest of your life. The choice is yours. You have one minute to decide."
Twilight started weighing the options very carefully. On the one hoof, she didn't want to kill anyone. On the other, she didn't want to lose anyone. She dawned a look of resolution. Her decision made.
"I would do anything to save my friends and family. Today isn't the day I die."
"I knew that would be my decision," the reflection smiled.
Her eyes snapped open. Looking down, she saw the hundreds of holes on her body. She giggled. The longer she stared the louder her laugh got. The louder her laugh got, the more she laughed. The more she laughed, the more crystal ponies promptly pissed themselves.
"FIRE!" The command rang again.
Twilight disappeared, only to reappear behind the one who shouted the initial order of execution.
"Peek-a-boo!" she shouted as she whipped his neck around so he could see her. As she forced his head 'round, several sickening cracks could be heard.
The gunfire rang again as they found her new location. She took to the air, forcing the bullets to miss as she flew around. She spotted what she was looking for... A rock.
She gripped it in her magic, bringing it to her face to nuzzle it lovingly. Her smile widened. She landed and started bashing a pony's head in with it.
"You know~ I wanted to spare you fuckers, honest! But you shot me before I could find a solution! So, since i couldn't find a solution... I decided to make one!" she sang out, making sure they all heard her.
She jumped onto another pony and repeated the process with the rock, whose name she had decided would be Brick. The blood splattered all over her coat and bits of grey matter clung to her mane as she continued. Then the ponies had started to run away! They were trying to leave her party! She found it rather rude and disappointing that they would leave the funeral before the final words had been spoken!
She grabbed their collective legs in her aura and decided on the spot that it would be harder for them to leave if they didn't have their legs. She put this thought in motion, ripping their legs off, causing a massive splash of blood to hit the streets. There!, she thought amongst their screams of pain and terror, Now we can have a proper meet and greet!
She finished her little project of bashing in a pony's head. Her hypothesis: They die. The results were conclusive. But, being the scientist she was, she tested this a few more times, never seeming to mind the bits of brain that found their way into her hair.
Of course, once 100% of the tests were proven correct, she placed Brick in her hair. She wanted to see something new. She wanted to test something else.
If you rip a pony in half, how long can they scream before dying?
She was so excited to discover the answer that she set to work immediately. The first test screamed for about two seconds before they died. She went to her next one, deciding to try to pull them apart more slowly. The second one screamed for thirty seconds before dying.
That was when Twilight made a mental note: This is boring as shit... She decided to grab Brick in her aura and used #157 to shape Brick into a neat little dagger. New test, she thought to herself, How many times can I cut a pony before they die? I think I read about an ancient technique where they managed about three hundred...
She began to cut one of the survivors open. One... Two... Three...
"OH FOR THE LOVE OF CELESTIA STOP YOUR INCESSANT SCREAMING! I'M TRYING TO COUNT AND YOU ARE VERY DISTRACTING!" She shouted at her.
Four... Five... Six....
She finished her task and managed about 256 before they died.
How many stabs does it take to get to the center of a crystal pony? The world may never know...
She turned to her last assailant, who had decided to try to roll away. Twilight, who wasn't one for ponies who skipped lessons, decided that this one needed a curb stomp.
As the life force of the last one faded, she began to absorb their blood and transfigured it to match her own, before replacing the several liters they had taken from her. She began laughing again as she started sewing the wounds closed.
Fluttershy had been certain that with a little kind persuasion they would see reason. Then again... She didn't want to be here right now. Ponies who weren't attempting to kill her scared her. But as she looked to each set of eyes that surrounded her, she saw that no amount of kindness was going to get her out of this.
Then she smelled it. Five streets over, she smelled Twilight's blood, followed almost instantly by that of the crystal ponies. Three streets in the other direction she smelled even more.
It was getting unbearable. She had resisted these urges for so long after the incident... Yet now she couldn't help it. Her desires rose from the depths, beginning to reclaim her. She was terrified now, for now as her fangs began to extend, the ponies marched forward, weapons leveled and pointed at her.
"G-get back! I-i don't want to hurt you!" She warned as they continued their advance.
"You're just like that one we burned a thousand years ago! She couldn't hurt us, so neither can you!" The foremost pony cried.
"I... I can FEEL it! It's rising... I kept her hidden for so long... Please don't make me do this..." Fluttershy pleaded.
They began sprinting at her, intent to shove their pichforks and blades through her plain as Celestia's day.
Fluttershy's transformation picked up pace. Her wings left their usual feathery look and became almost leathery. Her ears shifted around on her skull, taking a more predatory position. The ears themselves changing shape, allowing her to hear even the faintest heartbeat.
Her element left her. In the wake of it's absence, thirst took over.
She was sinking her teeth into the first's neck by the time they had finished blinking. It tasted very similar to Pinkie's rock candy. Sweet, with just the right amount of sour.
"I smell her on you. Her fear. Her mane and tail... Her attempted kindness. You forsook her... She tried to help you ponies get closure, and you burned her alive! Those fires smell fresh on your coat!" Flutterbat cried out.
She flipped backwards over a blade as it thrust near her. With the grace of a gentle wind, but the force of a hurricane, she slammed the mare's head into the ground, causing it to burst open. As explosive as it had been, none of the brain had wound up on her hooves.
She danced around the next weapon that made it's way towards her. She sank her teeth into this pony's neck as well, easily fighting off whatever attempt they made at her unlife. Upon finishing her drink, she felt empowered. That's when she remembered the bloodbag. She wasted no time in drinking it. Time slowed around her, or rather, she sped up beyond it's usual hold.
Fluttershy stepped out of a building she had searched, an attempt to find the missing princesses. She hadn't found any indication as to where they could be. She sighed, wishing Discord could have lent some insight. Unfortunately for the element of kindness, he was on a peace mission in the land Tirek came from. He wouldn't be able to help her this time.
She trudged ahead, smelling the air for any signs of them. She had hoped her friends had missed it, but a couple of years back, when Twilight's spell hadn't worked properly, she had become a vampire. While Twilight had attempted to fix it, you just can't reanimate the dead with a reversal spell.
She searched high and low, seeking any sign of life, finding none. No faint hoofsteps, no quiet breathing, no calm heartbeats... That's when everything came up on her 'radar'. All the life seemed to surround her. She was surrounded by the crystal ponies, weapons at the ready.
"H-hello... I don't suppose i could ask you to ever so kindly put your eep sharp weapons away?"
She appeared behind a pony in half of a blink, if that. She sank her fangs in and finished in the remainder of a blink. She stepped behind another, causing a tiny sonic boom as she did. She flipped this one onto his back, stomping on his throat. She looked at her hooves and saw that her nails had sharpened. On command, she willed them to lengthen. She smiled as the next blade made it's way through molasses at her.
Nary a heartbeat later, she appeared behind the next victim. She buried her claws into her, ripping the mare apart. Flutterbat took a moment to lick the blood off of herself, not wanting to waste a drop. The sham of a battle lasted barely more than thirty seconds before she had killed her crowd. She inhaled through her nose and smelled the one thing she had hoped for. The sweet scent that lingered around Cadence. It was towards the edge of town, directly south of her and the girls. She made her way towards twilight to try to help her with any injuries she may have aquired.
As she made her way, she became Fluttershy again. Her thirst had been sated and she wasn't hungry anymore. Time began flowing as it should. Then the BOOMS went off. A side effect, she realized, of moving faster than the speed of sound. She smiled to herslef as one thing became more and more apparent to her.
She loved the lingering taste of blood on her tongue.
Rarity cantered along in the most ladylike fashion she could manage, given the rate at which her heart beat. She was absolutely appalled at the idea of a group of ponies treating others in such an uncivilized manner. Even more so, since the group in question was none other than those beautiful crystal ponies.
She searched high. She searched low. She searched low and high, high and low. Nothing. No traces of either of the kidnapped ponies. This was bringing about a certain level of despair in Rarity. She pondered how she could prove Rainbow innocent, but couldn't find any evidence as to where they were taken from, much less to...
There was a slight buzz at the base of her skull. Knowing better than to ignore this, she simply jumped backwards, right as a cloaked earth pony fell to the ground, a couple of blades protruding from her sleeves. This particular pony wasted no time, coming at rarity with a murderous glint in her eye. Rarity dodged each swipe with grace becoming of her nature.
"Oh, darling! I haven't seen you in ages! How is that dazzling guild doing nowadays? Well enough to still check in on me after all these years, it seems. Tell me, do they still teach you those ungraceful attack methods? Based on your technique, I'd say so! Here, allow me to correct you!" Rarity said to the figure with the same ease as her previous movements. Instead of dodging the next swipe, she side stepped and grabbed her wrist. A simple movement of her own foreleg, and the hooded pony was on her back. Rarity wasted no time stepping on this pony's right foreleg, holding the other's blade to it's owner's throat.
"Now talk, Ms. Shores. Where are they hiding the princesses?" Rarity said to the failed assassin.
"Center of town, I swear! Now... You'll let me live... Right?"
"I'm sorry. Lose ends and all that." Rarity said, wasting no mercy. She shoved the blade into Sapphire Shores' neck.
As the life drained from the pop-star assassin's eyes, Rarity removed her wrist-blades. She also grabbed the cloak and equipped it to herself.
Rarity's trot to the castle seemed uneventful for the first five minutes. At the six minute mark, right as the castle's silhouette came into view, so did a small armada of crystal ponies. Rarity sighed inwardly, Looks like I have to... Such an unfortunate outcome, this. I was hoping to avoid spilling their blood. However, I smell on them no small amount of hatred and cruel intent...
She felt her infernal half coming forward, clawing towards the surface... Of course, she didn't let it. Not yet.
"Oh, dear me! I must say the manner in which you all are conducting yourselves is incredibly brutish, and will be punished if you do not promptly release them, apologize, and change your ways!" Rarity called out in warning. Of course, with brutish action comes brutish response. They lifted their various weapons and charged. Gunponies and archers leveled their aim at her, while berserkers and vanguard alike rushed her, blades blazing. She sighed as a certain smile returned to her face.
Now, you can come hither. She closed her eyes a moment, feeling her inner fires heating up. Her blood boiled as time became gelatinous, her fur growing in length, becoming fashionably ragged. Her senses heightened. Then she opened her eyes, revealing that they had changed. The pupils dilated and and became slits. Her irises changed hues, leaving their usual blue and becoming more of a yellow orange. Her new cloak ripped to make way for her fiery wings. That's when all Tartarus broke loose.
The first blade to try to connect was side-stepped, and Rarity poked the wrist with a large amount of force, relinquishing the pony's hold on it. It fell handle first to the ground. She took this moment to shove them down onto the upward facing blade. She spun to face the next assailant, but they met the same end, as Rarity had ripped their throat out. Then she was surrounded, as they decided a tactic such as an En Masse Barrage was the best. She would slice a throat with a twirl and dodge a stab in the same motion. What she dodged met another pony's heart. And so this dance goes until the firing squad finally gets their shit together and fires. Rarity, however, was unimpressed by this. she simply grabbed the nearest pony to herself and put them in front of her. Once the cache was spent, she removed the ammunition from the corpse and returned them, ever so generously, to their respective owner's. Right between their eyes, that is.
And like that the armada fell. Though, at the cost of all that energy, so did Rarity.
Rainbow Dash sped towards the sector she decided she wanted. She had a feeling she needed to be near the jousting arena. Along her path, she felt an eerie lack of ponies.
In no time at all, she was at her destination. She entered the building and looked around, attempting to find anything of note. Unfortunately, what she found was not relevant to her current situation. She came across the occasional extra pointy lance, a few pieces of armor that would have been hard pressed to stop the cold, much less a weapon... But nothing about the princesses' location. Even the trap doors held nothing more than the occasional pile of bones. What few secret passages she found led only to torture rooms.
Again, nothing relevant. She decided that she might try the rest of the fair grounds. As she stepped outside, she felt that a hammer had hit her right between her eyes. She reached up and grabbed the culprit. A bullet, and a somewhat long one at that. She felt her forehead close back up.
"Ow..." She muttered.
Suddenly she felt a rather familiar stir in the air. Instinctively, she batted the air in front of her with her wing. A few feet to her left, another bullet fell harmlessly to the ground. Soon, a barrage of the things joined it.
Rainbow smiled to herself. She couldn't help herself.
"Do that again. Do. That. Again. I dare ya. I double dare you. DO THAT ONE MORE MOTHERFUCKING TIME!"
She let the next barrage hit her full on. No blocking, no dodging. After the fire stopped, she shook the bullets off.
"Apparently, you didn't get the memo... Loyalty is undying? Laughter eventually dies down... Generosity has its bounds... Magic runs out... Honesty can only go so far... You can only be kind for so long... But ponies always swear their undying loyalty to others. That's why..."
She sped towards the first line she saw. It connected to all the other attackers, of course, because of their loyalty to one another. She grabbed the side of their head and forced it into the ground, hearing a more than satisfying crunch.
"You can't kill me." She finished.
One by one, she killed each sniper. She turned one neck 180° to face her. She shoved another's gun through their eye. The fourth and final sniper, she kicked into the air, before flying up and up... She grabbed them and put them in a headlock. As they fell in tandem, she broke the sound barrier. Her signature "Sonic Rainboom" resounded through-out the fields as she slammed the pony detained in her grasp into the ground.
She began her investigation of the fields almost immediately, searching for any clue as to where the Princess of Love and her child could be... Of course, said calm was quickly destroyed when she felt the presence of more gunsponies. She sighed as they surrounded her and began firing their machine guns. She deflected each bullet with her wings and sent the bullets flying into other attackers.
Another wave surrounded her, this time with various bladed weapons. As the first spear was thrust at her barrel, she grabbed it by the shaft and broke her attacker's arm foreleg. Taking the spear, she whirled around the field, dodging each blade that made it's way towards her.
Any weapon she didn't dodge, she deflected with the spear. Quickly, she took aim. After she finally got where she wanted, she released the spear. It flew through the ponies, pulling each pony towards one another. Of course... She couldn't take all the credit. All she did was tap into her element's latent powers and tied the spear to their lines before throwing it.
She decided to search the ponies around her. She eventually found one with a schedule. Reading it, she found that it was the feeding schedule for the prisoners Flurry Heart and Mi Amore Cadenza. She noticed a reminder that gave their location and sped off towards it.
Applejack walked around the town, hoping to find some small amount of evidence as to where the kidnapped princesses were. As she reached a point where she was certain that she wouldn't find anything, she heard a wail. This was a cry she knew well enough, regardless of whose it was. It was the cry of a terrified foal. She ran towards the disturbance, to find that Flurry Heart and Cadence had been tied to a stake, right at the castle entrance. Applejack wasted no time.
She grabbed what she thought to be an appropriate sized explosive. She aimed and threw it, right onto the foreleg carrying the torch destined to set them alight. With a boom and a flash of light, the limb was blown off and away from the pile of kindling.
The now three legged pony ran off, screaming in pain. Flurry Heart began crying again, and Cadence was obviously doing her best to remain calm, despite her situation. As Applejack ran to assist them, she became aware of the ponies now flooding the scene.
"Consarnit!" Applejack swore, "Looks like ah've got to make it a mite noisier... Ah'm sorry Flurry Heart... Ah promise ah'll make the noise stop as soon as ah can."
She then turned to face her enemies, all of whom had seemed to be holding fiery weapons.
"Ah know what it's like to hold onto old ideals, far outdated... Ah know what it's like to be on the receiving end of these old ideals... Ah also know what it means to git past those ideals. Ah used ta be scared of magic. Ah quite plainly didn't much like the vibes ah got offa Twi and Rare when ah first met em. But ah quickly got over that. Ahmet the mare of mah dreams, and ah plan to marry her. But it's a good thing Rares ain't here right now. Ah'd hate fer her ta see me like this..." She paused to take a breath before continuing, "But what y'all've done to Sombra's family? What y'all're about ta do to Twi's? Y'ALL JUS' CAN'T DO THAT A PONY'S KIN! AH DON' CARE HOW BUCKING DIFFERENT THEY ARE FROM YA, OR HOW LITTLE YOU AGREE WITH IT! WHEN AH'M DONE? Y'ALL WILL BE WISHIN THIS WAS DIVINE RETRIBUTION!"
She knew she couldn't afford for them to get close, even while they attempted the contrary. Quickly, she began tossing her explosives among their numbers, causing shrapnel and explosions to tear apart the crystal ponies. Applejack felt her heart break as she ended so many lives... Tears spilled over the brim of her eyes as more and more of them tried to En Masse the stake, each meeting a similar end to those before them.
She didn't like the idea of doing this to anypony, but she knew what would happen if she didn't continue throwing her bombs into the crowds. She prayed to the goddesses, Twilight, Cadence, and Flurry Heart included, heck she even prayed to discord, that as the flesh was torn away from their bones, and eyes flew past her, that little Flurry Heart wouldn't remember this when she got older. She hoped against hope that the smell of burned flesh and death wouldn't ever rear it's head around the filly again. That the view of lifeless bodies would be long forgotten by the time she was three...
Applejack reached into her bag again, but panicked when she found her bombs had run dry. 'DAMMIT! This means ah'll hafta resort to the shotgun... which means risking them to any attack that ah don't see... Ah guess ah'll hafta listen ta Pinkie's advice that she gave me all those years ago... What was it again? Oh yeah! Best not fail mah perception check! Whatever that means...
She grabbed the shotguns off her back, making sure the clips were full. Instantly, she ran towards the first wave she saw. Good thing Pinkie had insisted that she use the military grade shotguns... Applejack twirled around, firing shot after shot into the faces of those that would harm her two charges. She never missed her mark, mind you, because every shot she took, like every word she said, was true. As she fired off the twenty fourth shot, signaling both guns needed to be reloaded, She heard Flurry Heart release another terrified wail. Spinning around, she saw yet another wave, closing in on them.
She took off, dropping the clips as she went. As her hooves raced with reloading the guns, her mouth instinctively grabbed her trusty lasso. She gave it a quick twirl, and sent it off to grab the nearest bladed weapon. No sooner then the lasso gripped it did she whip her head to spear the pony nearest to her charges, and effectively removed the flame from the torch. Reload finished, she sped up, easily closing the distance between her and the newest attacking armada. Quickly, she resumed her firing, making sure nopony could harm them.
She ran out of bullets as the last one fell. But her victory was short lived as more crystal ponies came. This time, however, Applejack wasn't alone. Her friends appeared by her side, whatever form they had taken. Her dearest Rarity was looking like she was born in Tartarus, while Twilight was full of holes, yet not bleeding, Fluttershy was currently Flutterbat... Rainbow dash was much the same however, as was Pinkie, give or take the blood that was covering her...
The girls tried their best to fend off the attackers, but where the girls had strength and speed, The crystal ponies made up for it in sheer number... They were outnumbered and they were getting tired.
Sombra was in no rush. He had his plan, of course. He always had a plan. But this time he'd have to channel a magic only one pony he knew ever had. And that meant he had to prepare. He was just waiting on a reply.
Sombra took a deep breath as he put the finishing touches on his letter to Luna. It outlined his plan, placed a request, and explained what was happening. He looked over the finished project.
Dear princess Luna,
I regret to inform you that Shining Armor has recently brought some disturbing news to the Elements and myself. It seems they wish to repeat the very act that ended in my insanity and, ultimately, my exile. The Elements and I are on the train now to stop the tragedy. I know we'll have to kill many, and I wish to apologize for the bloodshed in advance.
However, I don't plan to commit total genocide. With your permission, and that of your sister, I request the ability to harness some power from the moon via my crystals. The goal is for me to create enough energy to reenact my last wife's special talent, but in a perfected form. I wish to reconstitute the bodies of those children, and my wife and child, placing them back in the natural life cycle. I do not possess enough power to do so on my own.
Humbly, Sombra
Sombra sighed as he placed the quill within its ink pot. It was far from perfect diction, but it'd do. He used shadow to dissolve it, sending it to the desired recipient. He sipped at his tea as the train powered it's way to the crystal empire.
He looked at the spirits around him, hoping that he could bring them back. They knew well the secondary reason he had them killed. So they were raised away from the bigotry of their parents. He didn't want them to repeat their mistakes. His wife and daughter stood close to him, knowing what he was trying to do. They smiled on in approval.
Moments later, a shadow began shaking, marking the arrival of the princess' reply.
Dear Sombra,
I approve of your course of action. I regret to hear about their eminent demise, but my sister and I are in agreement that your course of action is justified. You have our support. I will grant you permission to harness the moon's power. Tell Clear Night I wish her well.
H.R.H Luna
Sombra smiled as he began preparations. This should only take a few minutes. He thought to himself as his horn lit up, making two crystals for every one spirit that he planned to bring back. That is to say, an army of them. As the crystals appeared, he turned to the spirits he had raised as though they were his own kids.
"Long ago," he began slowly, "I took your lives. Some of you, if any, may resent me for that... I meant it with better intentions then those some may realize. On those faithful nights that you joined me, I was reminded of the night my own wife and daughter were murdered by your ancestors. I took you away from them to punish them for that. But it was so much more. I could not have you all exposed to that sort of close-mindedness. I raised you all alongside my daughter, teaching you what I could. I know that many of you now find what your ancestors did to be ghastly.
Over the years of my banishment, and my reconstitution, I figured out how I could make it up to all of you. At the time, I had no way of doing it. Recently, In light of the attempted repeat your ancestors' sin, I was able to obtain sufficient power to do it. Look around each of you. Take your place inside of a crystal. In ten minutes you'll have your body back. Mind you, I haven't forgotten about the trans children. I apologize about the body you were born into. This should right whatever biology put wrong."
Sombra smiled as his children each entered a crystal. He turned his attention skyward, spying the very orb he needed. He reached out with his magic, making a leyline from one crystal to another, until he was surrounded by the shadowy web of their influence. He connected the ends to the spirits contained within the crystals. After placing them around the power crystals, he extended the reach to include the catalyst.
Within seconds of tying the power to the moon, the crystals began to glow. They each released a low hum that began to harmonize with each other. The crystals began to shrink in size, changing shape to match the inhabitants. As more power came through, it shifted the hardened crystal into soft, fur covered flesh. After the physical shifting of the crystal, the laylines retreated from the moon and began to work on connecting the souls with the bodies, and the nerves began to come to life.
Within moments, he was surrounded by the very children he raised, no longer spectral. As his wife and daughter approached him, tears welled in his eyes. He cried as he held them for the first time in over a thousand years. After the initial shock of being alive again, they joined in with the happy tears. This victory was short-lived however, because at that moment, they heard the cry of a terrified child and subsequent explosions. They all shared looks, then ran to the source.
Within minutes they saw what it was... The baby they were here to rescue was crying, surrounded by the crystal ponies. the elements were standing protectively around her. But they were losing stamina fast. Sombra took a deep breath.
"It seems you didn't quite understand it the first time I fucking said it," he bellowed, "It seems that the punishment taught you NOTHING! YOU KNOW WHAT THIS CALLS FOR?!"
His reconstituted legions answer him, in scary unison and equal volume, "GENOCIDE!"
They charged the battlefield filled with ponies, whose reactions varied from shock to terror. They mercilessly slaughtered the ponies that surrounded the family. The war-zone filled with flying body parts. An eye here, a throat there. Sombra himself tore several apart with his magic. The crystal children he had brought back, he had restored their uniqueness. That is to say, Pegasi and Unicorns had their respective anatomy. This played a part in how they tore their ancestors apart.
Within seconds, it was over. As quickly as the crystal ponies had surrounded and attempted to overpower the Elements, the tide of war had turned in favor of The ponies they had surrounded. Sombra turned to his children.
"Thank you all for helping me save them. I couldn't be more proud of you all. Please, as a last request, search the city for any surviving enemies and snuff them out. I expect that you'll all find suitable homes here. My wife and I, along with our daughter, will move to Ponyville. Enjoy life."
Clear Night nuzzled her husband as he spoke. "Thank you, Sombra. I knew you could do it. Now, let's get that young lady off that pike."
They approached the Elements as a family, and untied Princess Cadence and her daughter Flurry Heart.
Everyone hugged and cried.
Cadence turned to Sombra with tears in her eyes. "Thank you... I killed you once... but you saved me... why?"
"Because, you defeated me without knowledge of why I did it. To let you die the same way as my own wife for the sake of spite would have meant nothing without reason. That, and I couldn't let anypony else suffer that fate," He replied with a smile.
"Truer words have never been spoken," a mysterious and melodic voice said from behind.
As everyone turned to the speaker, a collective gasp and bow took each of them. The sister's descended on their wings, a surprise to see Celestia actually using them. As they touched ground, they rushed to Cadence and Flurry Heart, embracing them both.
"Sombra," Luna began, "Thank you for saving our Niece and her daughter. On behalf of the royal sisters, I thank you and apologize for what we did over a thousand years ago."
"Princess Luna, while I am touched, you have nothing to apologize for. You and your sister did what you thought best. No knowledge of my circumstances is hardly anything to stay mad at."
"Never the less, you will be compensated. We have commissioned a house be built in Ponyville for you and your family. You will also retain the title of nobility and all perks contained there-in. We have tied your baking with the Canterlot treasury, so you will never want for money. We here-by name you, in addition to your other titles, Royal Secretary of Defense."
Back on the train, everyone slept. After all, they earned it. The second they sat down, they fell asleep. Sombra was smiling as he lightly snored and Clear Night snuggled against him, their daughter cuddled against pinkie. No sooner than she met the color named mare did she immediately adopt her, and her friends, as her aunts. she had also decided quickly that Auntie Pinkie was her favorite.