Secrets and lies
Dash was currently bound to a chair in the golden oaks library. Twilight simply paced back and forth, a frown on her face. Diane was Eyeing up Dash like she was a piece of meat, and Spike was nervously fidgeting in the corner, trying to read a comic book but he’d been on the same page for ten minutes.
“So...we going to talk about this?”
Dash’s gaze was locked on Diane, her eyes moving from the teeth to the hair and back on an infinite loop.
“No.” Twilight had answered the same way every time as she waited for the decree, usually, Celestia was prompt with inquiry’s like this, it was a simple request for a memory spell, the paperwork was already done, and Twilight had a standing order to wipe any memories she saw fit.
The letter to Celestia was supposed to be a formality, followed up by a prompt reply.
There was not a prompt reply this time.
Twilight looked over to Dash, she felt a bit bad from wiping her memory, but ponies have an instinctual fear of predators, Dash was more tolerant than most, but the way her gaze lingered on Diane’s red teeth showed that she was feeling it.
A belch came from Spike, vaporizing his comic and materializing a scroll.
“Finally, even I was starting to get annoyed, now we can get back on track.” Twilight opened the scroll, just to confirm that she got permission as she prepared the spell.
Permission Denied under code 1 clause 1.A-
Now that that was settled a simple tweak to the memory spell to adjust for passed time...
Wait.
Blinking a few times she looked back to the scroll, her spell fizzling away as it dissipated into harmless mana.
“Denied? Wha..but… Werewolves are a class A secret, same as Vampires, but arguably more thorny of an issue. Why was it denied?”
She reads further.
Permission Denied under code 1 clause 1.A
While your initial reaction was correct, after conversing with my sister a fair bit, we believe that Dash can be of use to you in your mission, she’s shown remarkable tolerance toward carnivores in the past, see the report on Gilda.
Taking into account her abilities, we believe she could be an asset, as well as an experiment on whether we should remove the restrictions on data about Werewolves, this latest issue is proving more of a hassle than we previously believed possible, vampirism is slowly becoming common knowledge in isolated pockets to see the effects. (Cadence’s idea, please don’t call another Eclipse in response)
We are aware that Rainbow Dash does not have formal combat training, but reports show she’s a quick learner, her combat strength is still an issue though, and with such powerful foes ahead you are being given permission for something that is arriving as soon as it gets my sister’s stamp.
“Permission? A simple memory spell would fix this whole issue!” The sudden urge to rip up the scroll is interrupted by another belch.
A second scroll came from Spike, this one with Luna’s seal on it.
Her irritation increasing by the minute she opened this scroll a bit rougher than she was supposed to, tearing a bit of parchment away when she improperly broke the seal.
Permission to Turn Rainbow Dash into a vampire is granted, while we believe this should be done as a last resort, Rainbow may need the power boost. (also, from the reports we have, she may be very receptive to the transformation.)
As for a cure, the curse is tricky and was designed not to be reversed, progress is slow, and of course, it would be fatal if used on you anyway.
If this is done, there is little chance she can be turned back, even if she is your progeny. The effects of mine and my sister’s blood on the curse is still being researched.
As always, use your best judgment.
-La Lune
Luna
Twilight simply sits down, the shock stopping her mental faculties for a moment.
“OOOOh, looks like we got something spicy…” Diane smiles from over Twilights’ shoulder. “Seems the memory spell request was denied, and on top of that…”
With a swagger that was very much not Pinkie pie Diane approaches Dash and gives her a predatory smile. “Seems Luna approved of a transformation… tell me Dashie, would you prefer to be a werewolf…” She leans in, close to Dash’s ear, and causes the pegasus to shiver.
“Or a Vampire?”
“What?!”
The expression on Dash’s face goes through a gamut of emotions, excitement, fear, hope…
Diane was momentarily forgotten. “You know how many times I’ve asked for this?”
Twilight sighed, massaging her temples with her hooves. “Fifteen times. Six on the first night four directly, two indirectly. Four the following night. After the initial large number of requests, it slowed down to about one a day, mostly indirectly. I could call one of the agents to submit the full observation report if you like.”
Dash simply stared, her mouth open in shock.
She eventually collected herself enough to reply. “I expected it to be much higher, and I don’t need the reports…” It was still taking her some time to process that she’s still being watched, even after becoming Twilight’s friend.
After thinking for a few moments she got an idea and smiled. “Director Twilight sparkle, I formally request to become a vampire.”
“Deni-” Twilight stopped herself, her gaze flickering to the scroll, it’s blue royal seal still intact.
She doesn’t answer for several moments, the longer she took, the more Dash was trying to give her puppy dog eyes.
Not that it would factor into Twilights’ decision, but she couldn’t think of anything else to try.
Moving closer Twilight stared into Dash’s eyes, her voice deadly serious. “Progress on a cure is slow, and there’s little chance you can ever go back to being a pony. You’re going to become a predator in a society that doesn’t accept them, you’re going to be tempted constantly to give into your baser desires, Vampires are a weapon. One designed to win a war. Heck, the only weapon that would be worse is a werewolf.”
She gestured toward Diane. “Werewolves were a two-pronged attack, once infected the curse doesn’t manifest for awhile, and when it does you go into a frenzy and kill everything around you to feed your new hunger for meat. And it’s pony meat specifically too.”
Twilight rose to her full height. “Rainbow Dash. Do you accept this curse? There is no going bac-”
“Yes.” Dash’s expression started out full of wonder, but now it’s simply confident, with a tinge of defiance too.”
“You’re going to regret this, sooner than you think I imagine.”
Before Dash could reply, Twilight vanished from her sight, soon a familiar pain in her neck caused her to gasp. She looked down and saw Twilight latched onto her neck, in the perfect position to drink her blood with every heartbeat.
This isn’t so bad...the feeling is starting already too….
It takes several moments before the panic set in. Wait...she’s not stopping...is she…
Right. Vampires are dead. Even though she tried to accept this, her heart still started hammering faster, and faster, her survival instincts fighting furiously against the sense of peace Twilight’s bite was giving her.
It didn’t take any more than thirty seconds, Dash’s last breath fades and she slumps in the chair.
Twilight for her part is cursing at herself.
She had no idea what she was doing, she didn’t bother reading up on how to create a fledgling, never expecting to need this knowledge.
She hadn’t even requested the information yet, she planned to read up on this on her way to Wulfs Clan in case she needed it to save somepony.
Also, Dash was delicious. She figured her instincts would take over, and lead her from here, but nothing was forthcoming, feeding on Dash till she died was the logical choice, but her body was quickly growing cold, and no changes to speak of.
This was bad, if something wasn’t done soon, she would have just killed someone she considered a friend.
With a start, a memory was dredged up, of Celestia’s shocked expression when she found Trixie.
Twilight was beginning to understand what Celestia was going through when she saw that.
A belch from Spike broke her from her downward spiral, she didn’t even notice her fur standing on end, she snatched the scroll from the air and read it.
Procedure to turn someone into a Fledgling:
Step one, Drain the victim of blood, if they are already dead, skip this step.
Addendum: Draining somepony dry would make a vampire, but it would be a feral vampire, one without most higher functions known as a ‘bloodrager’. This process takes 12 hours, and they immediately frenzy, killing anything in their vicinity. This was designed as a ‘sleeping bomb’ for Celestia’s army, as I knew they would want to honor their dead.
Step two, Give them some of your own blood, biting your inner cheek, and giving it via mouth to mouth contact is the traditional method since True Progeny are often lovers or more than mere servants.
Slicing a hoof and using that works as well since they are dead already just a little bit in their mouth will suffice, the cursed blood will do its work on its own.
Addendum 2: This process is longer than the first one, as it’s more powerful. It takes roughly 36 hours and when they awake they have a high likelihood of frenzying as well. They will have the Thirst and will seek to quench it if possible. Strong-willed ponies have been known to resist the temptation, but never for long.
I had a feeling you might be needing this Twilight, it should work as long as you administer the blood within two and a half hours, much longer than that and they stiffen, making it difficult for the blood to spread.
I’ll send more if I remember something, it feels like I missed something, I’m looking through my notes now.
Luna
She closed the scroll and sighed, problem solved.
Also, it seems Twilight was exceedingly lucky that she stayed in the same room as her vampire. She wound up drinking some of it’s blood during her frenzy when her first ‘meal’ got his blood mixed with that of the other vampire.
If it wasn’t for that she would have had to be put down, likely by Celestia herself.
She’s not kissing Rainbow Dash though, there’s a chance that eventually she would be attracted to the Mare, but at the moment that’s not her priority, one step at a time.
Having emotions was still new to her, far too new for her to tell the difference between a platonic and a romantic relationship.
Speaking of steps... Twilight sliced a gash on her hoof with a small bit of shadow, holding the appendage to Dash’s mouth.
How much blood was appropriate? It was getting harder to think, couldn’t go wrong with more she supposed. The energy she got from Dash was already seeking an outlet, her head growing fuzzier as she simply let more and more blood drip into her mouth as she heard another Belch from Spike.
Opening this scroll…
Huh, this one is simply flat, and not rolled, almost done in haste.
Don’t give her too much blood! A few drops should be enough, the more blood you give, the stronger the progeny, and the more difficulty the new vampire will have getting used to their body!
Not to mention that your blood is already incredibly potent as it contains mine and Tia’s blood mixed into it. Two drops would be pushing it.
Twilight looked down, and Dash’s mouth was already completely full of blood, some of it was already heading down her throat.
Well, that’s an issue. She pulled her hoof back, letting her body take over and heal the wound. No matter some magic to remove the...oh, it’s already gone. Twilight even opened Dash’s mouth and she could see the blood being absorbed into her cells, it looked like tendrils of shadow as the cell walls began to change.
The longer things went on the harder it was for Twilight to think, she started to fidget, her hair standing more and more on edge.
Like static electricity.
Oh...Dash’s blood was very potent, and it was filling her with excess energy.
She needed to burn it off.
She already had a destination in mind.
Diane blinked, one-moment Twilight was here, and another there’s a note on the floor, the door’s open and she’s gone, She only noticed something was amiss when she was hit by the wind of Twilight leaving.
She’s even faster than me, and that’s saying something.
Dang it, now I’m regretting not being able to eat Dash’s delicious pegasus wings…
Pegasus wings were her favorite, just the right amount of crunch and that succulent meat...
Dang it, she just ate and now she was drooling. As she wiped her mouth something occurred to her.
“Huh….she didn’t even teleport.” She glanced down at the note and read a simple ‘Take care of Dash’ written on it.
Oh? Well then, not much you can do with a corpse, but she supposed she could have a little fun… As she approached Dash with a smirk on her face another letter pops into existence between her and Dash.
“NOT THAT KIND OF TAKE CARE!”
Shoot, she was hoping to rub that in her face later, oh well. During her deliberations, Spike had positioned himself between Her and Dash. “Shouldn’t we get her out of sunlight?”
Time’s up Diane.
What? You said I could have some extra to make up for killing our toy early.
That’s correct, you’ve had an extra hour, and while watching you tempt Twilight is entertaining, I do believe the situation calls for me.
Don’t worry, I have a feeling that Fang won’t really agree to an honorable fight, we can use that and have some...fun.
Hasn’t it been awhile since you had a partner that wouldn’t die of shock?
Fine, but I’ll want two days with him.
Acceptable.
With that discussion over, Mena’s mane began to flatten, her suggestive pose moving to a more neutral one.
Seeing this Spike sighed and began writing a letter, when he was done he turned to Mena as he sent it to Celestia. “Good to see you again, I may not agree with what you do in your Territory, but it’s better than I expected to be honest. Are you sure you’re not going to accept more work from Section Three? Twilight’s the only Omega Breaker we currently have.”
“Thanks but no thanks, while I see the value in your government policies, I’m too much of a monster to satisfy my needs without executing the ponies I break.” She smiled. “I can’t savor all those tiny little emotions as they slowly die…”
Spike shuddered as another belch erupted into green fire. He grabbed the letter from the air and took a quick read.
Sorry Spike, but Luna and I are currently reading your Comic book, we shall send it back when we’re done, the art has really improved over the years.
One moment, Twilight has arrived, oh dear, it seems she ran all the way here.
With a Sigh, Spike sat back down and looked at Dash’s corpse.
“We have a coffin to use to shield her from sunlight, Twilight had it delivered expecting to need it.” he looked around and spoke to the empty air. “ Mr black, would you mind giving me a list of Disharmonic that can be executed with minimal loss? Ones close by will suffice.
There’s no reply for a long moment until a Note appears in Spike’s claw. He looked through the list.
Lyra: illegal immigration from Seaquestria.
Bonbon: Defecting from Section Two after a ‘bugbear’ incident. (low priority, waiting for her to lead us to conspirators)
Roseluck: general hysteria, operations in town are limited because of her overreactions.
Quarrel: Griffon Spy trying to gain information on Mena. (so far Mena’s just toyed with him.)
Guarra: Quarrel’s lover that seems to be trying to gain citizenship. (awaiting approval)
Spoiled rich: Too ambitious, typical class C social climber, awaiting Celestia’s verdict.
Spike folded the letter and made a decision. “Bring Roseluck here, make sure she’s not dehydrated, she needs to survive at least 36 hours without food or water.”
~~~~~
Twilight wasn’t out of breath, as vampires don’t feel fatigue the same way others do, but she had used up most of the blood that she got from Dash. her mind was clearer and it was much easier for her to think.
“Sorry, Dash’s blood was rather potent, I had to burn off the energy.”
Celestia and Luna were looking at her, a comic book between them, Luna looked understanding but Celestia’s was just surprised, the trail of a letter being sent leaving the room
“I...may have gotten your message too late Luna, I gave Dash about two mouthfuls of blood before I stopped, and It was hard to remove it when I couldn’t think, it kinda just...vanished on me.
Luna sighed, rubbing her brow for a moment with a hoof. “It can’t be helped then, her transformation’s going to be rather difficult to adjust to, make sure she has some fresh blood when she wakes up, I estimate…..” She tapped her chin with a hoof. “Roughly 24 hours before she’ll need to feed, in her state I don’t expect the one she feeds from to survive, Cut off the head and burn the body after she’s finished, so we don’t have a Bloodrager on our hooves to deal with too.
Twilight nodded. “Noted, should probably get her into someplace dark for the time being, I think I have a spare coffin at the library I didn’t end up using, normal beds are...difficult to adjust to after so many centuries.”
A bark of laughter escaped Luna’s lips. “You actually slept in a coffin for nine hundred years?! Usually, vampires simply move underground after a decade of using coffins, while they are meant to feel at home inside a coffin, they eventually succumb to claustrophobia and stop at some point.”
Twilight almost looked embarrassed. “I...didn’t have much reason to do otherwise, and after running Section Three for so long, it seemed like I was fulfilling a role.” She looked sideways for a bit. “Though, it did help to keep the staff in line, when your boss is a vampire, gives her words more weight.”
Celestia simply smiled. “Come, since you’re here, could you explain who the mane-iac is based on? I find it oddly similar to my own mane, though I’ve never had quite as much control over it as Lulu.”
“Sister! Not when we have company! Or would you rather I do something to embarrass you, Tia?”
Celestia laughed again. “I wouldn’t mind it at all, see how she puffs up her cheeks when angry? It truly has been too long.”
~~~~~
By the time Spike had moved Dash into Twilight's spare coffin Roseluck had been delivered to the library, along with a rather Irate Twilight.
“Special Operative Spike Sparkle.”
Hearing his full name and title Spike stiffened. Mena simply snickered, her expression moved quickly from bored to interested.
“Why am I getting reports that you ordered around EIS personnel? You are a Special Operative and have no official duties in any of the sections. You overstep your bounds.”
Spike held up his claws in a placating gesture “I know, I’m hoping to prove my worth, and give me an official position some time, just...look over my decisions before you veto them.”
At this Twilight paused, getting a note from somewhere. She frowned as her eyes roam over the parchment. She looked from the list of Disharmonic and back to Roseluck, the pony was very much still conscious and seemed to realize they were in danger. A muffled “The horror!” came from her gagged mouth.
“I deem your choices acceptable, and according to Luna, Rainbow will need some help getting used to her body.” She looked at the open air. “Make the preparations, I want Roseluck’s stand removed and all requisite memories wiped, Roseluck is Erased.”
A “Confirmed.” Came from the empty air, and Twilight lifted Roseluck into the air, her magic slightly different than before, containing a blue sheen to it instead of the usual crimson.
The terrified earth pony’s last view was of Dash’s corpse resting in the coffin. With a soft thud, the lid is closed and bound with magic.
~~~~~
Roseluck’s day was going horribly. Not only did she find a bent stem on a premiere rose, but she was also bound and gagged and dragged to that new mare’s house.
Try as she might, Roseluck couldn’t struggle, and nopony seemed to be noticing that she’s being dragged through town right next to them.
Screaming hasn’t worked, flailing is next.
No, that didn’t work either.
What other options are there? She’s never even heard of somepony being captured against their will before.
Is there a word for that? It feels like there should be a word for that.
No, nevermind. No reason to have a word for something that’s so infrequent.
Wonder what’s going to happen.
A tense discussion with Twilight and that purple dragon and Roseluck is shoved into a coffin with Rainbow Dash.
A very dead Rainbow Dash.
Her skin was cold, she still smelled like ozone.
It was too much, Roseluck passed out.
Sometime later she came to, the coffin was moving like it was being carried somewhere.
Ugh, She can still feel the cold form of Dash pressing against her, how long has it been? Is she just going to die like Dash inside this coffin? If so, why was it so small. It’s clearly meant for one pony.
Ugh, something is uncomfortable, she wiggled a bit, getting one of Dash’s wings to twitch from the sensation.
Wait.
Did...did Dash just move?
Did a corpse just move?
She passed out again.
She was getting tired of this, it felt like a lot of time had passed. Her throat was becoming dry.
At least Dash stopped moving a moment ago, felt like she was waking up from something.
“Roseluck? Why are you…”
How Dash could tell it was her was not at the forefront of her mind at the moment.
Dash moved a bit, trying to escape but only ended up crushing Roseluck, at her pained yelp She stopped.
“Sorry!”
Dash stopped moving, but now she seemed to be sniffing the air.
“Why do you smell so…” Roseluck could hear her lick her lips.
“Oh...”
Dash went quiet for a moment, still sniffing. Rosluck’s scent was absolutely intoxicating, she knew what her body wanted, the dryness in her throat being overpowered by a feeling deep within her chest.
“I’m… I’m sorry. I...I can’t.” the urge was getting stronger and stronger, did ponies really smell this good to Twilight?
Dash moved her head, driven by instinct to Rosluck’s neck, the terrified ponies heartbeat pounding in Dash’s ears.
Warning bells were ringing in Roseluck’s head, her heart hammered in her chest, trying to give her the energy to escape or fight the danger.
“Please, I can hear your heart. It’s too tempting. I don’t want to….” That was a lie. Dash had never wanted anything more in her entire life, her mouth was dry, and she knew exactly what would fix that.
Does Twilight live with this? She should have listened...” This was meant to be romantic, like the stories she kept in a hidden box under her bed.
By this point Roselucks' senses had well and truly left her, she was thrashing, trying to get out.
Out of this coffin, out of this situation.
A whispered. “I’m sorry.” Is the last thing she heard, a pain in her neck shocking her into going still.
Just a little, I’ve never been so thirsty in my life. Why does this taste so good? One more and I’m done, just a bit more.
She tastes like roses.
She’s getting weak, her heart is slowing down, I have to stop, this is the last one.
Wait, I didn't appreciate it enough, one more...
Why can’t I stop? I know what will happen if I continue, but I can’t stop.
Come on, you hold a life in your hooves, back off! Stop drinking this delicious blood and back off!
Good, you’ve slowed the pulling of blood, now pull back.
With all her willpower Dash tried to stop, to open her jaws and stop pulling blood into it
Her body refused to let her.
I should have listened to Twilight.
I was an idiot.
Roseluck stopped breathing to Dash’s internal screams.
Soon after the heartbeat was gone.
Dash never expected she’d ever kill someone.
Now she wished her memory was wiped instead of living with this knowledge.
Some undetermined time later the coffin is opened, Stars coming into view above, framing Luna’s moon.
She was still clutching Roseluck’s body, Dash’s coat had darkened, her ears growing longer and more tuft, her wings were no longer feathered, now looking batlike, the coffin was littered with her shed feathers.
She hadn’t even felt them falling out, she was too preoccupied with what she’d done.
Her magenta eyes now shown bright crimson, normally she wouldn’t have been able to see in such darkness, but she could see Twilight’s understanding expression clearly.
She could also see Rosluck when she was in the coffin.
Could see her dead eyes, still frozen in fear.
An aura grabbed Roseluck, Dash tried to hold on to her, feeling protective but with a clever twist and a pull Twilight successfully freed the body, a hum of magic later and Roseluck’s head fell to the ground with a soft thud.
Dash had drunk every last drop of her blood, nothing even dripped from the severed head.
To Dash’s shock, the body was then set aflame, burning to nothing but cinders in a matter of moments.
“Wha…”
This was wrong, she needed to be treated with respect. She didn’t deserve this!
“I’m sorry, but it’s to prevent her from rising as a bloodrager. Or would you rather have a feral Vampire killing and drinking with utter abandon?”
“Well no…” Dash knew all too well the strength of the desire now, even after killing Roseluck, the hunger’s still there, gnawing at her from the inside. “It’s just….”
“Don’t worry about it, Preparations are already underway to Erase Roseluck, do you wish for me to wipe your memories of her as well?”
This was worse, not only did Dash fail to control herself and kill somepony, she’s not going to be punished in the slightest.
She was regretting thinking she wanted to forget now, it would mean nobody would ever remember her. Wait...
Thinking about it, it seemed like it was expected that she’d kill this pony. “Did you know?”
Twilight nodded. “Yes, we went through a list of Disharmonic and decided this was the best option to preserve Harmony. You needed blood to finish the transformation and sustain yourself. Win-win. Roseluck was going to be erased at some point I believe, though the decision was still being worked on. I ask one more time, do you wish for your memory to be wiped as well.”
Twilight was serious, she also wasn’t lying to her. Dash wasn’t sure about how things were being run, but she couldn’t deny that Harmony was best.
It still felt wrong. “No, It was a wake-up call, a lesson to keep control. Even if everyone forgets her, I do want to remember, I didn’t know her well, but I didn’t dislike her.”
Dash looked down at the ashes that were once a pony. “Is...it wrong to say she was delicious? I had no idea how strong the urge was, I can still remember the taste…”
“Yes and no, everypony tastes different from my experience, for example, you tasted like bottled lightning Rainbow.”
“Please, just call me Dash, I think we’re way past first names at this point.”
“I’m not so sure about that...Dash, we’ve got a lot of work to do to get you into fighting shape before our meeting in two weeks, You’ll find I can be a very strict taskmaster.”
Behind Twilight Dash saw a grin on Pinkie’s face.
A very unfriendly grin.
This was going to hurt.