Pony Mesa Inbound

Prologue

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The days of summer in Equestria wrought heat from Celestia's sun, burning from its surface to radiate in waves upon the surface. The heat dispersed to the far reaches of Equestria, beyond the lands that most ponies know, bound to nothing but the unknown edge that only the bravest of ponies sought, and no pony ever found.

In the center lay Ponyville: Rural. Wooden. Commonplace. Yet homely. Filled with ponies conversing and relaxing within the cool comfort of their homes. They sought refuge from the forge of fire above them, emerging infrequently lest the sky be populated with the protective cloud cover of the pegasus community.

To the west, away from the darkness of the Everfree Forest, lay the Great Mountains of Equestria, bounding the town from the western deserts, reaching like fingers of a forbidding hand, fogged in the distance: Unreachable. Impenetrable. Seen, but rarely considered. It was here that the legend of the sleeping dragon originated. It was here from which few returned.

Beyond the mountains, reachable only by a narrow path traversed by train, lay a vast desert. Here the flames of the celestial fireball licked the earth, scorching the sand, ripping the skin of the inexperienced traveler. Those who lived in these parts were calloused, desensitized, and layered with an armor of hide as thick and rough as dragon scales. The furthest known town in these parts was Appleloosa: Rickety. Barren. Unforgiving. Merely stepping outside threatened to blind you from the glare off the sand. Dust storms swept through like locust swarms, and just as deadly. Few ventured beyond this point. There was seldom any need.

But there was another place...

Beyond the disheveled town, hidden in the bowels of the desert where the rivers had dug out great canyons and rifts—where the terrain became unsurpassable—where even the native creatures themselves struggled to survive—there was a facility. Here, the sun showered its rays upon a graveyard: a cesspit of sand and rock and bones, where the only sign of life was scattered in the form of metallic structure.

The facility was built almost entirely underground, hidden away from the death and decay above it. Like a creature hibernating in the sand, only bits and pieces could be seen extending above the sand, like toes and fingers extending up just enough to remind the world that it was still there.

It was here that Twilight Sparkle—student and apprentice of Princess Celestia—traveled from her home in Canterlot, and the comfort of the two royal sisters. It was here that she would start her life of scientific and magical discovery. And, in a twist of fate, it was here that she would discover the most powerful force—beyond magic or science—within the bounds of Equestria:

Friendship.

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Twilight was asleep, her face illuminated by the red glow of the digital clock display next to her bed. A small pool of saliva dampened her white pillow as it migrated out of her open mouth. Every so often, she would quiver slightly: a remnant of the excitement from the previous evening.

The darkened room around her was lit only by the hallway light, which seeped through the crack under her door on the wall opposite the bed, casting shadows on the hard-tile floor. To the left, a desk lined the wall, now home to supplies which Twilight had hastily thrown down upon entering the dorm room, and which she was too tired to put in their proper place. None of the drawers of the desk had been filled yet, and the room still carried the unnaturally clean smell of a room that had been unoccupied for a long time.

The most prominent item on the desk was a piece of parchment, laying precariously on top of the supplies on the table, and adorned with fluid cursive writing.

Dear Twilight Sparkle,

It fills my heart with great joy and triumph to hear that you have found a place to contribute to Equestria. I haven't heard much about Pony Mesa, but I trust it will hold many great things for you and your future. While I am sure you will miss many things about your old home here in Canterlot, it is my greatest wish that you look only forward, and seek out all that Pony Mesa can bring to you.

I recognize your concern about my agreement with the western edge of Equestria, and realize that by moving beyond the mountains, I will no longer be able to contact you. I have been working hard to remedy this, but it will probably not be resolved in your lifetime, unfortunately. I can only give you my most sincere hopes, and remind you that I will always be here to help, should you ever return.

I wish you all the best in your new life at Pony Mesa.

Forever Your Mentor,
Princess Celestia

Twilight had kept this note close to her, and read through it many times during her journey. It was now one of her closest possessions, second only to one other, which was sitting at the foot of her bed.

A wicker basket shined dully against the incoming hallway light, just in front of the bed. A small set of sheets and bedding had been placed lovingly inside, forming a makeshift crib. Inside, sleeping soundly and surprisingly quietly, rested her dear baby dragon Spike. His head peeked out from under the sheets, and was sunk deeply into a small pillow. The light from the door had threatened to shine over the basket rim but stopped just short, keeping the slumbering form in darkened silhouette.

Twilight had struggled with Spike's role in her new job. Letters passed back and forth, friends were consulted, and even the Princess had given some advice. Yet, in the end, Twilight decided she would rather give up her opportunity at Pony Mesa rather than separate herself from him. He was, after all, her number-one-assistant, and she would keep it that way as long as she had any say in the matter.

As for Pony Mesa, dragons had never even approached the facility before—not even infants. Dragons were not like ponies. They had different mentalities and physicalities that made them special, and Pony Mesa immediately considered advantageous possibilities to having a dragon on staff. This had surprised Twilight, who had yet to fully understand the degree of separation the facility had from traditional ethical values. From what Twilight gathered, Pony Mesa didn't seem to care how young Spike was, or how mature. It was his physical traits and abilities they looked at. They cared about nothing else.

Of course, Twilight didn't mind agreeing to most of this. In fact, she preferred keeping Spike by her side as much as possible. She had no other pony to look after him while she was at work, and leaving Spike alone for hours at a time in the dormitory seemed almost cruel. In fact, as her assistant, Twilight was sure Spike would feel just as comfortable in a laboratory as he would in her bedroom.

Twilight's body convulsed, causing a disruption in her sheets. Spike was undisturbed, and the rest of the room remained quiet, but Twilight was now aware of her surroundings, despite not having moved from her restful position on her side. Her eyes were still closed, and for a few moments, she tried sinking back into the dream she was having. She forced back the image of Spike placing the beaker on the Bunsen burner. Why Spike was placing a beaker on the Bunsen burner was beyond her, but at a point, she didn't care. It was a dream. Dreams didn't have to make any sense.

The image of Spike floated in her eyes for a moment as she realized she was simply becoming more conscious. She really wanted more sleep. This was a big day! But the excitement, and the anticipation, and the rush from last night was coming back, and Twilight couldn't force herself to relax. She rolled on her back and opened her eyes.

A cold, clammy feeling surrounded her as she realized her sheets were damp from sweat. She moved around a bit, fighting to get away from the moistest parts, but realized quickly that most of the bed was simply drenched.

"ew... eww, eww, eww-ewww-ewweww!" she spurted, thrashing her sheets around like waves as she fought to the other side of the bed.

One final cascade of sheets later and she was out of the bed entirely, her hooves hitting the cold hard floor. For a moment she stood there, breathing nervously and staring at the sheets. She could still smell the lingering saltiness. She had remembered something like this happening before, but never this bad.

Was I really that restless? she thought.

The top sheet had been folded over now, so part of the bottom sheet was exposed. Twilight couldn't quite see what parts were contaminated in the darkness of the room. All she saw were the white sheets dimly grey in the ambient light. She analyzed the various possibilities for continuing sleep, trying to feel with her hooves for which parts of the sheets were worst. Of course, she could always just climb on top of the comforter, but then there was also the matter of the pillow.

What time is it? she thought, walking around the foot of the bed, careful not to trip over the basket. The glare of the digital display made her blink a few times as the numbers came into focus.

7:34

She turned back towards the bed on her left.

Screw it, she thought. I'll just take a shower.

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Pony Mesa's Dormitories were laid out uncomfortably like a physician's office. Hallways plastered with the cold fluorescent lights of the ceiling meandered like labyrinths, revealing wooden doors into other small rooms, each of which probably contained another pony, sound asleep. Twilight carried herself quietly, in case there were others like herself still trying to squeeze in a few more minutes of sleep. She was careful not to drop her small basket of toiletries levitated in front of her. She had never showered anywhere besides her own tower in Canterlot before now. The act of carrying a basket with her was alien, and made her all the more aware of her unfamiliar surroundings. This place was quite large, even by Canterlot standards.

She found the knobless door to the facilities, lit her horn, and pushed it open quietly, as if she didn't want any other ponies knowing she was there. Of course, what she was doing was perfectly normal. Everypony did this. Right? Unless she was doing something wrong. The thought made her look down into the basket just to be sure she didn't miss anything. Did ponies wear towels in these situations?

As the door opened, the reverberating cascade of water in the distance informed her there was one other occupant in the shower stalls. She glanced quickly to the stalls on the right, just to be sure some pony wouldn't stagger out in front of her. Dampness chewed at her hooves as she traversed the section, compliments of the recent mopping performed on the floor not more than an hour before. The bronze-colored tiles beneath her hooves were much smaller than the tiles of the hallway, and raised so as to provide rivets for the water to seep into, but she could still sense droplets lingering on the tops of many of the tiles. It was so much more harsh than the facilities in her home tower. She wasn't used to the steep echo.

She stepped into the second section, lined with individual shower stalls, and sighed quietly to herself as she saw they all had curtains. Of course, if she felt more daring, there was always the room at the L-Bend between these two rooms that was surrounded by shower heads, without so much as a set of dividers. However, Twilight thought she would put this off until she felt a bit braver.

Steam wafted from the used stall, and the humidity relaxed her as she picked out the stall furthest to the right: as far away from the used one as possible. She stared at the single lever on the wall, and wondered how to control the flow. The temperature was definitely controlled by turning it, but where was the on-switch?

She reluctantly reached out a hoof, and pulled it off to the side, only to cry out from a torrent of icy water. She jumped up on her hooves, and hopped around a few times.

Ow. Ow! Owww!

She waved her hoof at the lever, and gave it a mock-punch out of frustration as the water started to warm up. As she stepped up to it, she prodded it with her hoof to the left and right, and noticed the temperature changed, but the flow didn't. Even pressing it didn't do anything.

Stupid Controls, she thought.

When at last she found a comfortable temperature, she settled back and let the water run over her. After a few deep breaths, she was surprised at how much more comfortable she was feeling. The tiled floor against her hooves felt different, of course, and the curtain behind her was raised slightly so her hooves were visible. However, the water itself was just as familiar. She moved around a bit under the shower head, letting the striking warmth snake around her body: on her head, down her back, feeling it work her muscles like the fingers of a masterful masseur. She couldn't help but close her eyes and pretend she was back in her own shower at home.

Much to her comfort, everything else went very much the same as it did back home, and she found herself quite relaxed as she stepped back into the hallway. She even used the same drying spells she had practiced, so she wouldn't have to shiver in the cold air.

I think it's probably time to wake up Spike, she thought. I wonder if he slept any better than I did.

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Light seeped in as Twilight opened the door. She was careful to open the door just enough for her to enter, watching carefully so that none of the light swept over Spike's basket. She placed her hygienics on the cluttered desk, and walked quietly over to the sleeping dragon.

"Spike," she whispered quietly, placing her front hoof gently on the dragon's head. "Spike, it's time to get up now."

Spike stirred slightly as Twilight looked around at the clock.

7:56

Still plenty of time, she thought, heading to the closet door on the right-side of the room. She reached in and pulled something out. She had been looking forward to this moment. It was a real, honest, official lab coat. All hers! She had worn it back in Canterlot at every opportunity she got, ever since she received the acceptance letter. It was her business suit, her tuxedo, her most fashionable dress—nothing else made her feel more superior.

She couldn't help but feel exceptional as she slipped it on. She had made it! Twilight walked up to the desk and playfully levitated a clipboard and pencil, pretending to jot down important notes.

And if you see here, Dr. Cornwell, she thought to herself, the invariant response to this particular nuclear instability clearly points to evidence supporting a new form of energy.

In that darkened room, her thoughts went out to new discoveries, all under her name. Prizes were offered to her left and right. Prestigious recognitions were plastered on her walls. Before she knew it, she was back in Canterlot, being praised by nobility for her monumental contributions to society. And, of course, Princess Celestia was there, showering her with a barrage of compliments, each one dignifying her more and more as the best student to have received a scientific education in Canterlot in the history of Equestria.

Spike snore loudly.

"Oh, Spike," Twilight said, walking back over to the basket and prodding the dragon's head with her hoof. "Spike, really. You've slept long enough."

Spike stirred, his head bobbing on his pillow as it dodge Twilight's hoof.

"Okay. Okay! Okay!" he said, flinging his arms out and batting away at Twilight's prodding hoof. "Fine! I'm up."

Twilight watched as the dragon sat up, rubbing his huge eyes. She could never quite overcome just how cute he was when he was tired.

She walked over to the door and flipped the light switch, causing an explosion of fluorescent light to cascade from the ceiling.

"AHH! Twilight! Really!" Spike buried his head face-first in his pillow. "Warn me when you're going to do that!"

"Hehe, sorry Spike," Twilight giggled. She didn't bother mentioning the guilty pleasure she got from Spike's reaction.

Twilight walked over to her desk and levitated a printed sheet of paper. It was rather formal, and detailed many important aspects of her new job: most importantly, the schedule. The tram she wanted left at 8:12 sharp, giving her a solid ten minutes to reach the station. Of course, that was no problem for her. She had already been to the tram station a few times the day before.

"Where are we going for breakfast?" Spike mumbled as he stumbled out of the basket.

Twilight felt her eyes widen at this. They quickly went back to the schedule and darted across every page. Her horn sparked to life, and the pages rusted and flipped from one page to the next.

"I... uh..." she stammered, getting more flustered by the second. "S-Sorry, Spike?" She turned around, finally realizing they had just slept through what little time they had had. She was so busy thinking about the experiment schedule that she had completely forgotten she needed to eat. "Looks like we're going to have to wait for lunch this time."

"WHAAAT!" Spike yelled out. "Wait for lunch!? No way! I'm starving!"

"There's simply no time. We only have a few minutes before our train leaves."

Spike stumbled some more as he gained his balance, and walked over to the door.

Twilight giggled. "Don't worry, Spike. I'm sure there are a few gemstones laying around the break room fridge," she joked.

"They'd better." Spike rubbing the rest of the dust out of his eyes.

Twilight checked off the last of her list of supplies before magicking the door open, being sure to shut off the light and lock the door behind her.

Here we go, she thought.

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Pony Mesa was a city rivaling Cloudsdale in size, built almost entirely underground. The central connecting structure was a series of vast interweaving tunnels, like an ant farm of passages that grew out fungus-like from the core of the city, through which the transit system traversed. Many of the tunnels were the size of airplane hangars, and poorly lit from the lack of any opening to the outside.

The entrance to the dormitories, which by normal standards had the appearance of a decent-size building, hardly took up the top half of the tunnel wall. The lobby of the dormitory itself was not inside the tunnel, but just on the other side of the wall, leaving most of the architecture purely decorative. A catwalk extended from the lobby entrance, as wide as the building itself, narrowing to the station platform in the center of the tunnel: a suspended metal carpet extending from the mouth of the dorm.

Twilight and Spike shivered as they waited at the station platform, out at the edge of the catwalk. An ominous breeze rolled down the tunnel, cooled by the impressive conditioning system, and dried by the natural underground currents like those of a hollowed cavern. There was no visible end to the tunnel. The unnaturally straight metallic walls opposite the station could only be seen by the uncomfortable spherical illuminations from the built-in incandescent fixtures, none of which were bright enough to illuminate the length of the tunnel.

Twilight could see Spike shivering as he gazed down the darkness. She could understand his feeling. This place felt less like a building, and more like a monstrous organism. Twilight felt Spike press up against her foreleg, and she wrapped it around to hold him close. They could feel each other's apprehension, too entranced by the magnitude of structure to be excited by ideas of intellect. In fact, Twilight was so captured by the harsh, almost frightening beauty of the darkness before her, that she hardly noticed the train creeping up behind her, crawling silently down the rail. Its hulking and box-like shape were more akin to a large grub than a train.

Twilight backed up slightly, pulling Spike with her as the tram crept to a stop, lined perfectly with the edge of the catwalk. It was little more than a glorified metal box, lined with glassless windows. They watched as the door hissed open by itself, revealing a few steps leading to the aisle, all lined with cloth. Twilight couldn't help noting the irony of how little comfort most of the facility provided for their bare hooves, despite going through the trouble of adding some in the transport vessel.

There were only a hoofful of seats on board, and none of them were occupied. They were laid out like park benches, back-to-back on either side, leaving a small space open for handicapped ponies. Twilight took a seat at the front of the train on the left-hand side, opposite the door, holding Spike in her lap as the door swung shut. She shifted against the hard surface, again noting the irony of the lack of seat cushioning. Even the entrance had a carpet.

A subtle lurch announced the departure of the tram as Twilight and Spike watched the metal surface of the tunnel wall through the window gliding past them. A moment later, a female recorded voice sounded over the speaker system.

Good Morning, and Welcome to the Pony Mesa Transit System...

Twilight took a deep breath, going over the schedule in her head as she let the words flow over her. She had traveled very little before, mostly by balloon or train. Nothing compared to this, though. The dark, indoor journey was almost more exciting than any trip she had taken outside. Everything was so much closer, as if she could simply reach out a hoof and touch it. The only thing it was missing was a tour guide, and a good novelty book at the end. Spike, of course, was standing on her knee, smiling wide-eyed as he leaned precariously against the bottom rim.

As the tram finished the stretch of tunnel and rounded the corner, Spike let out a gasp, bringing Twilight out of her scheduling stupor. The tunnel had opened into a mouth: a cavernous beehive that even made Twilight gasp as her eyes tried to take in all the activity. She could only imagine this must have served as a nexus of transit. Multiple rails were suspended throughout the area, some of which were occupied with identical trains, and dozens of other ponies stood and walked all around the various stations. The sight was almost dizzying. She had seen plenty of grand architecture back in Canterlot, but nothing with this much movement. The thought of all the complex management and mechanics almost made her put down her schedule.

"Where do you think they all go?" Spike asked curiously, referring to all the other train rails.

Twilight shook her head. "Just... other parts of the facility," she said. "I wonder if I can get a map of this place somewhere. The layout is probably fascinating!"

The hub guided their train down a new darkened tunnel, and the walls glided smoothly past the open windows. The cool air wafted through the train as Twilight felt her inner ear compress slightly. Twilight tried to guess how deep they were as the tunnel brought them around the second corner.

Twilight had to work to hold Spike back as they entered the next room. The complex threads of tram track and corresponding trams were instead replaced by machinery: in particular, a single large contraption at the far side of the room on their left. As the train moved closer, Twilight recognized it as a mechanical arm, larger than the train itself, wielding a torch at the far end as it effortlessly sealed connecting wires and hardware on a mechanical project in front of it. Twilight tried to make out the metallic structure being constructed as she passed by, but couldn't make much out. Perhaps some sort of propulsion engine? Jet-powered, maybe? She couldn't be sure.

As the tram re-entered another tunnel, turning through a right-hand U-Turn this time, the recorded announcements continued serenely.

If you have not yet submitted your identity to the retinal clearance system, you must report to Pony Mesa personnel for processing...

"Retinal Clearance?" Twilight said towards Spike. "I didn't read anything in the acceptance letters about that!" She fidgeted, imagining being locked out of everything on her very first day. "Oh... I hope there wasn't a form I was supposed to fill out."

Spike shrugged. "Relax, Twilight," he said. "Just let someone else open the doors. You're not the only pony in the building."

Twilight took a deep breath as another room emerged, this one much longer. Unlike the previous two, Twilight could clearly see the concrete floor below them, as well as the steel-girdered ceiling above them. However, the most prominent feature of this room was the satellite rocket being assembled on the right. It was near completion, its construction mostly guided by machine. Hundreds of wires were exposed at the broken joint between the rounded head and sleek orange-decaled body, resting on the advanced scaffolding. Below them, the ground was littered with hard-hat ponies, taking measurements, driving forklifts, studying blueprints.

Twilight stared out the window. "The tram goes right through a rocket construction site?!" She turned towards Spike. "Why would they show this stuff off?! You'd think this would only be visible to the workers."

Spike was on the right-hand side of the train now, standing on a seat so he could see out.

"Who cares! When is Canterlot getting one of these things? They could make the trains obso—obsi—"

"Obsolete," Twilight finished for him. She suppressed rolling her eyes as Spike started describing the launching sites they could place next to the castle.

A circular door opening in the floor around the corner, revealing a vast manhole opening into a brightly lit array of reddish-yellow sandstone beneath the concrete floor. With a subtle lurch, the tram came to a stop on a rotary elevator, immediately descending into the rocky cavern. Twilight took note of the thickness of the concrete floor as they sunk through the hole, watching as the gray of the wall turned to the brown and yellow of the rocky cavern.

The geologist in Twilight went crazy at the sight. Nature had sculpted shapes and curves that architects could only attempt to mimic! The layers of geological stratification alone made Twilight wish she could stop the tram so she could study it. She had read about this sort of thing in books, and seen plenty of pictures, but seeing it up close was entirely different. She hadn't been this fascinated by geology since her childhood from before she lived at Canterlot. Of course, this was a long time ago.

"It's a shame they had to build through this area," she said as the tram reached the bottom of the elevator, accelerating down a new rail that extended down the rocky cave. "It took so long for all this to be formed. I wonder if they realize the damage they've done by running a track through here. You'd think a scientific community would know better."

The announcements were still playing quietly in the background.

Please keep your limbs inside the train at all times. Do not attempt to open the doors until the train has come to a complete stop at the station platform...

The natural formations of the cave gave way to an artificially carved passage of rock, supported by intervallic metal archways each with a harsh yellow light shining upon the track. Twilight could feel the air around them heating up quickly as they sped down the passageway. The rhythmic rate with which the train hissed past each arch was hypnotic, each one bringing them closer to the end of the tunnel: a wall of rock lit so brightly there was only one conclusion Twilight could use to explain it.

As the train rounded the corner, Twilight squinted as a wave of heat hit her like a blast furnace. Next to her, a blaring whirring sound swooshed, coming from the ground beneath them. As her eyes adjusted to the light, she saw the bright-blue sky to her right, a wall of rock still on her left.

"Look, Twilight!" Spike said, pointing at the source of the torrential cacophony. "Come here! Quick! You gotta see this!"

Twilight was out of her seat, squinting down at the ground beneath the train.

"Is that a heli-cop... a heleco...?" Spike struggled to yell over the sound, and his voice dwindled.

Twilight stared down at the green-black camouflage of the vehicle, sitting poised ready for flight on a helipad.

"Wait," Twilight said, "that's a military helicopter! What is the military doing here?! This is a place of research!"

She watched as what looked like a few soldier ponies trotted out of a nearby tunnel built into the plateau of rock opposite the chopper. Some were communicating with the pilot, while others stood around to talk. Twilight sunk back into her seat and grabbed Spike as the train re-entered the facility through an opening in the plateau wall in front of them.

"I'm not sure I like where this is going," she said to Spike. "Military soldiers? Here?!"

The sound of the chopper stifled and reverberated as the train curved to the right into a large concrete chamber with a massive circular doorway at the end. Warm air still wafted through the opening, but the stifling heat of the sun was subdued. A gate parted majestically as the train entered the room, slowing to a halt just before the building-sized hatch. The tram was now suspended from the railing: a transition Twilight hadn't even noticed. The announcer was also no longer speaking.

Lights emerged around the cylindrical opening, lighting the outer rim. A hazard-striped square in the center of the hatch pulled back inside the opening, revealing a square hole peering into the darkness beyond. A blast of ice froze them as the hatch split four ways, seeping lengthwise into the walls. Twilight felt bumps of cold stick up on her hide as she let out a small shiver. A rail extended from the other side of the now-open hatch, joining with the one they were on now. Another small lurch announced the emergence of the train into the new opening. Twilight heard the door seal up behind them as they reached the other side, plunging them into total impenetrable blackness.

"I wonder if the military is here for surveillance, or if this place actually hires them to test military equipment," Twilight pondered. "Either way, I hope I never have to meet them."

Spike looked up at her. "Isn't your brother part of the Equestrian military?"

"That's different!" Twilight said. She put her hoof up to retaliate, but thought better of it.

Lights flickered on as the train picked up speed again, revealing the sewer-like twisting tube before them. The announcer had chimed in again.

A reminder that the Pony Mesa Hazard Course Decathlon will commence this evening at... 1900 hours... in the level 3 facility...

More lights continued to reveal the path before them as Twilight let out a small groan at the announcement. Pony Mesa had required her to perform a mandatory "Hazard Course" as a safety regulation. As it turned out, there was very little "safety" taught in the course at all. The whole thing was just a glorified obstacle course: the obvious result of too much funding and not enough planning. If anything, the course itself needed an improvement in safety. Many parts of the course required stunts that Twilight pointed out could cause serious injury if they went wrong. And parts of it, like the firing range, were downright insipid. She was a scientist! When would she ever need to know how to fire a gun?!

A few bends later, the tube opened out into a junction. The floor of this room was like a plateau, dropping off in various places so deep Twilight couldn't see the bottom. There were no guardrails that Twilight could see, and the whole thing reeked of employee lawsuit. Another hatch was already open to the side of the room as the train twisted towards it. Twilight took note of the large railroad crossing gates on either side of the train just before they entered through the new hatch: probably some sort of passageway for cargo carriers.

The hatch closed behind them as they passed through, sealing them into another tube. The train rounded the corner to a dead end, halting over and descending down a shaft. She watched as the concrete walls brushing quickly upwards around them gave way to another dimly lit room with a strange green glow in the background. The train rail flew up past them as the train lined up below it again, accelerating down the new path.

"We should be almost there," Twilight said. A chill ran through her body as she considered where the tram might let her off. There was no telling how dangerous the place may be. The pitfalls of the previous room made her nervous.

In front of them, a large robot awkwardly walked on all-fours in front of a small vat of glowing green fluid. However, as much as her eyes were drawn towards the glow, her mind drifted left, guided by a strange presence.

What she saw was another rail, with another train suspended by it. There was only one occupant: a business pony staring out of the train. There was something not quite right about him. A briefcase hung at his side with the Pony Mesa logo, and under normal circumstances, she would have assumed he worked for the company. However, there was something more to him that she couldn't put her hoof on. It was as though he was forcefully drawing her gaze towards him.

"Twilight!" Spike suddenly yelled out, leaping onto her lap.

The unknown force dissolved, and Twilight looked out the window to see the train nearly crash into the massive robotic contraption. Both the train and the robot stopped just in time, and she felt a chill run through her body.

"Are you all right?!" Twilight exclaimed. The yellow robot pneumatically crawled spider-like down a ramp descending away from them.

Twilight glanced back at the empty train on her left.

Empty?! she thought.

Twilight shook her head, letting her mane fly out as she caught her breath. The presence she had felt before was gone.

"Are you all right, Twilight?" Spike asked. "That crash looks like it shook you up."

Twilight turned her head again and watched as the empty train slithered silently down the rail and out of sight, exiting through a tunnel at the far end of the chamber.

She forced her attention back to the robotic insectoid now crawling down a ramp into the green-glowing slime pit in front of them. The tram was now starting up again, gliding right over the substance leaking out of a massive cylindrical tank to the left. A few ticks from her suit informed her that her Geiger counter was going off.

"Radiation," Twilight said, leaning her head out the window carefully for a closer look. "And here I thought the safety procedures were lacking in the Hazard Course." She pulled back inside, shaking her head. "If they have us work with that stuff, I might just put in my resignation."

Now arriving at... Sector C Test Labs and Control Facilities!

Twilight's head shot up at this. The tram was fast catching up with another catwalk, just like the one back at the dormitories. As it finally reached it, Twilight felt the train come to one last final halt before everything went still.

The announcer piped up again as the security pony noticed them and started walking over to them.

Please stand back from the automated door, and wait for a security officer to verify your identity.

"This is it, Spike! This is it, this is it—"

Twilight was suddenly very jumpy as she watched the guard approach the train. Thoughts and worries raced through her mind.

Am I good? Will he recognize me? What if he doesn't recognize me? Does he expect paperwork? What about Spike? What if he doesn't allow Spike? What if I get in trouble because of Spike? What if—

"Morning, Miss Twilight!" the guard spoke through the door.

Twilight involuntarily jumped as the guard reached a hoof up to open the train door.

"Uh... hi!" she said nervously, having no idea what to say. "It's my first day. You know... scientist and all..."

Stupid, she thought. He knows you're a scientist. Stupid, stupid, stupid...

As the door hissed open, Twilight could see the guard now very clearly. He was a black pony, sturdily built and wearing a thick purple uniform. A gray round helmet was mounted on his head, sporting a small cross-hair at the front. Twilight's eyes went to the firearm mounted on his shoulder and recognized it as the same mechanism she was taught in the firing range: a small pistol controlled by a subtle switch in one of the hoof gloves.

"Ah! And this must be Spike," he said as Twilight lead her baby dragon off the train. "I can't say that I've ever seen a baby dragon before. Is he here as an experiment for the scientists?"

Twilight had to fight back an angry insulted response. Did he really think she had brought a baby dragon here just to act as a guinea pig?

"Actually, he's my assistant," she corrected him. "He always helps me out, you know, with small tasks and whatnot."

Spike smiled boldly as the guard peered down at him.

"Well, we always welcome more help," he said, leading them up to the door. "Just don't go getting in trouble, young man," he joked.

The catwalk led up to what could only be described as an enormous metal box embedded in the side of the wall. There were no windows in the structure, and the only entrance she could see was a large door built to split into two parts vertically, their lips crested with hazard stripes. The guard escorted both of them up to the doors, before stepping up to the control system to the left of the door to punch in a code with his hoof.

Twilight heard the code take as the system whirred to life. Gears turned and bumped behind the walls, computers chimed acceptance, and before she knew it, Twilight was watching enormous pistons sliding open along the front of the giant doors, finishing with a satisfying crunch of metal-on-metal.

Sliding open with a loud hiss and pop of slamming metal, the doors revealed an entrance tunnel leading straight into the labs.

"You have a good day, miss," the guard said turning to them.

Twilight turned to look at the blue-colored tunnel, its floor grate revealing an array of pipes beneath it. Lights shined in on it, and Twilight felt an incessant pounding in her chest as she considered what awaited them on the other side. She was shuddered from excitement.

She peered down at Spike, smiled, and suddenly felt a bit calmer about the whole experience. No matter what awaited her at the end of that tunnel, Spike would always be by her side. It was just another day of experiments in Canterlot. Nothing more.

"Come on, Spike," she said, looking back up and leading him down the tunnel. "Let's go see how real science is done."

Anomalous Gemstones

View Online

A blue glow wafted around the short expanse that Twilight led Spike down. She could feel the stenciled holes carved into the metal grate against her hooves, and peered down at the intricacies of the pipework below. Spike stayed close behind her.

At the end of the hallway was another metallic doorway, identical to the one at the entrance. Twilight heard the now-familiar sound of the metal pistons sliding out from in front of the doorway. The solid sound of metal crashing into metal as the bars slammed fully open made Twilight jump slightly. The reverberation in this enclosure magnified the effect, which echoed uncomfortably around her ears.

The doors swept open, revealing a well-lit bright metallic lobby area, complete with island front desk, chairs for waiting, and a large blue outline-map of Equestria covering the opposite wall. For a moment, Twilight stood staring at all the activity. Scientists dawning lab coats meandered around the room. Some of them were paired or grouped, discussing their hopes for that day, or lightly conversing about something new in their personal lives, all preparing for the day ahead of them. A grey security pony stood at the floating island desk in the center, studying a computer screen.

Twilight glanced down at Spike.

"Do we just... walk right in?" she wondered quietly.

Twilight looked up again, and saw that the security pony had noticed them. For a moment, she stood there, as if waiting for a cue. Eventually the pony gave them a look, as if trying not to roll their eyes, waving over at them.

"Well, come on!" she finally said.

She! Twilight thought. Not that Twilight was against females taking on dangerous and aggressive roles in society. She just never quite considered running into a female security guard so soon.

Twilight stepped up nervously as the doors slammed shut behind her. The pony at the desk looked preoccupied again at the computer, her round helmet glistening from the overhead fluorescent lights. Again, Twilight glanced at the firearm resting casually on her shoulder.

The pony turned to look at her again.

"You can come closer, you know. We don't bite."

Twilight walked right up to the desk, looking around for some kind of paperwork or sign-in sheet. The desk was almost entirely blank, save for a few sheets the pony herself was using for notes.

"Now, you must be Twilight Sparkle," she said, touching the computer screen nonchalantly with her hoof as she talked. "Looks like you'll be getting some fun down in the Test Chamber today." She stopped and turned towards her. "That's always fun."

Twilight blushed slightly, wondering what that could mean. The guard must have noticed.

"Ah, it's just something all the newbies have to go through. They always have you guys pushing switches and pulling levers for the first few weeks. You just wait 'til the next new guy gets here. It'll all be worth it," she continued.

"Now!" she said, turning back towards the screen. "I believe you have a guest with you, is that right?"

Twilight thought for a moment.

"Oh! You mean Spike?"

Stupid, stupid, stupid, she thought. Who else could she mean?

"Well," she responded, "if that's the name of the baby dragon you've brought with you."

For a moment they looked at each other, Twilight getting the sense she was expecting something.

"Um," the mare finally spoke, "can I see him?"

"OH!" Twilight said, suddenly backing up. "Oh, sure! Yeah. He's right here."

The security pony smiled slightly as she peered over the desk.

"My!" she said. "That really is a baby dragon, isn't it! Isn't he just adorable."

Spike was not smiling.

Twilight rested her hoof on his shoulder as the pony turned back to her computer.

"He'll need to be checked over with a physician before he'll be allowed in the test chamber with you," she said. "He won't need an environment suit, of course. Dragon scales are an armor in-and-of-themselves. Plus, they repel radiation!"

Twilight widened her eyes at this. The pony seemed to notice, because she turned her head to follow up.

"That... hasn't been fully tested. It's just a theory, from what I've heard."

Twilight walked back up to the desk, peering around to try and see what she was doing on the screen.

"So, to give you the rundown," she started again, turning back to face Twilight, "you'll be taking... is it Spike? You'll be taking Spike around the corner near the entrance to Sector B. There's a room right around the research area where he'll be checked over. Don't worry," she added, seeing the worried look on Twilight's face, "they don't do anything that could harm the guy. It's just some observations, that's all."

She shifted a bit as she continued.

"You, on the other hand, will have to put on your Hazardous Environment Suit. They're stashed in the locker rooms just past the break room. There should still be one sitting in the center hub. I think the others are out of commission for now. I'm assuming you've been through the Hazard Course?"

"Yeah," Twilight answered, hardly believing they were already relying on such ridiculous training. What exactly did they expect her to have to do in this experiment?

"Alright, then. You should be good to go. If you get lost, feel free to ask anyone around here. Just tell them you're new. They'll understand."

"Thanks," Twilight said, feeling a bit better now that she had an idea of what they had in store.

She looked around the room a bit as she wandered towards the hallway on the right. This place was very different from the cold darkness of the tram tunnels. There was a warmth to it—even more so than the dormitory lobby. The multiple scientists walking and conversing casually added activity and social comfort as well. In fact, had the walls been marble instead of metal, she would almost have been able to pretend she was back in Canterlot!

She reached the hallway on the right, this being the only noticeable exit from the lobby, and saw a number of colorful stripes marking various locations throughout the labs. Each stripe was labeled with a different section, traversing the walls towards the destination they had described. Twilight read them out loud.

"Research... Development... Personal Facilities..."

She looked down at Spike. "Looks like I need to take you to the research branch. That's the red stripe on the wall," she said, more to herself than anything.

Twilight was liking this place more and more as she thought about how well this navigational system worked. She followed the stripe as it wormed its way down the brightly-lit hallway, very aware of the curious looks ponies were giving Spike. The hallway she was following was in the shape of a "C", wrapping around some central room sitting just behind the lobby. Twilight noticed a small, non-obtrusive metal door in the hallway opposite the lobby that must have served as the entrance into the central room. For a moment, Twilight toyed with taking a peek inside, but decided in the end that it just wasn't her place to poke around too much.

The Research stripe lead all the way to the end of the "C", and out along a straight hallway extending orthogonally from its tip. Windows lined this new hallway on either side, peering into two main rooms on opposite sides. As Twilight reached the top of a ramp at the end of the "C", the first thing she saw through the window opposite her made her stop short.

A scientist was arguing heatedly... and the pony he was arguing with was a business pony.

The same business pony.

The one she had seen on the train, just before they had nearly crashed into the robot.

How did he get here? she thought.

She wanted another witness. She wasn't crazy. She couldn't be.

"Hey, Spike," she said, peering down at the dragon and pointing towards the window. "You see that pony in the business suit, right?"

She looked up.

He was gone!

Standing where the pony used to be was another scientist, continuing the heated conversation.

"Huh?" Spike said. "Why would there be a business pony? This is a laboratory, isn't it?"

Twilight felt slightly faint, walking lightly over to lean against the wall on her left.

"N—nevermind, Spike," she said, regaining her composure, pushing the thought of the pony out of her mind.

She stepped into the hallway proper and looked around.

"This... looks right," she said. "It's certainly the research section. And there's Section B down at the end! But, I don't see anything marking where I need to take you..."

A metal door had glided open at the far end of the hallway as one of the scientists walked out, a unicorn hovering a clipboard in front of her.

"Excuse me!" Twilight said as they walked by her, grabbing her attention. "The guard in the lobby said there's a physician's office around here. Do you know where that is?"

The pony stared at them for a bit. She was a green pony, her matching green hair done up in a bun with crescent glasses tipped on her nose. She looked confused.

"Physician?" she said. "I'm not sure what you're referring to..."

Twilight looked around, hoping there was something obvious that screamed out that she was in the wrong place. Nothing jumped out at her.

"Well," she continued, "she said that Spike here needed to be looked over before he'd be allowed much further. They said there was a place somewhere in the research section for that."

The pony was clearly thinking, and quickly coming to a conclusion.

"Well, technically we don't have any place like that. I think what they were really referring to was the small makeshift emergency room in the back. You'll find it around that room right back there," she finished, pointing through the window where the business pony had been standing.

"Thanks," Twilight said. Then, while she still had her attention, "do you know who I might talk you about it?"

The pony thought a bit more.

"Most likely they wanted you to speak with the person in charge of emergencies. His name is Dr. Yursa. I don't know him that well, but if the lobby guard told you about it, he'll probably be expecting you."

"Thanks," Twilight said. The pony complemented her farewell and departed with a smile.

So friendly! she thought as she watched her round the corner. I could get use to this!

======================================================

"Dr. Yursa?" Twilight said, stepping into a back area occupied by a single pony. He was a brown pony with a black mane, dressed slightly more formally, but was by no means an outright physician. She didn't notice any medical equipment.

The pony turned around.

"Ye— AH!" he said. "Yes! You must be Twilight Sparkle!"

Twilight smiled awkwardly as she looked around the room. She recognized a lot of the equipment from some of her laboratory classrooms back in Canterlot. There was a medical kit on the wall to her right... slightly more elaborate than the one she was introduced to in the Hazard Course. On the far wall was an eyewash station... what appeared to be a metal sink basin, but with two rubber-tipped hoses situated where one's eyes would be. Connected to it was an emergency shower. She had remembered learning about these in the classroom, but had thankfully never had to use them. A small stack of fire blankets were folded neatly in a glass cabinet. The wall on the left was lined with leather bedding, for serious injuries where the patient could no longer stand.

"It's not much," he said, looking around the room with her. "I'm sorely disappointed that we couldn't get this place any closer to the development area. Every week I find myself filing requests to get this place moved. Most of our injuries occur in the test chamber, and its simply impractical to expect them to walk across the entire lab to get the help they need!"

Twilight felt an uncomfortable twinge when she heard the words "Test Chamber". She imagined herself walking in here with severe burns or a damaged eye, complaining about how far she had to walk.

"SO!" the pony said, "is this the guy?"

Twilight looked around. She had almost forgotten about Spike!

"Oh, yeah. This is Spike," she said.

"My!" he said, walking over and leaning down. "Aren't you just the cutest little thing!"

Spike was crossing his arms with a scowl.

"This shouldn't take too long, Miss Sparkle. Just a quick look over," he explained. "I should be done by the time you're suited up for the experiment."

Twilight blushed nervously.

"Oh..." she said, not wanting to leave just yet. "I was kinda hoping I could stay with him for this. You know..."

The pony smiled.

"Perfectly understandable, of course, but there's really nothing to worry about. Just a few quick tests, that's all!"

Twilight stood there, looking down at Spike, who looked up embarrassingly.

"I'm fine!" he said.

The pony jumped. He apparently wasn't expecting the dragon to be able to talk.

"Ah, see? Even better," he said, leaning down towards Spike. "How are you feeling? You doing all right?"

Spike rolled his eyes, making a face at Twilight that pleaded with her to go away.

"Okay... so..." she said, "I... guess I'll just leave you two alone!"

She stood there staring a bit longer. Both of them looked at her.

"I'm... I'm going now!" she said again. "Just... turning around! Walking out the door! Yes! That's... that's what I'm doing!"

Twilight stepped out of the room, meandering back into the hallway. She hadn't quite expected it to be that difficult to leave Spike alone like that. She knew there was nothing to worry about... but her body was still protesting.

"Okay," she thought, switching her thoughts around to the impending experiment. "Hazard Suit. Need a Hazard Suit..."

She re-traversed the "C" back to the stripe origins and read through the section names again.

"Personal Facilities," she read off the green stripe. "That sounds about right."

She followed the "C" around again, keeping an eye on the stripe, and noticed a hallway extending off to the right just opposite the door into the central room. She followed the green stripe down this new hallway, and discovered it to form the shaft of an "I", leading her to a split junction in a new area of the labs. The blue "Development" stripe lead off to the left. Twilight followed the green "Personal Facilities" stripe to the right, following a path that lead her through an opening into a smaller, cozier hallway with a black-and-tan tiled floor.

Turning to her left, she walked down the narrow hallway, stopping to explore a small break room on the right. There wasn't much here. Just a few tables on the left and a counter on the right with a microwave that was currently in use. Two vending machines sat next to the counter at the far end of the room. Twilight considered getting something for Spike at the machines, but decided it could wait until after the experiment.

Heading further down the hallway, she ran into a metal door on the side of a small L-Bend that lead into a small locker room. Four benches populated the brown-tiled floor of the square room, with lockers situated all around. Each locker had a name embossed in the metal: something Twilight noted must be very expensive. The back of the room housed two other areas. On the right, there was a small lavatory with a couple stalls and taps. She also noticed a medical kit on the wall. On the left, there was a darker area that Twilight couldn't quite make out. However, she assumed that had to be where the suits were kept.

A single gray pony was busy putting on his lab coat near one of the benches. He was obviously one of the older scientists, his mane almost entirely white by now. He looked up as she came in.

"Oh! Haven't seen you around here. You must be the new pony!" he said cheerfully. "Always nice to see some new faces around here."

Twilight smiled, about to ask where the suits were when he continued.

"They put you in the Test Chamber?"

Twilight nodded.

"Ah, of course. They always do that do the new guys. Almost some sort of silly hazing game they play around here."

He stepped around the bench and casually rested his flank against the wood.

"You heard about the system crash they had a few minutes ago?" he said.

Twilight spoke up now.

"System crash?"

The pony smiled.

"Probably nothing to worry about. The front desk says they lost quite a few files, though. Even the guys down in the Test Chamber said they were having some trouble."

"Bah!" he continued, seeing Twilight's concerned face. "Don't let it worry you. These things happen. My guess is, they'll have it all worked out before you get down there."

He got off the bench and walked over to one of the open lockers.

"You get yourself a lock yet?" he asked, indicating the door to the locker. Twilight felt a pleasant streak of pride as she read her name at the top. "They don't give away locks unfortunately, but you can buy one at the shop. It's not too far from the dorms. I'm assuming you live on campus?" he added.

"Yeah," Twilight said, "I rode the train here from the dorms this morning."

"Quite a ride, eh? We get a lot of newbies saying how much they like the tour. This place is a lot bigger than many ponies realize!"

"You're telling me!" Twilight said, finally finding something to talk about. "I was surprised at some of the stuff they just have lying around the train path! I mean... a satellite rocket? Really?"

The pony looked around a bit before turning back to her.

"This place isn't exactly the strictest when it comes to security," he said. "I'm assuming you've heard about the administrator?"

Twilight was now becoming sincerely interested in this conversation.

"No one's mentioned him yet, no," she said. "Why?"

The pony looked around a bit more before getting up close to her.

"Well, you didn't hear it from me, but there's rumors of a conspiracy," he said. "Not sure what they're planning, but there are ponies who say they've seen a strange pony wandering around here. Some guy in a business suit. Think he's conspiring with the administrator. No one's been able to get any information about the guy. He's mysterious. Many think he's here for more than just business..."

The pony backed up, speaking normally again.

"Me? I don't see it. Bunch of codswallop! Rumors will get you worked up about anything. I've been working here too long to let these things bother me anymore. Of course," he gave Twilight a look, "that doesn't stop be from following them all. Great entertainment! Keeps old guys like me from dying of boredom!"

He let out a laugh that sputtered into a cough. Shaking out his mane, he walked towards the darkened area on the left.

"I suppose you're here to suit up, eh?"

Twilight wanted to hear more about the rumors and conspiracies, but decided it would be best to move on.

"Yeah, thanks. I had a feeling they might be back in this area."

The aged pony lead her around into the nook to the left, where she now had a clear view of the place.

The first thing she noticed was the black control-panel desk sitting just in front of her. She guessed from the three suit-shaped glowing icons that this controlled something that had to do with the Hazard Suit she wanted.

Peering over the panel, her suspicions were confirmed. Three cylindrical containers stood at the back of the darkened room, sitting on a sunken floor. Each one emitted a light; Each one had a set of stairs leading up to it; Each one was controlled by one of the buttons on the control panel. Two of them were empty, emitting a red light with red icons on the panel correspondingly. The one in the middle was closed with a green icon, and contained a suit in the shape of the pony reared on its hind legs.

Twilight approached the control panel.

"So I just..."

The gray pony walked up next to her and pushed the center button. The green icon turned red as a glass shielding raised up to expose the suit.

"Uh, thanks," she said.

"Need any help?" he said. "You know, these new suits can be tricky sometimes."

Twilight remembered putting it on the Hazard Course. It had taken her a whole 15 minutes the first time!

"I think I can manage," she said automatically.

"Suit yourself!" he said—then chuckled lightly at the bad pun.

The pony walked out of the locker room and back to work, leaving Twilight alone with the suit. She turned to see a small stairway leading down to the sunken floor. Taking a deep breath, she descended the stairs, and up to the suit waiting for her in the chamber.

======================================================

"You two should be all set!" said Dr. Yursa.

Twilight was standing in the small emergency area wearing her Hazardous Environment Suit. Spike had had a giggle fit upon first seeing her. Apparently fashion was not the suit's high point.

The whole thing felt very mechanical, like she was wearing some sort of super-hero outfit. She felt very subconscious about her appearance, and it didn't help that the whole thing was bright orange, contrasting horribly with her purple hide. The good news was that she didn't have to feel the cold hard floor anymore, since the suit came with glove-tight black rubber ends that wrapped around her hooves.

The thing had to be one of the most expensive pieces of equipment in the entire facility! The stuff she had learned about it in the Hazard Course alone lead her to believe that the military would willingly give up half their men just to have one of these things! Overkill didn't come close to fully describing the insanity of this suit's contraptions, and she couldn't imagine the degree to which Pony Mesa could improve this lab had they put their money to better use.

"So, I'm assuming you know the way to the Test Chamber?" Yursa said.

Twilight remembered the blue stripe leading to the left from the "I" junction and nodded. "Yeah."

"This little guy checked out just fine. Healthier than most of the scientists around here!" he said, rubbing the dragon affectionately on the head. "You two look like you'll make a great team!"

Twilight blushed as she motioned Spike by her side.

"Thanks, Dr. Yursa. We'll be fine."

Twilight turned and walked out the door, wondering if she should have said anything else before she left.

"So, you're fine, right?" Twilight said to Spike, leading him towards the "I" junction. "Nothing hurt? Nothing was uncomfortable?"

"I'm fine!" Spike said. "Let's just get to the experiment already."

"Okay," Twilight said, rounding the corner and down the shaft of the "I". Then, leaning down and speaking quieter,

"They didn't touch you anywhere... inappropriate, did they?"

"TWILIGHT!" Spike screamed out, making Twilight look around quickly. A few scientists had looked up curiously.

"Okay, okay! I'm just... it was just a question, that's all! Just a question..."

Twilight lead him around to the left, following the blue stripe that wormed around a right L-Bend. Twilight recognized the blue glow of the pipes beneath the floor grate: the same kind that was in the lab's entrance tunnel. There were a few large server boxes lined against the walls, each one larger than she was. A few of them looked like they had tape reels!

Just how old is some of this stuff?! she thought.

She passed a few more scientists along the hallway, finally rounding a smooth U-Bend and finding herself at a door guarded by a security officer. The brown pony seemed to he expecting them.

"Twilight Sparkle!" he said, seeing them. "And wearing the infamous Hazard Suit, I see! Looks like you're in the barrel today, eh?"

A set of doors blocked the passage into the next area, each with a set of glass windows forming an interesting design. A strange device was bolted next to the doors, looking like some strange box with a computer screen on the front. She assumed from the black elongated rubber stretching across the top that this had to be some sort of scanner.

"I guess I'll be seeing you two after the test. I hear this one's got the people down in the Testing Area pretty excited!" he said, walking over to the device on the wall.

He leaned over, resting his muzzle against the screen as the black rubber extended out and wrapped around the top of his head, just around his eyes. A few ticks later the computer chimed an acceptance, snapping the doors unlocked as they hissed open. Twilight noticed a magnified image of a retina displayed on the screen of the device.

The must be what they meant by retinal clearance, thought Twilight.

"You're good to go through!" he said.

Twilight walked Spike through the doors, thanking the guard as a second set of identical doors hissed open as well, revealing a "T" junction.

The area they had just entered felt different than the rest of the lab. Visually it looked about the same, but the air was stiller, and there were no scientists walking around. Twilight peered to either side of the "T".

"I wonder which way we need to go?" she said to Spike.

"Uh... split up?" Spike suggested.

"Uh... how about not," Twilight responded. "Come on, we'll try the left."

An announcer sounded above them, deep, cold, almost electronic.

Miss. Daisy. Please. Report to. Sector. B. For. Contamination. Prevention. Analysis.

The wall to their right hosted two rotary screens: a contraption Twilight had never seen before. At first, she thought they were still pictures until they flipped to show a different image. She stopped to study the way they worked, concluding that they consisted of two horizontal shafts one above the other that each had rotating rectangular prisms.

No. Not two shafts. Four! she thought. Fancy!

As they rotated, the sides of the prisms would line up to show an image. Ironically, only two pictures were displayed for each rotary image. Twilight thought this odd, since rectangles typically had four sides. Again, a missed opportunity, probably the cause of more lack of planning.

Twilight and Spike watched a few moments at some of the pictures. They appeared to be advertisements, or perhaps motivational posters. There was one for "Teamwork" showing some scientists walking around, and one for "Technology" showing the same spider-like contraption they had nearly run into on the train. There was another one showing a large hydro-electric dam with some small writing she couldn't read, and another one showing off a military helicopter. Twilight felt uneasy again as she remembered the live helicopter they had seen on their way to work.

Twilight. Sparkle. Please. Report. To. Anomalous. Materials. Test. Chamber. Immediately.

Twilight jumped upon hearing her name. Was she late? Was she in trouble? Were they looking for her?

"We should hurry up and get to the test," she said to Spike.

======================================================

The split junction, as it turned out, was not a "T" so much as an "O", wrapping around what Twilight discovered to be an elevator shaft whose entrance was at the far end of the "O". Twilight and Spike were now nearing the bottom of the dark green-lit shaft, taking in the intricacies of the metal structure before them. Unlike a typical elevator, this elevator was not fully enclosed, having no door and hardly any walls. It didn't even take up the entire shaft, allowing Twilight and her dragon companion to observe every detail of the green-lit maintenance shaft as they descended, including a red ladder spanning its entire length.

"Just what I'd hoped for," she said jokingly. "To go even further underground."

The elevator reached the bottom, lining up with a short platform between the edge of the shaft and the elevator platform, prompting Twilight to lead Spike through the doors (identical to the ones the guard opened) into the next area.

This section of the lab had a more mechanical, engineering feel about it. Two scientists stood at the far end of the hallway, next to what looked like some sort of electric generator situated against the wall. At least, that's what Twilight assumed it was. All she really knew was it was some semi-circle of grated metal surrounding an electrical rotary device of some kind, with a few pipes extending away from it embedded in the floor.

Twilight led Spike to the end of the hallway, through another set of doors on the right. As she entered the next hallway, she stopped to observe a new set of navigational color-coded stripes on the wall. Again, she read the descriptions aloud.

"Control Room... Test Lab Access... Plasma Cells... Ionization Chambers..."

"Well that's pretty obvious," Spike said.

"True. It would certainly appear we want to follow the path to Test Lab Access," she said, peering down the hallway. "Not that there's much of a choice of paths, that is."

Twilight followed the four stripes (orange, green, light blue, dark blue) as they rounded the hallway to the right. On the left, more large square server computers covered up parts of the four stripes as various scientists stopped to observe the readouts on their front panels. On the right were two enormous pipes that spanned the length of the hallway, marked all down the side multiple times with the words "Laser" and "Caution".

"What exactly do they need all this stuff for?" she asked Spike. "Plasma Cells? Ionization Chambers? Lasers? I thought this would just be a bunch of rooms with beakers and Bunsen burners!"

Twilight turned to the left, noticing another security pony standing next to the set of doors.

"Twilight Sparkle?" he piped up as she came into his sight. "Test Chamber's right around the corner! They're looking forward to meeting you."

Twilight thanked him, heading through the doors into the next room.

"Well, these are obviously the Plasma Cells!" she said, looking around the room and noticing that the light blue stripe was now missing.

It was a relatively uneventful room, completely metallic and machined like every other room she had been in. Some pipes lined the ceiling, and there was a little shape built into the walls on the right. However, the most interesting sight was the Plasma Cells themselves. Two metal octahedrons, each with a glass stripe down the center revealing some sort of blue acidic fluid, each connected via pipes both between them, and connecting them to the walls on either side. What they had to do with plasma was beyond her. She didn't see anything heat related about them at all!

Stepping past them, she walked into a small opening at the far wall and down a green dimly-lit hallway that wound around sinusoidally like large sideways steps. She took note of the red digital sign just before the door at the end.

"Control Room," she read. She looked through the glass door, feeling her face flush and body tingle from nervousness at the sight of three scientists looking out through the glass at her expectantly.

"Stay close," she told Spike, walking up the door and letting it slide gracefully out of the way.

She stepped cautiously into the room. This place was obviously some sort of nexus for development and experimentation. It wasn't very large, around the size of the locker room—maybe a little smaller. To her left, she could see a long window mostly covered by a thick metal blast shield, on the other side of which was (from the little she could see) a vast chamber.

The Test Chamber, she thought to herself.

Other ponies were standing around in lab coats, observing various computer readouts and displays situated around the room. However, the three she was now looking at were standing in a semicircle around her, and seemed more interested in her and her dragon than in the experiment itself!

"Ah! Twilight Sparkle," the pony on the left said, a blue male with what obviously used to be a long flowing mane, before it was hastily cut. He was obviously relatively new. "Good to see you made it! Any trouble finding us? It's a pretty decent-sized lab and all."

"No," she said, stifling a nervous laugh. "No, no problems. You have a pretty nice direction system thing. You know... the stripes on the wall and everything."

"Ah, right!" said the pony on the right. "I'd forgotten about those."

She was a light-grey pony, quite a bit older than the one of the left. Obviously more experienced.

"Well, we should probably get started here," said the pony in the middle, a brown pony, older than the left, younger than the right, but obviously holding more seniority in this department than the other two. "Has anyone told you much about the experiment you'll be helping us out with?"

Twilight shook her head. "No pony has said anything!"

"Typical," he continued. "We really need more communication on the upper floors. Anyway, what we're running here is a materials test on one of our latest crystalline substances! We don't exactly know where it comes from—those bastards down at lambda lab never tell us—" he mumbled this part more to himself, "but basically it's a new find on their part. And very pure! Everyone I've talked to says they're very excited about it! You should feel privileged to have this be your first experiment with us!"

Twilight thought about mentioning the system crash, but assumed that they would tell her if it was of any major concern.

"So, if you'll come over here for a moment," he said, leading Twilight over to the observation window, "you'll be able to see out into the chamber you'll be working in."

Twilight peered through the window, her eyes suddenly overwhelmed from the multitude of sights. For one, there was the sheer size of the chamber! The entire lower part of the lab clearly revolved around this room. It was basically a cylindrical brown-metal shaft, but many times larger around than the elevator shaft she had ridden down just earlier. She guessed she could fit the entire Canterlot Library inside it pretty easily!

For two, there was the contraption at the top. Twilight had to stare at it for a few seconds before she realized what she was looking at. At first, she thought it was the base of a giant laser beam! And in the end, that's basically what it was. But the tip was much larger than a traditional laser emitter, and there were three barrel-shaped emitters surrounding the central tip. The bottom of the chamber was setup to contain something. There was a round hole surrounded by metal walls, and three large metal arms opened like fingers on an open hand, waiting for something to be placed in its open palm. Twilight had to almost stick her head out the window to see it, but there was a catwalk-like indented path leading up to the center of the hand for depositing.

"What you see here is what's called an anti-mass spectrometer," the brown pony said.

"Anti-mass spectrometer," Twilight said. "Anti! Mass-Spectrometer. Like... anti-matter. Not matter. Anti-matter."

The brown pony looked at her. Twilight couldn't quite read his expression.

"True, it's more a whimsical name. It's not exactly your average mass spectrometer. It's had a few... er... modifications to make it a bit more versatile. We had to improvise a bit to get something that can take readings on materials of this special nature."

"Special nature?" Twilight repeated.

"Well, again, we don't really know the true nature of what we're measuring. We just take what they give us and measure it."

Twilight rolled her eyes.

"Yeah, you're right. This place does need work with its communication."

"Anyway, you'll be helping us out with some of the equipment. It's pretty straight-forward. Mostly you'll just be turning stuff on and adjusting the carrier as we see fit. It's not the most interesting job, but it needs to be done."

Twilight turned around as the gray female chimed in.

"There will be a couple ponies waiting for you at the chamber entrance. They'll give you a little more advice before you go in."

She turned and walked to the end of the control room, bending her head down to another retinal scanner. It clicked and chimed like the other one as the door slid open.

"You should be good! Don't be afraid to give us a shout if you're having any problems," she said.

Twilight walked up to the open door, looking at the ponies smiling around her. Did they even think to ask how she felt about this? Oh, but no! They had already had so many ponies go through this routine, they probably didn't care anymore.

The door lead into another room similar to the one with the plasma cells—perhaps a bit larger. Twilight noted how the dark blue stripe disappeared as she rounded the corner, and assumed this had to be the "Ionization Chambers" she had read about earlier. Three structures sat on the ground on the right-hand side of the room, looking like massive vacuum tubes, or maybe the tops of Light Houses. It was difficult to describe some of the bizarre equipment in these labs sometimes.

Twilight stopped by to look through the glass casing of one of them. The large yellow spark glowing inside was entrancing! It reminded her a bit of electric static, if someone were to roll it up into a ball. Again, she couldn't imagine what this had to do with "Ions"... or, for that matter, anomalous materials! Again, probably just a mass of funding no pony knew what to do with. At least they looked pretty, though.

Two ponies were at the end of the room, conversing. The one facing her was a gray pony, almost as aged as the one in the locker room. The other one was brown, with a dark brown mane and looked very... familiar...

Twilight walked around to see him from the side and jumped up.

"DR. WHOOVES!" she yelled out, startling the brown pony who turned to see who the offending pony was.

"Who is... wait... Twilight?! Twilight Sparkle!"

Twilight trotted up eagerly to join him, completely forgetting Spike was by her side.

"Dr. Whooves! You're here! I had no idea... You said you'd gotten a job in a research facility. I had no idea it was here!"

Dr. Whooves had been one of Twilight's fellow students back in Canterlot. He was much older than Twilight, a result of waiting so long to get into the field. His wife had birthed a daughter just before his announcement. Twilight remembered fondly of the time he showed her off during his final class. A proud parent indeed!

"Yeah," he said, responding to Twilight's excited delight at seeing him, "it was here alright. And what about you! I haven't heard from you since I got hired! What's happened? Anything new in Canterlot?"

"Nothing much. Same old same old."

"Still Celestia's prize student?"

"Well, not anymore of course. You can't exactly call me a student anymore."

They looked at each other a bit, thinking of how to keep the conversation going.

"Nice suit, by the way," he said at last. "Really matches your color."

Twilight blushed.

"Got you working the test chamber, do they?" he continued. "I got out easy, of course. Age will do that. Not that I would have cared."

He glanced down and caught Spike lingering around Twilight's hind leg.

"And... WHOA! They let you take that guy with you!? You lucky swine..."

He walked over and rubbed his hoof solidly into the dragon's head.

"Yep!" said Twilight. "He's my little helper! Forever and ever!"

"They're not..." he starting, "they're not gonna let this guy into the Test Chamber with you, are they?"

"That was the idea," she said.

"Whooooa!" he said, turning to Spike with a huge fake smile: the kind new proud fathers are best at when they want to make a kid feel special. "Well, aren't you just the lucky one here!"

Now it was Spike's turn to blush.

"Oh, please," he said, turning away a little. Then, turning back slightly with a small pause. "Go on."

Dr. Whooves got back up to talk with Twilight.

"You're not nervous are you? Your first big day and all?"

"Well, maybe a little," she said. "This place is full of really nice ponies. I've been chatting my way all the way over here!"

"So you're liking it here so far!" he said. "That's... that's really great."

He paused.

"Yeah, it took a little bit for us to get situated," he continued. "It's tough moving to a new place when you're married. Especially with a fowl. Of course, it doesn't seem like Spike has had too much trouble adjusting."

"He's actually been just fine, really," Twilight said. "Hey, listen, I really gotta go. I've been here way too long. They're probably all looking at their watching wondering what's taking me so long!"

"Oh, yeah! Absolutely! I won't keep you waiting."

Twilight looked around and found the door to the elevator that led out of the hallway.

"I'll see you after the test!" she said, waving as the doors swung open.

Dr. Whooves waved back, resuming his conversation with the other pony as Twilight got on the elevator.

The elevator she was on now was shaped like a small metal gazebo, hovering over a circular hole in a small square room. She was really getting tired of all the green lights by now. Why did every elevator and smaller hallway have to be lit the color of sick?

She looked around, finding the down-arrow button on the wall to the left. No sooner did she depress it than the elevator started spinning, causing her to lose balance and grab onto the side railing to stay upright. She held on, trying not to be sick as the elevator rotated down the shaft, hitting the bottom with a dull clunk. Twilight held onto the rail a bit longer, trying to stabilize the fluid in her inner ear.

"Come on, Twilight!" Spike said, walking through the hissing opening doors.

Letting go of the railing and stepping through the doors, she emerged into the hallway shaking her mane a bit. This hallway was much the same as all the other hallways she had walked down so far, except that the entire side of the wall to her right was plastered with a single red stripe labeled "Test Lab", complete with arrow pointing away from her!

"This has to be the single longest journey I've ever gone on in a single section of a single building. I feel like we're miles away from the lobby by now!"

"Come on," Spike said again. "We're almost there!"

Now it was Spike's turn to lead Twilight. They were so close now the little dragon couldn't keep himself still from excitement! Of course, it was every kids dream to run a massive fancy experiment. It was on par with getting to work with construction equipment!

Twilight followed Spike to the T-Junction at the end, turning right to follow the red stripe before slowly bending off to the left and to a dead-end. Well, almost a dead-end. There was an uninviting blank metal door in the wall that made Twilight feel uneasy about. In fact, had it not been for the luminescent sign that read "Test Lab", she might have considered turning around and heading back!

"Do you... should we knock?" she asked Spike.

As an answer, Spike walked right up to the door, reaching out his fist to hammer on it. However, the door didn't need any contact, and slid open automatically as Spike got close enough. Spike stepped through immediately, with Twilight reluctantly forcing herself through after him.

"Twilight! There you are!" came a voice to her left as the heavy metal door swung shut.

She was now standing in some sort of anti-chamber. It was less than a preparation room: more of a closet than anything else—darker, and less inviting than any of the other rooms she had been in so far. In fact, it was so metallic, so... raw... that if someone had told her it was used as an execution chamber, she's be hard-pressed to refute it.

Two ponies stood in front of a massive blast-door, close to identical with the entrance doors to the labs, only without the cylindrical beams. The ponies looked anxious, and Twilight couldn't tell whether it was from excitement, nervousness, or fright! The yellow pony on the left spoke up again.

"So, basically, this is just going to be some pretty standard stuff. You'll be able to hear what's going on through the loud speaker the whole time, so if you get confused, we'll help you out. We're not going to ask anything too much of you of course—mostly just flipping a few switches on the inside."

The red pony on the right turned to the left.

"Has the sample already been sent?"

"They sent it down a few minutes ago," the yellow pony responded, turning back to Twilight.

"Anyway, this is all pretty straight forward. We'll probably be turning the spectrometer up quite a bit higher than usual, but it shouldn't be a problem."

"Couldn't that cause a phase distortion?" the red pony said.

The yellow pony was getting agitated.

"Yes, technically it could. But the chances of that happening are so small that—"

"You don't think there's a possibility that... you know... with such a pure sample..."

Now the scientist on the left was clearly trying to hold back his annoyance.

"Look," he said, "I know your concern, alright? But we've been over this already! The chances of a Resonance Cascade are so diminutive that the idea of such a thing happening in a routine test is laughable! By bringing it up, all you're going to do is cause an unnecessary stir!"

"What's a Resonance Cascade?" Twilight asked.

Both ponies looked at her. The red one looked positively mortified. The yellow one looked perturbed.

"It's... well... it's really nothing you should worry about. But I guess it's always good to know about these things. Just... don't let this worry you during the experiment. This has always been a possibility for the last thirty years, and has yet to show up even on the smallest scale!"

Twilight watched as he breathed deep to calm himself and the situation around him.

"Our equipment has... well... it's been modified a lot lately. And, with those modifications has come some... er... instability."

The way he stressed the word instability clearly showed his intention of it to have a whimsical interpretation. It wasn't instability. It was "instability".

"Now, should all the variables be set just right, and all the sources point to just the right place, and the planets line up, and hell freezes over, then maybe, just maybe, there's a possibility of the system going into an infinitefeedbackloopandimplodingonitself."

He spoke these last words so quietly and so fast Twilight could barely make them out.

"Going into a what now?" she said.

"It means the whole facility blows up," said the red pony.

"THANK You Captain Drama!" said the yellow pony. "Now, this was a very interesting conversation, and we're all completely worked up and agitated now, but if you don't mind, I think we should remember where we are!"

The red pony turned back to the yellow pony.

"We're standing just outside the chamber that will spell the doom of us all?"

The yellow pony nearly lost it. He was gritting his teeth now, and barring his hooves into the floor.

"Can. We. PLEASE! Just run the Test!"

At the very least, Twilight felt very entertained by the two ponies. She wasn't quite sure how much of this to believe, and a small part of her was a bit worried, but for the most part she wasn't letting any of this bother her.

"Okay, fine, fine. Be that way," said the red pony. "But don't say I didn't predict it when it happens."

Both ponies turned away from each other to operate two retinal scanners on either side of the chamber. The clicking from either side intermingled into a frenzied mechanical sound that Twilight was thankful was so short lived. A moment later, two chimes of acceptance rang out as the blast doors swung open. For a moment, Twilight looked at the two ponies, expecting some last words, but they apparently didn't want to say anything anymore.

Twilight walked through the doors into the Test Chamber, looking up with a gasp! The sheer size of the room and the contraption on the wall was dizzying from this angle. She forced herself to look down to prevent herself from feeling light-headed. She turned towards Spike, who hadn't said anything for a while, hearing the blast doors slam shut behind them.

"You're not worried about anything those ponies back these said, are you?"

Spike jumped up excitedly.

"Are you kidding?! This thing could blow up the whole building! That's AWESOME!"

Twilight wanted to believe in his enthusiasm, but she could see he was trying hard to fool himself with fake excitement. There was an anxiety behind it, and Twilight felt a sudden urge to hold him close and comfort him in this massive chamber.

Everything inside was deathly still: a massive cave home to a sleeping demon just around the corner. The silent whir of the conditioning system threatened insanity in its victims who listened to its monotony for too long, and the glowing yellow lights bathed the chamber in a false warmth, a poor imitation of true source created by Celestia herself.

Twilight looked at the massive alien hand in the center of the room, poised as if to reach up and rip out the contraption in the ceiling. It's three metallic fingers were open, a venous trap scaled to proportions that would consume herself and Spike comfortably if they were to willingly walk into its grip. The indented catwalk was just to its left, a runway casting the aura of a green mile, leading directly into the jaws of the contraption.

The silence was broken by the squeal of the loud speaker, the speaker adjusting the feedback to zero.

"Test... Testing!" a voice said. "Testing! Everything... everything in order? Good? Good!"

Twilight looked up and spotted the blast shield on the wall to her left, marking the window into the control room. She walked around the chamber to the right with the hopes of seeing inside, but the window was simply too high. All she could see was the ceiling.

"Alright, Twilight! It looks like we're about ready to begin," came the voice of the brown pony from the control room, sounding very different through the loud speaker. "Before we get started, I'm going to have to ask you to switch on the rotors. There should be a switch on the upper platform that controls that."

Twilight felt very much out of control. There was no way for her to respond, or ask questions. All she could do was look around.

Thankfully, the platform was pretty obvious. It was on the exact opposite side of the chamber from the control room window, and had a ladder leading up to it starting from a small balcony area.

"Spike?" she said. "You want to do the honors?"

Twilight would have gladly done this herself, but hooves don't work well with ladders. Spike's hands were perfect for that kind of thing.

"Will do!" he said with a histrionic salute.

Twilight watched with pride as her baby dragon ran around and up the steps of the small balcony, jumping up the rungs of the ladder. They were a bit big for him, but he was managing quite well. Nevertheless, she found herself subconsciously walking up the stairs to standing below him just in case.

Spike disappeared above the platform, echoing metal clunks with each running step he took. Twilight heard his voice emanate from somewhere up above as the footsteps reached the end.

"I think I see it!" he said. "Is it the big red one?"

"I don't know. Try it!" Twilight said.

Just how many buttons could there be?

A moment later there was a loud thunk as something slammed into place. Something was moving above her now, like a massive fan or windmill. She stepped down the stairs to get a look at the ceiling, but couldn't see anything rotating. She assumed it had to be inside the base of the ceiling contraption.

As the machine finished whirring to life, the brown pony chimed in again.

"Excellent! Looks like that dragon is useful after all!"

There was a small chuckle from the other scientists in the room.

"Alright, Twilight. We can take it from here."

Twilight looked up at the platform.

"Spike! You can come down now!"

Twilight saw the small head of Spike peer out through the guard rails.

"Hey, Twilight! You gotta see this! I can see everything from up here!"

"That's alright, Spike! I'd really, really feel more comfortable if you come down from there though!"

Images of Spike slipping through the guard rails haunted her thoughts for a moment.

"Oh, come on Twilight! Just a few more minutes?"

"NOW, Spike!"

There was a loud groan as the head disappeared. A few moments later he was hopping down the ladder rungs, jumping down from the second one to land on the metal surface with a dull ringing thud.

"This isn't a playground, Spike," she said as he walked down the stairs. "There's dangerous stuff in here!"

"I know," he said.

Twilight looked up and gasped at the contraption in the ceiling. The whole thing was coming to life now! The barrels she had seen surrounding the central laser were now rotating, a clear electrical current arching between them and the center.

That can't be safe, she thought.

The loud speaker came on.

"Power up emitters," said a voice; Twilight couldn't tell which one. "Phase One. Three... Two..."

The central stub turned on like a flashlight, blinding Twilight into looking away.

"... One..."

A moment later the entire chamber lit up. It was... beautiful! A golden beam had descended from the tip of the ceiling contraption straight into the palm of the hand, glowing divinely. The chamber was now filled with a light that danced subtly on the walls.

"Whooooa..." came Spike's voice. "Now that... is... cool!"

Another announcer spoke.

"Phase 2... activating... now..."

Twilight mouth was now agape. Each of the three rotating barrels were arching their own beams angularly into the palm of the hand, so they all met at the same spot. The beams were much more complex and convoluted. Twilight could only stare in wonder.

"Increasing overhead capacitors... 1... 0... 5... percent..."

The brown pony's voice sounded over the speaker again.

"Okay, Twilight. It looks like we have the system fully up and running now. The sample should be arriving any moment now. When it does, we're going to ask you to push it into the analysis port in the center."

Twilight assumed he meant the massive metallic hand in the center. She was feeling less and less comfortable with this as the minutes rolled by. The beams were letting off a lot of heat, and Twilight could feel herself starting to break out in a sweat.

"Don't get too close," she said to Spike, backing away from the beams slightly.

Spike's eyes were wide, his mouth agape, his fingers twitching. She could tell there was some sort of braingasm going off inside of him.

A hissing sound to her right made Twilight turn towards the indented walkway, where she noticed the floor in the back sliding into the wall to reveal a pit. Rising out of the pit was another floor, identical to the one sliding into the wall, but with a strange contraption sitting on it. The brown pony sounded over the speaker again.

"Okay, Twilight. If you would make your way to the carrier, you should see the sample waiting for you now."

Twilight followed Spike over to the grocery-store cart contraption. Well, not quite a grocery cart. There was no basket. Instead, there was some sort of orange body with arms extending out, holding on to—

"What is that?" Twilight said, peering at the strange material being held out by the arms of the cart.

Spike's gape had turned into a drool as he looked at the crystalline rock in front of him.

"Don't. Even. Think about it," she said, seeing Spike's mouth get dangerously close to the rock.

The brown pony could be heard again.

"Go ahead, Twilight! Push that thing right on in!"

Twilight looked down the runway and blink away again. The place where the beams met was so bright she couldn't look at it.

"Okay," she said, looking down at Spike.

Lighting her horn, she rolled the cart gently down the runway. It wasn't too difficult. The wheels were well greased, and once it was started, it practically rolled itself! She could sense with her horn how close it was to the beam, and slowed it down just before it entered.

A searing pain flew through her horn just as it hit, making her scream out! A terrible ear-shattering scraping sound ripped through the chamber, accompanied by strange lights flying up from the hand. The fingers of the hand were closing in to grip its prize.

"Twilight!" sounded the announcer. "Twilight, get away from there!"

Twilight watched as the central beam grew and widened, forming a tornado of light blaring sound around the room.

"Spike!" Twilight yelled, looking around to find him still by her side. She got down and held him tight.

"What's going on?" she heard him say.

"I don't—"

An explosion rang out above them, deafening in the reverberation of the steel room. Twilight looked up as another one rang out. Then another one. The central beam was splitting out uncontrollably, striking the walls as debris rained down. Twilight put her head down as more scientists could be heard over the system amid the chaos.

"Why aren't you shutting it down?! Get that thing shut down!"
"I'm trying! It won't—"
"Just hit this button! You need to—"
"It's not going!"

Twilight yelled out as the chamber continued to tear itself apart.

"UNDER ME!"

She was on top of Spike now, almost crushing him under her own body, wrapping her hooves tightly around him and ducking her head down.

The brown pony could be heard now.

"Cut all power! Cut all systems! I want—"

Twilights ears exploded. A pain rang through them, tearing at her brain. Her eyes had closed shut tightly at the bright light that had shined behind her. She was deaf. All she could hear was a persistent ringing. She opened her eyes, looking around and trying to get a sense of what was going on, but her vision was blurred. All she could make out was the beam, dancing brilliantly green in front of her. She blinked, trying to clear her brain, her vision slowly coming back to her. The entire chamber had been dimmed, the beam now splitting out in all directions. Twilight forced her head up to look at the control room window and saw flames billowing smoke into the chamber.

The ringing in her ears was dying down as the turmoil of the chamber danced slowly back into her head. She felt her hooves reach up to Spike's ears. His body was expanding and contracting with breath beneath her. She could almost feel his heart pounding against her own body. Next to her, she could hear a sound overpowering the other forces of the chamber. A force pulling in towards a center... growing... expanding... emanating...

A train smashed into her. She was knocked out of balanced, out of mind, out of thoughts. An overwhelming darkness surrounded her as she tipped over the edge into insanity.

Where am I? Where's the chamber? Why is everything black? Am I dead? Is everyone else dead? Why can't I feel the ground? Why can't I speak? Oh gosh oh Celestia oh gosh oh—

The chamber flashed before her again. She was lying on her side now, debris flying, lightening scattering. She tried to get up, feeling a hunk of metal slam into her temple just below her ear, streaming pain through her body and blurring her vision again. She forced herself on her feet, frantically looking around.

"SPIIIIIIIIKE!" she screamed out until her throat was on fire.

Another flash as she was plunged into what she could only describe as a hallucination. The entire chamber had been reduced to a strange green landscape, with alien flora and fauna dancing bizarrely in front of her. She blinked, trying to make it go away, or clarify into items she remembered in the chamber, but they simply became more defined alien structures. She closed her eyes tight.

I'm not crazy I'm not crazy I'm not crazy I'm not crazy...

She opened her eyes again, finding herself face-to-face with creatures, each with a single red eye, each looking at her. Twilight's heart was exploding in her chest now. She could see the creatures advancing on her... see their arthropod eyes... feel their breath...

Her mind gave out as she passed out entirely, the darkness enveloping her, taking her away from her nightmares on a blackened sled of panic. Everything disappeared into darkness.

Unforeseen Cons-equines-es

View Online

Sirens sounded in the distance. The crash of falling metal echoed dully.

Images flashed, as by a dream, hazy and undefined. A beam of green light. A flash. An eye looking at her, insect-like...

Twilight lifted the lids of her eyes. There was no strength in her to move anything else. Grayness stared back. Hard. Metallic. Unyielding. So close she could have reached out and touched it. She stared at it a while, letting her eyes adjust as the blurred distortions clarified into something solid.

She willed her neck to turn, concentrating on making her muscles work again, hardly taking in what was in front of her. Slowly, she started to get her bearings.

She was lying on her side, close to the indented walkway. More images flashed in her mind: A cart pushed down the pathway. A strange rock. A pain in her horn.

She looked mildly around the chamber, her thoughts still slow and methodical. The whole room was lit again with that same artificial golden light that was there when she had first walked in. How long ago was that? Twilight bent her neck slightly to look up at the ceiling, trying to make out something above her. She could hardly make any sense out of it: it was just a litter of gray shapes and colors. Her eyes were still adjusting, becoming more focused as she regained consciousness.

Struggling with every ounce of energy she had, she forced her body to move. Her body responded with pain. Shooting. Searing. Tearing. Every muscle protested, every inch of skin burned, every bone cracked. She would have screamed, but there was no energy left to scream with. She collapsed, panting, feeling a dull throbbing all over her body.

She tried again, forcing her joints to bend, and her muscles to contract.

And slowly, little by little, she worked her way up again, rolling onto her stomach with a loud crunching sound against the debris. She looked down, focusing her eyes on the floor below. It was now riddled with shattered glass, and sharp pieces of metal debris. Another image flashed: a beam breaking out from the center, striking a metal wall. An Explosion. A shower of sharp material, like shrapnel. Her eyes focused on her hooves, immune to the shards, covered in the glove-tight rubber fittings. All up and down the arms of the suit were dents and scrapes where the debris had hit her. Had she not been wearing it, her hide would have been shredded raw!

She moved each limb independently now. Prodding. Testing. Pressing lightly on the ground before pushing down hard enough to support her whole weight. As she worked her way onto her left hind leg, a dull tight pain shot up right through the bone. She collapsed on the ground again as a message rang out from the suit.

Minor Fracture Detected.

Twilight rolled her eyes.

"Thank you, Captain Obvious," she croaked back to the suit. Her throat protested every word.

She struggled up again, this time ready for the pain, but still wincing with a loud gasp as she put weight on the leg, feeling it strongest at the bottom of the fibula.

Morphine Administered, the suit rang out.

Twilight felt a small sting somewhere on her side just in front of her flank followed by an immediate lessening of the pain around her leg. She sighed loudly from relief as the pain continued to decrease.

"Well, suit," she whispered jokingly, "I don't think you'll be hearing me complain about overspending again."

She chuckled lightly, feeling a tightness in her chest that she was sure would have been painful a moment before.

She looked up, and finally studied the room proper, taking in everything her now-focused eyes could handle.

Damage didn't begin to describe what she was looking at! She searched through her memories for the best word to fit the situation. Many came quickly to mind.

Destruction.
Devastation.
Disaster.

Twilight had learned all these words... had seen pictures... had read books. But nothing quite fit what was around her now. None of them quite captured the realness. Comparing the difference between what she had read about and what she saw was like the difference between a scab and an open wound. This whole place was still bleeding, and calling out for help!

Something gnawed at her from the back of her mind. A thought more painful than anything her body had experienced. A worry that had been creeping up ever since she first opened her eyes. Had she not been so weak, she would be running frantic right now!

And, at the same time, a guilt: deeper—much deeper—than the worry, but still present.

More images flashed as she tried to remember what had happened. Spike had climbed the ladder in the back to start up the machinery. Had he been up there all that time? No. No, he had come down. Down where? Down here! With her! He was next to her when the cart went through. She had been with him. Had he run off? No. She remembered now. She had grabbed him. She had protected him. She had held him tight.

But then, why wasn't he here?

"S-Spike!" she croaked, the pain of his memory shooting through her. "Spike! Are you there?"

Silence answered back. Twilight swallowed hard against a lump in her throat and started walking around. Glass cracked beneath her hooves with each step she took, glistening among the scattered metal and wounded structure. She stared around her, taking in the damaged organs of the Test Chamber: dangling ventilation tubes, loose wires, shapeless hunks of metal perched like boulders. The contraption in the ceiling had been reduced to a stump, its rotary mechanism exposed and torn, weeping tears of static in small electric arcs. One of the fingers of the giant hand had been severed, laying defeated on its side next to the palm.

"Spike!" she projected again, feeling her throat coming back to life.

A horror slowly overcame her as she remembered. Perhaps she had passed out already? She couldn't quite make out the details. But Spike had NOT been with her the whole time. She remembered now: her scream tearing her throat apart during the disaster, calling for him. Her body went cold as she realized the possibilities. Part of her was afraid of finding what she was looking for now. Afraid of what she would see.

And sooner—much sooner than she expected—she spotted it. A small glimpse of purple amid the gray. A shot of adrenaline ran through Twilight's back as she ran over, praying with every last breath that he was still there—still the same—still the Spike she remembered.

Just sleeping, she told herself as his curled body came into view. Just sleeping.

The platform Spike had climbed during the experiment had collapsed onto the balcony area during the turmoil, taking with it nearly every guard rail and contorting the entire platform out of shape. But it was grated, and Twilight could see through the platform to the balcony underneath. She could see him there, Spike, her little baby dragon, curled up on his side, trapped underneath. Twilight slowed as she got close, reaching up and placing her muzzle right up against the metal so she could see through.

Okay, Twilight. Logical. Signs of life. Just... look. Don't think. Just look...

Twilight held her breath, heart pounding as the purple form of the dragon lay before her. Her mind was numb, her thoughts focused on that single tiny body beneath the wreckage. Waiting. Staring. Hoping. She was aware of every breath she took. Every beat in her chest. Every quiver from her body. And finally—

And she saw it!

The sign she had been hoping for. A tiny flicker of expansion. A breath!

He's alive! she thought, lighting her horn.

Putting up with the pain shooting into her skull, she forced her magic upon the platform, driving it with everything she had. Seconds passed. Minutes rolled by. Her energy dwindled, her muscles gave out, but the platform remained right where it was.

She breathed harder as she let go of the platform. Adrenaline was quickly pulling her into a panic.

"Oh no... oh no..." she muttered, trotting restlessly around the chamber. "Find help... need help."

"Heeelp!" she yelled out louder, finding her voice coming back to her as she raced around the room. "HEEEEELP!"

She was running up to the entrance where the two blast doors used to be sealed. Two-foot-thick metal doors, and they had been bent back, forced into the walls around them, leaving an opening large enough for Twilight to fit through easily.

"HEEEELP!" she yelled out again, jumping through the doors into the anti-chamber, and suddenly found her hooves slipping out from under her! She slid around catching her balance before looking down at what she was standing on.

A large part of the floor had been pasted with a thick gelatin, striped with different shades of red. Looking around for the source, she felt nausea overwhelm her as she found the remains of the two scientists who had given her the briefing. Their bodies were still whole, but their flesh had been torn up by the flying debris, leaving streaks of blood leaking all over their bodies.

"Oh... dear... Celestia..." she quivered, her hoof raising towards her mouth.

Looking around, she saw the plain metal door leading out into the hallway, slid open a few inches. Twilight stepped carefully through the slippery filth now covering the hooves of her suit and peered through.

"Hey!" she yelled out, seeing a dark-magenta scientist with her back turned just outside the door. "Can you help me?!"

The pony was kneeling over something, surrounded by the red rotating warning lights flashing on the walls. Twilight moved to get a closer look, and saw the head of another pony laying on his back, unconscious. He wasn't dead: not yet at least. The kneeling pony was busy resuscitating him, with small spasms that Twilight guessed were chest compressions.

Twilight was torn. She knew the pony was in the middle of a life-critical procedure, but the tightness in her heart begged her to shout out anyway—to tear her away from the activity she was performing and attend to the only thing that really mattered.

To me, she reminded herself. Matters to me...

Twilight continued to stare, watching as the pony bent over to breathe life back into the victim's lungs. There was no telling how long she had been at this. Part of Twilight was holding her breath for the poor pony.

A cough. A sputter. A cloud of spit. The resuscitating pony backed up, reaching a hoof out as the victim looked around, now coughing violently. As she moved aside, Twilight noticed the guy on his back flipping onto his side, trying to get up, revealing a brown-coat body garbed in black vest and uniform. A security guard! Twilight's eyes went to a large laceration on his hind leg, running from his flank roughly down to his knee. It was still mostly open, but was no longer running freely.

Twilight banged on the metal door. "Hey!"

This time, both ponies looked around, seeing Twilight's face through the small opening in the door. The magenta pony—unicorn, female—stifled a gasp as she headed up to the opening.

"You're ALIVE?!" she said. "How is—"

"I don't know," Twilight answered, quickly getting to the point. "Listen, I need your help. There's someone else in here. I need help getting them out."

The security guard was now crawling onto his hooves, wincing every time he moved his hind leg. The unicorn glanced back at him before looking at Twilight.

"I'll... I'll see what i can do. Can you get this door open?"

Twilight looked at the odd angle the door was sitting at, wedged into the wall.

"I'll need some help," Twilight said. "Together?"

"Sure."

Both of the lit their horns, Twilight's emanating a dull pain through her scalp. The searing migraine was gone now, but she could tell her magic wasn't at full strength yet.

The door jolted in spasms, breaking through tiny barriers of debris as it forced its way further into the wall, making a loud clunk with each move. It was difficult with two horns, and impossible with one. Twilight couldn't have escaped without her.

"That's good," Twilight said. The opening was around two feet now. "Can you get through?"

"Easily," said the unicorn.

Twilight stepped back, letting the scientist into the anti-chamber, hearing her cry out as her hooves pressed into the mass of congealed blood on the floor.

"What... oh dear Celestia, what HAPPENED?!"

Twilight watched her horror-struck face pass over the red masses in the corners of the room, the remains of the two scientists, darting back to Twilight, and then catching a glimpse of the wreckage beyond the blast doors.

"Come on," said Twilight, "I'll clear a space for your through the debris."

Twilight's whole body was screaming at her to hurry. It was everything Twilight could do not to reach out and drag the other pony with her by the mane!

Stepping carefully over the bottom blast door, Twilight lit her horn, creating a small burst of air on the ground in front of her. Shards of metal and glass were pushed aside as she stepped down the path to the platform. She could sense the scientist following close behind.

"He's under here," Twilight said stopping the wind and turning to look at the scientist. She was staring wide-eyed around the chamber as she walked down the path. "We'll need to lift this."

The unicorn pony simply gazed around in total astonishment.

"Dear Celestia..." she whispered, "what have we done..."

Twilight's impatience was overwhelming her.

"Hey!" Twilight yelled out, indicating the platform with her head with a scowl.

The unicorn blinked.

"Oh, sorry. Right. This... this... wait, the entire platform?!"

Twilight gave her a sarcastic, almost cruel look.

"Well, unless there's a way to break it apart, yes! The entire platform!"

She continued staring past Twilight at the massive structure, mouth slightly agape.

"ARE YOU GOING TO HELP ME OR NOT?!" Twilight burst out, unable to control herself anymore.

"I..." she said, now thoroughly shaken, "I... yes, just give me... yes... yes of course."

"Okay, then! Let's light 'er up!" Twilight said, floating her own magic towards the platform.

The other unicorn joined her and soon the platform was moving, lifting, squelching off the metal surface, shifting debris, knocking metal rails and poles onto the ground which clattered loudly.

"OVER!" Twilight shouted, shifting a portion of her magic horizontally. Second by second the platform moved, like a cargo ship departing at sea, tearing away from the other hunks of metal around it. Both ponies were straining now, sweat forming at their temples.

"ENOUGH!" Twilight shouted, easing up on her magic until the platform came to rest. She had waited until the purple form was fully exposed, and was now jumping onto the balcony, crashing through the shards of wreckage.

"Spike," she groaned, gently lifting the form of the dragon in her hooves. Her anxiety lessened as she felt his warmth against her face—felt his breath—felt his body expanding and contracting with each breath. She could now feel it quite easily. It was very fast now. Almost hyperventilating.

"Is that..." the unicorn next to her whispered, peering over at the baby dragon.

"Spike, are you okay?" Twilight said, turning the dragon over in her hooves.

She let out a cry as she looked at his face. His eyes were wide. His pupils dilated. He looked positively horrified!

"Spike!" she yelled out, shaking him slightly. "Spike! You're okay! You're alright! We're here!"

"He's hurt," came the voice of the unicorn next to her.

"What?"

The unicorn approached her now and pointed at Spike's right side. Spike was on his back now, and her hoof brushed Twilight's chest as she pointed.

"Bring him out here," she said. "I have a medical kit laid out. I'll see what I can do."

Twilight's breath completely escaped her. She couldn't comprehend what she had just heard. Spike? Hurt? Spike couldn't be hurt! His scales... they would have protected him!

"Hurry!" the scientist said, her purple tail disappearing around the corner of the blast doors.

Twilight lit her horn, elevating the limp form of her baby dragon and running through the doors, carefully hovering his weakened body through the small openings.

Twilight stepped out into the hallway, taking in a new set of wounds that the facility was suffering from. Red lights flashed in the distance, the security pony was now leaning with his back against the wall on the left tending to his wound, and Twilight now noticed the large metal medical container laying open on the floor.

"Set him down right here, on his back. That's it."

Twilight lowered him right next to the kit, watching his body convulse some more in hyperventilating breaths.

"What's happening to him?" Twilight asked, unable to take her eyes on him.

"He's starting to go into shock. If we address the wound quickly enough, it should sustain him long enough to find help."

Twilight never thought she would hear those words out loud, used in such a serious manner. They felt so much more real than when she read about them in stories.

She bent down with the other unicorn to watch what she was doing.

"See?" she said, pointing her hoof at a place just above Spike's hip. "There's a gash right here, on his side."

Twilight looked at where her hoof was and saw a small but thick red streak going length-wise down his side. Part of his front was red, remnants of the fountain that had pored from the wound when it was more open.

"He's lost a lot of blood. It looks like it's healing quickly, but I can seal it up a bit better. I'll see if I have some tape in here. Come over here and hold this."

Twilight walked around to her left. She wanted nothing more than to hold him close to her—to whisper to him—to feel his warm body close to hers. Sitting still and having to watch him lying there like some doll in a classroom was simply cruel.

Twilight knelt down next to Spike.

"What did you want me to hold?"

She touched her hoof on the right side of Spike's stomach.

"I need you to apply pressure around the wound. It's still slightly open, and we need to stem the bleeding as much as possible. You can use magic if you want to."

Twilight felt down with her hooves, running them against the rough scales of Spike's body, one above and one below the gash. Lighting her horn, Twilight compressed the side of Spike's body, feeling some of the arteries pinch off, and watching as the gash closed a bit.

"That's good," came the unicorn. "Hold him there for me."

Twilight sat there in tension, holding her baby dragon together like some sort of broken package as the unicorn next to her tore off large strips of white medical tape, worming them around Spike's torso. She could feel her face scrunch up as hot tears melted from her eyes watching the process of her dear Spike having to be taped up. Was it really this bad? Had it really come to this?

"Okay, that should hold for a while," she said. "You'll need to get him to the emergency medical room upstairs. They'll have better equipment for this kind of thing. And hey!"

Twilight was now breaking down, sobbing into Spike's side, tears glistening into the tape wrapped around his body. Her own body was convulsing as she cried out, reaching her hoof under Spike's head like a pillow, resting the other on his chest.

A hoof reached under her, pulling, hoisting, tearing her away from her dragon. She felt her head roughly turned. The unicorn had forced her up to meet her gaze.

"Hey. Hey, listen. Listen to me," she said, brushing some of Twilight's tears off her cheeks. "Calm down. It's not over. Not yet. He can still be saved."

Twilight couldn't control herself anymore. She wanted to say something, but all she could do was let out a stifled cry as more tears streamed down.

"Look," the unicorn said, "all he needs is more medical attention. We can get him that! But time is critical here, and I need you to cooperate with me. Do you understand?"

Twilight forced a nod, trying desperately to hold back more tears.

"Okay. You're gonna be alright?"

What kind of a question is this? Twilight thought.

Again, Twilight forced another nod.

"Okay. Follow me."

As the scientist got up, Twilight took a shaky quivering breath, letting it out as smoothly as she could. She could still feel fluid dripping from her eyes, but the compulsive sobs had stopped. Lighting her horn, she picked up her wrapped baby dragon and followed the scientist.

They rounded the corner, bringing more damage into view. One of the large computer servers had detached from the wall and had scattered more debris around it as a red rotating warning light flashed overhead. The scientist followed Twilight's example from the Test Chamber, magicking a small wind to push aside the rubble. She led Twilight to the left, into the hallway with the large red stripe and the words "Test Lab" on it. Twilight grimaced as the memory of Spike yelling after her down the hallway flashed through her mind.

The wreckage was much worse down here. The end of the hallway was now host to half-a-dozen metal rods, each the size of a small tank on the back of a tanker truck, stacked length-wise down the hallway. There were more still attached to the ceiling, where they had fallen from, and some had broken through the glass of the doors leading to the elevator.

The scientist in front of her turned.

"Can you get over these?" she said to Twilight.

Twilight nodded, noticing her tears starting to dry. Focusing on travel was helping to take her mind off Spike.

She walked forward, following the guiding hoof of the scientist now pointing towards the elevator.

Climbing over the pipes was much more difficult than she had expected. She had needed to place Spike gently on top of one of the pillars so she could use her horn in the navigation process. She wasn't particularly strong, but she could use levitation to aid in places where her muscles were weak.

She activated the elevator, resulting in the door on the right swinging open, and then turned back to the scientist.

"Aren't you coming with me?" Twilight asked, seeing the scientist turning around.

"Oh," she said, turning her head, "I'm going to help out the security guard some more. I might catch up with you later."

"Oh," Twilight said. She wasn't expecting this. She didn't want to be alone. "Okay!"

She watched the scientist round the corner before levitating Spike inside the elevator with her. She pushed the button, forgetting that this was the elevator that spun and was surprised to find that it wasn't as dizzying as the first time.

In fact, she was feeling much better altogether! True, she still had a large lump in her throat, with dried tears and possibly blood crusted on her face, but her body felt surprisingly nimble and pain-free again. Even her fracture wasn't bothering her.

This. Suit. Is. AMAZING! she thought, wiggling her hind leg and noticing how comfortable it was now. Could it be healed already?

The doors hissed open smoothly as she re-entered the Ionization Chambers waiting for her at the top. The room was much as she remembered it. Just... darker, as if a light or two had burned out. She was about to look around when a loud voice startled her.

"TWILIGHT!"

Dr. Whooves had slammed into her, knocking the wind right out of her! For a moment, she nearly dropped Spike!

"Twilight! You're ALIVE!"

She could hear his voice cracking at the end, turning into sobs. She looked around uncomfortably as he started crying into her shoulder, finding a corner next to one of the ionization cores where she could rest Spike for a few minutes. She brought a hoof up and ran it slowly down his neck, brushing down his mane.

"It's... it's alright! I'm okay!" she said, noticing that her own voice was sounding much better. "And... you're alright!"

Dr. Whooves backed up, his face soaked and contorted. He shook his head at the floor, as if shaking the tears off his face.

"Me?" he said, looking up. "Nah, I'm not the important one here. I'm just some old guy," he continued, backing up a bit before popping his head up again.

"But you! You're so young! And right in the middle of it all."

He was looking at her much more carefully now. His eyes were squinted, as if finding a new discovering of science that was hiding in Twilight's eyes. She watched as he walked up to her for a closer inspection.

"What... happened to your face?" he said, getting right up close to her and reaching his hoof up to her right cheek. Twilight recoiled slightly, not expecting the strange sensation as the hoof brushed gently down her hide. It didn't feel like skin anymore: almost like scales, or a massive callous.

"I have no idea," Twilight said, trying and failing to recall what might have happened. "I haven't got a chance to look at myself yet."

He was looking quite worried now, his eyes now widening.

"It's all bloody. You should really have someone take a look at that."

"I..." Twilight started, bring her hoof up to feel her cheek. It didn't hurt, but it didn't have the texture that a normal hide should have, even from the little she could feel through the rubber of the suit.

"And... you!" Twilight spoke up again. "You're not hurt?"

Dr. Whooves shuffled his hooves a bit, looking almost embarrassed.

"Well, no," he said.

He looked up, and Twilight suddenly saw a nervousness surface that she had sworn was there all along.

"At least, not yet."

Dr. Whooves indicated his head over to the glass chambers against the left-hand wall: the three that Twilight had looked at with the balls of electric current. Twilight followed his lead as he turned to walk out in front of them. Something red flashed in her peripheral vision, but she turned away from it.

"That!" he said, pointing at the inside of one of the glass tubes.

Twilight saw it as soon as he pointed at it. Something green was sitting inside the chamber. Something... alive!

She walked up slowly, entranced as a foal would be at the zoo.

At first glance, it might have looked like a blob of green jello—only more opaque, and much slimier. But on closer inspection, there was a fleshy texture to it, almost cloth-like. Had it been perfectly still, it may have looked tempting to use as a pillow!

But there was an uncomfortable movement to it: a resonant throbbing, as though enormous veins were pumping all around just below the surface. Small legs supported it as it hovered slightly above the ground, which it swayed on restlessly. Twilight recognized it as a hunting stance. She had read about similar poses in some of the carnivorous creatures of the forest. Twilight felt uneasy staring at it, and backed up slightly.

"What is it?" she asked, keeping her head facing the strange creature.

Dr. Whooves walked up and peered through the glass with her.

"That's what I'd like to know," he said. "This thing wasn't here before the experiment. And something makes me doubt it's the only one."

Twilight tore her eyes away from the creatures to look back at Dr.Whooves.

"You think the experiment brought these things in? How could... what process... what kind of science..."

Dr. Whooves shook his head, looking as dumbfounded as Twilight felt.

"There's no telling what horrors have been brought about by all this. Remember, those samples don't come in from our lab. That's all lambda! And the things I've heard about that place—"

He stopped short, contemplating a bit before finishing.

"Well, let's just say I wouldn't be surprised if this isn't the strangest thing you see before the end."

Twilight looked back at the creature. It looked like it was facing her, turning in its glass confinement to prepare for its next victim.

"So you think I'll see more of them when I leave here?" she asked.

Dr. Whooves shouted out, startling her again.

"Leave?!"

Twilight turned to see him slightly surprised—almost downright worried!

"Twilight, I don't want you going beyond this room. You've seen the damage! You've seen the possibilities! This creature—"

He stopped short again. Twilight walked up to him, suddenly having an urge to comfort him as she did Spike.

"Dr. Whooves," she said, "I can't stay here. I have to save—"

"Sure you can!" Dr. Whooves said. "Help will come, I guarantee it! Someone will call for help! You'll see!"

"But Spike!" she said, and was surprised to see Dr. Whooves go completely silent. She waited for a response, but none came. He just looked at her.

Twilight finally lit her horn, and brought forth her baby dragon, still wide-eyed, but not breathing as fast as he was before.

Dr. Whooves let out a breath that sounded like a wounded cicada.

"Wha... oh. Dear. Celestia...."

Twilight set him gently between them as Dr. Whooves continued to stare.

"He's going into shock," Twilight said, remembering the terminology. "I need to find help. And fast."

Dr. Whooves walked up slowly, crouching down to lay a hoof gently on the dragon's body. He was leaning his head down next to the dragon's, and stroking his body lovingly as though it was his own foal.

"What has this place done to you?" he quivered.

Twilight looked down at him, but didn't move.

"I need to go out there. And I need to do it now," she said.

Dr. Whooves continued to stroke the dragon's body, but looked up to meet her gaze.

"You realize what you could be facing," he said, shaking his head slightly. "You realize that by going out there—"

Dr. Whooves had a horrible tremble in his voice now as he got up. Backing up slightly, he turned to indicate something in the corner. As the red that Twilight had glimpsed before came into focus, Twilight doubled up in sick, trying hard not to hurl.

A body was laying there: the remains of the other scientist that had been in the room. The redness she had seen turned out to be a carpet of blood, painted as though someone had tipped a large vat on its side. The pony itself was on its side, hooves facing her. There was a gash length-wise down his middle, and there was something... something... sticking out...

"Ah! Oh, Celestia!" Twilight screamed out, turning away and trying to force the image out of her head.

"That's what you'll be facing, Twilight," Dr. Whooves said next to her. "That's what's out there. I watched him die, Twilight. I was here when it happened. Death. Destruction. Decay. That's what's waiting for you out there."

Twilight was turning back towards the glass chambers, trying not to hurl. It was too much! She lowered her head at the floor as the creature behind the glass came back into view.

"Are you really willing to go through more of this?" Dr. Whooves asked. "Because, if you are, I'm not coming with you."

Twilight was having trouble focusing her eyes. There were no tears—only horror. She couldn't quite grasp what she had just seen.

Dr. Whoove's voice resounded behind her.

"Twilight?"

She heard him move around in front of her. He was standing between her and the glass now. She could see his hooves on the floor.

"Twilight?" he said again.

Twilight swallowed, glancing over at Spike. He was still breathing, a large patch of red invading the whiteness of the medical tape. She swallowed hard.

And then she looked up, meeting his gaze with her own eyes. Solid. Marked. Resolved.

"I'm going out there, Dr. Whooves. I have to. And whether you're going with me or not is your choice. For me, however, it's not. I have something I need to do. I have someone who's depending on me. And if you think I'm going to—to sit here, and—"

She stopped, trying to find the right words. She had been doing so well!

Dr. Whooves rested a hoof on her shoulder.

"I can't stop you, Twilight," he said. "I can only prepare you. I can only show you what's out there. Just know that if you leave here, you will never see me again."

Twilight looked at him and saw his eyes: Cold. Harsh. Yet, ironically, warm. A rugged warmth that reached invitingly into Twilight only to twist and push in ways Twilight was afraid to explore.

She pulled her gaze away from him, searching the room. The poised creature behind the glass. The gruesome scene in the corner. And finally down at Spike. A resolve was overcoming her, driving inside of her.

"Yes," she finally said, looking up to meet his eyes again. "I'm going out there."

Dr. Whooves smiled, almost painfully. And yet, there was something else.

And as Twilight finally saw it, she thought the perfect word for what she saw in his eyes.

Pride!

=========================================================

A few ticks sounded as Dr. Whooves worked the retinal scanner. He turned to look at her as the acceptance chimed, swinging the door open. His face was reserved.

"If you find help while you're out there," he said, "remember to send them down here."

"I will," she said, forcing a small smile. "You'll be alright here?"

"So long as that thing back there doesn't escape," he said, indicating his head towards the glass container.

She glanced back for a second. Then they both turned towards each other again, their eyes meeting in the middle. For a moment, neither of them knew what to say.

Then, walking towards each other, they embraced, burying their faces in each other's shoulders, feeling the comfort of each other's grasp—the feel of hide touching hide—the feel of warmth and closeness.

And then it was over. They were parting. Dr. Whooves was moving out of the way so Twilight could approach the door.

Twilight walked over and peered into the control room. Sirens could be heard streaming in from the Test Chamber. Three bodies lay strewn around the room, a few of them torn up. The door at the opposite end had been blasted apart during the experiment.

Twilight looked back at Dr. Whooves, and for a moment, they shared one final moment. She considered for a moment what she wanted to say, but nothing seemed appropriate. This is how she wanted to remember him: just standing there. In silence. With her.

She watched as the tiniest flicker of the smile crested him face. Then, lighting her horn, she lifted Spike, parted her eyes from his, and walked through the door.

The blast shield on the right-hand wall had been partially destroyed, showering light on the opposite wall from the Test Chamber. Part of Twilight was tempted to look through the opening and see the wreckage again: one last reminder of what she had just been through. Mild splatters of blood lay on the floor as she walked, the majority being plastered on the walls from the explosion. Twilight kept her head down, eyes away from the bloodshed.

As she passed through the blasted opening at the other end, magicking Spike carefully through with her, she became very aware of her solitude. The narrow green-lit hallway surrounded her now, and memories flooded back of the three scientists peering expectantly at her through the door from the control room. She remembered this as being the sinusoidal hallway, jogging step-wise several times. Each hoof she brought down took her closer to, and finally around, a different bend in the stairway-shaped hallway. Each bend was the same. Creep up. Peer around. Take notice. Observe that it's clear. Continue.

At last, half-a-dozen bends later, she found an opening into an actual room. She noticed the two octahedron-shaped containers in the left-hand side, and recognized them as the "plasma cells" she had looked at earlier. She looked around the chamber.

This whole room was a wreck! One of the containers had broken open, and was leaking the blue-glowing liquid, no longer glowing as it seeped to every corner of the floor. The doors in the right-hand wall in the back were blocked off by a pipe as long as the entire room, and thick enough that Twilight may have been able to squeeze her entire body through, if she cared to try.

She looked around carefully, entering the room as she considered a way to get past the large pipe. If she was careful, she might be able to walk on top of the pipe, and avoid the spilled fluid on the floor.

A sound cried out behind her as something hit her from behind. She could feel it strike her through her suit. It couldn't have been much larger than a tennis ball.

And it was still there! Still on her! Crawling! She tried looking around at it, and felt it creeping along her body, on her flank, on her back—

Twilight cried out and moved, hastily setting Spike down as she rolled onto her back, trying to crush it. The creature was crawling around her side, onto her belly, up towards her face—

She swatted at it with her hooves, lifting her head up. She saw it! Just a glimpse. She rolled over on her stomach again trying to crush it beneath her. The creature: the same kind as the one in the glass chamber.

She rolled back and forth, hoping to smash it like a bug, but it was already on her side, her back, her neck—

Lighting her horn, she picked it up, and threw it across the room. It hit the fluid on the floor with a small splash, jumping around in pain as it slid straight to the back of the room. Twilight got up, looking around quickly, feeling her breath gliding quickly and deeply through her lungs.

Is it dead? Did I kill it? Is it—

It wasn't dead.

Twilight wanted to escape—to simply climb over the pipes—but the creature was turning around, and Twilight was suddenly fascinated by its actions. It was tapping the walls, feeling out with its feet—claws—tentacles, sticking them, grabbing onto—

Oh, no! she thought, watching it ascend above the ground.

It was walking up the wall! Literally! Walking! Straight up the wall! Twilight couldn't quite imagine how such a large creature could pull it off, but it was there! In front of her! Walking! And then—

Twilight screamed out an ducked. The creature had just flown! Wait, was it flying? Catapulting! Like a wingless grasshopper!

Without thinking, Twilight rolled onto her back, and kept going straight onto her belly again, hearing the creature thud weakly on the ground next to her. The creature turned towards her again, and Twilight was back on her feet, running! Running to the door! Sliding to the door—slipping—falling—

Her hooves had completely slid out from under her as her belly slammed into the spill on the floor, her whole body ramming into the wall on the far side. She couldn't get up. She couldn't move! The creature was jumping again, flying the entire length of the room to land on the wall next to her. Twilight lit her horn again, starring up at the creature, watching her magic surround it, levitating it away from the wall. For a moment, she simply considered it: a green blob of an organism suspended in a light purple haze.

Then, she slammed it into the wall.

The creature let out a cry of pain, but still flailed around. She rammed it again, feeling its flesh compress like rubber against the steel wall. Another slam. Another. Another. Bash after bash, and the creature kept flailing. Twilight yelled out with each one.

Why. Won't. You. Just. Die!?

Twilight felt her magic start to give out. The creature was very weak now as she let the cloud dwindle, hearing the large green insect collapse on the floor just next to her. It was struggling to roll on its front, but couldn't quite manage it.

Twilight's curiosity prompted her to look at the creature again. She had never seen it when it was on its back like this.

She knew there was going to be some defense mechanism underneath, and expected some sort of mouth or sting, but nothing like this! There was almost no flesh underneath. The entire bottom of the creature was nothing but mouth! Red, swollen, permanently open, exposing what appeared to be a beak inside the gaping hole. If it wanted to, it could probably swallow an entire hoof or head in a single bite.

Twilight reached her hind leg into an awkward angle and pushed against the back wall, feeling her body slide effortlessly across the floor. She reached out with her foreleg now, and clawed at the dry floor, hoisting herself away from the sea and struggled back onto her hooves. Spike was still in the corner, cradled in the fetal position with his back towards her. Could he move now?

She lit her horn levitating the dragon over the pipe and setting him down just in front of the door. She used a similar technique to help herself up on it, keeping an eye on the creature still struggling on the floor. She had little strength left in her horn now, but lit it again just to smash the creature into the floor a few more times anyway.

Just how resilient are these things?! she thought, smashing it for the third time.

Twilight breathed a sigh of relief when the doors swung open. They still worked! She could see the small stretch of hallway before her. She had to be close to the elevator by now!

She levitated Spike into a corner of the hallway before cautiously stepping out herself.

A cry behind her shot a chill through her as she ducked, hooves over her head. The creature had just leapt right through the door, landing opposite her in the hallway, turning to prepare for its next leap. Twilight didn't think. Glancing over at Spike, she kept her head down and charged head-long down the hallway. She could hear the creature behind her. She lifted her head and looked back at it as she ran—

—and felt her head suddenly explode.

Wave after wave of pain flooded down her scalp, throbbing, pulsating—her brain was tearing apart as her body collapsed. Her throat burned as she filled the hallway with a piercing scream, pressing her hooves into her temple to try and hold herself together! She felt around frantically: the top of her head, her hair, her horn—her horn!? Part of her horn. Half of her horn!

She let out another scream as the pain kept flooding, praying for it to subside—to at least diminish—to give her a chance to catch her breath.

The creature was on top of her now: the tiniest sense of feeling on the small of her back amid the rush of pain pouring from her head. She couldn't light her horn: not in the state she was in. She rolled onto her back again, and kept rolling, turning herself around so she could roll frantically down the hallway, leaving the poor creature to run crazily around her body.

A voice rang out from the suit.

Weapon Detected.

Twilight stopped and looked around. The creature had managed to fall off in the fray of rolling. And behind her, she could see what had caused the damage to her horn. The laser canisters that spanned the entire wall of the hallway had broken, shooting a beam straight across the center, like a glowing trip-wire suspended a few feet in the air. Rubble was spread all over the floor: burnt computer chips, wires, pieces of metal and glass, and... something else.

She crawled over to it, still grimacing from the flood of pain now leaking into her neck and into the rest of her body. She pushed her hoof into it, and found that it stuck! Did the suit know?

Twilight didn't care anymore. It was a long piece of metal, and it felt heavy. Satisfyingly heavy. She looked over to see the creature preparing the jump again. She lifted the bar, daring it to jump. To try!

With a loud cry, the creature leapt into the air as Twilight swung the bar, and missed spectacularly. Twilight got up, forcing herself onto her hooves, feeling her muscles work, feeling her hooves dig into the rubble-infested floor. Invigorated. Vengeful.

For a moment, she stared at the creature with its back still towards her. Then, leaping on it before it could prepare its next jump, she smashed it with the bar, piercing it on the end of the crook like a skewer. She brought the bar up to her face, staring at the flailing creature upside down on the end. She wanted to watch it suffer. She wanted to watch it die. Slowly. Painfully. She wanted to hear it scream as it slowly bled out on the end of the rod.

But then she came up with a better idea.

Carrying it back down the hallway, she leaned the bar carefully up to the laser beam, and a few seconds later there was no more creature. The entire organism simply melted into a puddle on the floor. The end of the bar had turned red-hot instantly, but cooled rapidly back to the gray metal texture of before.

It was over.

She wanted to drop the bar, but the suit wouldn't let her. It just clung to the end of her hoof like some extension of her foreleg. At least she could still use it to walk.

She ducked carefully under the laser and back over to Spike, still lying in the corner. He seemed to be hanging on, but was certainly in no better shape.

Oh, Spike, she thought. Will I still be able to carry you?

She put her head down and tried lighting her horn.

Pain seared down her scalp again, raining down her neck. It wasn't quite agony, but the sensation was extremely uncomfortable. She could see small glimpses of sparks raining down in front of her, as if her horn was bleeding from the tip.

Finally she stopped, deciding that magic would only make things worse. She had learned at some point from Celestia herself that horns had special healing powers. Of course, that had been in relation to internal damage from a spell. She had no idea if a horn had any ability to actually regrow.

Walking over, she whispered a small apology to the seemingly sleeping dragon, and then clutched the spines on his head firmly in her mouth.

He felt much heavier than he did when she used magic. And much more awkward. His limbs dangled, and she had to be careful that they didn't sway into anything. The laser was particularly tricky, as she had to bend over so far that part of his body dragged along the debris-strewn floor. She could feel her neck becoming stiff and sore very quickly as her muscles screamed out. She wasn't an Earth Pony. She didn't used her mouth to carry stuff that often.

She laid him down as she reached the end of the hallway, reaching the doors that were next to the four colored stripes on the wall. She walked up to them hopefully but they wouldn't open. She considered using magic, but decided it wasn't worth the pain. Raising her hoof up with the metal bar still attached, she simply smashed the glass in the lower-right corner.

Satisfying, she thought. I could get used to this.

Now came the tricky part, though. She had a choice. She could either use magic to levitate Spike through the opening, or she could drag him through, and risk him getting cut up by the jagged edges of the glass.

Thinking a moment, she came up with a better solution. Using the metal bar, she scrapped harshly along the edges of the glass frame, ripping out as much of the glass as she could. Then, using her hooves, she pushed all the large chunks out of the way, leaving only the smallest of the pieces still sitting on the metal floor. It took some work, but what she was left with was a relatively clear path to drag Spike down.

And "drag" was exactly the word for it. She didn't even bother lifting him as she forced him along the floor fitting herself flank-first through the opening.

The next hallway contained the elevator at the end, and was largely undamaged. Twilight was amazed at the variety of destruction she had witnessed so far! Picking up Spike all the way off the ground, she ran right up to the elevator, slamming her hoof into the button.

Of course, nothing happened. She had done it more for the satisfaction of pressing a button, and for the slight, hopeful chance that something still worked around this facility.

With the doors not opening, she followed suit, smashing the lower-left pane of glass, clearing out the shards around the edges, and pushing them away. She forced herself through the opening and looked around.

The elevator shaft was felt very empty and hollow now. The platform she stepped onto was short, and had nothing to stop her from stepping right off the edge and down the shaft. Again, the entire area was lit with that same sickly-green light.

She looked up, expecting to see the elevator stuck at the top. But there was nothing there! All she could make out was a cable dangling from the ceiling.

Creeping right up the edge of the platform, she peered down. The shaft extending a ways further, and at the bottom was the remains of the elevator. She recognized the top, with a portion of the cable still attached. The rest was strewn around in parts throughout the bottom of the shaft. She couldn't see any blood. Hopefully no one was inside at the time.

Looking around some more, she noticed the red ladder to her left extending to the top. And above her—way above her—was the small platform at the top that the ladder led to.

For a moment she just stood there, thinking. She imagined herself with Spike in her mouth, climbing hoof-over-hoof up the rungs of the ladder. Imagined her hooves slipping out from under her. Imagined her muscles giving out half-way. Imagined the ladder breaking. She started to some to a conclusion.

No, she thought, shaking her head. This isn't going to work. There has to be a better way.

She forced herself out of the opening and looked around the hallway.

"What kind of building doesn't have stairs!?" she said out loud, hearing her own voice resonate in the silence.

She had already come up with an idea, of course. She was just taking her time preparing. It wasn't exactly going to be pleasant.

"Okay, need to put it to the test. Need to test out the theory. Okay, testing, here we go..."

She lit her horn, feeling the dull pain as sparks flew out the end. Spike was engulfed in a cloud of purple and lifted up.

Okay, she thought. Not too bad so far...

She lit it further, feeling the magic engulfing her own body. The pain was much clearer now, resonating down her skull. She stayed focused and pushed further. Her body was becoming lighter, but her head was exploding again. It was becoming much more difficult to concentrate.

With one last push, she felt her own body lift entirely off the ground. As soon as she felt this, she let go, dropping herself and Spike back on the floor with a dull thud.

"Ow," she said mildly, cradling her head weakly in her hooves.

Well, at least it works, she thought.

Horns were very strange instruments. If she had tried that exact same maneuver back in the ruins of the Test Chamber, she couldn't have pulled it off. There was a weakness then that she didn't have now. And somehow, that weakness was independent of outright physical injury. It was as though her own bodily fatigue was connected to her magical performance. She had recovered much energy now, and could perform much more powerful spells now, albeit very painful while they lasted.

She hated to have to use her horn like this, as injured as it was. She knew that using it would do nothing more than make it worse. But there wasn't much choice in the matter. It either this, or face the long grueling struggle of using her own hooves.

She brought Spike into the shaft first, carefully placing him to the side with her mouth before crawling in after him. She tried hard not to think about how high the shaft was as she lit her horn. For right now, she put all thought aside of her injury, and concentrated only on putting as much force and effort into the spell as she had.

Seconds later she and Spike were surrounded by the glowing orb of magic. She could feel their bodies rising as she levitated them carefully towards the center of the shaft. She didn't want their heads striking the top platform and distracting her into letting go.

The sensation was similar to gripping a rope as you're dangling off a cliff. Your hands stay still, your muscles grow stiff, but you never let your grip lessen. Your thoughts concentrate only on gripping tighter, even as you lose the feeling in your hands from the circulation cutting off. So it was with Twilight, except it was like having dozens of needles penetrating your hands while clutching the rope, knowing they would stop if you just let go.

In fact, Twilight was so blinded from concentration and pain that she hardly noticed the platform slipping past her, and had to descend a bit before she landed. A shaky convulsive relief swept through her as she stopped the spell, lightly setting Spike down on the ground. She took a few steps out into the "O"-shaped hallway that wrapped around the elevator shaft before collapsing onto her stomach on the ground, going into small fits of spasms as she relaxed her muscles.

Her head was spinning. She swayed it a bit as she tried to get her bearings, hardly noticing the two forelegs of another pony standing just in front of her.

"Hey!" said a voice above her. "You alright?"

She looked up, and found herself staring into the eyes of a security pony. Male. Brown. Earth-pony. The same one she had seen activate the retinal scanners into this area. He appeared to be mostly uninjured. He reached his hoof out towards her which she grasped with her own, letting him hoist her up.

"My gosh! Is it really... Twilight?!" he said with a wide-eyed stare. "Twilight Sparkle?! THE Twilight Sparkle?! Who I sent down to the Test Chamber?!"

He gave her a good look, taking her in. Her bloody face. Her suit. The bar attached to her hoof. And finally, her horn.

"Well, I'll say that suit is certainly paying for itself now! Of course, your face has seen better days, and something tells me there used to be more of you... up there."

He indicated his hoof towards her head.

"Um, thanks," Twilight said. "Hey, listen. I could use your help. My dragon's hurt, and I need to get him to Sector B. There's an emergency medical area in the back. Could you help me get there?"

She led the security pony back to where she laid Spike, just in front of the elevator doors.

"Not a problem. He definitely needs help, I can see that. Just gimme a sec."

Twilight admired his strength as he grabbed Spike by the spines with his own teeth and swung him on his back as though he were a stuffed doll. How did he balance him so well on his back like that?

"Stay close," he said. "There are... things... walking around here."

"I know," Twilight said. "I killed one of them down below."

The security pony walked out in front at quite a clip, but still conversed with her politely.

"Really? You killed one?! With your own bare hooves? Er, I mean—"

He had clearly remembered the suit, but Twilight knew what he meant.

"I found a crowbar," she said, jolting his memory of the metal shaft attached to her right hoof.

"Ah! A natural at adaptation I see!" he said, rounding the corner towards the doors. "You know, if you get out of here alive, you might consider getting into the security business. We could use more ponies who know how to look after themselves in these kind of situations."

Twilight felt a tiny sliver of pride as a smile flickered across her face.

Twilight noticed the guard step over more bodies as he led her down the hallway back through the doors. There was less blood than the large carpet she had seen in the Ionization Chambers, but it still stained the floors all around the deceased. Twilight averted her eyes the best she could, but still felt an uneasy twinge in her stomach each time one of them came into view.

"So," she heard the guard pipe up as they rounded the corner, "a scientist down in the Test Chamber. You were obviously there when it happened. Any idea what went wrong?"

"Well, actually—"

"Wait! Hold that thought!"

They were back in the hallway with the same blue-tinted metal grate as the entrance to the labs. Most of the lights were out, but there was still plenty to see down the hallway. And at the end were two ponies. Scientists. Upright. Walking. They appeared at first to be survivors! But both Twilight and the security guard could tell that these were not conscious living ponies. They didn't move like normal ponies. And their faces—

"Stand back," said the guard. "I saw a few of these back in the other hallway."

Twilight jumped as the guard let out a few shots of the pistol mounted on his shoulder. She had never heard a gun before! They were never even allowed back in Canterlot! She was amazed at the powerful sound it gave off, satisfyingly reverberating around the hallway, stinging her ears with each shot.

The ponies at the end of the hallway collapsed, one after the other. She starred in the distance, trying to make out what was different about them.

"What, were they—?" Twilight asked, feeling more uneasy by the second.

"Well, come take a look for yourself," he said, trotting up to the end of the hallway.

Part of Twilight would rather have simply stayed back and have the guard cart the bodies off into a corner, where she would never see them again. But there was another, more curious part of her that needed to know.

"Yep. This place is really making me glad I got all that target practice," the guard said as Twilight caught up with him. "These poor ponies... It would've been better had they just died."

Twilight looked down at the nearest pony and immediately recognized the round green insectoid resting on the pony's face.

"I know these things!" Twilight exclaimed. "One of them jumped on me down in the lower level!"

The guard chuckled next to her.

"Heh, you're lucky you're a unicorn!" he said. "These things feed on cerebral tissue, apparently. They connect to a host body through the scalp if they can, and use it to seek out its next victim."

He looked up at Twilight, who was astonished at the guard's terminology.

"Not my words," he said. "One of the scientists described it to me... while he was alive."

The guard continued walking up the path, leading Twilight back to the "I" junction that lead to the central "C" hallway. Twilight followed him, glancing back at the two ponies on the ground before trotting forward to catch up.

"So!" the guard started up again, "You were telling me what happened down there. What went wrong?"

Twilight thought a bit as they rounded the corner into the shaft of the "I".

"I have no idea! It was just... this rock. They had me push a strange rock into an analysis beam. And then... boom! Explosion! Chaos! ... This!"

The guard turned to the right down the "C" hallway.

"So, no idea then? Not even an inkling of a theory?"

"Nope," Twilight responded automatically. "It all just happened so suddenly."

Both of them stopped short as they rounded the corner that led into Sector B, dumbstruck by the massive obstruction in front of them.

"Speaking of suddenly," the guard started, "what in the name of Equestria happened here!" the guard started.

Twilight couldn't quite believe what they were seeing either! Was this the right place?

As far as Twilight could tell, the entire ceiling had caved in! There wasn't even a gap between the pile of massive concrete blocks and the ceiling at the top! It was all just piles of concrete and rubble. Mountainous. Impenetrable.

"An avalanche?" The guard said.

"How... where..." Twilight struggled to comprehend all of this. "The medical station must be on the other side of this! How are we going to get through?!"

Twilight looked back at the guard as he turned back towards her.

"We'll find a way. Here, follow me. We'll see if there's a connecting route through the lobby."

"The lobby?" she said. "I've already been in the lobby! It doesn't go through!"

Twilight could see more red flashing warning lights on the walls, emanating from just around the corner of the "C".

"Well, it didn't before!" the guard answered. "But if that thing could shake up this place bad enough to block a path, it might have done enough damage to open one!"

Twilight watched as the guard turned to walk down to the corner of the hallway.

"Wait!" Twilight said, following after him and stopping at the door to her right. "This hallway wraps around some kind of central room! Maybe there's a way from there! Here, can you get this door open?"

Twilight turned towards the door on her right: plain and metal with security code buttons on the side. It had been blasted crooked during the cascade, and now sat wedged inside the wall at an odd angle.

"That door's going nowhere," the guard said, walking back to Twilight. "Or at least, not without a lot of trouble."

Twilight could see through some of the small cracks and crevices between the wall and the door. There were more flashing red lights and warning sirens going off inside.

"Can you at least try to get it open?"

The guard let out a sigh, reaching his mouth behind him and dragging Spike off his back so he could set him safely in a corner.

"Fine. I'll need some room, though," he said simply, dredging up when looked like a monument of energy. "Stand back."

Twilight retreated to where he had lain Spike, kneeling down so she could comfort him. The guard had backed up a ways, and a moment later charged straight at the door.

Twilight jumped a bit as his hind-hooves struck the door. A small dent formed, but the door remained. A retreat. Another charge. Another crash. A bigger dent.

She watched as he struck the door a third time, whacking entire door hard enough to give way a bit. It was now arcing inside the room a bit, but still stuck.

"One... more..." the guard said, charging head-strong.

And with the last solid strike, the door caved in entirely and landed on the ground inside the room with a loud clang.

"Amazing!" Twilight said, admiring the strength it must have taken to bend a steel door.

The guard was breathing heavily, but was not off balance or anything.

"They don't have us go through training for nothing!" he said.

He looked down at Twilight bending over the small form of the dragon.

"How's the little guy doing?"

Twilight reached over her hooves and felt around his body, his heart, his forehead, his breath—

"He's still warm," she said. "Very warm! Like, hot!"

Twilight kept her hoof on his forehead and felt worrying thoughts creep through her head.

"Let me see if I can get you through the barrier in here," he said, walking into the door.

Twilight watched as the front-half of his body disappeared through the door only to come back a moment later.

"You're in luck!" he said. "There's a ventilation opening in the side. It looks like it goes through the wall on the other side of the barrier. I'll see if I can knock one of the server computers over for your to climb up. Come on in."

Twilight glanced back at Spike as she stood up and walked into the room with him.

This was one of the most chaotic rooms she had seen by far! It was covered in what used to be large shelves filled with black computer servers. The place looked much like a library, but much smaller, and with electronics instead of books. Some of the free-standing shelves had tipped over, breaking wires and short-circuiting many of the systems. Some of them had caught on fire! Many of the lights were blown out, and the room was hazed in smoke and red warning lights.

"There!" the guard said, pointing up at the wall on the right.

Twilight followed his gaze and noticed the rectangular opening high-up in the wall, close to the ceiling.

"How am I supposed to get up there?!" Twilight shouted amid the alarms and flames.

"Hang on," he said, stepping up to one of the shelves on her right.

He reared up on his hind hooves, resting his forelegs on the shelf to give it a hard shove. It tipped over easily, crashing into the wall well before hitting the ground so it was leaning at a steep angle.

"Can you climb this?" he shouted, pointing at the make-shift ramp leading roughing up to the hole at the top of the wall.

"I think so," she said. "Let me go get Spike."

Twilight was not expecting the security guard to walk out with her, and turned around when she noticed he was trotting right up to her.

"Before you go," he started, "I want you to have this."

He bent his head down into one of the lower parts of his uniform and flipped out something small and black, catching it on an outstretched hoof. Twilight looked at it as he held it out for her.

"A pistol?!" she shouted, surprised. "Ooooh, no! I don't think you want me using that thing!"

"You're gonna need it!" he said. "I hear that hazard suit you're wearing is built for using weapons!"

Twilight backed up, shaking her head.

"No... no, no, no, nonononono! That's... I'm a scientist! I'm not... trained... for that kind of thing!"

"They didn't have a target range during your hazard course training?"

Twilight was at a loss for words.

"That was... but... we're not... PFFT!" she spit, completely perplexed. "You really expect me—Twilight Sparkle—scientist—to just pick up a gun like some... some grunt! And go shooting things?!"

"You wanna keep smashing things with a crowbar?" he said with a sly smile. "Be my guest! But take the firearm with you anyway."

Twilight just looked at him with a crazed face, peering back and forth between his face and the pistol.

"You really wanna face those zombie ponies we saw back there with your own bare hooves?"

Twilight scowled, almost angry at how good his argument was. Finally she gave in.

"Fine. I'll take it," she said, "but only as an emergency tool! I'm not going to use this thing!"

"That's fine!" he said, turning to head back into the room as soon as Twilight had lifted the device with her magic. "Just don't come cryin' to me when one of those headcrab thingys finds a way to attach itself over your horn!"

Twilight could feel an annoyance creep over her as she mantled the gun, slipping it into the holster on her shoulder like she was shown during the hazard course before reaching for Spike.

"You need any help?" the guard said as Twilight finished dragging Spike into the room with her.

"I can manage."

The guard watched as she worked out how to most easily get up the ramp with Spike.

"I'm not coming with you, by the way."

Twilight lurched forward from surprise, nearly dropping Spike!

"What?! Why?!" she said, putting him down on the floor.

The guard shrugged.

"More civilians. Gotta keep watch for more ponies like you, coming up that elevator shaft."

He winked. Somehow she got the feeling he was being somewhat facetious.

"Will I ever see you again?" she asked, knowing the answer.

The guard turned and walked towards the door, clouded slightly by the haze of smoke. The flames of the computer in the back were starting to spread.

"Don't count on it," he said.

And as he walked out, Twilight turned back to Spike, still injured, still burning up on the floor.

Fine, be that way, she thought. I'll manage on my own.

"Come on," she said to Spike, just before hoisting him up to the vent, "Let's get you some help."

=========================================================

"GET BACK!"

Twilight jumped at Dr. Yursa's crazed voice as she entered the medical room. He was backed into the corner, holding out a scalpel between his two hooves pressed together. His eyes were wide, and he was shaking violently.

"It's okay!" Twilight said. "I'm not one of... of them."

Dr. Yursa looked at her funny, as if he thought she might have been a hallucination.

"Twi... Twilight?" he said slowly.

She walked slowly up to him, making him hoist the scalpel higher in front of him.

"Calm down! It really is me! I'm not going to hurt you!"

She watched as Dr. Yursa slowly lowered the knife, still shaking.

"H-h-h-h-how?" he said, wonderingly. "How did you survive!? This... this whole place!"

"I know, Doctor. I'm amazed I'm alive too. But right now, I need your help."

Twilight had struggled a bit with how to get down from the ventilation duct. It had been very high above the ground. She had ended up jumping down herself (discovering that her fracture hadn't entirely healed), and then levitated Spike the rest of the way with her.

She was now standing inside a somewhat darkened room. Most of the lights at least still worked in here, and the equipment didn't look too shaken around. Things were looking promising.

"H-h-help?" he stuttered. "H-h-how can I help? I just... well... look at me! I'm a wreck!"

As an answer, Twilight stepped back out the door, and dragged her baby dragon into the room, stopping just in front of him.

"He's hurt," she said simply. "The lady on the bottom floor said he's going through shock. Can you help?"

He starred at the creature in front of him, taking in his injured body, eyes still wide, wrapped in white, stained with red, looking terrified.

"Wha... I..." he said shakily, "Well I... guess... yes! Yes, we have stuff here for that! That's—" he swallowed roughly, "—that's exactly what this place is for!"

He let out a nervous laugh, sounding almost relieved at being presented with something he actually knew how to handle!

"There's a table we can prop up in the closet over there. Unfold it and set it up in the center here."

"Why can't we use that thing in the corner?" she said, indicating the leather bedding she had noticed the first time she was in here.

Dr. Yursa glanced at it before looking back at Twilight.

"That's just for resting on. We need something to operate on. That's what's in the closet," he said, indicating his head impatiently behind Twilight.

"Okay," Twilight said, walking to the right to a tall white cabinet against the wall and magicking one of the doors open, "this one?"

"Should be in the front."

Twilight pulled out what looked like a long metal sheet as tall as the entire cabinet, discovering a couple legs folded underneath. She figured out the mechanics and snapped it open with her horn.

"Good, good," he said, "Put it here in the middle. That's it. Now, help me get something to clean it with. It should already be sterilized, but we need to be sure."

It took Twilight and Dr. Yursa around 10 minutes to get everything setup. The table was scrubbed, special sheets were laid down, and a few instruments were set onto a second table.

"Alright. Set him up here," he said at last. "Easy! That's it!"

Twilight strained her horn to ensure he was set down in just the right way, feeling awkward about the rough way she had been handling him so far.

"That's it. Now," he said, bending over to look at him, "the first thing we need is to treat the shock. I have some fluid here that'll help."

He indicated the large clear bag suspended from the poll next to him.

"Now, normally there's a unicorn here to assist me with this stuff, but I'm not sure where she got to, and I doubt we'll get a hold of her. It looks like you'll be doing a lot of the handy work."

"I'll... do my best?" Twilight said, not knowing how she felt about this.

Yursa was already indicating the first step.

"Now the best way to do this is to find a vein. I think I can do that much. Let me see..."

He bent over and started feeling around the dragon's arm.

"This is so much easier on ponies," he muttered. "These thick scales... I'm just not used to... wait! I think I got something."

He looked at Twilight.

"Sterilization first, Twilight. There's some peroxide on the table over there, and some cotton balls. All it needs is a dab."

Twilight worked as quickly as she could, trying hard not to spill anything. Her horn was feeling much better now, and simple things like this hardly hurt it, but it was far from what it used to be.

"Good, good," he said, "Now the needle. Sterilize the needle."

He indicated with his head to the end of the tube dangling from the bag. Twilight picked it up, rubbing it thoroughly with the cotton ball, trying not to think about what was coming next.

"Okay, okay. That's good. Just one rub should do it," he said, noticing how distracted she was getting. "Now, just put it here, right where my hoof is. You should be able to feel it with your magic. It's just a small pulse."

"I," Twilight said, starting to bring the needle up to the scales, "I don't think I can do this."

"It's alright! He won't feel much pain. It's just prick. Just make sure it goes in the right place."

Twilight brought the needle up with her magic again and noticed she was shaking now.

"Are you alright? Do you need some water?"

He indicated towards the emergency shower in the back.

"No, no! I can do this. I just... need to concentrate."

She thought about Spike, and how important this was, putting her mind straight to where his hoof was. She took deep breaths to calm herself as she brought the tip right up to a small pulse she sensed with her horn. It was subtle.

"That's it," he said. "You're gonna need some pressure to get through the scales now. Just... get through the dermal tissue and feel it just on the other side."

Twilight pushed forward, trying not to feel light-headed as she felt it worm through the skin. Less than a quarter of an inch in, she could feel a small tube with the tip.

"Ahhghh!" She yelled out, letting go. "I can... feel it!"

"Don't stop! You were doing great! You found it! Just—"

"Okayokayokayokayokay! Just be quiet! I can do this."

She felt back with the tip, resting it right against the tube, and without trying to think about it, she pushed it lightly in.

She let out a breath.

"It's in!" she said, stepping back from the table and relaxing all her muscles.

"Great. Just switch that knob at the top. It'll do the rest," he said.

Twilight did what she was told, feeling the fluid start to drain from the plastic pouch.

"And some tape would help," he added, indicating his hoof still holding the needle in place.

"Oh. Right. Yes."

The tape at least was an easy part. Once the needle was secure, she stepped back to talk.

"How long until he recovers?" she asked, looking at Spike's body still laying stock still on the table, eyes still wide, pupils still dilated, watching his chest rise and fall gently with each breath.

"Depends," was all he said, moving around until he was right up next to him. "Right now, we need to address the wound itself. It looks like a relatively decent job was done applying pressure. Did you do all this?" he said, indicating the wrap of tape around his body.

"Some of it," she said, "mostly it was another scientist who helped. Another unicorn."

"Magenta?" he asked, and suddenly Twilight knew what he was referring to.

"Heh. Well, I guess that explains where your assistant went," she said. Yursa smiled weakly.

"Alright, so," he said, turning back to Spike, "that should take care of the shock. If all goes well, he should be back to a somewhat stable mental state after a while."

He reached up and started feeling carefully around hid body now, studying the redness of the tape.

"Can you lift him up now? I'd like you to unwrap this for me so I can look at the wound."

Twilight wanted to turn away as she worked, but knew that magic didn't quite work that way. She lit her horn and levitated him an inch off the table, peeling off the layers of tape wrapped around his body.

"That's it," he said as the last of it came off. "My! That's..."

He and Twilight starred at the open wound. Or, at least, Dr. Yursa stared at the open wound. Twilight was going back and forth between glancing at it, and turning her head in the opposite direction.

It was not as she had remembered it. Back outside the Test Chamber it had been so... clean! Now all the scales around it were reddened and puffy and... oozy...

"What... what happened to it?" Twilight asked, finally settling by staring at the floor.

She couldn't see Dr. Yursa from her downward gaze, but she guessed he was quite perplexed.

"Did you..." he started, "did you even try to clean it before you wrapped it up?!"

"I... don't know," Twilight said, thinking back to the nurse.

Dr. Yursa sighed deeply.

"Nevermind. It's not your fault. Let me see how bad the damage is."

He turned to Twilight.

"Sorry to have to keep asking difficult things of you, but I'm going to need you to spread it open a bit for me. Very... very gently."

Twilight glanced at the wound again before looking up at the ceiling. She lit her horn again and felt his flesh in her thoughts pulling open, just slightly.

A smell slammed into her: Putrid. Damaged. Invading her nostrils, tearing into her brain.

"Oh, Celestia," she said, turning her head away with her hoof to her snout.

"That's it," he said, "keep it right there, that's good."

Twilight thought she was going to be sick. She brought her thoughts to poor Dr. Yursa, having to endure the smell close up. Perhaps he had dealt with things this bad before?

"Well, it's a relatively clean cut," he said, peering in close, "definitely a sheer laceration. No really rough edges or anything, but..."

He peered further in.

"Could you come over here and shine a light for me?"

Twilight held her breath, keeping her head turned away as she approached the table and lit up her horn like a flashlight.

"Thanks," he said. "Also, I think your suit comes with a flashlight if you'd rather use that—"

"I'm fine!" she said, tense from her magical usage and lack of oxygen.

"Well, from what I can see, the foreign body is still in there. It's definitely sheet metal, broke off during the experiment. Normally I don't like to remove things like this, but—"

He was glancing around inside at different angles, studying the way it was lodged in the wound. He finally came away shaking his head.

"I'm not going to take it out. Not when it's that deep," he said.

Twilight could sense him turning his attention away from Spike's side.

"I think the very next thing we need to do is clean the wound."

Twilight let her magic dwindle as the opening sealed back up. Dr. Yursa went to the cabinets on the right and started fishing around.

"I have some saline over here we can use. We don't want the peroxide. It's too much, especially for something this deep. Plus the bubbles can get into the bloodstream and... well, nevermind."

He turned around holding a large piston syringe that Twilight was relieved to see didn't have a needle at the end.

"This part should be pretty straight forward," he said. "It's just some simple irrigation. Help flush out the wound."

Twilight looked at the full syringe in his hands, then at the wound, then back at the syringe.

"I'm going to squirt that... inside the wound?!"

"That's the idea, yes," he said, quite calmly. "It's a bit like basting. Do you cook?"

Twilight didn't quite know what to make of this, and ended up giving a small snicker that sounded like a cross between a retch and a cough.

"Okay, bad analogy," he said, "but you get what I mean. Just be sure to give it some pressure, and be sure to get all around the entire area."

Twilight lit her horn, mumbling to herself.

"Why oh why didn't that unicorn come back with me?"

She grimaced as she opened the wound again, holding her breath as the stench came flooding back. Levitating the syringe, she placed the end mildly inside and pressed down the plunger, trying not to think about what she was doing.

The table exploded! Twilight jumped as Dr. Yursa ran around the other end of the table.

"Hold him! HOLD HIM!" he yelled out, slamming his hooves over Spike's body, pinning his writhing body to the table. Twilight had shrunk back.

"Keep going!" he yelled. "I got him, keep going!"

Twilight kept pressing down the plunger, hating herself as she felt the fluid strike the top-inside of the wound, gliding it clockwise around the inside.

"All around, that's it," he said, holding down the struggling figure. Twilight tore her eyes away from him, trying to block out the whimpering cries.

"That's good. You're doing great! Halfway there!"

Twilight grimaced as the spray struck the metal inside, splashing slightly onto the table. Spike was now letting out a long consistent sob getting louder by the second. His convulsions had stopped, but every muscle was tense, pressing harshly against Yursa's forelegs.

The process was taking forever! She could sense the fluid leaking out onto the table as she brought it around the bottom of the wound. Spike was trying desperately to flail his arms, still pinned to the table.

Twilight felt the last of the fluid squirt out and immediately dropped the syringe, letting it clang loudly onto the floor. She was shaking violently.

Spike's cry was now loudly filling the room, sounding so unlike is usual voice: like some kind of Everfree creature screaming into the night. Twilight wasn't sure her ears could take it.

"That should do it!" Yursa said over the screams, leaning forward to look at her in concern. "I can handle him for now if you want to go to the other room until he calms down."

"I'm not leaving him!" Twilight said shakily. She could feel a quivering weakness in her stomach as she leaned up to the pitiful figure on the table. Her hoof went to his cheek as she stroked it, feeling a heat resonating off the scales. His mouth was slightly open, and his eyes wide. He looked so confused!

"It's okay," she whispered, Spike's cries lessening into a whimper. "It's okay, it's over!"

She continued stroking his cheek, leaning her head forward until it was just over his face, and she could tell: Spike could see her—could hear her—

"It's okay. I'm here," she said quietly, bringing her hoof up to rub against his forehead, feeling a blistering heat radiating from it.

Dr. Yursa was now backing up, no longer holding him, amazed at Twilight's ability. For a while he was still, silent, watching, as Twilight continued to comfort the figure on the table.

"He doesn't look as bad now," Twilight said after a while, looking over at Yursa standing in the corner. "His eyes look better."

Indeed, Spike's pupils were no longer dilated, and his lids were not as wide.

"Remarkable!" Yursa said, walking around the table. "You're... it's like..."

He walked right up to Twilight, very curious now.

"Did you... did you raise him yourself?" he asked.

Twilight was somewhat taken aback. She had never exactly considered the bond between her and Spike in quite that way before.

"Yes," she said at last. "Well, sort of. He... I hatched him when I was very young. It was... academic. At least, it was at first."

They both turned to the dragon now lying remarkably still now, but breathing hard. His wound was still leaking the clear fluid, but somehow looked much better—much cleaner.

"I'm really sorry," he said at last, turning back to Twilight grimly. "No pony should have to go through that," he added slowly.

He opened his mouth to say something else, but fell silent. For a moment they both watched Spike laying peacefully on the table. He looked as though he was falling asleep now! Twilight could feel a small warmth inside her, comforting her as she watched the calm figure, lessening the distress that had been clouding the back of her mind.

"I think," Yursa said quietly after a while, "that we should probably do something about your face."

Twilight had completely forgotten about the crustiness on her cheek, and felt her hoof subconsciously reaching up to feel it again.

"What about Spike?" she said, turning to look at him again.

"Oh, he'll be alright. I'm going to leave the wound exposed to the air for a bit and dress it up later. We'll of course have to work out what to do about the infection, but—"

Twilight thought she glimpsed the tiniest bit of sadness in his eyes for a moment, but it passed quickly.

"Come on. Let's get you cleaned up."

=========================================================

Twilight picked her head up off the ground, lifting her hoof wearily to her cheek to feel the gauze taped to the large cut on her face.

How long have I been out? she wondered.

Looking around from her place on the floor, she remembered why she had woken. She had heard something... something important! She stood up slowly, seeing the metal folding table still sitting in front of her in the slightly darkened room, with Dr. Yursa in the corner resting.

"Twi-" came the sound again, "Twilight?"

Twilight's ears perked. It had been ages since she had heard that voice! In a heartbeat she was on her hooves, racing up to the table.

"Twilight?" came the voice again as she put her hooves carefully up on the table and leaned over.

Spike was lying there, completely calm, his eyes droopy as if he had just woken. The tiniest flicker of a smile crested his face as he looked at her.

"Twilight, is that you?" he said quietly, a curious, hopeful look in his eyes. She could tell he was still adjusting to the light.

"Yes," she said half laughing, half crying. "Yes, it's me!"

She leaned in and wrapped her hooves around his face, placing her lips gently on the dragon's forehead before lowering it to rest sideways against his body.

"So," Spike continued at almost a whisper, "you didn't leave me?"

A warmth engulfed Twilight as she listened to his voice.

"No, Spike. I'm still here," she said. "I would never leave you."

She lay there for a moment before lifting her head to look at him again. Spike was now turning his head and looking around.

"What happened, Twilight?" he said, "Where are we?"

"We're with Dr. Yursa," she said smiling. "You remember Dr. Yursa, right?"

Spike was adjusting very slowly, still very out of it, like a wakening coma patient.

"Yeah," he said at least, "yeah, I remember him! He's the one that touched me in places back in the lab!"

Twilight's smile flickered as she glanced over at where Yursa was still resting. She turned back to Spike.

"How do you feel? Are you alright?"

As an answer, Spike reached back with his arms and struggled to sit up.

"Whoa!" Twilight said, "Easy! Careful! Take it slow."

"I'm alright," he said. Then, reaching down to his side, "But it's really sore, like, right here."

Twilight had done a descent job dressing and bandaging the wound at Yursa's instruction. He had joked with her about putting in stitches, but explained that they weren't really appropriate for something this inflamed.

"Well, don't touch it," she said. "It'll heal on its own."

Spike continued to stare around the room, taking in all the equipment and refreshing his memory of where everything was.

"This place looks different," he said. "Did something happen?"

Twilight thought for a moment, and decided to be honest.

"Yes, Spike. Something happened," she said.

A small pause as Spike's memory slowly came back. Then,

"Did the building blow up?"

Twilight's eyes almost went wide before cracking a huge smile.

"Not... quite!" she said.

"But almost?" Spike said, starting to sound more like Spike again.

Twilight couldn't help it. She let out a small laugh and felt herself leaning in to embrace him, holding him tight.

"Ow," he said lightly as she brushed against the wound.

She felt his own arms reaching around her neck and for a moment they sat there, holding each other, Spike's warm body pressed into hers. Very warm in fact. Almost too warm.

"Well, look who's awake!" said a voice next to her.

Twilight let go to look at Dr. Yursa standing next to the table, walking up to check on Spike.

"You, Mr. Dragon, caused quite a stir! Had miss Twilight here going nuts! You should be feeling very lucky right now."

Spike blushed, looking around his body and finally poked a bit at his side some more.

"You're gonna want to leave that alone," he said. "It's still very tender."

He turned to Twilight.

"Could I, uh, speak to you outside for a moment?" he said.

Twilight didn't like the sound of those words at all. Her smile had faded almost instantly as she gave the tiniest of nods.

"Sure."

She stepped out the door behind Yursa as they departed from Spike, letting him lie back down to rest a bit. As she stepped into the other room, she could see through the window into the darkened hallway of the research area. She was in the room where the business pony had been earlier.

"Listen, Twilight," he started as the door closed behind her, "there's something I need to—"

"It's about the infection, isn't it," Twilight interrupted him. For a moment they stared. Then Yursa finally gave a small nod.

"I tried to stem it. I spent a long time after you went to sleep looking into it. It's working very rapidly. I don't think I've seen anything work this fast!"

Twilight tried to comprehend what she was hearing. Her brain heard and understood, but the rest of her didn't want to.

"By the time you got him to me, it had already spread over most of his body. He's very hot right now. Very sick. I wish I could say there was something I could do, but—"

He took a breath and swallowed.

"I really don't have the tools, or the medicine to deal with something like this. He needs more serious medical attention, and we simply don't have that in these labs."

Twilight looked at him dumbfounded, not wanting to believe what she was hearing.

"What are you saying?" she said, not even trying to hold back her frustration, "You're just gonna let him... just gonna do nothing?!"

"I already did everything I could do!"

They stared a bit longer, and for a moment she actually felt sorry for him. His head bent down, and she could tell this was extremely difficult for him.

"I'm sorry," he said at last.

Twilight's blood boiled beneath her skin as it was pounded through her body from her chest.

"Sorry?" she whispered, almost deathly. "Sorry."

Yursa didn't say anything else, keeping his head bent down.

"No," Twilight said, shaking her head. "No, this isn't over! I didn't go through all that just for this! I'm not going to just sit here and—"

Dr. Yursa was simply shaking his head.

"I know how hard this must be for you."

"NO!" she shouted. "YOU DON'T! YOU HAVE NO IDEA! YOU JUST... YOU..."

She leaned into the floor and let out a loud yell at the window. Yursa had backed up a few steps, but didn't lose his composure.

She turned to him again, shaking, trying to think. Her thoughts were racing around, and she fought hard to control herself.

"You say there would be a chance if he got more help," she said again. It wasn't a question. It was a statement.

Her gaze was piercing but he didn't shrink back.

"I don't know," he said calmly. "They might have something to help him or they might not."

More thoughts raced. Her head was swimming with ideas, plans, scenarios, each one crazier than the last, and none of them the least bit sane. She breathed deep to calm herself, finding it to work only partially.

"I'm going back out there," she said.

She watched Dr. Yursa, expecting him to retaliate.

"That's your choice," he said simply.

Twilight was somewhat taken aback.

"And I'm taking Spike with me," she said, clarifying her statement in case he hadn't understood.

Dr. Yursa said nothing. Twilight kept going.

"I can do this," she said, "I can find the surface. I can get out of here. I can find him help!"

"And I wish you the best of luck in your endeavor," he said in return.

Twilight was getting frustrated again. She wanted to argue with him. She wanted him to think she was crazy! Why did he have to be so calm!?

"In fact," he continued, "I'm beginning to think that's the best option right now. It's the best advice I could ever think to give. It's certainly better than staying here."

Twilight was at a loss for words.

"You... you..."

"Come on back inside," he said. "I'll get you patched up."

"Patched up?!" she said, half-confused, half still frustrated with his demeanor.

"Twilight," he said, turning around again, "the transit system is completely shut down. There's only one way out of these labs, and that's through Sector B. Do you have any idea what's in Sector B?"

Twilight waited for his answer as he continued.

"Raw sewage! That's what!" he said. "Your wounds are going to need a lot more protection than they already have if they're to get through that! Now come back inside."

Twilight kept standing there, wanting to shout out, wanting to scream! This wasn't at all what she had expected!

She walked over to the wall next to her and bumped her head roughly into it.

What am I getting myself into? she thought to herself. What am I doing?

Dr. Yursa was waiting for her inside, standing next to Spike who was carefully pulling out the IV.

"What's going on?" Spike asked as he handed the needle over to Yursa. "I heard yelling."

"Can you walk?" Twilight asked.

Spike thought for a moment, letting the question seep in.

"I... think so," he said.

He swung his legs over the side of the table and swayed a bit before pushing himself off and landed on the floor. His knees bent for a bit before straightening back up, staggering for a few moments.

"Whoa," Dr. Yursa said. "You alright? Can you stand straight?"

They watched as Spike slowly regained his balanced, finally taking a few steps towards Twilight and grabbing onto the front of her body. Twilight instinctively reached a hoof up and pulled him in close to her.

"Looks like he should be okay," Yursa said. "Come on over here in the corner with me. I'll get you fixed up."

"What's going on?" Spike asked, looking up at Twilight.

She let go of him, watching him balance on his feet before walking over with Dr. Yursa.

"We're leaving," she said.

=========================================================

Twilight's preparations flew by so quickly she hardly noticed that they were already out the door! Dr. Yursa hadn't had much to say, but tried to fit in everything he could in the little time they had, preparing her the best he could for Sector B.

They were walking down the darkened trashed hallway with the two large glass windows on either side, coming up on the L-Bend entrance to Sector B. Spike was actually walking now, but Twilight didn't know for how long. He wasn't exactly energetic. And she was trying not to think about what his reaction would be to some of the more gruesome things she had seen.

"I don't understand," Spike said trying to keep up with her. "Leaving where?"

"Out of this facility," she said. "We're getting to the surface, and we're high-tailing it back to—"

She stopped for a moment. She wanted to say "back to Canterlot", but that was a long way! Surely she didn't have time for that! Perhaps there was a hospital in Appleloosa? Oh, she didn't know!

I'll work it out as we go, she thought.

"We're just getting out of here!" she finished, picking up the pace again.

And all too soon, the L-Bend spit them out into an anti-chamber to Sector B, filled with two bodies: one dead, one undead. Part of Twilight wanted to put her hooves over Spike's eyes but she realized how impractical this would be if she did that for every body they came across. He would need to get used to it, just as she had

She prepared herself.

The room itself was nothing special. There was a medical kit on the wall that the security corpse had obviously attempted to use, and a diamond-plated floor that lead to a vestibule spanned by two black open-frame doors with X-bar reinforcement beams. The rest of the room felt very concrete in comparison with the rest of the lab.

"Twilight?"

The fatigued but scared sound of Spike came from behind her as the bodies came into his view.

"Try not to look," she said back to him. "This is just the way things are now."

As Twilight entered the vestibule through the crooked left-hand door, she noticed a large metal fan spinning slowly in the ceiling. The area was hardly large enough for her and Spike.

"Can I ride on your back?" Spike asked, leaning against her side hopefully.

Twilight had hoped he wouldn't ask this. She had prepared herself for another headcrab encounter, and had removed the safety from her pistol... begrudgingly. She didn't want Spike tossed around in case things got ugly. Before they lad left, Dr. Yursa had also pointed out a clever aspect of the suit! A hook on the side that she could slip the crowbar into when she wasn't using it. She was feeling much more prepared now.

"Sorry, Spike," she said. "Maybe when we're away from the facility."

Twilight pushed a small green button on her left, swinging the doors open. Or, almost swinging the doors open. One door stayed closed. The other one oscillated between open and closed.

"Well, glad to see all the doors are still in order!" she joked, trying to lighten the mood.

Spike wasn't smiling.

"Just time it right. No problem," she said, preparing for a couple seconds before dashing through. Spike hesitated, but made it through too.

"Now," she said looking around at her new surroundings, "We're ultimately looking for an elevator. Something to get us to the surface. Follow me."

She was in a much larger area with massive sheet-metal plates tiling the walls, each one framed with rivets. A few blue-painted pipes stuck out of the ground here and there, traveling thickly to the ceiling.

There was only one path from here, which she led Spike hastily down. She could hear running water in the distance, and the hissing of pipes. It wasn't exactly the most habitable place.

"Are you sure this is the right way?" Spike asked. "This looks kinda rough!"

"Well, at least all the lights are working in this area," she said. "We can see what we're doing."

She walked around a corner to the left, leading Spike around the only path through the area, round again to the right down a small set of stairs. She noticed a balcony on the wall in front of her as she descended, and looked up to see a pony standing there. She perked up.

"Hey!" she shouted.

The pony turned, revealing formal attire, walking off to the right and out of site.

Twilight stood and stared a moment longer.

No! she thought. Not him! Not again!

"Who were you shouting to?" Spike asked, catching up to her.

Twilight shook her head again, putting the image of the business pony out of her head.

"No one, Spike. It was no one."

The new area she descended in was much larger now! The ceiling was higher to accommodation the catwalk, now on her right. She could see the path jog to the left a bit up ahead, and there was an opening in the wall just before the jog covered by glass, not much larger than a window, but close to the floor like a door.

She could still hear running water far away with a few new sounds: A fan rotating, some wind blowing lightly, a few dogs yipping—

Wait, she thought, dogs... yipping?

Twilight turned to Spike.

"Do you hear that?" she asked.

Both of them jumped back as the glass in the opening crashed, broken by a large watermelon... with legs... and eyes... and—

"What is that thing!?" Spike yelled out as it turned and bounded towards them, it's entire front covered in a circle of hundreds of complex eyes!

"Get Back!" Twilight yelled at him as she tried to remember how to work the gun. The creature was already at her, taunting her, squealing at her.

A sound went off like a gun. Next thing she knew she was flying through the air, limbs flailing, slamming painfully into the wall behind her and sliding to the ground, the wind knocked out of her. For a moment she forgot where she was. Her head was dazed. She looked around for Spike and saw him now at the top of the stairs, safe for now.

She saw the creature running up to her again, yipping excitedly. But she was equal to it, already righting herself. Her hoof was already slipping out the crowbar, raising it behind her as the creature leaned into the ground for another wailing attack.

With a whipping motion of her hoof, the bar made contact, and now it was the creature's turn to go flying! It lightly hit the wall on the other side of the wall, bleeding puss as it collapsed dead onto the floor.

"Wh-hoa!"

Twilight turned to see Spike staring out in amazement, apparently forgetting his fatigue.

"Now that was cool! What was that thing!?"

More yipping. Further away. Twilight strained her ears and could tell this was a lot more than just a tiny group.

"Stay back, Spike," she said, walking slowly towards the sound. "It sounds like we may have woken the pack."

Spike jumped up, half worried half eager, looking around frantically as if one could come at him from anywhere. He ran down the steps and hid away in one of the corners where he had a good view of all incoming directions, prepared for a show.

Twilight was somewhat dazed from the impact, but pushed passed it with a new set of nerves. There was something about having that bar in her hands—the gun at the ready—Spike behind her to protect. It was invigorating! It was a high!

The yipping echoed around, and suddenly got much louder as she heard them round the corner. One... three... seven... how many were there!

Pressing her hoof into the ground, she felt the switch in the tip—felt the mechanism—felt the trigger compress.

A shot rang out, splitting her ears apart! It clanged against the ground too far to the right. Twilight compensated, turning, firing, and hit the first one in the side just next to the eyes. It recoiled back, stumbling over in puss-colored blood.

Twilight felt it! The bullet striking it! It was a feeling that required no magic to sense. It was like she was right there with it when it made contact!

She brought her hoof down again, feeling another bullet crack out of the muzzle and pin one of the creatures in the eye. Spike was now cowering in the corner in awe.

Again and again she snapped the trigger, striking another two... three... four...

And then they were on her, barring into the ground, wailing. Lifting her hoof up, crowbar shining, she whipped it through the air, feeling it penetrate a thick skin, skewing one on the end before raising it up, creature and all, and whipping it off and into the wall with a satisfying splat. Another wail as she brought the bar from its height, slamming it back-handed into another creature. The blood was flowing now as she brought it down a third time, whipping it into creature after creature, making some of them hesitate and fall back.

Twilight jumped forward, letting out a scream! An instinctual war-cry! Intoxicated with adrenaline! Many of the creatures jumped back a bit. She took this opportunity to bring her hoof back down, letting bullets fly out in a series of bangs until she heard the click at the end of the clip.

Only two creatures remained now. She swung back her crowbar, but the they were already running off, scampering back down the hallway in whimpers.

Twilight holstered her crowbar, breathing hard as she turning back to Spike. His hands were clutching the bottom lip of his gaping mouth, shaking from excitement.

"That... was..."

Twilight walked up to him, leaning over to grasp his body and rest her hoof against his forehead.

"How are you?" she asked quickly. "Still hanging in there?"

"That was INCREDIBLE! Where did you learn to do that!?"

Twilight got up, looking at the pile of alien corpses littering the floor.

"You'll want to save your energy, Spike. We have a long haul ahead of us," she said. "Oh, and watch your step. I don't know where these things have been."

Twilight watched as Spike stumbled forward a bit. His youth gave him energy, but he was far from well. Had they been back in Canterlot, Twilight wouldn't have allowed him to even sit up, much less walk around. But that was then.

"Stay close," she said, walking around the jog. The ceiling lowered back down in this area, and Twilight noticed the air getting thicker... and nastier...

The hallway split at a "T". The left was blocked by a giant ventilation fan that took up the entire wall. The right was also a dead end at a further distance, again with another fan. All up and down the "T" were steel barrels about as tall as Twilight, all emitting a putrid toxic odor. A dumpster sat at the very end of the right hallway, hidden away in a nook.

Twilight walked to the right and noticed another path that she hadn't seen from the split. It went off to the left, but was blocked by crisscrossing metal bars. Even Spike couldn't quite fit through those openings.

"Well, Spike?" she asked. "Any ideas?"

Twilight turned around, looking for her dragon companion and noticed him a couple dozen feet away holding his stomach and limping.

"Spike!" she yelled, trotting up to him. "Spike! Are you alright?"

Spike grasped Twilight as she approached her, leaning into her for support.

"I don't think this smell agrees with me," he moaned.

Twilight got down on the floor and felt his burning forehead before letting him climb onto her back. He struggled to get to the top.

"Don't worry, Spike," she said, getting up and walking carefully back to the bars, "I'll find a way out of here."

Even Twilight herself was getting nauseated from the smell. She needed to get out of here, fast.

"There's a hole in the floor here," she said, noticing a place where a square manhole had been removed just in front of the gate. "There are more drains on the other side. We should be able to worm our way through here."

Spike moaned softly in response, not moving much.

Twilight peered down through the hole and looked around. The hole itself was very shallow: only a few inches thick. The other side hosted the inside of a massive drainage pipe with some fluid inside. The smell was nearly unbearable.

"I wish I could say things were going to get better, Spike," she said as she raised her head, "but it looks like the worst is yet to come. You might want to hold your breath for this part."

As an answer, Spike leaned over the left side of Twilight's back and hurled. Twilight stepped to the right in surprise, trying to dodge the putrid acid and bile as it hit the floor and splashed onto to suit.

Oh, Celestia!, she thought, looking at the pipe she was about to traverse. Why do I have to do this?

She magicked Spike onto the ground, carefully resting him on his back in a corner close to the hole.

"Stay here," she said, walking up to the opening. "I'm going to take a look around."

Spike stayed on his back, staring blankly up at the ceiling trying to hold back the remaining contents of his stomach as Twilight approached the hole. She had an idea of how to pull this off without magic.

Placing her forelegs in front and hind legs in back, she carefully lowered each back hoof into the hole, feeling her flank descend as she held on with her forelegs. She was able to descend almost down to her snout before letting go with her forelegs and slamming into the ankle-deep wreaking fluid below.

She stood up, feeling pain in her stomach every time she breathed in. She looked around the bronze tint of the large pipe around her. It may have been a sewer! Except that there was no fecal matter, replaced instead with some kind of clearish-yellow toxic by-product. It might have been urine, except for the putrid odor that went beyond anything she had smelled in a public restroom.

She tried to keep to the side of the pipe, where the curve to the side brought the floor above the surface of the fluid, walking swiftly around while keeping a mental picture of how the small labyrinth was laid out. Within five minutes, she had found a short route around a U-Bend that led straight underneath one of the drainage hatches, which she popped open with her horn.

The next part was tricky, so she prepared herself before starting. Lighting her horn, she lifted Spike from his position just above the pipe and flew him quickly through the opening and into the pipe. She worked quickly so his time inside was limited, worming his body around the bends and back out the other end, setting him back down on the floor on the other side of the gate.

Twilight had been in the pipe so long now that she herself was about ready to retch! Lighting her horn and switching her magic to uncomfortable levels, she levitated herself through the opening, crawling out to join Spike.

The gate had blocked off the center of an "I" junction, leaving Twilight a non-choice of left or right. A non-choice because the left was blocked by yet another fan.

The smell was much worse on this side of the gate, and as Twilight magicked Spike's body down the tunnel she saw the source. One of the pipes on the wall had broken, and was leaking the yellowish toxic chemical onto the floor where it seeped down into one of the drains in the floor.

Twilight quickly stepped past this and entered a large chamber at the end, roughly half the size of a basket ball court. To the left of the brightly-lit room was a cargo lift setup to descend into the floor, which took up half the entire space on the floor! Hugging the wall around it was a raised platform with ramps for getting up to the top, and a massive lever in the back which Twilight assumed activated the lift.

Spike sputtered and retched again, spitting up bile through his nose as well as it leaked down his face and neck and onto the floor. Twilight lowered him to the ground, where she tore off a bit of the gauze covering her face and used it to dry the vomit off his cheeks. He was looking quite bad now.

"Twi-light?" he stuttered.

"No no no no, don't say anything," she whispered, "save your energy."

He was breathing hard again, but not from disease. Fear was taking over the poor dragon as he lay there burning on the floor.

"Twilight, am I gonna die?"

Twilight kept wiping his face, her hoof now shaking a bit.

"No, no, no, don't think like that, Spike. Don't think like that. I'm gonna get your help. We're gonna get out of here and I'm gonna find help. You're gonna be fine."

She glanced back at the cargo lift, wondering if it was the only way.

"You're not just- *gulp* -saying that?"

Twilight stared back into his eyes, at a complete loss of words. She was hard-pressed not to just hug the poor creature right there in that room until all her strength gave out and she couldn't hold him anymore.

"Spike," she said leaning over, searching for comforting words. There were none that she found particularly appropriate. All of them were outright lies: the worst thing Twilight Sparkle believed you could say to someone in times of distress. Spike deserved better.

"I," she started, and then proceeded to tell the truth, "I can't guarantee anything, Spike," she said at last, "except that you will never see me leave your side until the bitter end. No matter what that end may be."

Twilight was surprised at his reaction to this. His expression was so... complex. She simply couldn't read it. Was that content? It like some kind of strange peace, like all the lies had been some kind of poison of fear she had suddenly drained. It almost brought a flicker of a smile on her face, as some kind of small agreement was being exchanged between them that needed no words to be spoken. She could see a similar flicker flash on his own face.

Having nothing else to say, she lit her horn and carried him over to the cargo lift, setting him down in the middle while she went to the end to peer down at the long descent. There was water at the bottom, and some kind of moving machinery inside the water, but beyond that she couldn't see.

Twilight lit her horn again and hoisted the large lever in the back. It was very heavy and stiff, as if it had never been used.

As the lift traversed the the guides reaching like massive arms down to the bottom, Twilight turned around and caught a glimpse at something in the back of the room: A vent opening, a fan being exposed, a mass of green behind it, a massive number of—

Tennis balls? she thought confusingly.

They were all rolling out, falling in clumps onto the floor, invading the room. There were so many of them.

One of them got just close enough she could see it sliding toward her on the floor, just as the lift descended past floor height. She recognized it! And suddenly she was pulling out her crowbar, looking up expectantly as she watched the floor rise up away from her.

Headcrabs! she thought, a chill flying through her body.

She lit her horn, dragging Spike right next to her. She wanted a close eye on him when the shit hit the fan.

The lift descended at a slight angle, forming a very steep ramp. This would have worked much better had it been a straight drop, causing enough damage to the headcrabs from the fall to end their lives before they had a chance to attack. Instead, she watched as the first green blobs above her slipped over the edge and slid down the steep ramp, landing injured on the lift, but not dead.

The first few simply hit the lift and rolled to the end, pulled by the forward momentum of the ramp and toppling over the edge. For a moment, Twilight was hopeful that she could simply dodge these things and let them fall to their own demise!

But as more and more got pushed over the edge, many of them started colliding with one another, and some of them remained on the lift, dazed by their descent, many of them upside down. Twilight ran up to some of them and started kicking them like green playground balls, sometimes two or three at a time, feeling the blood rush come back each time her hoof contacted their flesh.

As many turned to dozens, she started using her crowbar as a golf club as well, whipping it into large piles and scattering them over the edge. Some of them were jumping around now, trying to get on top of her. She glanced back at Spike, noticing some of the crabs considering him. Running back, she skewed them on her bar one at a time, flinging them away from Spike. And then—

They were on her. Jumping on her from behind. Crawling on her, over the suit, up her legs, down her back. She lit her horn, picking many of them up and slinging them away from her, trying to keep her head straight as horror flooded through her veins. She had remembered, back before her horn got damaged, she used to be able to pick up massive numbers of items at a time. But now, things were different. She had to struggle just to pick up a half-dozen.

This would have worked well, except that they were jumping on her faster than she could pick them up! Dozens of them were now fighting their way to her scalp, many of them getting to her neck before they were flown off. She hovered Spike above her, shaking off the few crabs clinging on to him.

One of the crabs tickled her horn, shocking her into a jumping scream! Thinking of the only thing she could do, she collapsed on the floor and started rolling, pressing the crabs sickeningly into the ground, using her levitation in reverse to press herself into them until they popped like water balloons. Above her, she flailed the crowbar, slamming it into the ground all around her, killing many of them along the way.

Rolling to the edge of the lift until she nearly fell off, she looked around, peeling many of the crabs off her face so she could see. They were at the bottom now!

Without thinking, she turned and ran carrying Spike with her, picking the crabs off her body as she went, grunting from exhaustion. In front of the lift was a small stream of sewer water running through the wall to get processed. To her left was a brown-concrete passage that led away—somewhere—

There were so many of them: dozens of crabs that had slipped off and landed alive on the passage floor all eyeing her as she ran. Dozens of them were crawling towards her, ready to jump.

The passage turned to the right, leading to a floor-less chamber with an L-shaped catwalk. She ran for it, trying to get to the catwalk so she could round the corner into the next passage when fireworks shot off. Green. Electric. Loud. Coming from nowhere! And out from the electric storm dropped a creature she had never seen before, slamming into the corner of the catwalk and tearing it off its base and killing the creature at the bottom of the pit. Twilight stood horrified at the sudden collapse of her escape path!

"WHAT HAPPENED!?" she shouted out loud, completely baffled at the unexplainable phenomenon.

She looked behind her, noticing many of the crabs rounding the corner after her. She needed to act, and fast!

Increasing the strength of her horn, she jumped off the edge into the pit of the room, catching herself with her magic and levitating her body into the air. She was almost blind from her effort, going by feel instead of sight, guiding herself and Spike roughly into the next passage.

She landed running, utterly exhausted, shaking from fright, but still going. This area was some kind of massive maintenance area, having the look and feel of a warehouse, only dirtier. The lights were dimmer than the other area, and the ceiling was arched like a train tunnel.

Reaching the end of the passage, she screeched to a halt, trying to comprehend the new scene in front of her.

The tunnel had spit them out into another sewage-stream in a multi-level room. Twilight was standing on the second level, peering out at a broken catwalk that had spanned the sewage stream flowing orthogonally below. On either side of the deep stream were sidewalks on either side, hugging the walls and following the direction of the flow.

Lighting her horn again, she levitated herself across the gap, smelling the disgust of the running sewage below. She was very weak now, and struggled to hold both of them up.

Reaching the other end, she collapsed both of them to the ground, panting on her side. She barely had any energy to continue, and for a moment she considered simply closing her eyes and giving up. But there was still a touch of adrenaline left in her, pushing at her, forcing her up. Every muscle was now protesting, pushed to their limits.

Lighting her horn, she carried Spike around the corner—

—to a dead-end.

Oh, no, she thought, seeing the blank wall in front of her. No, no, no, no, no...

She walked up slowly and rested her hoof on it, just to be sure it wasn't some trick of the light, and saw something flicker to her left. Something shining. The wall! The wall itself was shining! Why was the wall shining?

Turning her head to look at it dead-on, she felt her heart skip a beat!

Doors!

Metal Doors!

An Elevator!

For a moment she thought she may have been hallucinating or dreaming, the way you see water in the desert. But these doors were close—physical—she could feel them! They were solid! And for the first time since she had left Dr. Yursa's office, she smiled.

"We made it!" she said out loud, feeling jubilation rush through her. "We found it! An elevator!"

A warmth drove through her body, making her forget about her fatigue.

"We made it!" she said, turning towards Spike, almost jumping from her excitement. "WE MADE IT, SPIKE! WE MADE IT!"

She ran up and prodded Spike, wanting so badly to see his reaction at the good news.

"Spike!" she yelled out at him again. "Spike, we found an elevator! We're getting out of here!"

She tapped him a few times with her hoof.

No response.

"Spike! Wake up! We're here!"

She nudged him a few more times playfully, expecting at least a small shudder. A flicker. A blink.

Nothing.

"Spike!" she said, slightly less energetically, leaning in to look at his face. The excitement was draining fast as she looked at him closer.

"Spike?"

Spike was no longer moving. His eyes were staring at the ceiling unseeing, his mouth baring a strange weak expression. It might have been a smile: a remnant of his expression back at the cargo lift.

Twilight bent down and nudged him again.

Again, no response.

She sunk down onto her stomach on the floor, bending over him so she could look into that face, taking in every last scale, every dried tear, every stain of sick, remembering...

"Spike," she whispered, leaning in very close. "We're gonna make it, Spike. We're gonna reach the surface."

She reached a hoof up and starting gently stroking it down his body.

It was cold.

Twilight shook her head, unbelieving.

No, she thought. Not now! Not when we're so close!

Twilight couldn't think of any more words. All her thoughts were jumbled and confused. She couldn't breathe. She couldn't move. All she could do was stare at that creature on the floor. Cold. Indifferent. Empty.

She sat there a few moments in silence, her mind blank, her feelings dwindling, her hope gone.

She whispered his name one last time, hearing it echo around the room.

And then her muscles gave out as her head collapsed onto his body. She could feel tears streaming, but was barely conscious of them as they leaked onto his body. And in that cold hallway tunnel, she sobbed quietly into his scales as the world collapsed around her.

Office Colt-plex

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Twilight's consciousness sifted, scattering widely, darkness penetrated every corner, every wall, every panel, closing in to a tightening grip that crushes unceasingly. Colors swirled, jeering, taunting, jumping just out of reach, pushing everything back into the blackness. Green condensed into a spherical form as legs sprouted, threatening to spring, only to seep back into the swirl as it reached its apex.

A bright light emerged in the center of the darkness, dim and intimidating, turning into the imposing form of a massive alicorn with powerful flowing mane and massive wings, staring down in dissappointment at a weak purple form on the ground.

Twilight, it whispered, a voice penetrating every corner of existence, inescapable and dark. What have you done?

The alicorn disintegrated into a headstone, taller than life, blank, dull, rough. An inscription carved itself at the bottom, spraying dust into the eyes, irritating them.

Here lies Spike, mark of purity in Equestria, murdered at the hooves of Twilight Sparkle

The words separated from the stone, breaking into letters, each unraveling into faces—dozens of faces—hundreds of faces: silhouettes peering dead-eyed, curious, enraged, shocked. Towers sprung up, the remains of a castle, sinking backwards, consumed by the numerous countenances all pushing, protecting, hiding away their home from the deadly threat in front of them.

Twilight woke up with a jolt, bolting her head up and looked around.

The hide on her face was crusted over from the remnants of tears, and her eyes were red and swollen. The dim scene of the arched brown tunnel lay before her. Concrete. Rough. Punishing. The weak smell of fecal matter wafted dully from the flowing stream tinkling lightly just down the tunnel.

Beneath her, she could feel a cold body of scales, like a large doll she had been carrying with her since before she could remember. She kept her head up, eyes forward, not looking at it. It wasn't like the other corpses in the facility. It wasn't just another grim decoration in a corridor. It was different.

It was special.

It required recognition.

Twilight stood up, reminded immediately of how weak she was. Her muscles were sore and stiff, begging her to lie back down. Twilight pushed passed them, no longer caring about feeling pain. Whatever life wanted to hit her with now was simply punishment: the ticking clock of Celestia's world simply balancing out the horrible crimes she had committed. If anything, she welcomed the pain. It was a relief the find that the world still sought some form of balance, even if that balance came in the form of physical torrents of discomfort. It was better than having to face the emptiness she was trying so hard to ignore inside.

Twilight walked in front of the elevator and turned to face it.

The elevator stared back.

She watched as the light reflected off the surface of the doors, wondering how something so cold and indifferent could have meant so much to her just a moment ago. It was just a gray square in the wall to her now. Just another decoration in the dull cave of the facility. Meaningless. Leading nowhere.

The surface, she thought, the surface...

What surface? Why have a surface? Was there supposed to be something up there?

Minutes rolled by with her staring blankly at that steel door. It seemed like hours, but she wished it could be years. She never wanted to leave. She felt just as empty as the body of scales on the floor. Hopeless. Void. Numb.

Perhaps it was stiffness in her muscles from standing too long; Perhaps it was her eyes going black from staring at the same spot for too long; Perhaps it was just an unconscious instinct; Somehow, though, she felt her body move. She was walking, lifting a hoof, pressing it lightly—very lightly—into the button on the side, pressing harder—just a little harder—until finally, it lit up.

The doors swung open immediately, revealing the inside of the large cargo elevator. There was a brightness and warmth to it that might have been inviting much earlier. The doors opening had no affect on her. She wouldn't have cared if they had swung open or not. She would have gladly continued staring at them for as long as she could stand.

But now there was a choice to be made. The brightness of the inside of the elevator beckoned for a body to fill it. A living body! A requirement Twilight did not feel she met right now. She neither felt fit nor deserving of being presented with such a reward. Accepting it would mean accepting something much more: accepting a loss that she wasn't quite ready to explore.

And yet, something in her body was telling her it was time to move forward. Physically. Against the current holding her back.

And hold back it did! She couldn't move forward alone. Her role down here wasn't finished yet. There was still closure to fulfill. It was the only thing she had left in her: the last purpose in her life before fate pushed her beyond into the darkness.

She barely felt her hooves moving as she hovered towards the form on the ground. She forced herself to look at it: so small against the expanse of the floor. She heard the elevator doors close gently behind her as she walked up and decided the most careful way to move him without disturbing any aspect of his physicality. She refused to use magic. She would fulfill this through her own physical exertion, pouring in her own energy and sweat to withhold the honor of the symbol before her.

She moved around in silence, using her hoof to gently shut the lids of the eyes, move the jaw closed, and finally place her mouth gently around the scales at the top of the head. She lifted it slowly, so as to cause the least amount of sliding against the surface. She would worry about cleaning the scales later. Cosmetics could be performed on the surface, once she found a suitable memorial ground.

Gliding back to the elevator, careful not to let the form in her mouth swing too much, she pushed the button on the elevator again and walked carefully through the doors, setting the form respectably in the exact center of the compartment. Every movement was automatic, unfeeling—simply another step which just happened to have another one right after it.

She turned away from the small form lying at peace on the floor and stared at the buttons available to her next to the doors. There were a number of them. Twilight noted two columns, a center row—two rows above two below—five total rows, times two columns: ten buttons.

All of this happened subconsciously as Twilight stared at the rectangular array of buttons. It was simply the way her mind worked. Of course, there was no surface button, but then, no elevator would have a "surface" button. It was all just different levels.

Her hoof hit the top floor—floor ten—feeling the glossy-clear button depress.

Nothing happened.

Twilight waited a moment, hoping the light was simply out, hearing the doors close quietly, but the elevator never moved or made a sound.

She pushed it again, in case it didn't work simply because the doors needed to be closed when you depressed it.

Again, nothing.

She felt her hoof move automatically to the next button, pushing firmly on 9.

Nothing.

Pushing on 8...

Nothing.

7...

Nothing.

6... 5... 4... 3—

A light! A force beneath her hooves! A weak hum as the elevator's motor kicked into gear!

Perhaps not as near the surface as she had wanted, but she was willing to walk as far as was necessary to reach the surface.

The floor dropped out slightly from under her as the elevator slowed, the light on the button going on. There was a moment's pause, and then—

The doors slid open, revealing black-and-white checkered tiles on the floor, clean, marble, with natural cracks and grooves reflecting the light cast from the elevator.

Twilight reached a hoof around to hold the doors open, moving around to see what lay ahead. As she rounded the corner, a brick wall came into view opposite the doors, as well as a dropped ceiling with acoustic tiles, one of which was damaged, revealing the dark void of the plenum space above it.

Twilight stepped out onto the marble floor, looking both ways. It might have been somewhat cozy had it been lit better. Too many of the fluorescent lights had been damaged. One of them had been knocked entirely off its support beams, sitting precariously in the middle of the floor arcing small electrical bolts from its exposed and damaged circuitry.

Twilight turned her head away from this site, and looked instead to her right at a set of red doors peering at her with wire-mesh glass windows. The room behind them was almost darker than the hallway!

True, this was no good for a final resting place, but perhaps it would lead someplace better. Another elevator? Stairs? Even a door outside, if she was lucky.

She moved softly back to the form in the center of the elevator, letting the doors close behind her, carefully positioning her mouth around his spines and lifting the body once again. She pressed the "open doors" button and stepped out into the hallway to explore.

She avoided the sparking light fixture at first, setting the body down carefully in front of the red doors to the right and tried the handle.

Locked.

She tried the other handle.

Also locked.

Leaning forward, she peered in the window, trying to see the best she could if it led anywhere. A tiny light shined dimly, reflecting off the floor. It wasn't in the ceiling, and Twilight guessed it was probably some sort of desk lamp. A table, perhaps? In the back? And something else—a figure—moving slightly. A creature? No! It had a mane.

Twilight hesitated. She wasn't sure she was ready to talk to another pony just yet. She wanted to finish her duty to Spike first: to put a cap on the wound. It was still too fresh now.

And yet, she wasn't sure she would ever find a proper place for the body without some other pony's help! Thoughts fought with each other tearing silently back and forth and practicality finally won. Lifting her hoof, she tapped lightly on the door.

The resting head of the silhouette bolted up like a deer in the woods, turning slightly to search for the sound, letting her dangling mane swing playfully. She didn't get up from her resting place.

Twilight gave another soft knock, hoping to and succeeding at prompting the pony to a standing position. It happened much quicker than Twilight had expected. The shadow didn't so much stand as disappear. Twilight could barely make out the darting whiff of smoke as it ran off into a corner of the room Twilight couldn't see.

Twilight kept waiting, hoping the pony was simply preparing something before answering the door, but no one ever came. The room now looked deserted, as if the pony inside had simply left through another door that Twilight couldn't see.

Curiosity leeched through her as questions raced through her head.

Perhaps there was another path in there? Another way to the surface? A separate hallway?

Twilight focused on the silver crash-bar on the other side of the door and focused her magic on it. She reached out with her crippled horn and felt for the other side, and was met halfway at the window. Something solid was in the way. Her magic couldn't sense anything beyond the glass.

A magic barrier, she thought sarcastically. Of course.

For a moment she considered simply smashing the glass! But then she remembered about wire mesh, and the thought of getting her hooves sliced up like a celery stock in a blender coerced her away from the idea. Even a crowbar couldn't break through that stuff, and she was out of bullets.

Turning around again, she felt her increased awareness radiating into the hallway, and started picking up on small details she had missed the first time. She noticed the subtle difference difference in color of the bricks that split the walls horizontally, the bottom darker than the top. She noticed a sign on the right-hand wall a few feet down, brass and bolted at the corners, with an arrow pointing away from her to "Admin offices", and another arrow pointing to the "Executive lounge" which the ghost of the other pony inhabited. She noticed a few dark bulbous forms with legs scattered dimly around the sparking entrails of the fluorescent body in the center of the passage. And she noticed a patch of black on the wall: a shadow just next to the corpse of the lighting fixture, cleanly and perfectly square, as if someone had drawn it, rather than cast it. It rested against the ground, and couldn't be much more than a couple feet on all sides.

Twilight crept towards the opening, turning so often as to keep the vestige of her deceased assistant in peripheral view. Reaching her hoof out, she felt the rough solid brick surface, running her hoof down to the edge of the shadow, feeling it run around a corner and through an opening.

A passage? she thought.

She considered lighting her horn, but remembered Dr. Yursa mentioning the flashlight. Wincing away the sudden rush of memories from that experience, she found the switch they had shown her in the Hazard Course, feeling it with the tip of her left hoof, and switched it on.

Ohhh! she thought, shining it on the square hole and blinking at the gray shining reflection from the interior. A vent!

The light from the flashlight played off the walls and wreckage cluttering the hallway, casting long irregular shadows as she moved around. Twilight bent down and poked her head inside, noticing two passages: one to the left, one to the right.

She wasn't entirely keen on traversing a ventilation system, but if this passage could lead her to a helping hoof, it would be worth the effort. Lighting her horn, she magicked the small remains of her dragon companion in front of her, not wanting to leave him behind in the hallway, and placed him carefully through the opening before climbing in herself.

Twilight remembered as a filly slipping into small compartments and crevices to hide when it was needed. She had never had friends to play with: they were never a priority in her life. The only times she found herself in tight spaces was when she was ensconcing herself from harriers. The claustrophobia of the ventilation walls around her burned her with memories of taunts and derision. Images of the Canterlot towers in the background of her denouncing peers flashed in her head, a view from beneath one of the balconies, watching as the ponies in front of her tried desperately to coax her from her hiding place.

She pushed back the memory, trying to forget the tear-filled conversations she had with her parents. They had loved her—they had tried to help—but they never seemed to understand that in the end, she just wanted to be alone. Too many pushes to make friends. Too many lectures on how to talk to the other ponies. To reason with them. They never seemed to understand that maybe Twilight didn't want to reason with them. She just wanted them to leave her alone! And every late-night conversation with her parents always ended the same way: with her giving in, telling them she would "try", only to retreat to her room and escape tearfully into a book until she fell asleep.

These thoughts flashed before her and vanished within a few seconds as she pushed them back into the confines of her subconscious. She wasn't in Canterlot anymore. And ponies here don't treat her like that.

Things are different, she told herself, trying to pull herself back to the present.

At last, she reached the end of the passage. She had climbed slightly as the vent had angled up, and she imagined being a few feet above the ground by now.

Struggling to see around Spike's large form in front of her, she noticed a grate covering which she hastily unbolted with her horn. She levitated both grate and body carefully in front of her until she reached the opening at the end. Placing her hooves through first, she placed them against the walls and hoisted her head out for a look around.

She was in the Executive Lounge now! She recognized the doors behind her to the right! She had come out over top of a couple vending machines which, if she was careful, she could step out onto before dropping onto the floor.

Carefully setting both the grate and the body on the floor, she stepped a hoof onto the thin plastic top of the first machine, feeling it give way with a *POP* as it indented downward slightly. Slowly putting the rest of her weight on it, she slid her body snake-like out of the vent until her hind-hooves touched down. And suddenly, with all her weight resting on the machine, it wobbled unsteadily. Placing her hooves towards the edge, Twilight prepared to jump off only to find herself overbalancing the machine as it leaned forward and past its delicate center of gravity.

Twilight's stomach fluttered as the ground dropped out from under her, slamming her harshly into the ground, the machine landing with a crash behind her loud enough to wake the dead, scattering glass over the floor. Getting up slowly, relieved to find nothing broken or fractured, Twilight shook herself out and looked behind her.

The wires on the black wall of the back of the machine shown glistening, with glass particles shining like diamonds on the floor. They were lit by the colorful glow of the machine still standing next to it. She looked over at Spike, relieved to find his body undamaged.

Turning around to look back into the room, she caught a glimpse of something purple and glowing, but it was gone a moment later. Twilight wanted to say something—to shout out—but her voice didn't seem to be working at the moment. Instead, she simply wandered curiously into the room, open-mouthed.

The room was quite dark, the only lights coming from the vending machine behind her, and a small desk lamp on a coffee table sitting in front of a green cloth couch. She squinted her eyes, taking in the same walls, the ceiling, the floor, all the same as the hallway, just shaped differently.

Walking further into the room, she caught a small purple haze in her peripheral vision, and turned rapidly to find a massive object hurling towards her.

"HUH?!" she shouted.

A strike! A shock of pain! And everything went black.

=========================================================

Light shown from above, casting shadows on the dim sand below. A few rocks scattered around on the uneven ground that Twilight felt beneath her bare hooves. She couldn't look up. The sky was bright above her, but there was no sun, and no clouds. There was only the empty sky above her, for which she could not see.

The surface...

She had longed for this moment. The ground felt triumphant beneath her feet. And yet, now that she had made it here, she couldn't quite see what was so special. This wasn't what she had in mind as a final resting place, was it? A memorial should be more than dust or sand, rock or dry vegetation. It should be someplace deserving: someplace for her to look back and remember fondly.

Twilight looked around as the wind picked up, blowing dust around her hooves, baring the rocky blood-red surface as the grains shifted through the cracks in the earth. Barren. Deserted. Empty. A place unfit to house a part of herself for eternity.

The scene brightened, condensing into a large ball of light, making Twilight's eyes strain. She couldn't see the sand or the ground anymore, and an overwhelming fatigue enveloped her as she was sucked out of the desert.

"That's it, dear."

A voice from above her—her eyes were closed—she could feel a soft material beneath her as she moved around on her side. The bright light was now flashing in and out: a redness against the lids of her eyes. She swatted her hoof at it blindly.

"That's it! You're okay now."

The voice sounded less distant now as Twilight became more conscious. The light went out as Twilight blinked her eyes open, trying to focus on what was in front of her.

"Who..." Twilight spoke, croaking out the first words since the elevator.

The white coat of a mare shown dimly in the darkened room. She couldn't quite make out the color of her mane, but its texture was thick and wavy, dangling all around her face.

"You," Twilight said, peering up meekly at the shadow in front of her as her memory started to come back, "I... I saw you!"

The mare was now stroking her hoof lightly through Twilight's mane, straightening out the tangles that had formed from her fall, very much how a mother would stroke the mane of a foal.

"Indeed, yes," she whispered quietly, sounding slightly embarrassed. "You, er, gave me quite a fright, I should say. You know, there are much better ways of entering a room than sneaking through an air duct."

"You... did this?" Twilight asked, referring to her attack.

The mare sat back slightly, continue to stroke gently.

"And I'm terribly sorry for it, dear! I just... well, I thought you might be one of them."

Twilight looked around, taking in the room more thoroughly now that she was not longer under threat. It was surprisingly clean! The coffee table with the desk lamp had been pushed slightly back so the mare could stand in its place in front of the couch. The light from the desk lamp showed dimly behind her, making her silhouette contrast even more against the lit background. The vending machine had been pushed back up, and there was no glass on the floor anymore. In fact, the floors around her were practically glowing with colorful reflections! There was very little on the floor at all! The grate had been placed back in the wall, and the place where she had set Spike—

"Wait," Twilight cried out softly, looking all around the room as she sat up slightly. "Where's Spike?"

The mare continued to stroke her mane.

"Spike... who, now? What... what's a Spike? What are you talking about dear?"

Twilight hoisted her body up against Rarity's hoof so she could look her in the eye.

"Spike!" Twilight said more clearly. "I left him right over there!" she pointed her hoof towards the vending machines. "Where is he?"

The shadow of the mare glanced back to the light of the machines, and then back to Twilight.

"I'm afraid I still don't... can you clarify dear?"

Twilight put a hoof to her face, trying to wipe the fatigue out of her face so she could think clearly.

"My dragon," she said now, starting the panic when she couldn't see him anywhere in the room, "My baby dragon. Over there!"

The mare brought her hoof away from Twilight's mane, as she stood up. Twilight couldn't see the mare's eyes very well in the dark, but judging from her stature she was coming to some kind of realization.

"Oh," she started, backing up a bit. Twilight stopped talking as the mare continued to think.

"Oh!" she said again, "Oh, my! That was... you mean he..."

The mare turned to look towards the machines, and in the colorful glow wafting on her face, Twilight could see a truly horrified expression dawning upon her. Twilight felt sick, nausea dripping through her as she fought to say the next words.

"What... what did you do to him?"

The mare was now stock still, a hoof raised to her open mouth, eyes wide. Twilight sat up, leaning forward to project her words again.

"What. Did. You. Do. To. Him?" she asked more clearly.

The mare's voice was very shrill now, shaking as she walked towards Twilight. She averted her eyes from her as she spoke.

"I didn't know. I didn't! I really didn't! I thought he was just a... just another..."

"Where is he!?" Twilight shouted out, much louder now, hoping to dear Celestia she had simply placed him somewhere retrievable.

"Y-you must understand! There were these... these things! In the ceiling! And they, well, traps, you see! Traps! I didn't... they hang down, and they catch things. Ponies! I needed something... well, I thought if maybe they had something else to occupy them—"

Twilight felt a flood of nausea crinkle her stomach as she started to realize where this was going.

Twilight watched the shadow of the mare grab the desk lamp from the table just in front of her and turned it hastily to shine straight up at the ceiling before immediately shrinking into a corner, wincing.

Twilight raised her head against her will and stared in pure horrified awe at the putrid site above her!

A few of the ceiling tiles had been damaged, revealing the crawlspace above them. And attached at the top was a stump of blood, like a carved-up torso: a living organism contracting and pulsing like a stomach during digestion. The site was was like glue to Twilight's eyes, repulsive to the degree that everything else around it was too banal to garner interest anymore.

But what really twisted her insides were the feet sticking out at the bottom. Two small, green, scaly feet dangling from the inside of the organism perched on the ceiling. A heat climbed through her like a fever, glowing in waves as she suppressed the urge to rip apart the furniture she was sitting on with her bare hooves. To climb up to that ceiling and rip apart that stump until the room was splattered with blood!

The tiniest squeak emanated from the corner of the room.

"I'm sorry!"

Twilight brought her head slowly back down to the cowering shadow in the corner of the room. A shaking, burning rage was building from the pit of her stomach, reaching up to her chest.

"You're.... s-s--ss-s-sorry," she quivered, unable to keep her voice steady.

Twilight got up, almost collapsing onto the floor from her shaking hooves and incredible fatigue.

"You're s-s-sorry!"

The mare could be heard sobbing weekly as Twilight approached her quietly, face scrunched from the exorbitant amount of energy that had built up inside her! There was a pressure down inside now, pressing against the walls of her insides, fighting to get out.

"You're... YOU'RE. SORRY!" She burst out, almost surprised at where such a voice had come from! She lifted a hoof at the poor cowering form in the corner, making her wince into a ball, hooves over her face—

—and slammed it into the wall next to her, screaming out as she did so. Fighting wasn't enough. Hitting and drawing blood wasn't enough. She wanted something hurt! She wanted pain! And she wanted it at the tips of her hooves!

She reached back and grabbed her crowbar.

"NOO!" shouted the voice next to her, but Twilight ignored her. She looked at the form on the ground for a moment, imagining the site of her bloodied and torn like the scientists in the Test Anti-chamber. And when this didn't satisfy her, she turned around the room, finally marching quickly up to one of the machines near the entrance doors, bringing back her crowbar—

—and slammed it satisfyingly into the machine, watching an image of the dragon-scaled feet flash before her eyes. Another swing as she felt the bar whip through the air and crash through the plastic of the machine.

Each blow brought with it more energy, more damage, more satisfaction. More images flashed before her as she tore into the machine. An image of Dr. Yursa telling her about the infection. An image of the nurse telling her there was still hope. An image of Celestia advising against her taking Spike with her. Twilight was hardly even aware of her hoof batting wildly in the air anymore!

Eventually her energy dwindled as she realized how hard she was breathing. The large box for dispensing canned drinks stood irreparably pulverized before her, the plastic on the front torn up with shreds and tears. Twilight hardly even took in the site as she stared blankly, feeling her lungs fight in huge gasping waves for air.

She walked quickly back to the couch, where she collapsed in a heap, every muscle utterly worn out. She even let her limbs droop over the sides as she lay on her stomach, totally defeated, not wanting to get up.

She lay there for ages, resting her head, every thought gone, every ounce of energy exerted, every shriveling of motivation extinguished. It wasn't until she felt a hoof stroke her back that she realized she was still laying there on the couch! And as the pony next to her spoke, she felt herself suddenly whisked away back to a time she could scarcely remember: a filly, sitting on her bed, her mother stroking her back in that same way, comforting her after a terrible derisive chiding from her peers. And a warmth spread, almost against her will, as that hoof glided down her, feeling it through the suit as if there was nothing between it and her own hide. A voice rolled over her ears, serene and comforting.

"You... you poor thing," she whispered, and Twilight could hear the mare's voice cracking slightly as she tried to hold back the sobs of fright she had let out during Twilight's outburst. "He... really meant that much to you, did he?"

Twilight didn't say anything, continuing to feel the soothing hoof press lightly against the her muscles.

"I've also lost people I love," she continued, and Twilight knew she was trying desperately to relate to her. She knew this was just a small attempted of comfort. But Twilight didn't care anymore. She let the gesture roll over her, hearing the words but not listening. "I left my sister to come over here," she continued, "and I haven't seen her in years now."

The body of the mare next to her shifted, and Twilight sensed she was looking down at her rather than at the wall.

"I know it's not a real loss," she said, her voice more directed with her head turned, "but that doesn't mean I don't feel a longing to be with her. I can only imagine what that feeling would be like if I knew I would never see her again."

Twilight continued sitting there, feeling a peace like she had never felt since she was a filly. Her body was so relaxed and so warm with that body so close to hers, she could have nearly fallen asleep!

"You know," she continued, "I used to tell her a story every night before she went to bed." She turned her head down at Twilight. "Always the same one. Maybe you've heard it. It's called Philogo Monahikois: The Lonely Mare. I read it in a book of old pony's tales when I was a filly."

Twilight didn't say anything, but shifted her shoulders as if to say she'd never heard of it.

"Perhaps you'd like to hear it? You might find it fitting."

Again, Twilight shrugged, hardly caring what she did or did not hear at this point. Rarity took this as an opportunity, and suddenly Twilight found herself being pushed a bit further into the couch as Rarity dug her own flank into the soft cushions, pulling up the coffee table to rest her tired rear hooves. Rarity's back was now leaning into Twilight's side, as Rarity's hoof rubbed the top of Twilight's head lightly around her horn.

"Well, let's see," thought Rarity, remembering how the story went. "I think the words are coming back to me now."

She leaned in just a bit more, closing her eyes as she let the words roll down her tongue.

"In the seas before Equestria, on an aboriginal island, there lived a Kelpie whose name was Aquanifur. She was an aged pony who had risen the island from the sea many ages ago, and was nearing the end of her life. The island was deserted, and Aquanifur had one wish she wanted to fulfill before she passed beyond the mortal world. She wanted someone to look after the island while she was gone. In her final days, she sent a request to the other three Great Islands in the sea to send each of their greatest, wisest, and most compassionate ponies so they could be trained to lead the future populace of the island.

"When each of the ponies arrived on the shores, Aquanifur summoned them to the center of the island, instructing her new followers as her own creator had before her. When the instructions had passed, Aquanifur offered each of them a gift based on their most cherished virtue, as a memory of Aquanifur after she had passed.

"The first mare was Agaretè, and cherished beyond all else the persistence of culture, knowledge, and understanding. And so, Aquanifur gifted her a foal, whom Agaretè named Neumagoìs, and whom she embraced and nurtured as though she had born the foal herself, promising to teach the foal all the lessons of her own life, as well as the instruction she had been taught by Aquanifur. Aquanifur acknowledged her, and showed her gratitude before turning to the next mare.

"Aropàtos stood before Aquanifur now, showing her respect before pronouncing her own beliefs in dedication, loyalty, and fidelity. And so, Aquanifur gifted her a Stallion named Equeros, whom Aropàtos fell in love with in that instant, and whose mutual affection would only grow as the years passed. Aropàtos stood thanking Aquanifur next to her new lover as Aquanifur again acknowledged the gratitude before turning to the third and final mare.

"Philogos was the youngest of the mares, and stood greatly humbled before the majestic presence of the Kelpie. When asked what values she held most dear, she merely shook her mane, saying she had only spent her life in books and training, and knew only of the cold facts of life from her scholastic teachings. She desired nothing except an understanding of these strange traits the others had spoken of.

"Aquanifur smiled upon Philogos, expressing a deepest regret that she could not bestow any gift upon her, saying that true understanding can only come with time. And as Aquanifur explained this, an idea manifested itself, for which Aquanifur acted upon in that moment. Time, as it turned out, just so happened to be a gift she could give.

"Aquanifur turned to the three mares, and gave one final gift to them all: The gift of long life! All three mares would continue to grow and learn for as long as the Great Alicorns of the ages to come, and would ascend to the passage beyond to join with Aquanifur when at last their long lives had passed. All three mares expressed their appreciation and elation upon such a wondrous gift, with only Philogos still feeling hollow and incomplete, having only one gift where the others had two.

"Aquanifur bid them farewell, passing before them beyond the mortal world, never to be seen on that island or any of the others for the remainder of their existence. Years passed as the three mares set about their own ways, establishing the island as a habitable location. The three ruled separately, establishing their own laws on different parts of the island. Neumagoìs grew to be a filly, and then a young mare, with Agaretè growing proud at what her daughter had learned and achieved. Aropàtos stayed loyal to Equeros for all these years, cherishing him with her affection even in his old age.

"Philogos grew resentful over these years, still wounded by the prejudiced rewards to her peers. Her reign grew from calculated, to stern, to disdainful, watching as her own people learned to express the same values as the two mares, despite Philogos's continued lack of understanding. More than once, she had considered outlawing marriage just to spite them, but always concluded it to be logically impractical if the land was to maintain its population.

"Years turned to decades as the people under Philogos's rule grew restless. Her rule had been sustainable, but her people found her distanced personal relationship with the populace to be deficient. Many travelling beyond the boundaries of Philogos's commonwealth, discovering the lands of her peers.

"It wasn't until another decade had passed that Philogos heard of problems arising beyond her own land. Aropàtos was in grief, her mind deteriorating under the weight of the her loss. Equeros had been grown old for many years, but his passing was no easier to accept. He had been a lover and companion to Aropàtos since the beginning of her rule, but Aquanifur had not gifted him with the long life that Aropàtos herself had been granted. Neither of them had any children, having no desire except to be with each other.

"Word had reached Philogos that Aropàtos could be seen mourning at the stallion's grave for many hours each day, her heart crushed under the gravity of his passing. Over time, her population suffered as Aropàtos lost the will to rule. Her country had begun to die.

"Philogos understood nothing of the grievances Aropàtos was suffering from. However, as a dedicated and logical ruler, she could not allow Aropàtos to let an entire land fall to ruin, even under the weight of death. Summoning her second, she ordered him temporary ruler as she bid Aropàtos a visit in her own land.

"Aropàtos had not laid eyes on Philogos since Aquanifur had granted them their gifts. A familiarity rose inside them when their eyes met as they remembered their last meeting thogether. A brief spell overtook Aropàtos as she recalled Philogos being free of any gift, believing Aquanifur to favor Philogos by sparing her of this terrible feeling of grief. However, the spell passed as she saw a sadness and longing in Philogos's eyes that had been growing since last they had met. They embraced in hospitality and understanding, and for a moment, Philogos felt a warmth spread from her heart.

"Aropàtos and Philogos spoke closely for the next year as Philogos undertook the ruling of the populace, providing a shoulder for Aropàtos to lean on until she had recovered. As Philogos at last returned to her own country, Aropàtos continued to stay in contact, sending letters of thanks and updates on recent events. Philogos continued to respond with advice, finding herself subconsciously planning future visits. More years passed as the two exchanged experience, sharing methods and techniques in leadership until word got around of another tragedy.

"Agaretè had been desperate to continue her lineage, aiding Neumagoìs in her quest to find a mate. Many suitors presented themselves, to which Agaretè had insisted her daughter partake in marriage, but Neumagoìs would not hear it. She wanted her own choice, and she sensed neither companionship nor infatuation with any of the potentials. With Neumagoìs's eventual loss of fertility with age, Agaretè resigned beseeching his daughter for a suitor, retreating to a role of comfort and sympathy as she watched her daughter continue to age.

"Neumagoìs's death brought unimaginable pain, both to Agaretè and her people. So many stallions had desired her hand in matrimony. So many mares had idolized her throughout their lives. Agaretè suffered worse than even Aropàtos as she struggled to come to terms with her loss. Once again, Philogos called upon her second to hold the fort, inviting a willing Aropàtos to join her in her visit to Agaretè's land.

"Agaretè greeted her companions with surprise and relief, like Aropàtos, not having seen or contacted either since first they met with Aquanifur. Neither Philogos nor Aropàtos could relate to the misery Agaretè endured now. Aropàtos had lost a lover of the present, but Agaretè had lost a potential lineage of the future: an eternal deprivation, void of the evanescent hope that had filled her many years ago.

"Both companions lent her their support, taking it in turns to rule and console. A number of years went by before the bereavement had passed, and Aropàtos and Philogos continued to lend support in writing. Over time, the three grew close, shaping their empires similarly as they shared their experiences in rule. Boundaries became muddled as the once-distinct lands merged. Nearly a generation later, the three rulers could be seen frequently visiting each other in their separate private dwellings, or walking in stride through the public streets. The populace learned slowly of Philogos as she warmed up to the people she had governed for so many years, embracing them at last as she had done with her own peers for so long now.

"The three lived the remainder of their lives in harmony. As death presented herself at their door, each of the three prepared a successor, honoring the land that Aquanifur had bestowed upon them, and placing their teachings in written scrolls to be passed down the lines.

"When at last Aquanifur greeted the three mares, being gracious enough to pass each companion proximally, she expressed her acclamation of their accomplishment, offering a place beside her in the eternal realm. Before she parted, she asked each one in turn how each of the gifts she had bestowed had inspired them during their venture into sovereignty.

"Both Agaretè and Aropàtos expressed their humbled gratitude to the Kelpie, reminiscing upon the motivation and excitement they had experienced during their initial years. Aquanifur listened politely as they recalled experiences and sensations that brought them joy and pride, staying quiet so they could cherish the moment uninterrupted. However, the sorrow and grief marked so deeply within them was as conspicuous to the Kelpie as a scar on their hide, and Philogos couldn't help but notice a shade of dissappointment in her eyes.

"When at last the Kelpie turned to Philogos, a surprise overtook them all as she asked how her own gift had served her. Philogos didn't understand, merely pointing out that she had not been gifted anything, expecting the Kelpie to simply recall this aspect and acknowledge it as she turned away.

"Instead, however, the dissappointment in her eyes shown deeper than before, and Philogos struggled with what to say. Had the Kelpie granted her a gift she had not remembered? Begging the Kelpie for sympathy, she expressed her confusion, explaining how she could not comprehend the question she was being asked.

"And now the Kelpie spoke, emphasizing each word with both grace and potency. And she said to Philogos.

"The gift bestowed upon you was the greatest of the three, my dear Philogos. Whereas my gifts of lover and offspring were fleeting to your long-lived companions, your gift is eternal. You experienced it as it fought and countered the suffering of your peers, and fed your own heart and desires in a mutual emotional enrichment. You see young Philogos, your gift was before you even as you first entered the island.

"And as Aquanifur turned away from Philogos, she saw before her the two companions whom she had befriended, and realized with a surge of compassion and memory just how much she had learned. And as Philogos tried to put into words the closeness she felt with her companions, Aquanifur put a hoof up to silence her, merely smiling in understanding as she saw the connection through Philogos's eyes.

"Philogos always remembered that day, as did Agaretè and Aropàtos as they sat together next to Aquanifur in the immortal realm. Their kinship lasts to this day, and can be seen sometimes at night. The stars show three ponies raising hooves together, laughing brilliantly in merriment as they celebrate their commune over the sea."

The mare continued to stroke Twilight's mane as she finished the story. Twilight's lifted her eye lids a bit just to be sure there wasn't anything more to the story.

"That... that was beautiful!" she said softly, swallowing to get a better grip on the words. "You recited all that from memory?"

She looked down at Twilight and smiled. Twilight lifted her chin and looked up into her eyes.

"Every night," she whispered. "Every. Single. Night."

She looked back up to stare at the wall with Twilight.

"You read something enough times and it just sorta sticks. I remember Sweetie Bell always asking me about it when I finished. She would always ask me why Aquanifur didn't simply gift Philogos a friend to play with. I remember always struggling to give her an answer."

The mare shifted on the couch as she turned to face the table.

"We... we used to go out at night sometimes. Just the two of us," she continued, "and Sweetie Bell would always look up at the sky, and try to find the constellation of Philogos. She would always ask me to help her find it, and I would always point to some random set of stars and joke with her about how they looked like laughing ponies, and—"

Twilight listened as she droned out. When Twilight finally looked up, the white mare was seen leaning towards into her hooves, stifling tiny sobs.

"Are you alright?" Twilight asked. And she noticed that this was not simply out of courtesy, she was actually genuinely concerned.

"I'm... fine," she let out softly with a tiny hiccough. She turned a bit, her eyes glossy from the reflection of the moisture. "I guess it's just, it's been so long."

Twilight wasn't sure she felt comfortable about this conversation anymore, but the mare continued anyway.

"My first job was not administrative, by the way," she said, subtly changing topics. "I used to be a designer! Fashion," she put in, turning towards Twilight. "But, alas, ponies just didn't want that. I loved it! Don't get me wrong! It was... wonderful! It was just, no pony was all that interested in my designs. They only wanted famous designer clothes."

She let out a long sigh.

"In the end, I had to close shop. It was harsh, but it had to be done."

Twilight let her shoulders droop in dissapointment as the mare got off the couch, feeling her gentle stroking come to an end. She stood up and faced Twilight, shaking the sadness out from under her.

"I'm Rarity," she said, holding a hoof out.

Twilight turned her head slowly, almost smiling as the shadow of the face came into view. She was about to simply lift her hoof lazily in the air, but then thought she may as well do this proper. Forcing herself all the way up, she got off the couch and slipped uneasily onto the floor, her legs feeling like jelly. She stabilized a bit before introducing herself. Holding out her own hoof, she felt them connect as they shook and embraced together.

"Twilight Sparkle," she said softly.

=========================================================

"So how long have you been here?" Twilight asked. The back of her mind was still eating at her for not thinking about Spike, but her curiosity with her new companion was driving her mind forward.

Rarity thought for a moment, her head at the ceiling and her hoof to her chin.

"Five years, maybe," she said.

"No," Twilight said, "that's not what I meant. I mean, how long have you been here?" she said, pointing her hoof at the floor. "Like, in this room?"

"Oh!" Rarity said. "Not too long. I've been hiding here ever since... well, you know." Twilight watched as she trotted lightly to the door and peered out the window. "I've been keeping a lookout for things. Creatures have been pouring in lately. Such strange things! And not just the ones in the ceiling either. Moving creatures!"

"Yeah, I know," Twilight said, jumping into the conversation. "I've seen them."

Rarity turned to look at her more closely, taking in the suit, the gauze on her face, the gun on her shoulder, and finally the crowbar on her side.

"I can imagine!" Rarity said at last. "It looks like you've been on quite a trek." Then, looking closer, "And... is that a Mark IV Hazardous Environment Suit?!"

Rarity looked closely in the dark room, trying to make out the model number.

"How do you know about that?" Twilight asked. "Did you ever work in the labs?"

"Oh, no dear! I know nothing about science. I leave that to the egghe—er, true professionals! Like yourself."

She made a small gesture as she caught herself, but continued as if it never happened.

"No, dear. I only know about it because I've had to file some things related to it. I file reports on all sorts of equipment. It's just, this particular thing just so happened to be one of our most expensive items. It stuck, I guess you could say."

Twilight watched as she turned and muttered to herself. "Still quite hideous, though. And those colors, my Celestia!"

"So where do we go now?" Twilight said.

Rarity turned, confused.

"Go?!"

She tilted her head, one eye cocked.

"Well, yeah! Obviously we're not staying in this room forever, are we?"

Rarity walked up, sputtering a small laugh as she realized what she was asking.

"Twilight, darling, you can't be serious! I mean, you've seen what's out there, right?"

She put a hoof up on Twilight's shoulder, patting the nonsense out of her with what she believed to be an understanding smile.

"Uh, yeah! I have seen what's out there. And I know that what's out there will come in here if we wait long enough!"

Rarity was fidgeting now, unconsciously tapping a hoof nervously on the floor as her head swayed back and forth.

"Now, now. There's no need to jump to conclusions. I'm sure there's someone that'll be coming down here any time now. Disasters happen. They just do. That's why there's enforcement, security, constables, military."

She swallowed hard, fighting back the growing nervousness before looking pleafully up at Twilight.

"Right?"

Twilight narrowed her eyes sarcastically at her, letting out a low sigh.

"Look," she said, "there's a broken light out in the hallway, but I can't get past it with my horn the way it is. I'm thinking that together—"

"What happened to your horn?" Rarity interrupted.

"It... kinda got cut in half," she said. "Accident with a laser."

Twilight winced as Rarity let in a horrendous intake of breath, pulling back as if looking at an open wound.

"Does it... does it grow back?" she asked.

"Don't know." Twilight said. "Didn't think to ask."

She walked past Rarity towards the doors.

"Anyway, come on out here with me. We'll see if we can get past this."

Twilight pushed against the crash bar, feeling it give way easily as the door swung open. It was almost refreshing to be on her feet again, moving forward and away from the torturous path she had trodden on thus far.

She heard a clunk behind her as she approached the light, and turned to see Rarity propping the door open, apprehension flooding her face.

"Come on, Rarity!" Twilight said. "There's nothing out here."

Rarity just stood there, watching intensely, but not moving.

"Look, it's not gonna hurt. See?"

Twilight lit her horn, feeling the metal lighting fixture shift slightly but still perfectly safe from the coursing electrical currents. Twilight turned to look at Rarity as she did this, but Rarity was already creeping back into the room.

"Ugh!" Twilight exasperated, dropping the slightly floating metal onto the ground. "Come on, Rarity. I can't do this alone!"

Trotting back before Rarity closed the door the rest of the way, Twilight propped it back open and grabbed Rarity's front hoof, pulling her roughly out into the hallway.

"AH! NO! I DON'T WANT—"

Twilight half-walked half-dragged Rarity right up to the wreckage in the hallway, watching her face grow more anxious with each step.

"There!" Twilight said, putting her hoof back on the floor. "See? Nothing wrong!"

Rarity was now stomping nervously, her teeth showing as she grimaced in agitation..

"Well, no," she said, almost stuttering, "not right here, at least. But—"

Twilight took a deep breath, waiting for the impending explanation that, sure enough, came pouring out volume upon volume.

"It's just... well, you're all protected and armed and everything—and that's great and all—and you've already encountered lots of stuff and everything. I trust you to go your merry way. But me? I'm just some... some fashion designer! I don't... I'm not... You can't honestly expect me to—"

Twilight put a hoof up, getting tired of this by now. A moment ago, she may have been suffering from the weight of her tragic occurrence at the bottom of the elevator. But somehow, seeing her new companion so worked up about something Twilight was already familiar with was driving a new feeling into her. She wanted to teach her! She wanted to show her what Twilight herself had learned down her winding path so far.

"Look," she finally said. "Just stick with me. If we get in trouble, I'll deal with it. We'll find some ammunition, and then I'll be as good as any security officer around here."

Rarity calmed down, but was still showing signs of shaky compulsive after-shock.

"Y-y-you're familiar with firearms?"

Twilight almost laughed as she remembered her complete disbelief at being dragged through a firing range during her training. Oh, how things had changed.

"You could say that," she said.

She raised a hoof and rested it against the dark silhouette of the white mare on the floor.

"Look. I wish I could say that everything will just roll over. I wish I could say that some... some... authority is sending over troops or trained unicorns or rescue teams. I wish that was true, I really do. But right now, the only way I know we'll be safe for sure is to get out of here," she explained. "I came up here in an elevator. We're still a number of floors underground, but there's a chance we could find another elevator. Once we're out, we can make a break for it back to Canterlot and see if the Princess can help us."

"The first place I'm going," said Rarity, "is Ponyville. I'm not leaving Sweetie Bell there any longer than I have to. We'll take her to Canterlot with us," she mused for a moment. "Canterlot." She shook her mane, still shaken, but now with a strange smile. "To think, I had always dreamed of the place back when I ran my Boutique." She let out a sigh as she leaned into the floor.

"Fine," she finally said. "I'll come with you. But you have to promise me we'll pick up my sister first thing after we get out!"

Twilight and Rarity looked at each other, determination on purple, hardened concern on white.

"It's a deal," said Twilight.

=========================================================

Glass chips flew into the next room with a tinkling crash as Twilight smashed the glass window at the end of the hallway. Running the crowbar around the edge of the opening, she pushed the remaining shards out, holstering the bar before jumping recklessly through.

Twilight's belly scraped against the bottom of the opening as she hoisted herself into the painfully bright office foyer, closing her eyes from the sting of the lights as she fell over and landed on her side on top of the mess of glass shards.

Shaking and brushing the glistening glass crystals off the suit, Twilight turned to let Rarity in, only to see a purple haze surrounding the crash bar on the adjacent door. Rarity stepped through as the door opened out into the hall, and stared revoltingly at the mess Twilight had created on the floor.

"What?!" Twilight yelled out. "You didn't tell me you could open these doors!"

"Well, you didn't ask, darling!" she said, swishing her mane around. "You know, you really should communicate more before you jump into things. It might just make you look a bit smarter."

As Rarity carefully tread through the swarm of shining saws sparkling on the floor, Twilight's eyes adjusted to the light. And there before her, walking out into the open, was the most stunningly gorgeous mare Twilight had laid eyes on!

She hadn't really gotten a chance to see Rarity in full back in that dark room. But now that they were both in the light of the foyer, Twilight almost couldn't take her eyes off her! There was a fullness to her: a depth to her body. There were no pudges or pockets of unnecessary fat rolling around, but her figure was not as diminutive and streamlined as Twilight's. It was as if her brilliantly white coat had been fluffed to give her that staged operatic look of dignity so often depicted in formal performances. Her mane was also uniquely fashionable, split into two long purple waves that splashed around her face, coiling and uncoiling as they sprung under their own weight. Their hue looked so much cleaner than Twilight's coat, which looked filthy in comparison, and each time she swerved her head (which she did often, simply to feel mane's movement), each follicle shined as the light reflected off it. Twilight could almost feel the slew of conditioners lining each strand.

She watched as Rarity traveled towards the center of the foyer, and realized the nexus they had just entered. So many choices!

"Which way do we go?" Twilight asked Rarity, hoping she knew her way around a bit. "Do you know where we might find an elevator?"

"Stairs, more like, dear," she said, turning around to let that magnificent mane spring and shine. "And this place really isn't that complicated. Most of these choices are just dead-ends. So, for example—"

She walked to the right-hand wall and peered through the broken window.

"That room is completely flooded! I mean, it's a wreck! And even if it wasn't, there wouldn't be anywhere to go."

"What about that vent over to the left?" Twilight asked. The flooded room was torn apart, but just as brightly lit, showing an assortment of cabinets and counter-tops of what likely used to be a break room. Twilight had picked out the metallic fins of the vent covering quickly against the brown tiled bricks.

"A vent?" she said, moving over to take a better look. "That... why would you even mention that? It just leads to the crawlspaces above!"

"Not necessarily," Twilight added. "I got into the room you were hiding in through a vent. They've turned out to be pretty useful!"

"Well," Rarity said, turning to walk further down the hallway, "you won't be needing to take such uncomfortable and filthy paths, dear. Not while you're with me, at least."

Twilight was surprised to find Rarity's nervousness dissipate and diminish in this bright area devoid of life. There were still small twitches here and there, and Twilight was sure a hoof to her chest would evince a host of heated activity that she hid behind her impassive demeanor. However, the familiarity of environment had calmed her enough to think clearly.

"Now, over here," she said, leading Twilight around a corner, "there's a corridor that leads to the packaging and storage sections. I would imagine that's where we would find the stairs, most likely."

"What's down that way?" Twilight asked, pointing further down the passage, seeing some of the lights dimming just before it rounded another corner.

"That?" Rarity said, wrinkling her muzzle. "That's nothing. Just some security depot of some sort. None of us really went there ourselves. We just saw security go back there sometimes."

Twilight trotted quickly down that way. "Let's check it out then!" she said, Rarity looking around quickly before hurriedly coming up behind. "We might find some ammunition."

"Twilight, Twilight, Twilight," Rarity whispered as she caught up. "Twilight, please, I really don't feel comfortable—"

As Twilight rounded a few corners, surpassing a number of wooden crates propped precariously around the passage, Rarity caught some more words amid her rambling. None of them were reassuring.

As they finally rounded the corner into the actual storehouse, Rarity was practically nipping at Twilight's tail to pull her back!

"What is your problem?" Twilight whispered agitatedly, pulling her flank around so Rarity couldn't reach it. "Look, this place is just as empty as back there!"

This was a lie, or course. Twilight had noticed the security pony sitting behind the gate at the end of the room. They had entered on top of a long platform suspended above the main storage room below, all lit by fluorescent lights above. The guard's annex contained a door frame leading to another area. She wondered where it might lead. Perhaps she could convince the guard to let her in.

"Hey!" Twilight shouted out. "We're looking for ammo. You wouldn't happen to have any in here, would you?"

The guard sat up, revealing his black coat and mane. He would have been a shadow had the light not shined off his hide like glass.

"You're not... one of them?" he looked out. He was slightly shaken, but hid it well among his authoritative disposition.

"No," Twilight said with a flicker of a smile. "They haven't got us yet. I haven't seen any of those head things around here. They're probably all further down."

"Did you come up here from below?" he asked.

"Well, I did. But Rarity here works up in these offices."

"Who?" he said, looking around.

Twilight turned around to see the room she was in vacant. Rarity was nowhere to be seen.

"Ugh," she said quietly to herself. "I finally find another nice pony, and she has to just—"

She ignored her absence, trotting straight up to the gate so she could peer through.

"That suit you're wearing," he said, his eyes moving over the light orange armor covering her hide. "You wouldn't happen to have been around ground zero, would you?"

A small brick struck her in the stomach at these words, which she tried and failed to hide in the redness of her face. A stupid smile crested her face, accompanied with a nervous laugh.

"Hehe... uh, why do you ask?"

The guard smiled, as if showing success at a clever joke. "No reason," he said slyly as he walked up to the gate.

His hoof passed over a large lever, swinging the gate open with a squeak that made Twilight's brain hurt.

"I think I got just what you need," the guard said, inviting her in and showing her through the door way in the back.

Twilight followed him down a short expanse of more industrial architecture, much like walking into the "employee's only" section of a large supermarket. The floor was metallic now, and there was a musty smell accompanied by loud fans running in the back. The passage ended in a small room lined with firearms and ammunition.

Twilight found her eyes widening uncontrollably at the stock! The guard must have noticed, because he gave her a look that said "Don't get too excited."

"Now, let's see... AH! Here we are! Just what I had in mind!"

The guard dismounted a gun larger than Twilight had see even in pictures!

"SPAS-12 Deul Mode Shotgun," he said proudly. "This thing is probably what you really want."

Twilight's mind was fighting between awe and intimidation, remembering the feel of the pistol's bullet striking the dog-like creatures, and imagining what kind of impact this new gun might have. Would there be any remains at all after it hit a creature that small?

"That seems a little much, don't you think?" she asked. "I mean, the gun I have right now got the job done pretty well so far!"

"So far!," he emphasized. "You obviously haven't seen some of the other creatures," he added, sending a tingling chill through Twilight's hide. She swallowed hard.

"Others?"

The guard handed the gun up to her, offering her to magic it into place.

"Trust me," he said, "you're gonna need this."

=========================================================

"NO!" Rarity shouted out, stomping her hoof solidly on the marble tiled floor. "NO! No, no, no, no, nonononono, I REFUSE!"

Twilight stood back in the foyer, magically holding out a security vest and pistol for Rarity. Had Twilight only come out wielding the shotgun on her shoulder, Rarity may have simply fainted! But this insistence upon Twilight for her to have protection kept her conscious. She would have no part in any of it.

"Come on, Rarity. I'll teach you how it's done, alright? Just... we need to be prepared."

Rarity spat—or rather, she let a small raspberry out the side of her mouth. She was simply too proper for actual spitting.

"If we're really going into territory like that, I'll just go back to my little hiding place, thank you very much!"

Twilight scowled.

"You know, that brings me to another thing. It's very rude to go hiding around the corner when your friend finds another pony."

"Hmmm? What?"

Rarity's pupils rose as she thought.

"Oh, that," she said, backing up slightly flustered. "That was... really nothing. I just... sorry."

"Is something wrong?" Twilight inquired.

"Wrong?" she said, shifting her eyes. "No. Nothing's wrong. Why would you say something's wrong? I just—"

She looked at Twilight a moment as Twilight's lids closed in sarcasm.

"Okay, fine," Rarity said, moving back up to Twilight, "how about I just... slip these on, yes? Yes, I'll just—"

Rarity magicked the security vest hastily away from Twilight, grimacing as she slipped it over herself (no doubt it didn't match her coat), and adjusted it to her fit.

"Now," she said, magically dangling the pistol in front of her, as if it was a wad of tissue paper containing a dead cockroach. "how exactly—"

"There's a place on the shoulder," Twilight said, magicking it away from her. "Let me get that for you."

=========================================================

Rarity was very quiet as she led Twilight down the hallways. Twilight kept trying to pry into Rarity's sudden anxiety, but Rarity just kept her mouth shut and pretended nothing was wrong.

"Can you at least tell me where we're going?!" Twilight finally said, as they turned at the end of the hallway.

Based on what was through the door, Twilight guessed that Rarity was trying to find a place to "hide the body". It was a large, dark room that served mostly as an ammunitions store. Twilight tried hard not to curse under her breath for going out of her way to find ammunition, seeing how abundant it was now turning out to be.

"Stairs, Twilight, dear. We're going to find stairs," was all she said.

Twilight looked over at one of the shelves. "Well, I guess we can at least take some of this with us," she said more to herself than anything. She reached out with a hoof and grabbed some of the 9 mm for Rarity, and slipping it into the ammo hold on the side of her security vest.

Rarity gave Twilight a look, but didn't say anything as she rounded the corner. "Now," she started, "there should be some stairs right around the corner here. This should take us to the second floor. If I remember right, there should be an elevator on the fourth floor that will take us just below the surface." She led Twilight through an open doorway, devoid of any actual door, that led out of the ammo room and into a small, brightly lit storage depot. "If we can manage to navigate the offices upstairs, we—GET DOWN!"

Twilight jumped at Rarity's exclamation, moving around in a panic as she watched Rarity duck behind a large wooden crate just in front of them.

"Down! DOWN!"

Twilight looked in the direction of the beeps just as they stopped and felt her entire body freeze up. There, attached to the ceiling, were six long barrels, all starting to rotate.

"Rarity! Is that a—"

Her next words were cut off by the echoing thunder of the sentry turret. Twilight wasn't entirely sure how she managed to get behind cover in time. All she knew was the rush of adrenaline, the harsh bruises caused by a dozen bullets slamming into her suit, the sudden urge to cry as she huddled up close to the crate, breathing in quick gasps, closing her eyes and plowing her hooves into her ears as she felt the storm of metal fly over her.

The sound stopped.

Twilight removed her hooves from her ears very slowly, and looked up at Rarity, now shaking almost uncontrollably in front of her.

"Wha... how—"

Twilight was at a loss for words. All she could do is wave her hooves around at Rarity, trying to communicate her complete lack of comprehension. Rarity didn't seem to be able to move, let alone speak. After finally determining that the turret wasn't going to shoot at them while they were behind the crate, Twilight decided to explore their situation.

"Okay," she thought out loud. "We're hiding from a big gun. It stopped when we got behind these boxes, so it might have a motion sensor."

"You THINK?!"

Twilight recoiled at Rarity's sudden remark.

"I'm just trying to figure out how to get out of here," Twilight said, as if she was simply running another experiment back at Canterlot.

"Yes. You do that," Rarity said shakily. "In the mean time, I'm going to stay behind this box, where that thing can't see me."

Twilight rolled her eyes, trying to think of a way to observe the room without getting out from behind cover.

"Do you have a mirror?" she asked Rarity.

Rarity gave her a surprised look that quickly turned into what Twilight could only describe as "insane". "Why, Twilight! If you want to know how horrid you look right now, all you need to do is ASK!" Her voice quickly went from facetious to downright angry as she spoke.

"No, no, no! I mean to look around the room! I want to know if there's some way to shut the turret down!"

Now it was Rarity's turn to roll her eyes. "Oh! Well, not from here, darling. The only thing that we can turn off from where we are is our hearts when WE DIE!"

"You're not helping, Rarity!"

Twilight put a testing hoof out from behind cover and waved it around, hearing another couple thunder claps just as she pulled it away.

"Yep! Still under fire."

Rarity gave a really deep sigh of irritation. "There's a switch to turn it off in this room, but it's beneath the gun itself." She waved a hoof. "Good luck getting to it."

Twilight gritted her teeth, almost feeling sorry for the ponies who had to work with Rarity before the facility decided to vomit all over itself.

She rose up until her mane was just about to crest over the crate and took a deep breath. As an initial test, Twilight sprung her head up for an instant before pulling it back. A few bullets exploded over her, ripping a few hairs off her mane as she hid it once again behind the box.

"What are you doing?" Rarity asked as Twilight repeated the process.

"What does it look like I'm doing? I'm playing gopher!"

Rarity rolled her eyes. "Yes, dear. I can see that."

Twilight ignored Rarity's comment as she continued to peak out from over the box. "Just... a little bit... more..."

"Okay!" she said upon narrowly avoiding the last of the bullets. "From what I've seen, the switch seems to be under some kind of scaffolding. If we can manage to get under it, we should be safe from the line of fire."

"Oh, bravo," Rarity said. "Now if only there wasn't a field of death in the way."

Twilight grimaced, but managed not to drive her hoof into her face. Leaning back, she braced herself before plowing her entire body into the crate, pressing it against the wood as hard as she could. Rarity simply stared at her now, at a complete loss for words. Twilight could only pray that her plan would work, but the box didn't seem to want to move.

As her muscles started to give out, Twilight concentrated with her horn and added a small burst of magic to her efforts. She let out a stifled cry as her damaged horn protested, but she didn't let up. The box still didn't want to move, but there wasn't much else she could do.

Closing her eyes and driving her hooves full force into the wood, she forced away all her other senses, and drowned herself in the task, feeling a dull pain flow down her legs, gasping for enough air to keep her going.

And slowly, the box started to move.

In fact, once the box was in motion, everything became much easier! She almost didn't need her magic anymore to make the crate pick up speed, and soon she found herself taking step after step, walking steadily as she pushed. She looked up as she walked until she saw part of the scaffolding loom overhead, covering them from fire, before completely collapsing onto the ground. She opened her eyes, her lids still partly closed, slightly blurry-visioned from all the effort as she felt a dull pain course through her legs.

"Well, dear, you should have just told me that you wanted to push the box in the first place!"

Twilight sat up, rubbing her hooves against her head as she looked into the eyes of Rarity, now standing under the scaffolding with her.

"You—" Twilight started. "You helped me push!"

Rarity rolled her eyes. "Well, of course dear! You didn't expect me to just watch you struggle against a great idea all alone, did you?"

Twilight gave her a look, but Rarity didn't see it. She was already walking up to the wall to where the turret switch was.

"You know, you really need to communicate more, dear," she said as she magicked the switch down.

"Wait," Twilight really did slam her hoof into her face this time. "Why didn't you just use your magic to flip the switch from back there?"

Twilight and Rarity both waited until they heard the turret above them fully retreat into the ceiling and power down before Rarity continued.

"You really think they made it that easy?" she said. "And what if there was a rouge unicorn running around? This turret wouldn't be a very good defense against them if they could simply turn it off with their magic from a distance!"

"So it's like... like those doors that I couldn't open."

"Exactly."

Twilight wanted to ask why Rarity could open doors with her magic, but couldn't turn off the security turrets, but decided it wasn't worth pressing the issue. "What exactly are in these crates that's worth protecting with such heavy fire?" she asked, walking up to one of them and prodding it with her hoof a few times.

"Probably more ammunition," Rarity said, rolling her eyes. "Come on. The stairs are through here."

=========================================================

"So, what other kind of security measures should I know about?"

Twilight was walking carefully up the stairs wide staircase they had just found, which took up the entire hallway and wound around a U-Turn as it went.

"Well, the only other one that I know about are the guards," Rarity answered. "Not that you need to sorry about them, of course," she continued, giving Twilight a look. "Pretty much everyone fled to the surface as soon as all this happened."

Twilight noticed Rarity's subtle flare in her eyes as she said this, as if these words gave her some spark of comfort. Twilight didn't bother mentioning the guards she had met along the way, and decided to simply go with whatever Rarity said for now. Every time she had tried to pry into Rarity's strange shyness around other ponies, she had simply gone quiet, and Twilight didn't see the point anymore.

"So this should at least get us to the second floor," Rarity said as they neared the top. "Once we get there, it should be a short path to the next few staircases." She let out a loud sigh. "Honestly, I can't wait to get to the surface. Hopefully there will be some kind of map to show us how to get out of here."

Twilight amused herself with the thought of a mall-style map stand sitting in the middle of the desert. She really wasn't too concerned about finding her way once she was outside. She knew they were somewhere west. She could use the sun to help guide her at that point.

"How are you feeling, by the way?"

Rarity's question caught Twilight off-guard.

"About?" she prompted, but Rarity's shot her a look that said all-too-clearly what she really meant. "Oh. I'm, uh, fine! Really."

This wasn't entirely true. She had forced all thoughts of Spike out of her mind, afraid to confront them until they had fully escaped. It had managed to reduce itself to a dull pain in the back of her head, and every so often she found herself holding back a lump in her throat, but mostly she was trying to keep her head straight enough to navigate the labyrinth of the facility.

Now that she thought about it, however, she sympathized with Rarity. She, too, was separated, and Twilight found some comfort in helping Rarity find her way back. She wasn't entirely sure whether Rarity was aware of any of this, but she didn't press the question any further.

"There are some offices right around the corner, here," she said as she rounded the corner. "The stairs should be close."

Twilight peered through another doorless entrance, trimmed with red just like the last one, and noticed an expansive hallway similar to the bright ones she had found after smashing the window open.

"I don't like the sound of that," Rarity said, pulling in a bit close to Twilight. The ceiling was emitting some sounds that Twilight had heard before, back in the room with Dr. Whooves. They were the same sounds that the headcrabs made when they were curious.

"Just stay close," Twilight said, leaning her front hoof forward so it was resting on the trigger. "I've killed some of these creatures before. I know how to handle myself."

Twilight peered through a window in the wall just as a light went out on the other side. Rarity backed up, and pressed herself against the wall. "Is someone in there?" she asked Twilight.

Twilight was too curious to answer right away, and pressed her face up against the window to try and see in. "If there is, I can't see them." She went to a metal door opposide, and peered into the small office, looking around at the large desk and furniture around it. "Nothing in here, either," she said. At the last moment, her eyes slid across some kind of large piece of meat resting on the floor and nearly retched when she realized it was the severed limb of a pony. Twilight staggered out of the door, looking sick.

"What?! What is it?!" Rarity said frantically upon seeing Twilight's face. "Is it—"

"It's nothing," Twilight assured her. "Just keep your eyes open." The last thing she needed right now was a panicked Rarity running and screaming around the complex: especially considering what might be crawling around this very hallway.

Twilight and Rarity were no longer walking down the hallway. They were creeping down the hallway, almost tiptoeing as they slipped quietly along the wall. The hallway split into a large, complicated common area, slitting and winding: a maze of brick walls, red doorways, and glass windows. Twilight's ears perked up upon hearing a different sound: like some sickly pony was clearing a fountain of phlem out of their throat. Both of them froze to listen, and realized they had merely heard the closest one. At first, Twilight thought it was simply a biological sound, like coughing, or retching. However, the more she listened to it, the more it started to sound like a language: as if the creatures all around them were communicating with each other using some disgusting set of phonics.

"Maaaaaybe we shouldn't go this way," Twilight said quietly. Rarity was close to agreeing, but she looked too petrified to respond. As the sounds got louder, Twilight looked straight ahead again, expecting something to round the corner at any moment. She could tell just from listening that one of them was just around the corner, and another was to the right, a ways down the hallway. If she wasn't careful, she would have both of them to deal with at the same time, plus any others further away that she couldn't locate right away.

She looked over at Rarity, and stole her attention by softly clearing her throat. "Stay back while I poke around. If one of them comes around, shoot low. My suit can absorb a few stray bullets, but if you get me in the head, it's over. Just lean forward so it's pointing down, and use your hoof just like I showed you."

"Twilight, I—"

"If you fire and miss, it will at least get my attention so I can—"

"Twilight—"
"—come back and try myself."
"Twilight, I really don't think—"
"But, of course, that's assuming you don't hit me in the process, and distract me by—"
"TWILIGHT, WATCH OUT!"

"Wha—AHH!"

A shot rang out as something rounded the corner, echoing around the hallway and making Twilight's ears ring painfully. She had not been expecting the recoil, and found herself staggering backwards.

"WHA—IS—" Rarity let out a scream that almost sounded like a laugh, gasping right off the ground as she saw the body of the creature. "Is it de—"

"Stay here!" Twilight ordered, keeping her gun pointed in the direction to the nearest noise to the right.

The creature on the ground was larger than she was! Its brown scales made its body almost resemble a dragon, except that its snout was too short. Even stranger, its feet had hooves, much like a pony's, with single large nails protruding for balance. Twilight noted the claws at the end of its front limbs. This creature was bipedal.

She rounded the corner, feeling the blood rushing back to her limbs, her front hoof tensed on the floor against the trigger.

"Twilight!" Rarity didn't bother to stick around, retreating back down the hallway and away from the danger. Twilight didn't think twice about it, already piercing the area around her for movement. She already knew where the first one was. She could hear it.

She rounded the corner, not even giving it a chance to attack. She was ready for the recoil this time, leaning forward as she hit the trigger. She held her ears down, but that didn't make the noise any less painful. Even with her leaning forward, she still staggered back a step or two as she watched the creature collapse to the ground, becoming a heap just like the first one.

The ringing persisted, and she lost track of where the others were. She retreated back down the hallway, hoping to buy some time before the rest of them saw her. Rarity was nowhere in sight.

She peered around the corner, hoping to see without being seen. She could tell there was another one, hiding around a support pillar, but she couldn't get a shot in without charging around at it.

In the corner of her eye, she caught something green, glowing bright, filling the area, and causing her to turn her head just in time to catch one of them, clearly in front of her, just a few yards away. Its insectisoid body was engulfed in an orb of green magic, sparks shooting from its arms.

Twilight barely had enough time to react. She bent her knees as if to jump, and ended up rolling onto the floor just as the creature directed the magic towards her. She could feel the heat of the ray as it shot over her, travelling the length of the hall and striking the wall behind it, She could hear some of the brick break off the wall behind her as it struck, and instinctively reached a hoof to her head to make sure there wasn't any damage.

She rose to her feet and charged in towards the creature, her blood on fire, and slammed on her trigger hoof before she was even halfway, feeling the gun slam against her shoulder and watching the wounded creature clutch its wounded body before collapsing onto the floor.

She spun around a few times, trying to gather a 360 degree peripheral. She couldn't see what was behind every pillar, and her ears were ringing so badly she could barely hear any of the alien chatter. She jumped as one of the lights went out above her, plunging the once-bright offices into a dull yellow glow. She could catch a glimmer of green from time to time, but every time she looked closely, it was gone.

She looked back down the hallway.

"Rarity?" she called.

The hallway was empty. All she saw was a scattering of brick at the end where the first magic burst had struck. She took a few steps, wondering whether she could make it to the end and hide around the corner. Perhaps she could lure them one-at-a-time.

It was a plan that was short-lived. She felt, rather than heard them. She could sense one of them right behind her without even turning around. Had it been another pony, she would have claimed to have felt their breath on the back of her neck, but that would be assuming these things had a breath.

She felt her hoof on her trigger, feeling her own breath quicken, her mind swimming, making it difficult to focus. In one swift move, she turned—

—and fell over, forced by the creature in front of her onto her back. She felt herself slide an inch, and stared up at—not one—not two—

"S-s-so... many..."

They were around her now, dragging her down the hallway. They weren't attacking. She would have already been dead had they wanted her to be. She couldn't read their expressions. Just a single read eye, blinking from the sides, complex and spider-like. Their heads were bowed, and they were concentrating on their claws, which they were motioning around in a circle, summoning green orbs of magic as though they were holding unicorn horns.

She flipped over, feeling their magic flow through her body, surrounding her, drowning her in a glow of green. She moved her hooves, clawing at the ground, but they simply slipped. Her stomach dropped as she was hoisted into the air, forced to turn around and face the dozen creatures now completely surrounding her. The room around them was dimming, as though every light was slowly going out, leaving only a purple haze of light glowing around their insectisoid forms.

"R-Rarity..." Her voice had almost given out. Every one of the creatures were manipulating their claws, summoning a powerful magic that was dragging her away with them. She could feel her body going numb, her mind going blank, her eyes rolling into the back of her head.

The world bent, flexing around her as though it was made of paper. Colors flashed and changed. And she—

—suddenly grew more conscious! She could hear them again, chanting, as the world became clear again. She could almost free herself, struggling and flailing her legs again.

A shot rang out, slamming against her ears and sending a shockwave through her body. The hallway became bright again almost instantly, and she felt herself slam into the ground. She looked up at the creatures, now disoriented as they looked around the for source of the shot. One of them was collapsing to the ground.

Another shot, closer this time. Twilight put her hooves over her head, and listened to the creatures' calls become more aggravated. A third shot rang out, and some of the creatures started summoning sparks of green magic: the same they shot at her before.

Twilight seized her opportunity, jumping to her feet and slamming down on her trigger hoof, feeling her gun explode into the creature just in front of her before it could fire its magic. More shots rang out behind her, and Twilight felt a few bullets strike her flank. The suit absorbed the damage, but Twilight still cried out from the impact.

Creature after creature fell, until the hallway was littered with bodies. Twilight didn't stop until she had put a few more rounds in the pile.

"Twilight!"

Twilight turned to see a thoroughly shaken Rarity, still wearing her security vest as tidy as if she had just put it on. She walked right up to Twilight and made a face, as though she was trying not to vomit.

"D-don't... don't ever..."

"Rarity!"

"Don't you ever make me—"

"Rarity!" Twilight launched herself forward and wrapped her hooves around her. She could feel Rarity still shaking under her hooves, but she seemed to calm down a bit.

"You... if..." she took a deep breath as Twilight let go, beaming. Rarity groaned loudly, lifting her hooves into the air in exasperation. "I should have never left that room!"

"Rarity! I wouldn't be alive without you!"

"Then you should never have left the room!"

"Rarity, let's—" She took a deep breath. Both of them were practically hyperventilating. "Let's just calm down."

Twilight turned around to look at the pile of bodies on the floor. She grimaced as she lit her horn, moving them out of the way to the best of her ability.

"What... are those things?!" Rarity looked at the pile that Twilight was magicking down the hallway, grimaced, and turned away, retching.

"Whatever they were, they're dead now," Twilight said. "Hopefully we won't have to deal with many more of these things."

Rarity turned back to her, still looking sick. "W-we?! What do you mean we?!" She waltzed right up to Twilight until they were face to face. "I'm going back to my hiding place! You can stay here and deal with these... things." She waved her hoof in the alien pile that Twilight had just set down inside one of the offices, turning her head in disapproval.

Twilight turned to stop her as Rarity stormed down the hallway. "Rarity, wait—"

"I won't be part of such violence! It's just... uncivil!"

Twilight galloped down the hallway until she was in front of her. "And what exactly are you going to do if they get inside your little office room? Are you going to sit down to tea with them and negotiate a peace treaty?"

"Don't get smart with me!" She stopped and pointed a hoof at Twilight. "Hiding in an office building might not be the best plan, but it's certainly better than wandering right into their nest!"

Twilight grimaced. "This wasn't a nest," she retorted. "These things are all over! For all you know, your little office hideout could be covered in these things by now!"

Rarity looked offended. "You don't know that!"

"And you don't know that they aren't." Twilight put a hoof to her face. "Look. Didn't we just have this conversation back in the office? We can't count on anypony finding us down here! The only ponies we can count on to get us out of here are ourselves." She put her hoof down and walked back past Rarity down the hall. "Now do you want to see your sister again or not?"

Rarity sputtered. "You leave Sweetie Belle out of this!"

"That's what we're doing this for, isn't it?" Twilight asked. "So you can see Sweetie Belle, and I can see the Princess again?"

Rarity's face glowed a shade of red, her mouth hanging open, eyes narrowed. Twilight turned to look at her, watching the gears turn. Slowly, Rarity walked up to Twilight, one step at a time, until they were inches away. She was fuming.

"You," she said. "You had better be damn sure we make it out of here alive."

Twilight just looked back at her. "No promises."

Rarity turned and bared down, letting out a muffled scream in aggravation. "FINE!" she yelled. "Fine! I'll come with you!" She turned and glared back at Twilight. "But I am not going to act the "soldier" for this mission. That's your job." She "hmmphed", throwing her head into the air as she trotted past Twilight. "I'm just tagging along."

Twilight rolled her eyes, and followed Rarity through the complex, and to the next set of stairs.

=========================================================

Twilight peered around the corner, trying to stay out of sight. They had finally gotten to the top of the second staircase, and Twilight was starting to get anxious to get to the elevator Rarity had been talking about. This floor was darker, looking more like a concrete warehouse than an office building. A few pipes stuck out along the ceiling above them, and the area echoed softly around them.

"I can hear them," she whispered. "There are two of them just around the corner. We can take them pretty easily."

"We?!" Rarity made a small stomp with her front hoof. "You're the one with the big scary shotgun on your shoulder!"

Twilight refrained from rolling her eyes. "If we take them on together, they'll go down faster. It's less risky." She peered around the corner again. "This one's pretty simple," she said. "You take the one of the left, I'll take the one on the right."

Rarity stuck her lips out and pouted at Twilight, not saying anything.

"Look, just do it," Twilight said. "Would you rather risk one of them rounding the corner and attacking you?"

Rarity just kept staring. Twilight ignored her. "On three," she said. "One..."

Twilight didn't bother counting all the way to three. Her nerves got the best of her, and her hoof was already on the trigger. She had already run around the corner and slammed on the trigger before either of the creatures knew they were there.

"Rarity! Now!"

She prepared herself in case Rarity didn't make it, half-expecting to fire the second shot. She could see the second creature right next to her, already summoning its green magic.

"Rari—"

Her voice was cut off by a set of shots from around the corner. Round after round pummeled the creature, knocking it back before it collapsed to the ground.

Twilight turned back towards Rarity, who was still fuming. Twilight beamed, satisfied. "See? It's not too bad once you get used to it."

Rarity just scowled and walked past Twilight.

"Oh, come on," Twilight said, following behind her with a smile. "You know you liked it."

Rarity opened a door at the end of the hallway, leading Twilight through a small room to a door on the other side.

"Hang on," Twilight said, turning towards a metal ramp leading down a passage in the back of the room. "There's probably some supplies down here. I'm gonna go take a look."

"And leave me here?" Rarity said,

"You'll be fine," Twilight said with a sigh. "I just need someone to keep watch, in case anything tries to sneak down here with me." Then, seeing Rarity's terrified face, added, "If anything attacks you, just scream out my name."

Twilight wasn't entirely sure this made Rarity feel any better, but it at least shocked her enough that she didn't retort. She walked lightly down the ramp, hearing her hooves clang against the metal each time, until she reached the dark concrete room below.

This was the first time she had been truly alone since—

No, she thought. Don't think about him right now.

She distracted herself by looking around the room. She was in luck! It looked like it used to be some sort of security storage room.

"Let's see here... 12 gauge... where is the 12 gauge?" She looked around at the various boxes sitting around the room, using as little magic as she could to open them. Luckily, most of the wooden crates were already open, revealing so many different kinds of ammunition it made her head spin.

"Banana clips, 22 mm, 357, tranquilizer darts?!" Twilight stared at the sheer variety. After a few minutes of sorting it out, she finally magicked a few boxes of 12 gauge, and some 9 mm for Rarity. She was about to leave when she something else caught her attention.

"Are those... grenades?!" she said out loud.

Twilight walked up to the egg-shaped devices sitting inside one of the crates. It looked like they were already attacked to a long belt, which Twilight levitated into the air so she could get a better look. She detached one of them and brought it up close so she could inspect it, noting the rough tiled texture, and studying the way the pin sat precariously inside.

I wonder how they work.

Before she could investigate any further, though, she was interrupted by a loud scream.

"RARITY!" she shouted, throwing the belt around her shoulder and reattaching the loose grenade. She bolted up the ramp as a second scream shouted out her name.

"I'm coming, Rarity!"

Twilight's eyes blurred as the rush flowed through her, compelling her to run faster. Her hoof was already on the trigger, ready to fire when a second voice struck her ears.

"STOP!"

Twilight leaned back and slid to a halt, feeling all the blood rush to her head. She was starring into the barrel of another 9 mm, sitting on the shoulder of a brown earth pony. Both his eyes were set on Twilight, and beneath him, his hooves dug into the body of Rarity, pinning her to the ground.

A moment passed where they just looked at each other. Then the guard pony spoke.

"Are you working with her?" He gestured at Rarity with his head.

"We're together, yes," Twilight said, trying to work out why this was a problem.

The guard looked at her, a gleam of triumph in his eyes. "I've been looking forward to this," he said. "I knew she couldn't have been working alone."

Twilight's face stayed blank. "Uh, yeah. This place is kind of dangerous to walk around alone," she said. "Two guns are better than one, you could say."

"Don't play smart with me," he said. "What exactly are you two planning? Why did you set this up?"

Now Twilight cocked her eyes. "Set... what?" She looked down at Rarity, watching a few beads of sweat run down the side of her head. "Rarity, wha—"

"You leave her out of this!" the guard yelled. "You look at me, not at her! Tell me. What are you planning? Why did you sabotage that experiment?"

Twilight gasped now. "Sabotage?! What are you—"

"Don't play stupid," he said. "You think I don't know? Hazardous Environment Suit, SPAS-12 shotgun, grenades." He gave her a look. "You were prepared for this," he said. "And as if there was any doubt, I happen to find you working with her!" He dug his hoof into Rarity's coat, making her whimper beneath him.

"What?!" Twilight said. "She's just an office worker!"

"Ooooh! Just an office worker!" he scoffed. "You tell me. Is she just an office worker?"

Twilight felt her body run cold, looking down at Rarity, who was now breathing very fast.

"What's going on, Rarity?"

The guard cocked his head, his expression dimming. "Oh?" he said. "You mean you don't know?" He looked down at Rarity. "You've been working with this grunt-of-a-scientist, and you never told her your master plan?"

"I DON'T HAVE A PLAN!" Rarity shouted.

The guard leaned down, putting his face right up against hers. "That's not what the records show," he said.

"I had no choice!"

"Rarity! What is going on?!" Twilight said.

The guard stood up as Rarity turned her head, shutting her eyes tight. "This little office worker went and sabotaged the whole thing!" he said. "Went and messed up a bunch of files related to the experiment." He brought his head back down to hers. "And then," he shook his head, taking a deep breath, "she uploaded a virus, crashing the whole system right before it happened."

Twilight looked down at Rarity, looking for some sign. She could hear Rarity whimpering beneath the guard, even so much as sobbing.

"Why did you do it?" he whispered. "What were you planning?"

"I t-t-told you," she sobbed. "I d-d-didn't want—"

"Leave her alone," Twilight said.

The guard looked up. "Why? So you can pick up where you left off?" He dug his hoof in even deeper. "This ends now!"

Twilight took a deep breath and calmed down. "What do you want with us?"

The guard just looked at her. "I want you to turn yourselves in," he said. "Put an end to all this. The Equesrtian military is on its way. Tell them everything you know, and turn yourselves in." He lightened his grip. "If you're lucky, they'll let you live."

Twilight scowled. "I'm not turning myself in for something I didn't do."

The guard lost his temper. "You have no argument!" he yelled. "You were at ground zero! Everypony knows it! Now turn yourself in, or I'll end this here and now!"

Twilight leaned forward onto her front hoof. "We're trying to get out of here! Just like you!" she lowered her voice and almost whispered. "Now let her go, or I'll make you let her go."

The guard scoffed. "And what are you gonna do, Twilight Sparkle?!" he said. "You gonna shoot me?"

A shot rang out, making Twilight's ears bleed as it echoed around the room. She had not meant to fire, but she had leaned forward in anger too far.

"Y-y-y-y-you... y-you shot a guard!" Rarity trembled on the ground, looking at the heap on the ground next to her. "You just... shot an actual pony!"

Even Twilight was close to tears as she looked at the body on the ground. "I didn't mean—" She took a deep breath, shaking violently.

"Y-y-y-you just... just..."

"I know!" Twilight said, leaning forward and putting her hooves to her ears. "Don't say it!" She closed her eyes tight, feeling moisture slide down her cheeks. She fought against the thought. It had been blasted so firmly into her mind.

"T-T-Twilight—"

Twilight breathed deep, keeping her eyes closed as she wept into her hooves. She couldn't speak against the lump in her throat.

"T-Twilight—"

"I... c-can't..." she squeaked.

"Twilight, it's... just... calm down."

Twilight couldn't see it, but Rarity's face was just as drenched as Twilight's. Twilight could feel Rarity's hoof against her face, and knew she had gotten off the floor to stand next to her.

"H-how do I c-calm down?!"

"I," Rarity swallowed hard. "don't know. Just... we should get out of here."

Twilight wanted to sit there on the ground, crying into her hooves for hours, but Rarity had a point. They had to keep moving, and Twilight picked herself up against her own will. Her whole body ached from the pain of killing another pony. "We should h-h-hide the body," she said, whispering the last words. She turned her head away from the body, wishing she didn't need to think about it. Rarity also fought back tears, quivering visibly.

"T-together?" Twilight said, reaching out with her magic with her eyes averted.

As a response, Tilight heard Rarity's own magic start up, and sensed it next to her own. Rarity let out a small scream of disgust as she felt it rise into the air, its limbs swinging freely. Twilight forced the image of a floating corpse out of her mind.

"We'll hide it behind some boxes down here. Hopefully it will look like one of the creatures killed him."

Rarity's face was still mortified. "Oh, believe me, Twilight. Nobody is going to look at this thing long enough to see it has bullet holes in it."

They worked their way down the ramp until they were amongst the crates.

"You know," Twilight thought out loud, "this wouldn't be a problem if the aliens had shotguns." She elaborated upon seeing Rarity's face. "You know, because everyone would just assume the aliens shot him." Rarity stood there as Twilight took the corpse and dropped it hastily behind one of the crates, making a face as though she was dropping a used tissue.

"Let's just not do this again," Rarity said. "I'd like to get out of here without being charged with murder in the royal courts."

Twilight led Rarity back up the ramp. "Speaking of crimes," she started, giving Rarity a knowing look.

Rarity looked at Twilight curiously before she caught on to Twilight's implications. She didn't bother to wait for Twilight to clarify. She simply threw her head into the air and walked past Twilight. "I'm simply not ready to talk about it yet," she said.

Twilight closed her eyes and trotted after her. "You sabotaged the entire experiment?!"

"I said I'm not ready to talk about it!" Rarity repeated. "Now we have an elevator to reach—"

Twilight galloped in front of her before she could walk any further. "We're talking about this," she said. "Now!" She narrowed her eyes and leaned forward, daring Rarity to go around her.

Rarity cocked her eye. "There really isn't much to talk about, dear," she said. "What's done is done. And besides! It's not like I had a choice."

"Didn't have a choice?! What did they do? Hold a gun to your head?"

"I SAID," Rarity put a hoof to her forehead, closing her eyes and trying to calm down. "Look," she finally said. "I don't like to talk about it, okay? It's a... difficult topic for me."

Twilight just stared at her. "I can imagine."

The two of them stood there in the dark room, Rarity looking at the ground and taking deep breaths, Twilight staring straight ahead at her. A soft wind could be heard through the pipes, and an occasional drop of water landed from a leak in the ceiling. The wait seemed to take forever.

"Fine," Rarity said. "Fine, I'll tell you."

She walked around the room and finally collapsed onto the ground, burying her head in her hooves. When she looked back up, she started:

"You have to understand, Twilight. Our records have never exactly been "clean". My parents kept me out of most of it, but when I finally got here, they couldn't hide me from it anymore. I had access to all the background reports of everyone who ever worked for or was associated with the company."

"You're saying your parents were criminals?" Twilight asked, not sure how much of this was true.

Rarity grimaced. "It's not like they were just common thieves or anymore," she said. "They... well, they just weren't fond of the system, that's all. They found ways of living that weren't as... "conventional" as most. They never liked my idea of finding work to pay for my life. They said it was a waste of time. They said I could have all sorts of freedom I didn't have if I would just learn the system like they did."

"System?" Twilight cocked an eye.

"Yes, darling. The government. They knew how to get around things. The idea was to have Equestria take care of them, instead of having to work."

The idea dawned on Twilight. "You mean they committed fraud," she said bluntly.

Rarity grimaced. "They wouldn't have put it quite that way," she said slowly. "But yes, that was the idea." She sighed as she continued.

"My sister, Sweetie Belle, was also involved. Not directly, of course, but she was part of the paperwork. The entire setup was complicated, and I didn't look into it enough to know what everything meant. That would require a pretty thorough attorney to work all of that out. But, I did read enough to come to the conclusion that, if the contracts were manipulated they could be made to have some rather substantial consequences."

"Like what?" Twilight asked.

Rarity took a deep breath. "Like the disownership of my sister," she said softly. "Like the banishment of my family, and my own exile." She closed her eyes. "I had no way to undo what my parents had setup. I'm not entire sure they were aware of these implications."

"Anyway," she continued, "I hid this away as best I could, as you can imagine. I didn't have much trouble keeping it quiet until—" She stopped, taking another deep breath.

"I dont know who he was, or where he came from," she said, shaking her head. "He didn't tell me his name. All he did was give me a roll of parchment with instructions on it, and told me if I didn't follow them, I would never see my family again. He showed me a document after that, which I recognized as one of the forms my parents had signed fraudulently. He didn't have to explain anything for me to understand."

Rarity looked up, a few tears threatening to crest over her eyelids. "I didn't have a choice, Twilight! It was either this facility, or my family."

Twilight walked right up to Rarity, who backed up against one of the walls, afraid of what Twilight might do. Twilight leaned back so Rarity knew she wasn't any threat, and reached a hoof out to help Rarity up.

"Tell me everything he had you do," she said.

=========================================================

Thankfully, the last staircase wasn't difficult to find. There was a small area that Rarity said used to lead to a breakroom, but it was sealed off a few years ago. Rarity simply bypassed this by going through a high security door on the side.

Unfortunately, Rarity didn't remember much about what she had done with the computer. Technology had never been one of her strong points. She had mostly been hired to keep track of spreadsheets, and other basic functions. However, she did remember a few crucial steps, such as the removal of any backup files concerning information about the experiment, as well as disabling all of the fail-safe measures around the equipment. As it turns out, she did not directly upload the virus. She had merely taken down the firewall, which allowed someone from the outside to upload it to the company servers.

"What I'm interested in is who this business pony is," Twilight said as they walked up the stairs. "From the way you describe him, he sounds a lot like somepony I've seen around here."

"Again, he didn't tell me his name," Rarity said. "And he kind of talked funny, as if he had a speech impediment."

"You think he's with the Equestrian government?" Twilight asked, reaching the top of the stairs. "If I didn't know any better, I'd say he's—"

She stopped. In front of her was a large hallway expanse, once again picking up the tiled floor and brick walls from earlier. At the end of it was an elevator shaft, but this wasn't what had caught her attention. To her right, just before the red-trimmed entrance to the hallway, was a door—and through the window was pony, staring straight at her: a pony wearing a business suit.

"R-Rarity," she said. "I think you'd better see this," she said.

Twilight looked back at the pony on the other side of the glass, who gave her a small nod... and smiled! As he did so, he turned and walked away from view.

"What is it, dear?" Rarity said, looking off in Twilight's direction. "Did you see another security pony?"

Twilight walked right up the door, peering closely through the window, trying to see around.

"Can you open this door?" she asked Rarity.

Rarity lit her horn and opened the door, revealing a long hallway that didn't have any path to the right.

"Where did he go?" Twilight asked, walking through the door, trying to find some secret entrance in the wall that the pony could have escaped through.

"Where did who go?" Rarity asked. "Twilight," she said, when Twilight didn't answer, "are you all right?"

Twilight just starred at the wall, as if it would suddenly open to reveal some secret lair that the business pony always hid inside.

"I..." she turned, "let's just get out of here," she finished.

Rarity nodded. "I highly agree!" she said. "I'm getting mighty tired of these offices! The elevator should be just down here."

"Do you think what he said was true?" Twilight asked. "About the military coming here?"

Rarity shook her head. "We'll know before we get out of here," she said. "Honestly, I'm hoping so. I am not looking forward to walking all the way to Ponyville."

Twilight walked to the end of the hallway with Rarity, looking through a few of the windows around her, and observing a short walkway overhead.

"Well!" Rarity exclaimed. "Isn't this interesting!" She gestured at the elevator shaft, completely devoid of an elevator—or doors—or a working button.

"Yeah, I had to deal with this before," Twilight said. "It wasn't exactly pleasant." She backed down the hallway with Rarity. "Just be glad you have your entire horn," she said, "and that you don't have to carry anything except yourself."

"What are you suggesting, Twilight? That we simply levitate ourselves to the top?"

Twilight gave her a look that told her that's exactly what she intended.

"I'm not sure I have that kind of power. I can only levitate small items."

Twilight stuck a hoof out at Rarity. "That's why we work together!" she said triumphantly. "I read about this back in Canterlot. Unicorns can combine their powers and magnify them! If we tried to use levitation spells on ourselves or on each other alone, we'd both be fighting an uphill battle."

She turned towards the elevator, a small spark igniting on her horn. "But! If we both focus our magic on both of us, then the magic will combine, and make it much easier!"

Rarity looked confused. "Have you... done this?" she asked.

"I wrote a thesis on it back in Canterlot," she said. This didn't seem to comfort Rarity much. "Just try levitating both of us," she said. "I'll do the rest."

Twilight lit her horn and grimaced as she floated a cloud of magic around herself and Rarity. Rarity closed her eyes and took a deep breath, floating her own cloud forward. The pink cloud of Twilight's met up with the white cloud of Rarity's, and their tint began to change.

"Think levitation!" Twilight said, pushing against their bodies with her magic. She saw Rarity do the same, and suddenly the cloud lit up a magnificent cyan! The glow lit up the entire hallway, and without much of a thought, both ponies felt their hooves leave the ground.

Rarity let out a surprised scream, more like a laugh than anything. "Twilight! We're flying!"

"Try to get to the elevator," she said. "We need to fit through the doorway."

What followed was one of the most awkward things Twilight had ever done. The magic did not like fighting itself. Every time Rarity tried to go somewhere Twilight didn't expect, the magic lost some of its power, and they both nearly fell more than once. It was like a running a six-legged race. Every time they disagreed about where their center hooves should go, the ropes threatened to trip them.

"Maybe if you just—"
"We need to go this way—"
"—move your flank over there—"
"—if you could back up a bit more—"
"—you're too far to the right—"
"—hang on! You're slipping!"

It seemed to go on forever, but they finally floated themselves inside the elevator shaft. They both looked up, seeing the elevator stuck at the top.

"On the count of three," Twilight said. "One—"

"Oh, and Twilight?" Rarity interrupted, "Do actually count to three this time."

Twilight blushed, but continued to concentrate on the orb of magic. "On the count of three. One..."

She grimaced from the light tinge of pain against her horn.

"... Two..."

She looked up at Rarity, who nodded.

"THREE!"

Forcing a bit more magic into their spells, they felt their bodies quickly ascend the shaft. The cyan cloud became brighter, drowning the entire shaft in a beautiful haze of sparkles and mist. The elevator came much sooner than they had expected, and both of them lowered their magic until they landed, side-by-side, on top of it. The both looked at each other as the magic wore off, looking down at a small opening in the top of the elevator where a vent used to be. Some other ponies must have crawled out through the top at some point.

"Let's do this," Twilight said.

She dropped down into the elevator, helping Rarity down with her, and faced the elevator doors, ready for her next great adventure.

We've Got Horstiles

View Online

It was nearly pitch black inside the elevator. All power had been cut off, and it took a while for Twilight's eyes to adjust and get her bearings. Her ears perked up, and she could hear a soft hum of machinery through the doors.

"Where exactly did this elevator go?" Twilight asked.

She couldn't see Rarity, but she could hear her making a racket as she moved around, running into some of the walls of the elevator before finally grabbing onto Twilight for balance.

"I'm... urgh! Not entirely sure." Twilight grunted as she felt the weight of Rarity's hooves on her back, allowing Rarity to use her for support.

"I wish I could see," Rarity added.

Twilight wished she had some kind of a flashlight—and then realized she did have a flashlight! She remembered them mentioning one built right into the suit during her training course. She reached back, trying to remember where the switch was.

"AH!" Rarity shouted as Twilight finally clicked something on one of the legs of the suit. "Point that thing somewhere else!"

Twilight turned, realizing the light had been pointed right into Rarity's face. "Sorry." She continued to turn, finding a place on the shiny walls where there wouldn't be any blinding glare. They both blinked and cringed for a minute or two until their eyes adjusted.

"You could have turned that thing on before we jumped in here," Rarity said. "But no matter. It looks like we're sealed inside. I wouldn't expect any of the buttons to work."

Twilight stepped up to the chrome-colored doors, careful not to point the light directly at them. "We'll just have to force them open, then," she said, turning to Rarity. She reached back and unsheathed her crowbar, once again pleased at how useful such a simple piece of metal could be.

"Twilight, dear, you are quite useful sometimes," Rarity said. She watched as Twilight turned towards the doors and jammed the bar through the small opening between them before pivoting it with her hoof. Rarity lit her horn upon seeing Twilight's struggle, and added some extra pressure. A tiny sliver of light emerged from between the doors, and as the opening grew to an inch or two, the crowbar simply slipped and fell to the ground.

"Okay," Twilight said, holstering the crowbar, "We should be be able to push them open the rest of the way."

She peered through the opening, blinking against the light. The noise was much louder now, coming from ventilation ducts clearly visible against the upper walls. A bright concrete wall shimmered before her.

"Can you see anything?" Rarity asked.

Twilight tried to make out more of the surroundings, but couldn't manage to peer around enough to make out what was to the left or right. "It doesn't sound like we're outside," she said. "Sounds like we're in some kind of busy warehouse or something. It's really bright." She thought back to her tram ride, and considered how cool it would be if they walked out into a room with a giant missile under construction. She felt a pang of guilt as she remembered how much Spike would have loved that, and put a hoof up to her stomach, pulling back from the door.

"Well, I must admit," Rarity chimed in, "I really liked your technique back in the elevator shaft. Perhaps it would work on the doors."

Twilight was surprised at first, but realized that Rarity had a good point. "On the count of three?" she said.

Rarity just smiled at her. "Why not one?" She lit her horn, pressing lightly against both doors with her own magic. Twilight just rolled her eyes, and met Rarity's magic with her own. They both closed their eyes as the cyan light bounced off the metal walls and blinded them. They could feel the doors slipping easily to the side, and heard the sounds of the vents above magnified, as well as the additional sound of some machinery in the distance. They lowered their magic as they felt the doors finish retreating and put their hooves up to their eyes, looking out at last into the bright concrete expanse before them.

"Well, I was right. We're definitely not outside," Twilight said, her eyes finally adjusting as she looked around. "Hopefully we're at least close."

They glanced to the left and saw a wall. "Looks like there's just one way to go," Twilight said. They headed off to the right, looking around at the large bright passage, listening to the busy sounds around them. There was a window on the wall to their right, which Twilight assumed was some kind of security room. There was a metal door next to the window, but it was clearly locked. She peered through the window at some of the control panels, noting one of the buttons on it that said "Silo Access".

"Silo?" Rarity asked, looking at a barn-sized brown metal door on the wall opposite. "You don't suppose they process hay in this facility, do you?"

Twilight put a hoof to her face, forgetting that Rarity was from a small rural town. "It probably means it's a missile silo," she said. "Silos make great places to store equipment, and test out engines before they're used in practice."

Rarity stared at the door. "Rocket engines," she pondered. "Remind me never to go in there," she said, clearly not intent on getting her eyebrows singed.

The continued down the hallway, listening to the hum of the machinery. It almost sounded like conveyor belts, or maybe something rolling, like a cart.

"What—ha!" Rarity shouted. "Look at this!" She trotted over to the wall next to the massive silo door, and pointed to a wall-mounted devices that Twilight recognized from her training. It was nothing more than an intricate yellow box with "HEV" written on the front, and a few pipes mounted to it, but Twilight knew that these would come in handy if there were more of them.

"Do you think it's charged?" Twilight asked stupidly, remember a second later that the device would be glowing red if it wasn't.

"I really have no idea," Rarity said. "It's definitely worth trying, though."

Twilight reached a hoof up and ran it along the surface. She really wished she had her notes with her now. She could remember how all the other scientists looked at her strange as she levitated a sheet of parchment and quill in front of her as she entered the training course, but that was now sitting back in her dormitory, probably getting chewed on by a headcrab by now.

"I think the connection is in the lower corner here somewhere." She pressed her hoof against several places, remembering how she had pressed it into some kind of groove during the training course.

"Uh, Twilight," Rarity said, pointing a hoof to the other side of the device. "It says "place hoof here"."

Twilight stared at the small words Rarity was pointing at and felt her face go very red.

"I..." she meekly placed her hoof where Rarity was point. "... er... thanks." She turned away so she didn't have to look Rarity in the eye.

The machine churned to life as she pressed her hoof in, and she felt a warm surge course through the suit. She looked down at her foreleg and watched a small bar on the suit fill up, and waited until the machine turned red and stopped.

"What?" Rarity said. "What's wrong with it? Why did it stop?"

"It always does that," Twilight explained. "The guide told me these things only hold a portion of what the suit can." Twilight watched Rarity's expression and added "I know. It doesn't make any sense to me either."

"So, what exactly does charging your suit do?" Rarity asked. "Are there special features you can now use? Does it magnify your magic?"

"I think it just adds some extra protection or something," she said. "I'm able to use my flashlight and stuff without charging it, so I really don't think it does much more than add a little extra cushion." She pressed her hoof against the surface of her suit in various places to see if it felt any different. "I guess we'll find out the next time you fire your gun into me," she joked.

Rarity scowled, but didn't say anything.

"Come on," Twilight said, "there have to be some stairs or something that will take us outside."

Now that Rarity was outside her known territory, Twilight took over as the lead, following the only path available to them. They took note of a large fire door situated along the central path, which was thankfully open, as well as the emergency button behind glass set into the wall, which Twilight assumed would close the door.

"Um, Twilight?" Rarity said, pointing a hoof towards the end of the hallway, "I don't think they want us to go this way."

Twilight saw what Rarity meant as she walked up to the device set into the wall near her hooves. It looked like some kind of large camera, or a set of vision goggles, with a single giant lens on the front. The major difference, however, is that there was a clearly visible green dot on the wall opposite.

"A laser?" Twilight asked, tempted to move her hoof in front of the lens, but managed to hold back just in case. "It looks like some kind of security device, but why would they only set it at hoof level? Couldn't anypony just step right over it?"

Rarity pouted. "I really don't like the idea of being scanned by lasers. I wish there was a way to actually see them."

Twilight smirked, thinking back to her lessons in Canterlot. "Well, that's easy enough," she said. "You just create a fog, like this." She lit her horn, thankful that creating fog was a relatively simple spell. She still grimaced at the headache it caused, but it wasn't so bad that she couldn't concentrate.

"Oh, wow! That's quite a thick stretch of light!" Rarity gaped at the clearly visible laser line stretch across the hallway at their feet. "What do you think it does?"

Twilight examined the strange camera device on the wall and shook her head. "There's no way to know for sure, but if I had to guess, I'd say it's either a tracking device, or some kind of explosive." Both of them took a few steps back at these words. "Somehow, I doubt the latter. I don't think this facility would actually intend on harming its employees."

"But what about those creatures?" Rarity asked. "Would you not put it past one of the scientists to rig this place with traps to protected themselves against those... things?"

Twilight tried not to think about the massive storage facility with crate after crate of ammunition. Could one of those boxes have laser trip mines in it?!

"At any rate, just step over it carefully. I'll keep this place lit up with fog just in case."

Twilight histrionically stepped over the laser, making of a point of keeping as much distance between her body and the laser as possible. Rarity was almost beside herself in nervousness as she attempted to mimic Twilight, letting out small whimpers as she did so.

"Oh, great," Twilight said, looking around the corner. She had already filled the next stretch with fog, and it didn't look pretty. "You're gonna love this, Rarity."

Rarity rounded corner as it bent off to the right, and peered down the remainder of the hallway, which led into a large, cluttered storage room. Aside from storage crates littering the area, there were also a number of boxes marked as being volatile and explosive. And as if this wasn't bad enough, Twilight saw in the distance what must have been security turrets similar to the Gatling gun back in the office buildings, except that these were mounted on tripods.

"H-how exactly are we supposed to get past these lasers?!" Rarity asked, looking at the large array of criss-crossing red beams blocking their path into the room. Twilight had a feeling she knew exactly what these lasers would do.

"Very, very carefully," she said. "I wish there was some way to turn them off. The only other way we can be completely safe is if we somehow disable those turrets back there."

Rarity nearly fainted when Twilight pointed out the tripod guns in the back of the room. "There has to be another way."

Twilight spent a few seconds studying the array of lasers, trying to work out exactly how she would worm her way through them. She counted five of them, which were all unfortunately crisscrossing in all three directions at once, so you always had to be looking at all five of them as you traversed it.

"Yeah, I'm not sure I want to risk this," Twilight agreed. "These don't look like they have any kind of explosives attached to them. That would be like the trip mine back there." She indicated the camera device mounted to the wall behind them. "Our best bet would be to disable those turrets back there, but I don't have access to any of the magic cables from back here!"

Rarity gave her a look. "Aren't you the one that goes around shooting things? Why don't you just use your big fat gun?"

Twilight rolled her eyes at Rarity's sarcasm. "Ha. Ha," she responded.. "It's not that simple. It's not like I can just shoot them, or throw my crowbar at them, or toss a grena—"

She stopped mid-sentence. She had imagined each scenario as she said it, and obviously throwing a crowbar would have been completely ridiculous, and shooting the turret at such a great distance would be impractical. The bullets would hardly do anything.

A grenade, on the other hand, would do significant damage! It had to be worth a shot.

"You might want to stand back around that corner, Rarity. I'm going to try something." Twilight lit her horn and snapped one of the grenades off her harness. Rarity squeaked and jumped, landing on her stomach on the ground with her hooves over her ears.

"It's—" Twilight started to say it's not that bad, but realized she was about to pull the pin on a miniature bomb hovering a few inches away from her face. Suddenly Rarity's reaction was quite understandable.

I'll play this safe she thought. I won't pull the pin until I've placed it next to the turret.

This was, of course, easier said than done. The crisscrossing lasers wouldn't exactly ignore something as small as a grenade. She had to weave it through just the right path to get it into the room. Even then, she didn't have a very good view of the room, and had difficulty judging how far the grenade was from the turret at such a long distance.

She of course had thought about using her magic directly on the turret, but no matter what she came up with—whether turning it in a different direction, or physically moving it somewhere else—there was simply no way to make it not fire. It needed to be destroyed if they didn't want it raining bullets in some direction.

Twilight retreated back where Rarity was now crouching, and slowly got into the same position. She reached out with her magic to make sure she could feel the pin, and hesitated. She suddenly became very aware of exactly how much could go wrong. Here she was, sitting right next to a laser trip mine, just around the corner from a room full of volatile materials, on the other side of detection lasers which could set off an automatic turret that would fire straight into the room of explosives. She tried hard not to think of everything that might go wrong, reaching out with her magic to be sure she knew exactly where everything was.

Just before she pulled the pin, she found herself instinctively wrapping her hoof around Rarity and pulling her close. She felt Rarity painfully latch onto her, sensing the pin being pulled. Twilight closed her eyes tight and braced herself.

The result was surprisingly anticlimactic. A loud pop went off in the other room, like a firecracker, followed by the whine of injured electronics. A few sparks could be heard, and then—

"Is that it?" Twilight asked, still clinging on to a now-shaking Rarity. "I would have expected—" What did she expect? A massive domino effect? The whole hallway to cave in?

Rarity didn't say anything at all. She was covering her ears so tightly that Twilight wasn't even sure she had heard the explosion. Twilight tapped her on the back, causing her to stir.

"Hey," Twilight said, "It's safe."

Rarity slowly pulled her hooves away from her ears, looking up at Twilight with large, quivering pupils. "Are we safe?" she asked meekly.

Twilight caught sight of the laser trip mine a few feet behind Rarity. "About as safe as we're gonna get," she peered around the corner, "for now." From what she could see, the turret was no where in sight. Everything else seemed to still be there, including the volatile crates, but the real threat was now gone.

She reached behind her and pulled out her crowbar, slowly poking it forward until it touched one of the lasers. There was an audible beep of recognition, but nothing happened. Nothing exploded, or melted, or shot at them. The ceiling didn't cave in, there were no spikes or heavy boulders that were unleashed, and the only difference she could see is that the laser no longer reached the other side of the wall.

"It looks like that did it," she said. She glanced back and watched Rarity continue to tremble on the floor, peering up at her like a puppy.

"You can get up now, you know," she added.

Rarity looked around a few times, starting to blush. Twilight turned back towards the lasers as Rarity climbed to her hooves. Taking a deep breath, Twilight leaned her head down and walked through the lasers.

She was met with a cacophony of beeps and chirps as each of the lasers in turn "detected" her, but nothing else happened.

"Okay, come on through," she said back to Rarity.

Rarity just starred at Twilight on the other side. "Just... walk through?" she asked. Twilight nodded, and watched as Rarity closed her eyes and stuck a hoof out, as if testing the waters of a pool. She pulled her head back, grimaced, and then charged through the lasers as a slow gallop. Twilight chuckled for a moment, just before Rarity charged right into her, knocking her over onto the floor.

"AH! Rarity!" she said as Rarity toppled on top of her. "Get off me!" She reached her hooves beneath her and forced the other mare off of her before getting back on her hooves. "Just... relax, okay?"

Twilight looked around. Now that they were actually inside the room, she had a much better idea of how things were laid out. Most of the bright room was filled boxes which, as it turns out, were mostly not filled with explosives. Only one or two were marked as being volatile. There was also a small chain-link fence in the middle, which seemed to be randomly placed. It was built right into the infrastructure, so it must have had an architectural purpose at some point.

However, the thing that really caught her eye now was the body in the corner. Rarity saw it too. Neither of them could take their eyes off it. Clearly, a pony had been unfortunate enough to encounter a few headcrabs, but that was not what really struck Twilight.

She walked up, examining the peculiar outfit the pony was wearing. He was blue, with a dark blue mane, but both of them were barely visible beneath its helmet and mask. The rest of him was covered in what Twilight could only describe as "camouflage". Around its torso was a green vest with a green pack on its back. Even more unusual, it was wearing white-on-black camouflage on the bottom. Clearly this pony was equipped far beyond any normal security pony.

However, even the pony itself wasn't what truly caught their eye. Sitting on the ground next to it was something shimmering: a chrome engineering marvel. Rarity would have called it a "big gun", but Twilight knew this was so much more. This was a military-grade sub-machinegun: something Black Mesa would never have had lying around. This was a weapon the pony had brought in from the outside.

"They're here!" Twilight said, turning to Rarity. "The military! They've come!" She jumped up and started bouncing around the room. "They've actually come to rescue us!"

Rarity simply gawked at her, then back at the pony, then back at her. "You really think so?!" She looked back at the pony and stuck her lip out. "He doesn't exactly look like he's doing too well. Do you think they're still here?"

And as if on cue, Twilight heard an announcement system chime in: the same announcement system she had heard back in her Anomalous Materials lab, just before she rode the elevator to the lower levels.

"All. Military. Personnel. Extreme. Force. On. Foreign. Contamination."

Twilight looked back at Rarity. "I'd say that sounds like they're still here," she said. "Come on! We've gotta be close! They're probably all waiting for us on the surface!"

She was about to run off when she caught herself and trotted back to the body. "I guess I may as well get an upgrade," she said to herself, almost laughing from relief. "Not that I'll need it."

She lit her horn, and traded out her shotgun for the submachine gun, amazed at how the suit so swiftly and easily adapted to the new handle. She aimed it at the wall in front of her and tested out the trigger. All she heard was a click.

"Hang on," she said, opening the pony's pack. "He has to have left some ammunition in here." She fished around until she found a few banana clips, and stashed them into the ammo holster on her suit. "That ought to be more than enough to get us out of here," she said. "The military has probably cleaned out most of the creatures by now."

Rarity got up and shook out her mane. "Well! I will certainly be glad to get out of these awful clothes," she said. "These things are far from the latest fashion." She tapped some of the material with her hoof. "They have inspired me to design a new outfit for these security ponies! They most certainly need it."

"Yeah," Twilight said. "All three that are left." She rolled her eyes.

=========================================================

Aside from the explosive crates, there wasn't much else in the room to look at. Not that Twilight or Rarity cared. Both of them were mostly concerned with a way out, which Twilight quickly found towards the back of the room.

"Is this whole place going to be like this?" Rarity asked. She was pointing her hoof at the fire door they were passing through, as well as another laser tripmine around the corner. The hallway jogged to the left before continuing straight, and from the looks of it, somepony must not have wanted anything from getting through.

"Just be careful," Twilight said. "You can jump over it if you're nervous. It's not even at knee-height."

"But..." Rarity peered around the other corner, seeing something around the other bend. "But what about the second one?"

"Secon—" Twilight stopped and looked around the corner with Rarity. The first laser was in the bend, and was easy enough to jump over. The second one was just after the hallway straightened out, and was barely visible from where they were standing. It was *much* too high to jump over.

"We'll look at it closer when we get there," Twilight said. She walked up to the first laser and came up with an idea. She lit her horn and wrapped her magic around the laser, like a shimmering pink tube. She stepped back, horn still lit, and admired her work.

"There! Why didn't I think of this before?" She turned back to Rarity. "I've solidified my magic, so you can't touch the laser. The worst you can do is bang your knee into the magic."

Rarity didn't entirely look convinced. "You're sure it's solid?" She reached her hoof out tentatively, still a foot away from where Twilight had cast the spell.

"It's all right, Rarity. I've completely—"

Twilight covered her ears. The whole room quivered with the sound of electrical current. "WHAT THE H—" She could barely hear herself think. Twilight looked up, seeing Rarity no long beside her, and turned her head frantically to look for her. She finally spotted her on the other side of the tripmine laser. She had tripped right over Twilight's magic, and was stumbling back to her hooves.

"EVERY PONY FOR THEMSELF!" she cried out frantically, jumping around the L-Bend of the hallway. Twilight saw her turn to run down the hallway, and blasted up a barrier of magic to stop her before she ran right through the second laser. Rarity slammed right into it, making an uncomfortable crunch. Her eyes derped for a moment before she collapsed to the ground.

Twilight turned in the direction of the sound and saw, just in front of her, a headcrab, where there had been absolutely nothing just moments before. She instinctively got out her crowbar.

"Where did you come from?" she asked, sneaking up behind it and whacking it like a golf ball. "You weren't here just a mi—"

She covered her ears again as another blast came, this time just behind her. She turned just in time to see... what? A green glowing ball? A miniature electrical storm? A burst of unicorn magic? Whatever it was, she didn't have much time ot think. No sooner had the ball faded than two more headcrabs stood in its place.

"What is going on?" she said quietly to herself. "It's almost as if—"

She flinched as a third storm appeared to her right. "DAH! WHAT THE HAY?!" This one had left four headcrabs behind, all piled on top of one another as if someone had simply dumped them out of a box. The first two headcrabs had turned and were crawling in her direction.

Luckily the four new headcrabs were on the other side of the fence, so she had plenty of time to get rid of the two in front of her. She ran up and kicked the first one into the wall, stunning it so she could spear it with her crowbar. The second one she simply stepped on until she heard a disgusting and satisfying crunch. She brought her hoof up and looked at the stains, grimaces at the mess.

"Eh... worth it," she thought out loud.

The other four headcrabs were flipped onto their feet, getting situated. Twilight decided to finish them off before they even stood a chance. Her hoof was already on the trigger.

"AH! NOT AGAIN!"

Her hooves went over her head as another storm surged on the other end of the room, followed by another one in the far corner. "What is—" She stopped as she saw the sheer number of headcrabs starting to pour in. There must have been at least seven in each of those last drops.

Without thinking, she slammed her hoof to the ground, feeling the trigger depress. She almost tripped right onto her face. After being so used to the enormous kick from the shotgun, the submachinegun didn't give nearly as much compensating force. What was more, the repetition of each bullet being fired made her head spin and her jaw ache from being jerked around. It made it much more difficult to aim, and more than once she had to stop and readjust.

Twilight turned as another storm appeared behind her, followed by another one just in front, and a third in the corner. She jerked around in circles, panicking, unsure which group to attack first. A few of the headcrabs were already leaping at her, landing on her back and sides. Instinctively she rolled onto her back, and continued to roll along the floor, putting her hooves up and trying not to think about what she was rolling into.

She stood up, looking around quickly and recognizing the fire door. She was in the hallway, and could escape by running down, but there was still no way to get Rarity to safety unless—

"The fire door!" she yelled. "That's it!"

It didn't take long for her to find the glass with the button on the other side. She didn't even bother using her crowbar to break it, and simply slammed her hoof straight through to the button. The suit helped, as did the incredible adrenaline rush. She quickly galloped through the door, holding her head down to protect her ears from the blaring siren. A few lights were rotating as well, signalling the door which was slowly descending from the ceiling.

Twilight turned to see the group of headcrabs turning the leap at her through the door.

"No! Not you!" she yelled. She slammed her hoof down, half-expecting the kickback, and felt her teeth clatter once again as the gun riddled the room with bullets. She heard a click and lifted her hoof. She swore—actually swore—and turned to her right at Rarity, who was working on becoming conscious again.

"Rarity!" she yelled. "We need to get out of here!" She looked at the door again, which was halfway closed. A few of the nearest crabs were dead. "Here. Crawl under this with me!"

She lept over the first laser, nearly running right into Rarity. "Here," she said, helping Rarity off the ground, "like this."

"Twilight, wha—" Rarity was still getting up, trying to get her bearings.

"Under! Under!" Twilight got down on her belly and crawled hoof-over-hoof under the second laser. She heard the door slam shut, followed by the sirens stopping, but she knew there were already headcrabs on the other side.

"Twilight, I—"

"NO TIME!" Twilight yelled, crawling faster. She looked over her shoulder, seeing the laser a few feet away, and slowly got to her hooves. "You have to—"

"AH! Twilight!" Rarity had leaped out of the way as one of the headcrabs jumped at her. Twilight held her breath, half-expecting one of them to crawl right into the first laser.

"Rarity!" Twilight yelled, thinking fast. She had to get Rarity out of there. "Hang on!"

Trying not to think about the recklessness of her actions, she lit her horn and concentrated harder than she had ever done before. Her head exploded in pain, melting all around her brain, burning her temple, causing her to yell out. She focused it around Rarity, lifting her right off the ground.

""OHGOSHTWILIGHT, WHATAREYOU—"

The next second seemed to happen in slow motion. Twilight looked up and pulled Rarity right over the laser, watching as the headcrab next to her leaped up to follow. She saw, just a slip second before it happened, the headcrab leap right into the second laser. She turned her head, pulling at Rarity harder than she had ever pulled at anything in her life, and shut her eyes tight.

It wasn't the sound of the head of the blast that caught her off guard. It was the force! The blast literally knocked her over onto her side. She immediately lost focus on her magic, leaving Rarity screaming and flailing through the air. She could only watch as Rarity flew right over her, landed on the ground, and skidded to a halt.

Twilight could barely move after the cloud of dust cleared. She breathed a sigh of relief, closed her eyes, and felt her mind drift away.

=========================================================

"...Twilight..."

Twilight stirred. Her head was throbbing with a dull pain, and everything around her was blurred. She looked around, trying to get her bearings.

"Twi...light..."

The voice was getting louder, but not much clearer. She could jsut make out a white blur moving around above her. She was... on her back? When did she get on her back?

"Twilight! Wake up!"

Her eyes started to adjust, and the first thing she saw was Rarity's face focus above her. "Uh... morning?" she said meekly. She put a hoof up to her head and tried to sit up. Her body ached as she did so, making her groan. "Wha—"

"Twilight, we have to go!"

"What? Why?" she asked, finally coming to her senses. "What's wrong?" She looked around and noticed she was still in the same hallway. There was a massive scorch mark on the wall behind her, as well as multiple yellow stains where, Twilight guessed, there used to be headcrabs.

"Stop sitting there and get up!" Rarity yelled. "We have to go before more of them—"

Rarity didn't finish before she was interrupted by the intense sound of a magic storm on the opposite end of the hallway. Twilight felt a shock flow through her body, jolting her to her feet, chills flowing through her hide. "What was—"

"Help me!" Rarity yelled, and Twilight watched completely stunned as Rarity turned and slammed her hoof to the ground. She heard the familiar firecracker of the pistol go off once... twice... four times... over and over. Twilight tried to see what Rarity was shooting at, but her eyes were still trying to focus.

"Twilight, you have to get up! These things have been popping up all over the place now! We need to get out of here!"

Twilight fished around her suit until she found the ammo controls. She still somewhat remembered using them from the hazard course shooting range. She touched the panel on the side of the suit and heard the satisfying click of her gun reload.

"I'm ready!" she said, getting to her hooves. "Now what exactly are we shooting at?"

She stared ahead, her eyes finally focusing on the small doorway at the end of the hallway. It lead into an area similar to the offices, with a tile floor and brick walls. It seemed to be some kind of cafeteria.

"What—wait, is that—" she walked up to the body lying in the middle of the room. "It's these things again!" Twilight had hoped they wouldn't have to deal with the bipedal insectisoids again. It was bad enough that they were larger than she was, but their strange magic that was beyond even her comprehension gave her an uneasy feeling.

"Twilight, we—"

"I know, I know! We need to get out of here! Let's just—"

Another storm surged, this time near the corner of the room. Twilight instinctively turned and fired into it. "Follow me!" she said, watching the creature slump lifelessly to the ground.

The hallway had curved to the right just before it reached the cafeteria, and Twilight raced right back out the door and to the right, following the once-again bright concrete passageway. It sloped down as it went, and Twilight nearly stumbled a few times as she galloped down, turning to the left as she followed the path.

There was a wall at the bottom of the ramp, marking where the hallway opened into another room to the right. "In here!" Twilight said, reaching the bottom of the ramp. "We just need to—no, no, nonoNO!" Another storm had surged at the bottom of the ramp, before Twilight could slow down from her gallop down the ramp. She felt her body collide with the creature as the storm subsided, knocking them both to the ground.

"Rarity!" she yelled, getting to her hooves. She had seen a couple containers at the end of the hallway that were marked as being volatile. "Rarity, whatever you do, don't shoot—"

She put her hooves over her head as she heard shots ring out. "Rarity!" she yelled, flailing her forehooves in the air. She could hear the creature behind her getting to its feet. "Rarity, stop!"

Twilight galloped back up the ramp, hearing a crackling sound behind her. The creature was charging up one of its green bursts of magic.

"Around the corner!" she yelled, pointing with her head. She watched Rarity do so, and followed her, nearly running right into her. She heard the crackling get even louder and braced for the shot.

However, instead of seeing a bolt of magic strike the wall, she was instead met with another ear-shattering snap which echoed throughout the hallway. She threw her hooves to her ears and slammed her body to the ground, but the worst of the damage was already done. She could hear chunks of metal clinking off the walls, and a few bits and pieces of organic tissue landing on the ground. She felt herself gag at the sight, but managed to hold down her lunch.

Rarity pulled Twilight to her feet. "Are you all right?"

Twilight looked at Rarity, amazed at how unfazed she was. She was still clearly shaken, but she wasn't frantic like she was before.

"I think it made the same mistake that you did," Twilight said. "It fired without looking around first."

Rarity twitched. "Well, for the record, I did stop." She turned to look at the damage and cringed. "I think I'm going to be sick," she said. "And it simply smells awful!"

Twilight got up and took a sniff, putting her hoof to her nose. "Next time, could we try to keep the exploding of aliens to a minimum?" she said. "It might make our last few minutes travelling to the surface a bit less putrid." She grimaced as she saw the mess with her own eyes. "Let's just get out of here before more of them come," she said. "The sooner we find those soldiers, the better."

=========================================================

Twilgiht rounded the corner and gawked.

"More lasers?!"

Luckily these were not the kind that exploded. She looked past the crisscrossing array of red lasers and into the large storage room beyond. "This is just like the last time!" she said. "Only this time there are two turrets, and a large mess all around us," she added, motioning at the alien debris from the explosion.

Rarity was still standing at the top of the ramp, trying not to look at the stains all over the floor. "So just use your grenades again!" she said. "They worked quite well the last time."

"Yes, but—" Twilight looked back into the room. It was difficult to judge the situation. The room was quite cluttered with green metallic crates stacked all around, not to mention some hooks dangling from the ceiling. This room was large enough to require some fancy means of carrying the cargo around, which Twilight admired for a while. The hooks weren't exactly attached directly to the ceiling, and were instead attached to girders that cross-crossed above them, forming paths that the hooks could travel down.

"I can already see two turrets," she said. "There might be more, but the room is so cluttered—"

She grabbed one of her grenades and carefully threaded it through the lasers. "At the very least, I should be able to take out this first one," she said. "That one is at least pretty easy to see. I just need to..." She mumbled to herself as she positioned it. She took a deep breath, ducked around the corner, and pulled the pin.

Rarity jumped at the top of the ramp, as did Twilight who was on the ground holding her hooves over her head. She heard the sound of debris bouncing around, and stood up. "That should at least take care of the first—" she turned toward Rarity, "—one..."

Both of them heard it: a constant beeping that wasn't there a moment before.

"I—" Twilight said, "But I destroyed it!" she said. "There shouldn't be—"

She peered quickly around the corner a few times, playing her "gopher" game before finally turning to face the room head-on. The turret was clearly destroyed. She could see the scorch marks, as well as sparks and smoke where the turret used to be.

"Then where—" She took a few steps into the room and immediately backed back out as she heard the beeps stop. "It's the second one!" she said, turning to Rarity. "I must have activated the second one when I destroyed the first one!"

Rarity had been patiently waiting at the top for Twilight to do whatever it is she was going to do. How, however, Rarity was stepping down slowly to join her. "Well!?" she said, "Just toss another grenade in there! Take the other one out!"

"I can't! I don't even know where it is!"

"What do you mean you don't know where it is! You just saw it!"

"I caught glimpses of it, but I can't know exactly where it is unless I walk into the room! I need—"

Rarity screamed, jumping on top of Twilight and grabbing onto her. Another storm had appeared, a few feet up the ramp. "Kill it! Kill it!"

"I can't see! Get off me!"

Twilight knocked Rarity off her back and turned to aim when a second storm went off behind her, right where the mess of alien tissue was.

"Run!" she yelled, hearing both of them charge up at the same time. "Follow me!"

What happened next was what Twilight could only describe as the stupidest move she had ever made. Turning around to face the other creature, she bolted forward, around the corner, and straight into the room with the turret. For a moment, the turret stopped beeping at just stood there, giving Twilight just enough time to find some cover. There were some crates in the middle of the room that looked solid enough to sustain some heavy fire. She took a leap of faith, diving to the left of them just as the turret on her right fired. She could hear the creatures behind her firing off their magic, but they were still around the corner and couldn't get to her.

It didn't fire for long. It had some sort of motion detector that stopped it after she was hidden. Now was her chance! She turned back towards the hallway and fired a few round, grabbing the creature's attention.

What happened next was the closest Twilight ever wanted to come to a battle. The creatures were as much of a target for the turret as she was, and the creatures knew it. They stopped as they rounded the corner, and Twilight heard the beeping stop. She covered her ears, bracing for the sound.

Just before she heard the turret fire, a few shots went off around the corner. Rarity was taking out the second one. The turret fired off just as the first creature started charging its magic, disturbing it. She watched as the creature fell to the ground, but its magic lingered, looking disturbingly like one of the magic storms that brought it here. It pulsed for a moment, and then let out a bang that shook the room, spreading tendrils of magic in every direction. Twilight saw the crate next to her glow slightly as it absorbed some of the magic as it struck.

She waited.

Seconds.

Minutes.

Nothing much could be heard now: not even the beeping of the turret. She stood up slowly and looked around at the wreckage of the creature's magic. There were scorch marks scattered all over, and the second turret had been decimated. Some of the crates had holes in them. She took a deep breath, feeling around her suit to make sure there wasn't any damage to herself.

"You okay, Rarity?" she yelled.

She heard a voice around the corner as Rarity stepped through the array of lasers with Twilight. "Never. Again," she said. "Never, ever again." She flipped her hair, looking thoroughly disheveled. "This has to be the worst possible place to walk through. Honestly! Turrets, explosives, mines—this whole place is a giant mess of booby traps! I feel like I'm in some kind of Daring Do adventure!"

She shook herself out and groaned in frustration, looking around the room. "Twilight, dear, do tell me: is it your goal to completely destroy this entire facility before we escape from it?"

Twilight put her hoof to her face. "I think the aliens will end up doing that for us," she said. "I really think we're just accelerating the process."

"Is that really necessary?" Rarity asked, not even trying to hide her sarcasm. "I would think we would want to slow the process, if anything. I hardly think that setting off massive magical explosions, and triggering automatic Gatling guns is going to help keep this place intact."

"Let's just get out of here," Twilight said. "Bickering around it isn't going to change anything. We have to be close. Once we get to the surface, we can argue all we want."

Rarity hmmphed. "I am not arguing! I am complaining!" She turned to Twilight. "Do you want to hear arguing?"

Twilight sighed. "Not really, no," she said.

Rarity threw her head into the air and walked past her. "Good! Now how do we get out of here?"

Both of them looked around the room. The whole place looked like some kind of makeshift barricade, and the scorch marks and debris made it look more than ever like a war zone. Neither of them could see any kind of doorway that led out.

"Do you think this is a dead end?" Twilight asked. "I didn't see any other path back there."

Rarity was busy peering through some of the crates. She apparently had some experience in dealing with clutter. "It looks like there might be an exit back here," she said, looking through some cracks between the crates. The particular stack she was looking through was about three times taller than either of them were. It was a rather impressive stack! Twilight had to marvel at just how precariously everything had been placed on top of everything else.

"Is that it?" Twilight asked? "Because, you know, I'd hate to have to blast through all these crates and cause another mess." She gave Rarity a look which made her glare back.

"There's nothing that says we can't just climb over them," she said. "I myself have climbed over plenty of messes in my day!"

Twilight looked confused. "Where would you have seen a mess that was this big?" she asked, trying to imagine how tidy her home must have been back in Ponyville.

"I—" Rarity stopped and turned, looking away from Twilight. Had she been any less dignified, she might have been blushing. "I have a certain amount of, shall we say, "organized chaos" while I'm working." She straightened up, trying to hide any embarrassment she may have had. "It helps with the creative process."

Twilight rolled her eyes, but didn't indulge in her curiosity any further. Instead, she simply watched as Rarity searched out somewhere along the wall of crates where some of them had collapsed, forming a makeshift stepping stone path to the top. Twilight couldn't help but imagine Rarity as being like some well-groomed mountain goat as she stepped carefully on each of the fallen crates, balancing herself as she worked her way to the top.

"How's the view from up there?" Twilight joked after Rarity was a few feet up. Rarity didn't say anything, still concentrating on getting to the next level up. It was like climbing up an avalanche, and every so often, one of Rarity's hooves would slip on an unstable box.

"Almost... there..." Rarity made the finally leap to the top of the stack and looked around. "Wha-ha-HA! There is an exit!" she said, pointing a hoof down to the other side. "Come up here!"

Twilight lit her horn, "I have a better idea." She looked up at one of the nearby hooks and gently turned the crank it was wrapped around. She couldn't exactly see the crank, since it was deeply embedded in the mechanism, but she could easily find it with her magic by feeling up the cable.

"What are you doing, dear?" Rarity called from above.

Twilight didn't answer, instead reaching her hoof up and grabbing hold of the cable with the rubber end of the suit. Just as she had hoped, the suit latched onto it, just as it did with the crowbar. She lit her horn again and rotated the mechanism once again, hoisting both the hook and herself into the air.

"Ooo, clever!" Rarity said from the top of the crates. "You do have good ideas sometimes, darling—when they aren't blowing up in front of us, that is."

Twilight waited until the cable was all the way up before looking around. She was just a few feet away from where the crates were stacked. Rarity walked carefully over the top until she was as close to Twilight as she could get.

"Unfortunately, I can't reach you from here, Twilight," Rarity said. "Looks like you may need to find another way."

"No, no!" Twilight said. "I have this under control!" She wiggled her hind legs a bit, doing a small dance with her rump. It was quite difficult to cling on. She really wasn't that strong. However, after enough wiggling, she managed to get the cable to swing.

"Having fun, darling?" Rarity asked sarcastically, watching Twilight go back and forth. "I haven't seen a pony do something like this since I got Sweetie Belle that tire swing."

Twilight wanted to do a "Ha. Ha." back at her, but she was too busy working her body to get the cable to swing further. She tried not to look down, or at the crates in front of her. She knew she would have to let go at some point, but knew she didn't have the balance or dexterity to land on top of the crates.

"Can you... catch me...?" She spoke each time she swung forward.

"I think you're on your own here, Twilight," she said. "I must say, you would have been much better off just climbing up the crates like I did."

Rarity's point looked more and more sensical each time she swung.

"Hang on!" Twilight said. "I have... an idea...!"

At least this idea was as completely asinine as the last one. Of course, it was still dangerous, but at least there were no magic-tossing aliens in the way this time.

She lit her horn and felt for the crank at the top. She swung forward, counting each swing silently to herself.

One... she thought to herself, swinging forward with her magic around the crank. Two—oh, screw it. She released her magic on the crank on her second swing, spinning the cable out of control. She felt her body tossed forward and grunted as all the wind was knocked out of her. She had managed to slam right into the side of the stack right at the top, such that the top half of her body wrapped over the top. The slid down, trying to grab hold of something and saw Rarity pounce forward to grab hold of her hooves.

"You're already at the top, dear. You may as well climb up with me." She was gasping for breath upon lunging forward, but was smiling nonetheless. Working together, Twilight managed to hoist herself up onto the stack.

"So!" Twilight said, catching her breath and looking around. "Where's the door?"

"Right there," she said, pointing her hoof to the other side and to the left. The stack they were standing on were quite close to the end of the room, forming a rather tight space between the stack they were standing on and the wall at the far end.

"I—wait." Twilight closed her eyes and reopened them. "This has to be some kind of joke."

When she opened her eyes, Rarity was looking at her with a wide facetious smile. "You knew about this all along, didn't you." Twilight gave her a blank stare.

The door Rarity had pointed at was another fire door. Just like the last few entrances they had walked past, this one also had lasers on the other side. However, unlike the last few, the turrets were clearly visible. They were sitting just on the other side of the stack of crates, in that tight space beneath them.

"Another grenade?" she asked. "Wait, don't tell me. The other turret will activate when I do that." She stopped and thought for a moment, watching Rarity's wide smile. She seemed to be thoroughly enjoying Twilight's struggle.

"What exactly are you smiling at?!" Twilight asked, watching Rarity actually start to laugh.

"I—oh, I'm sorry, Twilight," she said. "It's just, one problem after the other after the other." She looked down at the lasers below and laughed again. "I mean, just how many times are we going to run into these things? Honestly! This is getting ridiculous!"

Twilight had had enough. "You know what? You're right!" She walked down the stack as far as she could and aimed her gun at the door.

"Twilight! What are you doing?"

"Getting us out of here!" she said. She leaned her hoof down and fired the gun straight into the wall next to the door. It was a small target, but she managed to hit the glass just in front of the fire door, exposing the button behind it.

"Follow me!" she said. She braced herself, and leaped off the stack of crates. It was a rough landing, but not nearly as bad as the one from the ventilation duct just before she had reached the doctor.

"You're crazy!" Rarity shouted as Twilight walked up to the button. "How is closing the fire door going to help us get out of here!"

Twilight ignored her, slamming her hoof into the button. Sirens blared once again as the warning lights flared. "Come on, Rarity!" Twilight yelled, walking to the other side of the door. "Before it closes!"

Rarity made a pained expression. She looked like Twilight just made her step on a giant bug. She closed her eyes and leaped most-ungracefully off the stack, landing with a painful crunch on the ground and letting out a loud "OW!" Twilight grimmaced, but was relieved to see that Rarity had no problem trotting up to where Twilight was.

"Just duck under the door," she said, peering under the half-closed fire door. "This should protect us from those turrets."

Rarity got all the way down on her stomach and half-crawled half-rolled through the door. It really wasn't necessary, but Twilight didn't say anything. Once they were on the other side, they waited until the door was completely shut before looking at the array of lasers in front of them.

"Good thing there aren't any turrets around here," Twilight said. "I would hate to have to use a grenade right now."

"You mean you didn't know?" Rarity asked. "And you just—" She opened and closed her mouth a few times, completely lost for words.

Twilight gave the hallway in front of them one last look before sticking her hoof out and touching one of the lasers. Sure enough, she heard the turrets start up behind them through the fire doors. They could hear them beeping, but it was muffled.

"Looks like we're safe," she said, walking through the lasers. "See? Perfect plan!"

=========================================================

Both of them looked to their left, and found themselves staring at another stack of metal green crates. These, at least, didn't seem to be nearly as high, and looked as though they would be relatively easy to walk over.

"Twilight, darling," Rarity said. "I really need a rest! All this excitement is making my shoulders all sore."

She pouted, and moved her shoulders around in circles, making sure they were right in front of Twilight's face. Twilight was about to protest, but finally gave up upon realizing just how tired she was.

"It looks like we're relatively safe here," Twilight said, looking around. The fire door was still behind them, and the hallway opened up into the room on their left once again crowded with boxes. "There can't be much more of this," she thought out loud.

"Oh, I wouldn't say that," Rarity said over the background sound of the machinery. "This is facility is probably a giant pack rat. I bet these rooms go on for miles!"

Twilight sighed loudly. "I'm really not looking forward to tricking out more defense turrets," she thought. "Who in Equestria would want to defend all this stuff so badly?!" She waved her hoof back at the fire door. "I mean, really! It's bad enough having laser-activated guns—but trip mines?! Actual explosives?! At this rate, we'll never get out of here!"

"I'm wondering just what kind of other booby traps are setup in this place. I mean, this is just a set of random storage rooms. Can you image what kind of security they have setup in the labs?!"

Twilight rolled her eyes. "I don't really remember any kind of automated security in the labs when I worked there. Mostly just guards stationed around. I think these auto-systems are just their way of being lazy."

Rarity exhaled a breath upwards, blowing the front of her mane around. "I'm not sure what I like least about this place," she said. "The clutter, the security, or the constant background noise. I mean, it sounds like there's some kind of washing machine all around us! Where the heck is that coming from, anyway?!" She took a step or two back and waved a hoof, "And what is all that constant mumbling?! It's like there's some kind of work-force doing construction somewhere—"

"SHH!" Twilight put a hoof up to Rarity's lips. She held her breath. "I think you're right," she said. "Listen."

Rarity looked offended at Twilight's interruption, but allowed her to have her quiet time. Twilight was suddenly fascinated by what she was hearing. It was quite difficult to tell exactly what it was over the general sound of the equipment, but from what she could decipher, it was definitely some kind of voice, like something coming over a radio.

"What are they saying?" Twilight asked. "It's just a bunch of mumbled garbage."

Rarity walked up to the crates, waving her hoof as if telling Twilight to move aside. "It's just a bunch of orders, darling. Go here, do that, use lethal force or what have you."

"Use—" Twilight stopped, feeling a chill run through her body. "Rarity! Those aren't just radio messages." She jumped to her feet, "That's the military!"

Before Rarity could even respond, Twilight was jumping onto the crates, struggling to get over them. "Come on! They have to be just around the corner! We're almost there!" She felt her hooves slip as she hastily walked over them, occasionally knocking one down the side.

"Twilight, dear! We mustn't rush into this! We don't know what's up ahead!" Rarity groaned as she nearly slipped on one of the crates. "Ooooh, do be careful!"

Twilight reached the top, not even bothering to slow down. The voices were much clearer now. She could almost make out what they were saying. She glanced behind her, and saw that Rarity had completely stopped, as if she was waiting for something. Upon a second glace, Twilight discerned that she was concentrating on something.

"Rarity, come on!"

Twilight landed back on the floor and immediately felt her hooves slip out from under her. She yelled out, trying to stabilizer herself, but there was simply no traction. Her legs slipped out from under her, and she landed spread-eagle on her stomach, sliding forward down the hallway, spinning slightly.

"Rarity!" She lit her horn and focused it on her own body. Pain seared through her head, but she at last slowed down. When her vision finally stopped spinning, she looked around. The whole floor was completely flooded. To her right were the crates she had just climbed over. To her left was a wall with an elevator. Well, actually, it was an elevator shaft. There wasn't any door, or elevator, in or beyond the doorway. Twilight didn't want to think about where she would be if she had slid into that.

She looked ahead of her, to where the much-louder sounds of the radio conversation was. She could almost make it out now. However, the sight ahead of her made her groan loud enough to drone out chatter.

"More security?!" She should have seen this coming. Random crates just weren't safe unless there was either something that exploded or something that shot at you every few yards. She could see as many as three turrets ahead of her, as well as a fire door. The entire passage, for at least the next thirty feet, was jam packed full of laser generators. Twilight lit her horn and fogged up the room just enough to expose them, and watched as the entire hallway turned red.

Twilight threw her head back and shrieked at her misfortune, her voice echoing all around the room. She slammed her head down into her hooves, muffling her voice before finally going quiet. She lied there in silence for a moment, wondering how she was even going to get up.

And then she realized that the place really was quite silent now, except for the sound of the machinery. The voices had stopped. Or, at least, they did for a few seconds.

"Sir, I heard something."

The voice was actually loud enough that Twilight had no problem understanding every word. It was definitely a stallion, and a brutish one at that. It was so muffled, it might have been coming through a radio.

Twilight looked past the lasers and into the next room. There were a few catwalks inside, and a few more boxes. Twilight couldn't see too well beyond the fog and labyrinth of crisscrossing lasers. However, she could just barely make out some pony-shaped objects standing on top of the highest catwalk. She couldn't see all of them: just their legs. However, she recognized the camouflage pattern, and knew immediately what she was looking at.

"Hey!" Twilight yelled. "Hey, over here!" She tried waving her hooves, hopeful to get their attention.

She saw the figured crouch down in the distance, and heard their voices. "It's a scientist! MOVEMENT!"

"YES!" Twilight yelled, putting her hooves up. "I'm right here—"

"Twilight!"
"Rarity?"

Twilight looked to her right just in time to see Rarity half-jumping half-sliding towards her. She felt Rarity's body slam right into hers, and suddenly they were both sliding along the floor.

"Rarity! We're going to—"

The air exploded around them, and Twilight hugged Rarity tight as they slid. It was the sound of a machinegun, just like the one she was carrying, and she could hear bullets splashing into the water.

"Rarity! What are—we're going to—AHHHHHHHHH—"

The ground had falling out from under them, and Twilight watched as the ceiling was replaced by the top of the elevator shaft, now getting further and further away with great speed.

"Twilight!" Rarity yelled. "Magic, now!"

Twilight could hardly think during the free-fall, but she used the little concentration she had left on lighting her horn. In an instant, she felt it merge with Rarity's, and both of their bodies slowed to a halt. Twilight gasped and wheezed as she turned over in the air and saw the ground just a few feet from her. The shock made her release her magic, and she felt the "ground" leave her once again. She closed her eyes, hearing a short scream from Rarity, before slamming into the bottom of the shaft.

Both of them groaned, checking to see how much damage had been done. Above them, they could still hear the soldiers, who had most likely just entered the room they had been in.

"Keep your eyes open," she heard one of them say. "They were here just a moment ago. Check for hiding places."

Twilight huddled up against the wall of the elevator shaft. "They—did they just... shoot at us?!" Her voice was cracking, despite almost whispering. Rarity responded by putting her hoof to her lips and pointing her hoof at the conversation above them. Twilight refrained from asking further questions, despite the lump in her throat.

"D'ya think they fell down there?"

It was more of a grunt than a question. Twilight felt, rather than saw, the other soldier take a glance down the shaft.

"Careful there, soldier boy." Twilight assumed he was slipping on the water above. "Don't wanna be a blood stain at the bottom of that."

"How's we get stuck guarding these dumbass storage areas anyway? There's nopony here!" There was a pause as Twilight assumed he was attempting to look down the elevator again. "Let's just pack up and go to the silo. That place'll be chock full o' cannon fodder."

"Your orders are to stay here. Don't like it? You can jump down that elevator shaft." The guard laughed to himself. "I'd like to see how big a splat a dumb earth pony makes when he hits the ground."

Twilight felt a hoof nudge her against the suit and turned to see Rarity indicating a small opening in the wall. Twilight motioned questioningly at the soldiers above her, but Rarity made a gesture with her hoof that everything was okay.

The entrance was smaller than the vents back in the office rooms, but they still managed to fit. Rarity had some difficulty, and Twilight was reminded of watching a large cat trying to fit into a tiny box as a filly. It would have been funny in a different time.

Twilight went behind her, hearing the soldiers continue to argue in the background. Their voices died out as they crawled further into the small vent. Twilight tried lighting her horn as the passage darkened, but stifled a cry as she remembered the state of her horn.

They traveled for what seemed like hours, twisting and turning, climbing and falling, slaves to wherever the shaft wanted them to go. Occasionally there was a fork, but there was never any indication of where either path went.

"R-rarity?" Twilight whispered, finally sensing that they were far enough away from any military activity. "Rarity, why didn't they see us? Back in the elevator shaft? I would have sworn—"

"They're just grunts," was all she said.

"Yeah, but—" Twilight stopped, giving her hooves time to rest. "Why... how... what the heck is going on?! Who were they? Why did they—" Twilight stopped as she realized her voice was no longer a whisper.

"You obviously aren't very familiar with the Equestrian military, are you?" Rarity sighed. "Can this wait until we're in a bit more of a comfortable place?"

"And risk being shot at? I don't think so. This might be the safest place we get for a while!"

Another sigh. "Twilight, this place is now a war zone. You think this place is safe? How do you know we're not on the other side of a brick wall from a stationed military camp? Or worse yet, how do you know this pipe doesn't go right through a room full of soldiers? We've seen plenty of exposed air vents on our way here."

"Is that supposed to make me feel any better?" Twilight tried to move her hooves up. They were cramping up in the tightness of the vent.

"These guards aren't the Royal Guard Canterlot, Twilight. These are obviously different. I suspect they're not even under the influence of Princess Celestia."

"Of course they—" Twilight lowered her voice, "of course they aren't. You think Princess Celestia would kill a bunch of innocent ponies?!"

"I think that whoever is doing this has nothing to do with Princess Celestia. We're outside her boundaries. They rules here are different."

"So, what do we do?"

There was a long pause. Twilight listened to the air traveling around them, watching the fur on Rarity's back wave in the light from Rarity's horn.

"Well, first off, we get out of these vents. We make for the surface." She took a deep breath. "Chances are, this whole place will go to hell before it's all over, and we want to be as far away as we can when that happens. We make for Canterlot. If we can find the Princess—"

There was another long pause.

"I think I see a light up ahead."

=========================================================

"How many of them are there?"

All Twilight could see was Rarity's tail in the dim light of her horn. Rarity was looking down through a grate at the room below them.

"Only two," she said. "Looks like they're taking a rest. They should be pretty easy to knock out after I take away their weapons."

Twilight watched as Rarity carefully unlatched the grate below them. It was amazing how quiet she could be. Twilight would never have known what she was doing had she not been intentionally listening closely.

"Ready, dear?"

Twilight ignored how strangely the word "dear" fit into the situation, and poked Rarity gently with her horn to let her know she was ready.

The next thing she saw was Rarity's backside slide forward and out of sight, followed by the blinding light of the room below shining up through the grate. Twilight slid up with her hooves, wholeheartedly intending to drop down with her, but held back as she heard the confused shout of the soldiers below:

"Wha—get her!"

"She's over there! Wai—where's my—"

"She's got our guns! Get her!"

Meanwhile, Rarity was racing frantically, trying not to get tackled by the two grunts.

"Twilight!" she yelled. "Come on!"

Twilight lurched forward on instinct, half falling, half toppling out of the grate, landing on the ground with an uncomfortable thud. Before she could so much as look up, she heard the soldiers racing towards her. "Get her!"

Her muscles froze up, wanting to do everything at the same time. She heard gun shots ring through the air. She felt the soldiers collapse on top of her. She curled up and waited, helpless.

A second later, though, she felt the soldiers get up off of her, followed by Rarity's voice.

"You know, I really meant for you to help take them out. You didn't need to just be a distraction."

Twilight looked up to see the other two ponies had been reduced to corpses being carried into a corner by Rarity.

"You you killed them!"

Rarity looked over at Twilight, quite surprised. "Well don't seem so surprised, Twilight. They were going to kill you. It's not like they were nice ponies or anything."

Twilight heard a slight hint of shakiness in Rarity's voice, and knew Rarity was working very hard at hiding any trauma she might be feeling.

"Now," Rarity continued, "help me take this armor off of them."

"Huh?" Twilight watched as Rarity started slipping the garments off the soldiers in front of them, and slipping them onto herself in place of her security uniform.

"Better to be soldiers going AWOL then scientists and security guards trying to escape."

Rarity was working on slipping off the other soldier's uniform for Twilight and handing it to her when Twilight interrupted.

"I think I'd rather keep my HEV suit."

Rarity scoffed. "Oh, yes, and stand out in a big yellow suit that announces what it's doing. You may as well be wearing a flashing white lab coat!" She forced the armor down at Twilight's hooves. "You'll put that on if you value your life."

Twilight looked down at the armor and blinked. "I'm not putting that on," she said, pushing it away with her hoof. "This suit saved my life back at ground zero! There's no telling how many times I would have died without it!"

Rarity looked like she was about to roll her eyes, but took a deep breath instead. "Fine, suit yourself. Just don't come running to me when all the bullets come hurling at you. Purple against yellow really doesn't camaflouge well, dear."

Twilight really did roll her eyes, but stayed silent as Rarity suited up. She seemed much more willing to play dress-up as an army soldier than she did as a security guard.

"Well, at least the beret looks nice on me," she said, levitating the hat over her horn. "Lucky for us—well, me, anyway. The soldiers we ambushed happen to be of some rank."

She looked down at her chest and noticed some of the badges, and a large patch with the words "HECU" on it.

"HECU?" she wondered.

"Probably some kind of combat unit or something," Twilight thought out loud.

"More like Half Educated Chatter Unit," Rarity said. "These guys talk louder than my friends on the Ponyville farms!" Rarity made a face shortly after, "Don't tell anyone I said that."

Rarity levitated the soldier's gun over to her, and carefully mounted it over the armor. Twilight couldn't help but grin stupidly at Rarity's reaction to such an unwieldy weapon.

"Really?! Do these soldiers seriously carry such monstrosities with them on their shoulders like this? You'd think they'd be smarter and at least use magic!"

"Well, most of them are probably Earth ponies," Twilight thought. "It's probably less distracting when you need your magic for something else."

Rarity grimaced, "It's distracting enough having to carry around a massive paper-weight. I feel like I'm going to tip over from the weight of this thing!"

She sighed. "Well, at least the armor is light enough." She looked down at the vest and frowned. "They could have chosen a slightly better shade of green, though."

Both of them looked around at the room they were in. There really wasn't much here that was different from what they had already seen. A few catwalks above them, boxes strewn about, and some vents here and there. The one thing that stood out from the rest was a large closet-like area with a grate for a floor. Judging by the button next to the entrance, and the cams and pulleys in the walls, this was some sort of lift.

"The surface!" Twilight exclaimed.

"Or rather, a way to get closer to it," Rarity said. "There's no telling where it leads. But if we're close enough for there to be soldiers around, we must be getting close." Rarity walked up and examined the interior. "My guess is there are just more soldiers above us." She looked back at Twilight and frowned. "This really would be so much easier if you had just taken my advice and rid yourself of that suit. You look like a canary!"

Twilight motioned with her head towards the gun on her shoulder. "I think I can handle myself."

"Not if there are a dozen of them in the same room, you can't." Rarity stepped onto the lift. "Follow my lead, Twilight. You really aren't going to make this easy for me, but it's probably the only chance we have to get out of here."

Rarity stepped up to the button in the back and raised her hoof.

"Wait." Twilight stepped on the left next to her. "What exactly are you going to do?"

Rarity daintily pressed her hoof into the button and grimaced at the loud clunking equipment come to life around them. A large metal door slammed shut behind them, and they felt the floor lurch upwards.

"Just... don't say anything. Let me do the talking. If everything goes well—"

"Talk? What do you mean, talk? You don't seriously think—"

"Twilight, I know what I'm doing. Just be quiet. They can probably already hear us."

"But—"

Rarity put a hoof up to Twilight's mouth and indicated upwards with her head. She was right. The soldiers could already be heard from where they were.

"This sucks!" one of them said. "These pansy-ass scientists just don't have any fight in 'em! The cockroaches in this place are tougher to kill!"

"Shut-up, Wingman. You rather be out there with the shells? You'll get your chance."

There was a small pause as they heard loud scuffling.

"Oh, great. Sounds like someone's on their way up. I hope it's more cannon fodder. My clip's still almost full."

Twilight shrunk back to hide behind Rarity, who was stretching out as if preparing to display herself on stage at a fashion show. She closed her eyes, praying Rarity knew what she was doing.

"Stand up straight," Rarity whispered. "You're as much a part of this as I am."

Twilight felt her joints lock, and her whole body twitched and shook. She could feel a beed of cold sweat running down her neck. As the elevator crested the next floor, she could see dozens of eyes through the grated door.

"The hell?" one of them said. "What's that scientist doing with a commander?"

Some of the soldiers tightened the grips on their guns.

Twilight heard the doors slam open and ring throughout the room. Immediately, one of the female soldiers starting yelling commands.

"Alright, soldiers, listen up! We have new orders, and a new strategy, and I don't want any of you falling behind!"

It took Twilight a second or two to register what was going on. That wasn't a female soldier. That was Rarity! Her voice was barely recognizable in such a low harsh tone.

"Major Tripe!" Rarity turned towards Twilight and jammed a hoof towards the center of the room. "Take point." She turned back to the rest of the soldiers, who were all standing at attention trying hard to conceal looks of confusion.

"What you see before you, ladies, is a weapon deadlier than any you've held in your hands. This armor turns any meat bag ruffian pony into a weapon of death. Its armor will chew up missiles and spit out confetti. Its weapon-selection is wider than your grandmother. Its healing capabilities will cure cancer."

Rarity was slowly circling Twilight, who was still rigid and trying hard not to shake.

"If any of you see one of these coming at you, you turn tail and run squawking, less you want to be served for dinner with a side of stuffing. Now—"

She stopped and turned towards one of the other soldiers, who was clearly trying to hold back a laugh.

"Do you find something funny, Corporal?" Rarity was inches away from him in seconds. "Because I could use a target during our next demonstration. Someone with as little meat as you would be easy to clean-up afterwards."

"Sir, no, sir!"

Twilight's eyes widened. She wasn't expecting the soldiers to play along so well.

"You are soldiers! You are elite! You will stand proud next to this new technology. You have been hand-selected to escort this walking death trap into the field!" She turned towards the soldiers, and Twilight followed, standing next to her. "We walk at 1700 hours."

"Sir, yes, sir!"

Twilight felt chills at crowd of soldiers saluting and grunting their approval. Her whole body was quivering, but she held fast until Rarity said "At ease, stallions!"

Rarity immediately retreated into a corner where there were no other soldiers. Twilight followed close behind. Thankfully, none of the others seemed to want to be anywhere near Rarity, although Twilight was getting some interesting looks.

"What do we do now?" Twilight whispered, still unable to think clearly.

Rarity pulled Twilight around into a more concealed area, and they huddled together. "I've got them distracted," she whispered. "With enough luck, we should be able to sneak out of here between now and... whenever it is 1700 hours is. It's just a shame there aren't any clocks in these rooms."

She indicated a door in the side of the room. "Now follow me, and try to look... soldier-ish."

Rarity walked off towards the door at a steady trot, with Twilight close behind, trying to look as confident as she could. She tried to ignore the feeling of every eye looking her way. She could tell there were suspicions rising from the few murmurs she was picking up.

The door led to a catwalk spanning a bottomless pit. Twilight would have been tempted to peer over the hoofrail for a better look had she not been feeling so self-conscious.

"Watch the tendrils, dear," Rarity said quietly.

Twilight stopped just short of a rope dangling from the ceiling, and glimpsed up to see the same grotesque barnacle-like organism that Rarity had so inconsiderately fed when Twilight first met her. She looked down at Rarity again and walked carefully around it, trying not to think of what it would feel like to become a course for dinner.

The end of the catwalk presented them with a T-junction. Twilight was about to ask which way they should go, but stopped short upon looking to the left.

Both Rarity and Twilight had to stop and admire the gratuitously superfluous amount of security. It was as though some bored security guard had set this up as a joke! The entire length of the hallway was crisscrossed with trip-mines, claymores, security turrets, and electrical wires. Twilight was surprised there weren't guard dogs and barbed wire in there too.

"You think they forgot the kitchen sink?" Twilight whispered. "Not even Princess Celestia's private quarters as that well guarded!" Twilight blushed under Rarity's look. "Not... not that I've ever seen them or anything. I just—"

Rarity rolled her eyes, but didn't mention anything about it. "Well, at least there's a path to the right."

A short way down the hallway, however, revealed that the right path didn't bring them much closer either.

"It's... just a room. Where's the exit?"

Rarity pointed to the right-hand wall as they entered. "There's—" She stopped short and lowered her voice. "There are soldiers up there, in that other room."

Twilight looked up at where she was pointing, and noticed that this smaller room was actually a sink-hole in a much larger room. She couldn't see over the wall, but could still manage to hear chatter above them.

"What are we going to do now?" Twilight whispered. Rarity started exploring the room, and Twilight followed suit. It may not have been a very large room, but like all the rooms in this storage area, it was littered with "stuff": boxes and crates, rope, chains, broken hoofrails, debris—the sort of things neither of them had any use for.

"There's not much we can do," Rarity said softly, still rummaging through whatever she could find. "Even if we managed to get out of this room, we'd still end up facing multiple soldiers. We'd be completely out-matched!"

Twilight looked around the room, around boxes, in dark corners, hoping to see some doorway, some ladder, some vent to escape through.

"Do you think we'll have to go through back through the hallway?" Twilight asked, hoping Rarity wasn't thinking the same thing.

"Honestly, Twilight, I think we'd stand a better chance against the soldiers. One step out of line in that hallway, and we'd be... well, a lot more messy, that's for sure." She shook the thought out of her head. "We need a plan. I can't pull off the commander-act if we're struggling over a wall. We need some way to keep out of sight until—"

She stopped. Twilight heard them too. The soldiers were talking loudly above them.

"Science team? Really?"

"That's what we think."

Twilight and Rarity both held their breath.

"What did they look like?"

There were some shuffles as the other soldiers gathered into a tight spot to talk.

"One of them was wearing a suit: some kind of armor—very bright and shiny. We were told it was a weapon, and that it was going to be deployed five minutes ago."

There was some uncomfortable movement as the other soldiers could be heard looking around.

"What kind of weapon? Did they say what it could do?"

"No, sir. The commander in charge didn't say what—"

"Which commander? Who ordered this thing?"

Twilight and Rarity heard some loud disagreement, and couldn't quite distinguish who was saying what. Neither Twilight or Rarity could move.

"Station 12, we have a code-red. Team Science is fighting back. I repeat, Team Science is fighting back. We need all teams to the top security storage units. We have a weapon loose and planning attack. I repeat, code red."

Twilight started panicking as all the soldiers could be heard shuffling loudly into positions all around the room. "What are we... they'll see us!"

"All teams, we need immediate backup. I want every room in here secure. Leave no corner unchecked, no box unturned, no gate unopened. We have an extremely volatile weapon on the loose."

Twilight heard the footsteps coming quickly towards them, ready to check over the hoofrail above. Twilight barely noticed her hoof hovering over the trigger of her assault rifle when she felt a hoof reach around her front pastern and hoist her back around some crates. She had to stifle her scream as Rarity put a hoof up to her muzzle.

"Whatdowedo whatdowedo whatdowedo—"

"Quiet," Rarity mouthed. Both of them could sense, rather than see, the soldiers on the other side walking up to the rails.

"They're going to see us eventually! Don't you see the catwalks? They're all over this place! They can see us from a distance, or walk right over us!"

Rarity put a hoof up to Twilight's muzzle again. As quiet as she was, the soldiers seemed to be picking up their scent.

"I know, Twilight."

Twilight stopped upon hearing Rarity's voice. She had fear in her voice, and the same fear in her eyes. She looked like she wanted to say something, but was too afraid to speak it out loud.

There was a long silence. It may have lasted many minutes, or maybe an hour. Twilight couldn't tell. She could hardly think anymore from holding her breath. The soldiers were listening now. They didn't need to look anymore. They knew they were there. They just needed something, anything to confirm their suspicious. She could almost sense them smiling, taking in the moment.

That's when Rarity did something Twilight never expected. She reached a hoof around her shoulder, and pulled Twilight forward, resting her forehead against Twilight's. She watched as Rarity's eyes flicked down at their guns, then back up, and then motioned to the side where the soldiers were waiting. Twilight got the message. They weren't going down without a fight. They weren't going to sit here and wait for the soldiers to make their first move.

Twilight could feel the warmth coming off Rarity's face, and saw the slightest smile creep along the corner of her mouth. Twilight found the trigger of her rifle with her hoof on the ground, barely tapping it in preparation.

Rarity gave a nod.

As if in slow motion, both of them moved out from behind the crates, Twilight leaning into the trigger. She could feel the floor vibrate as every soldier opened fire. She stayed on the trigger, feeling the spray of bullets rain out, hoping against hope that none of the bullets ricocheting off her suit would strike her above the neck. A few times, she nearly fell from the force.

And then a sound ripped through the air that had nothing to do with the soldiers. It was a familiar sound they hadn't heard since the lower levels, and for the very first time since the experiment, she was actually glad she was hearing it.

Aliens were pouring in. The green energy spikes and zaps of electrical sparks were tearing through the room. The rain of bullets she felt on herself stopped, and she looked around quickly, picking out a few of the bipedal being that had nearly sucked Twilight into the other dimension back in the office complex.

A shot rang out against the storm of noise, and she looked around to see Rarity, still standing, taking out one of the creatures near her.

"We have to get to the upper level!" she yelled, using her magic to levitate crates over to the wall. "Help me!"

Twilight struggled against the pain in her horn, and threw box after box her way.

"They're everywhere!" Twilight yelled back, stopping every so often to riddle another teleporting being with lead. "We won't be able to hold them off!"

Rarity didn't wait for all the boxes to reach the top of the wall. She leaped up, kicking some of the lighter boxes off the stack, struggling up to the top. Twilight followed, kicking off one of the crab-like aliens as it latched onto her hind hoof.

As they reached the top, both of them had to stop and gape at the chaos on the upper floor. Not just the pillars, boxes, catwalks littering the room, but also the deafening battle of shock-magic, rifles, shotguns, and panicked soldiers.

"There!" Rarity forced Twilight's head around until she saw a sign on the opposite wall. "The surface! We have to get to the elevator!"

Twilight didn't wait for the cavalry to see them. She leaped up onto the floor, using a bit of magic to help her, and lifted Rarity up with them.

What followed was a sprint through madness. Twilight was barely aware of her hooves pounding the ground. Her ears rang, her heart hurt, her eyes focused on the sign so hard they may have bled. She wasn't even aware of Rarity next to her, but kept an image of her in her mind, convinced that she was right behind her.

Just as she thought nothing could get any louder, an explosion rang out behind her. She could feel the wind from it, the heat singing the back of her neck, debris piercing her hind legs. She lost control, and felt herself tumble forward onto the ground, landing on her side.

She tried to get up, and failed, slipping right back onto the floor.

"Get up!" Rarity was in front of her. She had just pushed a button in the wall. "Get up! We're getting out of here!"

Twilight tried again, and forced herself onto her hooves. One of them was very sore, but the suit was healing it fast.

"Into the elevator!" Rarity yelled. Twilight followed behind her, and watched Rarity slam a hoof into the button in the back.

They waited until the gates slammed shut and the elevator had moved up above it, before collapsing onto the grate they were standing on.

Both of them were finally realizing how hard they were breathing, and felt their lungs catch on fire.

"H... how... did you not... get hurt... ?" Twilight asked, thinking about the explosion.

Rarity took a few deep breaths, still shaken. "I must have been on the other side of a pillar," she said.

Twilight turned towards her, and felt a hoof wrap around her own.

Rarity looked her in the eye. "We did it," she said. "We'll be at the surface, soon."

Twilight could hardly think anymore. She just wanted it all to be over.

"Not much longer," she said, looking up the elevator shaft. "I'm coming, Sweetie Belle."

Twilight watched as a smile crested her lips, and started feeling one crest her own, but it was short lived. Above them, they could hear noise: the exact same kind they had just come from.

"Uh... Rarity?" Twilight looked over at Rarity, who was starting to catch on. This clearly wasn't going to get any better just because they were above ground.

"What are we—"

Twilight felt a hoof against her muzzle. "I swear, Twilight if you say 'what are we going to do' one more time, I'm going to sit on your back and make you carry me through the battle!" The sounds were getting louder as they neared the top. "Now let's make the most of the situation, and just get as far away from this place as possible!"

In the background of shooting noises and explosions, both of them could hear the rotors of a helicopter.

"They've obviously landed in full force," Twilight said, a little louder. "We'll need to make a run for it."

They both watched as they caught up with ground-level, and noticed the elevator was taking them to the inside of a small open warehouse. They could see the sun shining in through the door to their left, and felt the ground shaking from the activity.

"Ready?" Rarity looked over at her. Her mane was no longer the beautiful arrangement from when Twilight first met her. Her entire coat was dirtied and ruffled, and her eyes were bloodshot.

Twilight nodded just as the doors swung open.

Two soldiers were holding off one of the bipedal aliens. Bullets were ringing out. One of the soldiers caught Rarity and Twilight out of the corner of their eye, and faltered when he saw Rarity in the commander uniform. It was just long enough for Twilight to step on the trigger, blasting him backwards. She waited for the alien to prevail over the other soldier before putting a few bullets in its head.

"Have to reload!" she yelled to Rarity, racing to a crate and peering out through the open door. The setting sun bathed the front of the room in red, and she could see glimpses of an Osprey flying overhead.

"They must be using those things to send backup!" Rarity yelled as Twilight magicked another clip into the suit. "We'll never get out of here unless we take it down!"

"WHAT?!" Twilight shook her head, clearly having misheard. "Take it out?! Are you insane?!"

Rarity gave her a "we just survived aliens, soldiers, and explosions, you shouldn't be surprised at anything anymore" look. "Simple. We take out the blades." She looked around. "We just need something heavy enough."

Twilight facehooved. "Of course! How silly of me to think that two unicorns with no military training couldn't take out an Osprey!" She couldn't hide her sarcasm anymore. "Why don't we go throw that forklift at it? That ought to make it blow up!"

Rarity was going red in the face. "Are you going to help me or not?!"

"Fine! Fine. What do we have to lose, anyway?"

Twilight galloped out with Rarity, trying to avoid any enemy fire streaming in from the battle outside. Rarity looked around and found a large, volatile barrel sitting in a corner.

"We'll have to make this quick," she said, levitating the container. "It might not be heavy, but it'll sure cause some damage."

Twilight didn't say anything, choosing to hide in the corner with Rarity, waiting for her signal.

"We'll need both of our magic to hurl it fast enough. Otherwise, one of the soldiers will see if and shoot it before it reaches the plane."

Twilight nodded. She could hear grenade going off in the distance, and more soldiers shouting out orders. She carefully peered around the corner and out of the large garage door opening into the red-stained mesa of the outside.

The entire area was paved over. It was like some kind of enclosed parking lot, with large gates surrounding the entire area. If they managed to destroy the Osprey, they'd still need to find a way out.

"I can hear it coming back around," Twilight said, looking around. "It sounds like it's behind us."

"Just be ready," Rarity said. "If we miss, they'll know we're here."

Twilight cringed as the deafening sounds of the Osprey hovered over them. She could feel the wind pick up, blowing her mane around. She looked outside to see more aliens appearing, and a particular shortage of soldiers.

"They're about to send backups!" she yelled, using her magic to grab hold of the barrel with Rarity.

"On the count of—"

"It's already over us! Let's just—"

Both of them looked up to see the Osprey right above them, its rotors cresting over the roof. They felt the wind pick up ten-fold, and felt their hooves slip against the ground as it pushed them back.

"Ready?" Twilight looked over at Rarity, then back at the Osprey. "NOW!"

Both of them tossed the canister up, pushing hard against the wind. Twilight turned the barrel with the sharp edge pointing up, so as to make it more aerodynamic. Even with both of them pushing, it was still a struggle against the wind of the blades.

The last few feet were the toughest. They both strained until they heard the distinguished sound of an explosive substance striking a fast-moving rotor.

"RUN!" Twilight and Rarity said in unison, already on their hooves and racing back towards the elevator. The Osprey could be heard in the background, tumbling towards the ground, debris spitting out in every direction. They turned and watched from behind some steal crates as the bird twisted around in the air, finally landing on its side. One of the blades spun off and struck it in the back, and Twilight and Rarity both put their hooves to their ears as the entire rear of the ship blew sky high.

There was a silence. Or, at least, there would have been a silence had Twilight's ears not been ringing so loudly. They were literally throbbing in pain.

Had both of them known for sure the coast was clear, they would have been jumping for joy. They felt like gods, like they could do anything and nothing could stop them. They had just taken down an osprey!

"Come on!" Rarity yelled, although Twilight couldn't hear her over the ringing in her ears. She followed her nonetheless.

Both of them very slowly walked around the bonfire of flames lighting up the entire space. The sun was going down quickly, and the fire was now the primary source of light.

Twilight made a little jump of excitement, sticking her tongue out at their fallen prey.

"Yeah!" she yelled out, doing what Rarity considered a very dorky dance. "We took out an Osprey, we took out an Osprey," she sang, randomly moving her hooves around to the invisible beat.

"Um, Twilight?"

Rarity was tapping Twilight on the shoulder, but Twilight couldn't feel it. Twilight just closed her eyes and started bobbing her head stupidly, singing "WE TOOK OUT AN OSPREY, WE TOOK OUT AN OSPREY!"

"Twilight!"

Twilight opened her eyes just in time to see a strange rainbow streak across the sky, before it turned and headed directly towards them.

"What in the name of... Twilight, look ou—"

Both of them were knocked back the streak of colors, which was as large as either of them were. For a rainbow, just a bunch of reflections of light, it sure felt very solid. Twilight landed on her back and rolled over, looking up as the streak of rainbow tore through the sky again.

"What is that thing?!"

Twilight fired her assault rifle at it, but there was no way she could hit it. Whatever was flying through the air was too fast.

"Use your magic!" Rarity yelled. "It's probably a pegasus."

Both Twilight and Rarity focused their magic on the rainbow as it dived back down at them. The sparkling purple haze slipped a few times as the entity—whatever it was—kept slipping right through her force field. However, it managed to slow it down enough for it to lose control.

"Aaa—whaaaaa !!" They could hear it screaming as it fell, its voice breaking every down and them.

Twilight jumped right in front of it, and felt it collide with her. She was ready for it this time, though, and made sure she came out on top.

When they finally came to a rest, Twilight looked down to see that she had captured a sleek blue pegasus. Rarity quickly came over to magic her wings in place. The pegasus was obviously struggling.

"LEMME GO!" She yelled. "You scientists as just a bunch of—"

"We don't want to hurt you!" Twilight yelled back.

Rarity gave her a look. "We don't?"

Twilight used her own magic, to hold the pegasus's hooves in place. "She might know something," Twilight said. "And she's unarmed. Look." She pointed at the pegasus's armor, which had no weapons attached to it.

"Just kill me already, like you did with everyone else!" she yelled. "I'm not telling you anything!"

Rarity looked up at the sky. Twilight could hear it too. More soldiers were coming.

"We need to get back underground," Twilight said.

"Underground?! We just got to the surface!"

"Yes," Twilight said, "but if we don't get out of here, we're going to be craters on the surface!"

"Hello!" The pegasus was struggling against the magic. "I'm still here, you know!"

"Come on," Twilight said, finding a small building with an open door. "There's a ladder leading back down over here. We'll take Ms. Pretty-Colors over here in for a little talk."

"That's Airman Rainbow Dash to you!"

Both of them turned. Twilight was tempted to get her a little kick, but refrained from doing so. Instead, she lessened her magic on the pegasus's front hooves, and proceeded to drag her towards the ladder, her rump high in the air.

"You just wait until my buddies get here! None of you scientists are gonna get anything out of me!"

It was like pulling an angry Ursa. Rainbow Dash just didn't want to let up on the struggle, and never seemed to run out of energy to do so. Even when they reached the ladder, and tossed her to the bottom, she barely seemed winded from the fall.

"I say! Careful, Twilight! We want to interrogate her, not use to her mop the floor!"

"Yeah," Twilight said, using what magic she had left to steady herself on the ladder. "Plenty of time for that after the interrogation," she mumbled to herself. "Where are we, anyway?"

They followed another ladder down and looked around.

"We seem to be in some back-door to the storage area," Rarity said.

"Yeah, right," Rainbow Dash said. "This is probably some lair you scientists built for military interrogations. Go ahead! Torture me!"

Twilight rolled her eyes. "This is torture enough."

=========================================================

The tunnels seemed to go on forever, but after climbing through some vents and rounding some corners, they finally came out into the bright familiar light of the storage room, dragging Rainbow Dash kicking and screaming with them. Or, she would have been screaming bad Rarity not gagged her with magic.

"Doesn't she ever run out of energy?" Twilight said. "Honestly, she's been doing this for, what, 30 minutes now? This is ridiculous!"

"Where are we, anyway?" Rarity looked around to get her bearings before finally slamming a hoof to her forehead. "Starswirl's Beard! We're right back where we started!"

"WHAT?!"

Twilight looked around, and sure enough, they were right back at the elevator they had come out of from the office complex, although the elevator itself was now on the other side of a glass window.

"This is... wait, we must be... in that security station we saw when we first came in!"

"Indeed you are."

Both of them turned to see a brown stallion working on standing up. He was bleeding from the side, but he was healthy enough to talk.

"Are you okay?" Twilight asked, coming over for a closer look at the wound.

"I'd feel better if that soldier wasn't here with us," he said, nodding at Rainbow Dash.

"We were kind of hoping to get some information out of her," Twilight said. "They don't exactly seem all that friendly, considering they were here to rescue us."

The pony cocked his eyebrow. "Indeed." He turned and walked over to some monitors, where Twilight could see into the other rooms. Soldiers were on patrol everywhere. There wasn't a single monitor that showed an empty room.

"What do we—" Rarity cleared her throat before Twilight could finish her sentence. "I... mean. So!" She walked up to Rainbow Dash. "Why exactly do you want to kill us so much?"

Rainbow Dash mumbled behind her gag.

"She probably thought you two caused all this," the brown pony said. "There's really only one safe place to go from here."

They watched as he walked over to a panel and pushed a large red button. The enormous silo door on the other side of the glass creaked and slowly opened.

"The missile silo?!" Twilight said. "You really think a missile silo is a good place to hide?"

"If it'll get you away from the military," he said. "The soldiers won't want to explore that place too much. It's chock full of radiation, hazardous chemicals, gas leaks, hot steam, crushing equipment, and exposed electrical wiring."

Twilight, Rarity, and even Rainbow Dash looked up at the pony. None of them had anything to say to this.

"Of course," he went on, "I'm sure it's nothing your hazardous environment suit couldn't handle." He leaned in to Twilight. "You wouldn't happen to have been at ground zero, would you?"

Twilight just stared at him.

"At any rate, the silo is probably the best way to get to the Lambda Complex. With the transit system out of commission, the only other way would be on the surface—and I really doubt you'll want to be going there any time soon."

"Wait," Twilight finally caught her breath. "Did you say Lambda Complex?"

"Indeed, I did!" He turned around, holding his side. "Why, if anypony can end this thing, it's them. Darn science team, delving into extra-dimensional portals. They should have known that—"

Rainbow Dash started squirming and screaming against her gag, throwing her head in his direction, as if trying to point her hoof at him and say "there!"

"Calm down," Rarity said. "Really! For a soldier, you sure are whiny."

Rainbow Dash glared at her.

"Anyway, you three had best make your way in there before the soldiers find you."

He turned and pressed another button to open a door to let them out.

"What about you?" Twilight asked.

"Me?" The stallion turned. "Oh, don't worry about me. I'd only slow you down." He went back to a corner and slumped to the floor. "I'm not long for this world anyway."

Twilight heard Rarity swallow, and knew she was feeling the same twang of guilt that Twilight was.

"We... well... thank you," Twilight said. "We'll... we'll send someone back for you, if we ever get this straightened out."

"Don't bother," was all he said.

Taking a deep breath, Twilight and Rarity turned towards the silo access.

"Do you want to drag her, or should I?" Twilight asked.

Rarity looked down at the struggling Rainbow Dash and sighed.

"I suppose you've had your share."

Twilight watched as the purple magic turned to white, and then led the way through the massive door, and into the dark passage leading into the silo.

Blast Bit

View Online

"QUIIIIIIIEEEEEEEET!"

Twilight had been hacking away at a boarded-up passage with her crowbar, and stopped to scream at the wiggling blue pony.

"I can't even think with her making all that noise. Even with her gagged!"

Rarity just rolled her eyes, tightening her magic around Rainbow Dash's muzzle.

"Twilight, I really don't think we should be going this way. I mean, don't ponies put boards over an entrance for a reason?"

Twilight walked around exasperated. "Do you see another way to go?" She trotted back to the silo entrance, slamming her hooves into the ground the whole way. "They bolted the door shut after we went through! It's not like we could go back if we wanted to."

She swung her crowbar into it, making a satisfying clang.

"Besides, every other door in this entire place is locked up tight. Just look around us!"

All around them was a dark, dank area. The sound of the ventilation from the storage area they had left was replaced by complete silence, save for the sound of some dripping water in the distance, and the loud "MMMPH!" sounds from Rainbow Dash struggling against her ties and gag. The few lights around them barely lit the concrete floors, and all the pipes along the ceiling were rusted over.

"By all means," Twilight continued, "if you see a pleasant, inviting door with a welcome mat, do let me know."

Twilight went back to the boarded-up hallway and continued to hack away, content with hearing the satisfying THWACK of each hit.

"Well, now, dear," Rarity said, "there's no need to use that tone." She shrunk back into one of the corners, using her magic to drag Rainbow Dash with her. "You know," she said quietly to Rainbow Dash, "you could be a bit quieter."

Twilight imagined Rainbow Dash rolling her eyes, but didn't bother to turn around to see. The boards were taking forever to knock down, and her arms were getting sore from all the swinging. She let out an exasperated groan amid Rainbow Dash's muffled yells.

"Darling!" Rarity said, "Are you sure you wouldn't like some help?!"

Twilight swung her crowbar into another board, feeling it start to crack. "Well," she said, "you could start by tightening your grip on that grunt's muzzle." She swung the crowbar again and slammed it satisfyingly into the cracked board, and watched as it broke in two, and fell to the floor.

"You don't think I've tried?" Rarity said. "If I make it any tighter, she might not have a muzzle!"

Twilight lifted her crowbar again, finding the next board. Fine with me, she thought. At least that would make it quieter in here.

A few boards later, Twilight caught a glimpse of light on the other side. She put down her crowbar with a clang and peered through, pressing her face against the wood.

"I think I see something," she said. "It looks like a... well, it's some sort of really big room. I can't really tell from this angle." Twilight was concentrating so hard, she hardly noticed that Rainbow Dash had fallen silent. "I think we can get through here, but it might take a few more min—er—hours." She took a deep breath and picked up her crowbar with a sigh.

"Really," Rarity said, "I simply can't stand watching you do all the work! Can't I at least use my magic to help?"

Twilight rolled her eyes. "If you use your magic on this, you might lose your grip on Mr. Wings over there. The last thing we need is a pegasus flying around here like some lost moth."

Rainbow Dash let out another yell, much louder than the others.

"AH!" Twilight groaned, "make it STOP!" She threw her hooves into the air and over her head. "You know what? Forget it! I'm sick of hammering these boards!" She lit her horn and grabbed one of the grenades from her suit.

Now, even Rarity started yelling out in protest as Twilight magicked the grenade through the hole and pulled the pin.

"All right, every pony," Twilight yelled. "MOVE!" She galloped out of the way, and caught a glimpse of a screaming, panicking Rarity flailing a wide-eyed Rainbow Dash behind her. Both of them cradled into a corner and put their hooves over their heads as the blast hit their ears. Twilight winced from the pain, forgetting how much a loud noise could hurt.

All of them waited a few seconds in silence as the wood chips settled and the air cleared. She sensed, rather than heard, Rarity getting to her hooves.

"Have you gone INSANE, dear?!" Rarity spewed. "Honestly, you seem to be turning the most mundane tasks into some sort of... of... demolitions competition! I swear to Celestia, I'm never going to get my hearing back when we're done with this!"

Rainbow Dash could be seen in the corner, some of the color missing from her face.

"And of all the things to blow up, you just HAD to use your precious grenades on a bunch of wooden boards! You didn't think that we might need those in case we, oh I don't know, GET ATTACKED BY ALIENS?!"

Twilight felt a cold sweat start to pour down her neck, and tried not to look Rarity in the face.

"Oh, and," she added, lowering her voice to a whisper, "I almost forgot to mention, you nearly got us killed, dear. That might be an important fact."

Twilight tried to move, and found herself unable to. She could still see Rarity's face in her mind, even though all her eyes saw was the cold, dark pavement at her hooves. She opened her mouth to apologize, and only managed to make a high-pitched squeak come out instead.

"I—" Rarity started to speak up again, before exhaling and sighing deeply. Twilight looked up to see Rarity look down at the ground, and then turn around towards the corner where Rainbow Dash was.

Rainbow Dash was still in the corner. Her magic bindings were off, but she hadn't moved one inch. Both Twilight and Rarity seemed to notice the unbound Rainbow Dash at the same time, and just stared.

Rainbow spread her wings and lifted her head slightly, shifting her eyes.

"What?"

Rarity looked back at Twilight before turning back to Rainbow.

"You're... still here?" Rarity squeaked, as though her voice would frighten her away.

Rainbow gave them a bewildered look. "Uh, yeah?" She indicated the room by glancing around. "Kinda lost in here." She started to get up. "Besides, you two are too busy blowing yourselves up to bother hurting me." She got up and stretched her wings.

Rarity and Twilight were still staring at her.

"I—but—aren't you—" Rarity stuttered. "We have weapons!" She tried pointer her hoof to the pistol on her shoulder, and nearly fell over. There was a clatter on the ground as the gun fell out of its holster.

Rainbow Dash looked down at Rarity picking it up. "I'll take my chances," she said.

Twilight put her hoof to her face. "Well, at least she won't be making a racket anymore," she said quietly to herself. "Why in the world didn't we just—" she thought about what would have happened if they hadn't bound her in the first place, and decided it was for the best.

Rarity gave a loud, disgruntled sigh as she levitated the pistol back in place. She turned back at Twilight and stuck her hoof into Twilight's chest. "Don't," she said, putting her face right up to Twilight's, "ever do that again."

Twilight watched as Rarity walked through the debris and into the big room on the other side. Rainbow Dash was still stretching, now lying on the ground with her body laid out as much as she could muster.

"Well, come on, Mr. Grunt," Twilight said, rolling her eyes, "you can stretch later." She turned around and muttering wishfully, "Maybe there's a gym somewhere around here we don't know about."

=========================================================

Twilight felt her hoof slip on one of the ladder bars and groaned as she regained her balance.

"Why in Equestria does this place have so many ladders?!"

She looked around at the large pit she and Rarity were descending into. It could have easily housed the small library room she lived in back in Canterlot. But, somehow, she couldn't imagine anything being less like Canterlot. The concrete was gone now, replaced by a dark, rusty metal, lit poorly by the glaring overhead lights. There was a large concrete platform in the center of the pit, surrounded by a black-and-yellow striped warning trim, that looked like it might be a door of some sort, but none of them could figure out how to get it open. Looking up, Twilight could still see remnants of the area above the pit, including the small head of Rainbow Dash peering curiously at them.

Rainbow Dash had decided to stay at the top, in case she discovered a way to open the door from the top. Both Twilight and Rarity had searched with her for a while and never did find anything, but Rainbow swore she didn't see anything when she flew down there. Twilight doubted Rainbow would find another route up there, but she still tried to keep a close eye on her anyway.

"Darling!" she heard the voice of Rarity above her. Twilight looked up, but only saw Rarity's large rump intruding upon her face, and tried to ignore the face-full-of-tail that kept brushing all around her. "Darling," she continued, "I—I think I'm slipping."

Twilight looked forward again and felt a large weight drop on her head. She tried pushing back against it, but her own hooves quickly slipped off the bars as well. Twilight felt an all-too-familiar jolt in her stomach and light scream from Rarity.

Luckily, the fall wasn't very far, and they collapsed on the ground a second later. Rarity groaned, partially bruised, but Twilight's suit absorbed the impact. "I hate ladders," Twilight sighed.

"Having fun down there?!" Rainbow Dash yelled, head still peering over the edge.

Twilight looked up at the blue dot of a head, silhouetted against the glaring lights on the ceiling, and gave as scathing a glare as she could muster. Rainbow had decided to take it as a blessing that she was stuck with a couple of jesters to keep her entertained. After letting her loose to fly around the room, Twilight and Rarity had made a number of blunders while searching for a way out, including one involving a headcrab zombie and an explosive container. Rainbow had found these encounters increasingly amusing, and was now giggling at almost any small blunder they made.

"Oh, by the way," Rainbow continued, a hint of satisfaction in her voice, "I think I found something!" She stifled a laugh. "You two—" she put a hoof to her mouth, "You two wanna come up and have a look?!"

This was followed by a large spurt of giggles, to which Twilight rolled her eyes. She tried to toss a few magic bullets her way, only to find herself yelling "OW!" as she remembered her horn was still bad. This only made Rainbow laugh even louder.

"You two are a riot!" she said, finally calming down enough to talk. She was peering back over the edge again. "I wonder if all scientists are like this!" She scratched her head, "I shoulda become a security guard. Who needs TV when you have this?!"

Twilight watched Rainbow turn around and out of sight. She could still hear her giggling as she retreated.

"You don't suppose," she heard Rarity say behind her, "she actually found something?"

Twilight rolled her eyes. "It doesn't matter," she said. "It's not like she has any place to go—not unless she found some sort of secret trap door, at least." She considered this as she got her bearings. This may as well have been the kind of place that had all sorts of hidden areas that lead to secret compartments and maintenance areas, very few of which (she hoped) lead anywhere in particular.

Rarity was already ahead of her, studying the lighter-metal "door" sunk into the bottom of the hole they were standing in. Twilight caught up, stepping over the black-yellow warning trim, and noticed the step onto the sunken door was much deeper than it looked from above.

"Are you sure this is safe?" Twilight asked Rarity. She stepped down and walked up to join Rarity. "What if this thing opens while we're standing on it?"

"Oh, don't silly, darling," Rarity said, not bothering to look back. "There couldn't possibly be anything else that operates this thing! See for yourself!"

Twilight followed Rarity's hoof, and noticed there was a large vertical beam extending from the back of the door-pit, with a small light a good ways up. It had been so camouflaged that Twilight hadn't noticed it until she had walked right up to it.

"See those buttons up there?" Rarity asked. "Those have to be what opens this thing."

"Up... there?" Twilight asked slowly. "Rarity! We can't even reach that high! How are ponies supposed to open this thing if the controls are out of reach?!"

Rarity turned around and rolled her eyes. "Well, I don't know, darling. Maybe the ponies who work down here are taller?"

Now it was Twilight's turn to roll her eyes. "Let's just ask Rainbow to come down here. It'll be easier than finding a ladder to cli—"

A klaxon sounded, filling the room with echoing alarms so loud, they made the air feel thicker. Twilight covered her ears instinctively before remembering her ears were already dampened to loud sounds from all the gunfire. She could still see Rarity's hide standing on end from when she had jumped from surprise.

"What in Equestrian is that?!" she screamed.

Twilight almost had to lip-read to hear her. "I don't know!" she yelled back, "but I think we should—AH!" She felt the floor shift out, nearly making her fall on her face. "The platform!" she screamed, catching her balance. "MOVE!"

They slammed into each other, still panicking, before noticing the doors had already conveyed them to the edge of the pit. Twilight jumped onto the side, pulling herself forward and onto the yellow-black trim. Rarity had been right behind her, and had jumped on top of Twilight. Judging by the weight, the floor had completely swept back, and was no longer supporting them.

Twilight groaned as she felt Rarity claw herself over Twilight back, being sure to knock Twilight's head around as she reached the end. "Rarity!" She felt the weight lift. The klaxons shut off a few seconds later as Twilight got to her hooves. "For gosh sake, Rarity! You couldn't have—"

Twilight jumped as a loud metal clang rang out behind her. Rarity did the same. Silence took over again, and Twilight once again became painfully aware of the ringing in her ears.

"Well, that was interesting," Twilight said, turning around. "I wonder what—"

"AWESOME!"

Both Twilight and Rarity looked up to see an annoying flare of rainbow shoot down from above and land right where the sunken door used to be. She flared her wings and posed like some great war hero on top of a large lift that wasn't there a second ago: one which covered the entire pit, and was high enough to allow a pony to reach the switches on the poll.

"I knew that had to do something!" she said triumphantly. "Too bad you two were too busy—rolling—around down here." She rolled her eyes in different directions as she said this.

Twilight didn't even bother dignifying that with a response.

"Hey, don't look at me that way!" she said. "I just helped you two find the way out of here!" She turned around and trotted up to the buttons in the back. "Now, I wonder what these do."

Twilight was about to casually step onto the lift, but was caught off guard by Rainbow's statement. "RAINBOW! NO!" she shouted out, already seeing her hoof hovering over the switch. She didn't bother to wait to see what she would do. Rarity's tail was already in her mouth, and she was flinging her onto the lift.

"Twilight! What are you—"

No sooner had Rarity hit the lift than Rainbow's hoof hit the switch.

The lift didn't so much "descend" as "plummet". Twilight felt a tremendous force on her muzzle, which was still holding on for dear life to Rarity's tail, and felt her entire body yanked forward and down. Every muscle in her body tightened. The lift was moving so fast that she remained suspended above it for a few seconds.

Unfortunately, a few seconds was all it took for the lift to reach the bottom, and by the time Twilight found her bearings on the lift, she felt the uncomfortable sensation of her hooves collapsing from under her and her face slamming into metal.

Silence ensued, which was followed by a very long, muffled groan directed into the ground.

Twilight heard the sound of gently flapping wings, and imagined Rainbow Dash lightly touching down on the lift. Twilight was already clenching her teeth, trying to prevent a few choice words from slipping out, even before prying her face from the ground.

"Well, this place looks... different," she heard Rainbow say.

Twilight was already pulling her face up. It stretched for a moment, skin still clinging to the metal, before snapping off with the sound of a cork popping. Her eyes derped for a few seconds, a few stars rotating over her head, before she finally shook out her mane and clenched her teeth in a snarl.

Rarity was busy laying on her side and rubbing her temple with a stunned look still on her face.

"Hmmm..." Rainbow contemplated, flying off the lift. "Looks like this place actually goes somewhere."

Twilight followed Rainbow with her eyes, and gasped as an enormous tunnel came into view. It was still just as dimly lit as the room they were just in, if not darker, but unlike that room, this place actually went somewhere.

She was so busy taking in the enormous space—the vaulted ceiling, the small walkway on the side, the way the lift suspended over the floor, the suspended walkways surrounding it, and a small object she couldn't quite make out—that she didn't even notice Rainbow Dash hovering around in contemplation. The next thing she heard was Rainbow turning around.

"Well... er..." she started, before a sudden "thanks guys gottago!"

A SWOOSH followed, and Twilight only caught the tail-end of the rainbow streak left behind.

"RAINBOW!" Twilight yelled. She turned back to Rarity, who was still getting her bearings. "Well, that's great. That's juuuust great!" She furrowed her brows, feeling her face grow hot. "She just flew off!"

She turned around, face still red, and heard Rarity trot up behind her. She sensed, rather than felt, Rarity put a hoof on Twilight's shoulder.

"Maybe it's for the best, Darling," she said. "She is, after all, a soldier. We're lucky she didn't just kill us as soon as she was set free."

This only made Twilight angrier.

"She could have told us something. She could have helped us!" She turned back to Rarity. "Can you imagine how useful it would have been to have an actual military soldier with us?!"

Rarity withdrew her hoof. "Dangerous, more like," she muttered.

Twilight ignored her, and carefully walked to the edge of the suspended walkway and dropped down to the tunnel floor. "How in Equestria are we going to catch up to her?!"

"Darling." She heard Rarity drop down to the floor with her. "I don't think we need to—"

"OF COURSE WE NEED TO!" Twilight turned around and blurted out. "I mean—" she calmed down upon seeing Rarity's reaction. She sighed. "Look, I don't think there's any way we can stand a chance at surviving this without some help." she explained. "Now," she walked up to Rarity, "if you want to continue wandering around here, with nothing but the pistol on your shoulder, and a pony who only half understands how the sub-machine gun she's wielding works, be my guest, but I really, really, seriously think we could use someone who really knows what they're doing."

Rarity gave her a look that a mother might give to an upset child. "You really believe Rainbow Dash knew what she was doing?"

"Why, of cour—" Twilight stopped herself mid-sentence. She put her hoof back on the ground, which was hovering around to help make her point. Rarity's statement hit harder than the floor of the lift when it had slammed into her face. She hung her head and scowled. "No," she said blankly.

"Good," Rarity said simply. She walked past Twilight, continuing her own train of thought. "Now then, we should think about the best way forward," she said, walking up to a small object on the tracks that Twilight hadn't noticed a moment ago. "This train might help."

Twilight's head sprung up. "Train?! Really?!" She galloped forward, and found that the "small" object had really been a rather large object a ways away. As she approached, a small electric cart came into view. She also realized, looking down at the floor, was that what the black metal beams that she assumed were just reinforcing the floor were really embedded train rails.

She looked back up at the small cart. "That's... not really a train, Rarity," she said, catching her breath. "It's more of a wooden platform on a rail. They may call it a train, but it's more of an electric-powered cargo hauler. They made me ride one of these back in the hazard course."

Rarity cocked an eye at her.

"It doesn't really go that fast," Twilight said, boarding the platform and studying the metal box mounted on the front, "but it should get us where we need to be."

The top of the orange box she was looking at was full of switches and knobs, all of which Twilight knew exactly how to operate. She flipped one of them as Rarity boarded behind her, and heard the satisfying sound of the "cargo hauler" come to life.

"Looks like this one's three speeds," she said. "The other one was only two. Maybe it'll get us there faster?"

She gently push the lever forward until it clunked into the first speed. The train lurched forward, catching Rarity off guard.

"A-a-are you sure this is safe, dear?" Rarity said, catching her balance.

Twilight was carefully keeping her eye on all the gauges. "I'm not sure how long this thing has been down here. It seems to be a little rusty."

She pushed the lever another notch, and felt another jarring increase in speed. Rarity had put both hooves around Twilight's waist.

They were moving a lot faster than Twilight had thought. The lift they had gotten off was fading into the distance. The tunnel was curving now, and both of them were keeping a close eye on what was ahead of them.

"Uh, Twilight?"

Rarity was pointing her hoof at some green dots approaching them. Twilight had seen them before Rarity had even stuck her hoof out, and recognized them as those strange hound things Twilight had protected Spike against in the sewage area. She could hear them yipping in the distance.

"Don't worry," she said, pushing the lever one more click. "Full speed ahead!"

She felt another lurch as the train sped up again. The wind was whipping her mane around, and part of her felt the exhilaration of the moment. The green dots very quickly approached, and turned into green blurs before passing on their left or their right. One of the dots was right in front of them, and looked confused on which way to go.

"Twilight, we're going to—"

SPLAT!

Twilight and Rarity flinched as they felt a light bump.

"Maybe we should slow down, dear!" she heard Rarity say.

Twilight was starting to agree with her. The speed was a lot of fun, and certainly helped to avoid alien contact, but there wasn't much they could do if they ran into a larger obstacle.

The walls were a blur, and the ride had become one ceiling-light passing by after another. Occasionally a large creature would pass by, but aside from the splats of "rail kill" and the constant churning of the electric motor and metal-on-metal wheels, there wasn't much to the monotony.

That was, until the tunnel straightened out.

"Dear, you might want to slow down."

"I see it!" Twilight said, pressing some controls.

There was a very bright green light at the end of the tunnel, and both of them were having to shield their eyes. Neither of them could see well enough to see what was beyond, but they both doubted the rails extended beyond that point. Boxes were coming into view, sitting on the rails beside some of the aliens. Twilight yelled out as the ones sitting on the rail explosively turned into flying wooden chips as the "train" plowed into them. Both Rarity and Twilight ducked, hooves flailing over their heads, as this happened.

"Twilight, SLOW DOWN!"

Twilight's hooves were going crazy over the control panel. One of her hooves was yanking on the speed switch. "I can't!" she yelled, looking up at the fast-approaching green glow.

They were close enough now to see that it was, in fact, a large vat of green glowing liquid. Twilight could hear a faint ticking from her suit which in the back of her mind sounded like a Geiger counter. Pipes wound around above the fluid, extending from the walls. Many were leaking the glowing goo, and there were small specks of debris floating around the small lake.

"Twilight! Gate! Board! WOODEN THING!"

Twilight's eyes went wide as she saw the parking gate ahead, with a large concrete barrier just beyond. Twilight's hooves stopped, and she felt herself go into a small trance. A few choice moments flashed before her eyes as the gate flew up to them and snapped into a slew of wooden chips. Twilight and Rarity instinctively grabbed onto each other in a tight embrace, scrunching their eyes. There was a loud bang as the train collided.

Twilight only remembered the next second or two as a bunch of flailing hooves, blurred glimpses of pipes and metal, and a very bright green light. Did she scream? Was Rarity next to her the whole time? Did anypony see them? Twilight couldn't say. All she could remember was the painful pinch on the back of her neck, followed by an even more painful upward jerk.

She kept flailing her hooves in an outright panic, and didn't even take note of the fact she wasn't falling anymore. It wasn't until she had "floated" over the concrete at the back of the lake that she noticed she was being carried. She stopped flailing her hooves, and felt her head spin. She felt like she had just run a marathon.

"W-WHA-AA-A-AT?!" she could barely let out.

She drifted gently down until she felt her hooves touch ground before feeling the pain in her neck go away suddenly. She collapsed, feeling the ground slam first into her hooves, and then into the rest of her body. She wished she could take off the suit so she could feel the satisfaction of the cold ground against her bare hide.

For the first time since they had seen the barrier, she heard the sound of Rarity's voice. It was just a bunch of groans and sighs, but it was still clearly recognizable as her voice.

Twilight tried to get up, and promptly collapsed again as her wobbly knees couldn't hold her weight.

"R---r-rarity?"

She tried looking around, and noticed a solid metal wall marking the end of the tunnel. Behind her, the green liquid still glowed brightly, casting shimmering shadows on the wall.

"R-Rarity!" she said again, this time having a little better luck getting to her hooves. "Rarity, what just—"

"SERIOUSLY!" a voice sounded above her, "You two really need to get your acts together!"

Twilight's head snapped up, nearly making her overbalance and collapse again.

There, floating above them with the most sarcastic scowl Twilight had ever seen on a mare, was Rainbow Dash.

"YOU!" Twilight gasped. She had to rub her eyes just to be sure she was actually seeing correctly. "YOU saved us?!"

She stared as Rainbow floated onto the ground. Rainbow couldn't help but strike a pose at these words, although her scowl was still somewhat present.

Twilight barely noticed Rarity coming to her senses. It wasn't until she heard the words "Twilight, what in Equestria just- RAINBOW!" that she finally turned around to see Rarity starring dumbfounded right at Rainbow Dash. "You have GOT to be kidding!"

Twilight walked slowly up to her, mouth still agape, struggling with whether to say thank you, ask her why she saved them, or simply slap her in the face. What ended up coming out was a stuttered combination of all three.

"Wha—but you... how—and why?! And—"

Rarity's eyes went even wider. "Did you just... save our lives!?"

A hint of red tinged Rainbow's cheeks, and she made a funny smile. "I, uh..."

"So, wait," Twilight thought. "You actually went out of your way to save a us? A couple of clumsy scientists?" Twilight emphasized the word clumsy.

"No! I mean yes! I mean—" Rainbow was retreating into the corner and smiled with a small squeak.

Twilight's gape instinctively turned into a smile, and then into smirk. She walked up to Rainbow, half-knowingly, and slowly said "And here I never would have thought! A soldier, actually caring about a couple scientists!"

As if Rainbow couldn't have gone any redder, she somehow defied all the laws of color by turning even more red.

Twilight found herself starting to chuckle at this, and turned to Rarity, who started to smile as well.

"Well, what do you know," Rarity said, walking up to Rainbow. "Our military soldier has feelings after all!"

"Guys, really! It was just something I—" Rainbow said, starting to cower against the wall. "I mean, I only—"

Twilight and Rarity forced themselves to stop smirking, and walked up to Rainbow. Twilight patted her lightly on the head.

"Don't worry, Mr. Airman Rainbow Dash," she said. "We won't tell a soul." She closed her eyes as she said this. "Just so long," she looked back down with a smirk, "as you tell us your story."

Rainbow Dash stood up. "My story," she said, sounding relieved. Some of the color came back into her cheeks. "My story! Oh, of course! Sure." She looked around. "I'll... get right on that."

She flew up, eager to get away from the awkward situation.

=========================================================

"I have to admit," Rarity said, descending in the arms of Rainbow Dash, "having a pegasus around is a big help."

Twilight was standing inside one of the pipes that ran from the walls above the vat of radioactive goo. They had just gotten done searching the entire area for an exit, and determined that the only way out was through one of these pipes. Twilight admitted this wasn't the optimal solution, since it could potentially lead them somewhere really bad, like the source of all the radiation, but none of them had come up with a better idea.

Rainbow Dash had just finished lowering Rarity inside the pipe. They were lucky to find an opening in the pipe to climb through. Luckily, these pipes were so old that many had completely rusted through, resulting not only in leaking goo, but also some rather large openings in the top for them to enter through.

What was more curious about the general area, however, was the fact that the tunnel simply stopped. The cargo train didn't have anywhere to go beyond the lake of goo. Twilight made the suggestion that, perhaps the radioactive lake used to be some sort of lift that would carry the crates somewhere further. The others thought it more likely, though, that the construction crew simply abandoned the train project. Whatever the case, the pipes seemed to be the only way to go.

"You still have your flashlight, Twilight?" Rarity asked.

This was, of course, a rhetorical question. Twilight's flashlight was bound to her suit. It was simply Rarity's way to reminding her it was there.

A click indicated that Twilight had switched it on. They all looked through the pipe in its new brightly lit glory.

It was empty.

"Sure you don't want me to fly ahead?" Rainbow asked.

Rainbow was still getting over her embarrassment, but she was doing much better since they started looking for the exit. She found pride in her ability to use her wings to help looking around from a distance.

"I'm sure," Twilight said. "You couldn't see anything anyway. I'm the one with the light, remember?"

Twilight walked forward, and lead the way through the pipe, her hooves clanging against the hollow metal. It was a noisy process, but they were glad their hooves were the only thing they could hear. No sound meant no rushing fluid coming their way, or anything else that might surprise them.

"So," Rainbow Dash started. They had only been walking for a few seconds, but it felt much longer. "The guy back at the entrance says this is a silo complex. Do you scientists really keep missiles down here? Or are silos just used for testing and stuff?"

Twilight had nearly forgotten that this was supposed to lead to a silo. So far, she hadn't seen a single sign since the entrance. Nevertheless, her mind felt compelled to correct her.

"The missiles themselves are never actually stored in test silos," she said. "The parts are brought in and tested, and then carted to another area to be assembled."

She pondered a bit to be sure what she said was correct.

"Unless," she put in, "the silo is really a housing for a missile prepped to launch. But that's not the kind that we're going to... I think."

Rainbow seemed much more interested than she should have. She pulled up right beside Twilight, wide-eyed.

"Is that what happened at ground zero?" she asked. "Did you set off a missile? Did it blow up?"

Twilight sighed. "We're not going to see a missile, Rainbow. Or a rocket. Or anything with any kind of cross-Equestrian propulsion system prepped with an explosive." She rolled her eyes. "The most we could possibly see is a rocket thruster, and even then, it'll be disabled." She glared back at Rainbow, "And no, we weren't in a missile silo when this all happened." She looked back toward with a blank stare and squeaked, "We were in a test chamber for an anti-mass spectrometer."

Rainbow's eyes went even wider. "Wow," she said blankly. "Geeky."

Twilight turned back to her, trying not to roll her eyes again. "Shouldn't we be the ones asking the questions?" She stopped, and Rainbow almost passed right by her. "I mean, why are all you guys trying to kill us?! Shouldn't you all be—oh, I don't know—trying to rescue us?!"

"WHOA, whoa, whoa!" Rainbow put her hooves up in defense. "We don't rescue," she said. "We clean!" she said with a flourish. "That's our job." She thought for a moment. It looked like hard work. "Actually, that's just what they told us. We're not exactly officially part of the HECU."

"The what?" Twilight asked.

"It's," Rainbow put her hoof behind her neck, "some kind of strange clean-up crew. I don't remember what it stands for. They basically just ripped us out of the armed forces or wherever we came from, and told us they had a mission for us."

Rainbow put her hoof back on the ground and stood there, but Twilight kept waiting for more.

"and?" Twilight asked.

"And," Rainbow thought, "they basically just told us they were sending us to some big facility of some sort, and to kill everyone and everything in sight. Said it was some sort of dangerous hazard to all of Equestria, and that the entire place was... er... contaminated? I don't know."

"You didn't listen to the briefing?!"

"I did!" Rainbow said. "Right up until the words "kill everything". After that, I kinda blanked out."

Twilight lowered her face into her hoof and sighed. "So you don't even know why you're here." She looked up. "Do you at least know who sent you? Who recruited you?"

"We never ask," Rainbow said. "We just go where they want us to go. We're not supposed to ask questions. For all we knew, you all were a bunch of mad Frankenstallion scientists, mixing up evil goo, and bringing back ponies from the dead!"

"That's... not... what...." Twilight felt her face go read from hearing this despicable misconception of science, but pushed it into the back of her mind.

"Pardon me," Rarity interrupted, making both Twilight and Rainbow Dash turn. Rarity winced as the flashlight glared in her eyes. "Ah! Point that somewhere—"

"Sorry."

The light flared to the side.

"Thanks. Anyway, I was wondering. Aren't soldiers supposed to be all armored, and have all sorts of weapons and tools and stuff? As far as I can tell, you're not wearing anything at all, dear!"

Twilight smirked. The whole facility in ruin, and she asks about clothes. she thought.

"I—" Rainbow looked hurt. "Look, I don't like being weighed down, all right?! I'm a flyer! Those stupid uniforms don't make any sense!"

"When you're flying, dear, I can see that," Rarity continued, "but in a place like this?!"

"What can I say?" Rainbow said, a little louder, "I guess I just like going all natural!"

"Well, I couldn't possibly stand getting all mucky down here in these areas! Why, if given the choice, I'd suit up in something just as full-bodied as Twilight's suit."

"You would, wouldn't you!"

"Uh... girls?" Twilight started.

Both Rarity and Rainbow Dash looked at Twilight. Neither had noticed how they had been inching towards each other the whole time. There was an awkward silence as they realized they were still standing in a damp, dark tube that could barely fit all three of them.

Twilight indicated with her flashlight. "Could we, maybe, move along?"

Rarity's left eye twitched. "O-of course, dear! We were just... having some casual conversation, that's all." She daintily walked past Twilight before realizing she was blocking the flashlight. "Right, this way," she said, walking back behind Twilight.

Twilight didn't even bother rolling her eyes, and kept walking forward.

"So," Rainbow said, "do they, like, have a stash of those suits somewhere? I mean, not that I'd wear one," she said, flicking her eyes at Rarity, "but those things look kinda cool."

Twilight reached a sharp turn to the left and waited until everypony reached the end up the tube before turning the flashlight in their direction.

"They must have a number of them," Twilight said. "They spent the money on an entire course for it, so I would imagine there are at least enough for each major location to have two or three."

"Yeah," Rainbow said. "if you all work in this green goo all day, I can understand why."

"We don't work in green goo, Rainbow Dash, and if you'd just—"

She was interrupted by the sound of giggling. Twilight scowled, "Can we just move forward? There's a light up ahead, and I'd like to get out of here before we're all covered in goo!"

Rainbow still giggled silently to herself as they all approached the end of the tunnel.

The light was shining from the top of the pipe, which meant they all had to climb out the top. There was no point moving forward in the pipe, since a portion of it was blocked by a strainer grate. Rainbow was the first to shoot out the top, eager to fly again.

"Hey, guys!" she said, sticking her head upside down into the pipe again. "It's a bit of a drop from here. You'll probably wanna watch your step."

Twilight walked the rest of the way and tried sticking her head over the top. Her eyes barely breached the opening.

"I can't quite see. How far is the drop?" she asked. She saw that Rainbow was now perched at the top of the pipe like a sphinx.

"Far enough if would hurt," she said. "I'd carry you, but," she stretched out her wings and arms in a big, histrionic show, "I think I've done enough heavy lifting for today."

"RAINBOW!" Twilight shouted.

"All right! All right!" Rainbow said, jumping off her perch with a scowl. She threw a hoof in Twilight's direction. "But this is the last time!"

Being lifted into the air by two hooves wasn't exactly comfortable, but Twilight would much rather endure the awkwardness than wind up with another fractured ankle. As she was lifted, she took note of how much smaller this "room" was than the others she had been in, and concluded that this was no more than a plumber's maintenance area. The entire place was grungy, and the only things of note were the enormous pipes cluttering the small area, equally as large as the one they were getting out of.

It seemed Rainbow had barely set Twilight down when Rarity chimed in beside her. "Twilight, dear, do you think we're going the right way?" She indicated with her hoof, "This doesn't look at all like a silo."

Rarity had a point. Twilight hated to admit it, but the evidence was mounting. The way to the silo was most likely not through a series of pipes.

"Rainbow Dash," Twilight said, "could you fly ahead and see if this goes anywhere?"

The words "go anywhere" didn't immediately seem to make any sense. The entire room seemed to be a small pipe-filled area with no visible exit. However, it was so convoluted that there may as well have been an open pipe, or (Celestia forbid) a ventilation duct somewhere.

Rainbow Dash agreed enthusiastically, though, and was whooshing around the room so fast that the wind blew their manes around.

A few seconds later, Rainbow Dash disappeared entirely, and it was another moment before Twilight realized she had gone around some kind of corner. She could hear the swooshing around of the air somewhere nearby, and knew Rainbow had to be close.

In fact, considering how long Rainbow was gone, Twilight suggested there must be quite an expansive tunnel or room to explore somewhere, and motioned to Rarity to follow her down the most obvious path through the pipes. It wasn't like they could get lost in a room not much larger than her old living area.

They were nearly close enough to see where the room curved around when another SWOOSH made them nearly jump out of their hide.

"HEY GUYS!" Rainbow shouted. "Big room! HUUUUUGE! You gotta see this!"

Another WHOOSH and she was gone.

Both Twilight and Rarity looked at each other, then up at the pipes, then back to each other. Struggling, they both climbed onto a couple of the larger pipes in the back of the room. From there, they could see the much nicer, more brightly lit hallway that lead away from the room. However, neither of them could reach it.

For one, the floor of the hallway was much higher than the floor of the room, and for two, the suspended walkway it spilled out onto was blocked by hoof-rails too high for them to jump over, even if they could reach the floor.

"How are we—" Rarity started.

SWOOOOSH!

"Hey, sorry guys," Rainbow said, hovering over the suspended walkway. "Guess you two could probably use a lift." She came down over Twilight and wrapped her hooves around her waist. "Trust me, though, this is gonna be worth it!"

=========================================================

Twilight put a hoof up and squinted. They had just rounded the corner of the hallway, and found themselves staring at what Twilight believed to be a large room. She couldn't quite tell, since all she could really see was the blinding green light of what must be kilotons of radioactive material leaked all over the ground. It was taking a while for her eyes to adjust to the glow.

Her Geiger Counter was having a seizure. It sounded like someone turned on a fan and stuck a piece of parchment between the blades.

"I think we missed the silo," Rarity said, turning her head completely to the side and using her entire forearm to shield against the light. "So much for living very long after we get out of here."

Twilight considered going back to the other room, but curiosity got the best of her. There was some sort of walkway over the lake, from the little Twilight could see, and she had to take a look around.

"How did you manage to fly in here?!" she asked Rainbow. "I can barely see anything!"

As an answer, Rainbow flew out into the room. "I just look up," she said simply. "There's no light coming from the ceiling."

Twilight ignored the absurdity of there being no lights on the ceiling, and followed suit. By holding her hoof low enough, she was able to almost completely block the direct light.

The room looked a lot smaller without the glow shining directly in her eyes, and she was able to take in the odd shape. The most notable thing, aside from the very tall ceiling, was that the back wall actually curved outward, as if some sort of large cylindrical building had bumped into it from the outside.

Beyond that, she noticed a large vertical beam rise to the ceiling, and end at a square hole. She later tried squinting at the base of the beam, and thought she could see a square lift to accompany it. Unfortunately, the lift was suspended out in the middle of the lake, and Twilight still couldn't make out the floor without damaging her eyes.

"Rainbow," she said, flailing with her other hoof in the general vicinity of the lift. "Can you fly us over there? That might be a way into the silo."

Rarity must have retreated back into the hallway, as that's where her voice came from.

"The silo?" she asked. "What in the world of Pony Mesa thinks we're anywhere near the silo?!"

Twilight indicated towards the round shape of the back wall, even though Rarity couldn't see it from the hallway.

"There's a sign back there that says "Silo D"" she said, proud of the fact her eyes were starting to adjust. She was quite expecting the gasp from both Rarity and Rainbow Dash.

"I—" Rainbow started, "I knew that!" She crossed her hooves with a smug look, still hovering in mid-air. "I was just... waiting for you two to come in here and see for yourself!"

Twilight retreated into the hallway, which looked extremely dark after coming back from the glow-room, and lead Rarity carefully out into the room. Rarity kept her eyes closed tight the whole time.

"We just need to get to the lift," she said. "We can take it from there."

Rainbow looked insulted. "A lift?!" she shouted. "You guys think a lift can carry you up there better than I can?!"

Twilight hadn't considered this reaction.

Next thing she knew, all the wind was being knocked out of her from the force of Rainbow's hooves.

"I'll show you two a lift!"

Within less than a second, the wind was flailing her mane back. Between the hooves digging into her torso and the sheer speed they were going, Twilight could barely breathe. The room was once again a blur of green light, for which she tried not to look down.

They flew straight up, and everything went dark. She felt her hooves touch ground a moment later. She gasped for breath upon Rainbow letting her go. A WHOOSH signified Rainbow diving back down for Rarity.

Twilight looked up and squinted, this time because of the dark. The glow from the room below washed up through the ceiling and into the hallway she had just been carried into, but it wasn't enough to shed light all the way to the end.

Twilight heard screams from below, and thought about how Rarity must feel in Rainbow's arms. She couldn't quite tell whether they were screams of exhilaration, fright, or surprise, as they kept going back and forth between the three.

The screams increased tenfold as Rainbow surfaced above the hole, and turned into heaving breathing and sighing as she was lowered to the ground.

"Oh..." Rarity said, wobbling on all fours, "I'm seeing stars darling!"

She shook her head violently and turned towards Rainbow Dash with a menacing snarl. "Never, in all my years, has any pony dared picked me up in such a rash way!" She flipped her hair. "I'll have you know I have quite a kick," she said, bucking one of her hind legs, "from some of my ex-stallions." She walked right up to Rainbow and poked her in the chest. "You'd better Watch. Your. Back."

She "Hmmph"ed, and turned around with her head held high.

Twilight continued to squint into the darkness. "Can anypony see anything?" She asked.

"There's not much to see, Darling," Rarity said. "It's just a grey hallway."

Twilight switched her flashlight on, but it looked just as dim as the rest of the hallway. Her pupils were still adjusting.

"Hopefully this place will have less radiation," she said, noticing her Geiger Counter go down to only a few ticks here and there. "Not that it'll help after the amount we were just exposed to."

She turned around. "Rarity, can you lead the way?"

Rarity shook out her mane, and trotted forward. "I may not be a tour guide, but I can most certainly see where I'm going."

Twilight kept a close eye on Rarity's tail, which shimmered against the dark surroundings.

They hadn't gone very far when Rarity stopped abruptly, causing Twilight's head to ram into Rarity's hind quarters, followed by an "Umph!" from Rarity.

Twilight looked around, and could make out a dim green glow, as if from far away, and was finally starting to adjust enough to the darkness to see some silhouettes here and there.

"Oh, my!" Rarity gasped. "Is... is this the silo?!"

As Twilight continued to stare, the silhouettes gained some color, and as they did, even Twilight had to gasp.

They were about mid-way up the entire height of the room, on a catwalk suspended way high above the ground, which was (not surprisingly) glowing a dim green way below them. In the center of the silo was an enormous cylindrical beam which Twilight assumed was "the silo within the silo", and probably housed the missile itself, if there was one. Various other catwalks could be seen at varying heights and directions spanning the space from the inner silo to the walls of the outside—places leading into other hallways like the one they had just come from, and probably housing other facilities adjacent to the silo.

It was still the same dark, damp, metal atmosphere of every other place they had been so far. Twilight could make out some peeling colored paint on many of the walls with the words "Silo D" on them, which were so faded that they almost blended right in with the grey walls.

"So this is the Silo!" Rarity exclaimed. "I had no idea it was so... big!"

Twilight heard some squeaks and murmurs behind her, and turned around to see Rainbow Dash anxiously bouncing around on her hooves. "So... much... room..." she squeaked. It only took Twilight a second to realize what was going on.

"Oh, all right," she said, rolling her eyes. "Go on."

Rainbow shot straight up and immediately launched into the room, sending cascades of Rainbow over every inch of the room. She circled around catwalks, pounced off of walls, climbed the shadows of the ceiling, and even explored a few of the hallways that the catwalks attached to.

Twilight and Rarity watched her, smiling involuntarily as she "whoohoo"ed and "yeah"ed her way around the room. Twilight agreed with Rarity: she certainly added a "dash" of color to the drab.

Five minutes later, Rainbow popped up in front of them, heaving and wiping her brow. She caught her breath quickly.

"That. Was. AWESOME!" she said. "I still say I like being outside. But this has got to be one of the best indoor workout areas I've ever seen!" She turned around and threw her hooves out in a pretend bear-hug of the entire room. "Seriously! If we survive this mess, we need to come back here. I have plans for this place!"

Twilight smiled at her weakly, and turned towards the catwalk as it curved around the perimeter of the silo. "Come on. Let's see if we can't get to the center part."

Rainbow flew in front of them and turned to stop them. "Uh, why?" she asked. "What's in the silo that we need?"

Twilight stopped and thought about this. They had been working this entire time on getting into the silo. Now that they were here, she wasn't quite sure why they had come here, save as a way point to where they were ultimately going.

"To get to the Lambda Complex," she said, closing her eyes and grinning.

Rainbow lowered her eyelids. "And what's in this Lambda Complex, anyway? More dumb scientists?" She threw up her hooves. "Why don't we just get out of here?! Get to the surface! Find a vehicle and leave!"

"Easy for you to say," Rarity chimed. "You're a soldier! They won't be hunting you." She flipped her hair. "In case you haven't noticed, you grunts are kind of trying to kill us."

Rainbow scratched the back of her neck. "I guess." She looked around. "Still, it's a better option than being stuck down here, or being crammed into some small room with a bunch of other scientists who have no idea what they're doing."

"You don't know that!" Twilight said. "If we can create a situation like this, I'm sure we're smart enough to clean it up! We just need enough time."

Now it was Rainbow's turn to roll her eyes. "Yeah, right. You two don't even know how to work a gun."

Twilight was about to leap out at her, but Rarity put a hoof on her shoulder. "Let it go, dear."

They all went silent for a minute and stared at the ground. Even Rainbow hovered onto the ground with the rest of them. They walked around the catwalk of the Silo for a while, and noted the way it sharply turned at a point to head straight into the inner Silo. It looked much larger from the perspective of walking up to it.

"So, Twilight," Rainbow asked, "what kind of silo is this?"

Twilight looked around the walls for signs, but didn't see anything aside from the obvious ones that said "Silo D".

"I'm not sure. My guess is it's just a standard rocket test lab. Very few silos actually have rockets in them."

When they finally reached the wall, Twilight noticed a hatch in the side, roughly the size of a standard door. It blended right in with the wall, save for the bolted metal trim around it.

"Looks like there's a latch that opens it here," Twilight said, examining a large red handle to the side of the hatch. "Silo Access," she read allowed.

"Hang on," she heard Rainbow say. She was already at the door with her ear pressed against it. "Can you hear that?"

Twilight and Rarity looked around at the seemingly empty outer-silo, then back at the hatch.

"Hear what?" Twilight asked.

Rainbow pressed her ear harder against the door. "It sounds like something's banging around in there." She ignored Twilight and Rarity's strange looks. "They don't do construction work in any of the Silos, do they?"

"Not that I know of," Twilight said.

Rarity had been backing up the whole time. "I... you know what? I'm not sure this is the best idea, girls."

Twilight looked back at her. "It's not like we have a choice. This is the only way forward. That is, without having Rainbow fly us around the silo."

Rarity glanced at Rainbow Dash and gave an involuntary shiver. "Fine," she said, walking toward again, "but don't expect me to follow you to certain death. I do have standards, you know."

"There's nothing in there," Twilight assured her.

She turned the lever as she said this, and the hatch swung open to reveal a wall, just feet away from them. A small room lay in between. However, the most notable thing was the noise.

Rainbow was right. There was definitely something banging around inside. Even Twilight had to think twice before walking into the small area they had revealed.

"There's another hatch," she said, looking around the room. The other two crammed inside behind her. "I think this is some sort of access hallway that goes around the perimeter."

She pulled the lever and heard the door shut behind them. For a moment they were trapped inside the room.

Then the door swung open in front of them, and the first thing Twilight saw was a headcrab, surrounded by blood, and latched onto the moaning head of an undead pony. She felt her heart leap, and her front hooves left the floor as she backed up. The pony was only a couple feet away.

Twilight slammed on her forehoof and felt the familiar feeling of her teeth chattering to the bullets flying out of her shoulder. The first few bullets knocked the zombie to the ground, but Twilight didn't let up on the trigger until the entire clip ran out.

Her ears rang more than ever from the echoing sound of gunpowder going off, but the banging from inside the silo still continued.

She turned around to make sure her friends were okay to see Rarity cowering with her hooves over her ears, and Rainbow Dash still preoccupied with the metal wall.

"Come on, everypony," she said, leading them down the blood-stained hallway. "Let's all hope it's just machinery that's banging around in there."

They stepped lightly, going around all the blood stains, carefully avoiding the bodies of the deceased ponies. She could hear Rarity dry-heaving a couple of times.

"Watch out, girls," she said, pointing up at the barnacle attached to the ceiling way above them. Its ropy tongue descended the entire way to the floor, and Twilight didn't want to see any of her friends turned to ceiling-lunch.

A few steps further, Twilight caught sight of some steps leading up to a wall with another hatch at the end of the curving hallway. The banging was getting louder.

"Wish I could see what was making all the racket," Rainbow said. "I can barely think!"

"Wait," Rarity turned towards Rainbow, "you mean you actually use that thing?" She tapped the side of Rainbow's head.

"Oh, ha, ha," Rainbow said blankly.

Twilight had been carefully approaching the door as Rarity and Rainbow Dash held back. Her hoof was almost on the lever when Rainbow Dash flew up to her.

"Wait!" she said. "Let me. I wanna see what we're dealing with, here."

Before Twilight could protest, Rainbow had already pressed the lever and was anxiously waiting to peer inside. Her wings were flared, and her feathers were rustled.

When the hatch finally hissed open, Rainbow took a step inside and looked around.

"Finally! A window!" she flew out to the center of the room to look through it. "What could possibly—"

The window exploded, filling the room with glass shards. Twilight threw her hooves over her head, trying to peer between her forearms to see what was happening. Many of the shards cut into her forehead and chin, but the suit absorbed most of the damage. A loud scream from Rarity pierced the room.

"RAINBOW!" Twilight shouted, putting her hooves down so she could see what was going on.

Her mouth never closed after she said that. Her eyes widened, and her feet froze to the floor. Something was on top of Rainbow Dash.

That's how she would have described it. "Something". Because her eyes still couldn't make sense out of what she was seeing. It was green. And it was so large, it filled the entire room and extended right out the window.

Rainbow Dash was sprawling on the floor, trying to get out from under it. "Uh," she said, struggling, "a little help, guys!"

Twilight could barely think with Rarity screaming in her ear. She turned around, "Rarity, STOP!" she said, forcibly closing her mouth. "We gotta help Rainbow!"

"What do we do?!"

"We have to—"

"GUYS! HELP!"

Twilight felt a fire rupture within her at these panicked words, and pulled her hooves free of the ice binding them to the floor. "COME ON!" she yelled, running out into the room like some crazed mad-pony.

The creature, which Twilight now realized was just the end of an enormous "stem" originating from the inside of the silo, had managed to wrap two thick black tentacles at its base around Rainbow's torso, and was dragging her across the floor.

"TWILIGHT!" she yelled, seeing Twilight run out into the room.

Twilight lunged forward stupidly and grabbed onto Rainbow's front hooves with her own, trying to use her rear hooves to dig into the floor.

"RARITY!" Twilight yelled. She could feel herself being dragged across the room with Rainbow. Her hooves struck the side of some sort of desk or cabinet resting against the window-side wall, and Twilight pressed them into it for leverage. She could see Rainbow's face the entire time, scrunched and strained as she fought with every hoof and wing for freedom. She could tell Rainbow was slipping out from its grasp.

"I... I..." Rainbow said, "I GOT A WING OUT!"

She flared it around, and Twilight could suddenly feel more progress as she strained to push against the cabinet. Rainbow struggled to get her other wing out.

"I'm coming, Twilight!"

Twilight's eyes went wide as she caught a glimpse of something white dashing towards her to her right.

"Don't worry, Twilight! I got you!"

The next thing Twilight knew, her hooves had been pulled out from under her, wrapped up in Rarity's forehooves. Immediately, Twilight felt herself lurch forward, letting go of one of Rainbow's hooves.

"RAINBOW!" she yelled, trying desperately to hold onto something, but Rainbow's other hoof was slipping fast. She felt herself yanked forward, all the way out the window, until Rarity's own hooves locked against the wall. As she ground to a halt, she felt Rainbow's hoof slip most of the way out, until they were hanging on by the tip.

And then, with a snap, they parted. Twilight gasped as she felt herself fall to the ground, rear hooves still clung to by Rarity. Her body landed on the desk, head still sticking out the window, and was immediately dragged the rest of the way into the room.

"TWIIIIIIIIIIIIILIIIIIIIIIIGHT!"

Rainbow Dash's voice could be heard fading away, and Twilight could still see a glimpse of blue attached to the strange stalk as it descended to the bottom of the silo.

"RAINBOW DASH!" Twilight shook her hooves free of Rarity's an ran up to the window in a panic.

"We have to do something, Rarity! We have to do something NOW!"

She turned back to Rarity and saw she was already on her hooves and dancing around. "What to do, what to do what to dowhattodo—"

"We have to get in there!"

"In THEEEEEERE??!" Rarity squawked. "But there's THREE OF THEM!"

"I know! I see them, but—"

"There has to be another way!"

"I know, I know. I'm looking—AH! YES! The rocket control command!"

The "drawer" she had been pushing her feet against turned out to have a lot of buttons and switches on them, which Twilight quickly realized controlled the rocket engine that had been mounted to the ceiling.

"Come on, come on comeoncomeoncomeon," she shouted, slamming her hoof into the launch button. "It's out of fuel!"

"Well we can't just throw grenades at it, that'll just make it mad!"

"I know, I'm thinking!" Twilight jabbed her hoof at the button a few more times, more as a stress reliever than anything. "We have to get the fuel on somehow. There has to be a source—", she glimpsed some red and blue tubes on the ceiling coming from the rocket engine. "PIPES!" she yelled. "Follow the pipes! Come on, Rarity! We'll go outside and see where the pipes go, COME ON!"

Twilight ran out the door, barely looking behind her to see if Rarity was following. "If we're lucky, it won't be too far!"

"Twilight, the catwalks outside are a dead-end, remember?" Rarity was hot on her heels. "They don't go anywhere!"

"I know, but we need to try. Watch out for the—"

There was a crash as Twilight's hoof landed on the floor and kept going. Part of the catwalk had simple crumbled beneath both of them, sending them tumbling onto the catwalk below.

"Twiliiiiii—" rarity screamed.

The both landed on the catwalk below. Twilight felt the impact of it, and looked back at Rarity just before she felt the second one break under he weight.

"Rarity, catchme!" Twilight yelled, grabbed onto Rarity's hooves before she fell. Twilight's weight dragged Rarity forward a few inches, but she finally stopped, hanging onto a dangling Twilight.

"Twilight!" Rarity said, struggling to hold on. "I can't hold both you and the suit. You're too heavy."

"Just... hold on!" Twilight said. She looked around at the very tall outer perimeter of the silo, and the layers of catwalks above and below them. "If you can just pull—wait! No! There's a catwalk just below me!" She wiggled her rear legs. "Just let me go. I'm low enough it shouldn't break."

"But what if it does! There's nothing left under that!"

"Trust me!"

They stared at each other, Rarity wincing under the strain of holding Twilight up. Twilight gave a small nod, and Rarity loosened her grip.

Twilight slid down as much as she could, and then let go, landing with a small thud on the catwalk below. She quickly retreated to an area where the catwalk was sitting directly on one of the beams that supported them before catching her breath.

"Are you all right?" Rarity asked, peering down the hole Twilight had just dropped down.

"I'm fine, but Rainbow Dash still needs our help." She looked around and saw a hatch not too far away She assumed there must be an exit hatch at every level. "You stay up there and see if you can find the fuel. I'll look down here. We'll meet back at this opening, got it?"

"How will you get back up?!"

"Don't think about that right now." Twilight said. "We'll figure that out when we get back. Let's go rescue Rainbow Dash!"

=========================================================

Rarity still had her hoof out from when she was holding onto Twilight. She blinked, and wiped the shocked look off her face. "Okay, Rarity," Rarity said to herself, getting onto her hooves. "You can do this. It's completely possibly to fire a rocket and be fabulous doing it!"

She waved her mane around and looked around at the drab surroundings. All that ugly rust was cluttering what could otherwise be a glistening industrial marvel.

But there wasn't time for that. Rainbow Dash was in trouble, and she alone had to do something! At least, that's what she kept telling herself. She struck the best pose she had for a pony about to launch out on a mission.

Then she thought twice about charging off, and instead tiptoed lightly across the catwalk, praying she wouldn't land on a part that would crumble beneath her—or worse, snag her hoof on something sharp.

"These architects really need to be more careful," she said aloud. "This material is much too flimsy! Don't they know somepony could be hurt?"

She swung her head up and sighed. "I suppose I shall simply watch my step," she said, picking up the pace. "I wouldn't want to be responsible for being late to Rainbow's rescue."

She finally found the ugly hatch that lead to the outer section. She would most certainly be pleased to be away from all the ruckus that monster was making. If she had had her way, she would gladly have stayed just to teach it some manners. It should know better than to strike its nose into the walls. That causes dents, after all.

The hatch swung open to reveal a catwalk leading to one of the many hallways at the end. Rarity would have charged forward except for the zombie standing in the middle, surrounded by—

"Explosives?!" Rarity said to herself. "This keeps happening! The ponies have no consideration for safety around here!"

She grimaced before leaning forward onto her hoof. She would have winced had she not been expecting the tremendous sound of the gun being fired.

"Well, I suppose I could use better aim."

She trotted back behind the hatch opening and peered around. Hopefully the wall would stifle the sound. She leaned against her hoof again, keeping the gun pointed in the general direction. It was still uncomfortably loud, but at least it helped. She had to shoot a few more times before the air satisfyingly exploded around her ears.

She looked around to see a lack of explosives and zombie in the way. She smiled to herself, and remembered how before, she would have cowered or hidden her ears to do such a thing.

She galloped to the spot to see how well she did when she stopped short.

"Wha—but—my catwalk!" She stared at the ground in disbelief. "Darn it, Rarity, you went and blew your path up!"

She peered over the edge, and saw it against the green glow dozens of feet below her.

"Well, this isn't going well at all!" She backed up, feeling dizzy from the sight. "Why, the only way across now is by those pipes spanning the gap!" She recognized the pipes from the inside of the silo. "Well at least I'm going to right way."

She stared at them for a moment. "The red could use a slightly lighter shade." She caught herself. "Ah, but no time for that! Rainbow Dash."

She tiptoed onto the pipes as lightly as she did the catwalk.

"Ooooo..." she wavered, trying not to wobble too much. As wide as it was, being this high made it feeling like a balance beam. She never did make a good ballerina, yet somehow she always made it to the other side.

As soon as she made it across, she galloped full speed into the hallway and collapsed onto the ground—not because she was out of breath, but because she wanted to hug the beautiful, solid ground beneath her hooves.

"Oh, I would kiss this if it wasn't all filthy and covered in germs," she said. "Oh, what the heck." She plowed her muzzle into the ground and gave it a smack.

"EWWWYUCK!" She made some spitting noises without actually spitting, and first wiped her lips, then her tongue. "That's the last time I do that," she said.

She got up, and noticed the pipes still following her. In fact, the pipes were the only thing to take note of in the entire hallway! Everything else was just dark, drab concrete.

She turned the corner and galloped across the empty stretch.

"Follow the pipes. Just follow the pipes," she said, trying to catch her breath. "Follow, follow, follow..."

She rounded the corner again and ran into a metal door with a light over it. The sign read "Fuel Room".

"AHA! Fuel," she said triumphantly. "Well, that was easy. I'll just—" she looked around and only saw a small keypad next to her.

"A passcode?!" she said. "Well, that's just delightful. How am I supposed to find a passcode?!" She thought for a moment, taking note of the way the beige bricks clashed with the metal door. "I'd change the door color to green," she said. "But that can wait. Passcode!" she said, turning around to start looking.

Perhaps some nice pony had written down the password for the door on a sticky note, and lift it somewhere easily accessible. At least, that was the only thing she could hope for.

She trotted into the room, noting the flimsy pillars here and there, plus the floor's constant back-and-forth between tile and diamond-plate. It was most distracting, especially in the inconsistent lighting.

Unfortunately, the area was small enough that she had explored the entirety of it within seconds. The section in the back had a ladder that went to a lower part, but she really didn't feel like going there. For one, she could already see down there by looking over the railing behind the ladder, and for two, it didn't seem to go anywhere.

Nevertheless, it seemed to the only place left to go.

She walked daintily in front of the ladder, and carefully placed each hoof onto the rung, following what she was sure were the proper procedures that all maintenance ponies should follow.

"One—hoof—at—a time," she chimed, making each move as fluid as she could. "Aaaand, that's it," she said, getting off with a flourish. "Now then! What glamorous thing does Rarity have to do next?"

She trotted around the ladder, taking extra care not to look at (or step on) any of the pony corpses in the corner.

"A ponyhole!?" She looked in disbelief at the round hold in the ground, partially covered by a matching metal cover. "Of all the places I have to explore."

"Still, it's better than going back empty hooved."

She took a deep breath, and pushed the cover out of the way. "I hope Twilight's having better luck than me."

=========================================================

Twilight peered around the open hatch at the walkway leading to the hallway at the other end. There was a creature on the other side, delightfully preoccupied with something on the ground. She resisted her kill-on-sight impulse for a moment to consider simply tip-toeing past it, but reconsidered. A grenade should do nicely here.

She aimed carefully, pulling the pin before galloping out onto the catwalk to throw it. She didn't trust herself to toss it the entire length. She waited until she heard the tink of metal on concrete before turning around and ducking.

The ground shook as the shock wave struck her, and she was slightly worried about the catwalk crumbling from under her. Luckily, it was still intact.

She got up and inspected the large scorch mark on the ground. It smelled horribly. She even noticed a trail of smoke extending from just in front of her, and looked around for the source, only to find out it was her own tail. A few of the hairs had been singed, and a light trail of smoke was still wafting up from it. Twilight made sure there were no live flames on her it before setting out down the hallway.

Unfortunately, there was nothing in this hallway that indicated fuel. There was just a thick, rough, metal cable in the upper left that looked like it could transfer a couple megawatts of power. Other than that, the rest of was just concrete and lights. Occasionally the cable would attach to a power reader the size of a book shelf, but none of the dials read anything larger than zero.

She followed the hallway around a corner, and noticed the cable turned straight down and plunged into the ground. Of course, this made sense as soon as she saw the next room, whose floor looked to be suspended somehow.

This was only because the material of the floor matched the catwalks back in the silo. That, and the floor ended at a large pit off to the right, complete with hoof-rails and a "boarding platform", which Twilight (correctly) assumed was for some sort of elevator.

This whole place seemed to be for storage. There were enormous hooks dangling from long thick cables all over the ceiling, and many crates were scattered all around the room. The elevator was obviously for transporting something (although what it was transporting was a complete mystery). Perhaps the scientists lived down there?

Whatever the case, Twilight stepped up to the boarding area and found a convenient button on the side to call the elevator.

"Huh," she said out lout. "Something in this place actually makes sense!"

She tried to peer down at where the elevator should be and felt her head spin at the dizzying height. There was no elevator. Instead, the floor was again covered in a glowing mass of goo.

"Is this their idea of littering?!" she exclaimed aloud. "There's green goo everywhere in this complex!" Somehow, she really didn't want to know the source.

She pushed the button anyway, despite the lack of elevator. Not entirely to her surprise, instead of an elevator, she heard some clunking noises approaching her from the bottom of the pit, and noticed that lights were turning on along the walls. She rolled her eyes.

"Should have guessed," she said. "It's a light switch."

She had already turned around the look for a ladder or a staircase when she heard a hissing sound from above her. She looked up to see some sort of yellow-ish grate or platform lit up on the ceiling, and realized the elevator had been sitting up there the whole time.

"Why would it need to be up there?!" she asked.

Regardless, she watched it descend, taking note that it was, in fact, a complete elevator, with sides and a ceiling, although it didn't have any doors. The ceiling had a blue light that illuminated the inside, but the outside of it was lit from the lights on the walls of the pit.

Twilight watched as it reached the platform—

—and went right past it without stopping.

"Oh, you have got to be kidding me!"

She waited until the roof was at her height, and leaped out onto the roof, grabbing hold of the thick cable at the top. She looked up at the platform quickly moving away from her. She pondered a bit at her rash actions.

"I've... done stupider things," she thought out loud. "At least the cable seems to be in good condition."

No sooner had she said this than the elevator came to a jarring halt, and made a terrible racket above her.

She lowered her eyelids and stared at the wall of the pit. "Great," she said. "The pulley system's out."

She looked up at the ceiling, grabbed hold of the cable, and jumped up and down a few times. There were a few creaks, but nothing seemed to free up.

"Okay, Twilight. You're smart. You can get yourself out of this." She looked up at how high the platform was above her and gulped. "Right?"

Now would have been the perfect time for a levitation spell. She cringed at the thought of having to use her horn that much again. She inched over to the edge of the lift, getting down on her belly and crawling as close as she could, and peered over the edge.

She seemed to be about halfway down. It couldn't have been more perfect. A long crawl back up the rope, or an equally long fall into slime at the bottom. As she stared, she noticed a hallway she couldn't see from the platform above. The lights were on, and she could hear some machinery down there.

"HEY!" she instinctively shouted. "IS ANYONE DOWN THERE?!"

She waited, listening to her own voice echo around the pit. She watched the glow of the green fluid, taking note of how eerily calm it looked. Had it been water, she may have considered jumping.

She was just about to inch backwards onto her hooves when she heard a faint echo from below.

"Is someone up there?"

Twilight looked back over the edge and squinted. She could barely see the form of a pony at the edge of the hallway.

"YES!" she yelled. "I'M TRAPPED UP HERE! CAN YOU GET ME DOWN?!"

She listened carefully for a reply. A second later, the distant voice of the pony could be heard again.

"What are you doing up there? It's not safe!"

Twilight rolled her eyes before looking back down for a reply. "I THINK I KNOW THAT NOW!"

It was a while before she heard the next reply. Twilight hoped he was looking for some way to get the elevator to the bottom, but for all she knew, he had simply abandoned her. It wasn't for another 5 minutes that he came back, and another faint message came back to her.

"Looks like the elevator's jammed!"

Twilight looked up and made a very exasperated groan at the ceiling.

"Do you see another way down?"

Twilight was just about to give the pony a piece of her mind when she heard this last statement. She had done some looking around, but hadn't seen anything overly obvious, save for a ladder along the side of the pit.

"THERE'S A LADDER, BUT IT'S TOO FAR AWAY!" she shouted back.

Again, another 5 minute wait for a reply. It was as if there was a conversation going on at the bottom of the lift that she couldn't hear.

"Can you try jumping to the ladder, and using the rungs to slow your fall?"

Twilight couldn't have thought of a worse plan if she tried. She imagined the scenario, and saw herself falling to her death in 12 different ways. Some had her landing on the ground, others in the goo. Sometimes she reached the rungs, but slipped and got pushed onto her back. In one scenario, she even saw herself clinging onto a rung and injuring her shoulder from the impact. One thing was consistent, though: every scenario saw her dead at the end.

She was just about to give up and try it anyway when she heard a loud snapping sound above her, and felt the elevator move down a step. She nearly fell off, but managed to use her hooves to stay rooted on her belly.

"I THINK THE CABLE'S COMING LOOSE!" she yelled.

She didn't wait for a response. She was on her hooves and back at the cable as quickly as she could, and looked up hopefully at the cable.

Another snap, another step. This time, she was ready, clinging onto the cable as tightly as she could.

And then, with another snap, the elevator freed completely, and Twilight suddenly found herself screaming for dear life. The cable had completely snapped somewhere up above, and had sent the elevator in free fall.

The feeling of her stomach dropping out from under her was a familiar one, but one she wouldn't call "comfortable". It only lasted for a couple seconds, though, and the goo at the bottom was viscous enough to give a soft landing.

She looked around sarcastically as the elevator sunk into the goo, still clinging onto the elevator cable (which she noticed was flaccid), and looked into the hallway at two scientist stallions staring back at her.

The floor of the elevator sunk into the goo, and quickly traveled until the goo was up to her waist before it stopped.

Hazardous Chemical Detected, the suit rang out.

She lowered the lids of her eyes and stared back at the scientists.

"You, uh," one of the scientists started, "You need some help?"

She stared at them for a few more seconds, still holding the flaccid cable. "You think?" she said blankly.

Another few seconds passed.

"It, uh," he continued, looking up curiously at the pit, "It looks like the cable broke."

Twilight didn't move. "Yeah," she said. "I noticed."

"It's a good thing that stuff was at the bottom to stop your fall, huh?"

Twilight still hadn't lifted her eyelids. "Yeah. Gooooood thiiiiiing," she said, being sure to emphasize each word as sarcastically as she could.

The scientist seemed to have finally run out of words, and turned to his colleague, who had been standing just behind him and staring at her like she was another alien.

"Why don't you help her out of there, Pipelight?"

Twilight let go of the cable and dropped on all fours, letting the goo rise almost to her neck. "I think I can manage."

=========================================================

"Step, aaaaaaand step, aaaaaaand step, aaaaaaaand step..."

Rarity had been climbing down the ponyhole ladder for what felt like the last 10 minutes. She was beginning to wonder if there was an end. Every time she looked up, all she saw was the sides of the tunneling hole converge to a pin point at the top.

"Aaaaaaand step, aaaaaaand ahh!"

Her head had descended below the ceiling of a small tunnel. She peered through the rungs of the ladder at the dismal sight.

"Oh, my!" she said, "A sewer for sure! It's going to take forever to get back up again!"

There were yellow-ish lights on the ceiling, but they didn't do the best job of lighting the area. There was a large red pipe just above the ground that followed the tunnel around, though, which meant she could use that as a platform and avoid taking a dip into the nasty water flooding the ground.

"This place could most definitely use some air freshener." She took a hoof off the ladder and pulled out a small container. "Good thing I always carry a can."

She wafted the can around letting out a spay of freshener and taking a deep breath.

"That's better!"

She continued down the ladder until her hooves reached the pipe. It was a bit slippery, but it was plenty wide enough to walk on. She carefully got on all fours and turned around, spraying the freshener some more.

"Now then! To get out of here."

She held out the can and sprayed a little as she walked, closing her eyes occasionally as she enjoyed the minting smell. The tunnel bent around a corner to the right at the end, and she stopped to peek around.

"Well, that won't do," she said, looking at the bars of a large gate blocking the way. "Looks like I'll have to go the other way."

She sniffed her way back to the ladder, and carefully went around it, sniffing her way to the next right-hand corner.

"Aha!" she said. "Another ladder. Rarity, you are a genius!" She walked right up to it, smacked her can of freshening with a kiss, and put it away as she started to climb.

Luckily this was a much shorter ladder, and Rarity had only to push the lid up be able to climb out. She stuck her head out over the edge and examined the state of the floor before deciding it was at least satisfactorily clean enough to put her hooves on it to climb out.

She lifted herself out onto all fours, shook out her mane, and looked around. The room was barely large enough to fit both her and the ponyhole she had come out of. It was mostly an excuse to allow the pony access to an open hatchway in one of the walls, identical to the ones leading out of the silo. More yellow light shown through, casting shadows across the room, but the hallway on the other side was warmly lit and somewhat cozy.

"It feels like I'm in a submarine," she said. "All these hatchways and narrow passages—it barely qualifies as a hallway!"

The passage was filled with openings in the left-hand side, which all opened into smaller compartments. Each one contained some sort of supplies that sat inside an open chest. The last one had some armaments sitting inside a green chest, complete with grenades.

"Hmmm," she said, "no fuel. I'm not high enough to have reached the control room yet."

She walked to the end of the short hallway and pulled the lever to open the hatch at the end.

"These doors really could use labels," she said. "All these plain metal doors really don't help the poor ponies who don't have a map."

She stepped out and looked around at the large amount of space. This place, much like the cargo area Twilight had explored, was just adjacent to a large pit. However, this one was much wider, with no green glow at the bottom. In fact, it even had catwalks that went all the way around the perimeter.

Rarity stepped up carefully to the edge of the pit, taking note that there were no hoof rails or warning labels. She peered over the edge and gasped.

What she saw was what she could only describe as Equestria's largest propeller fan. It was easily large enough to propel a cruise liner, and didn't seem to have anything to do with anything else in the room.

"I don't remember seeing the budget reports for this thing when I was in the office."

She looked up at the ceiling, which towered so far above her that it was dizzying. It was like somepony had taken a jet engine, blown it up to 10 times its size, tilted it on its end and built a room around it. It didn't make any sense.

"Maybe this is part of a rocket." she said. "The... inside of a rocket, yes. That has to be it."

She stood there for a while with her eyes cocked, wondering whether she should simply head back. The rest of the room was so plain it didn't even warrant exploring.

"I guess there's not much harm in poking around a bit," she thought. "It's not like there's any other ponies in here." She turned around. "Right?"

She waited for a response just in case.

She turned around and started trotting around the catwalk, looking down at the fan as she went. It was a standard four-petal flower-shaped fan: the kind you see in the small hoof-held personal devices at the one-bit store. Each blade could have supported her entire Boutique, back when she was still making dresses.

She was only a quarter of the way around when she reached a ladder that descended through an opening in the catwalk against the wall. She looked through it, and noticed it went to a lower catwalk, at the same level as the fan.

She pushed her mouth to the side as she considered it, and decided there wasn't much to lose by looking. After all, it wasn't like there was anywhere else to go.

"One. Step. At. A Time," she said as she descended. "Step, and step, and step, aaaaand step."

She reached the bottom and had to gasp out loud at how majestic the fan looked from this angle. It looked like something that should be roped off at a museum. She walked around slowly, taking in every curve. The shapes of such things always made her mind turn to the curves of the pony body. She used to work with those curves every day while patching her fashions together. They were her life.

Halfway around, she found another ladder that descended to a platform just below the fan. This platform looked flimsier than the catwalks, and lead straight up to the enormous shaft the fan rested on: a shaft that descended straight into the darkness of the pit.

"Now that's just too far," she said to herself, looking at the flimsy platform. She couldn't help but admire the kind of ponies who would descend to such a place. "Why in Equestria would anyone want to go down there?"

At the end of the platform, she could barely make out a red light resting against the top of the shaft.

"Is that," she started. "NO! No pony in their right mind would dare put a switch in such a horrid location!"

She stuck her head up and "hmphed". She turned around and started to head back.

And then something struck her in the back of her mind. She stopped, and contemplated. Her eyes narrowed, and she backed up a few paces to stare at the red light. It was like it was beckoning to her. It longed to be pressed, to be made green—to work.

Of course, such a fan couldn't possibly work. It was too big. Nothing that big could spin worth anything.

And yet, curiosity kept building.

She walked back to the ladder, grinning at the thought of actually pressing it, just to see what would happen.

"Oh, all right," she finally said.

Just before she grabbed onto the ladder, she did a little dance and giggled like a little girl. "I can't believe I'm doing this!"

She was much more careful on this ladder. She had half a mind to turn back after every step, but the adrenaline was already flowing. She was sure she could race back up the ladder if anything went wrong.

The platform looked much wider down here than it did from the catwalk. There was nothing between her and the darkness of the bottom of the pit. She would have been downright scared from the utter silence and darkness surrounding the area had it not been for the sheer majesty above her. It felt like she was exploring a giant's house, and this was the fan for the disposal in the sink. She giggled at this analogy, and tried to imagine a giant hoof reaching down, and a pair of eyes looking down at her through the top of the pit.

She walked dramatically up to the fan, right up to the red light, and noticed there was a second light as well: a green one just under the red. It was protruding slighting.

"Should I push it? Should I not push it? Should I push it? Should I not push it?"

She went back and forth for a few seconds before finally having another giggle fit. There really wasn't a choice anymore. She had to do it.

She closed her eyes and stuck her hoof out for a second before pulling it back and giggling some more. "Okay, okay, okay." she said. "Don't think about it. Just do it."

She jabbed her hoof into it without a further thought, and both felt and heard the satisfying click of the button pressing. The red glow turned to green, which lit up the area she was standing in.

Had she not looked up at the fan, she wouldn't have been able to tell if it had worked. It was moving so slowly, and so quietly, there was almost no difference.

"Okay, I really should shut it off now," she said, still giggling slightly. "Aaaaaand off!" She jabbed her hoof into the red protruding button.

Nothing happened.

Rarity frowned. "Aaaaaand OFF!" she said a little louder, really putting her weight into it.

It wouldn't budge.

"Off! Off! OFF! You. Defiled. Thing. Why. Won't. You. Turn. OFF!" she said with every bang, each one harder than the last.

She looked up against, and noticed the fan was moving a bit faster now.

"Uh... oh..." she said quietly. "Well, nice being here, better get back, BYE!"

She galloped back to the ladder and climbed it straight to the top. Every second the fan moved faster, and she was starting to feel a breeze each time a blade passed by. It was a sprint back to the other ladder as the wind picked up. By the time she started climbing, the wind was whipping her mane around violently in intervals.

"Okay. Here we go," she said, putting her hooves on the rungs. "Up. Up. Up, up,up,upupupupupupup," she had never climbed a ladder faster in her life. As she climbed, the wind became steady, and she had to fight a bit to stay on the rungs.

"Okay," she thought, "Here we are. The top." She inched over and felt some of the wind die down as it was blocked by the catwalk. However, her mane was still being blown around as she galloped back into the main part of the room. It was making quite a noise now.

The hatch back into the hallway was still open, and she burst back in, intent on climbing out of the sewers before the fan tore down the entire facility. After all, a fan that large most certainly would destroy at least the entire room it was in, right?

As she entered, however, she noticed the hatch at the other end was still closed. She looked for another switch, but there wasn't any.

"Ah!" she thought. "Other door." She turned around and tried flipping the lever for the other hatch, hoping they were connected somehow.

It was stuck.

Rarity gritted her teeth, and felt herself starting to turn red. "What is the matter with the equipment in this place?!" she shouted. "Every darn thing I try to use breaks!"

She could hear the wind still picking up outside, and felt some of the hairs on her mane and tail flip around even from inside the hallway. She entered one of the tiny rooms on the side of the hallway and curled up. "Well!" she said to herself, "A fine mess you've gotten yourself into, Rarity."

=========================================================

Twilight looked at the dials on the power device. Every one of them was sitting at zero.

"We're thinking the generator isn't turned on," one of the scientists said. He was a brown stallion with a blond mane.

Twilight turned towards the stallion, who was silhouetted against the green goop she had just climbed out of. Much of it stilled clung to her suit.

"Well, I really have no reason to doubt you," she said, her eyes still lidded. "Everything else you've said so far has been correct."

The stallion smiled, clearly not picking up on her sarcasm. "So, do you think you could help switch it on? You do have a hazardous environment suit, after all."

"Yes, indeed!" the other scientist chimed in. This one was blue with a brown mane. "Those new suits can come in handy in a tight spot."

Twilight merely sighed quietly at this, and turned to look down the passage to the generator. The scientists had pointed out that there was a third scientist who had already gone down there.

"Why don't you two go down there yourself?" she asked. "Isn't maintaining the generator exactly what you two do all day?"

The stallions looked insulted. "Oh, my, Celestia no! We leave that to the maintenance crew," one of them said. The other one continued, "We just monitor the gauges here, and let someone know if they do anything unusual."

Twilight watched as the stallion trotted up to one of the gauges. "Looks like it's still at zero." The brown maned one answered. "Right O! Still a problem." They both turned to Twilight, closed their eyes, and beamed at her.

Twilight let out an exasperated sigh. "Look. I really need to get the rocket in the Silo turned on. Do you know where the fuel is?"

"The fuel?" The brown one said. The blue pony answered, "Why, that's on the other side of the silo!" Brown pony: "You'd need to climb back up that shaft!" Blue: "And head back to the Silo!" Brown: "And through the other hallway!"

"WHAT?!" Twilight said.

Blue: "But if it's a rocket you want to fire," Brown: "that thing won't fire without power." Blue: "Why don't you take a look?" Brown: "You might find it'll come in handy."

They beamed at her again.

Twilight sighed, feeling a bit better than before. "Right," she said. "Power."

She rounded the corner, not bothering to say another word before she departed. She stepping through the spilled goop in the middle of the hallway, and came out into another pit-room.

It was as though every other room in this part of the complex was a mini-silo. Did they do this as a joke?! This one wasn't as tall as the other one, but it still had the obligatory goo at the bottom. She looked up and noted: more catwalks, more ladders, more darkness.

"Of course," she muttered to herself.

At least she could see the generator at the top: a large cylindrical metal contraption suspended by two metal beams. It reminded Twilight of some sort of a bloated sauce pot left too long on the stove, save for the bare wires all around it.

Instead of simply putting a catwalk at ground level, however, this place had another platform with a control switch, which Twilight assumed was another elevator of some kind. It certainly couldn't have called another elevator, as this platform had hoof-rails all around it.

She walked up and pushed the button, half-expecting it to not work, and found herself clinging on for dear life to the hoof-rails on either side of her. The entire platform had swung a complete 180 around the perimeter of the entire room. It came to a halt on the other side, leaving Twilight winded.

She swung her hoof into the dial out of spite. "Ow!" she said, holding up her hoof and examining the suit. "I thought this thing was supposed to protect me against everything!" She grimaced, and turned around to face the ladder. "Well, at least this is better than the elevator."

Twilight could see a hoof sticking out just above the generator, waving violently. She shook her head and continued to climb.

"Hey!" a voice said, "Go back!"

She crested the top of the ladder, which went straight through one of the beams supporting the generator, and saw that she could use the beam as a platform.

A cowering white stallion with wavy blond hair could be seen at the top.

"Stay away!" he shouted. "Go back! Isn't safe!"

Twilight saw a button on the side of the generator as she walked up to it.

"Is there something wrong with the generator?" she asked.

"Not safe! Go back!"

Twilight scratched the top of her head, wondering if she should try pressing the button anyway.

"You know," she said, looking up at the ceiling just in case, "I don't think there's anything in here that can hurt you. Why don't you just go back to the other ponies?"

The stallion shivered, curling up into a ball. "C-c-can't. T-t-too late. T-they're coming! T-they're already here!"

Twilight cocked a brow and looked around. "Uh... who?" Her hoof was resting on the power button.

"T-t-the... ZEEEEN!" he said. "QUIET!" he yelled out, piercing the entire room, "they'll heeeeeeeeear you..."

Twilight just stared at him, keeping a brow cocked. "Oooooooookay! I'm going to turn the generator on now."

She pressed the button, and watched satisfyingly as a green light illuminated above it.

"I'm going to go away now, okay?" she said to the stallion.

"D-d-d-don't leave! ZEEEEEEN, remember?"

Twilight was honestly getting scared now as she headed back to the ladder. She was just about there when she yelled out.

"AH!"

Something large and metallic nearly hit her in the head, and swung into the wall with a bang. She quickly climbed down the ladder to avoid anything else.

It turned out there were two pendulums that had swung down the walls. They had made a few connections just before Twilight heard the generator spring to life. As Twilight got back onto the last-moving platform, she could still hear the stallion at the top.

"zeeeeeeeeeeeen..."

Twilight took a deep breath before heading back down the passage to the two scientists.

"Excellent!" the blue one said, starring at the gauges. "Somepony has restored all power!"

"We'll have the engine up again in no time," the brown one answered, walking up to him.

Twilight rolled her eyes and walked around them. "I think I'm going to see myself out," she said, finding the ladder that climbed to the top of the pit. "Don't worry about me."

Neither of the two stallions seemed to notice.

=========================================================

The wind from outside the hallway sounded like a locomotive hurling down the tracks. It was quite clear, now, why the entire room was empty. The wind could probably pick up a house.

Rarity was still curled up in the room. She backed up, and felt the box behind her rup up against her flank.

"This is ridiculous," she said to herself. "I can't just stay curled up in here. What am I waiting for? The fan to run out of power?!"

The thought did occur to her.

"I must prevail!" she said, standing up and striking a pose. "I must! I must! I MUST!" She galloped down the hallway and back out into the room.

No sooner had she gone through the door than her entire face flailed back from the wind, making her skin ripple against her skull. Her mane and tail had completely come unraveled, and she felt lucky they hadn't detached from the rest of her body.

She pushed forward against the wind, right up to the edge of the pit, and looked up. The top was boarded up to the point that she couldn't see anything beyond a few dozen feet, but she was sure it went on much higher than that.

Time to knock open a new way, she thought, unable to move her lips.

She galloped back into the hallway, where the wind wasn't as strong, and moved around her mouth, trying to get some feeling back. The grenades were here, which she saw fit as the perfect way to break through.

"Ok-ey, Ra-ity!" she said dramatically through numb lips, "-ime to b-low -tuff up! MMPH!"

She added the last part in protest of her own mouth.

She had to put her hoof up to prevent the wind from obscuring her vision as she walked close enough to the pit to stand a chance at tossing. In fact, she didn't really even have to "toss" the grenades at all, if she got close enough. A couple of them went soaring out of her hooves by accident simply by holding them too far out over the fan.

Just hold the pin, Rarity. she though. Hold—the—pin!

She did just this, and felt the rest of the grenade slip away as her hoof reached over the pit. A few seconds later, there was a flash above her. She could barely hear the explosion above the sound of the wind.

She followed suit with the remaining grenades, and watched the boarded up passage fade away with each one. The wind died down slightly as more of the air was free to go upwards.

Rarity walked right up to the edge, until she could feel the torrent against her chin. It felt like she was trying to push her body against a solid piece of metal going the speed of a train. She backed up, holding her chin, and felt that was red and raw.

"There's no turning back, Rairty," she said, walking back to the wall and striking another dramatic pose. "I must explore this final territory! I must restore peace and fuel to this silo! I. Must. PREVAIL!"

She galloped down the runway at full speed and jumped straight into the wall of wind.

She accelerated so quickly, her initial thoughts were of a quick death against the ceiling. It was like being flung from a super-powered catapult. Everything happened so quickly, she could hardly think. She barely realized she was screaming, save for her terribly sore throat.

She slowed down just as she saw the ceiling approach, and saw a small opening in the back. She had nearly reached the wall at the other end. Twilight Sparkle would have pointed out her conserved momentum from galloping, but Rarity just considered it magic. She reached up with a hoof, as though she was simply jumping incredibly high, and tried to grab hold of the edge of the tiny hole in the wall—

—and flew right past it, slamming into the ceiling.

"Ow..." she said, before peeling off the ceiling and falling back down the pit.

The wind picked back up, and before she had time to think, she was being flung back up against as though by a spring. This time, she didn't go quite as fast, and was able to grab hold of the top of the opening. The wind wasn't enough to keep her level, and she fell back down, managing to grab hold of the bottom of the opening before she fell the rest of the way.

She hoisted herself up, wondering whether it was worth letting go once more for another chance. With some concerted effort, she managed to make it over the edge.

She collapsed onto her belly inside and caught her breath. The inside of this area was tiny—nothing more than a glorified ventilation duct—and was only lit with a dim red light.

"Well!" she said, finally catching her breath. "That's one way to go back upstairs."

She crawled around on her belly before trying to get back onto her hooves. The area was too short for her to fully extend her limbs, so she ended up moving around like a fish on the ground.

"Now, I can't be too far from the control room," she said, looking around on the ground. "There has to be an exit around here somewhere."

There wasn't much to explore. It didn't even extend as far as the ventilation ducts they had traversed back in the storage facility where the soldier were.

There was a light breeze from the fan, but nothing like what she experienced before. "That fan had better not just be the air-conditioning for this place," she mumbled.

She didn't have far to go until she found a number of grates scattered around the floor. She peered down the first one, and noticed it wasn't too far from where the hallway lead out to the entrance to the fuel room.

"HAHA!" she screamed. "I may yet be in luck!"

A few checks later, and she had found the entrance to the fuel room, and the very next guess placed her directly over it.

"Now," she thought, "to get through."

She lifted her hoof and brought it down on one of the grates, letting out a loud "OW!" as she did. "That thing's sharp," she whined.

As she rubbed her poor hoof, she caught a glimpse of a light on the ceiling next to her, and realized one of the grates was already open, making her feel silly for trying to break one open. She crawled over and peered through, seeing a step-ladder just below.

"I guess they tried to escape?" she asked to herself. "Well, whatever. At least I don't have to jump down."

She carefully lowered herself onto the ladder and climbed down, looking around the room as soon as she reached the bottom. There wasn't much to see. The red and blue pipes roamed around in a few places, but other than that, it was just another standard metal chamber littered with bodies.

"Let's see... fuel, fuel, fuel," she muttered to herself. "FUEL!"

She ran over to a large control panel the size of the panel for the test rocket in the silo, and noticed two large buttons: one red, one blue, each marked with a label.

"Feeeeul!" she said dramatically, ramming her hoof into the red button.

A click and a rumble sounded before the light glowed red above the switch.

"HAHA!" she screamed. "Something around here actually works!"

She looked at the other one, which said "Oxygen".

"Better turn that one on as well," she said. "Just in case."

Luckily, that one worked too.

Rarity was just about to head back to the ladder when she realized how silly it would be if the door just so happened to work. She looked around, and saw a ladder over in the direction where the door should be.

She was at the top within seconds, and came face to face with the same door she had already had problems with.

"Ah, should have known," she said, looking at the wall to the side. "Another keypad." She rest her hoof against it and tapped some buttons in jest. "Be nice if it worked."

With a hiss, the door swung wide open, leaving Rarity staring wide-eyed and gaping. She stepped through slowly, looking around at the same room she had been standing in when she was still searching for the key code.

She gritted her teeth for a moment, and considered kicking something before taking a deep breath.

"There will be time for that later," she said.

Without another word, she galloped back to the silo at full speed, happily listening to the gurgling sounds of the fuel being pumped through the pipes.

=========================================================

Twilight hadn't stopped running since she had reached the top of the ladder. The last minute and a half were a complete blur, but she was definitely back at the silo.

She flipped open the hatch to the inside, and ran back across the catwalks, clattering loudly until she reached the hole where she fell through.

"Rarity?" she asked. "Are you there?"

As an answer, a head poked through the opening. "Well, it's about time, dear! I've been trying to figure out how we were going to get back up to the top!"

They both leaned in and gazed at how high the top catwalk was.

"Come down with me, Rarity. I think I have a plan, but it's not going to be pretty."

Rarity gawked. "Down?! But—"

"No time!" Twilight said.

The banging from inside the silo had waited until now to really start up. Twilight had hardly notice how quiet it had been until just now.

Twilight watched as Rarity's hind legs dangled from the hole, followed by her torso, her head, and finally her top hooves.

"You want me to simply let go?" she asked, still dangling from the top.

"It's a short drop," Twilight said. "We can get back to the top as a group. It'll be easier."

Before Rarity had hit the ground, Twilight was already running further up the catwalk to look around. As she suspected, none of the catwalks went full-circle around the silo, and she reached a hoof-rail dead-end before long. She peered over the rail to see nothing but a long drop and some goo at the bottom.

Of course, it wasn't the dead-end she was looking for. A light shed across the walkway not too far before the hoof-rail, and Twilight cantered quietly to where the light shown.

"Twilight, where are you?" Rarity asked, rounding the corner. "Slow down!"

Twilight put a hoof to her mouth.

"Oh, well you don't have to be like that, dear," she said, tiptoeing right up to her. "It was only a question."

Twilight shook her head, "No, no. Just... lower your voice," she said, motioning downward with her hoof.

She lead Rarity right up to where the light spilled out onto the walkway, and showed her the source of the light. There was a doorway the same size as the hatchways into the silo, only without the hatch itself, and directly on the other side was

"You can't be serious, Twilight," Rarity gasped as quietly as she could. "We're going inside the chamber where she was captured?! In with that... that thing?!"

As if in answer, one of the three stalks stopped its incessant banging, and reared back into a long, drawn-out moan that shook the floor and made their hide stand on end.

Twilight gulped and nodded. "I have a plan," she said, getting out a few grenades.

"Oh, Twilight, dear," Rarity said, shaking her head, "I really was just joking when I suggested we lob grenades at it."

"No, no!" Twilight said quietly. "It's a distraction. I heard one of the ponies say that these things hear us. They're listeners!"

Rarity both widened her eyes and rolled them at the same time. "That can't be right."

"Here, watch."

Twilight gently pulled the pin from the grenade with her magic, and tossed it through the doorway into a far corner. Rarity hid her ears, but the boom was muffled by the walls.

No sooner had it done this than the sound of the banging started up full force right where the grenade went off.

"Now, watch," Twilight said.

Twilight positioned herself just to the side of the doorway and leaned against the wall. She then stuck out her hoof right in front of the doorway and wiggled it up and down violently for the next few seconds.

Sure enough, the creature didn't stop banging in the same spot from when she threw the grenade.

"You don't know that," Rarity said. "What if it just isn't looking at you?!"

As an answer, Twilight hunched up onto her toes, and tiptoed through the door.

"Twi—" Rarity started, before hunching herself up and tiptoeing after her. "Twilight!" she whispered. "Twilight, what are you doing?!"

Twilight was already well into the room by the time Rarity caught up with her. As they had entered they both got a good look at the stalks, as well as the silo.

When it attacked Rainbow Dash, Twilight had only caught a glimpse of the creatures, and thought them to be simple animated plants. However, as she got a closer look, she noticed the stalk was more like a neck with an enormous head at the end. The head was approximately oval-shaped, stretching out vertically from the top of the stalk. It was always bent over, though, feeling around with what looked like a large black beak at the end, which curved down and ended at a point like a hummingbird's. Both the beak and the small tentacles underneath the body were black, and Twilight now saw the tentacles as being like tiny limbs, so small they could only grab something if the head was directly over its pray.

The banging finally made sense now. The creature's only real attack was to skewer its enemies with its sharp beak, which would immobilize it to the point it could pick it up. The creature didn't have eyes, Twilight could now see, but it did have a mock-eye painted on its side, much like a butterfly's back is falsely painted.

Twilight would have stayed to quietly analyze its habits, but there was still Rainbow Dash to rescue. She looked up at the rocket engine on the ceiling above them. It was held by a tripod of red-blue pipes, thick electrical cable, and support beam, all running from the walls along the ceiling to the center.

"Ladders," Twilight whispered to Rarity. She pointed over at a red ladder just to her left, propped against the wall, and leading up to the first of many layers of overhangs going around the perimeter of the room.

"Twilight, wait!" Rarity whispered. Twilight had always tiptoed at a quick pace over to the ladder, and was already starting to climb.

"Twilight, slow down!" Rarity shouted, watching as Twilight quickly climbed halfway up. "What if it's not—"

There was a snap from the ladder, and a "Whoaoaoa!" from Twilight as the ladder parted from the wall, clanging against the hole it went through in the upper overhang.

Rarity gasped as the creatures banging immediately headed in their direction. "Twilight!" Rarity bolted over to her and put her hooves over her head.

Twilight saw it too. She inhaled deeply and held her breath, closing her eyes tight as one of the stems reared its head to strike down upon her.

Just as it was about to lean in the strike, it leaned back and gave another almighty groan, shaking the entire room. The other two stalks did likewise.

Twilight didn't stop to think about why it was doing this, and kept climbing the crooked ladder. She reached up with a hoof as she got to the hold in the overhang, and pushed the ladder back upright before looking down at Rarity.

"Come on!" she said, waiting until Rarity was just below her before climbing up onto the platform. Rarity did likewise. "Just one more, and we can get into the control room," she said.

They were now tiptoeing as quickly and quietly as their hooves would carry them. The next ladder was on the opposite side of the control room, but Twilight was confident they could make it without distracting the creature.

"Hang on," she said, getting out another grenade. She pulled the pin and flung it to the platform just above them, where the ladder came up.

After covering their ears and letting it shake the room, Twilight explained. "Boxes," she said. "They were blocking the way."

The next ladder came and went without much event. Both of them held their breath in case it also detached from the wall, but this ladder was much more solidly build.

Twilight could feel her heart pounding as she approached the control room. She was curious to know whether all the lights would work, showing them that everything was working properly. She guessed they would find out once they got inside.

However, before they were completely around, Twilight stopped dead. There was a brown stallion dressed like a security guard standing inside the control room, looking around. He hadn't seemed to notice them, but was completely distracted by the three stalks rearing their heads and banging against the platforms. Twilight could tell he had a determined look on his face.

Twilight had horrible visions of him pressing the launch button with them still inside the silo. There really wasn't anything she could do. If she warned him, the creature would hear. If they didn't, they'd get burned alive.

Twilight was just about to toss a grenade somewhere to get his attention when she saw him leap heroically out the window.

"HEEEEY!" he shouted at the creature, brandishing the gun on his shoulder. "HEY, OVER HERE! EAT LEAD, YOU OUTER SPACE OCTOPUS!"

There was nothing she could do. Twilight simply watched as the guard managed to fire three shots just before the creature slammed on top of him with a bang.

It wasn't pretty. The beak went right through his torso, spreading blood all over the platform. When the beak lifted, his body was still clinging on it, making the creature writhe around and bang random places trying to get it off.

"Over here!" Twilight whispered, feeling a tight knot in her stomach as she tried to avoid the random strikes and tiptoe at the same time. "Quickly!"

They didn't even bother avoiding the blood. Twilight leaped inside, followed by Rarity. They both jumped again as the creature struck the platform just outside the window.

Without thinking, Twilight slammed her hoof into the "Test Fire" button, and hit the floor with both hooves over her head. Rarity followed suit.

There was a hiss—a rumble—

And the room exploded.

It was like listening to a grenade constantly going off next to her ear. Twilight could feel the heat from above her, and knew the flames were wafting inside the control room. She kept reminding herself that heat only rises, but it didn't distract her from the burning sensation against the back of her head. She could only imagine what Rarity was experiencing.

With one last puff, the engine died out, leaving a thick trail of smoke idling just above the ground.

Twilight let out a violent cough, and staggered to her hooves. Her mane and tail were completely singed, and even parts of her hide had turned black from the smoke.

"Is—*cough*—is everypony okay?" she said weakly.

Rarity got up and looked around.

"My tail!" she shouted. "My beautiful tail!" She thrust her mangled tail in Twilight's face. "RUINED!" she shouted, pointing out every scorch mark and place where the hairs were now uneven.

Twilight smiled, and even giggled, glad that Rarity was okay.

She looked around at the blackened equipment around them, and then at the hazy interior of the silo, which was now strewn with the melted biological matter of what used to be the alien creature.

"Well," she sighed, "we did what we could." She climbed out the window and onto the platform, noting that parts of the inside of the upper platform were still glowing red. If it wasn't for the suit, she wouldn't have been able to stand the heat of the metal platforms.

"You might want to stay inside, Rarity," she suggested.

She turned back to the hole in the bottom of the silo where the stalks had been sticking out of, and waited. "Come on, Rainbow Dash," she whispered.

The seconds rolled by one at a time, and Twilight was testing how long she could hold her breath. She was very aware of the exact way in which the smoke curved and rose all around the ground. She was very aware of the shape of the mass of creature sprawled all along the ground.

After what seemed like hours, she finally heard something.

A voice.

Before she could call out, there was a pop, and a small black meteorite launched out of the hole, raining black debris onto the floor. It spread out its arms wide and uttered "OH, FOR PETE'S SAKE!"

"RAINBOW!" Twilight shouted, dancing around on the floor.

The black blob shook itself out, turning blue as it did so, and flew right up to the platform. "You guys couldn't have waited a few more minutes?!" Rainbow shouted. "I almost had 'em!"

She swung her hooves around in a few mock-punches.

Twilight's eyes went wide as she remembered the many groans the creature had been letting out. "That was you?!" Twilight said. "Heh, I was afraid you were just giving the poor thing indigestion!"

"Indigestion is right," Rainbow said, trying to get the soot out of her mane and tail. "The way I was pounding that thing, it was probably begging to be killed!"

Twilight actually laughed. She would have hugged her if she could reach that far.

"Okay," Twilight said, crawling back into the control room with Rarity, "you've proved your awesomeness."

Rarity had simply been staring with her mouth open the entire time, unable to comprehend how Rainbow Dash was still alive, much less unscathed.

"I guess we should figure out how to get out of here," Twilight said, watching Rainbow hover just outside the window.

"No problem!" Rainbow said, closing her eyes and hovering her hoof from side to side. "There's a pool the creature was covering up at the bottom of the pit." She turned around to look at it. "Now that it's seen the wrath of me," she turned to strike a pose, "it's been completely uncovered. It probably takes us straight out of the silo!" She flung her hooves into the air and smiled as she said this.

Twilight nodded her head, not even bothering to refute. "Rarity? That sound good to you?"

Rarity was still gawking at Rainbow Dash, and finally noticed all the other ponies staring at her. She blushed, and smiled lightly, realizing how rude it was of her to stare. "I, uh..." She looked up at Rainbow Dash. She was at a complete loss for words, but managed to get out a "It's good to see you, Rainbow Dash." She blushed even harder, trying to think of more to say.

Twilight shifted her eyes between the two of them and nearly cracked up.

"I guess it's good to see you, too," Rainbow said.

Twilight let out a couple giggles. "Alright, you two," she said. "What say we get out of here."

Pony Up

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"And then," Rainbow said, flying up into a pose, "I whipped my hoof around, and WHAM! Right in the socker!"

"Uh-huh," Twilight said for the thousandth time.

They had been traveling down the pipes just outside the silo for a few minutes, during which Rainbow Dash had been giving them a blow-by-blow account of every punch, kick, and bite used in her triumphant defeat over the "dozen-tentacle behemoth" in the heart of the silo. Twilight would rather she simply write a book about it and be done with it.

Getting out of the silo had proven to be a challenge. The pit Rainbow had been dragged into was much deeper than Rarity or Twilight had thought, and they had needed Rainbow's help in getting all the way down. Once down there, Rainbow wheeled them around in a tour of the dark green-goo-glowing cave where she fought against the base of the stalks. There was even a deep pool of water in the middle that turned out to be a small reservoir that lead just outside the main Silo. It ended up leading them to a waste collection zone, where they were travelling now.

Actually, "Waste Collection Zone" was just the name Twilight gave it, based on the waterfall of less-viscous green goo that poured into a river-sized vat below them. The waves and running stream carried the waste to a Neighagra Falls sized set of roaring waterfalls in the distance that spilled hundreds of feet into a swirling vortex of green goo. Celestia-only-knew where it all went. Knowing Pony Mesa, Twilight guessed it was probably into some bunny-and-flower-infested forest somewhere.

The best part of all of this was that the pipes they were standing on hovered right over the raging river of slime. The entire time they had been walking, Twilight could see the river flowing below them, as well as the mist and smoke of the rushing falls up ahead.

"And then," Rainbow continued, "I whooshed around, and dodged another blow, like this."

Rarity leaned up to Twilight and ducked as Rainbow did a barrel roll over them.

"Dear," Rarity said, nudging Twilight. She nodded towards the falls up ahead. "Don't you think Rainbow should, you know..."

"—and then, just as it was about to—"

Twilight could barely see the massive chamber up ahead through the wafting mist of the falls. There was a much larger pipe hovering over the middle of the pit. She could just make out some sort of tiny wheel at the top, which she guessed was some sort of valve, and imagined that it had something to do with the large gap between it and the wall. The other end of the pipe wasn't connected to anything either, and judging from its jagged edges, it seemed to have broken clean in two. Had it not been for the cables holding it up, the little of the pipe that was there itself wouldn't even be there.

She leaned back towards Rarity. "I'll see what I can do."

Rainbow Dash was swimming through the air on her back next to them, demonstrating how she swam so casually after her big victory. She didn't even notice that Twilight had been eyeing her for the last few seconds.

"A-hem!" Twilight said at last.

Rainbow turned, mid-sentence. "Oh, right, of course!" she said, flying over to them. "How could I forget my assistants?"

"Assistants?!" Rarity spat.

"Well," Rainbow said. She put her hooves on her hips, "I couldn't have completely thwarted this thing without a distraction!"

Rarity blew a raspberry in disbelief. "You have got to be—Twilight, can you believe her?!" she said, pointing at Rainbow Dash.

Twilight ignored Rarity, and glared at the blue pegasus. "Rainbow, we need your help again."

Rainbow put her hooves on her hips. "Of course you do!" she said valiantly. "What's it this time? A giant bird of prey? A manticore? A fire-breathing dragon?"

Twilight felt a twinge in the pit of her stomach at the thought of Spike.

"Whatever it is, Airman Rainbow Dash will be there to save the day!" She put a hoof up and made a supercolt pose.

Twilight narrowed her lids and exhaled out of her nose. "We need you to carry us to the pipe," she said simply.

Rainbow Dash's hooves slacked, along with her face. "Oh. Well, okay, I guess." She put her hoof behind her and scratched her neck. "But you're sure—you're absolutely positive there's no, like, giant four-headed hydra about to jump out of here, right?"

Twilight glared at her.

"Okay, okay!" Rainbow said, lowering down to her. "It was just a question."

Twilight felt the hooves of Rainbow Dash around her waist again, but they weren't nearly as rough as they usually were. If anything, it was as though Rainbow was dragging her hooves the whole time.

Twilight felt a light spray as Rainbow flew over the cresting green-goo-waterfall. She tried not to look down. The pipe in the center may as well have been suspended over a bottomless pit, had it not been for the bright glow wafting up from the bottom.

"There's a wheel on the top," she said, pointing at the top of the pipe. There was a cable going from the wheel to the ceiling. "I'm hoping it controls the hatch to the pipe in the wall."

Rainbow hovered to the small wheel, and set Twilight on the top of the pipe. She wobbled as she tried to balance herself on the curving ground.

"Well," she said, "at least it's not slippery." She got her bearings, and carefully stepped around until she was facing the wheel. "Let's hope this works," she said, rearing back and placing her forehooves on it.

It wouldn't budge.

"Rainbow," Twilight said, jerking at the wheel a few more times, "can you get this open?"

Had she thought about it more, she probably would have had Rainbow fly out and do this herself. As it was, she simply backed onto another part of the pipe, and watched Rainbow have at it.

It wasn't a pretty sight. Rainbow tried lots of different approaches: pushing, pulling, flying, turning—none of them worked. All she accomplished was showing off her teeth and pouring beads of sweat. While entertaining to watch, it didn't do much for getting the hatch open.

"Let me try loosening it up a bit," Twilight said.

Twilight strained her horn, and concentrated on the wheel-shaft. Rainbow took this as an immediate sign to start pulling on the wheel again, and didn't let up the whole time Twilight worked her magic.

It was difficult to conjure something into areas you couldn't see, especially something like a viscous fluid. Twilight had to take her best guess as to where the metal was stuck the worst. She wrapped it first around the base of the wheel, and spread it into the socket, squeezing it between the small cracks.

"I... think it's... moving!" Rainbow said. "Just... a little... harder..."

Twilight could hear her really straining as she moved the fluid as far into the socket as it would reach.

There was a loud pop, followed by a voice-cracking yell, followed by a crash off to the left. Twilight stopped her spell, and noticed the wheel spinning around on its own. She looked around.

"Rainbow?" she asked.

Twilight looked at the waterfall, then the ceiling, then the wall with the exit pipe, and finally spotted a blue patch on the far wall just to the right of the hatch. It was almost spread-eagle, and would have made a nice abstract mural, had it not been alive. She heard it groan as a piece of the wall next to it cracked off and fell into the pit.

"It looks like we got the hatch open!" Twilight yelled over the roar of the waterfall.

She walked up to the edge of the pipe as Rainbow Dash extracted herself from the Rainbow-Dash-shaped crater in the wall.

"We'll need your help again getting through the hatch," she said, looking at the wall. "I don't we can jump that far."

Rainbow derped her way over to Twilight. "Yeeeeah," she said, flying around erratically, "about that."

Twilight put her hoof up to shield herself from the glow, and looked out over the waterfall. "RARITY!" she yelled. "ARE YOU STILL OKAY OVER THERE?!"

She could barely hear the faint "I'm fine, dear," in the distance, over the sound of the rushing green waste.

Twilight gave Rainbow a look, and Rainbow derpily put a hoof up in salute. "Got it," she said.

A streak of rainbow flew off erratically and crashed into one of the far pipes. "I'm okay," it said, and righted itself as it flew up to the white blur in the distance that was Rarity. Twilight couldn't make out Rarity's expression, but as Rainbow staggeringly lifted her off the ground, Twilight was sure it was anything but confident.

Twilight watched as Rainbow flew like a colorful moth back to the pipe, and passed right by it.

"Rainbow," Twilight said, pointing in front of her, "pipe, remember?"

Rainbow staggered back. "Got it," she said.

Twilight waited patiently until she heard the crash of Rainbow and Rarity in the exit pipe, and then called Rainbow back. She stood up inside the pipe, shook out her mane, tapped her hoof against her head a few times, as if trying to get water out of her ear, and took off again, this time no longer derped.

"It's a nice thing this pipe is so much bigger than the others," Rainbow said as she lowered Twilight. "Makes it a lot easier to hit from a distance." She set Twilight carefully inside the pipe, right next to Rarity.

Twilight was glad to be able to walk freely after being trapped on the island pipe, and promptly took off, leading them wherever the pipe would take them.

"So, what makes you think this is the way out?" Rainbow asked hovering next to her.

"Nothing, really," Twilight said. "In fact, there's really no signs or anything that says how to get out of here. I'm just basing it off the fact It leads in the opposite direction of the silo, that's all."

Rarity pulled in front of Twilight and stopped her. "Don't you think you're being a bit rash about this? I mean—"

Twilight walked right by her. "It's the only place to go, Rarity," she said, turning her head to look back at the other two. "Did you see another way?"

Rarity cantered next to Twilight. "I didn't exactly have time to look, dear. I was carried pretty directly."

Rainbow tailed behind them in the air, half-glancing behind her.

"Twilight's right," Rainbow said. "there wasn't much room to fly around in there. Believe me, I would have known."

"See?" Twilight said. "So long as we're not backtracking, we just have to keep walking and see where this pipe comes out." She picked up the pace, and rounded a corner. "For all we know, this could take us straight to the surface. Or better yet, into some laboratory somewhere!"

"Uh, Twilight," Rainbow said.

"I can already see it," Twilight said, closing her eyes as she walked. "Fellow scientists, all ready to welcome new members to their team, already charting out their path to the complex."

"Twilight," Rarity started, "you might want to—"

"And they'll have a map, too! A real map, of the entire facility!" she said. "And it'll—AHH!"

There was a snap, and Twilight felt the surface of the pipe fall out from under her as it pivoted downward. She tried looking down to follow the mouth of the pipe, but had no control over where her body was in the air. There was a clunk as the pipe struck something just before it went vertical, and she felt her rump hit the pipe and slide at a steep angle.

"RAINBO—"

Before she could finish screaming, she landed on something hard, and felt it crack beneath her rump. Her head snapped back, and she found herself on her back looking straight up. The last thing she saw was Rarity's own rump sliding down the pipe directly above her. The wind was knocked out of her as it slammed into her body.

She closed her eyes and grimaced. She would have groaned, but she didn't have any air left to groan with.

Rainbow Dash gently lowered herself onto the ground behind them.

"You know," she said, folding her wings, "you two need to stop doing that. It's getting kinda old."

=========================================================

Twilight got up on all fours and rubbed her back. The light concrete floor was covered with wooden debris.

"Well," Rarity said, still working on standing up, "at least that box broke your fall."

Twilight looked around the room at the myriad of other boxes sitting in every corner of the oddly-shaped storage closet. It reminded Twilight of some of the storage rooms they were in, back when the military was attacking them. The only difference was it wasn't as bright.

"I'm thinking it's the other way around," Twilight said. "My fall broke the box." She turned towards Rarity, "And considering what broke your fall, it's a good thing this suit is so strong. I'm not sure I could have survived that!"

Rainbow was busy poking around at some of the boxes in the room. "What do you think's in here?" she asked.

Twilight walked up to one of them. "I don't know," she said. "But considering the state of this facility, I don't think anyone would mind if we took a peek." She pulled out the crowbar and held it out towards Rainbow Dash. "I don't suppose you'd care to do the honors?"

Rainbow snatched up the crowbar and swung it around. "WOULD I?!"

Twilight stood back and ducked as Rainbow swung it back over her head, and kept going until it hit the box in front of them. There was a satisfying whack of metal on wood, followed by a blur of colors. Regardless of the fact the top of the box snapped in half after the first blow, Rainbow kept going at it until the entire box was reduced to saw dust...

... and then spun out into a rainbow tornado as she demolished every box in the room.

"Rainbo—whoa!" Twilight ducked as some of the wood pieces flew over her head. "You really don't—AH!—need to—ow!" Twilight kept putting her hoof up and flinching as more debris came her way.

Rarity got behind Twilight. "I think she's doing more damage to the contents than she is to the boxes."

The rainbow tornado stopped and spun out into a heaving Rainbow Dash, holding the crowbar like a blow torch. Twilight and Rarity gaped, first at Rainbow, then to the debris all around the room, then back at Rainbow Dash, completely lost for words.

Rainbow Dash glanced down at the crowbar, and then back up at Twilight. "This thing's pretty cool," she said, holding it up as though she was appraising it. "You don't mind if I hold on to this for a while, do you?"

At first, Twilight didn't say anything at all. She just stood there, unable to comprehend what Rainbow was asking.

"Uhhhhhhh..." she said, turning back to Rarity, then back to Rainbow Dash, then back to Rarity again. Rarity was shaking her head with her hooves up like she was a filly being offered some horrid vegetable.

She turned back to Rainbow with a stern look on her face. "You can keep it under one condition," she said, raising a hoof. "You have to use it away from us."

Rainbow threw her hooves up over her head. "WHOOHOO! Done!" she said. "The next monsterzilla I come across doesn't stand a chance with this thing!" She swooshed it around her head a few times before landing with a flourish.

Twilight ignored the face-hoofing Rarity standing next to her, and instead looked around at the debris. "What exactly was in these crates, anyway?"

Rainbow Dash turned around and looked at the closest one to her. With a swoop of her hoof, she picked up something small, green, and metal. "Looks like cameras," she said, holding one up at eye level. She put a hoof up to the front and twisted it, as if cleaning a lens.

Twilight also picked one up gently with her magic, and Rarity gazed over her shoulder. They were approximately small, green, metal boxes with a lens on the front. The metal casting was slightly decorated in shape. She turned it around a bit until the lens was facing them, and heard an "Ooo!" from Rarity.

"These look familiar," she said. "Where have we seen this?" She turned to Rarity.

She heard a snap, and turned to see Rainbow Dash hovering near the wall.

"Hey!" she said, looking up at a green spot on the wall. "They're sticky! Maybe they're like the cameras on the wa—HEY!" She ducked as a green light shot out. It was just dusty enough in the room that they could manage to see the green laser light shining out of the device. "What gives?! I didn't touch anything!" Rainbow stuck her hoof, as if to wave it around in front of the laser.

"NO-NO-NO-NONONONON—" Twilight and Rarity screamed out together, waving their hooves.

Rainbow stopped with a disappointed look on her face. "What?" she asked. "It's just a camera thing. What's it—"

"Trip Mine!" Twilight shouted. "We saw them in the storage rooms."

Rainbow's eyes went wide for a second, and she reached her hoof in back of her neck. "Huh." She got up close to it and eyed it. "So this is what they look like." She pulled back and looked at them again. "The ground troops said they had a few traps that they used. They never showed them to us, though." She crossed her arms. "They never let us airponies play with any of the cool toys."

Twilight trotted around the room and started levitating a few of them into a small storage pocket in the side of her suit. "These things might come in handy," she said. "We'll place a few traps if we get in trouble."

=========================================================

There was only one exit from the storage room: a long, winding hallway that looked like little more than an extension of the room. Twilight had only grabbed a hoofful of the trip-mines, but she was already feeling the bulge in the pocket of the suit. They weren't exactly comfortable.

Rainbow Dash took the lead, swinging her shiny new crowbar in front of her, as though warding off gnats. Twilight and Rarity stayed behind, keeping a close eye in case the crowbar happened to come hurling their way.

"Do you hear that?" Rarity whispered.

Twilight's right ear whipped up to listen.

"I don't hear anything," she said. "Just Rainbow Dash."

Rarity gave her a look, but didn't say anything else.

They had only been walking another few seconds before Twilight felt a rumble under her hooves. It reminded her of when she lived in the dorms of the Canterlot academy, and felt the rhythm of somepony's stereo system from downstairs.

She tapped Rarity on the shoulder, and stopped. Rainbow Dash continued to swing the crowbar around until a one of her dramatic swooshes sent her spinning a 180, and she caught a glance of the other two not moving.

"Yeah. And then I'll whip around like this and—Hey," she said, catching an eye of them and flying down to their level. "What gives?"

"Twilight thinks she found something, I suppose," Rarity said.

"Actually..." Twilight looked around confusingly, trying to pinpoint the source of the disruption.

Rainbow Dash rolled her eyes. "It's just an empty hallway," she said. "It's not like—"

The ground shook, sending a few dust stalactites falling from the ceiling.

"What the—"

It shook again, this time sending a few rock grains down the walls. A deep growl in the distance followed a third shake, and Twilight felt Rarity cling onto the side of her suit. Rainbow Dash had about-faced. Twilight couldn't read her expression, but Twilight had a feeling she had sensed another great terror up ahead.

Twilight gave Rarity a look, and Rarity gave an embarrassed grin and let go. They both looked at Rainbow Dash facing away from them, silently flapping her wings.

Rarity looked at Twilight. "You don't think she's going to—"

There was a WHOOSH and a Rainbow Streak, and Rainbow Dash was gone.

Twilight put a hoof to her face. "She did."

One exasperated groan later, Twilight and Rarity were galloping after her down the long hallway. They could hear another low growl in the distance, followed by the ground shaking.

There was a loud "yeah!" off in the distance, and Twilight and Rarity stopped to listen. Based on the occasional "take that" echoing back down the hallway, Twilight guessed (correctly) that Rainbow Dash had found something. There were a few clangs echoing back: probably the sound of a crowbar hitting stuff, followed by a distant whoosh that sounded like some kind of jet engine. Twilight could see a bit of orange shimmering against the wall.

"ow, ow, ow,ow,ow,OW,OW,OW!" Rainbow Dash came bolting back. Flickers of orange and red were licking the blue and rainbow. She swooshed right passed them, landed in a smoking heap. and then sat up and whacked a hoof into the edge of her wing to put some of the flames out before grabbing her tail to do the same.

Twilight and Rarity had already run up to her by the time she finally put out the fire.

"That thing has flame throwers?!" Rainbow said, throwing her hooves over her head as soon as she finished putting out her tail. "How am I supposed to compete with that?!" She flew up into the air, and Twilight could still see the blackened tip of her right wing.

"Oh, my!" Rarity said, looking around at Twilight. In fact, both of them were looking at Twilight. There was silence from the two of them, and for a few seconds, all she could hear was the sound of the creature stomping around and growling in the distance.

"Well," she said, "unless there's a way around it, it looks like we've reached an impasse." She sighed and hung her head.

Rarity poked the pocket of Twilight's suit. "Couldn't we set some traps for it?" she asked. "Something this big—it seems like the only way."

Twilight shook her head. "It sounds like it's too big to fit through this hallway. It would have come after us if it wasn't," she said. "And without seeing the area it's in, I wouldn't know how to fight it." She looked up at Rainbow Dash. "Did you see anything while you were in there, Rainbow?"

Rainbow scratched the back of her neck. "Not really," she said. "Just a big pile of blue monster in my face."

"She was probably too busy swinging your crowbar," Rarity whispered to Twilight. Rainbow Dash still managed to hear, and glared at her with her arms crossed.

Twilight trotted down the hallway. "Well we're not going to get anywhere without seeing what we have to work with," she said, ignoring the quiet pleas behind her to stop.

She ignored the bickering of the two behind her, and kept walking until she saw the exit to the tunnel. The bickering immediately stopped, and all three of them instinctively pressed up against one of the walls. None of them were close enough to the exit to see clearly, but they could all tell something huge was just on the other side.

Twilight got on her hind legs, pressed her back against the wall, and started inching her way towards the end, careful not to make too much noise with her hooves. She could hear the soft growl of the creature breathing. There was a large blue obstruction blocking most of her vision to the room.

Twilight looked back and saw the other two hanging behind, making frantic but silent motions for her to come back. She could feel the sweat pouring down her temple as she inched even closer, trying to get a peak of the inside of the room.

The blue obstruction finally came into full view as she held her breath and inched her way closer. It looked like some sort of over-sized bipedal baby, but much bulkier and calm. It was plated with some sort of natural shiny armor over its black and blue webbed skin. Luckily, she couldn't see its face, as it was facing away from her.

It looked around curiously, and took a few steps forward. Each step made the ground shake violently, causing more dust to pour from the ceiling, and a few of the loose pebbles on the ground to rattle. A soft glow could be seen in front of it each time it exhaled.

Twilight felt her legs involuntarily shake as she inched a few steps further, right up to the edge of the tunnel.

From what she could see, the tunnel exited into some sort of train depot, in the shape of a large underground dome. She could see the same kind of metal rails in the floor that were in the entrance to the silo, which all came to the middle around a giant turntable. She couldn't see where the rails lead to, but she assumed there must be at least one train somewhere.

Two things stood out on the far wall. The first was an entrance to another tunnel similar to the one she was in standing in. The other was a glass-less window peering inside what must have been a control room for the rails. She could see a few of the controls against the wall, as well as a pony peering out of the room, wearing a—

Business Suit, Twilight thought. Her limbs froze, and her eyes tunneled in on him. It was the same pony. Following me, she thought. They locked eyes. Neither of them blinked. The black stallion gave the tiniest of nods—did he nod?—and walked silently to the right and out of sight.

The creature let out a low growl, but Twilight's heart pounded above it. Her hooves nearly gave out from under her. Why was he here?!

She closed her eyes, breathed deeply a few times, and inched her way back down the hall to where the others were, knees shaking the whole time.

"And?!" Rainbow said, crossing her hooves.

Twilight collapsed onto the ground and took a few more breaths. "This isn't going to be easy," she said. She ignored the rolling eyes around her and continued. "That creature is blocking a giant bottleneck. Every path leads to and from that one room."

She looked around at the other two, who were both scratching their heads and looking around. "We need a distraction," she continued, getting back onto her hooves. "A really... fast distraction," she said, looking straight at Rainbow Dash.

It took a few seconds for Rainbow to catch onto what she was saying.

"Oooh, no," she said. "I'm not letting that thing turn me into a roast hunk of meat!" She swooshed further back down the hallway and threw her head back with her hooves crossed. "Count me out of this!"

Twilight put her face into her hoof. "You're the only one who's fast enough to avoid it!" she said. "Look, do you want out of here or not?!"

Rainbow shook her head, hooves still crossed. "Nu-uh! No way, no how!"

=========================================================

Rainbow hovered, poised on the verge of entering the room. Sweat was pouring from her temples, but she managed to keep perfectly still in the air.

"Come on, Airman Rainbow Dash," Twilight mocked. "You're the one who wanted to beat up something with that crowbar."

Rainbow Dash couldn't take her eyes off the growling blue creature. "Not something that shoots fire from its arms."

Rarity walked up next to Twilight. "Dear, don't you think we should reconsider?" she said. "I mean, what if it's more distracted by us?"

Twilight shook her head. "Don't need to. We'll give Rainbow Dash a head start, and sneak around behind it while it's distracted." She looked up at Rainbow, who was now gnawing on her hooves with chattering teeth. "I'm... sure she'll be okay."'

The creature was eyeing a large vaulted tunnel exit off to the right, which was gated shut. Twilight gave a nod to Rarity, and tiptoed out into the room. They could feel the air moving with each breath the creature let out, and the sudden increase in space around them was dizzying.

Rainbow Dash could barely be heard hovering behind them. Twilight could see a few glimmers from the corner of her eye, as the light reflected off the crowbar. Twilight stepped carefully over the threshold of the turntable.

There was a flash of green, and an electrical buzz of arcing energy. Twilight cried out and covered her eyes.

"RAINBOW!" she shouted. Two of the bipedal creatures they had seen back in the storage areas had appeared just in front of the tunnel entrance they were heading towards.

Her call had prompted an abrupt response from the mass of blue to their right. A low rumbling growl was quickly followed by the ground trembling as it started stomping around in a circle, looking for the source of the disruption.

"On it!" Rainbow said. She swooped into a rainbow blur straight at one of the smaller creatures, and with a loud whack, the creature flew back and landed in a heap on its back.

"No, no!" Twilight said. "The BIG one!"

Rarity was stumbling around, trying desperately to follow the erratic movements Twilight was making as she dodged out of the way of the heaping blue mass. There was a loud crunch as thick blue foot smashed into brown standing alien. Twilight kept her eye on the two flaming arms, whipping around to form orange streaks in the air.

Rainbow was fidgeting with the crowbar, swerving first this way, then changing her mind and swerving the other way.

"RAINBOW!" Twilight glimpsed one of the many tunnels that the tracks lead off into, and galloped towards it. The sound of a blow torch went off behind her, and she glimpsed back to see the creature randomly shooting flames into the air. Rainbow Dash was nowhere to be seen.

It was dark in the tunnel, but Twilight could just make out another wooden platform train sitting on the tracks, and prompted Rarity to follow behind her and hide behind its metal control box.

"Where is she?" Rarity asked, cuddling up as best she could.

Twilight peered around and could see the creature writhing around, as if it had an itch it couldn't scratch. The entire room was filled with deep rumbling and stomping as it moaned and turned, occasionally shooting flames at the ceiling in frustration.

"What's it doing?" Rarity asked, pulling in closer to Twilight.

Twilight squinted and looked closely around the room, then at the creature, then back at the room. Something was amiss, but she couldn't quite put her hoof on it.

Then she saw it: Rainbow Dash had managed to climb onto its back, and was swinging the crowbar into it like she was hammering a particularly stubborn nail. A flash of light and sparks flew up each time she hit, which Twilight had mistakenly thought was just a glaring reflection off its armor.

The creature let out a yell in frustration, and started stomping the ground like its feet were on fire. Each stomp made the ground shake so much, Twilight kept getting knocked off the train platform.

Twilight poked her head out over the top of the train controls and held on the best she could. "STOP PISSING IT OFF!" she shouted. She slipped off, and struggled to regain her balance. "You're supposed to be getting it away from the exit!"

Rainbow staggered off the creatures back and swooped high above it, trying desperately to dodge the random flames shooting up.

"I'm—trying!" she managed to get out.

Twilight's pupils were going crazy in their sockets trying to follow Rainbow Dash around in the air. It was a colorful blur of rainbow streaks, bright orange glows, and giant blue blob, all coming together in a small fireworks display.

"Come on," she said to Rarity. "At least it's distracted. We might have a chance at the tunnel."

She trotted out from behind the train, keeping her eye on the flames.

"But, Twilight!" Rarity galloped up to her, lip quivering. "We don't have a clear—"

Another green flash erupted to their right with a static bang, covering up the rest of Rarity's sentence. The blur of blue halted and turned towards the source of the noise. It swung an arm out, as if to swat the rainbow fly out of the way, and then charged towards the new alien spawn.

"Now!" Twilight yelled. "Run! RUN!"

Twilight felt her hooves pounding against the ground as she charged at the tunnel. There was a thwack in the distance, followed by a loud, voice-breaking scream, and a rainbow meteor crashed and slid in front of their path. Twilight and Rarity reared, and Rarity nearly fell over. Rainbow snapped onto her hooves and prepared to launch herself back into the battle.

"Tunnel, Rainbow!" Twilight said. She caught a glimpse of Rainbow looking around confused before dashing into the tunnel and out of sight. A war cry emanated from the tunnel shortly after, followed by the sound of metal whipping through the air. Twilight readied her gun.

The inside of the tunnel was chaos. Except for a few steps on the ground, and the hurricane of electrical flashes, it was identical to the tunnel they had just come out of. Creatures just like the ones that got stepped on in the depot were pouring in, and Rainbow had already knocked one of them on its back. She swooped on top of it, and landed her final blow.

Twilight slammed on her hoof, and riddled a few bullets into the side, where a group of four or five of the creatures were charging up their electrical attacks. They each clutched various parts of their slimy bodies and collapsed in all different ways.

"HEYAW!" Rainbow shot down at another shockwave and whipped a blow into the side of the newly-appearing creature's face, sending a splash of yellow fluid flying as the creature landed in a heap on the ground. "That'll teach you to mess with me!" Another shockwave burst behind her, and before she could turn, the newly spawned creature spat out an electrical bolt straight into her rump. Her mane stood on end, and she let out a noise like an injured mouse.

"Rarity!" Twilight yelled, pointing her hoof at Rainbow.

Rarity got the message, and promptly snapped her hoof into the ground, letting a mass of lead slam into the offending creature.

The battle lasted a few more minutes. Twilight's teeth were sore from the gun shaking them around so much, and Rarity looked like she was about to faint. Rainbow Dash was the only one who looked like she was enjoying herself.

Rainbow glared at the last creature falling into a heap on the floor, and wiped her brow. She whipped the crowbar around and struck a victorious pose before turning to the other two.

Twilight and Rarity were both heaving and lying collapsed on the ground. Twilight sighed, and Rarity let out a dramatic groan.

"Is it over?" Twilight asked.

Rainbow swooped down and lifted them both to their hooves. Rarity collapsed back onto the ground again, and had to be lifted two more times before she would stay up. Twilight was shaky, but managed to keep her balance.

"Looks like we did it, guys!" Rainbow said. "We really taught those things a lesson!"

All of them jumped as the ground shook violently, and the tunnel filled with a low growl. Rarity wrapped her hooves around Twilight and pressed her shaking body into the other's. Twilight looked around awkwardly at the mass of blue standing just outside the entrance.

"Heh. Maaaaaybe not quite."

=========================================================

The control center wasn't too difficult to find. Rainbow Dash half-lead half-dragged Twilight and Rarity around the corner to a boarded up entrance, and smashed through it with ease.

Both her and Rarity were now recovering on the floor while Rainbow Dash looked out the window, studying the clunky movements of the blue monster in the depot. Twilight stared at the old equipment and control panels against the walls, disappointed at the lack of any functioning sounds or lights. The big red "OFF" sign above it wasn't helping either.

"If we want to get out of here, we'll have to get the trains powered up," she said, leaning against the wall. "There's gotta be a power source around here."

Rainbow kept looking out the window. "Why bother?" she asked. "All getting on a train will do is give that monster out there a skillet to fry its lunch on." She glanced at the rusting panels against the wall. "That's assuming you can find the outlet to plug that thing in."

Twilight sighed. She was considering getting up when she heard her stomach rumble. She put her hooves over it, and realized she hadn't eaten anything since before the experiment and, in fact hadn't drunk anything either. She would give anything to have a bite of a sunflower sandwich right about now, and wondered how many days it would take before she suggested roasting some of the aliens just to get something in her tummy. Heck, it might be worth trying alien meat just to see Rarity's reaction.

Twilight chuckled at this, which got Rainbow Dash's attention.

"What's so funny?" she asked.

Twilight shook her head. "Just... this," she said, moving her hooves around at the room. She rolled over and got to her hooves, stretching out with many groans, before walking up to examine the equipment. She caught a glimpse of the blue monster in the distance, breathing quietly but deeply, a faint growl emanating with each one.

"I don't think there's a power switch on this thing," she said, poking a few of the controls with her hoof. "I also don't think there's a power plug. There's some sort of primary power source that's been turned off."

Rarity could be heard in the corner trying to get to her hooves. "You think the cables have been broken?" she asked.

"More like the source has been turned off," she said. "Purposefully."

Rarity's eyes widened, and she stepped up next to Twilight. "Certainly none of the scientists would do something like that in this kind of situation," she said.

Twilight shrugged. "They did it before," she said. "Back in the silo, they had their own power generator for the rocket, which one of the scientists had switched off. I wouldn't put it past them to do the same here."

Rainbow scratched her neck. "Lemme get this straight," she said. "You all are suppose to be a bunch of egghead geniuses working here, right?" She crossed her hooves. "And yet, you go around walking straight into enemy fire and turning off your only sources of power?" She rolled her eyes. "Some scientists, huh?"

Twilight was too tired to retaliate. "Look, we need to get the power back on, or we're not going anywhere."

Rainbow flew over to the window. "And YOU need to open your eyes! Giant flaming monster out there, remember?!"

"I know!" Twilight shouted. "Just... one thing at a time, okay Rainbow?" She paced around the room. "The least we can do is get the trains running. We can deal with the other obstacles when we get there."

She walked over to the door and peered around at the hallway just outside of the control room. They were on the second floor, which consisted only of a few ramps and catwalks suspended over the floor below. A ladder descended below. The room shook quietly as the creature in the depot stomped around, causing a few dust clouds to fall from the ceiling.

"Other obstacles?!" Rainbow Dash said, flying over to her. "It's the only obstacle!"

Twilight ignored her, and carefully descended the ladder. "This tunnel leads somewhere, and I want to see where," she said. "If we're in luck, it leads to some sort of power source."

Rainbow flew down next to her. "And why can't this tunnel go somewhere else? Like, oh, I don't know, away from here?!"

Twilight shook her head. "I'm tired of walking," she said. "Taking a train to the Lambda Complex would be a lot faster." She looked behind her for Rarity. "And besides, even if this tunnel did go somewhere, the chances of it going someplace we want to be is a lot less likely than it we take the train."

Rarity was inching her way onto the ladder. "Twilight has a point," she said, sticking out her leg to find the rung. "Ponies use trains to get to convenient places. Tunnels are for maintenance."

Rainbow flew up to Rarity and pulled her off the rungs and into her hooves. "Yeah, yeah," she said, carrying Rarity to the ground. "Let's just get moving. The further away we get from that thing, the better."

=========================================================

Twilight slammed on her hoof one last time, and watched the last of the bipedal creatures fall to the ground.

"How many more of these are there?" she asked with a sigh.

Rainbow Dash was at the end of the tunnel, turning a red steel wheel in an attempt to open a pair of large doors at the end.

"Don't ask me," she said. "You're the one who wanted us to come this way." She put her hind legs against the wheel and pulled. "Stupid... wheel..."

"You know," Twilight said, "it might work better if your legs were somewhere other than the wheel."

Rainbow stopped, looked down, and blushed. "I-I know that!" she said. She flew back with a giggle and repositioned herself on the ground.

Twilight turned around. "Now, there should be something on the other side of these doors that's important. They seem like blast doors of some kind."

Rarity blew a lock out of her hair and rolled her eyes. "It wouldn't put it past them to put a broom closet back here," she said. "Just like that time they hid a cruise liner turbine in the rocket silo."

Twilight and Rainbow looked up. "Huh?"

Rarity shifted her eyes between them. "Er, long story," she said, blushes and moving back.

Rainbow continued to struggle against her epic battle with the wheel. "Almost... got it..."

Rarity gave Twilight a look. "Dear, do you think you could lend a hoo—"

Before she could finish, there was a loud squeak, and both Twilight and Rarity covered their ears and shielded their eyes against a bright green slit appearing between the two blast doors. Twilight put her hoof down and squinted as the doors parted, and finally trotted up to have a look inside.

Her tail could still be seen amid the glow as she crested the threshold, and she looked up and sighed.

"More ladders," she said, turning back to the others. Rainbow and Rarity sighed in unison. "Just watch out for the radioactive pool," she said on her way back. "There's got to be a regulation or something that every silo-shaped room be filled with some form of radioactive material. Is it just not Pony Mesa if an area is actually safe?!"

Rainbow whooshed past her, making her mane whip around, and caused a rainbow streak to fly through the doors and up the shaft. Her voice could be heard echoing around the chamber.

"It doesn't look too bad from in here," she said. "Looks like it's only two stories."

Twilight sighed. "That's how much we climbed in the silo."

She put her hoof up and lead Rarity through the doors. It was a much smaller area than anything they had seen in the silo, and as a result, much brighter. Luckily, all the light was well below them, so there was nothing shining directly in their eyes. She walked up to the first ladder to her right and placed her hoof on one of the rungs. She looked up, and could see a glimpse of blue and rainbow moving around above the grated catwalks.

"Uh, guys," Rainbow said. She flew back down and hovered with an uneasy look on her face. "I don't think this is the right way. Why don't we just turn around and go back now." She gave a hasty grin and flew back through the blast doors they had just come through.

Twilight grimaced. "RAINBOW!" she shouted.

Rainbow flew back into the room and hovered over the pit. "What? I just don't think we should be going this way." Twilight turned to glare at her, and Rainbow backed up a bit. "It's... ummm... not safe?" She made a funny face, and then grinned really wide with a squee.

Twilight rolled her eyes. "You just took on a gargantuan monster, Rainbow Dash. I think you can handle whatever's at the top of this thing." She continued to climb the ladder.

"Twilight," Rarity said, starting to climb the ladder behind her. "What if Rainbow's right? There could be traps ups there!"

Twilight crested the top and turned to help Rarity up. "Then it's a good thing we have a military soldier to help us disable them, isn't it?"

Rarity shook her head. "That's not what I meant."

Twilight found the second ladder and started to climb, watching the green shimmer of the light against the wall.

"Yeah!" Rainbow said, flying up to her level. "Yeah, that's it! There are traps, Twilight. Big, huge, ugly traps." She threw her hooves out, her eyes going wide. "They're everywhere! We gotta get out of here."

Twilight reached the top of the ladder and crested it. "Now you're just saying that because of Rarity," she said, turning around to help Rarity. "Why don't you just tell us what's bothering you?"

Rainbow backed up and fidgeted. "Bothering? Me?!" She giggled nervously. "What could possibly bother me?! I'm a soldier!" She flew up and struck a pose, but Twilight could tell she wasn't really into it.

Twilight walked around the catwalk until she found the exit: a set of blast doors identical to the ones they came through. "Now you got me curious," she said. "Just what exactly did you find here?"

The first thing she could see through he doors was a wooden table against a wall that looked just like all the other tunnels they had come through. It had a few armaments sitting on it, but other than that, it didn't look at all out of place. Above it was a sign saying "Power Generator", which caused a smile to crest Twilight's face. Rarity saw it too, and made a point of mentioning it to her.

As she crested the threshold, however, she heard a strange white noise coming from her left, and she turned to see a rather elaborate setup. The white noise was coming from a radio, which was nothing more than a small dial-ridden box sitting atop a safe. It was accompanied, however, by crates of explosives and more armaments, as well as strategic maps, wooden chairs, a few guns, and some special leather coats with the letters "HECU" imprinted on them.

"Oh, my!" Rarity said, as she walked up behind Twilight. "Does this mean the military is here?"

Twilight walked up to the table and studied some of the maps. "Looks like it," she said. "The grunts here must not be too smart, just leaving this stuff lying around like this." She readied her gun. "We'd better be careful. We don't want to walk into an ambush."

Rainbow Dash could be seen fidgeting violently behind them, still on the other side of the blast doors.

"Come on, Rainbow," Twilight said, turning to the right, and starting down a new tunnel. "We have a power source to find."

Rainbow continued to fidget, not bothering to come through the door.

Rarity looked back at her. "Twilight. I don't think she wants us to come this way."

Twilight sighed, but didn't stop walking. "Of course she doesn't," she said. "But we need her, Rarity. Neither of us stand a chance against a bunch of trained soldiers." She stopped to put her head in the air with a smile. "That's where Rainbow Dash comes in. She's the perfect distraction!"

"WHAAAT?!"

Twilight and Rarity turned towards the blast doors, where the scream came from. Rainbow Dash bolted out the door and immediately started shaking her head and her hooves. "Oh, no, nononono, you are not putting me in that position." She crossed her arms. "A monster, I'll do. But that's it. I am not walking in front of my comrades in front of a bunch of scientists. They'll murder me!"

Twilight sighed. "They'll murder all of us if you don't distract them," she said. "Look, do you want to get out of here or not?"

Twilight turned to continue down the hallway, and Rainbow flew out in front of her to stop her.

"Look," Rainbow said, "you don't understand. I'm already on the fritz with these guys. They'll see right threw any move I make!"

Twilight pushed her aside. "Then I guess that's just a chance we'll have to be willing to take," she said. "We can't get the trains going without power. If you can't distract them, then at least try to get the power going yourself," she said.

Rainbow put a hoof to her face. "Guys, seriously. I can't do this." She flew back in front of them. "Look, can't we just have another go at the monster? We can totally just walk along the rails. It's no big deal!"

Twilight stopped. "Rainbow, if you don't think you can distract them, we can always just fight them head-to-head. Is that what you want?"

"WHA—I—YOU WANT... UUUUUUUGH!" Rainbow fell on her back on the floor and sighed. "I give up," she said. She got up and looked at them. "I'll try distracting them," she said, "but you two have gotta do you part. I won't be single-hoofedly responsible for messing this whole thing up."

Twilight rolled her eyes. "You're a soldier, Rainbow," she said. "You're one of them. Nothing's going to go wrong."

Rainbow let out a groan, and dragged her hooves through the air behind her.

=========================================================

"Go on," Twilight whispered.

Rainbow Dash looked at her, than around the corner, then back at Twilight. They were at the end of the tunnel, and the military presence couldn't be more clear. The tunnel had ended at a bend that opened into a large bunker. a few ramps descended into a sink in the middle, which took up the majority of the room. A single guard was standing watch at the end, peering out from behind a barricade of what looked like sacks of apples. Behind the guard, some more ramps crisscrossed up to an entrance at the top. Rainbow couldn't see where it went, but she could hear some radio chatter, and assumed that must be where most of them were hanging out.

She looked back at Twilight and pouted, quivering as though she was about to cry.

"You'll be fine," Twilight whispered. "Just get out there."

Twilight gave her a little nudge, and she flew out from around the corner. Immediately the guard stood up, hoof at the ready.

"MOVEME—" the stallion stopped short. "Rainbow?" The stallion moved his head away from the sight, revealing a red beret sitting atop a brown muzzle. His eyes were squinted, and he looked half-ready to jerk back and pull the trigger.

Rainbow hovered nervously, trying not to shake. She wished she still had the crowbar, but Twilight said she should hold onto it while Rainbow was with the guards.

She stood upright in the air and put her hoof up. "H-hey, guys."

The stallion's jaw dropped, and his eyes opened wide. Some of the other guards could be seen peering around the corner of the opening in the back.

"Weeeeeell," one of them started. He was a brown stallion with dark mane, and Rainbow immediately recognized him as Hoops, one of this fellow comrades. His mane normally would have covered his eyes, but it was brushed off to the side and held there by an enormous white helmet that covered most of his head. "If it isn't Rainbow Crash!" He flew out, together with a dark stallion with light mane, dressed in the same camouflage gear and helmet: Hoops's buddy Dumb-Bell.

Rainbow flew out into the room, trying not to glance back at Twilight and Rarity. The two stallions started circling her. "Haven't seen you in a while, Rainbow Crash," the Dumb-Bell said. "Not since you chickened out of our group."

Rainbow came down and landed on the ground, narrowing her eyes.

"Yeah," Hoops said, both of them landing next to her. "What's the matter? Scared of a little combat?!"

Rainbow scowled and whipped her tail. "Very funny, guys," she said. "I got lost from the group when the electrical storm hit."

The two of them laughed. "That's not what we remember," Dumb-Bell said. They both flew up off the ground, laughing and poking at each other.

"Okay, you two," the guard said, "enough horseplay." He turned towards Rainbow. "Get going," he said, indicating the door with his head.

Rainbow sighed and flew into the air. She could see the two other pegasi still laughing as they landed at the top of the ramps in the back and went back into the door.

"Hey, everyone!" Dumb-Bell said. "Guess who finally came crawling back."

Rainbow could hear chattering from around the corner, and put her hoof to her face as she followed behind. She glanced down at the guard as she flew overhead, but he just scowled back at her. She could hear laughs and jeers crying out as she came over the ramps and up to the doors. Many of the other soldiers had come up to the entrance to take a look.

"Well, if it isn't the prodigal rainbow!" said a blue soldier with a deep voice.
"What's wrong?" said a tan one with a nasal voice. "Aren'tya glad to see yer... buddies?" He burst out laughing and landed on the floor as more soldiers came up.
One of the bigger soldiers came out just as Rainbow landed on the ground, and hooked Rainbow around the neck. "We missed having ya around," he said, rubbing his hoof into Rainbow's scalp. "We've been without a punching bag for hours!"

Rainbow forced a laugh. "Heh. Yeah, guys. I... guess." She gulped, and struggled to look up against the grip of the other pony.

"Hey! Look what we got here!" he yelled out around the corner. "Taste the rainbow, everyone!"

He whipped his arm around, and Rainbow felt her neck nearly break off. He let go, and flung her across the room, sending her spinning into a central room where a dozen soldiers were standing around. She slammed into a couple of them like a bowling ball, and smashed against the opposite wall.

Rainbow blacked out for a second, and finally opened her eyes to see the blurred upside-down outlines of a dozen soldiers. None of them seemed to be paying any attention to her.

"Hey! No fair!" one of them said. "I wasn't ready." The talking blur came into focus, and Rainbow could see it turning around. It didn't have a happy face. "See how you like it!" the shape said, turning around.

Rainbow felt a sharp tug on her tail, and found herself being yanked off the wall with a sick peeling sound. "Take that!" the voice said. Rainbow felt her tail nearly rip out of her rear-end, and suddenly felt herself flying through the air again. She was only partially aware of her own voice-breaking yells. She could hear one of the more macho pegasi let out a deep "YEEEEEEEAH!" as she flew.

She skidded to a halt on the ground, and sat up, a few birds flying in circles over her head. Her head was swimming, and her vision was doubled and fading in and out.

"O... kay, guys," she said, her eyes derping. "It's... good to see you too?"

Dumb-Bell walked up to her, still laughing like an idiot. "What's the matter, Rainbow Crash? Afraid of a little dodgeball?!"

Rainbow shook the birds away from her head and bared her teeth.

"Heh," Hoops said. "I think she's just tired of being the ball."

Rainbow got up and flew into the air, grimacing at some of the scrapes and bruises. "Yeah, okay, guys," she said. "Joke's over."

A blue-gray pegasus came stumbling forward. He was more round than the other two, but still managed a smirky face, and Rainbow recognized him as Score, the third in the group. "Ah, come on, Rainbow Crash," he said. "You know we're just messin' with ya."

Rainbow felt a tug on her tail, and looked back to see Hoops holding onto it with his teeth. Dumb-Bell walked in front of her as she struggled against Hoop's grip. "Hehe, it's all in good fun, eh, Rainbow Crash?" Hoops yanked on her tail, bringing her down just low enough for Dumb-Bell to land a solid punch in her gut, knocking the wind out of her with an "OOF!"

Dumb-Bell lead Hoops and Score back to the rest of the soldiers in the common room, with Hoops still biting her tail. "Don't worry, guys," Dumb-Bell said, indicating the struggling Rainbow Dash. "Our rainbow balloon is safe and sound."

Hoops swung her around and onto the ground, and suddenly she found herself surrounded by a tightly-packed bunch of grunts, all looking down at her and scowling. Rainbow got to her hooves and shrunk back, forcing a laugh. They continued to encroach upon her.

"So, ummm," Rainbow started. "What'd I miss?"

Two dozen eyes stared down at her, and suddenly went wide-eyed.

"What'd you miss?" one of them said. "What'd you miss?!" Rainbow saw the soldier's head peek above the others. His face was crazed and contorted. "WHAT'D YOU MIIIIIISS?!" he said, wiggling his face around, and making some of the skin flop around. "AAHHHHHHBLGLGHGBHGLGHGGH!"

"CAN IT, Crackers!" another one said with a grunt.

Rainbow watched a hoof reach above the crowd and push the crazed pony back down.

A big black muzzle came down and pressed itself into Rainbow's. "You missed a tragedy," he said quietly. "Word has it we got some scientist rebels out there. Wanna try an' take us out."

"YEEEAH!" Crackers said in the background. "THEY CRAAAAAAABLGLBGZZY!"

The black pony ignored him. "They been takin' out mah buddies. Took out a whole plane of 'em." He put a hoof out, and pointed it right out next to Rainbow's ear. Rainbow flinched, eyes still wide. "They out there. An' we gonna put a stop to 'em." He pressed his muzzle into hers until it hurt. "Got it?"

Rainbow gulped and nodded, a bead of sweat inching its way down her temple. The muzzle left hers as abruptly as it arrived, and she found herself looking at the black pony's hind quarters shortly after. The other ponies quickly started chatting. "Yeah!" one said. "We gonna get 'em!" said another. They started hoof bumping and punching each other's shoulders.

Rainbow finally got a chance to look around as the ponies were busy, and noticed the entire room focused on a single grate sunk into the floor. The switch in the back suggested it was some sort of lift, although Rainbow Dash couldn't tell whether it went up or down. The rest of the room was mildly lit, and consisted mostly of radio equipment. A few small tunnels lead here and there, and Rainbow came to the conclusion that they must have gone around the perimeter of the larger area where the guard was.

"So, er, guys?" she said, trying to steer the conversation. "What exactly is the plan? I mean, do we even know where these, er, scientists are?"

One of the soldiers came over and slammed their hoof into Rainbow's back with a laugh, making her hooves slip out from under her. "HA! If we knew where they were, we'd be there, wouldn't we!"

The rest of the soldiers cracked up around him. Rainbow could see Dumb-Bell and Hoops snickering at her, their eyes narrowed maliciously.

Another soldier came up behind Rainbow and rested a hoof on her head, giving her another noogie. "That's why we're tryin' to shut everythin' down, little squirt," he said. "Why do you think we're here? Found a nice generator in the basement. Got it boarded up reeeeeeal good." He bent his head around so Rainbow could see his blue face. "Thems scientists ain't goin' nowhere."

Rainbow gave another nervous laugh and backed up. "Weeeell... let's sock it to them. Right guys?" She grinned big, and made a few weak punching movements in the air.

The blue pony scowled. "You'd better believe it, pal." He was about to say something else when another stallion came up and tapped him on the shoulder.

"Hey," the other pony said. He had slipped on a mask, and Rainbow couldn't see his face. "We got radio chatter," he said. "We think they might be in the area."

Every other pony in the room perked their ears at this, and all of them went silent before bursting out all at once and stampeding over to the radio equipment. Rainbow couldn't help but be kicked around as all the other soldiers flew around her. As they all got close to the radio, Rainbow quietly tiptoed back, and looked around. There was no way she could activate the lift without all the other ponies noticing. However, there might still be a way to the basement without needing to.

She glanced to her left, saw the tunnel was empty, hunched her back, and tiptoed out of sight.

=========================================================

Rainbow Dash flexed her wings and let the pain of her bruises and cuts wash over her. She closed her eyes and took a quiet breath, and then opened them to look around.

The passage she had followed revolved around the bunker area, and had exited onto an overhang on the side. She could see the tunnel she had come through with Twilight and Rarity off to her right. The guard was theoretically to her left. She hadn't looked yet, for fear of being seen.

The entire narrow passage she had just come through was devoid of any stairs or path that would take her to the basement. All she had found were more radios, ammo crates, and a few active trip mine traps: the same kind Twilight had picked up in the other room. The only way down would be to blast a hole in the floor.

Now that she could see the bunker from above, she noticed that it wasn't just a floor: it was a bridge. The area between the two ramps was actually suspended over a large hole that went down a ways. The bridge covered so much of the hole that she hadn't even noticed it when she was being greeted by the guard. Only a couple small holes on the sides indicated that there was anything beneath the floor at all.

She got down low, pressing her belly against the floor, and inched her way forward. There was a slight bump around the edge of the balcony where the hoofrails sat, and she was just barely able to hide her entire body behind it. She reached up with a hoof and pulled her mane down, trying to imagine what it must look like having a rainbow tuft sticking over the top. She lifted her left ear and placed it against the wall.

She couldn't hear anything. The guard must be very quiet. Careful not to make a sound, she lifted her head until her big oval eyes crested the rim. She could just barely see the ramps in the back, and the area immediately below.

The guard wasn't there.

Rainbow felt herself involuntarily squee, and squinted her eyes with a grin, shifting them from side to side. She peered her head all the way over the ledge, and found the space between the bridge and the wall. The hole it allowed her to see quite far, and she could make out a few other levels. She lifted her head and looked around once more, and then spread her wings.

With a movement like a bullet through the air, she silently whipped herself over the edge, through the hoofrails, and whooshed down through the hole. It was a practiced skill to move this quietly. It was like moving through a series of curtains. Each move, she worked her body and wings to push the air out of the way just so.

She watched the layers pass, feeling a spurt of wind as each one swept past her. Each layer held another floor. Some may have had soldiers, but Rainbow wasn't looking. All they would sense is a whiff of air as she went by.

As the last layer approached, and all she could see past it was a solid floor, she slipped out a hoof and latched onto the side of the last bridge. With the movement of an acrobat, she swung herself effortlessly around and under the bridge before pressing herself against the underside. Her wings were fluttering like mad to keep her hovering, but it was a small enough movement that nopony would ever notice.

Two soldiers were walking on the concrete floor a good twenty feet below her, moving to her left. All she could see were their camouflage outfits and white helmets. She looked around and saw four openings in the surrounding walls. A soft hum could be heard, and she guessed that the generator must be on the right, as that was where most of the noise was coming from.

She waited until the soldiers were out of sight, and the dropped straight down from the wall and swooped to the right. She swung around the corner, and peered out from behind the separating wall, just to be sure the soldiers weren't coming back.

She turned around with a deep breath and looked around the room. Her eyes went wide, and her mouth gaped as she found herself staring face-to-face with a control panel that covered the entire wall. It towered above her, and displayed a prominent power dial the size of a projector screen. Two switches, each half the size of her own body, were on either side of the dial. Only one of them was in the "ON" position. The dial was sitting in red.

Rainbow hunched her back and tiptoed up to the switch, looking all around just to be sure. She was just about to reach a hoof up to it when she heard voices from behind her.

"Hehe, yeah," said Hoops. "We rigged this thing up good."

"Better than good," said Dumb-Bell. "Nopony will suspect we actually boarded up the pump," he said. "the whole place is totally flooded. It's awesome!"

Rainbow shot straight up, and pressed her back against the ceiling again. She watched carefully as the voices grew louder.

"You really think the scientists would come all the way down here?" Score said. "I mean, we've been all up and down here, and I've never seen them."

"Eheh," Hoops laughed, "they're probably back in that train room, place... er... thing."

"Tryin' to get the power on, no doubt," Dumb-Bell said.

They all laughed, and Rainbow watched as they all came into the room just below her. Dumb-Bell was in the middle, with Hoops and Score on either side. The only way she could tell them apart with their helmets on was by their wing color.

"I wish we could turn the other one off," Score said. He flew up to the switch and whacked it with his hoof. "Darn handle ripped off. Must've rusted."

Rainbow squinted, and just barely made out the camouflaged double-handle levers on the switches. One of them only had a bar where the switch should have attached.

"This thing's trashed," Dumb-Bell said. He stepped up to the panel and kicked it with his forehoof. "Ow!" He shook it out and started hopping around.

"Hehe. Serves you right," Score said.

"Shut up!"

Rainbow Dash backed up as quietly as she could, until she was hovering just over the entrance. Then, pushing her wings back, she dived down and flew straight back to the other side of the tunnel, where the three had come from.

There was another entrance in the back that exited into a crude set of black spiral stairs. Rainbow grabbed hold of the bar they wrapped around, and swung herself around and down out of site, before any of the three pegasi could turn around.

She kept hold of the bar, and whipped around in circles, descending the stairs much faster than she could on hoof. She felt her hooves strike something towards the end, and skidded to a halt to find herself in waist-high water. She lifted her wings out of it and turned her head to watch them drip, sticking out her tongue in distaste at how mucky it was. She flapped them a few times before refolding them and trudging through the water.

The basement she had found herself in was completely trashed. Lights dangled from the ceiling, some of them flickering; Various trash, boxes, and supplies floated around in the water; Rust covered many of the pipes along the wall. In the distance, she could just make out a large metal contraption with a horizontal pump at its core. It looked like the soldiers had wedged everything they could find into the pump, and the whole thing now resembled a miniature trash compacter.

Rainbow waded carefully through the water, watching the rippling waves she created cause the trashing to bob around, and the distorted echoes of Dumb-Bell and Score could still be heard above her. She half-walked half-tread her way to the machine in the back, which was in a shadowing nook of the room. With a silent "bleh", she turned her head, reached in with both hooves, and started prying the gunk and trash out of the piston.

Within seconds, the water immediately around her was filled with broken jars, fried electronics, and empty soda cans. She even pried out what she thought was an old dried-up fruitcake. It could have been plastic for all she could tell, though.

With a loud clunk, the piston dropped as she pulled out a broken radio transmitter. Rainbow pulled her hooves back, in case it decided to smash whatever was left. She looked at what was left, and noticed only a steal beam wedged beneath the piston. Looking around to be sure she had enough room, Rainbow got right up close to the beam and wrapped her hooves around it and pulled.

It didn't budge.

She let go for a second, and then spat on both of her hooves, rubbing them together until they were nice and sticky. Then she placed them at the top of the beam, and wrapped her bottom hooves around it as well, as if she was trying to climb it, and spread her wings.

She was so preoccupied with this that she hadn't even noticed how quiet it had gotten. All she could hear was the water splashing around her. She could feel a few pieces of trash and debris brushing against her back as the waves washed them up to her, and she made a few movements to push them away.

With a deep breath, Rainbow flapped her wings forward, holding onto the beam as tight as she could. She could feel it starting to slip with each flap, and each time, she flapped a little harder.

She gave one last almighty heave, and with a snap that rang out around the room, she flew backwards, beam in hooves, and splashed straight into the water. Everything went blurry, and it took a second for her to get her bearings.

Finding the ground beneath her hooves, she pushed up and felt her head break the surface. She flipped her mane around, whipping the water around the room, and getting the water out of her ears. As she did so, a hum filled the room, followed by a loud rhythmic drone. She turned around a few times, and found the piston behind her, pumping away to a loud whirr of belts and fans. She took a deep breath, and spread her wings with a flourish, sending more water splashing to the side.

"One less thing to worry about," she whispered to herself.

She flew up out of the water with a splash, hovered for a second, and then whipped around back to the stairs.

"Hey."

Rainbow whipped her wings around and came to a halt just before the stairs. Dumb-Bell, Hoops, and Score were standing hip-deep in the water, just in front of the exit. Dumb-Bell was in front.

"Looky what we got here," he said, turning his head to the other two, and then back to Rainbow, and then around to the churning machine behind her. "Looks like Rainbow Crash has turned into little Rainbow Rat!" He laughed with a smirk, and the other forced a laugh along with him. "Serge is gonna love this."

Rainbow landed in front of them, and noticed the water level had gone down a few inches. "You wouldn't," she said with a snarl.

Dumb-Bell snickered, and then burst out laughing. The other two joined in as well. "You—" he choked up, trying to catch his breath. "You really think you're gonna get out of this one?" The laughs filled the room, and echoed above the increasing roar of machinery. "You think they're gonna believe you when you tell them the pump just happened to turn itself on, and you just happened to be in the room?" He stood up, changing his smile into a scowl, and placed his muzzle right up against Dash's. "I always knew you were a little snitch."

Hoops gave a few stupid chuckles behind Dumb-Bell. "What do you think we should do with her?"

Dumb-Bell turned around and whipped a hoof into Hoops's face.

"Ow!" Hoops cowered, and held up a hoof to his cheek.

"We are not gonna do anything, you idiot," he said. "Let the Serge deal with 'er."

"Hey!" Score whined. "Why can't we be the heroes?" He moped about. "I wanted to watch her squirm."

Rainbow Dash rolled her eyes at all of this, and gave a loud mock-yawn. "Weeeeell, if you guys are done talking about me," she said, "I think I'd better get going."

Dumb-Bell put a hoof up in front of her. "You're not going anywhere," he said with a stupid smile. He reached around with his wing, and opened up a saddlebag on his uniform. "Serge is gonna deal with you first." He reached his wing into the bag, and pulled out a radio transmitter.

"Yeah, that's nice and all," Rainbow said. "Just one problem." She spread her wings just as Dumb-Bell put the mic up to his lips. He stopped short, dumbfounded. "You're assuming they can catch me."

She crouched low and blasted forward from all fours, launching herself at them so fast, their helmets were blown right off. She could hear Dumb-Bell's "WHAAA—" behind her as she grabbed hold of the staircase poll and whipped herself around and up at lightning speed.

As soon as the generator room came into focus, she let go, launching herself like a dart towards the panel in the back. As she slowed down, she could hear muffed shouts coming from the staircase. Without hesitation, she grabbed onto the switch and hoisted it up against the spring-loaded off position.

"I got—"
"Where'd she—"
"Get up there!"

She pushed harder, feeling the sweat pour from under her mane, and felt and snap as the switch gave in and slapped against the wall. There was a spark, and a hum of life, and Rainbow suddenly felt her mane and tail standing on end. Arcs of electricity sprung to life here and there along the panel, and the electric charge filled the room with a tingly feeling.

There was an "OOMF!" behind her, and she turned to see Dumb-Bell, Hoops, and Score piled on top of one another at the top of the staircase.

"GET HER!" Dumb-Bell yelled. He shoved himself out of the body-pile and pulled out his radio mic. "We have a Double Rainbow!" he said. "I repeat, we have a Double Rainbow!"

Rainbow Dash looked at him funny for a second as Hoops and Score continued to stumble over one another. There was some confused babbling over the radio, followed by Dumb-Bell saying "It means Rainbow double-crossed, you idiots!"

Rainbow heard a glimpse of "oh!"s and "okay"s come over the receiver. She giggled a bit as Dumb-Bell rolled his eyes.

Dumb-Bell pointed a hoof at her. "You won't be laughing when you're sitting in front of the interoga—intaga—iner—question-thing light!" Dumb-Bell said.

Rainbow glared at her. "I don't plan on it." She spread her wings, rose into the air, and did a backflip, landing on the wall just above the switch. "Sorry boys," she said. She grabbed hold of the switch handle with both hooves and rocked it back and fourth. "But I've got plans!" She pulled up hard, and with a creak and a snap, the handle broke clean off, just like the switch on the other side. She held it up for all three of them to see. "Looks like you all are out of luck."

Just as she said this, there was a swoosh from above her, and a half-dozen pegasi came tumbling through the holes in the ceiling, and landed with a thud on the floor in the central room. All of them were armed, crouched low, with wings spread, ready to fire.

"I wouldn't say that," Dumb-Bell said, walking forward.

Rainbow put her hooves behind her and stupidly grinned. "Hehe." She tossed the broken switch off to the side, and shifted her eyes from side to side as it clanged in the distance. "Ummm..."

The pegasi all scowled, and a particularly muscular pegasus sprung up in the back. "YEEEEEAH!"

"Uh," Rainbow started, scratching her head. "I'd... better be going now. Nice talking to ya CATCHEMEIFYOUCAN!"

She was already halfway to the ceiling exit before she finished. She arced straight up and through the break in the ceiling, wind howling in her ears as she crossed the threshold. She could just make out a few yells behind her as she rocketed through the floors, a bullet train whipping through a tunnel.

The pinhole end of the tunnel exploded into a full-size room as she breached the top, and she spun around to get her bearings: ramps on her left, hoofrails behind, soldier in front of the ramps—

"MOVEMENT!"

Rainbow let loose a voice-cracking yell, and flew off in the opposite direction. Her head followed as she righted herself, and she found herself starring at a wall which she promptly smashed into.

"Ow." She pulled her head out of the wall and shook the derp out of her eyes. A few bangs could be heard in the distance, and something was striking the wall around her. She stumbled to the right with a "WHOA" towards the tunnel exit, glancing back at the bullet-riddled wall.

She pushed herself against the ground and kicked off into another flight, following the tunnel. She could hear shouts behind her: orders being dished out. The walls on either side raced passed her, and she deftly tilted her wings to the rhythm of the path as it jogged to the left, then the right, then the left again, cutting corners within an inch of the walls.

Something purple and white zoomed under her, and she screeched to a halt. A voice behind her called out.

"RAINBOW!"

She flipped over and flew back to the blur, slowing down just enough to make out two ponies with crazed expressions on their faces. She could just make out the buzzing of wings in the background.

"Rainbow," Twilight said. "Where have you—"

"NO TIME!"

She swooped down and wrapped her hooves around them: Twilight on the right, Rarity on the left, and flapped hard against the weight.

"RAINBOW!"

Both of them screamed as she bolted forward. Everything blurred as she picked up speed, and all she could hear was wind and screams. The extra weights on either side were throwing her off balance, and she couldn't help but lean one way or the other. She rammed into one of the walls on her right and flipped into a barrel roll before catching herself.

"WHERE—" she could barely hear Twilight, "—ARE—WE GOING?"

Rarity was still piercing the air with a glass-shattering scream.

The end of the tunnel reared up in front of her, and she parachuted her wings to screech to a halt, looking for the blast doors.

"Soldiers!" she explained. "Flying!"

The wind whistled around her in short bursts as a few bullets flew past her, and she turned and bolted towards the green glow to her left. Her hoof slipped under the force of the turn, followed by a "RAINBO—AHHHHHHH!" to her right. Rarity was still screaming on her left, but Twilight completely slipped out as she entered the dive into the pit.

A sharp yank on her tail told her Twilight had managed to grab on. With all the skill from flight school, she arced her wings in just the right way, both pushing the wind, and guiding it. She push her body up until it righted itself from the dive, the Gs pushing back against every muscle, and barely missed the ramp as she cut across the corner and whipped through the bottom blast doors. She felt a bump as Twilight scraped against the ground, but managed to stay fast enough to keep her airborn.

"SLOW—DOWN!" Twilight's voice could barely be heard.

She heard a few crashes, and even a loud masculine scream behind her, and could only imagine the poor pegasi crashing into the goop and walls as they tried duplicating that maneuver.

Almost there, she thought. She pressed her body together and picking up speed.

She kept being tugged in intervals, and it wasn't until she felt a hoof on her backside that she realized Twilight was crawling hoof-over-hoof up her tail. She tried to keep her balance as Twilight stumbled up her haunches and onto her back. Rarity was now shifted below her, and she felt her weight come to the center again, easing up on the strain.

A boom and a rumble went off behind her, followed by another closely after. She came to a break in the path, and swerved to the right, not stopping until she got to the two-story dead-end with the catwalks halfway up. She slowed down, pulled up, and found the double-doors she was heading for the whole time.

"RAINBOW! WE'RE GONNA—"

She slammed into the doors and felt her head spin. Her hooves slipped, and she tumbled onto the ground after dropping Rarity from her grasp. Twilight flew off, and they rolled to a stop, scattered throughout the room.

Rainbow was on her hooves before the birds stopped flying, and the room was still swimming all around her. She could still manage to recognize it as the control room for the train, though. The large window was in the back, looking out over the depot.

There was a snap behind her, and she turned her head to see the doors magicked closed, and various items floating towards it in a purple haze. She turned around to see Twilight wincing, and her horn a glow. Rarity was in the corner, slightly tear-stricken, but still alive.

"Are the trains running?" Rainbow asked stupidly.

Twilight finished her spell, and galloped over to the window. She placed her hooves on the bottom and leaned out into the depot. "I—" She pulled back and looked around at the panel.

Rainbow followed her line of sight, and saw the large bold letters "OFF" just above the controls. She put a hoof to her face and groaned. "What now?!"

A gust of wind was followed by a loud bang as the doors jolted, making Rainbow and Twilight jump. Voices followed.

"It's jammed!"

Another set of wings fluttered down, followed by another voice.

"Don't just stand there. Force it open!" A slight pause. "Nimbus Squad, go through the debot. Stratus Squad, stay here and get that door down!"

Another whack make a few electronics fall off the pile in front of the door.

"What do we do now, Twilight?" Rainbow asked.

Twilight turned back to the lifeless panel. "I have an idea," she said, "but it's completely insane!" She walked up to the window and put her hooves against the sill.

"Waitwaitwaitwait, hold on!" Rainbow said. She flew over to Twilight and put her hooves up. "You're not gonna—"

Twilight looked out into the depot with Rainbow and stared at the thirty-foot monster with its back turned in a corner. It was just blocking a tunnel that lead off to the left. They could hear it breathing.

"Oh, Rainbow Dash," Twilight said. "I just don't know what else to do." She pulled back and crouched onto the floor. "It's either getting burned alive, or getting riddled with bullets. There's just no good choice!"

Another smash filled the room, and Rainbow looked at the door, then back to Twilight, then out the window. "Maybe not," she said, turning back to Twilight. "But sometimes crazy is better than nothing at all."

She swooped down and landed in front of Twilight, holding out her hoof. "Give me the crowbar, Twilight."

Twilight's eyes went wide. She reached back almost instinctively, but then pulled back her hoof. "You're serious?"

Rainbow scowled and put her hooves on her hips. Her glare was enough to make Twilight keep moving.

"Okay," she said, pulling out the crowbar, "but don't do anything too stupid."

Rainbow grabbed the crowbar and examined it under the light, watching the metal reflect it in a series of glimmers and sparkles. "I'm a grunt, Twilight." She swooshed the crowbar through the air a couple times and perched herself on the sill, looking out over the depot. She turned back at Twilight and derped. "I was born to do stupid things!"

Rainbow watched Twilight's eyes bug out and roll around, followed by watching her face droop into her hoof. She gave a weak smile, and leaped out into the depot, wings flared and teeth bared.

One whoosh later, and she was floating just in back of the breathing blue mountain in the entrance to the back tunnel. She hesitated a bit, holding the crowbar limp in her right hoof.

A faint sound echoed to her left.

"Remember. Look for a back entrance."

She glimpsed to the side and saw movement in the small tunnel exit. Soldiers were about to pour out into the depot.

An evil grin crept through Rainbow's face, and her eyes squinted into a glare. She turned her head towards the beast next to her, just feet away from the back of its head, and floated innocently to within a few inches of it.

She turned to it, placed the crowbar behind her back, and whistled with shifting eyes for just a second. Then, whipping it out from behind her,

"HEY FLAME-BREATH! CHEW ON THIS!"

She whipped the crowbar around, and it clanged satisfyingly into its armor, sending a few sparks flying.

There was a rumble, followed by a growl that grew into a roar, and suddenly the entire room was shaking. Rainbow backed up, her smile fading. Shaking the room in jolts with each step, the mountain turned around, revealing its would-be eyes. All that could be seen on its face was a red flaming glow where its mouth should be, but Rainbow could tell that, if it had a face, it would be all rage.

She put the crowbar behind her back, grinned big, and giggled. "Uh, gotta go!" She raced back into the room, and caught a glimpse of something to her right. Soldiers were pouring out into the depot. She stopped mid-air and looked down at them.

"It's Rainbow!" shouted one, pointing up.
"Get her!"

Another Equestria-shattering roar shook the chamber, and every soldier turned to face the storming blue mass charging into the room. A few backed up, while others yelled out. With a sickening crunch, the two forces collided, and the first thing Rainbow saw was a giant foot smash down onto one of the soldiers.

"WHAT THE—"
"HEEEEEEELP!"

More screams echoed around the room as the monster unleashed its flames across the fleeing crowd. More soldiers were pouring out into the depot, spraying a hurricane of bullets in their path, causing sparks to jump and fly off the impenetrable armor. The creature leaned back and shook the room with another roar as the new set of soldiers came charging out at it.

Rainbow swished her blue body down and into the tunnel they originally came in from in a haze of rainbow trail. All she could hear from behind her were war cries and screams, muffled by flames and growling. She turned around in the tunnel and flew up to the mouth, hovering so she could watch the battle.

Pegasi were now flying all around the beast as it tore its arms through the air, trying to swat at them hopelessly. Some of them tried clinging onto it, as Rainbow had done earlier.

"NO, YOU IDIOTS," one of the soldiers on the ground yelled. "FORGET THE BEAST! GET THE SCIENTISTS!"

Rainbow crept out of the tunnel, keeping her eye on the flaming sparking chaos, which was steadily acquiring bodies of soldiers at its feet. She hovered up to the control-room depot, where Twilight and Rarity were watching with stunned faces at what was happening. The door behind them had nearly been bashed open, and movement could be seen behind them as the frightened soldiers tried to get a glimpse at what was causing all the noise.

Rainbow floated right up to them, and glanced at the battle before looking at Twilight. "We gotta get out of here before we get creamed!" she said.

"Are you CRAZY?!" Twilight yelled, looking at her with an insane expression.

The door behind them crashed, and the pegasi could be seen clearly now.

"There they are!" one of them shouted.

Twilight turned and saw one of the soldiers aim their gun through the opening in the doors.

"Nevermind. Let's go!" she said, turning back to Rainbow.

Rarity only caught a glimpse of this conversation, and turned her head at the last minute. "What?"

Twilight put her hooves on the sill, and perched her hind hooves on it like a cat before leaping out of it onto the depot floor.

"Twilight!" Rarity yelled. "Twilight, wait for me!"

She stumbled a bit at the sill, but Rainbow didn't wait to see the disaster of her fall. She whipped over her, and lifted her off the ground, hovering down to the ground before dropping her on all fours.

"THIS WAY!" Twilight yelled, waiving a hoof at both of them. She sprinted off next to the battle, holding up her hoof to shield against the occasional bullet that whooshed past her. Rarity was screaming as she galloped after her.

The entire room was becoming a flaming, bloody mess as the monster tore the army to shreds right next to them. Rainbow hovered over them as they galloped towards the tunnel in the back, and only glimpsed back when she heard more soldiers rocketing out of the control room behind them.

There was another roar as the depot shook, and the air was blasted with flames so thick that the ceiling couldn't be seen. Twilight, Rarity, and Rainbow Dash all turned to watch the new wave of soldiers fried alive in front of them one after another, all dropping to the ground in blackened crisps from the ceiling of fire.

Only a second later, the flames dissolved into smoke, followed by the creature leaning back and letting out a victory cry, and sending a few warning flames into the air for any other remaining ponies.

"Twilight," Rarity said, literally shaking from head to toe. "I really think we should—"

There was a grunt as the creature turned its head, and all three of them knew it was staring right at them. They locked eyes for a second, and it blew out a small flame from where its mouth would be.

"Um." Rarity started poking Twilight furiously, not taking her eyes off the creature. "Twilight. I think it saw us. I think it sees us. I think—"

"I know, Rarity!" Twilight yelled.

Rarity went wide eyed and nearly fainted. "What are we—how are we—wha—"

"We're," Twilight started, sounding just as scared, "going to—RUUUUUUUUN!" She reeled back on her hind hooves, waving her forehooves in the air, before bolting off in the other direction down the tunnel.

"Twilight, wait!" Rarity screamed, waving her own hooves in the air.

The monster gave another grunt, and then lurched forward, causing more Equestria-shattering booms and shakes each time its feet smashed into the ground.

Rainbow turned around to see Twilight and Rarity colliding with each other as they galloped in a frenzy down the hallway. Without so much as a thought, Rainbow shot down after them and hooked her hooves under each one in turn, lifting them straight off the ground.

"RUN, RAINBOW!" Twilight yelled, realizing what she was doing.

Rainbow flapped hard against the wind, feeling a hot gust of air hit her rump, envisioning the flames leaping out behind her. She picked up speed, dodging the parts of the ceiling falling down each time the ground shook. The walls were racing past her as she approached a corner of the tunnel.

Getting as close to the edge as she could, she banked and righted herself into the new branch of tunnel.

"DEAD END!" Twilight screamed, just before Rainbow saw it. A wall stood just in front of a massive contraption of electrical equipment that towered dozens of feel in all directions. There was a path cut through it, through which they could see a platform in the back.

Rainbow skidded to a halt just before hitting the wall, and lowered them to the platform.

"What do we do?" Rarity said as she landed on the ground. "That thing's right behind us!"

"We need a place to hide! Quick!" Twilight said. She looked around in all directions.

Rainbow looked to the right, and saw a small control panel at the end of the platform with a large switch in the middle. She spread her wings and launched herself at it.

"I say we get this thing on and get out of here!" she yelled.

Twilight looked at her as if just noticing the panel, and opened her eyes wide. The booms and shakes got louder, and they could see a charging blue mass in the back of the tunnel. She glanced at the switch, then at the tunnel, then back at the switch.

"Do it!" she said.

Rainbow grabbed the switch and pulled, pressing it against the spring-loaded off position just like the other switch. Twilight galloped up and threw her hooves onto it as well. With both of them pushing, the switch gave in easily, snapping into position. Immediately all their manes went flying from static, and the air cracked and snapped all around them as arcs flew around the equipment.

"It's on!" Twilight yelled. "Get us out of here!"

Rainbow leaped on top of Twilight, hoisting her up and heading towards Rarity.

There was another boom and shake, and Rainbow glanced up to see the monster just feet away from the contraption. She froze, feeling every muscle in her body tense up. It was blocking their only way out.

They all starred as it slammed its way through the crumbling tunnel, right in between the arcing electrical units. Rarity screamed and covered her face, and Twilight and Rainbow Dash looked away, putting a hoof out in front of them.

There was a deafening roar, followed by complete stillness as the stomping stopped. Rainbow Dash waited with bated breath to be cooked alive, and cringed as she awaited the flames.

They never came.

The roar rose up into a piercing scream, and they heard a few flames shoot out, accompanied by cracks and snaps of electricity. And then—

Rainbow Dash looked up to see the monster standing there, almost lifeless. It stared at them, arms slacked. Then, with a small puff of flame from its mouth and a small groan, it fell onto its knees with a thud before collapsing entirely onto the ground with a deep thunderous boom.

Silence followed, broken only by the occasional snap of electricity. All three of them just stared at the body lying on the ground in front of them. Twilight was the first to speak.

"Is it dead?"

Rainbow started to float forward to poke it a few times, but Twilight grabbed her tail with her teeth and pulled her back. "Not a good idea," she said, letting go.

Rainbow looked over and saw Rarity cowering on the ground in tears. She looked back at Twilight and scratched the back of her neck. "Uh, what just happened?"

Twilight paced around on the platform, still wide-eyed. "It... it was electrocuted," she said. "This power plant is so old, it must be leaking current all over the place."

Rainbow let her hooves drop, and stared at the giant blue corpse. "Wow..." She floated down to the ground and landed right next to Twilight. They both kept looking at the creature.

"I guess we don't have to worry about the military anymore," Rainbow said.

Rainbow couldn't see Twilight's expression, but from what she could catch in her peripheral vision, it wasn't joyful.

"You might have used a bit more stealth, you know," she said, turning her head towards her. "Being chased down a hallway wasn't exactly what I had in mind as far as an escape plan."

Rainbow laughed nervously and ran a hoof along the back of her neck. "Heh, yeah."

Twilight turned her head around and looked at her saddlebags. A glimmer of magic aura hovered around it as she opened it and levitated something out. "These traps came in really handy," she said. "It wasn't easy setting them up."

Rainbow made a confused face. "Wait, when was this?"

Twilight giggled. "When we were flying down the tunnel," she said. She closed her eyes and beamed. "I'm quite proud of it, actually. I managed to throw them onto the walls with my magic while I was on your back."

Rainbow gaped. "That was you?!" she said, thinking back to the explosions she heard while flying. "Wow," she said, wide-eyed. "You'd make a pretty good demolitionist if you were in the army," she said.

Twilight blushed, and walked over to where Rarity was still cowering.

"Okay, Rarity," she said. "You can get up now."

Rarity poked her head up like a gopher and glanced around. "Are," she started, "Are we still alive?!" She ran her hooves all around her body just to make sure.

Twilight laughed. "I wouldn't exactly say every pony is," she said. "But Rainbow Dash and I most definitely are."

Rarity got up onto shaking hooves, nearly falling over a few times. They all put their hooves around her to comfort her, and she took a deep breath as she calmed down.

All of them looked at the enormous corpse lying on the ground. Rainbow Dash gave an involuntary snort of laughter as she realized what they had just survived. Twilight glared at her, but ultimately smiled too.

"Let's," Twilight said, "not do that again."

On A Bale

View Online

The three of them had taken some time to work out how to get around the electrical equipment. The high voltages causing lightning to shoot out ruled out any hope of flying around it, although that didn't stop Rainbow Dash wanting to try.

It was with some luck, then, that Rarity noticed a door to a backtrack hallway. Twilight had assumed it was just a storage closet from the outside, and was surprisingly pleased to see that it actually went somewhere.

"Where do you think it goes?" Rarity asked.

"Hopefully back to the depot," Twilight said, leading the way through the cramped tunnel. "It would be nice if we got to use the power we just went through all the trouble to turn on." She put a hoof up to shield her eyes against the bright lights on the ceiling. "Honestly, though, I have no idea," she said. "Without a map, there's no way to know where anything leads. We could be walking into a maintenance closet for all we know, or even taking a back entrance to the silo."

Rarity mumbled, "I wouldn't be surprised if this took us into the bowels of Tartarus, at the rate we're going. How do we even know the train goes the right way?"

Twilight hung her head. "Unless you see an alternative, Rarity, I don't see that we have much choice in the matter."

Rarity nodded before falling silent. The both listened to their own hoof steps as they traversed the hallway, looking around at the cold, dark walls closing around them. Twilight could feel her own body weighing her down. The machine gun on her shoulder was becoming more annoying by the second, and she wished more than ever that she could take her suit off and relax, even if only for a minute.

"Isn't it ironic?" Rarity asked, walking up to Twilight. "We finally get the power on, only to be blocked by the very thing supplying the power."

Twilight didn't say anything. She just stared ahead at the tunnel as it curved and twisted wherever it wanted to go.

"I mean," Rarity continued, "If I didn't know any better, I'd say this whole thing was a trap, specifically to make us go down this hallway!"

"Rarity," Twilight said.

"No, really, Twilight!" Rarity continued. "We've been running into traps this whole time. You think it was happenstance that a giant tentacle monster just happened to be in the center of the silo we needed to pass?"

"Rarity."

"Or that the military just happened to be guarding the generator for this old, derelict rail system that no scientist in their right mind would ever want to use?"

"Rarity, what is your point?" Twilight said. She stopped and turned around, tilting her head with a sigh.

"My point is," Rarity said, "how do we even know that this rail system isn't just another trap?" She lifted a hoof to point towards the end of the tunnel, "For all we know, the military could be waiting for us on the other end of these tracks."

Twilight opened her mouth to say something, but closed it instead before turning around and continuing down the tunnel. "Look," she said, pointing a hoof around one of the bends, "there's a door coming up." She looked back at Rarity. "We'll know where we are soon enough. We can decide what the best course of action is after that."

Twilight waited for a response, but none came. The rest of the journey up to the door was slow, but they seemed to reach it much sooner than Twilight was ready. She turned around to look at the other two just as she reached the door. Part of her wanted to say something to them, but until she knew for sure what was on the other side of the door, she couldn't think of what to tell them.

Twilight took a deep breath, reached a hoof out and pushed the door open.

It was definitely the same depot from before. However, there was a certain rotting decay that wasn't there when they had first seen it. The smell was like a wall hitting her in the face. An acrid haze filled the room, and the ceiling was covered in a thick smog.

No sooner had she taking a step into the room than the bodies came into view: a near-unrecognizable pile of carnage laden with camouflage outfits lay in front of the opening they had escaped into when they first encountered the beast. The uniforms were the only things covering the morbid sight of charred pony flesh, aside from the wisps of steam still clouding the remains. Various other bodies dotted the floor of the depot, like specks of mold.

Twilight felt her jaw slowly drop as the scene unfolded. She had to work hard not to simply retch from the smell. Her knees wobbled, and she felt light-headed from the wafting smoke. It wasn't until Rarity walked in behind her that she came to her senses.

"Oh, my—" Rarity stopped short and immediately started convulsing in a fit of coughing and retching.

Twilight perked back up and trotted back to Rarity, placing a hoof on her back. "It's okay," she said. "It's only for a little bit. Just until we get the trains running."

Rarity closed her eyes, trying to stop them from watering. "Don't worry about me, dear," she said. "I'm just... allergic to rotting corpses, that's all." She smiled weakly.

"There has to be a train here that will work," Twilight said, looking around. "If we can manage to get one onto the turntable, there should be a way to direct it towards the exit tunnel."

She turned around and walked back to the door they had just exited, not bothering to look at what was in front of her. "Now, if I was to take a guess," she continued, "the switch to control the turntable is probably in the control room." She thought about the large Frankenpony switch they had seen and rolled her eyes. "Control in the control room," she repeated quietly. She peered through the door and into the tunnel. "Rainbow!" she said, squinting against the lights. "Rainbow, do you think you could come out here? We could use your help."

Twilight stuck her head inside to look around, and realized that Rainbow hadn't said anything since they had entered the tunnel.

"Rainbow! Are you ther—"

She felt a hoof tapping her shoulder, and turned around to see Rarity giving her a look. Twilight was about to ask, when Rarity jabbed her hoof towards the depot.

"Is she—" Twilight turned around to give the depot another good look.

Rainbow was clearly visible in a corner of the depot she had overlooked. She was hovering in the air, curled up, her face in her hooves.

Twilight looked back at Rarity, mouth slightly agape. "You don't think..."

Rarity put her hoof up to Twilight's mouth, and trotted off towards Rainbow. Twilight followed closely behind.

As they approached, they could see that Rainbow was curled up, almost into a fetal position in the air, and was quivering. She was silent, save for the occasional sniff, but neither of them could see her face due to her hooves being in the way. Both Twilight and Rarity stopped just short of her, trying to work out what was wrong.

"Rainbow?" Twilight said slowly. "Are you alrigh—"

"I'M FINE!" she shouted. She turned around and put her head up, as if trying to strike a proud pose. It clashed with her occasional sniffles.

Twilight and Rarity looked at one another with wide eyes, shaking their heads. Twilight opened her mouth to say something, but Rarity shoved her hoof into it. She followed Rarity's other hoof to where three bodies were lying, just below Rainbow Dash.

As far as she could tell, they all had shocked looks on their faces, but it was hard to tell with so much of their hair covering their eyes. Twilight reached a hoof out carefully, and brushed some of the hair out of the way so she could see their faces more clearly.

"Oh, dear," Rarity said quietly. "You don't suppose..." She looked up at Twilight before both of them looked up at Rainbow Dash.

"I—" Twilight started, "I didn't even consider—" She felt her voice falter for a moment. "R-Rainbow?" She swallowed. "Were those three pegasus ponies your—"

"No!" Rainbow shouted before Twilight could finish. "Not way! Never!" She flailed her hooves out. "Those idiots?!" Her voice cracked on these last words. "I," she said, trying to keep her voice steady. "I didn't even like them." She stuck her head up again, striking another "proud" pose at the wall.

Both of them walked up closer to Rainbow, trying to hide their pity.

"Rainbow," Twilight said quietly. "There's nothing to hide. Everypony goes through this. I've gone through this. We can help you."

"Hide?!" Rainbow lashed out. "Hide what? I'm not hiding anything!" She whipped around and threw her hooves out, showing her tear-stricken face. Her eyes were red, and her mouth was scrunched. "Nothing's wrong! Three random idiots did something stupid and get themselves killed. BIG. DEAL."

Twilight looked around the room at the dozens of bodies lying around. Then she looked back up at Rainbow. "Three?"

Rainbow scrunched up her face even more and made a big sniffling noise. She closed her eyes tight and put her hoof up, as though shielding herself from the sight. "I—" She couldn't speak.

Rarity stepped forward. "Rainbow, come down."

Rainbow barred her teeth, and a few tears slipped through her lids. She breathed out and in deeply.

Before Twilight and Rarity knew what was going on, Rainbow slammed herself into the opposite wall and banged her hooves into a few times, finally leaning her foreleg against the wall. Then, she dug her face into her foreleg, and sobbed.

Even digging her face couldn't stifle the sound. Her body twitched and convulsed, and her legs slowly gave out from under her.

Twilight and Rarity were with her before her body hit the ground, wrapping their hooves around her and whimpering nonsensical attempts at calming her down. Neither of them had any idea what to say, but they couldn't stand to hear Rainbow like this in silence.

"It's okay, Rainbow."
"We won't judge you."
"Just let it all out."
"Don't think about us."

Rainbow gasped between sobs, and managed to let out a few words. "Why... is this happening?" She sobbed, putting her hooves up in front of her face. "This isn't... how it's supposed to be." She convulsed again, and swallowed hard. "I'm a SOLDIER!" She threw her hoof against the wall in a mock punch. "I'm not supposed to be like this!"

Twilight stroked her shoulder and leaned her muzzle against her ear. Feelings were pouring in from her first time meeting Rarity, and she was having a tough time fighting them. She closed her eyes.

"Death," Twilight said. She swallowed. "is hard for all of us, Rainbow Dash."

Rainbow scrunched her face, trying not to look at her. "But I didn't even like them!" she said. "It's not fair!" She threw her hoof against the wall again, this time with a dull thud.

Rarity continued to stroke her hoof down Rainbow's back, whispering trivial statements.

"I," Twilight thought out loud. "I don't think it matters what you thought about them," she said. "It's the fact that you knew them that makes it... difficult."

Twilight got up and walked around the room. Spike's face was flashing in her mind: on the rafters in the test chamber, peering down excitedly at all the equipment, or whining at her about how he'd be fine while she was gone. The images burned.

A quiet sob just behind her made her turn around. Rainbow had managed to get up off the wall. Her face looked horrible, and she was shaking on all fours, but she was still standing.

"Y-y-you," She sounded half-scared. "Y-you said you lost someone too?"

Twilight's eyes widened, and she looked over at Rarity, who was walking slowly up from behind.

"I don't think Twilight wants to talk about it right now, dear," she said.

Twilight took a deep breath, and then closed her muzzle and sighed. Her head sunk into her hoof, and she closed her eyes.

"I..." Rainbow said. "I want to hear it," she said.

Twilight rubbed her hoof into her face, trying to wipe away all the mental images of green and purple scales. There was a dark part between then and now: a void she didn't want to explore.

"Maybe someday," she said, not looking up. "But not right now. It's still too soon... for me."

She sensed, rather than saw, Rarity put a hoof on Rainbow's shoulder. "It's alright dear," she said. "Just give her some time."

Twilight looked up to see Rarity leading Rainbow away. "Now," Rarity said, "Twilight says there's a switch that will activate the turntable."

=========================================================

The train in the back switched on with a hum. Twilight didn't see much of a difference between this train and the one in the silo, save for a few crates sitting atop, which she had magicked off to make room for herself. The turntable was directly ahead, and was already positioned to accept her train.

Rarity was standing at the turntable and facing the control room. Her hoof was up.

"Rarity," Twilight said over the sound of the train. "The turntable is perfectly aligned already. I don't think there's anything we have to wait for."

Rarity put her hoof down and gave her a look before finally rolling her eyes and turning away.

Twilight shook her head, and slowly pushed forward on the lever. The train lurched forward, throwing her slightly off balance, but she regained quickly. The rest of the room came into full view as she exited the nook that the train had been standing in. Rarity was walking up to the train to greet her.

"Twilight," she said, meeting the train halfway, "I must admit, I'm a bit worried about Rainbow Dash."

Twilight looked up at the control room, and saw the vibrant blue face of Rainbow Dash against the dull gray of the room she was in. She was smiling weakly, but didn't say anything.

"You don't suppose she'll do anything rash, do you?" Rarity asked. "I mean, I just remember back when you had..."

Twilight scrunched her eyes shut, trying not to remember how she had threatened Rarity after what happened to Spike. She opened them and looked back at Rarity. "I'll talk to her at some point," she said. "Just keep an eye on her for now."

Twilight waited until the train was centered on the turntable before bringing the train to a stop. She reached up her hoof to signal Rainbow Dash, who saluted with one of her hooves, and pulled down on the lever with the other. Rarity didn't wait for the train to stop before climbing onto the train with Twilight.

"I must admit," Rarity said, holding up a small canister. "I'm going to be very glad to get out of this room." She waved her hoof around, wafting a spray around them. "I've almost run out of air freshener!"

Twilight turned around to see Rainbow flying up to them, and waited until she was hovering right next to them.

"Are you going to be okay?" Twilight asked.

Rainbow put a hoof behind her neck before bringing it out in front to wipe her brow. She made a face, as though she was trying to think. It looked painful. "I guess I just need to chill out," she said. "Put all this behind me. It's not like any of them were my friends or anything." Her voice started to crack up towards the end, and she fell silent.

"Well, if it's any consolation," Twilight said, "you handle this kind of situation better me." She closed her eyes and took a deep breath, turning her head to face the tunnel. "I really hope this rail will take us somewhere safer."

Rarity quietly scoffed, but didn't say anything.

Twilight pushed the lever forward, and felt the train lurch again. She was surprised at the sudden feeling that arose as she watched the tunnel approach her. As little time as they had spent in the depot, it still felt familiar to her. She understood it. Now the train was taking her away from it.

Rainbow whipped around with a whoosh of rainbow trail, and flew into the tunnel. "Can't this thing go any faster?" she asked. "There's nothing here!" She hovered in front of them at the end of the tunnel and crossed her hooves. "It just bends over this way and keeps going."

"Really?" Rarity asked. "You're sure you didn't miss anything? Perhaps some swinging spikes, or a pit of lava?"

Twilight glanced over at Rarity before looking back at Rainbow. "Well, I suppose we could go a few notches faster." She gave Rainbow a look. "But you have to promise to catch us if we lose control."

Rainbow stood up in mid air and saluted again. "No mare left behind!" she said.

For the first time since they had entered the depot, Rainbow's face glowed, and Twilight couldn't help but smile. Rainbow gave a weak smile back at her before turning back to face the tunnel.

"She'll be fine," Twilight whispered to Rarity.

She pushed the lever forward a few more notches, and felt the train pick up speed.

=========================================================

"I wish I had a map," Twilight said, gazing down the endless tunnel. "These rails could lead anywhere!"

"Twilight's right," Rainbow said, pacing in the cool air in front of them. "For all we know, we've been going in circles. I mean, what if the whole train thing is just one giant round trip?!"

"We don't know that," Twilight said. She had kept her hoof on the speed control the entire time, despite the fact that they were hardly travelling at more than a slow gallop. "If we were going around in circles, we'd have merged with another track by now." She held onto the control panel as the train curved around one of the corners. "Besides," she said, leveling out, "we're well away from the silo by now. According to my calculations, if the silo door was two floors below the surface, then the lift we took would take us 2 more floors below that, then another lift up into the silo..."

She continued to think out loud, tracing their path up lifts, down stairs, taking into account falling through holes and climbing ladders, always using her hoof to help gauge the height.

"...and then finally landed in the room with the trip mines, my guess is that we're probably only a couple hundred feet below the surface."

Rainbow whipped around in front of her. "How can you remember all of that?! I don't even know how far we went since our last turn!"

Twilight looked around at the dark, cold tunnel around them and sighed. "Part of me wishes I couldn't," she said. "Looking back, I can still sketch out the exact floor plan of the Canterlot Castle." She swiveled her hoof around, as though drawing out blue prints in mid-air. "I could also tell you the exact dimensions of my old room, down to the last inch, without having ever measured them." She sighed. "It hasn't been very useful until now."

Rarity's eyes were wide. "Why, that's remarkable, dear! How can you still manage to fit anything else in that little head of yours?!" She tapped the top of Twilight's head with her hoof, making Twilight blush.

"Uh, guys?" Rainbow's back was to them, and she was pointing down the tunnel. "Looks like we got something up ahead."

Twilight squinted against the darkness, and saw something red and white in the distance: a parking gate, similar to the one they had crashed into in the silo. Twilight instinctively pulled back on the lever, slowing the train to a slow walk.

"Uh," Rainbow said, pulling back and scratching her head, "we're not exactly anywhere close to it yet."

Twilight blushed again. "I know," she said. "I was, er, just making sure the controls still work?" She ducked her head down, and pushed the lever forward again.

"Why, who could that be?" Rarity said. "There's a stallion standing on next to the gate." She turned towards Twilight. "You don't suppose he's—"

Twilight peered over the train panel to get a better look. She shook her head. "If he was a soldier, we'd be dead by now," she said. "They'd be looking for us."

The stallion was standing on a raised boarding platform off to the side. A room was in back of him, with a set of windows looking in. A switch towards the back of the platform clearly controlled the gate.

"If he's not with the military, he's probably lonely," Rarity whispered. "Should be pretty easy for me to get something out of him."

Twilight turned towards her. "Let me talk to him, first."

She pulled the speed lever down one notch at a time, and brought the train to a lurching halt at the platform. The brown stallion standing there was wearing a standard Pony Mesa security uniform, and trotted up to them with an excited look on his face.

"I knew it!" he said, skipping the last few feet. "I knew somepony got the power on! HAHA!" A crazed look crossed the stallion's face, and took a step back.

Twilight looked around. "I—"

The stallion took a deep breath. "I'm sorry," he said, "It's just been a loooong day. I think the aliens are starting to get to me." He turned around. "I've been hoping to see some signs of pony life down here ever since the place went under. Thank Celestia you three showed up!"

Twilight stepped off the train and onto the platform. "You've been down here the whole time?!"

The stallion shook his head. "Well, not the whole time. I've been wandering around these tunnels for a bit, but—" His eyes locked onto Twilight's hooves, and slowly followed them up until they reached the suit. His jaw dropped as he gazed all around Twilight, slowly walking around her as though admiring a marble statue.

"Um," Twilight said, feeling uncomfortable, "can I help you?"

Rainbow snickered behind her.

"My... gracious Celestia," he said, breathlessly. "That suit!" He continued to walk around her.

"I—" Twilight stopped mid-sentence, and straightened up. "Well, I guess it is a state of the art Mark IV, and it has certainly been helpful, but—"

"It's you!" he said, jumping up and down like a colt. "It's you! It's really you!"

Twilight looked at him cock-eyed, and then looked around. "It's me." She stopped. "Wait, what's me?"

The stallion rolled his eyes. "You are Twilight Sparkle, are you not?"

Twilight looked perplexed. "I, uh... h-how do you know my name?"

As a response, the stallion placed his hoof on Twilight shoulder and started laughing hysterically. "H-how," he wheezed. "How do I—" He turned towards Rainbow and Rarity. "How do I know—" He shook his head with his mouth hanging open, and pointed his hoof at Twilight. "Can you believe this mare?"

Twilight looked at Rainbow and Rarity, too, and saw that they were just as perplexed as she was.

The stallion looked back at her. "EVERYPONY knows who you are, Twilight! The whole facility knows!"

Twilight felt a chill run through her entire body at these words. "I—er—what?"

The stallion shook his head and turned around. "Well, not every pony." He laughed silently to himself before turning around a few feet away from her. "But... the Twilight Sparkle?" he said, half-asking. "The one who destroyed an Osprey? The one the military has been after? The one who—"

"Whoa, whoa, whoa!" Rainbow Dash said, swooping down and landing in front of him. "How does the military know her name?"

The stallion beamed again. "Luckily," he said, "they don't. Not yet, at least. They just refer to her by an alias for now, and occasionally describe her." He gave her a sly look. "I think they're afraid of you." He winked.

"So," Rarity said, stepping forward, "how do you know her name? You said you haven't met anyone since the incident."

The stallion raised his hoof. "That's... I guess that's not entirely true. One of the scientists mentioned it to me in passing, before I made it as far as this tunnel." He turned around and beckoned to them. "Come with me."

He trotted off to the side and through the small door into the security room. Twilight looked blankly at the others before leading them through the door as well.

"Here," the guard said, "is where the eyes and ears of the facility are!" He waved his hoof around at the darkened closet-of-a-room. It was cluttered with wires and electrical equipment. "Radios!" he said, waving his hoof around. "We've been listening in this whole time." He leaned into one of them and smiled suggestively at Twilight. "The military isn't the only group who's interested in you, Twilight."

Rarity shifted uncomfortably next to her.

"It seems," the stallion continued, "there are two factions battling over you. One is the military." He turned around and walked up to a table in the back, standing there just long enough to adjust a knob at one of the stations. "The other," he said, turning around, "is a peculiar team of scientists who call themselves the Lambda Lab."

"Lambda La—" they all started to say, before being cut off by the stallion.

"This," he said, waving a hoof at the window, "is what they keep talking about. This rail system. That's why I came down here." He walked up to Twilight and lowered his voice. "There is something here they want, and want desperately! Lambda keeps mentioning it. I think they're hoping you hear about it." He looked up at Twilight. "They also keep mentioning you," he said. "I think they have a feeling you're in the general vicinity."

Twilight shook her head. "What do they want? Do they want me to find it?"

The stallion turned around. "I don't know. Whatever it is, they won't say. I think they fear the military will find out about it." He turned back around to look at them. "And with good reason! I believe the military is stationed near here. Whatever it is Lamda is talking about, the military has shut it down."

"Shut it down?" Twilight repeated. "Shut what down?! It sounds like it could be anything! Without knowing what this thing is, it could be impossible to find it!"

The stallion chuckled. "I thought the same thing," he said. "But keep in mind, I also thought it was impossible for a single mare to take on a military-grade hovercraft!"

"I wasn't alone," Twilight interrupted, placing her hoof on Rarity's shoulder.

"Nor will you be during this mission," he said, indicating both Rarity and Rainbow Dash. "It looks like you've found some friends along the way."

Rainbow flew out in front of Twilight, nearly bumping into her. "Darn straight!" she shouted. "We'll ALWAYS be there for her!"

The stallion backed up, eyes wide.

"You'll have to forgive her," Twilight said. "She can be a bit rash sometimes."

Rainbow scoffed at her. "Says the pony who blew up some wooden boards with a grenade," she said.

"That was one time, Rainbow!" Twilight shouted. "ONE. TIME." She stopped as Rainbow burst into fits of laughter on the ground. "Oh, very funny," she said, rolling her eyes with a sigh.

Twilight looked back up at the stallion. "You wouldn't happen to have a map of this place, would you?"

As an answer, the stallion started shuffling papers, and bumping into equipment. "I... don't think so," he said. He picked up something small on the table and held it up to Twilight. "I do have a few sticks of bubblegum left, though! It's not quite a map, but I happen to know they're still minty fresh!"

Twilight looked at the stallion, then down at the gum, then back at the stallion, glaring. "Thanks, but I think I'll pass."

=========================================================

Twilight started up the train as soon as the guard had opened the parking gate. She ignored the few loop-da-loops Rainbow did out of boredom, and concentrated on the tracks ahead.

"Without a map, we'll have to improvise," she said. "It looks like there's a turntable up ahead."

"That's not a turntable," the guard said behind her. Twilight turned around as the guard continued. "That lift will take you straight down into the main part of the rails."

Rainbow Dash flew up ahead to take a look. "Down?" She landed on the turntable and stuck her head between the table and the surrounding wall. Her voice echoed from beneath it. "You can't be serious!" She brought her head up and flew back towards Twilight. "Aren't lifts supposed to take ponies up? I mean, who designed this place? Moles?"

Twilight rolled her eyes. "Diamond Dogs, more like," she said. "I don't know where they get their "Anomalous Materials", but I wouldn't be surprised if they simply find them buried in a giant pit. The gem I saw in the test chapter must have been bigger than my head!"

"Gem?!" Rarity's eyes widened and sparkled. "This place has gems?!" She grabbed Twilight's head and steered her face to meet hers. "Do they have anything else? Sapphires, perhaps? Or... rubies?!" Her eyes rolled back and her mouth slouched into a dreamy position.

"Focus, Rarity," Twilight said, picking Rarity's hooves off her face and guiding them back to the ground. "I doubt this train will take us to a great mine or anything."

"But," Rarity said, her voice cracking, "it could?"

The security guard could be heard chuckling to himself behind them. He hadn't left his station, but they were still close enough that his echoing voice carried down the tunnel.

"Just ignore him," Twilight said. "We should be ready in case something or somepony is waiting for us." She reached behind her and pulled out her crowbar. "Rainbow!"

Rainbow turned around as Twilight tossed her the crowbar, which she caught with both hooves. "Awesome!"

"Now, we'll have to look for a way to activate the lift," she said as the train rolled onto the turntable. "Rainbow Dash, do you see any kind of lever, or button that could—whoa!"

The train turned, and she grabbed hold of the panel and looked back up to see the wall moving.

"Never mind!" she said.

The ceiling was floating away as well, a she could see Rainbow still hovering above her with the crowbar. The entire train and the rail it was sitting on were corkscrewing down a large pit. Twilight grabbed hold of the control panel to keep her balance as they spun down the lift, and Rarity had grabbed onto Twilight. Both of them had closed their eyes, trying not to get dizzy. A few seconds later, the lift splashed into the floor before clanging to a halt.

"Well, that was... fun," Twilight shaking out her head and trying to get her inner-ear juices to settle. She kept her eyes on the train, trying to get her bearings.

"Heh," Rainbow Dash said, floating down to their level. "Looked pretty awesome from up here." She put her hooves up in a mock-spooky manner and spoke like she was telling a ghost story. "Like you were delving down a deep pit to to your doom." She pulled back and laughed. "I only wish there was a giant lever at the top. We need mad-scientist costumes."

Twilight scowled at her, and Rainbow's smile faltered.

"Oh, right, I forgot," she said. "You are mad scientists."

"RAINBOW!" Twilight yelled.

Rarity cleared her throat. "Actually, dear," she said, "I'm more of an office assistant. I never actually did anything sciencey, per say." She tilted her head in thought. "Although I did once experiment with mixing various levels of cream in my coffee. Does that count as science?"

Twilight scrunched her face and resisted banging her head into the control panel.

"I dunno," Rainbow said. "The only time I did any experimenting was when I was in flight school, and we really didn't wear any lab coats when we were doing that. In fact, we really didn't wear anything at a—"

"ENOUGH!" Twilight yelled.

The whole area went quiet, except for the echoes of their voices. Twilight looked at the tunnel ahead of them. The whole area they were in was flooded, although luckily none of the water came up past the wooden platform boards they were standing on.

"Now," she said, ignoring the blushing faces of Rainbow and Rarity, "as you all can see, this place is flooded." She tried and failed to hold her sarcasm. "This means all that ridiculous high voltage that we saw at the power plant is coursing through here." She pointed her hoof at the water. "So, unless any of you want to end up like the big blue monster back there, I suggest we take it nice and slow." She pushed forward on the lever, and felt the train lurch into its lowest speed.

Rainbow Dash flew up ahead. "Nice and slow, huh? And how's that going to help if the train dives into the water?"

Twilight scowled. "Then I guess it's a good thing we have a pegasus to carry us," she said.

Rainbow didn't ask any more questions after that.

Twilight looked around at the walls of the tunnel, which were decayed, and given a brown, rotten look from the dim lights yellow lights hanging from periodic hooks on the wall. It felt like they were travelling down a sewer. The coronas blinded them as they approached, and all they could hear was the gentle splashing of the water against the moving train.

Rarity looked around and made a face. "I do hope we don't have to spend much time down here," she said. "You're sure the military isn't simply setting us up?"

Twilight leaned gently against her hoof trigger as the train approached the first turn. "The guard did say they were down here. But, I'm not seeing how they could have gotten here without the power on. The lift won't work without it, and as far as what the guard told us, he didn't see any soldiers come this way."

"Unless he's a spy!" Rainbow Dash said.

The train gently turned the corner, revealing a widening tunnel. Some other parts of the rail system could be seen above them through the ceiling, and some of the light from above shined through the openness, forming patterns on the water.

"Somehow, I doubt that," Twilight said. "Although there technically isn't anything to prove otherwise." She thought for a moment. "The pegasus soldiers disabled the power, which means they probably don't want us down here. Why would they station one of their ponies at the entrance, and tell us to proceed?"

Rainbow Dash turned around. "Obviously, to put us off guard!"

Rarity pushed Twilight out of the way before she could respond. "Rainbow Dash, that's enough," she said. "We are all prepared for a fight if one comes to us."

Twilight looked at Rarity. "That is a good point," Twilight said. "There's not much we can do if there's a trap down here. We already know the risks."

The train tilted upward, and Twilight and Rarity grabbed hold of the panel so they wouldn't slide backwards.

"We're moving up," Twilight said, looking ahead at the tracks.

Rainbow Dash flew to the top of the incline and peered around. Her body glowed in the darkness up ahead, and her voice echoed down the tunnel. "Looks like it meets up with another track," she said.

"Good," Twilight said. "That must be the primary rail. The one we've been travelling on must be an entrance rail." Twilight watched as they crested the top of the incline and saw the rest of the track come into view. "My guess is that the unit on the surface is a different unit than the one in the depot. The rails are probably built like a mine, and are filled with inclines just like this one." She looked at Rarity, and then back at Rainbow Dash. "The further up we go, the more careful we'll have to be."

Rainbow Dash flew in front of the train and lead it as it turned the corner onto the main rail. The tunnels up ahead were mostly barren. A few wooden structures climbed the walls, and provided platforms that seemed to have no purpose. Other paths would fork off into a dark corridors that ended in abandoned storage. The going was slow, but the military was nowhere in sight.

"Anything up ahead, Rainbow Dash?" Twilight asked.

Rainbow hovered up ahead. "Just another fork," she said. "This one's blocked, though. Some sort of cable's in the way."

Twilight scratched her head. "Cable?"

A few red lights on the wall saturated the part of the tunnel they were in, and a brighter area could be seen in the distance. Twilight could just make out another switch in the tracks.

"Some kind of hook thing," she said. "Looks broken."

Rarity sighed and rested her face against her forehoof, leaning into the control panel of the train.

"You're sure there's nothing else?" Twilight asked. More of the brightness up ahead came into view, and she could see the left-hand wall give way to a large space. The switch in the track diverted it into this space.

"Well, there's a door, but it doesn't look like there's anything on the other side."

Twilight peered around the corner as the train entered the expanse, and brought it to a halt just before it reached the switch. A thick cable was hanging from the ceiling, with a large steel claw at the end of it, obviously used to lift crates at some point.

"May as well take a look around," she said. "It certainly looks more promising than any of the other forks we've come across." She stepped off the train. "At least it's quiet. Might give us a chance to rest our hooves." She trotted into one of the corners and turned around to look at the room from another angle. "Why don't you explore the new path, Rainbow?" she said, pointing a hoof. "Rarity and I will have a look around."

Rainbow did a lazy salute, and hovered around the corner and out of sight. Twilight and Rarity waited until they could no longer hear the flapping of her wings.

Rarity walked up to Twilight in the corner. "She's looking a bit worn out," she said. "You don't think she's lost her enthusiasm, do you?"

Twilight shook her head. "She's definitely still Rainbow Dash," she said. "She's probably just fatigued." Twilight walked up to the hook and reached a hoof up to it. The entire thing was larger than her body, and half of it was too high to reach. "If I had to guess, I'd say she's just bored. I mean," she looked around, "there's nothing to fight down here."

Rarity tilted her head. "And... that's a bad thing?"

Twilight trotted across the tracks, lifting her hooves high above the rails so as not to electrocute herself. "We should look for a way through this door," she said, reaching the wall on the other side. "It looks like more than just a storage room. There might be some useful stuff in there."

Rarity leaned up against the hook. "I don't like this, Twilight." Her face was blank, and she wasn't looking at Twilight. "This... situation." She moved her hoof gently across the hook.

Twilight was busy examining the door. It was surprisingly standard compared to the large blast doors they had been running across lately. The dull handle and indented casing made it look like a standard hinged door that opened on the inside. Twilight prodded the handle, but it wouldn't turn.

"I don't like it either, Rarity," Twilight said. "But we've managed to survive worse."

Rarity sighed, and trotted across the tracks to meet up with Twilight on the other side. "I don't mean that," she said. "I mean I don't like knowing what's about to happen," she said. "The anticipation." She walked up to the wall and leaned against it, carefully pushing her mane out of the way so it wouldn't pick up any of the dirt on the surface. "Every other time, we had no idea what we were getting into. We had no time to think about it." She leaned in close and whispered, "We're about to infiltrate a military operation! Doesn't that make you nervous?!"

Twilight kicked the door out of frustration, and leaned up against the wall on the other side of the door from Rarity, and sunk to the floor. "We're not soldiers, Rarity," she said. "Neither of us know how to fight. Most of the times before this were simply luck." She looked at the floor and shook her head. "We have to be smart this time. We know what we're getting into, and we know what we have to work with."

A soft flutter could be heard echoing in from the tunnel, making Twilight's ears perk. She lifted her head to see Rainbow hovering back into the light.

"There's a lift," Rainbow said, throwing her hoof over her shoulder. "I think it goes up a ways, but I didn't fly very far."

Twilight's eyes widened. "Well that's good news," she said. "The closer to the surface we are, the more likely it is we'll find what we're looking for."

She got onto her hooves and groaned at the sudden protest her muscles were making. "See if you can break down this door, Rainbow. There might be some controls we can use to move the hook."

Rainbow looked around absent-mindedly, breathed deep, and sighed. She reared back, and flung herself against the door with a dull thud. Twilight and Rarity jumped at the noise, but the door didn't budge. Rainbow hovered back and shook her head.

"Whelp! Looks like it's stuck. We'd better get going."

Twilight narrowed her eyes, and quietly walked up to Rainbow Dash. Rainbow also turned around, and for a moment, they stared at each other.

"Crowbar," Twilight said, holding out her hoof.

Rainbow looked at her blankly, and reluctantly handed the crowbar over. "Heh, good luck with that," she said, rubbing her shoulder. "If an awesome pegasus like me can't open it, I doubt a simple egghead like you would have the strength!"

Twilight snatched the crowbar away with a "hmmph", and walked behind Rainbow. "It's not for the door," she said simply. With a "whish" sound, she brought the bar back, and whipped it with a loud snap into Rainbow's rear end.

"AHH!" Rainbow said, keeling over. She gritted her teeth, and jumped into the air, rubbing her rump with her hoof. "ARE YOU CRAZY?!"

Twilight cocked her head and pursed her lips. "I just figured you could use a little motivation," she said, taking a few steps away from her. "YOU'RE A SOLDIER!" she yelled. "PUT YOUR BACK INTO IT!" She tossed the crowbar hard enough to make Rainbow flinch as she caught it.

Rainbow's wide eyes followed Twilight as she moved out of the way. Even Rarity had taken a few steps back, and was looking back and forth between the two. Rainbow waited for Twilight to say something else, but all Twilight did was turn around, flip her hoof towards the door, and say "proceed".

Rainbow looked over at Rarity, who shrugged.

"She is right," Rarity said. "You didn't exactly give it your all last time, dear."

Rainbow breathed a few choice words under her breath, still rubbing her rump, and hovered to the other side of the tracks, narrowing her eyes and scowling.

Without hesitation, she flared her wings, flipped over, and slammed her body into the ground, using the force and momentum to kick off. A bang went off a second later.

A cloud of dust exploded across the area, making Twilight cough and wave her hoof around to see. All that was there was a glowing streak of rainbow between the ground and the door. Rainbow Dash was nowhere in sight.

Twilight caught her breath, gave Rarity a look, and walked slowly through the dust cloud to peer through the doorway.

The wall was cracked in many places, and entire chunks were missing near the entrance. Rainbow was spread-eagle upside-down on the wall in the back, eyes slightly derping. Off to the side, the door was rocking back and forth on the ground, knocked entirely off its hinges with a dent protruding so far that it couldn't lay flat on the ground anymore. Twilight smiled at it before looking back at Rainbow.

"Now that's the Rainbow I know," she said.

=========================================================

Twilight stepped into the room and let her eyes adjust to the light. The place had been abandoned for quite some time, judging from the amount of dust and cobwebs investing the area. A few old computers sat on a metal table off the the side. The rest of the room was empty save for a few boxes here and there.

"Rainbow Dash," Twilight said, "why don't you check those crates over in the corner. See if there's any ordnance." She turned to the other side of the room as Rainbow saluted. "I'll see if any of these computers still work."

Twilight stepped up to a metal table off to the side, and started wiping the dust off the monitors. "I haven't worked too much with computers," Twilight said. "They use a very different kind of magic than I'm used to. It's more delicate than the kind I was trained on." She bent her head down and looked under the table. "If these things don't work, I'm not sure I'll be able to repair them."

Rarity cocked her head. "I always assumed they ran off the same stuff as the train."

Twilight tapped the side of one of the boxes under the table, and got down onto the floor to have a closer look. "As a power source, that's true. But all the logic is handled by spells. Some of my teachers back in Canterlot told us about it. It can take a lifetime for a unicorn to acquire the accuracy and precision needed to cast magic at that level. Very few ponies can do it."

Twilight stayed under the table for another minute, fiddling with switches and prodding things with what little magic she had. A few of the systems hummed to life.

"Looks like two of the three mainframes still work," she said, getting back to her hooves. "If we're lucky, we should be able to get some information." She looked at Rarity. "Do you think your credentials still work?"

Rarity looked confused. "Why in Equestria would my credentials work on these old things?! I may as well try to log into a rock!" She walked up to one of the monitors and touched the screen with her right hoof. She sighed. "Still, I don't suppose it would hurt to try. Maybe they're all on the same network?"

Rainbow Dash flew over to the other two. "Not much in the crates," she said. "But I did manage to snatch a couple of these things, whatever they are." She held up some small leather pouches in her hooves.

Twilight grabbed one of the pouches and examined it. "It has an antenna," she said, pointing at lt. "It's probably got a receiver inside somewhere." She turned it over in her hoof a few times. "Maybe an explosive?" She walked over to where the crate was, which Rainbow had carefully pried open. "I wonder if there's a transmitter in here somewhere."

"Twilight!" Rarity said from across the room. "I think I found something!" She waved a hoof at one of the screens.

Twilight left Rainbow Dash peering into the crate, and joined Rarity to look at the screen.

"Look at this," Rarity said, as Twilight stepped up next to her. "I don't know why, but my credentials got me access to some of the security systems. Those things should only be accessible to highly important personnel!"

Twilight tried to make some sense out of the diagrams and maps she was seeing on the screen. "Is that..." she said, pointing a hoof at the screen.

"A map of the rail system, yes," Rarity said. "Look at this! I can see all the levels of the system, and control parts of them, too!"

Twilight's eyes widened, and she felt a chill run through her body. "Can we," she said excitedly, "bypass the entire rail system?" she asked. "Is there a shortcut to the surface?"

Rainbow's voice shouted from across the room. "Got it!" She held up a few small bricks. "Whatever it is, it's got a button and another antenna," she said. "Are these the transmadiddlies you were talking about?"

Twilight glanced around at Rainbow floating up to her. "How many did you find?" she asked. "They should match up with the pockets."

Rainbow fiddled with a few of them, and floated back to one of the tables. "I... think they have numbers or something on them. I can't tell. Gimme a sec."

Twilight turned back to Rarity, who was scanning the screen with her hoof.

"It looks like the entire system revolves around this one central room," Rarity continued. "There's definitely a control center of some sort on the surface. Whatever's in the central room must be controlled from there." She pointed to it with her hoof, and then scanned around it until she found what she was looking for. "Here! This elevator goes straight for the surface. It looks like it's shut down right now, but... hang on." She moved her hoof around and pushed her hoof into some buttons on the screen. "It's not giving me access." She pressed her hoof into a part of the screen a few more times, and finally started punching the screen. "It's not working," she said. "I don't have control over anything on the surface."

Twilight stepped back and peered out the door. "Do you at least have access to the crane hook?"

"Hook... hook... let's see..." Rarity moved her hoof wildly across the screen. "Ah! There it is." She pressed her hoof into the screen again, and a loud sound could be heard outside the door.

Twilight trotted up to the door and stuck her head out. "It's moving!" she shouted back. A loud click emanated from the tracks, over the sound of the moving cable.

"I flipped the switch on the tracks, too, dear," Rarity said. "It looks like I can control everything below the surface."

Twilight licked her lips, and felt a twinkle spark in her eye. She smirked at the tracks and the hook outside, and then turned around to head back into the room.

"Rarity," Twilight said, "I think I have a plan." She walked up to her, and put a hoof on Rarity's shoulder. "If we can find a way to stay in contact, I'd like you to stay here. You can help control the rails using the system, and the meet up with us on the surface using the elevator." She turned around. "Rainbow, how are those explosives coming along?"

"Almost got it," Rainbow said, holding up a few of the pouches and flying over Twilight. "I matched them up by their little number thingies. Hopefully that's how they work. OH!" Rainbow gasped. "You mentioned staying in touch! I saw something a minute ago! Just a sec."

Rainbow darted back to the table with the explosives, and got down on the floor. "I think," she said, rummaging around with some cardboard boxes, "these might help."

Rainbow got back up, holding three small contraptions in her hooves. She tossed one to Twilight, and it ricocheted off her fumbling hooves and into her forehead.

"Ow!" Twilight said, barely catching it in her hooves. "Warn me before you do that!" She scowled, and looked down at what she was holding. "A... shortwave radio?" She looked back up at Rainbow. "Are you serious?!"

Rainbow shrugged. "Hey, I don't know what any of this techno-jumbo does. They're just bricks to me."

Twilight shook her head. "No, no, no. I mean, these things could be really helpful! Here." She reached out towards Rainbow and grabbed the other two radios. "There should be enough for all three of us to stay in touch," she said. "Rarity?"

Rarity turned around with a blank face.

Twilight tilted her head. "Are you going to be alright staying here?"

Rarity put a hoof to her chin. "Stay here, darling?" She looked around the room, and for a while, Twilight wasn't sure what was going on in her mind.

Finally, Rarity looked back, still somewhat absent-minded. "Well, I hadn't put much thought into it. Let's see," she said. "No fighting, stay in touch with my friends, get to control everything..." She finally looked back at the other two and flipped her hair. "It's not quite an evening at the spa, but it'll have to do."

Twilight just looked at her, and smiled.

=========================================================

"Rarity!" Twilight yelled through the radio. "Ra—ri—ty! Can you hear me?" She pushed a few of the buttons.

Rainbow Dash was hovering next to her on the train, trying not to snicker. Twilight had been trying to figure out how to work the radio transmitters for the past few minutes before they departed.

"Ugh! Stupid technology," Twilight said, pushing a few more buttons. "This thing needs a manual."

The explosive charges were neatly packed away next to the few trip mines she had left, and Rarity had spent the last five minutes familiarizing herself with the rail map. Twilight had been glued to the screen for a while, trying to memorize every line and crevice, and Rainbow Dash almost had to pry her away with the crowbar to get her to leave.

Twilight shook the contraption around with her hoof before pushing another random button. "Ra—ri—ty!" she shouted. "Come—In! Do—You—Rea—"

"You—Do—Not—Have—To—Shout—Dear," came the response.

Twilight stopped dead and closed her muzzle. Her ears went red, and she shrunk back behind the train panel. Rainbow Dash's hooves were jammed in her muzzle, barely containing her laughter.

"Testing," she said, much quieter. "Testing?"

"I still heeeear you," Rarity sang.

"Rainbow," Twilight said, making sure the radio was turned off, "we should work out a way to talk in code words, in case the military can hear us on this channel."

Rainbow shrugged. "Pfft! Leave the flying to me," she said. "You can work out the code words with little miss sing-song over there." She pointed a hoof over to the security entrance.

"Rainbow Dash," Twilight growled, "we're already on the train. Can't you just fly over there and tell her?"

Rainbow glared at her for a second, and then floated over to the entrance, turned around, and positioned herself like one of the royal guards. "The Rainbow Messenger is standing by to receive your requests," she mocked. She shot Twilight a look.

"All right," Twilight said with a sigh, "we need basic code words for common things, and they need to have nothing to do with what we're really saying." She pondered to herself a bit more. "Common things... common things... let's see."

She started ticking things off with her hoof: "Throwing rail switches, spotting guards, giving directions..."

Rainbow Dash stretched her arms out in a histrionic yawn, and made no attempt to stifle the loud noise.

"Fine!" Twilight said. "I'll get to the point." She got off the train and walked up to Rainbow. "Since we're looking for the Lambda Lab, we'll go Greek. Rarity will be Phi. I'll be Rho. We'll give cardinal directions based on nu, sigma, epsilon, and omega—"

"Whoa, whoa, whoa," Rainbow said, holding up her hooves. "I am not memorizing the Greek alphabet," she said. "I had a hard enough time remembering the fraternities at flight school! I am not about to try figuring out which letter is which over that staticy radio thing."

Twilight glared at her. "Okay, Airman Rainbow Dash," she said, "what would you prefer?"

Rainbow pointed her hoof at herself. "Obviously, I would be called Awesome." She pointed a hoof a Twilight, "You would be Egghead, and Rarity would be Prissy."

"Prissy?!" Rarity said from around the corner. "I am not prissy! I am fabulous! Or do I need to give you a lesson in the difference?"

Twilight rolled her eyes. "We are not doing that, Rainbow," she said. "We need something the military can overlook. Most of the military is going to hear words like awesome and fabulous and call them out." She twisted her hooves in front of her. "How about we compromise. We'll use military jargon for some of the stuff. I'll be Suit-Up, you be Wings, and Rarity will be Radio. Sound fair?"

Rainbow rolled her eyes. "Sounds lame," she said.

"Well, it's not like we have a choice," Twilight said. "I mean, the only other way would be to guarantee the military couldn't decipher our signal, and the only way to do that would be to... encrypt it..." She trailed off at the end, and then groaned loudly. "Why didn't I think of that?" She put her hoof to her forehead. "Encrypt the signal, that's it!"

Rainbow just stared at her blankly.

"Gather the radios, Rainbow," she said, holding out her hooves. "I have an idea."

Rainbow rolled her eyes and flew back through the door to get Rarity's receiver.

"Okay," Twilight said, grabbing the radios from Rainbow, "if this works, we can say whatever we want, and the military won't be the wiser."

She lit her horn and cried out after a few sparks flew. She stopped and took another breath. "Stupid horn." She closed her eyes and let the lightest of auras fly around, touching it directly to the antennas of the radios. There was a purple spark, and the tip of the antennas glowed, as though she had just lit three candles.

"There," she said, rubbing her horn with one of her hooves. "The transmission should be altered when it comes out. The signal will only make sense if it's received by one of these these radios." She handed two of them back to Rainbow Dash.

"So... that means we don't have to learn to speak egghead?" Rainbow said.

Twilight ignored her, and headed back towards the train. "The only problem would be if the military gets hold of one of them," she thought. She held the radio up to her muzzle and pushed the button. "Can you hear this, Rarity?"

"Loud and clear, darling," came the voice. "And, thank you for not yelling this time."

Twilight stepped back up onto the wooden train platform, and started up the controls. "Rainbow Dash, I'm going to start the train rolling forward. I need you to scout ahead. Fly down to the lift and keep me posted."

Twilight reached her hoof out to the controls and hesitated. Thoughts emerged about what she was doing: the closer the train got to the surface, the messier things would get. Even Rainbow Dash was having second thoughts.

"Rarity," Twilight said over the radio, "as soon as we're gone, I want you to set one of the explosives just outside the door. If you see any aliens or military ponies in the area, I want you to detonate it." She turned to Rainbow Dash. "Keep me posted on everything, Rainbow. If you kill a headcrab, I want to know about it."

Rainbow swung the crowbar around a few times, and then flew off down the tunnel.

Twilight took a deep breath and touched her hoof along the trigger of her side-arm. Every muscle in her body was tensed. "Think thoughts," she whispered to herself. "There is a way to the surface, and we are going to make it." She closed her eyes, reached out to the panel, and pushed the lever.

She watched as the train rolled through the room and up to the tunnel, and couldn't help but lean against the trigger. Her eyes glanced at the security door, hoping to see Rarity one last time before crossing the threshold, but she was too far around the corner. The walls of the tunnel passed by the train, and she was plunged into darkness.

Her eyes darted over the rust-stained walls, and blinked against the distant lights. Parts of the floor opened up to reveal glistening water, flooding what must have been maintenance pits below the rails.

"Rainbow," she said, holding up the receiver, "Is everything clear at the lift?"

Rainbow's cracked voice echoed through the tunnel. "It's stuck."

Twilight cocked her brow. "What do you mean, it's stuck?" Her eyes darted around, and part of her was distracted by the thought of being knocked into the water. She wished there was something to help keep her on the platform.

"I mean," the voice came again, "the lift is stuck! It's partway up, and won't come back down."

Twilight felt a chill crest her body. "Rarity?" she said. "Did you touch something?"

Rarity's voice sang through the receiver. "I don't think so," she said. "Although the screen is showing the same thing."

"Rainbow Dash!" Twilight said, "Regroup. I want us teamed up in case we see activity. Rarity, I want you to try lowering the lift."

She looked back down the tunnel, and noticed she was most of the way down the initial tunnel stretch. The lift was just around the corner.

"Rainbow," Twilight said, as Rainbow rounded the corner, "get behind the panel. I think it'll work better if we surprise them."

Rainbow's wings flapped wildly as her hooves touched down, and Twilight reached over and pushed her head down behind the panel.

"Twilight," Rarity's voice echoed, "I think I got the lift down, but the system asked if I wanted to override something. I don't think I'm the only pony controlling the system."

A light shown around the bend at the end of a short stretch, which grew as the train rounded the corner. A cylindrical room could be seen at the end of a short stretch, with a turntable at its base. Twilight pulled the train up to the threshold and pulled the lever back to a stop.

"Do you see anything, Rainbow?" she asked.

Rainbow Dash jumped onto the panel and stuck her head out into the room. Her rainbow tail flicked and brushed against Twilight's face, and Twilight clawed it away with her hooves.

"I don't see anyone," Rainbow said. "It's just really high."

Twilight reached her hooves around and guided Rainbow back behind the platform. "Rarity," she said, "I'm going to move the train onto the lift. As soon as that's done, I want you to start it up."

She turned towards Rainbow. "They're going to try to ambush us, but I have a plan. I don't think they know you're with me." She reached out her hoof and pushed the lever forward a notch, and then held out a hoof, "let me see the crowbar."

The train came to a halt on the turntable as Rainbow made the hand-off. She lit her horn and touched it to the crowbar, just as she did with the antennas.

"I wrote some papers on this theory back in Canterlot," she said. "Normally it takes very powerful magic to form a barrier. I think I found a way around that." She handed the crowbar back to Rainbow Dash. "That crowbar has only a portion of force field magic on it. I discovered that that kind of magic is both regenerative and elastic, which means you should be able to form a complete barrier simply by moving it around fast enough."

Rainbow was tilting the bar in front of her face at different angles, trying to discern exactly what it was. Upon hearing Twilight's explanation, she instinctively moved her hoof off to the side and started shaking it around like a glowstick.

A sheet of purple glass materialized as she moved the crowbar around, and Rainbow reached out her other hoof to touch it.

"That's pretty freaky," she said. "It looks like some sort of hard candy."

Twilight was looking up at the shaft, trying to figure out whether to take an offensive or defensive approach. "Well, don't lick it," she said. "I've never tasted a force field before, but I doubt it tastes anything like candy." She held up the radio. "Move us up, Rarity."

She held onto the panel as the train started corkscrewing up. "That force field doesn't last very long," she said. "You'll have to keep repainting it if you want—"

"AHH!"

Rainbow jumped up and grabbed her tail. A tinge of smoke was wafting from it, and the tip of it was black.

Twilight looked around, and noticed some cubbies around the walls, opening into various chambers. "Force field, Rainbow! Get a barrier up!" She squinted into the dark chambers, trying to see who had fired. Rainbow's blurred swishes around her didn't help.

"I can't see," she said, trying to compensate for the train's rotation. "The lift is moving too fast! I—AH!" Something bounced off her hoof, and she looked down to see a glowing green spot emanating from her suit. "What is—" She thought for a second, and the looked up to see the solid glowing field of purple darkening around her.

"Rainbow! Get inside the force field!" she yelled.

Something whacked her from behind, and she jumped around. "What in Luna's..." she said, rubbing her backside. "They're using penetrative magic." She looked up at Rainbow. "We can't protect against this stuff!" She ducked as a green ray came shooting out of one of the cubbies and singed her mane. "Rarity," she said into the radio, "can you make the lift go any faster?"

Rarity's voice could barely be heard above the growing activity. "I'm barely able to keep the lift going at all, dear. Something keeps fighting it!"

"Rainbow," Twilight said, dodging another ray, "Fly into one of the cubbies! Try to take out whatever's causing these things!"

Rainbow whipped around just over the train and flew at one of the cubbies. The force field was sinking below the lift as they ascending.

"The opening's blocked," Rainbow said. "I—AH!" She jumped out of the way of one of the rays, "—can't get through."

"Come back down, then," she said. "My suit seems to block some of it. Get under me! I'll protect you."

Rainbow looked insulted. "Under you?!" She crossed her hooves. "I'm not chickening out just because we can't hide behind a wall!"

Twilight put her hooves over her head and got down on her stomach. She flinched as one of the beams struck the side of the train, kicking up wood chips. The air was saturated. "Are you crazy," she said. "They'll vaporize you!"

Rainbow swished around. "Only if they can hit me!" she said. "Besides, we're almost at the top."

Twilight peeked through her hooves, and saw the ground above her quickly descending to their level. She got out the radio again.

"Rarity, can you seal off any of the passages around this place?"

The train crested the top as Rarity's voice came back. "There's an escape hatch off to the side, but everything else looks open."

"Then seal it!" she said. "We need to trap whatever's down there."

The lift clanged to a halt, and Twilight grabbed hold of the panel to keep her balance. She got to her hooves and looked around.

"Are you all right, Rainbow?" she asked.

Rainbow circled around the train a few times. "It would take more than that to beat me!" she said. She flew up and struck a pose.

"We need to split up," Twilight said. "The track splits up ahead. I need you to take the right side, and then use the staircase that leads to the upper level. It's the ideal place to search the rail, and the military is bound to have guards stationed up there."

Rainbow turned around and faced the dark tunnel. "Right side, top level," she said. "Got it!" She flew off with a trail of rainbows behind her, leaving Twilight alone on the train.

"Rarity," Twilight said, "I need you to make sure the switch it flipped to the right side, and make sure all of the gates are open. I'm going to make a run for it."

Rainbow's voice replied. "You might want to hold off on that, Twilight," she said. "They've setup trip mines along the walls."

There was a thump off to the side of the rails, and Twilight looked over to see the hatch Rarity had closed in the floor. Something was trying to get through.

"You'll have to detonate them, Rainbow. I'm starting up the train now." She reached a hoof out to the panel. "I can't afford to stay here much longer."

A few war cries came over the radio, followed by a lot of thumping and crunching.

"Rainbow?" Twilight said. The cries were getting louder. "What's going on over there?!"

The thumps got louder, and were mingled with loud cracks that sounded like gunfire. Twilight's ears shot up, and her blood ran cold. "Rainbow Dash!"

She brought the radio up, hooves shaking. "Rarity, Is the path clear?"

Her hoof was pushing forward on the lever before she got an answer, and she grabbed hold of the panel and ducked behind it, placing the muzzle of her gun just over the top.

"Rainbow!" she yelled into the radio. "Wherever you are, stay clear of the rail!"

She pushed the lever as far as it would go, and placed her hooves on either side of the panel, keeping the trigger button against the wall. This was crazy. It was absolutely crazy! But she could manage to clear the rails.

She was shooting forward faster than she had anticipated. The first turn was the worst. It pulled on her hoof so hard she thought it would rip it clean off. Without thinking, she pressed her hoof into the side of the panel, and felt the rattling kick of her gun pummel her shoulder. The radio was sandwiched between her other hoof and her body, continuously uttering static and cracks of gunfire.

Each turn jolted and disoriented her, stopping the stream of bullets coming from her shoulder. She could see glimpses of wider areas around the rails, and could tell she wasn't alone. The noise around her was deafening, increased ten-fold by the myriad of other gunfire around her. Between the blur of colors around her, and the thunderous noise, it was like being in a tornado. Lights flew by overhead, alternating light and dark too quickly for her to comprehend. Painful explosions struck her ears, most likely remnants of the tripmines Rainbow had mentioned, rendering her temporarily deaf to the activity, and she could feel heat emanating from the suit, which kept reporting minimal amounts of damage to her.

The turmoil only lasted a few seconds, and ended as quickly as it began. The train straightened out, leaving the noise echoing into the background, without any knowledge of just how much damages she had done. Her ears were still ringing loud enough that she couldn't hear anything from the radio.

She peered over the panel as soon as the noise started to subside, and saw something racing up to her: something large, green, and glowing. She barely had time to react. She grabbed the radio receiver, and rolled off the train just before it collided.

She felt her body slam into the ground and immediately flail off spinning from the impact. All she could do was pull her hooves in close to her body and pray. She felt her right-rear hoof strike something hard, and yelled out against a sudden sheer of pain. An explosive noise echoed down the tunnel, striking her head like a sonic hurricane. She could feel the heat singing her face as she rolled to a stop.

It took a few seconds for her to realize she wasn't moving anymore. The pain from her hoof was pulling her attention away from her surroundings. She had barely managed to hold onto the radio.

"R-Rainbow?" she managed to sputter through the radio. "Are you—"

She stopped as she saw a whip of rainbow colors soar around the bend of the tunnel. It stopped just short of her location.

"Twilight!" Rainbow yelled. Her voice scared Twilight more than anything she had just encountered. She had never heard Rainbow this scared before.

Twilight sat up, and watched as Rainbow lowered herself to the ground, just in front of Twilight. "What happened back there, Rainbow?" she said. "I heard gunfire."

Rainbow was already on top of Twilight, moving her eyes around Twilight's wound. "What happened?" she asked, voice shaking. "You're bleeding."

Rarity's voice cracked over the radio. "What's going on over there? Is everypony all right?"

Twilight brought her hoof up for a better look. A large gash of dark red was oozing around it, and she could see some of the metal of the suit exposed around the crack. "It's just a cut," she said. "It doesn't look that deep. I just need to find something to stem the bleeding."

Rainbow took a deep breath, followed by a sigh of relief. "Twilight's fine," she said to Rarity. "She just... had an accident." She put the radio down and looked back at Twilight. "You look terrible," she said. "Like, your whole face is all bruised up and dirty. I can barely tell that it's still you!"

Twilight put a hoof up to her face and scraped against it. The pressure against it felt sore, and the rubber tip of the suit came away soot-filled.

"What happened to the train?" Rainbow asked.

Twilight turned around and followed the tunnel up to a brick-laid dead end. The glowing green barrier was gone. All along the path were bits of flame and chunks of wood, and the shattered remains of the train could be seen in the distance, at an odd angle against the brick wall.

"I guess you could say it came in handy," she said.

She got onto her hooves and winced. "I don't know how well I can walk," she said. "That fall might have sprained something." She limbed forward, and Rainbow Dash landed next to her to help guide her. "We have to keep moving. More guards could be on the way."

=========================================================

Rainbow helped Twilight to the end of the tunnel, where the passage opened up into a large shipment area. The rail stopped just short of a brick wall, now flickering with fire from the train wreckage. Bodies and debris were scattered, and it looked as though the area had been in heavy use just before the crash.

"Rarity," Twilight said, still holding onto Rainbow Dash, "does your map show any locations of first aid stations?" She looked around at the shipment yard, and noticed a passage off to the right: the only exit in sight.

"I don't think they show up on my map, dear," Rarity said. "Are you sure you're okay?"

Twilight pointed to the passage, and Rainbow Dash started to head in that direction. "It's just a minor scrape, Rarity, but I'd like to get it cleaned up. The creatures that have been showing up have some sort of weird infectious organisms."

She leaned up to Rainbow Dash, and pointed out the shadow of a corpse in the corner of the room. "Unicorns," she said. "They've been putting up all the force fields. It's rare to find unicorns with these kind of powers, even in the Canterlot Royal Guard."

Rainbow stopped just short of the passage. "The ponies I fought back there weren't unicorns," she said. "They were just earth ponies."

"We can't afford to assume anything up ahead," Twilight said, pushing Rainbow to go faster. "The military is probably in short supply of able unicorns, but the limited number just means they'll be seen more at bottlenecks."

The smoke from the fires was starting to cloud the room behind them. Twilight pushed through the passage to the side, and found that it opened into a sharply inconsistent hallway, with many nooks along its jagged walls. Twilight could pick out a place or two where the nooks seemed to continue into other passages. She could see the other side, which bent sharply around, back towards the rail.

"Rainbow," she said, "search this place for medical supplies. And let me know if there's another suit recharge station nearby." She could feel the strength coming back to her ankle, and moved a bit faster as Rainbow Dash took off.

Rarity's voice cracked over the radio. "Twilight, are you there? You're getting close to the central chamber."

Twilight brought the receiver closer. Ribbons of swishing rainbow were saturating the room in front of her, and she tried not to run into it as she walked forward. "I was hoping we were," she said over the radio. "We should be just around the corner from it. If we can get to—"

A deafening crack went off next to her ear, and she nearly dropped the receiver. She put her hoof up to protect from the crackling green light, and stumbled on her bad hoof. "Rainbow!"

Strange voices echoed behind her as she tried to catch her balance, and she felt something pinch her side.

"Rainbo—"

Another crack went off, further down the passage. The claw around her was pulling her in, and she instinctively flailed her good rear hoof into the alien body behind her. It was disturbingly smooth and soft.

A rainbow missile appeared in the corner of her eye, followed by a yell and a crunch of metal-on-bone as she swung the crowbar. Twilight flew forward as the creature let go, and landed on her side on the ground. More cracks were going off in the distance, and she could see some of the aliens charging up in a green aura.

A rainbow mane came down over her face, and she felt a pair of hooves reach around her middle, hoisting her up. She could hear Rainbow's voice.

"I found a box thing in that room over there," she said. "And I heard soldiers talk—EEEK!"

The bright arch across the room, and Rainbow's mane stood on end. Twilight pushed against her forehooves and stumbled onto all fours as Rainbow recovered, a dull pain coursing through her rear hoof.

"Get behind me!"

She waved her forehoof around, and Rainbow Dash leaped behind her as another arch shot just over Twilight. Without thinking, she slammed forward on her hoof, and felt another staggering set of punches strike her shoulder. The kickback knocked her onto her rear hooves, and she stopped firing.

"Into the room, Rainbow! I'll follow you!"

She was on all fours before Rainbow had even gotten the message. Some of the creatures were clutching parts of their body and staggering, but none of them had fallen.

Rainbow whipped around and flew out of sight just a few feet in front of her. Twilight looked around, trying to see where she had gone, and trotted forward against the sharp pains with each strike against her hoof.

"Rainb—"

A pair of hooves wrapped around the back of her neck, and she was yanked off into a side room as another green arch shot past. She stumbled forward, nearly running right into Rainbow Dash, who flew up in surprise.

"Quick, behind the table," she said, pointing a hoof. "I'll finish them off." Rainbow whipped forward towards the door, but Twilight caught her tail between her teeth.

"Ah, noyadon't," she mumbled through her clenched muzzle. She pulled back hard, trying to toss Rainbow back into the room, but ended up only feeling a sharp pain in her jaw, and let go. She brought a hoof up to her cheek and rubbed it before turning her attention to the room. "I need you to help clean the wound."

Rainbow peered out the door. "But—" She looked back in with big puppy-dog eyes, and Twilight had to look away to stop from giving in.

"If they find us, you can take care of them, but for now—"

"Movement!"

Twilight's ears perked up as the word echoed around the corner of the passage. Hoofsteps were pounding all around them, and Twilight instinctively ducked and covered her ears as the waves of bullets struck the air just outside the door. She crawled hoof over hoof to the area in back of the table, where Rainbow had pointed.

The medbox Rainbow had found was on the wall just above her, and she reached up with a hoof, trying to reach it without having to get up. Rainbow was still busy peeking out the entrance from behind the wall.

"Rainbow!" Twilight said, slumping back onto the ground. "I still have the explosives in the bags on my suit." She magicked the pack open and slipped out one of the leather bags, as well as the transmitter. "I want you to slip it out into the passage and detonate it if any of the activity comes in here."

Rainbow looked back at her, slightly confused, but ultimately grabbed the case with enthusiasm. A sly smile spread across her lips as she grabbed the transmitter, and she turned her head slowly back towards the noise happening outside the room.

"Make sure it's well away from the opening," Twilight said. "The back flash alone could scorch everything in this room." She turned over and started messing with something on the shoulder of the suit. A small pop sounded right around the base of the gun, and she turned back towards Rainbow. "Take my gun," she said, slipping it off her shoulder and onto the ground. "I need to work on getting cleaned up."

Rainbow threw her hoof up in a salute, and accidentally tossed the leather case behind her against the wall. A patch of red crested her cheeks, and she swooped down the grab it, tossing it around the corner just outside the opening.

Twilight reached up higher with her hoof and managed to pop the casing open, revealing a complete kit of medical supplies: gauze, disinfectants, bandages—everything she needed.

Rainbow picked up the machine gun from the floor, held it up, and attempted to pump it like a shotgun before realizing it wasn't that kind of gun. She held the sight up to her eye, and pretended to shoot it out the door.

"Focus, Rainbow," Twilight said. "I need you here with me."

Twilight was busy pulling down some of the gauze, and was rummaging through some of the bottles, trying to find something non-sterile to help clean out the wound.

"Hold this," she said, handing some of the gauze to Rainbow. "I need you to press this into the wound. Soak up the blood, and try to keep it under pressure as I find the right solution."

Rainbow did as she asked as Twilight continued to look through a pile of bottles on the floor that she had knocked out of the supply box a minute ago. Gunshots and cries continued to rain outside.

Twilight and Rainbow froze as hoofsteps trotted up just in front of the opening, and a lone soldier ducked inside the room for cover. He was so busy concentrating on the outside that he didn't even think to look around the room. Twilight pulled Rainbow's head below the table, and they both held their breathes as the soldier reloaded.

She looked down at her hoof, and saw that the gauze was completely soaked. She peered over the table to see that the soldier had run back out into more gunfire.

Twilight pushed Rainbow back up, and quickly resumed looking through the bottles. The one she was looking for came up quickly, and she handed the saline solution to Rainbow.

"Squirt some of this into the wound," she said. "We need to get it wrapped up before going back out there." She reached up and pulled down some of the bandages. "If we're lucky, we should be able to—"

She stopped short. The gunfire in the passage had subsided, and all they could hear were hoofsteps outside. A few quiet echoes around the corner could be heard, saying things like "All Clear".

Both Twilight and Rainbow stuck their heads up the listen, holding their breaths and trying not to move.

"Damn aliens die too easily," one of them said.

"Heh, at least they fight back. You should be glad there aren't any scientists down here."

Twilight shrunk back as the voices got louder.

"Hey, the scientists aren't that bad," the other one said. "I like a good cannon fodder every once and a while. It's fun to watch the blood fly."

Twilight's stomach lurched at this, and she got down as far as she could. She winced as Rainbow splashed some of the saline onto her wound, and tried not to cry out.

"Hey," a different voice said, further away. "What are you two doing over here? Aren't you supposed to be with the group?"

Some shuffling could be heard, as well as some mumbling.

"Well?!" the other voice said, "Do you have something to say or not?"

More mumbling of "No sirs" came through the door, followed by a deep sigh.

"Well, if you're going to be here, you may as well do a sweep of the area. I'll send the rest of the troop this way, and we'll search it for any other activity."

Twilight's stomach jumped up into her throat at this, and she started silently waving her hooves around at Rainbow.

"What?" Rainbow mouthed, trying to figure out what Twilight was saying. "What do you—"

"Button!" Twilight whispered. "Case!"

Rainbow's eyes flashed as she got the message, and the grabbed the transmitter she had left on the floor and got behind the table with Twilight. She reached up a hoof to push the button, but Twilight stopped her.

"Wait!" she whispered. "We need as many of them in the room as possible."

They both got as low as they could, and listened as the hoofsteps in the passage grew. More voices could be heard.

"Stupid orders," one of them said. "What do they want us to do? Clean up the corpses?"

Twilight pointed a hoof at the bandages, and Rainbow silently got low on the floor, setting the transmitter just next to her hoof as she started unrolling some and wrapping it around Twilight's wound.

"Just what the hell are these things alien things, anyway?" said another voice. "Stupid scientists, playing Celestia. They're all just power hungry SOBs!"

Rainbow pulled one of the bandages taught, and Twilight gasped as it cut into the wound.

"Hey," another voice said, "take a look at this. I think it's one of ours."

More hoofsteps could be heard collecting into a particular spot around the corner, right where Rainbow had tossed the leather case. Rainbow seemed to have noticed, too, as she had stopped to look back at Twilight. The mumbles from the soldiers were getting louder, and one of them sounded above the others.

"Search the area! Get this thing out of the tunnel, and get a demolitions group out here! Everyone, evacuate the area!"

Twilight lurched forward and flailed her hooves. "NOW, RAINBOW!"

The explosion slammed into her ears, just as Rainbow came down on the button, and she closed her eyes against the blinding flames. Heat whipped against her face, singeing her cheeks. The pain from her ears leeched into her head, and the subsequent migraine brought tears to her eyes.

She leaned back and opened her eyes, and saw Rainbow Dash shaking on her hooves, with hairs on her mane sticking out on end. She could barely hear Rarity's voice screaming over the radio against the ringing in her ears.

Rainbow turned towards her, a look of shock still invading her face, and Twilight choked on a laugh. Neither of them could hear each other, but Rainbow Dash brought a hoof up to her ear and rubbed it, and Twilight nodded in agreement. Both of them just looked at each other for a moment. And then Rainbow Dash collapsed onto the ground with a deep breath, prompting Twilight to do the same. Her half-bandaged hoof was the last thing on her mind.

=========================================================

Twilight coughed from the light haze of smoke hanging in the passage. Rainbow was already looking around at the remains, trying to guess what they used to be. Most of what was left was either in pieces, charred black, or both, and all of it was surrounded by blood smears.

"Check around the corner," Twilight said. "Rarity says the central chamber should be somewhere nearby." She turned around and distracted herself from the carnage by looking at one of the walls. "I'm going to setup some traps behind us."

She only had three trip mines left, but that was all she needed to cover the passage. Within a few seconds, three green beams shown in the haze, blocking the path behind them.

She turned around to see Rainbow returning.

"Any luck?" she asked.

Rainbow came up close and rubbed her hooves together. "I think you'd better come see this."

Twilight couldn't quite read her expression. It was very un-Rainbow-ish, and she couldn't decide whether this was her way of showing concern or fright. Either way, the look didn't suite her.

"What's wrong?" she asked.

As a reply, Rainbow hovered back down the passage, flashing Twilight a glance that implied she wanted her to follow. "First off," she said, leading Twilight around the corner, "we're lucky the guards were called away. I seriously doubt we would have gotten past this thing."

She pointed down the tunnel, to where it opened up at a "T". A single-pony barricade sat at the far wall, facing the passage they were heading down. It was covered from top to bottom with bricks, except for the front of it, which was opened just wide enough to expose a massive duel-barreled turret gun as large as their entire bodies. Twilight had to fight the urge to duck as she approached it.

"I looked all around this thing," Rainbow said. "There's nopony inside it."

Twilight walked up to the "T", and found that the path had taken them back to the rails. She gazed across them at the gun turret bunker sitting across from her, and then carefully stepped across for a better look.

"Do you think they put this here to guard the central chamber?" Twilight asked.

Rainbow hovered just to the right of the bunker. "Central chamber, big army base, big scary monster—whatever it's guarding is on the other side of those blast doors." She pointed a hoof to the right.

"Blast doors?!" Twilight turned her head.

Sure enough, the rails only traveled a short distance before ending dead-stop at a massive pair of red-white striped metal doors.

"You—" She trotted down the rail passage until she was right up against the doors. "You found it! We found it!" She turned around. "This has to be it!"

She rummaged around until she found the radio. "Rarity," she said, "we think we found the chamber. Do you think you can open the doors?"

Static chewed away at the silence as Twilight waited, but Rarity finally responded. "I thought you'd never ask."

Rainbow obviously heard the words, but didn't look as pleased as Twilight felt. She lowered herself to the ground and pointed a hoof at the wall next to her. "That's not all," she said. "There's something else you need to see."

Twilight cocked a brow and trotted back to the turret. "What is it?" she asked. "A message?"

Rainbow tilted her head. "Nooooooot exactly."

Twilight stepped up to the turret, blinking against the sharp lights, and squinted to see what Rainbow Dash was pointing to. A few words were scribbled in yellow paint where Rainbow Dash was pointing.

"Yore Dead, Rainbow Dash," Twilight read out loud.

She turned back towards Rainbow. "Well, aside from showing how bad soldiers are at spelling, that's not really saying much," she said. "You did betray them, after all. It's not this is a big surprise." She turned back towards the wall and cringed. "I just hope they don't mangle you as badly as they did that contraction. That has to be the worst spelling of the word "you're" I've ever seen!"

Rainbow shook her head. "That's not all."

She flew over to the other side of the bunker, to an area Twilight hadn't really looked at, and pointed to an area of the wall that was dimly lit. Twilight could barely see anything in the shadows, but could tell there was something huge written on the wall. It wasn't until she flipped on her flashlight that the full impact of the image hit her.

The words covered nearly the entire wall, but were so distorted that she could barely make them out. Whatever was smeared on the wall looked horribly like blood.

"Wha—" Twilight said, turning towards Rainbow. "What does this mean? Free Mare?" She turned back towards the words and re-read them. "Free. Mare." She cocked a brow, and then looked back at Rainbow. "Is this... did the military write this?" She looked back at it before walking across the tracks for a closer look. "It... looks fresh." She ran a hoof over the rough surface, and a few streaks of red came off onto her hoof. "I sure hope this is paint."

She brought the radio back up. "How's that door coming, Rarity?"

"It's tricky. I think all the doors are tied together somehow. I should almost have it."

She acknowledged, and then ran her hoof along the graffiti again. "I don't like this, Rainbow," she said. "Death threats and bad grammar are one thing, but this—" She turned around. "This is a call sign! It's like an alias for something—or... someone." She trotted back across the tracks. "If the military have placed this much importance on it, then they must have picked up on something. This has to have something to do with the communications that Lambda is putting out. We have to find out what—"

"Whahaha!" A hiss and a crack emanated down the hallway against Rarity's echoing laugh. "I've got it!"

Both Twilight and Rainbow turned to see a sliver of black widening between the two blast doors. Twilight glanced at Rainbow as she walked past her, and Rainbow hovered silently behind.

"Good work, Rarity," she said, walking up to the doors. "This will give us an idea of what we're up against."

As the doors widened, the silhouette against the darkness came into view, revealing some sort of fancy, red and white cylindrical pipe in the center of a larger silo. As Twilight crested the threshold, she found that the pipe travelled right up to the ceiling, where it capped with a black dome. On the floor, the pipe travelled straight through a hole, and she could see it travel far below by looking through the grated catwalk she was standing on. There was no doubt what it was.

"This—" Twilight started.

Rainbow was whipping around the room like a colt in a newly-discovered playground. She whipped up to the dome, then down to the floor, then around in circles, dragging her hoof around its surface. "Ha!" she said, pulling away with her hooves on her hips. "And you said none of these silos would have a real rocket!"

Twilight got down onto the floor and winked through one of the grate holes, trying to see how far down the base was. She could just make out a few wisps of steam hissing below.

"This is amazing!" she said. "It looks like it's still active."

Rainbow flew out in front of the rocket. "Well of course it's still active! They were probably going to launch it just before we showed up!"

Twilight brought the radio back up. "Looks like we found it, Rarity," she said. "The team at Lambda was trying to launch some sort of rocket. We need to get to the surface so we can launch it. Any ideas?"

She waited as a few more cracks of static came out of the radio.

"It doesn't look like there's a way out anywhere near your area," Rarity said. "If I had access to the launch site, I could open the bay doors and you could climb out, but those controls are probably on the surface."

Twilight clenched her hoof and growled at the ceiling. "Then what's the long way?" she asked.

Another long wait crackled, with a few "hmmm"s thrown in from time to time. "There's a lift a ways a way that will take you to surface level," she said. "But it's on the level below you."

"There's a ladder back here," Rainbow said, whipping around from behind the rocket. "Doesn't look like we'll have any trouble going down."

Twilight grumbled as she stomped around the rocket, with an occasional "ow!" each time she landed on her bad hoof.

"If it's any consolation, dear, the blast doors are already open at that level," Rarity said. "No need to thank me!"

=========================================================

Rainbow hovered below Twilight as she lowered herself down the ladder. The fall wasn't too far, but Twilight wanted somepony there just in case.

"So," Rainbow said, caressing the rocket like a childhood toy, "what do you think they're going to blow up?"

Twilight lowered her hoof off the last wrung and felt the catwalk below her. "Blow up?"

"Yeah!" Rainbow said. She hovered around the rocket, running her hoof along the surface. "I mean, with the right stuff, this thing could make a heck of a rainbomb!"

Twilight lowered her forehooves onto the ground and looked around. "Rainbomb?"

Rainbow blushed. "It... was an idea I came up with at flight school," she said. "It would happen if I did a sonic rainboom just before hitting the surface."

Twilight opened her mouth to ask, but thought better about it. She lowered her hoof and lead Rainbow around to the exit. "This doesn't look like a military rocket," she said. "I doubt it's designed to blow up."

She turned her attention to the exit, and found herself looking at a somewhat larger, brighter passage. It was less like a tunnel, and more like a long hallway, much wider than the rail. As a result, the rail itself only took up a portion of the area, giving rise to a rather extensive walking area on either side. The yellowish lighting shed some color onto the grays.

Twilight stepped out, carefully avoiding the rail, and walked to the right. A few twinges of pain still crept through her hoof, but the suit was doing a wondrous job healing. She imagined the morphine must also be helping.

"Looks like there's a room in the corner, here," Rainbow said. "Might have more supplies." She reached out a hoof, and Twilight placed her crowbar on them.

"Have fun," Twilight said. "I'm going to look around."

She got out the radio as Rainbow retreated. "We should be two levels below the surface, Rarity," Twilight said. "No sign of the military. Do you see anything of interest in this area?"

She could hear Rainbow cracking open boxes in the distance, and a few lights were flickering towards the end of the passage. Other than that, everything was very still.

"Nothing is marked on my screens, Twilight," Rarity said. "I have no idea what's in any of these areas, or even what their purpose is."

Twilight squinted into the distance, and walked alongside the rail. "Can you at least give us an idea of how far we have to go?"

"Twilight!"
"AH!"

Twilight jumped and turned to see the large blue ball of pegasus smearing against her face, making her jump back.

"DON'T—" she started, "do that." She took a breath as Rainbow backed up.

Rainbow whipped the crowbar around absentmindedly. "Sorry," she said, "but I found another one of those suit power charge things, and a few more of those exploding pouch things, too. I thought you might want to know."

Twilight sighed. "Thanks," she said. She stepped forward and made her way back to where Rainbow Dash came from. "Rarity? Any word on how far?"

"It's quite a ways, dear," she said, "but it doesn't look like you should have much trouble getting there. It's very straight-forward."

"Any bottlenecks?" Twilight asked.

"Looks like there are two," Rarity said. "But they aren't very long. I don't see any kind of doors or hatches that could be in the way. You should be able to ride the train straight to it."

Twilight rolled her eyes. "Easier said than done," she mumbled.

She followed Rainbow back to the small room, and saw the suit charger unit on the wall right away. She instinctively placed her hoof onto it, just as she did in the storage rooms.

A warmth spread through her body as she charged, and the pain in her hoof dramatically subsided. It almost felt as though she was recharging her body. Her fatigue was being sucked away, and it felt easier to move around.

"I owe my life to this technology," she said, pulling away from the station. "I must admit, I thought it was crazy when I first put it on, but—" She took a deep breath and looked Rainbow. "I'm going to be glad when this is all over."

Rainbow stretched out her hooves in a mock-yawn. "I just can't wait to get to the surface," she said. "These tunnels are really cramping my style!"

Twilight giggled. "Just don't forget about us when you finally fly home," she said.

Twilight stepped out of the room and looked around the passage. She hadn't paid much attention to it when she initially came out here, but there was a train parked a good ways down the track. Her eyes moved towards it, and she signaled Rainbow to follow her to it.

"You think the rocket's the answer?" Rainbow asked. "You think it could end all this?"

Twilight shook her head. "Honestly, I have no idea what it could be. It looks like a satallite delivery rocket, but it could be anything."

Rainbow flew up ahead. "Let's just hope those eggheads know what they're doing."

They both stopped just before boarding the train, and Twilight got the radio back out. "We're moving forward, Rarity," she said. "We should be at the surface shortly."

=========================================================

Twilight had been travelling slowly down the rail for a good five minutes, with Rainbow hovering next to her. Each minute that passed by put her more on edge, despite Rainbow's lazy acrobatics in the background. Everything was silent except for the soft hum of the train. The tunnel had grown dark again, and the extra space between them and the wall had shrunk back down.

Twilight jerked around, craning her neck to see behind her.

"I don't like this," she said. "The military should be down here. They should be guarding this place."

Rainbow waved a hoof. "Relax, Twilight! They're probably all at the surface." She flew ahead of the train and turned around. "Besides, we didn't even see any soldiers until we went up that first level."

Twilight jerked again, looking from side to side. "Yes, I know, but from what Rarity has told us, there's only one way to the surface. The soldiers would have to pass through here to get to where we were! It's not like they just... disappeared."

Without thinking, Twilight reached her hoof forward and stopped the train. The hum immediately gave way to palpable silence that made her ears ring.

"What are you doing?!" Rainbow flew right in front of her and reached her hoof out over the panel, but Twilight blocked her.

"Wait," she said. "Think about this. The military has unicorns, right?"

Rainbow cocked her head. "Yeah. So?"

Twilight stepped back, readying her gun. "So," she said, "they would want to station those unicorns at bottleneck junctures so they can use their magic as a blocking strategy! Bottleneck junctures just—like—this one." She waved her hoof around.

Rainbow looked around incredulously. "Yeah," she said. "Loooots of unicorns around here right now."

Twilight rolled her eyes. "You're not getting this, are you," she said. "You've seen what they can do. They have both force fields and penetrative magic. That's well into the advanced studies of some of the top Canterlot schools!" She stepped forward. "Do you know what else they study at that level?"

Rainbow rolled her eyes and put her hooves on her hips. "Get to the point."

"Cloaking magic, phase magic, materialization magic..." She ticked these off on her hoof. "They could be standing here, and we wouldn't even know it!"

Rainbow took a deep breath. "Is that why you're so jumpy?" she asked.

"However," Twilight continued, ignoring Rainbow Dash, "I just remembered that, a few years ago, I delved into some of those subjects in my free time, and discovered some tricks to detect cloaking." She growled stamped her good hoof against the ground, "If only I had my horn, I'd be able to conjure up enough energy. It would take almost an explosive amount of—"

She stopped, hoof still in the air, and stood like a statue, thinking.

"That's it!" she said, slamming her hoof into her forehead. "I can send a weak signal into an explosive, and use it to magnify the signal!" She levitated one of the explosives out of her suit. "The problem is, an explosion like that would be difficult to focus the magic on. But I could remedy that by focusing it before I—"

"AHH!" Rainbow flew back into Twilight's side.

A green flash had gone off next to them, and Twilight glimpsed a small, white unicorn barring down next to her. A few more flashes went off in front of them. Magic auras from their horns were lighting up the tunnel.

"Rainbow! Forward!" Twilight slammed on the lever and grabbed onto the panel, trying desperately not to fall off. The unicorns were in stride with her actions, and were teleporting out from behind her to lead her down the tunnel. Some of them were firing beams, trying to disable the train. Others were attempting to form barriers, and failing to make them stable in time. The train shattered these easily, sending green shards sprinkling over her.

"Rainbow!" Twilight put her horn against the antenna of one of the explosive transmitters, and tossed it to Rainbow Dash. "Keep it close!"

A tingling feeling formed around her hooves, and she looked down to see a massive aura of green waving around her body. She recognized it as levitation magic, and realized the unicorns were attempting to pull her off the train.

"Stay close to me, Rainbow!" she said. "Be evasive! They're trying to grab onto us!" She looked back at her own body curiously before looking back up. "Don't worry about me, my suit protects against it!"

Rainbow was flying ahead, trying to see what the train was heading into, sending spirals of rainbows hurling into the tunnel. She whipped around one of the bends and out of sight, prompting Twilight to hang onto the panel as the train followed. Her rear hooves nearly left the platform from the force.

The rainbow trail reappeared ahead of her, but she couldn't see any more flashes. The unicorns seemed to be gone. All she could see ahead of her was the bright blue and rainbow glow of Rainbow Dash up ahead. She reached a hoof up, ready to slow the train down.

"Duck!" Rainbow's voice echoed back to her.

The rainbow trail swept down, and in its place was what Twilight could only describe as a flameball hurling towards her. She instinctively moved her hooves out from under her, slamming her body into the platform with a "Whoa!" as the ball hurled over her head, leaving a thick smoke trail. "What was that?!"

Rainbow slowed to let the train catch up to her. "It's heading back this way," she said. She slowed down even further, and Twilight watched as she tailed even further behind. "I think it's following us."

Twilight stumbled and slipped against the platform, trying to turn around for a better look. As soon as she did, her eyes locked onto the glowing mass behind her, lighting up a large part of the tunnel. Whatever the unicorns had unleashed was almost sentient in the way it moved: almost phoenix-like.

Rainbow could only be seen as a blur of blue and rainbow, but the ball of fire followed her every move. It was like watching two glowsticks have at each other.

Twilight put her hooves over her head as Rainbow swept back over the train. The train shook from the sonic waves, and she could feel the heat of the fireball. She quickly got to her hooves and stumbled back up to the panel.

The tunnel was opening up into a larger area, with several other tracks and tunnels leading out of it. It was like a larger version of the depot near the generator. Several large pillars helped hold up the vaulted ceiling above them.

"Rarity!" Twilight yelled into the radio. "We've reached some kind of huge junction! What way do we go?!"

She could barely hear Rarity's voice cracking out the other end. "Just keep going straight!"

Rainbow was dancing around the pillars as the train hurled through the room. She had just made it to the far end, and was accelerating forward across the length of the room, gaining distance from the ball. Twilight saw what she was doing a split second before it did it, and yelled out.

"No, Rainbow! NOT ONE OF THE PILLARS!"

She held her hoof up against the glowing explosion behind her, and watched, as if in slow motion, the crumbling rocks surrounded by flaming gases, spreading out to damage other pillars. The sonic waves reached as far as her train, and for a moment, she was afraid she would be derailed. The ceiling cracked under the pressure, and within seconds, the top of the room was breaking and crumbling into large boulders crashing into the ground. All of this was framing the growing rainbow trail, heading straight for her.

"Rainbow!" Twilight said, as Rainbow caught up with her. "What did you do?!"
"I destroyed the fireball!"
"Using the structural foundation of the tunnel?!"
"What was I supposed to use? My tail?"
"Rainbow, we can't—"

The rumbling behind them grew exponentially, and they both turned to see the entire room tearing itself apart from the inside out.

"What do we do?!" Twilight yelled. "This thing can't outrun an avalanche!"

Rainbow glanced back at the cascading roar of earth falling behind them, and in a split second, dove down on top of Twilight and grabbed her hooves around her.

"Well I can!" she yelled.

Twilight felt a yank around her middle as the roar behind them nearly deafened her. Bits and pieces were already falling off the tunnel ceiling before they had crested the threshold, forcing Rainbow to maneuver around them.

Everything became a blur of darkness and flashes of ceiling lights as they flew by. Rainbow's hooves were squeezing her so tight, she was having trouble breathing. She pulled her hooves up as high as she could, afraid they would scrape against the ground. The rumbling was quickly fading behind them.

"Lift ahead!" Rainbow yelled.

Twilight forced her head up, and tried to focus on the end of the tunnel. A light was growing larger, and she could just make out a small crowd around the area.

"Unicorns!" Twilight said. "They're blocking the area, we have to stop!"
"And risk being squashed?!" Rainbow said. "I don't think so!"

Twilight stuck her head down between her hooves and looked behind her. The entire tunnel was collapsing a good ways behind them at a solid clip. It was only seconds away.

Twilight looked back up and was immediately blinded by a series of green flashes. Every unicorn had apparently seen the collapse, and was teleporting out of the room. Both Rainbow and Twilight were inside the lift room a second later. They came to a halt just inside.

"DON'T STOP!" Twilight yelled.

"I can't!" Rainbow said. "There's a force field!" Rainbow lunged upwards, and Twilight felt them both whack against it. "I can see the surface! If we can just—"

Twilight had already gotten out one of the explosives, and was lighting it up with as much magic as she could get through her horn. "Button, Rainbow!" She threw the explosive on the ground. "Press the button!"

Rainbow nearly dropped Twilight as she got out the receiver. With her hooves already busy holding onto Twilight, she ended up slamming the button up into Twilight's suit in order to detonate it.

A blinding corona of magic went off below them, shattering the field above them. There was no heat or shockwave, but Twilight still had to shut her eyes tight against the sheer amount of light.

"We're good!" she said. "GO!"

Rainbow was already hurling them straight up. The walls of the cylindrical room were cracking, and a few chunks were falling here and there.

A screeching blur of dull gray and rumbling snapped away, replaced by quiet darkness and a soft breeze as they crested over the lift exit. The rumbling continued below them, sounding much more distant from above, and diminished to a hiss after a few more seconds.

Twilight and Rainbow hovered in the air, breathing hard and looking around at the deceptively still air. The night sky shown above them against the lights shining down on the surface track, and they could just make out a massive concrete barrier ahead. Signs smattered the side of it, ranging from "Heat Warning" to "Radioactive".

Rainbow brought Twilight down just behind a nearby bush, and they both peered out from behind, still catching their breath.

"Twilight?" Rarity said. "Rainbow? What's going on up there? What's all that ruckus?"

Twilight looked at Rainbow before bringing the radio back out.

"We're fine," she whispered, before winking at Rainbow Dash. "And it looks like you were right. That track lead us straight to the launch site."

=========================================================

Twilight glanced towards the exit hole they had just come out of, in case there were any remaining unicorns trying to escape. Everything had once again fallen silent. She could just make out a few unicorn guards a ways up ahead, but other than that, the only things of note were the bugs flying around the lights overhead, and some military radio chatter.

"So, what's the plan?" Rainbow whispered dramatically.

Twilight closed the gap in the bushes, and turned towards Rainbow. "They know we're here," she said. "We made too much noise in the tunnels for them not to know we're here. The real question is, why aren't they attacking us? " She reached forward and parted the bushes again. "It's almost as if they're waiting for us."

Rainbow cocked her head. "Waiting for what?"

Twilight levitated a few of the explosives from the suit and placed them on the ground. "That's what worries me. All the unicorns teleported out just before the tunnel collapsed. They easily could have gone to the surface and waited for us."

Rainbow scratched her neck. "Maybe they were afraid to?" She shook her head. "I dunno. We brought the entire tunnel down with us. Maybe they thought we had some sort of weapon or something that they didn't know about."

Twilight lifted each of the explosives one-by-one and touched them to her horn. "That's true," she said. "We broke through their force field pretty easily, and we could have destroyed a large crowd on the surface with a single one of these explosives." She lowered the device to the ground. "I just can't help but think they're up to something. They keep changing their tactics."

Rainbow cocked her head. "What do you mean?"

"Like," Twilight started, "for example, they were firing condensed magic at us on the lift, which wasn't very effective. It just bounced off my suite, and you were able to evade it pretty easily." She ticked it off on her hoof. "Then there were the force fields. They put them up in the tunnel originally, but then discovered they weren't working well against the train, so they moved it into the lift shaft instead." She ticked another hoof. "And then that fireball they made seemed to be some sort of last resort. You noticed they didn't make it until towards the very end of the tunnel, and they must have known how vulnerable and dangerous it was."

Rainbow sighed. "So, what's your point?"

Twilight lifted each of the explosives back up with her horn. "The point is, they must have something up ahead waiting for us. It's probably some sort of new tactic."

Rainbow looked down at the explosives before looking back up. "So, again, what's the plan?"

Twilight levitated one of the transmitters, and touched the antenna to her horn. "The plan," she said with a sigh, "is to distract them with a bombing run, and then drop me off near the entrance to the command center. That should buy us enough time to launch the rocket and get out of here." She carefully placed each of the explosives back into her suit, and then stretched out on onto her stomach. "The only way we can see what they're doing is from the air, and the best defense is surprise. We need to detonate the explosives before they know what's happening. Now," she stretched out, "carry me like you did before."

Rainbow stepped back. "You want to fly straight into their trap?!"

She shot Rainbow a look. "Trust be, Rainbow," she said. "If it doesn't work, we'll just fly out of here. You are a fast flyer, are you not?"

Some of the color washed out of Rainbow's face before being replaced with a tinge of red. The word "fine" escaped her lips through barred teeth just before she jumped on top of Twilight and wrapped her hooves around her.

"Good! Now swoop us down lo—whoa!" Rainbow pulled up so fast, Twilight barely had time to catch her breath. The ground fell away from under her hooves, and she had to work not to look down as even the few tree-tops shrunk below them. The ground was dotted with lights and variously-shaded surfaces. She couldn't tell the difference between warning lights and unicorn magic glows from this distance, even if she tried.

"Rainbow! Down!" she said, waving her hooves around. "Take us into a dive over the launch pad." She hovered the explosives next to her as she said this.

Rainbow leaned forward, and Twilight felt the wind pick up as the ground swept back towards her. She wasn't expecting how drastic the sudden loss of gravity would be, and her mind went blank from the motion.

As she pulled up, the shades of color came into focus as rails, walls, trees, and everything else she had seen through the bush, all racing past her at once. She only had a fraction of the second to think. She dropped the first explosive as soon as the first unicorn came into view, and randomly dispersed the others as Rainbow flew over the wall.

A few shouts came from the soldiers below, followed by many green flashes. Twilight only caught a glimpse of the launch site itself, which seemed to be nothing more than a massive concrete crater with a hatch in the bottom for the rocket to come out. The unicorns stood all around it, frantically firing magic up at them. She could feel the levitation auras fight against her, and Rainbow was struggling to continue flying straight.

"Up, Rainbow!"

As soon as she felt the tug upwards on her middle, she pressed the button on the transmitter. The subsequent shockwave shook her bones as the fireball from below lit up the night sky. The auras of magic immediately vanished, and she tried to glance back down at the ground as Rainbow continued to climb.

"Is there anyone left?" Twilight asked.

Rainbow leveled out and slowly hovered down to the launch site, sweeping her eyes around the ground. "Looks like your plan worked," she said. She hovered both of them all the way to the ground. "There's nopony left on the ground. Could be more hiding, though."

Twilight looked around at the launch site as they descended. The entire area was surrounded by cliffs, except for the wall with the entrance, and a large concrete building adjacent to it. The building's only noticeable features were a set of small blast doors at the base, and two windows on a second story.

"That was easy," Twilight said, looking around. "That was way, way too easy." She trotted up to the wall and pointed a hoof. "Why didn't they at least have a force field over the wall? Why were all the unicorns in plain sight? And—" she trotted full-circle around Rainbow Dash, looking along the ground, "where are the bodies?! There are no remains!"

Rainbow Dash jumped up, doing loops in the air to look around with her.

"Hang on," Twilight said.

She lit her horn, and fizzled a blast over the wall. The pitiful sparks flew overhead, and continued past the wall and into the stars.

"So much for a surprise force field trap," she said. She took a deep breath. "Maybe they're just losing their edge. Come on. We should at least get the rocket launched." She looked up at the building. "My guess is that the launch button is going to be in that top floor. Can you fly through those windows?"

Rainbow had swooped up to them before Twilight had finished her sentence. "No problem!" She peered through the glass, and then traveled back to the ground, holding out her hoof.

Twilight instinctively got out the crowbar and placed it in her hooves.

A moment later, there was a loud crash, and Rainbow was busy smashing the crowbar into the remaining shards in the opening. She dove inside and disappeared.

"Rarity," Twilight said over the radio, "We've found the command center. We need you to get to the elevator so you can rendezvous with us."

A crack over the radio responded. "Okay, darling, but it may take a while. It's not the easiest location to get to."

"Take your time," Twilight said.

Rainbow swooped back out the window and landed next to Twilight. "I found the launch button, but it's stuck," she said. "It says it needs some sort of "authorization" or some such thing. I can't get it to work."

Twilight rolled her eyes. "Can't trust a soldier to do anything," she joked. "Carry me in, and I'll see what I can do."

She felt the familiar squeeze around her middle, and the uncomfortable sensation of the ground falling from under her as she was carried up to the windows. Her initial concentration was on getting through the opening, as they were only large enough for a single small pony to slither through. Her rear hooves caught on the bottom, and she stumbled forward over the threshold and rolled onto the command-center floor.

She shook out her mane and looked around at the new setting. The buzzing and beeping machines all around her were a jarring change from the dull gray of the rail, and it was a struggle just to try and make sense out of all the colorful lights that flashed and flickered across the many monitors.

"Here's the button," Rainbow said. She had flown in just after Twilight, and was standing behind her. "It's really big, and has the word "launch" on it, but when I hit it—" She leaned forward and pressed her hoof into the button. A mare's voice came over the intercom overhead:

"INVALID AUTHORIZATION. PLEASE ENTER CREDENTIALS."

Twilight opened her muzzle and stared at the button. "Credentials?" She looked around. "It's just a button! There aren't any credentials for this thing. How would it even know who—"

She stopped, and a wide smile crested her face. "Of course!" She stepped up to the button, and looked at it closely. "A hoof signature." She licked her lips, and then pressed the rubber tip of the suit's hoof into the button.

"INVALID AUTHORIZATION. PLEASE ENTER CREDENTIALS."

Twilight gritted her teeth and groaned at the ceiling. "They must have used the hoof of one of the scientists working here." She looked around. "Check the other rooms. There's probably a body around here we can use."

Rainbow looked a little sick at this statement, but moved out of the room anyway. A few seconds later, she returned, dragging the corpse of a black stallion wearing a science uniform. A light train of blood followed on the floor.

"Put his hoof here," Twilight said. "That should trigger the authorization they need."

Rainbow turned her head away from the body, and pulled the hoof up to the button, proceeding to randomly slam it into the wall all around where the button was. Twilight was about to roll her eyes when one of her attempts succeeded.

"AUTHORIZATION GRANTED."

Sirens flared, accompanied by warning lights, and a blast protection cover closed over the windows.

"LAUNCH SEQUENCE IN TEN SECONDS."

Twilight launched herself onto Rainbow Dash and pinned her to the ground. "We did it!" She reached her hooves around Rainbow and squeezed hard. "We actually did it!"

"4... 3... 2..."

"Ummm, Twilight?" Rainbow said. "Can't breathe..."

The ground shook beneath them, and Twilight could only imagine what was going on outside on the other side of the blast shields. Even with such thick walls between them, the sound was still deafening. She looked up at the screens and followed many of the statistics they were reporting. All of them looked normal. Had the military been staging the whole thing, it would have been picture-perfect.

"Rarity!" Twilight shouted into the radio. "Rarity, we got the rocket launched! We're in the command center!"

The static was worse than ever, but she could still make out Rarity's voice. "I'm al - - ere. Jus - - more mi - -"

The rumbling subsided over the next many seconds, and Twilight couldn't help but feel a weight lift from her shoulders. She stood up and moved back towards the blast-shielded windows, and watched as they uncovered the openings.

Twilight immediately trotted up to the windows, leaned her head out the opening, and peered up at the strangest, most wonderful sight she had seen yet: A trail of smoke leading up to a magnificent rumbling fireball against the night sky. She could just make out the shape of the rocket as it curved in its intended trajectory.

Twilight put her elbows on the sill and rested her head in her hooves, simply smiling up at the sight, still unable to believe how easy it was to pull off.

"Twi - - etting close. Ha - - pened th -"

Twilight's ears perked, and she looked down at the radio. "Oh, right!" She trotted over to one of the monitors next to the fancy server equipment and saw an entirely new map in front of her. It showed everything for the surface, including the elevator Rarity had mentioned. She jammed her hoof into it and watched the highlight turn from red to green.

"You should be good to go, Rarity," Twilight said. She turned towards Rainbow Dash. "Do you think we should go wait for her?"

Rainbow flew through the opening and looked up. Her arms were crossed, and she seemed to have a mock-scowl on her face. "I can't believe they put a darn wall up between us and the rocket," she said. "I totally wanted to race it!"

Twilight giggled. "I'm sure there will be other chances," she said. "At a place like this, at least."

Rainbow rolled her eyes. "Yeah. Because firing giant rockets like this happens all the time, right?" She sighed. "I just wish I had had a chance to—HEY!" Rainbow batted a hoof against her shoulder.

Twilight had thought she saw a flash of light, but couldn't be sure. She instinctively trotted up to the window.

"Rainbow?" she said.

Rainbow fidgeted around in the air, as though she was fighting something. "Hey! Just what's the big deal?!" She struggled around some more, and Twilight eventually caught sight of the aura around her tail.

"Rainbow!" Twilight leaped forward and stuck her hooves out. "Grab on!"

By the time she had said this, Rainbow was already being pulled away into a corner in the ground. Twilight leaned her head out over the sill, and saw what must have been a dozen unicorns standing around the launch pad, all aiming their horns at Rainbow.

"Twilight!" Rainbow fared her wings frantically as the aura spread up her tail to her body.

Twilight looked back and saw she had left the crowbar inside, and quickly grabbed it before squeezing herself out of the window. "Rainbow Dash!" Her hoof caught on the sill, and she found herself being hurled into the ground. The impact was overwhelming, and for a few seconds, she couldn't focus on anything. She rolled onto her hooves against the aches invading every part of her body, and pressed herself forward into the fray.

"Stop it!" Rainbow struggled. "I'm not going back! You can't make me! LET. ME. GO!"

The aura was up to her neck now, and she was so close to the group of unicorns that Twilight couldn't risk setting off any kind of explosion without hitting her. Regardless, she charged forward, horn spitting what little magic she could muster. A few of the unicorns sent out jets of magic that knocked her to the ground.

She got back onto her hooves, and slammed on her forehoof, sending a torrent of bullets streaming into the group. A few of them hit something, and one of the unicorns fell, but not before three others had jumped in to put up a force field around them, with Rainbow Dash inside it.

"HANG ON!" Twilight said. She got out one of the explosives and put it to her horn. "I can get you out of there! Just give me a mi—"

There was a loud POP, and a blinding flash struck her eyes, making her put her hoof up to shield against it. When she brought it back down, only a trail of magic residue was left in front of her. Every one of the unicorns, including Rainbow Dash, had teleported away.

Twilight stood there a few minutes, heart pounding, trying to take in what she had just seen. She whipped her head around, as if expecting everyone to simply be in a different location now, but everywhere she looked, there was only silence.

"RAINBOOOOOOW!" she yelled into the silence, trotting forward to where the unicorns were standing. She coughed and sputtered against the wafts of smoke still remaining from the rocket launch. "RAAAAINBOOOOOOW!"

She turned around, searching for any little nook or cranny where the unicorns could have dragged her: anywhere she could possibly be hiding. Her body shook, as she tried to figure out where to go.

"Twilight?" Rarity came over the radio. "Twi - ight? Are y - - ll right?"

Twilight stood there a few more seconds, catching her breath. She stared at the launch pad and watched the smoke waft away. She watched the bugs dance around the lights. She watched the wind jostle the tree tops.

Finally, she brought the radio up to her muzzle, and closed her eyes.

"She's gone."

Appre-hay-sion

View Online

"Twilight!" Rarity's voice rang out over the radio. "Twilight, are you there? I think I'm in the control room, but I can't find my way out!"

Twilight heard the words, but didn't process them. Her mind was going crazy, racing from one possibility to another as Rarity's voice echoed in the background. Part of her wanted to hide. Another part fought to keep looking, in the dim hope that Rainbow had managed to escape.

As much as she hoped to see it, though, there were never any blue or rainbow colors against the harsh lights and fog around her, and the only thing she could hear was the incessant pounding against her chest.

"Twilight! Are you still there?!" Rarity's voice had been increasingly panic-stricken. "Answer me!"

Twilight reached back with a shaking hoof and pulled out the radio, eyes still careening over every square foot of space around her. She opened her mouth to respond, and realized how dry her muzzle had gotten. She was just about to speak when a voice echoed behind her.

"Twilight, dear! Are you all right?!"

Twilight turned around to see a speck of moving white leaning out the window that Twilight had fallen out of. Her heart jumped up into her throat as more possibilities surged into her head. She both raced towards Rarity, and stayed put at the same time, resulting in a strange half-stumble as she nearly tripped over her own hooves.

"Rarity!" She choked on the word and coughed, and swallowed as she trotted forward. "Rarity, she's gone! Rainbow Dash is gone!"

"Gone? What do you mean, gone?" Rarity went silent as realization set in, and she leaned out further to look around. "You don't mean she flew off, do you?"

"They captured her!" Twilight said. "They—" she swallowed, "they got to her. They teleported before I could do anything." She trotted right up to the building, until she had to crane her neck to see Rarity's head sticking out the window. "I need to get back into the control room," she said. "Can you get these blast doors open?"

Rarity looked down at her, and saw where Twilight was pointing her hoof.

"Honestly, Twilight, I couldn't even get the main doors open. They didn't even bother to add door handles. How do you expect me to—"

"There's a control panel in the back," Twilight said. "On the left-hand side. We used it to get the elevator working."

Rarity ducked her head back inside. "I'll see what I can do."

Twilight did a little dance in anticipation, and trotted up as close to the building as she could. The blast doors were indented into the wall, so she found herself standing beneath the second story overhanging above her. All the adrenaline in her body tempted her to throw herself at the doors, and try prying them open, but every pragmatic voice in her head protested before she could lift a hoof.

A crack and a hiss snapped and echoed behind Twilight, and she looked back towards the launch site to see what it was.

"I think that did it." Rarity's voice could barely be heard from Twilight's position.

Twilight stepped forward and peered around towards the crater, just enough to see something opening on the far side of the expanse.

"Wrong doors, Rarity!" she shouted. She growled quietly to herself, and stamped back under the overhang. She was becoming more and more aware of how fatigued she was getting.

"Sorry, dear, but I'm just not as familiar with this panel. I think—wait, this might be it."

Twilight was just about to lean up against the doors when they sprung to life, making her jump back. "That's it!" She stumbled back so she could see the windows again. "Stay put. I'll meet up with you." She raced down the corridor before she had finished her last sentence.

She half-expected to run into a door as she rounded the corner. Instead, she found herself entering a much more elaborate entrance-courtyard, half of which was occupied by a staircase leading to the second-floor. There was a gap between the staircase and the far wall, but all that was there were a few haphazardly placed boxes.

She had just placed her foot on the first step when she looked up to see what she was walking into. She stopped mid-step and stared dumb-founded, unsure whether to facehoof, or simply groan. She ended up closing her eyes and softly uttering "You have got to be kidding."

The entire surrounding wall above her was covered, inch-for-inch, packed to the brink, with sticks of dynamite. What was more, Twilight could just make out a number of trigger-mechanisms all over the staircase, in the form of laser detectors. It would be virtually impossible to climb without setting one of them off.

She stepped back and stared at the situation, wondering whether she could set it off somehow without being in the vicinity, and finally decided that, no matter what she did, setting off the traps would only cause an avalanche that would block the entrance.

She galloped back down the corridor until she reached the launch site, and yelled back through the window: "Rarity, do you see another way in? That way's blocked."

It was a few seconds before Rarity appeared at the window. "What do you mean, it's blocked? I pressed the button. The door should be open."

Twilight sighed and rolled her eyes. "No, not the blast doors. Just... can you meet me at the entrance?"

Rarity cocked her head, but didn't say anything.

"Thanks." Twilight galloped back towards the open blast doors, but stopped short. "Oh, and, whatever you do, don't go outside."

Rarity blinked with mouth gaped. "Wait, you want me to wha—"

Twilight was already halfway down the corridor by the time Rarity caught on to what was going on. Twilight stopped as soon as she reached the courtyard, and listened to the silence. Rarity's stumbling and faint complaining could be just barely heard through the door, but eventually, the door swung open, revealing an exasperated Rarity.

"Okay, Twilight. The door clearly opens. What is this about the entrance being—" she caught site of the dynamite, "— blocked..."

Twilight couldn't help but enjoy a guilty pleasure upon seeing Rarity's face. It was a particularly slow and dramatic realization, and Twilight could tell she was considering simply closing the door and forgetting about the whole thing.

"Well," she finally said, "it appears the military has been busy." She peered around the corner to see just how extensive the damage was. "No doubt the result of excruciating boredom, and perhaps one-too-many drinks."

"Alcohol isn't allowed in the Equestrian military, Rarity," Twilight said.

Rarity rolled her eyes. "Who said this was the Equestrian military. Back when I was in Ponyville, rumor had it there was a zebra nearby that concocted some pretty potent mixes." She took a step back. "A good apple cider is one thing, but," she waved a hoof around, "I think it would take a bit more than a few mugs of cider to inspire this."

Twilight wondering for a moment whether Rarity's words would come across as offensive to the zebra community. She decided not to pursue the issue.

"So," she said, waving her own hoof around, "any ideas on how to get around this? It would be nice to be out of here before the sun rises."

Rarity was about to point her hoof towards the boxes when Twilight interrupted her.

"Besides the boxes, Rarity."

Rarity retracted her hoof, looked around, and then shrugged, batting her eyes innocently.

Twilight bowed her head and sighed. "Fine!" she said, dragging her feet over to the crates in the corner. She mumbled as she did so. "Stupid technology," she said. "We break forcefields, communicate over large distances, and wipe out a large crowd of unicorns from mid-flight. But when it comes to getting around a staircase? Noooooo! We have to uses boxes."

Twilight made sure to exaggerate every hoist, every step, and every grunt as she sarcastically worked her way up the pile of wood. Rarity was at the threshold, leaning against the doorway, trying desperately not to roll her eyes, in fear they would leave her sockets from rolling so hard.

"Really, Twilight," Rarity said, "I think you need to complain a bit louder. There are probably a few soldiers out there who haven't heard you yet."

Twilight stopped herself before a few choice words escaped her muzzle, instead using the last of her energy to push herself to the top of the pile. The box she was standing on wobbled, but she managed to remain balanced.

"Okay," she said, half to herself, "the top of the staircase looks unprotected, so I should be able to leap onto it safely. I just have to—wh-hoa-oa..."

She grabbed onto the wall next to her, just below one of the packs of dynamite. "Okay, Twilight," she said to herself, "the sooner you jump, the better." She closed her eyes, breathed deep, and pushed off.

The jump went relatively smoothly. That is, aside from the spectacular wood-box avalanche she caused, and her faceplant caused by her leg getting caught on the side of the staircase. She waited for the rumbling of wood to subside behind her before peeling her face off of the top stair and looking up at Rarity, smiling in a half-derp.

"Proud of yourself, dear?" Rarity asked.

Twilight shook her head and got up on all-fours. "Hey, I made it, didn't I?" She looked back proudly at the mess of wood below her. "Now," she turned towards Rarity, "let's get to the control room. Hopefully we can use the equipment to track down Rainbow Dash."

=========================================================

It was amazing how much better it felt to be surrounded by lab equipment. The sounds of beeping and chirping, the lights blinking, the colorful ambiance—all of it felt refreshing after being trapped in a world of grey for so long.

Of course, none of it held a candle to the sight and smells of her old library. As useful as computers could be, nothing could duplicate the divine tactile experiences of holding a physical book.

Twilight had wasted no time getting to the control monitor, and was now racing through as many maps of the area as would fit on the screen.

"What I don't understand," she said, half-to-herself, "is why they only took Rainbow Dash." Her hooves continued to slide along the screen as she spoke. "I mean, obviously they couldn't grab onto my suit. But I don't have any kind of helmet! They could have easily grabbed hold of me."

Rarity was busy staring out the window. "Perhaps they were just distracted."

Twilight paused for a moment, and then turned around. "Rarity, do you think you could stand somewhere else? Having you stand right next to the window like that is making me nervous."

Rarity pouted her lip, and cocked her head, but ultimately stepped away from the window.

"I still don't understand what you hope to achieve, dear," she said. "Do you expect Rainbow Dash to show up on the monitor?"

Twilight gritted her teeth. "There is nothing else we have to work with," she said quietly. "It's not like they walked or flew out of here. There's nothing I can use to estimate where they went." She sighed. "The most we can do is find a new path, and hope it takes us closer."

Rarity had decided to make herself useful by staring over Twilight's shoulder at the screen. At least if they couldn't find anything, it would be four eyes not seeing anything instead of two.

Twilight slammed a hoof into the wall next to her, with a few choice expletive euphemisms. "I don't get it!" she shouted. "Why couldn't they have left some soldiers behind?! At least then I could have something to go off of: a radio, a map—heck, even a body would be better than nothing. Teleport magic can't be traced!"

Rarity leaned her head forward, pretending to look at the screen harder. "You think they planned it this way," she said quietly.

Twilight leaned her head into her hoof. "I know, I know. They're planning something, I just don't know what!" She shook her head. "It's all so strange."

Rarity reached back almost instinctively, and pulled out her radio. "Can we use these in any way?"

Twilight shook her head. "The only way we could track down something using the radios is if we receive a signal. All we can do is scatter the signal when we transmit, but there's no way to know what's picking it up."

"But that's exactly my point, dear," she said. "The military is using their radios all the time!"

"Yes, but there would be no way to tell which signal is the one we're looking for." She reached out a hoof, and let Rarity hand her the device. "Even if I remove the encryption, all we'll get is a bunch of jumbled signals from all over the base. Not to mention, there would be no guarantee that any one of them would be coming from Rainbow Dash's location. These radios have a very short range. You were breaking up just from being on the other side of the rail system, remember?"

Rarity sighed, and put a hoof on Twilight's shoulder. "Then what do you want to do, dear? We can't just host a sleepover in a rocket control center."

"I know!" Twilight shouted. She stopped short, and took a deep breath. "I know," she said quieter. "They'll probably be targeting you next. They could send in more unicorns to this place at any time."

"Exactly," Rarity said. "The sooner we get moving, the better."

Twilight stared at the screen some more, hoping there was something she had missed: some clue, or passage, or... something that would lead her to a secret base of some kind. Finally, though, she simply lifted a hoof in defeat, and pointed it at a mundane place on the screen.

"This track leads back under the surface," she said. "They'll have a tougher time finding us there."

Rarity didn't say anything, but her eyes shed a glimmer of sympathy as they met up with Twilight's. Twilight didn't realize it at the time, but for the first time since Rainbow had been captured, she smiled.

=========================================================

"Aaaaaand step, aaaaaaand step, aaaaaaand step, aaa—"

"Would you hurry up?!"

Twilight had been standing at the bottom of the ladder for what felt like five minutes. In fact, as far as taking Rarity with her was concerned, she may as well have been pulling a sack of apples. Every time Twilight turned around, Rarity was staring off into space. It had taken her ten minutes just to get her out of the launch site area.

"Well, excuse me for being careful, darling," Rarity said. "It wouldn't do us much good if I injured myself."

Twilight opened her mouth to retaliate, but ended up closing her eyes and taking a deep breath. Her adrenaline was going crazy, and it was everything she could take to hold it down.

She watched as Rarity gently set down onto the ground before looking around. The area they were in looked like a much larger, much darker, and much more run-down version of the corkscrew lift rooms they had explored. One of the lights in the corner was flickering, and there were patches of mold here and there in the corners. The musty smell made Twilight's nose wrinkle.

She sighed. "Sorry, Rarity," she said, "but I just can't help but think of Rainbow Dash. I keep wondering what kind of crazy things she might try to do if we don't find her."

Rarity was staring lazily up through the entrance hole they had come through. "You mean like escape?"

Twilight found herself with her hoof in the air and her mouth open, and quickly closed it. "Actually," she said, "that would be the best case scenario." She turned around. "I mean, she'll do something stupid to provoke them. She'll get herself hurt, or—"

"—killed," Rarity finished.

Twilight turned to face Rarity again, realizing she couldn't bring herself to say the word herself. She stepped up to Rarity, who was still staring blankly up at the ceiling near the ladder.

"Look, I'm sorry if you find the scenery really fascinating, but we really have to go!"

Rarity looked like she was coming out of a trance. "What—huh?" She blinked, and then turned around to look at Twilight. "Oh, I—"

Twilight glared at her, but didn't say anything.

Rarity's eyes drooped, and she bowed her head. "I'm sorry if I haven't seemed very concerned lately." She swung her forehoof back and forth, scraping it along the ground. "I know I should be feeling more concerned about Rainbow right now. It's just, I can't help but think..." She turned her neck and glanced back up the ladder.

Twilight felt a twinge in her stomach as she realized what she was getting at. She hadn't even considered it until she saw Rarity's face. Neither of them had brought up Rarity's sister since before they had entered the silo. This was the first time since then that they had been at the surface.

"R-Rarity." Twilight could hardly even get the words out.

"I mean," Rarity continued, "It's not that I don't care, or anything. It's just—"

"Rarity." Twilight stepped up to put a hoof on her shoulder, but Rarity pushed it away.

"You must," she started, "think I'm pretty selfish." Her voice was stifled, as though she was having trouble controlling herself.

"Rarity." Twilight's voice was almost a whisper.

"Look," Rarity said, lifting her head back up. Her face was tinged pink. "Let's just get going, okay? The sooner we're away from here—"

"Rarity!" Twilight said.

Her voice echoed around them as the room fell silent. Both of them felt compelled to speak, but neither could find the words to say. The air was unnaturally still.

Twilight was the first to break the silence.

"You don't have to come with me," she said. "You have a home! You have a family! I'm not going to stop you if you want to go to them."

Rarity choked back, looking close to tears. "I know," she said. "I just feel so," she thought for a bit, "so guilty!" She stared off to the side. "You helped me get out of that office. The least I can do is see you through." She turned back to face her again. "I mean, I don't know if I'll go all the way to the Lambda lab with you," she said, "but I am not going to abandon you while I can still help."

Rarity's face was anything but pretty. Her eyes had swelled and become red, and much of her face had channels of wetness running down the sides, however much she attempted to hide it.

Twilight stepped up to her and placed her hooves on either side of Rarity's face. "Look at me," she said, forcing Rarity to meet her eyes. "You have a family. You're obviously in pain. Nopony is going to think less of you if you leave now."

She struck her head up into a dignified pose, and walked around Twilight, trying hard to regain her composure. "It is simply," she said, "out of the question! If you are going to find the Lambda Lab, you are going to need my help. I simply cannot see you do this alone." She turned and strained a smile at Twilight. "Besides," she said, "even if I found my sister, and returned home, I doubt that we would appreciate headcrabs teleporting into our dining room." She threw her head up with a "Hmmph!", and stamped across the room. "I daresay it would be most prudent to cleanse the invasion before having afternoon tea!"

Twilight snickered as Rarity wiped some of the drips from her face. She followed Rarity through the musty room, admiring how quickly she was recovering.

"Well, if you say so," Twilight said. "Just, do you think you could cut down a bit on the sarcastic remarks? Maybe just a little?"

Rarity scoffed as they reached the other side of the room. "Twilight, honestly! Stopping an invasion is one thing. But I'm not a miracle worker!"

She threw her head up in the air, but not without cracking a smile against the straight face she had been trying so hard to keep.

=========================================================

"Well, at least we don't have to walk the rest of the way underground," Rarity said.

Twilight reached the other side of the lift room to see what Rarity was pointing to. There was so much clutter in the way, she could barely make out what was at the tunnel entrance. A slew of crates, pallets, old rusted pipe pieces, and various outdated electronics infested the area, and looked like they had been accumulating for years. It reminded Twilight of what happened to her brother's workbench when her mother didn't remind him to clean it.

"Do you really see a train under there?" Twilight asked. "Or are you just suggesting we try using one of these pallets as a sled?"

As a response, Rarity wafted some of her white aura around the debris and pushed it aside one piece at a time. Twilight couldn't help but be amused at the way Rarity picked up some of the less pleasant items with as little magic as possible, as though the grime would wash off onto it somehow.

"Well, I do agree," Rarity said, "for a massive, glaringly red hunk of metal, this train certainly managed to blend in a lot."

She pushed aside a metal plate the size of her entire body that was leaning up against something, and revealed a large chunk of red metal behind it, crudely shaped into some sort of vehicle.

"Definitely not the sort of train we're used to," Rarity said. "Part of me wonders whether it still runs."

Twilight stepped up to it and ran a hoof over the top. It came just up to her shoulders, and extended into the tunnel just further than the length of the other trains.

"It's probably an older model," Twilight said. "It's too rusted and beat-up to be newer than the wood trains."

From what she could see in the dark tunnel, most of the train reminded her of a somewhat chubby monorail train. The front had a hood, as though covering some sort of engine. There was no roof covering the train, and even if there had been, it would have been so low that Twilight would have to lie on the floor to fit under it. Even without a roof, it would still be a tight squeeze to get two ponies inside. There were hinges on the side, as if there had once been doors, but Twilight suspected they had fallen off at some point. She could just imagine some maintenance pony driving around the corner with the door open, striking a wall that knocked it off, and shrugging the whole thing away as "just another thing that broke on this damn train".

"Please tell me you can get this thing working," Rarity said. "My hooves are positively throbbing from all the walking I've been doing!"

Twilight was already inside and looking at the control panels, trying to relate it to the wood trains she already knew.

"Looks like the same interface," she said. "If power has been routed to this part of the tracks, there's a good chance it'll turn on like any of the others."

As she worked, Twilight could hear Rarity shuffling uncomfortable outside the train.

"If you had asked me a couple days ago, I would have told you I'd have given anything in Equestria to ride the train to Canterlot." Rarity sighed. "I can't exactly say I have the same enthusiasm for trains anymore."

Twilight looked up, a few sparks flying from her horn. "This looks like the end of the rails," she said. "I'm not sure where our last stop is going to be, but I can tell you this: I'm not riding on anymore trains after this one. Even if it looks like the only way to go."

Rarity cocked her head. "You'd rather turn back?"

Twilight scowled. "I'd rather blast a hold in the wall with a grenade."

Rarity scoffed and flipped her hair. "Well, we already know you're capable of doing that, dear." She stepped up closer to the train to try and get a better idea of what Twilight was doing. "Are you sure you don't need any help?"

Twilight stood up. "I've been studying the mechanisms of the trains as we've been riding them, and they seem to be pretty simple. This one just needed a little magic."

She stood off to the side to make room for Rarity. "Looks like it's good to go."

Rarity just stood there and stared. Twilight had barely been able to shuffle to the side, much less move around to get comfortable. The engine was very close behind them, and she was not looking forward to having her rump pressed against it the whole time.

"Twilight, dear."

Twilight caught Rarity's eye, and had no problem reading the awkward expression on her face.

"Don't worry, Rarity," she said, "I have a plan, in case we get into trouble."

Rarity breathed a mock-sigh of relief. "Oh, good! I was wondering which technique we would use if there was an obstacle in our way: kamikaze, or the slam-on-the-breaks and scream. I daresay, I've gotten quite a lot of practice for the second one."

Twilight rolled her eyes. "I can't exactly promise neither of us will scream," she mumbled under her breath, "but!" she spoke up, "I will say, if we get into trouble, we can simple roll off the side of the train like I did back with that forcefield."

Rarity couldn't help but glance down at Twilight's rear hoof. The bandages were soaked red. Twilight caught her, and spoke up again.

"Just remember not to hit the rail when you roll," she said.

Rarity continued to stand there, face still blank and bemused, even as Twilight started up the engine of the train. The rear of the train roared as Twilight pressed the button, making Twilight look back to make sure there wasn't some sort of rodent or headcrab caught in the engine. It was a much more powerful engine than the other trains.

"So?" Twilight said. "Are you coming? Or do you want to wait for the next train?"

Rarity snapped out of her bemusement and shook her head. She looked as though she wanted to say something, but everything she tried to get out her muzzle kept choking back. She finally gave in, and squeezed her way onto the train.

Twilight pressed the lever forward one notch, and felt the train smoothly accelerate. It was so subtle that she had to look at the wall next to her before she realized they were moving at all.

For the next few seconds, Rarity histrionically wiggled around, rubbing her rump up against the back, wrenching her hooves out from under her before squeezing them back in, and making a lot of un-lady-like grunts in the process. At one point, she even made an entire scene out of turning around and placing her rump against the controls, only to find her ears right up against the roaring engine, and her flanks fiddling with the controls.

"Twiiiiilight!" she whined, "Hoooow exactly am I supposed to get comfortable in this thing?!" She pouted her lip. "I'm exhausted, it would be soooo nice to actually get some beauty sleep before this is over."

Rarity completed her full three-sixty turn in the train, and slumped her head against the dashboard, letting her cheeks and chin droop all over the cold metal, and whinnied.

Twilight's eyes had drooped so low they were almost closed. Rarity's whinny finally made her slam her face into the dashboard and keep it there for a few seconds.

"Why do I put up with this?" she mumbled into the metal.

She pulled her head back up and looked forward to watch the lights fly by. It was almost mesmerizing. One light, two lights, three lights, four...

"Uh, Rarity?"

Twilight counted another five lights go by before she started up again.

"I think we're accelerating."

Rarity was too busy counting the rust spots on the front of the train to notice much of anything. As fast as they were going, the ride was quite smooth.

"Rarity!"

Twilight was looking down at the controls, trying to fiddle with the speed lever. "I think we're going to have to get off the hard way," she said. "The speed controls are responding. There's no way I can slow it down. Not using the controls, anyway." She looked back up, and saw nothing but a long stretch of tunnel. "At least we have plenty of time. We shouldn't run into anything for a while, so that should give us some leeway for getting off before we crash."

The word "crash" made Rarity's ears, mane, tale, and coat stand on end, and she immediately leaped up and tried to turn in place, only to find herself still wedged in.

"Wha—! What do we do?! Where do we—Crash?! Really?! Whe—"

Twilight punched a hoof into her muzzle. "We'll be fine, so long as we get off now. We can use the back of the train. The leap off the back will slow us down, and help us control the roll." She wiggled her way sideways. "Here, I'll move off to the side so you can get yourself unstuck."

Rarity's panic only mounted as she freed her body. Being packed in was almost a comfort, like wearing a large coat of metal armor. The freedom of her body made her lose balance.

"T-Twilight," she whimpered. "I don't know if I can do this."

"You'll be fine!" Twilight said over the sound of the engine. "Just don't tense up. We have plenty of time. It's not like—"

Both of them froze as a blinding light went off in the distance, followed by a shockwave that shook the train and pierced their ears. A ball of orange burned in the air for a few seconds as it dissipated into smoke.

"On second thought," Twilight said.

Rarity's head spun around from side to side. "What did—was that a—where did that—"

"They're trying to de-rail the train!" Twilight shouted.

As the smoke got closer, Twilight could make out a boarding platform just next to it. The rails had been bent up and around from the explosion, and were now pointing towards the platform.

"Changeofplans, get over to the side, Rarity," Twilight shouted. She rammed her hooves against Rarity's rump, and pushed. Seconds remained. "Side, Rarity! Jump!"

Looking forward was like falling from a building. The broken rails shot towards her so fast that it caused vertigo. She barely had time to brace herself before it struck.

Rarity had stumble-trip-jumped out of the train just as it had hit the ramp, and was already performing a screaming barrel roll. Twilight's knees shook as she kicked off the train, and her ankle caught the back, causing her to lose what little control she had left. She wiggled in the air for a second, and then felt herself slam into the concrete below, carried into a roll by her momentum.

"Ra-ri-ty!" she yelled with each bone-crunching collision with the platform. With each one, she felt herself scrape against the surface and slow down. She kept her hooves in tight, forcing herself against her temptation to flail them out and try to catch something. She could barely breath, as each blow knocked more and more wind out her.

And then the ground disappeared beneath her.

There were no more scrapes and slides. It was just air all around her. She wheezed, trying desperately to get a breath of air to scream with, letting her hooves flail out as she fell. Her momentum kept her rotating, so she kept going back and forth between seeing the ceiling flying away above her, and the floor hurtling up below her. She felt her heart jump up into her throat just as the ground came up and slammed into her.

It took a second or two to calm down enough to see why she wasn't dead. The impact had knocked her dizzy, but she wasn't lying on the ground. In fact, she was suspended in the air—no, water! She flailed her hooves around, and felt the resistance. She took a breath by instinct, and instantly caught a lungful of water.

She paddled for her life, and just managed to break the surface. As soon as she did, she brought her hoof up out of the water and started pounding on her chest with with it while treading with the other. Sputtering turned into coughing, with turned into retching. Her head went under a few more times as her one hoof struggled to keep her afloat, and she felt the uncomfortable sensation of water streaming through her nostrils.

She tried to yell out to Rarity above her, but couldn't get the breath she needed to do so. She only continued to tread and cough, tread and sputter, tread and breathe.

It wasn't until some of the water had leaked out of her ears that she heard the battle above her. Magic reigned overhead, and she could just make out some of the green residue of it.

"Twi-ight!"

Rarity's voice could just be heard over the sounds. The voice was coming towards her.

"Twilight! I'm coming!"

A few green beams flew out overhead, illuminating the room she was in. Twilight could barely make out a few walls and items here and there in the glow, but other than that, all she knew was she was in an old flooded area of some sort. The beams struck the walls with a flash, leaving glowing residue behind.

And then Rarity's body appeared, leaping out over the edge of the platform. For a second, Twilight was afraid she was going to land on top of her, and flailed her hooves against the water to try and paddle away. However, after a few seconds without any sign of a splash, she looked back up to see Rarity still suspended above her.

A green aura was surrounding her.

Twilight let out what little breath she had caught up in her lungs as she watched Rarity float motionlessly away from the edge, and out of sight.

"Rar—" She breathed. "—rity!"

She could barely think, let alone continue to tread water, and almost considered taking a short break: just a quick trip to the bottom to rest. Every one of her legs were pained from impact and use.

And then something else caught her eye that made her snap back to reality. Something small had been hurled over the edge of the platform: something about the size of a baseball, mostly grey in the dim light cast from the tunnel, and probably missing a very important pin.

Twilight's eyes went wide as she watched it arc over the side.

And then she gasped, and dove underwater, furiously pushing against the water with what little strength she had left. Adrenaline was coursing through her body, making her feel like she could push herself that much harder. The muffled sounds and blurred sights around her almost became clearer in that moment, and she caught sight of a blinking light in the distance. She swam down hard towards it, letting a couple air bubbles escape as she pushed forward.

She fiddled with a switch at her side, and found the release mechanism for her gun. The weight at her shoulder popped away, and she suddenly felt much lighter, and could swim a bit faster.

As the light got closer, it revealed a wavering, blurred entrance door. Twilight reached a hoof out and managed to use the top of the metal entrance-way to pull herself through, and into the flooded hallway.

A mountain of heat washed over her as she swam through the tunnel, and she felt herself being blasted forward, riding the wave of the explosion. Her lungs were about ready to tear themselves out of her chest, and her limbs were threatening to cut themselves away from her body in protest.

She pushed forward, seeing a ramp ahead of her, and a subtle shimmering above, which must have been the surface. Her surroundings were becoming less focused, and shrouded in darkness. She was having trouble concentrating.

PUSH! she thought.

It was the only thing left she could think about as the last of her air escaped out in bubbles. All it would take is one breath. One breath, and it would be over. She could rest. Forever.

PUUUUUSH!

Her hoof struck the ramp, and she kicked off of it hard.

The breach of the surface and the first breath of air striking her lungs brought a dizzying amount of feelings back. An orgasmic feeling of relief pulsed through her body as she struggled to stay afloat. What little energy she had left, she used to push forward until she felt the ramp beneath her. Half-walking, half-swimming, she waded her way up the ramp and out of the water.

She had never realized just how heavy her body was until the water was down to her knees. The last few steps up the ramp were pure agony. Had her mind been focused enough to consider her appearance, she would have realized what a wreck she must have looked. However, all she could manage to do was slump up the ramp, and barely crest the top.

She lifted her wavering head and looked at the yellow-ish lights illuminating a very different-looking hallway with yellow-crusted paint on the walls, and tiled floor. Her eyes drooped, causing the lights to be the only thing she could see.

And then, she collapsed onto the ground, and left the conscious world.

=========================================================

The first thing she heard was dripping. Soft echoes reached her ears, each spaced a few seconds apart.

She moved a hoof and tried to open her eyes. It felt like somepony had placed weights on her lids, and the lights shining down upon her weren't helping.

Pressing with all the strength she had, she managed to lift her body up with her forehooves, and worm her way onto all-fours. The hallway in front of her was still coming into focus. All she could make out was a blur of yellow amid a rocking dizziness.

"R-Rarity?"

Her mouth was parched, despite the volume of water she had inhaled earlier. A pain deep in her stomach reminded her of how long she had gone without food. Rarity had suggested eating some of the grass outside the launch site, and while that was a good idea in theory, there wasn't enough for it to make up for a complete meal. Most of what was outside had simply been dirt.

She blinked against the lights as the yellow-peeled paint and tiled floor came back into focus. She stumbled a bit as she regained her balance, and immediately felt herself drawn back towards the water behind her. She stepped hoof-over-hoof up to the ramp, and collapsed on the ground just in front of the water, and plowed her muzzle into the surface, gulping as fast as her throat could work.

She could feel the pain as the water hit her stomach, but she didn't stop. She kept forcing down all that she could fit, even until she felt uncomfortably full. There was no telling when she would see water next.

A few memories snapped back into her mind, including a particularly disturbing image of Rarity engulfed in magic. Twilight lurched at this thought, and she swallowed wrong. Her coughing came up so fast, she didn't have any time to take a breath, and she found herself sputtering and struggling to breath.

She pounded her chest a few times with her hoof, and the coughing subsided over time, although the lump in her chest didn't go away. She couldn't help but notice how her eyes didn't water up, like they always did when this happened. She needed to rest. That's what every book she had every read on dehydration had said.

She didn't feel like resting, though. Sooner or later, she would have to move, even if for nothing more than to find food. As much water as she had just drunk, it wouldn't make up for a lack of nutrition.

She thought about what Rainbow Dash might say if she saw Twilight now. She would probably be trying to drag her out of the hallway, even if it meant Twilight clawing at the ground in protest. It was exactly the kind of thing she would do.

That's when she saw it.

She wasn't sure whether it was because she was thinking about her at the time, or if there had simply been a trick of the light. However, she had sworn she had just caught a glimpse of a rainbow-colored tail in the corner of her eye.

She focused, and found herself staring at the empty hallway. There was nothing there, save for the lights and that awful peeling paint.

"Rainbow Dash?" she said out loud, if for no other reason than to hear her voice. It was still cracked from being parched.

She trotted to the end of the tunnel stretch, and peered around the bend. Another short stretch revealed itself as she did so. No rainbows of any kind were there.

"Hello?"

Her voice curtailed and stretched in the silence around her. The only other sound was the constant dripping in the distance.

Part of her was afraid to keep going, in case she was to see something else. Perhaps next time, it wouldn't be a rainbow tail. She had read about ponies having delusions and hallucinations under stressful situations like this, and wasn't keen on having one.

Okay, Twilight, keep it together, she thought. It was just a trick of the light.

She closed her eyes, rubbed them with her hooves, and opened them again, blinking against the light. Again, no rainbows were present.

She took a deep breath, sighed, and set off down the hallway.

Just walk, she thought to herself. Don't think. Just walk.

As it turned out, the path was quite short. She didn't have to go around too many more bends before it emptied her out into somewhere more significant.

She stepped out of the tunnel, and onto a catwalk platform that surrounded the room she had entered. The place was flooded, but unlike the room she had fallen into before, it had the distinct feeling that it was done on purpose. The water level came just up to the bottom of a surrounding catwalk that went around the entire perimeter of the room. It was as though someone had made a make-shift fish tank out of a two-story room. Her suspicion was confirmed by a large rusted shark cage suspended over the water by a pulley system. She could just make out an observation area to the right, marked by a few windows, and a platform reaching out over the cage.

She stepped carefully along the catwalks, staying as far to the outside as possible, in case there was something in the water. There were a few ripples here and there in the surface, as well as patches of reflection on the catwalk that Twilight discovered were still wet, although from what, she couldn't tell. Something must have splashed the water at some point.

As well, a few ropes made Twilight look up at the ceiling. She regretted it the moment she did. The moisture had attracted a large array of barnacles, which were covering many areas of the ceiling. Their tendrils could barely be seen in the room, unless one was specifically looking for them. They blended in too well with the water and the glare of the lights, and Twilight had to work hard to avoid them.

She went back and forth between looking up at the ceiling, and looking ahead of her for long strands. Very few of the barnacles were over the path of the catwalk, which made things easier, although It didn't make her feel any less nervous.

As she reached one of the corners of the perimeter, however, she saw it again:

A rainbow tail was sticking out around the corner of where the path lead. It was only there for a second before disappearing. However, as it did so, it was accompanied by the quiet pattering of hoofsteps.

"HEY!" Twilight yelled.

She took off down the catwalk, nearly running into one of the tendrils hanging from the ceiling. She dodged it awkwardly, and ran around the corner, and into the cubbyway that it lead into. She was running so fast, she nearly ran into the dead-end wall that it lead to, and almost fell over from stopping so hard.

She looked up, and noticed the there was a ladder against the dimly lit dead-end, which lead straight up into another room. Rainbow Dash could have easily flown up there. Twilight was already breathing hard, mostly from anxiety, but somewhat from exhaustion. Nevertheless, she placed her hooves on the ladder rails, and hoisted herself up, pushing her hooves to move quickly.

She couldn't be sure, but there was a moment when she thought she caught a glimpse of the rainbow streak just over her head, at the crest of the ladder. She only saw it in her peripheral vision, though. It was gone by the time she looked up.

"Rainbow Dash!" She crested the ladder, and ran around the small bend just in front of it, which lead out into the observation room. "Rainbow Da—OOF!"

The impact of another body caught her by surprise, and she almost lost her balance. A pair of hooves grabbed her by the shoulders, and a nasal stallion's voice reached her ears.

"Ow," it said.

Twilight caught her balance and took a step back to look around. It was difficult to see the rest of the room, as it was being blocked by a short, light-tan stallion with thick black glasses. She could see his tail flicking behind him, and noticed it was black, just like his mane.

She whipped her head around a few times, in case Rainbow Dash was clinging to the ceiling, or hiding under some equipment, before turning back to the stallion.

"You haven't seen a blue pegasus around here, you have?"

The stallion turned around in an awkwardly-postured way, and stepped up to some controls on her right. "You mean Rainbow Dash?" he asked.

Twilight's ears perked, as did her eyelids. "You know her?!" she jumped up. "I mean," she took a deep breath and sunk into the floor, "she's here somewhere?"

The stallion shook his head. "Nah. I just heard you shouting her name. I've never seen a blue pegasus in this room in my life."

Twilight lowered her lids, letting a sigh escape her lips.

"Listen, lady," he said, still not looking at her, "I don't think this is the best place to be looking for someone. It's pretty much abandoned." He reached out at one of the controls, and tapped one of the levers curiously. "Honestly, I don't even know how you got in here." He brought a hoof up to his head. "Come to think of it, I'm not even sure how I got in here." He looked around. "This is pretty much the nowheresville of everywhere."

He made a cough-sneeze-smirk, as well as a nasal chuckle, before sighing and walking off to the corner of the room. "Ah, listen to me," he said. "No beautiful mare like yourself would want to listen to me."

Twilight cocked her head with a weird look on her face. This statement came out of nowhere.

"What?" she said.

The stallion simply reached one of the far corners of the room, and sat down, facing away from her, fiddling his hooves. "Sorry," he said, "I'm not good with mares. They make me nervous." He snorted, and flinched in another nasal laugh. "It's actually one of the reasons I work here," he said. "No other ponies."

Twilight just stared at him. "Wait. Didn't you just say you didn't know how you got here?" She hardly notice that she had backed up a few steps.

"Sorry," the stallion said. "Just trying to make conversation."

Suddenly, he perked up and turned to face Twilight with wide eyes. "Hey!" he said. "You wanna kill a shark?!"

Twilight's face contorted into a horrified frown, and she found herself involuntarily shaking her head.

"No, no!" he said, "It's real easy. Just use the tranquilizer."

Not even the shock from hearing a scientist not know how a tranquilizer worked could making Twilight talk. She just continued to stare in horror.

"Well, I guess it's not really a shark," he continued. "More like a flesh-eating piranha the size of a manticore. It likes to hop out every so often, and scare the other ponies." He laughed nervously, rubbing his hooves together, before looking off to the side. "I'm so lonely," he said quietly.

Twilight's horrified look dwindled, and she almost felt a bit sorry for him at this last statement. However, something was instinctively repelling her away from him, as if he had a cold, or really bad body odor. She just couldn't push herself to get close enough to comfort him.

Instead, she trotted up to the window, placed her forehooves on the sill, and peered out over the edge at the water below. She could just make out a dark patch of the water that was moving around: something just beneath the surface. He had overestimated its size. It was more like the size of a large stallion. Its movements kept the water surface rippling.

"Is there any way out of here without using the platforms around the tank?" she asked.

The stallion shook his head. "That's why nopony wanted the job," he said. He chucked again. "I don't mind, though," he said. "I don't think it's a monster. It's just a little misunderstood."

Twilight didn't even try to comprehend this. One minute ago, he was asking whether she wanted to kill the thing, and now it sounded like he was describing his pet.

"You said there's a tranquilizer gun?"

"That's right," he said, perking up. "I made it myself, out of old scraps and stuff I found lying around."

Twilight stared at him for a moment, wondering whether this stallion could just be another hallucination, and decided there was no way her mind could conjure up something like this. He was definitely real.

"I'm assuming you know where you put it?" Twilight asked dully.

The stallion smiled wide, and walked over to a small exit door, where the suspended platform was attached. "I put it in the shark cage!" he said.

Twilight didn't even bother to sigh. She simply stepped up to the control panel to her right, leaned her head back, and smashed her face into it.

The resulting noise made the stallion jump. He scratched his head, stepped up to Twilight, and leaned over her shoulder.

"Was it something I said?"

=========================================================

Twilight stood at the exit doorway that lead out to the shark cage. The suspended platform looked much wider from up here. It had blended in so well from below that she had barely noticed it was there.

"So, let me get this straight," Twilight said, turning back towards the stallion. "You had one weapon to defend yourself, and you decided to toss it into a cage suspended over a monster-infested pool?!"

The stallion looked down and pawed at the ground. "It seemed like a good idea at the time?" he said, his voice going up an octave in pitch.

Twilight looked around the room. "How did you manage to survive this long?! There's not exactly that many places to hide."

The stallion blushed and backed up, and his glasses slid down an inch of his muzzle. "Survive?" He pushed the rim back up his nose as he laughed nervously again. "Wha—What do you mean? I work here."

Twilight scrunched her mouth to prevent herself from letting another exasperated sigh escape her muzzle and ravage the room. "Oh, I don't know," she whispered, "maybe the ALIENS roaming around?!" She flailed her hooves as she said this.

Now it was the stallion's turn to look confused. "Aliens?" He looked around. "There are aliens here?"

He started trotting around the room, looking under some of the control panels, and inside some of the storage boxes. "Nobody told me they would be—" He looked up. "Is that who this "Rainbow Dash" is? Is she an alien?" He started gnawing on his hooves. "Did you... let her loose? Is she roaming around here, looking to eat us?! OH, CELESTIA, WHAT HAVE YOU DONE?!"

He jumped up and grabbed onto the front of Twilight's suit, in a beggar's position.

Twilight just stood there, watching the entire thing as though it was one of Princess Luna's favorite Marelequin novels. She couldn't decide whether she wanted to push him away, or toss him into the pool behind her. Perhaps she could throw him into the shark cage, and have him toss her the tranquilizer gun before dropping into the water: get the best of both worlds.

"For your information," she said quietly, placing her hooves on his own so she could guide them off her chest and onto the ground, "Rainbow Dash is very much a pony, and I'm not about to study her anatomy to confirm it." She closed her eyes and took a deep breath, pushing the bad mental images out of her head. "Honestly, I don't know why you haven't seen any aliens here. They're all over the facility. They keep teleporting in from nowhere."

Twilight phased out for a second as she considered all the times she had seen the aliens. A pattern was starting to emerge, as it sometimes did in the back of her mind.

"Actually, from what I recall, the only time we ever saw the aliens teleport is when there was a lot of other activity. There was always either gunfire, or some sort of ruckus going on."

The stallion whimpered when he heard the word "gunfire", but Twilight ignored him.

"Either that means the rift gets thinner when there's more energy in the area," she put her other hoof up as she continued, "or the aliens are deliberately looking for the most likely places for organic life to be." She put a hoof on to her forehead. "Oh gosh, I really, really hope it isn't the later."

She started trotting nervously around the room.

"When did the monster appear in the water?" she asked, not stopping.

The stallion was close to tears. "I-I don't know! Maybe a... a week? Or maybe two. OH GOSH, I DON'T KNOW ANYMORE!" He put his hooves over his face and started balling.

Twilight stopped dead. "A... week?!" She blinked a couple times. "But, that would mean—"

She had to pause for a bit to regain her thoughts. The stale air and lights around her didn't help with her thoughts process, but she couldn't stop. "A week!" She put her hoof down. "They've known about this for a whole week!"

The stallion whimpered again. "Know?" he squeaked.

Twilight was barely paying attention to him anymore.

"I need to get to Lambda before this gets any worse. The aliens could be planning something big!"

The stallion's glasses had fogged up, and he had taken them off to rub his eyes. "P-planning?" he said.

Twilight sighed. "I don't suppose you know how to get to the Lambda Lab from here?"

The stallion just chewed on the end of his hooves for a bit, and shook his head.

"Didn't think so," Twilight said. She turned back towards the exit, and peered out. "So, here I am, stuck in some tiny control room, Rainbow Dash and Rarity are gone, I'm starving to death, and there's a monster that's looking forward to having me for lunch." She swept a hoof up sarcastically. "What could be better?!"

As if on cue, a rainbow streak appeared in the corner of her eye. Twilight instinctively whipped her eyes to the bottom of the main chamber to focus on it, managing to catch a blue flank and a rainbow tail just as it crossed a broken catwalk, and exited an open doorway.

"Rainbow Dash!" Twilight galloped down the platform without thinking, desperate to get a better look. "Rainbow, wait!"

She reached out a hoof to stop herself at the edge of the platform, and felt it slip out from under her. She flailed out a hoof to grab onto something, but she was already slipping right off the platform. She managed to hook a hoof over the ledge, but it slipped right off, and she felt herself bang against the top of the shark cage before falling through an opening in the top and landing at the base of the cage.

The fall wasn't nearly as bad as the one from the train. She could ignore the pain easily enough.

What she couldn't ignore was all the blood rushing to her face from embarrassment. No matter what condition her body was in, she still couldn't help the fact that she was now stuck at the bottom of a suspended shark cage. She kept her head turned away, and prayed that the stallion didn't see or hear anything. She put her hooves over her head, and tried to imagine being back in her bed, with the pillows covering her face.

"Oh, good!" a nasally voice shouted in the distance. "You found the tranquilizer!"

Twilight stifled a groan from under her hooves. She wished more than anything that she could simply walk away from this.

"I'll just release the cage so you can deal with that monster," the stallion shouted.

Twilight poked her head up so fast, all the blood rushed away from it, making her slightly woozy. That didn't prevent her from standing up and waving her forelegs around, banging on the bars and shouting, "NO, NO NO NONONO!"

The cable snapped above her, and the ground fell away. The stallion's voice echoed "there we are" just before Twilight was plunged into the water. She barely had time to start holding her breath.

She banged against the bars a few more times underwater, and then looked up for the opening. Even in the blurred surroundings, the hole that the bars formed in the top was easily visible. She was just about to reach up and hoist herself through when the cage shook. The bang that it made was stifled from the water, but it was still loud enough to make her jerk her head around.

Two massive rows of teeth stared back at her from the other side of the cage, and a few air bubbles escaped her muzzle as she yelled out. The jaw that the teeth belonged to was gnawing at the cage, making it rock and move around, but the bars were just as strong as they were above the water.

Twilight fiddled around, looking for some sort of gun at the bottom of the cage, and grabbed onto the only long-ish thing she could find. She couldn't see it very clearly, and her hooves struggled to grasp it. The fact that she couldn't feel anything through the rubber-tipped suit legs didn't help. It took all the energy she had left just to find the firing lever.

Everything else was what she could only describe as "awkward". She managed to hold the gun up between the bars, but hardly had any control over it. It slipped around too much. The only reason she managed to hit anything when she pulled the lever is because the monster was at point-blank range, and took up the entire wall of the cage. The cage went still, and she could only hope that meant the creature was dead.

She barely managed to hold onto the gun as she pushed herself through the opening of the cage, and was so busy looking up at the surface that her hooves kept getting tangled in the upper bars.

She breached the surface, and inhaled. The first thing she saw after her eyes started clearing were the barnacles clinging to the ceiling. She couldn't keep her head above water for too long. She only had one hoof to paddle with, and had to work hard to cradle the gun in the other.

She swam off in what she hoped was the direction Rainbow Dash had gone. A platform was there, leading up to a door. The platform had been broken, and only extended out a few feet. The fact that it was bent under its own weight made it easy for Twilight to climb out. She tossed the gun onto it first, and then hoisted herself out after it, pushing the gun forward with her muzzle.

"You're welcome!" the voice shouted behind her.

It was all Twilight could do to prevent herself from using the gun to "tranquilize" the stallion. She found a particular perverse pleasure in imagining the look on his face when she did it, as well as the choice words she could say to him just before he blacked out.

Of course, none of it came to pass. All Twilight could manage to do was climb onto her hooves, kick the gun forward, and follow the platform up to the open doorway. If Rainbow Dash had been here, she had at least been nice enough to leave the door open for her.

=========================================================

The "gun", it turned out, was actually a crossbow, and was very likely not created from bits and scraps, as the stallion had described. She remembered seeing these things all the time, back when she was around the Equestrian military. Very few of the guards at Canterlot had one of these, but they were some of Twilight's favorite weapons. She had begged her brother to show her one up close, but Shining Armor said it was too dangerous to show her at such a young age.

Of course, the crossbows in Canterlot all had spear-tipped arrows. Twilight had never considered using a crossbow to fire darts, much less tranquilizer darts. The closest she had read about were a few ancient pony tribes, and some zebra cultures that used blowguns to propel darts, but they were quite rare. She had only ever seen a blowgun in one of Canterlot's ancient history museums.

This crossbow, however, was anything but ancient. It was made from some sort of metal, much like the gun she had jettisoned. The best part of this was that it fit into her suit just as well. She didn't have any spare ammunition for it, so she would have to be sparing, but it would at least provide some protection if anything should attack her.

She looked around. She had just traversed a number of descending ramps down to the bottom of a much dryer room. She could still hear that incessant dripping in the background, but it wasn't quite as loud. There were some red maintenance lights beneath the ramps, and the old rotting yellow of the previous walls had been replaced with rusting red. A "wet floor" sign was standing towards the exit doorway in the back, and Twilight got a sudden urge to kick it.

She rounded the corner, and let out a loud groan. The rear-end of a blue pony was facing her, with her rainbow tail flicking at her, as though in jest. It whipped around the bend as soon as she saw it.

"RAINBOW!" Twilight said. She lunged forward, and started galloping down the wet floor, being as careful as she could not to slip. "Rainbow, this isn't funny!"

She reached the bend, and followed the sound of hoofsteps until she reached another flooded chamber, much like the first one. This one was much dimmer, grayer, and smaller, but the catwalk platform still went around the perimeter, just like the other one. Twilight could just make out two forms swimming beneath the water.

"I know you're in here, Rainbow!" Twilight said, looking around. "There's no point hiding!"

As though answering her call, she caught one last flick of rainbow whipping around a doorway at the opposite corner of the room.

"AHA!" Twilight said, pointing a hoof in her direction.

She lifted her forehooves in the air, as though about to charge off after her, and ended up slowing to a trot. She wanted to be extra careful going over these platforms.

"It's like she's trying to make me fall," she mumbled to herself.

Between the moister, the dripping, and the tight enclosure, Twilight felt more like she was in a swamp cave than a flooded facility. It already had the swamp monsters she had read about in her fillyhood fairytales. It even had that moldy smell.

As soon as she made it to the corridor, she sped up, and rounded a number of corners before coming out into an open space large enough to house a missile. The sheer volume reminded her of the area that the tram had gone through, with all the forklifts and pony workers traveling around underneath. That place had actually had a rocket in it. In fact, for a moment, she had to check to make sure this wasn't the very room she was in.

Instead of a missile on her right, however, there were instead a number of large crusher pistons in the floor and ceiling. She couldn't quite tell what it was, but each set of pistons was large enough to easily smash an entire carriage if it wanted to.

"Come out, Rainbow!" she shouted.

She couldn't see her anywhere, but she still had a feeling. There was definitely a presence. It kept making her look over her shoulder. It was drawing her eyes somewhere, and she kept turning around, trying to work out exactly where it was coming from, or what exactly it was.

Her eyes focused on a catwalk in the back, and the entire rest of the room went black. She suddenly felt light-headed as an attack of tunnel-vision hit her, and all she could see was the form standing on the platform: something dark, with green eyes. Something... with a business suit.

She gasped and rubbed her eyes, trying to stabilize herself after her sudden onset of dizziness. She took some deep breaths, trying to get some oxygen back into her system, and opened her eyes again, blinking.

The pony standing on the catwalk was still there. However, it was no longer wearing a business suit. It was instead a mare: blue, with a tuft of rainbow. She was staring right at her.

"Rainbow!" Twilight shouted, regaining her composure. She saw no way of getting up onto the catwalk, but charged after her anyway. "Rainbow, come down here!"

The blue mare had already sped off to the right, and around the corner.

Twilight kept running until she was right under the catwalk, and looked around for some way to get to the top. A few crates stood in the corner to her left, shrouded by the shadows under the catwalk. Twilight could just make out a ladder underneath, and galloped over to where they were.

She wasn't sure where all her energy had come from, and frankly, she didn't care. She was already swiping at some of the boxes on the top of the stack, trying to clean a space for her to climb up. She ended up causing more of a mess than was already there, but eventually, the scattering of wood and debris gave way to a set of stepping stones she could use to climb up to where the ladder was.

She was amazed how quickly she was able to climb, considering how exhausted she felt otherwise. She couldn't help but stop midway down the catwalk to stare at the contraption of pistons one last time. If she didn't know any better, she would have sworn they would make a pretty good obstacle course. If only the pistons were a bit closer together, and didn't completely crush whatever was sitting on them. Knowing these scientists, this entire room may have been built to entertain the security guards.

She dashed down the platform, and around the corner.

=========================================================

The next many bends yielded no signs of Rainbow Dash. In fact, she didn't see anypony at all, much less a blue pegasus with rainbow-colored hair.

The corridor lead out into what looked like some sort of control room, or central computer room. Shelves upon shelves of electronic equipment beeped and lit up all around the room, and she could only imagine what kind of information must have been on these servers.

She stepped up to one and stopped in front of the blinking lights to have a look. She immediately wished she hadn't. No sooner had she stopped than she got an overwhelming urge to collapse. Her mouth was dry, her muscles ached, and she was having trouble keeping her eyes open. It was an epic struggle just to keep herself on her hooves. Even her stomach was pining for nourishment, and was insistent upon making it clear how empty it was.

She looked around for a place to rest, and caught sight of a nice corner of the room, a bit darker than the rest of it. She trotted uncomfortably toward it, feeling the rest of the room wavering around her.

A loud hissing sound made her turn around. She aimed her crossbow in its direction, but was having trouble aiming it. Her eyes were somewhat blurry, and her shoulder was shaking.

"Hey!" a female voice sounded in the general direction, "are you all right?"

Twilight squinted, and realized the hissing sound had been a sliding glass door opening in the distance. She could now see the teal mare earth pony peaking her head out. The only other features Twilight could make out were a blue-white striped mane and a lab coat.

Twilight lifted a hoof, and then trotted over to her direction. She became much clearer as she got closer, and a small prep-room came into focus behind the glass door, not much larger than a walk-in closet, but much brighter, and more metallic.

"You look terrible," the mare said, looking up and down Twilight. "You're not trying to single-hoofedly fight off the whole army, are you?"

Twilight stifled a chuckle, and thought about what a mess she must have looked. Part of her was glad there wasn't a mirror around. Between her bandaged hoof, her calloused face, her half-a-horn, and her exhausted posture, she must have looked more like a soldier coming back from the front lines than a scientist travelling around a facility.

"I'm fine," she lied. "I didn't think there were any ponies in this area."

The mare lead Twilight into the prep-room and closed the door behind her. "There aren't," she said. "Or, at least, not many of us. This isn't a very populated area."

Twilight saw her get down onto her belly, and decided she'd follow suit. As soon as she was down, she instinctively put her head down. She couldn't help but think of magic kindergarten, and the way the teacher would give them all "nap time" midway through the day. That's what she really needed right now: to put her head down on her desk and close her eyes for a few minutes.

"I'm sorry we don't have a bed," the mare joked. "These labs are sorely in need of room service. I'm still waiting on my Martini."

Twilight didn't have the energy to laugh. She just let her eyes droop, and breathed heavily for a few seconds before mumbling, "I could really just go for some orange juice."

The mare chuckled. "You'll have to wait for the breakfast buffet for that, I'm afraid," she said. "It doesn't open until 8:00."

Twilight lifted her head up and sighed with a dazed smile. The mare smiled back, and they both looked around the room and giggled.

"How long have you been here?" Twilight asked.

The mare prodded her hoof at the ground. "Not too long. Maybe eight hours?" She sighed. "This place has been pretty safe from all the activity. I spent the first few hours after the incident running around in circles. My lab is a ways from here."

Both of them looked at each other for a bit. Twilight could see that the mare had some heavy bags under her eyes, and was realizing that she was just as tired as Twilight was.

"I had a feeling this would happen," the mare said. "With the stuff Lambda's been doing, it was only a matter of time."

Twilight's ears perked. "Lambda?!"

The mare's eyes went wide. "Don't tell me you haven't heard of them."

Twilight shook her head. "I've been trying to reach them ever since the military showed up."

The mare rolled her eyes. "Don't bother," she said. "They're probably just busy making things worse. Heck, even if you managed to reach them, they'd probably just use you as a guinea pig. They're always looking for new ponies to throw into their little experiments."

Twilight cocked her eyes. "Isn't that a bit... unethical?"

The mare laughed. "You must be new here," she said. "I'm sorry. Welcome to Pony Mesa!" she mocked. "Where the scientific process goes to die."

Twilight felt a twinge in her stomach, and brought a hoof up to hide the blood rushing to her face.

"It's all right," the mare said. "None of us knew this place would be like this when we applied. Most of us only got the invitation because of our knowledge of the fields. There aren't many ponies who would be willing to do this if they knew what they were getting into."

Twilight thought back. It seemed like forever since she had received her invitation. Even Princess Celestia had been surprised at the time. None of the ponies in Canterlot had heard of Pony Mesa, and Princess Celestia couldn't gather much information. In fact, the Princess hadn't been very keen on letting Twilight go. If it had been her choice, she would have had Twilight stay in Canterlot.

Twilight had been at odds about the whole thing for months. Princess Celestia had been her mentor for so long, and had almost become like a parent, taking her under her wing. And yet, she kept feeling a bit trapped towards the end of her studies. She felt like she needed to do something with her knowledge: to help contribute. It had been Twilight who had convinced Princess Celestia to let her finally go to Pony Mesa.

She had meant to get together with her one last time before she left, but Spike had reminded her of a number of things she still needed to do on her list. Once Princess Celestia had been informed that she wouldn't make it, she sent Twilight a letter while she was on the train.

Of course, that letter was probably long gone by now. It had been sitting on her dormitory desk for some time now, and had probably been consumed by some fire, or ravaged and eaten by a headcrab.

"You went through the same thing, didn't you," the mare said.

"Huh?" Twilight refocused, coming out of her stupor.

"The letter. The invitation, I mean." She pawed at the ground as she spoke. "You were just as excited about coming here, weren't you."

Twilight shook her head. It all seemed so stupid now. So pointless.

"Well, I don't think there's much I can do to persuade you," she said. "You've clearly got your heart set on reaching Lambda, and frankly, I don't blame you." She chuckled. "Not much else to do around this place. If you're gonna die, may as well run around and try to fix the world's problems while you're at it."

Twilight blinked. "You're... coming with me?"

The mare shook her head and laughed. "No, no. You misunderstand me," she said. "I'm staying right here. In case you haven't guessed, I don't think too highly of of the Lambda ponies."

Twilight dropped her head and sighed.

"Don't get me wrong," she said, "I'm sure what you're doing is better than just lying around here in this room, but," she sighed, "I'm just not up to that kind of punishment." She indicated the cuts and bruises around Twilight's body. "At least you have that suit. Just imagine what I'd look like by now."

Twilight looked down at the bandage around her rear hoof, and noticed it had gotten loose from all the water. She reached her muzzle down and worked it forward until it slipped off her leg, revealing a thin streak of red. It wasn't bleeding anymore, and the suit had done wonders for healing it.

"Listen," the mare said, "you want my advice? Stay down here." She waved a hoof around the room. "This whole part of the facility is practically dead. They'll never think to look for you down here."

Twilight nodded. "I noticed there weren't any breaches down here. It doesn't look like there's been much alien activity."

The mare shook her head. "I'm not talking about the aliens. I'm talking about the swarm of soldiers on the surface!" She pointed her hoof at the ceiling. "Whoever's leading them does not want us finding out about something. There's only one reason to explicitly kill every living pony after a disaster like this." She took a deep breath. "They're hiding something, and whatever it is, it's out in the open now."

Twilight thought back to her vision of the business pony.

"I have a feeling I know who's behind it," Twilight whispered. "But I'm not even sure that they're a pony. I keep seeing... visions."

The mare rolled her eyes. "Wouldn't surprise me," she said. "After the things I've seen today, I bet some of the ponies here sold their lives over to the demons of Tartarus. If you told me that Kronos himself was leading this, I'd be hard-pressed to refute it."

Twilight watched the mare put her head down on the ground and close her eyes. She felt her own eyes droop as she did so.

"There's a freezer through that door," she said, indicating her head towards the back wall, eyes still closed. "I think there's a ladder in the back that should take you deeper into this part of the facility." Her voice was fading. "I'm gonna stay here." She breathed deep. "Get some rest." She lazily lifted a hoof at the wall behind her. "Just press that switch behind me to open it, and be sure to close it on your way in." She cradled her hooves under her head like a pillow. "Don't wanna freeze in here."

Twilight put her own head down for a few seconds and thought about the situation. The more she thought, the more she wanted to stay here and rest. She even considered staying here for a few hours, just to get some shut-eye. But then, the thought of Rainbow Dash came back into her mind, and she found herself pushing up onto her hooves.

She looked down at the mare, and wondered what to say. She looked so peaceful.

Ultimately, she simply stepped around her, lifted her hoof, and pressed the switch on the wall.

=========================================================

When the mare described the freezer, she neglected to tell Twilight how cold it was. As Twilight managed to reach the ladder in the back, she couldn't help but babble a few four-letter words: a difficult task, considering her bottom lip had gone numb. This was no ordinary freezer, and Twilight felt lucky her entire system hadn't shut down by now. The only reason she figured she was still alive was because of the suit, and even then, the automated voice kept ringing out, warning her to get out of the cold.

It had only taken her a few seconds to reach the ladder and climb down into the storage area below, but that's all it took for half her face to frost over. Any longer, and she feared she's start loosing her skin. Literally.

She put a hoof up to her cheek as she reached the bottom, as the numbness turned to burning pain. It was warm in here: even warmer than in the generator room. A freezer like that one needed an enormous heat pump, and all the heat obviously need to go somewhere. She could see the heat coils against the walls, and could feel the waves dissipating. She cringed at the pain, but at least pain meant the skin wasn't dead. Plus, it served as an excellent means of keeping her awake.

The small maintenance area lead out into a large passage, filled with enormous pipes lining its walls. They looked like they hadn't been used in years. Everything was rusted over, and derelict. Not only that, but the passage also looked like a dumping ground for old unwanted trash. All sorts of old crates and piles of electronics lay bare on the floor, and Twilight had to watch her step as she traveled.

A light breeze traveled down the hallway, and she could hear the soft hum of machinery in the background. It was certainly better than the dripping sounds from before. The only thing she didn't like was how the wind hitting her face only increased the pain.

A twinge of fear caught her. She wasn't sure what made her think about it, but part of her wondered what would happen if she couldn't find her way out of here. She was completely alone in this tunnel, with nothing but the incessant hum to keep her company. This looked like the kind of place where one might find a skeleton. Part of her was afraid she'd find one.

"Rarity," she whispered, trying to remember what she looked like the last time she saw her. She would give anything to be able to see her face again. In fact, anypony would be better than being alone. She wouldn't even mind seeing a headcrab, if it meant she wasn't the only thing alive down here.

Luckily, all her fears were put to rest a short ways down the passage. She rounded the corner, and caught a glimpse of a light above her. The floor in front of the wall was actually a cargo lift, which traveled up the wall to a floor just above it. Twilight could just barely see the ceiling of the floor above her from where she stood.

She stepped onto the platform, and pressed the switch on the wall to activate it. It was a bit rusty, but with enough force, she managed to push it into position, and sighed in relief when the lift started moving. She rolled her eyes at how pathetic her life had become. She never imagined she would find such joy in feeling the ground beneath her travelling upwards. It was like progress without all the work. Why couldn't there be something that simply carried her to the Lambda Complex?

As the lift crested the top, a long stretch of hallway came into focus. Judging by the breeze, the temperature, and the lighting rounding the corner at the end, this part of the facility was open to the outside. She had to take a deep breath as she stepped off the lift, just to be sure she was smelling fresh air. The feeling brought a bit of life back into her hooves.

As she stepped forward, however, something caught her eye: a tail, wiggling and shaking from around the corner, just before it disappeared.

"RAIN—" she started, "—bow?"

A laugh was echoing around the hallway. It was very distinctive, and was definitely not a sound that Rainbow Dash would make. It was like giggling—a high-pitched mocking-sort of giggling—and she couldn't pinpoint where it was coming from.

She trotted down the hallway some more, until she could see more around the bend. A few glaring lights shined from a large cargo bay, and she could see the night sky through an opening in the ceiling.

Again, something peeked out from behind a pillar and wiggled around. It was very pink, and very fluffy... almost like—

"Cotton candy?" Twilight said out loud.

The giggling got louder. She couldn't tell whether it was the acoustics of the room, or if there was more than one of them, but she couldn't pin-point where it was coming from.

A glimmer of light flashed in the distance, and Twilight heard a soft snap of wood behind her, as well as a twinge of pain on the side of her ear. She instinctively reached up and rubbed it with her hoof before bringing it back down. There were red streaks on the rubber of her suit. She glanced behind her, and noticed a small hole in the wood of the crate just behind her head.

Without thinking, she leaped up and dodged behind the crate, just as another snap struck the wood box, right around where her head had been. She couldn't even hear the bullets being fired. All she could hear was her heart pounding harder against her chest, and the giggling getting louder all around her.

"Are we playing hide and seek?" the voice echoed. It was high-pitched, and very playful: the kind of voice a baby sitter would use. "Because I know you can find a better hiding place than that."

A few more snaps came from the other side of the crate, and then the giggling shifted around. She could hear the voice moving, until it was almost behind her.

Another snap went off just over her head, on the side of the crate she was on, and Twilight cried out.

"Aw, this isn't any fun," the voice said. "You're right there!"

Twilight didn't have time to think. She put one of her forehooves over her head, and bolted out from behind the crate. The manic giggling started up again as she charged out, and she could hear whistling as a few bullets flew past her. She rounded the corner, making sure to keep her back to the gunfire. She felt a few sharp pelts against her backside, and then everything stopped.

She had barely rounded the corner of a short stretch of passage behind the central room before she heard the voice again.

"That's more like it!" it said. "Although, It's not as fun to shoot a pony from behind." It sighed, letting the sound echo from all directions. "Why won't you just come out and play with me? It's not like you're very good at hiding."

Twilight curled up with her back against the wall, looking in both directions. She could see everything very clearly from here. If the mare rounded the corner, Twilight would be able to see her.

"Oh, I know!" the voice said, starting to converge onto one spot. "How about we switch places!" The voice finally converged at the end of the short U-bend behind the central room, and Twilight turned to see a pink face staring back at her. She couldn't see her mane, since it was covered by a black leather hood, but she assumed it was pink and frilly, just like her tail. "You can try and find me!" she waved.

Twilight didn't even think. She got up onto her forehoof, and slammed on it, sending a dart hurtling towards the pony.

The mare was gone as soon as she had fired, and a clink told her the dart had hit the wall behind her.

"Ooo!" the voice said, once again echoing around the room, "you're good."

Twilight ran up the passage and peeked around the corner, ready to pull back the moment she saw anything. The entire room was still, from what little of it she could see. Stacks and stacks of crates littered the small part of it in front of her, but there wasn't any movement, and no bullets ever came.

"What are you waiting for, silly?" the voice echoed. "I'm not going to find myself!" There was a pause, followed by a loud outburst of laughter. "HAHAHA! Find myself! HEHE!"

Twilight readied her crossbow and bared her teeth. The giggling was getting very annoying, and Twilight felt it would be worth putting a dart in her neck just to shut her up.

She raced out from around the corner, and charged down the passage, coming out into the central chamber. The small expanse of crates grew into a much larger cargo bay, complete with a large platform that took up most of the room, held up by a number of pillars underneath. She could just make out a ramp that lead up to the top.

More giggling echoed around her. And then, the voice came from directly behind her.

"Why are you looking over there?" it said.

Twilight turned around and shot a dart at something pink that was peering around the corner of the passage she had just exited. It was gone before her hoof had reached the floor to fire.

"Missed me!" the voice echoed, converging somewhere else. "I'm really over here!"

Twilight turned in the direction of the voice to see the pink pony dangling by her rear hooves from the back of the platform, like a possum.

Twilight mocked firing another dart, but the pink mare didn't move.

"Ah!" she put a hoof out, "you can't fool me!" She swung back up and disappeared. "I don't think you really want to shoot me," the voice echoed.

"Besides!"

Twilight craned her neck at the direction the voice was coming from, and saw the mare peering down at her from the roof. The black suit was camouflaged against the night sky.

"What fun would it be if I wasn't here?"

She whipped her head back, and her voice echoed off to the left. Twilight turned her head in that direction to see the mare's head poking around the entrance passage.

"It must be so lonely out here."

She disappeared again, and the voice reappeared from the top of the platform. She was lying on her belly with her head on her hooves, as if she was bored.

"It's got to be much more entertaining with me around!"

Twilight didn't wait for the mare to disappear again. She dashed back towards the passage she had entered by, praying nothing would hit her from behind this time.

"Where are you going?!" the voice echoed.

Twilight rounded the corner and nearly jumped out of her hide. The pink pony was right in front of her, and it was everything Twilight could do not to run right into her. She slipped as she tried to regain her balance, and felt her hoof trigger the crossbow.

An anticlimactic thum went off on her shoulder, and she collected herself just in time to see the mare with a shocked look on her face. A tiny dart was protruding from the side of her neck.

They stared at each other for a second, the mouth of the mare getting wider.

"You shot me!"

The mare didn't even bother to try removing the dart. She just stood there, like a puppy dog, pining at Twilight.

"I thought you were my friend, and you shot me!"

Twilight was breathing hard, trying to keep calm.

The shocked look on the pony's face slumped, and her eyes drooped. With one last pining whimper, the mare keeled over, and collapsed in a heap on the ground.

Twilight reached out a shaking hoof, and put it up to the mare's neck, trying to feel for a pulse. It was almost impossible to feel anything at all through the rubber of the suit, but she had to try. She did everything short of putting her nose to the mare's neck to try and make sure she was still alive. She wasn't sure she could take another death, even if it was a pony who had just tried to kill her.

She looked up at the rest of the room, and tried to make some sense out of it. It was so cluttered and convoluted, it was difficult to get a sense of what choices she had for where to go. Her entire body was running on adrenaline at this point, and her mind wasn't functioning normally.

She blindly ran out into the middle of the room, beneath the platform, and looked around. There were too many stacked crates under here, and even with the lights on the beams holding the platform up, the crates cast enough shadows to make it difficult to see.

The last brilliant idea she could come up with was to climb the ramp onto the platform. With the state her mind was in, even climbing a platform was considered "brilliant" compared to the ideas floating around in there.

She didn't remember climbing a ramp to ever be this difficult. Her muscles were in pain by the time she reached the top, and she was completely out of breath. However, she was able to get a good look around the room from up here, even if she had to trot up to the edges to do it.

Most of the room was devoid of ways out. She was hoping for some sort of "exit" sign, probably accompanied by a small door of some sort. However, the closest she could find was an enormous passage in the back with the sign next to it that read "surface". The passage was partially blocked by garage door that was only half-open. There was another passage next to it, but the door was completely shut.

She stumbled her way back down the ramp, and trotted through the myriad of crates to get to the passage. It was tough just to stay on her hooves without collapsing off to the side. She was starting to lose her balance.

As she rounded the corner, however, her whole body jerked and tensed.

Rainbow Dash was standing in the middle of the passage, staring right at her. She flicked her rainbow tail a couple times, and then turned and darted on hoof down the passage and out of sight, not even bothering to use her wings.

"Oh, not again," Twilight mumbled. "Rainbow Dash!"

She could barely sense her hooves moving as the adrenaline took over, and she was galloping down as quickly as she could. She was around the corner in seconds, her breathing getting shallow but quick.

The blue mare was in plain sight, travelling away from her, just before rounding the corner.

"Why... are you... running?" Twilight couldn't get the words out loud enough as she galloped after her. It took all she had just to breathe.

She rounded another corner, and saw the blue mare stopped in the middle of the passage, facing away from her, and looking around for where to go. Just before Twilight caught up to her, she dashed to the right, and through a doorway that Twilight almost overlooked.

Twilight turned and ran after her into the darkened room, trying to keep an eye on the glowing rainbow mane and tail, which scattered the light more than her hide. She followed her through another doorway into a smaller room, and looked around.

This room was smaller, but brighter. There was a skylight in the ceiling. It looked like just another cargo hold, as if it housed part of a sorting facility at some point. Metal desks and wooden crates were stacked around, and the few doors she saw only lead into small closet-sized areas.

She peered through a few of them, sighing with each one as all she saw was darkness.

And then, around her third check, she saw it: the face of a mare looking out at her in the dim light. She was flicking her tail impatiently, as if waiting for her.

"Rainbow Dash!" Twilight said, stepping up to the doorway. "There you are! What have you been doing?! I feel like I've been trying to catch you for hours!"

She got right up to the doorway so she could get a better look at the mare. The room was a bit larger than it looked from the outside.

Rainbow wasn't moving. She simply stood there, flicking her tail. If it hadn't been for her nostrils moving with her breaths, and her occasional blinks, she could have almost been a manikin.

"Rainbow?" Twilight asked, a little quieter. "Are you okay?"

She stepped into the room, and turned on her flashlight. The room looked almost empty, but she wasn't shining the light on the rest of the room. She walked around and shined the light at Rainbow Dash, causing an eerie shadow to fall on the opposite wall and floor. Rainbow merely shifted her hooves on the ground, but didn't turn.

"Rainbow?"

Rainbow Dash opened her mouth, and two words came out.

"Get her."

"Huh?" Twilight turned around just as the door slammed shut, and a dozen silhouettes came out from the corners. "Rainbow?" She whipped around and saw one of them running straight at her. Twilight reared onto her hind legs. "RAINBOW!"

A hoof whipped out, crashed into her head, and everything went black.

=========================================================

Voices could be heard around her. She couldn't really make out very many of them, but they were all around her. Some were whispering, others were shouting in the distance. The air was warm and fresh, and she could tell she was probably outside somewhere.

She moved her head, and groaned at how difficult it was. Her posture didn't feel natural: her hooves had been forced behind her, and she was upright, probably sitting on something. She tried to move her hooves out in front of her, but something was preventing them from doing so.

"Hey," a voice sounded close to her. "I think she's coming to."

There was a loud snap, and a bright light poured down from her. She clenched her already-closed eyes, and felt a hoof against her chin.

"Do you think she's the one?" another voice said.

The hoof lifted her chin up, and Twilight clenched even tighter as she was brought up to face the light.

"We're about to find out."

Twilight blinked, trying to adjust to the light. She could feel tears forming as her eyes protested. It was like looking directly at the sun. She could see little more than silhouettes in the background against the blinding light in front of her.

"You!" another voice said, much stronger than the first, "move that light!" One of the silhouettes stepped forward. "I want to be able to look her in the eye."

The light subsided as the source of it moved off to the left. In its place, a white stallion stepped forward, wearing what Twilight could only describe as standard Canterlot regalia: bronze armor and helmet, with a blue crest. His face looked familiar.

He got up close and put his muzzle up to Twilight's eyes and stared at her.

"You, mare," he whispered. "Do you recognize me?"

Twilight swallowed, trying to look around, but was unable to look past the stallion's eyes. His face was taking up her entire view.

"You're—" Twilight cleared her throat, "you're Silver Lance!" She squinted, trying to make sure she was seeing right. "I saw—you were at the coronation ceremonies!"

The stallion backed up and smiled, shaking his head. "I never thought I would live to see the day," he said quietly, "that you, of all ponies, would live to commit treason."

Twilight's voice faltered. She couldn't have heard that right. She shook her head, trying to work out what he was trying to say. "I didn't—"

"Oh, yes you did," he said, a little quieter. His voice sounded disdainful. "Don't try to hide the obvious. A mare is seen at ground zero, dressed in a hazard suit. She somehow manages to survive, only to meet up with an office worker who also just so happens to have helped sabotage the experiment. She then goes forth to commit act after act of terrorism against the military, whose only job is to help clean up the very mess you started."

"Those soldiers were killing innocent ponies!" Twilight shouted.

"Don't," he shouted, "lie to me, Free Mare." He bared down, letting his golden armor shimmer in the light. "You scientists have been planning this. Admit it. Confess. This whole facility is just an excuse, isn't it? You're trying to start a war. You don't have the—"

"I am not trying to start a war!" Twilight shouted. "I know nothing about this place! I only just started working here!"

A streak of pain lit up her cheek with a snap as her head jerked to the side. When she looked up, she saw Silver Lance holding his hoof off to the side, as if he had just struck her.

"You don't talk back unless I say so," he said. "Or do I have to teach you that lesson?"

Twilight reached her tongue around the side of her mouth to check for any missing teeth. Luckily, everything was still intact, but it still stung.

"Now, you're going to tell me exactly what happened, starting from when you got your acceptance letter." He walked back and cocked his head to the side to look at her. "Slowly."

Twilight could see just past the stallion, and could make out a few other stallions trotting up and down a nearby road. Some of them looked like they had just grabbed weapons. Others were taking off to fly.

However, the thing that caught her attention the most was a small cage just in back of the street. She couldn't fully make out what was inside it. However, there were three small figures, and Twilight had the strangest sensation she knew who one of them was.

"Well?" Silver Lance walked up to her again. "Are you going to talk? Or do I have to persuade you again?" He lifted his hoof again.

Twilight closed her eyes for another blow, but it never came. "You all are delusional!" Twilight shouted. "You have absolutely no evidence that I did anything at all! I simply—"

"DO NOT LIE TO ME!" he shouted. "This is a matter of Equestrian safety! I will not have every pony put at risk just because one mare refuses to admit her crimes. Now CONFESS! YOU ARE UNDER THE—"

"What is going on over here?!"

Twilight ears perked up. She knew the voice. It sent a chill down her spine, and for a moment, she was more frightened than she ever was in front of Silver Lance, without fully understanding why.

An eruption of light lit up the area in front of her like the sun, dwarfing the interrogation lamp, and filling the area with a presence so all-consuming that all Twilight wanted to do was shrink into a corner and hide.

It was all Silver Lance could do just to stay on his hooves. He clenched his jaw, trying to stay serious, but nothing could hide his shaking.

He turned around. "Y-Your... Your Majesty!" He immediately fell onto one knee, as if an invisible force had pushed him there. Twilight could not see any magical aura, though.

Twilight tried to blink her eyes open so she could see, and managed to make out the faintest hint of the waving colors and stern soft face she had grown so familiar with all her life. A single eye looked piercingly at the situation, and the gaze was almost tangible, like a ray of light scanning the area.

The Princess was completely ignoring Silver Lance, and was simply staring right at Twilight. She couldn't make out her expression. She had never seen Princess Celestia like this before, and felt her body go cold from fear. Celestia may have had a straight face, but she was hiding a wealth of emotions that Twilight couldn't even begin to imagine.

Silver Lance was still on his knees, afraid to look up. "Your... Your majesty?"

In one swift move, the aura around Princess Celestia diminished, and her horn lit up. Silver Lance was cast aside, leaving the path to Twilight clear.

Her speed on hooves was remarkable, and she was on top of Twilight before she could blink, horn lit. Twilight immediately heard her bonds severed, and her hooves freed. She dropped onto all fours as Celestia leaned over and placed her horn at various parts of her body. A twinge of pain lit her rear hoof, and was gone in an instant. Her face, too, was cleared of pain. Every part of her was being rejuvenated.

And then, The Princess saw her horn. Twilight could almost feel the gaze of the Princess upon it, and her face went red. She could only imagine the Princess's expression upon seeing, and part of her was hoping that it, too, would be healed, and become whole again.

But nothing happened.

Instead, she felt a set of large hooves wrap around her body, and the next thing she knew, she was pulled into a hug so tight she could barely breathe.

"P-P-Princess?" Twilight sputtered.

She could hear a few gulping sounds from above her. "Twilight," she barely whispered. Twilight had never heard her like this. She didn't think she had ever heard the Princess cry before. Twilight wanted to ask a million questions, but nothing came out.

As soon as the hooves released her, Twilight cried out, "What is going on? What are you doing here?"

Celestia put her hoof up to her muzzle and made a soft noise, as though to quiet her and comfort her. "We'll have to talk later," she said. "We need to get you cleaned up."

With one giant swooping motion, she guided Twilight forward with her hoof. "Don't think," she said. "Just go to the barracks. They have food and water. They can get you cleaned up." Her voice was still stifled, as though she was trying hard to hold back an outburst of emotions. "We can—I will take you back to Canterlot," she said. "And then, I will tell you everything."

Twilight turned to look at her. "But what about—"

"I will not have you starve, Twilight," Celestia said. "There will be plenty of time to talk once we're back home."

She looked up past Twilight, and caught the eye of one of the guards. "You," she said, "Take Twilight to the barracks. See to it she is well nourished." She bent back down to look at Twilight. "I believe you will find someone there that has missed you very much." She gave a teary-eyed wink, and then turned to go back down the road.

Twilight could only watch as the Princess stepped away from her, and a brown unicorn guard walked up to take her place.

"Miss?" he said.

Twilight looked at him, and then looked past him at the cage next to the road. She could see what was inside much more clearly now: three fillies, all huddled together and sleeping under a single blanket. The one in the middle looked very familiar, and Twilight couldn't help but assume who it was.

"Miss, come with me," the guard repeated.

Twilight felt a hoof wrap around her foreleg, and she was pulled around to follow the road. Her head was spinning, and she was still trying to grasp everything that was going on. She had so many questions that she couldn't keep them all straight.

The surrounding area was very busy, especially considering the time of night. Many ponies in various types of uniforms and armor were galloping down the street. Pegasi were taking off and landing. Unicorns were practicing their spells. Twilight was having trouble keeping track of all the activity, especially considering half of it was in shadow. The place was littered with crates and supplies, creating a labyrinth on either side of the road. There were high walls at the far ends, as far as her eyes could see.

What caught her eyes the most, however, was the building just down the road. There were many other smaller buildings that could be taken as barracks, but this one didn't look anything like a barracks. If anything, it looked like someone had uprooted one of the Canterlot buildings, and put it down in the middle of this place. The marble walls and exterior decor made it stick out, as though a tornado had randomly tossed it next to the road.

It was with some confusion, then, that the guard lead her straight up to the doors of this marble building.

"The Royal Barracks, my lady," the guard said, bowing to her. "You should see yourself inside. Princess's orders."

Twilight looked around, wondering whether she might wait for the guard to leave before exploring a bit, but decided it wasn't worth it. There were too many other guards around. It would be too easy to get caught.

She stepped up to the ebony doors and pushed one of them open. It was already partially cracked, so there was no need to open a latch. A crest of light expanded and spilled out across the threshold, and she blinked as she stepped into it.

The inside looked like a miniature version of the Canterlot Castle entrance hall. The architecture was modeled after it almost perfectly: marble walls, vaulted ceilings, red carpet, sconces—all it was missing were the stain glass windows. There was even a small version of Princess Celestia's throne in the back, albeit without the stairs leading up to it. There were two staircases on either side, leading up to the second floor.

Twilight stepped across the red carpet, very aware of how dirty the hooves of her suit must have been, and looked around at the archways in the walls, each one arcing over a door. She had no idea where to go, and wondered whether she should just wait here for someone to come down.

She stepped up quietly to get a better look at the throne. She couldn't help but feel ill at the thought of Princess Celestia sitting in it. It was one thing to be sitting at a castle, managing the country. It was quite another to be sitting at the head of a barracks, commanding an army. As much as it was staring her in the face, she still refused to believe Celestia would wage war against an innocent population.

"TWILY!"

Twilight jumped and turned around. She hadn't heard that voice in over three days.

A white stallion with a blue mane stood at the entrance to the barracks, dressed in a red uniform with white sashes. She had never seen a stallion smile so brightly, and she couldn't help but smile herself at the sight.

"Shining Armor?!" she said.

Twilight didn't wait for her brother to start charging down the hallway. She was already galloping towards him before he could say another word.

They met halfway, and slammed into a hug so tight it made Celestia's seem mild.

"Twily! You're alive!" she heard her brother say.

They embraced for another few seconds before parting.

"Princess Celestia said she would find you," he said. "I never doubted her for a second!" He reached a hoof up and rubbed it into the top of her head. "My little sis. Up to the challenges of war! Wait until mom and dad hear about this!" He looked down at her. "Although, I have to say, that suit does not match your color."

Twilight's smile was starting to make her lips hurt, but she couldn't stop. She simply batted a hoof into Shining Armor's chest and tried to regain her composure. "What is going on?!" she said, trying not to laugh. "Why are you here?! Is this—" she jumped up at the prospect, "Is this some sort of rescue mission?! Are you here to rescue all the scientists?"

Shining's smile faltered, and he raised a hoof up to comb his hair back. "Ehe... uh... noooot exactly." He laughed nervously.

Twilight's smile also started to falter, and she stopped bouncing. "I... I don't understand," she said. "What are you all doing here, then?" She looked around, as if expecting someone to jump out and yell "gotcha!". "Princess Celestia told me she wasn't aloud to be in this area. She shouldn't be here. Couldn't she get in trouble?"

Shining scratched the back of his neck. "Well, she, uh, is the Princess. I'm sure she has as much right to be here as any other pony."

Twilight scowled. "That's not what she said in her letter."

Shining thought for a bit, and then smiled, patting Twilight on the shoulder. "Look, why are you worrying about this? We found you! You're going back home!"

Twilight pulled away, and let Shining's hoof drop to the floor. She shook her head. "I just don't understand," she said. "Ponies are dying out there! I've seen how bad it is." She backed up a few steps and continued shaking her head. "I guess I just want to know how Princess Celestia and the Canterlot military fit into all this."

A look of understanding hit Shining, and a light smile crested his lips. He stepped up to her and looked down into her eyes.

"I promise, Twilight," he said, "we never wanted to hurt you. You weren't our enemy."

Twilight closed her eyes and opened them. "Then who is?!"

Shining lifted his forehoof and waved it back at the entrance doors. "Those... scientists! The ones who are creating all this destruction and chaos! The ones who are sending all these creatures through the portals." He put his hoof down. "Look, I don't know how all this started. I don't have the big picture. All I know is, Princess Celestia informed us of a great threat against Equestria." He took a deep breath and straightened his posture. "That's our job, Twi. To protect the lives of our fellow ponies against threats like this one."

Twilight's mouth gaped, and she squinted her eyes. "That's what you're telling yourself? That you're protecting Equestria?! That's your excuse for murdering innocent ponies?!"

Twilight put a hoof to his face. "I follow my orders, Twilight," he said. "According to Princess Celestia, the ponies we're fighting are not innocent."

"NOT INNOCENT?!" Twilight screamed. "My friend out there was an office worker, following orders just like you. She has a little sister! All she wants is to see her again. And you think she's threatening Equestria?!"

Shining opened his mouth to say something, and closed it again. His face went even paler than usual, and for a moment, he looked like he was about to be ill.

"Look," he said, slightly shaking, "None of this is black and white. Some of the ponies in there may be like you or your friend. But there's no way to know! It's—"

"—complicated?" Twilight finished.

They both looked at each other, and Twilight thought she saw something in his eyes. They had known each other for too long to be able to hide stuff from each other, and Shining finally gave in.

"Look, I've been thinking about this too," he finally said. "Something about this whole thing is... not right. It isn't like Princess Celestia to wage war on a corporation like this." He sighed. "This whole thing has been bothering me ever since we arrived."

They looked at each other again, before both opening their mouths at the same time.

"I think you should—"
"I think that—"

"Go ahead," Twilight said.

"I think you should talk to her," Shining said. "You're her prized student. Maybe you can find out what's going on, and try and talk some sense into her."

Twilight put a hoof to her face. "Talk some sense into her," she repeated. "Talk some sense into Princess Celestia?!" She put her hoof down. "I never thought I would ever hear those words. I've known Princess Celestia for most of my life, and she has never once done anything I disagree with."

Shining stepped up to her. "Then my guess," he said, "is that something is very wrong."

Twilight nodded, and they finally looked each other in the eye one last time. Both of them couldn't help but smile again, and they reached their hooves around and embraced again.

"Come on," Shining said, parting from the hug. "Let's get you something to eat."

=========================================================

Princess Celestia had gone all out for her superior officers, as far as the cuisine went. In fact, according to Shining Armor, she was trying her best to deliver the same food to all the troops, with mixed results. There was very little in the way of desserts, but the majority of the food was surprisingly fresh considering it was all imported from remote towns and farms. The apples were particularly good. Twilight hadn't had a meal as nourishing and filling since the going-away party her family threw for her.

Nevertheless, she couldn't help her mind being stuck on her impending meeting with Princess Celestia. She desperately wanted answers, and yet, she was so full of questions that she wasn't sure which ones to ask first. The whole situation felt much larger than anything she had dealt with before, and part of her felt like she was about to infringe on something beyond her league.

Shining Armor didn't say anything about it, but Twilight could tell through all his reminiscing that the same questions were gnawing at him. The only time he mentioned anything about it was right after the meal, when he offered to find the Princess for her. In fact, it wasn't so much an offer as a statement. He suggested it just before walking out the door.

And now, Twilight was pacing up and down the red carpet, waiting with baited breath, sure that the next time she turned to face the doors, Princess Celestia would be walking through them. It made her uncomfortable every time.

In fact, by the time Princess Celestia finally stepped across the threshold, Twilight had almost worked herself into a frenzy, and had to actively work to not let all her pent up energy loose at once.

Shining Armor was the first one through.

"I found her, Twilight," he said, stepping over the threshold. "Turns out, she was on her way over here to check on you."

The light emanating from the Princess was attenuated, making it much easier to distinguish her body. It didn't take anything away from her presence, however.

She smiled calmly at Twilight. "I gather Shining Armor took care of you while I was gone?" she asked.

Twilight was about to answer when she realized it was a rhetorical question. Celestia stepped up to her and lowered her muzzle down to her ear. "If there's anything else you need, don't be afraid to mention it." She lifted it again, and continued walking past her until she was at the throne in the back.

"Now," she said, taking a seat, "Shining Armor says you have some questions for me." She smiled warmly. "I can only imagine how confusing this must be for you, and I believe it would only be fair for you to know as much as I can tell you."

She glanced at Shining Armor, who nodded and turned to leave.

"He's—" Twilight turned to look at her brother.

Celestia waited until he had stepped outside the door and closed it before continuing.

"Shining Armor is too close to the troops to hear what I have to say," she said. "I don't want rumors to start affecting morale."

Twilight looked at the Princess, then back at the door, then back at the Princess again. She trotted right up to the throne.

"This isn't like you, Princess," she said. "I've never known you to wage war before! Much less against innocent civilians." She started pacing before the throne. "What is going on?! I thought you couldn't come here! How did you find out about this? What does this have to do with Equestria? What—"

Celestia put her hoof up, and Twilight fell silent. Twilight looked up at her, trying to keep her interrogative stance, but couldn't hold it after seeing the pitiful look on Celestia's face. If anything, it looked like many of the questions Twilight was asking were wearing on her just as much as they were Twilight. She closed her eyes and breathed deep before looking wearily back at her.

"I can see I have a lot to answer to," she said quietly. "And I understand all of your concerns. This is not something that I would normally do, and if it was any other situation, I would do everything in my power to prevent the situation that we're in now." She got up from her throne and started walking around the room. "But I suppose you have a right to know."

Twilight watched as she started walking along the walls. "Know... what?"

It took some time for Celestia to gather her thoughts before she turned back towards Twilight. She had never seen her look so serious before.

"Everything you have seen so far," she started, "The new creatures, the experiments, the political divisions—even your own acceptance as an employee is all but a small tip of a much larger problem."

She lit her horn, and a wave of light spilled out onto the floor. It changed hue into a dark green, and a strange canvas was painted before Twilight: nebulous clouds, islands of floating green land, eerie lights in the distance.

"Xen," Celestia said, "is what they call the world between worlds. It was a discovery that should never have been made. We were not ready for it, and the creatures terrorizing this facility are but a pinprick of the proof."

She closed off the light, and the canvas on the floor disappeared, reverting back to the brilliant red carpet.

"It is not just this world that is the problem now," she said. "What we have done is open a rift between Equestria, and many, many other worlds: worlds much stronger than us." She looked Twilight in the eye as she said this. "I have seen one of these worlds. I have seen the one which poses the most imminent danger to Equestria."

She turned around and stepped off to the side, staring at one of the many arches along the marble wall. "It is my duty," she continued, "to ensure the safety of My Little Ponies. They have been my children: my family, and after all that we have been through, I could not live with myself if I let anything happen to them."

Twilight couldn't help but interrupt at this point. "But, ponies are dying out there as we speak!" she said. "The soldiers that you are sending out there are committing murder!"

Twilight couldn't see from the back, but Celestia made a movement as though she had closed her eyes tightly, and tried to block something uncomfortable.

"I want to help them, Twilight," she said. "And I would, if that was possible."

"It is possible!" Twilight shouted. "You can call off these attacks. Try and rescue the scientists!"

Celestia turned back to face Twilight again, and Twilight could see that one of her eyes was a bit puffy. She was very good at trying to hide it, but Twilight had been too close to her to ignore something like that.

"These are things," Celestia said, "that do not entirely make sense until you are sitting on the throne: until it is you who have to make the decisions." She came right up to Twilight and got down onto the floor. Twilight did the same: both of them sitting comfortable on the red carpet together, like old friends.

"Try to see things through my eyes. Let's assume I call off the attack," she said. "Let's assume that every pony survives this crisis, we close the rift between the worlds, and everypony goes back to living normal lives."

Twilight had no problems imagining this situation.

"Do you see any problems with this?"

Twilight considered what Celestia was saying, and wondered why she was even asking the question. Any pony who saw a problem with ponies living happy lives must have a very strange world view. She shook her head.

"Naturally," Celestia said. "It's the perfect scenario, in the mind of the average pony. Even ponies who have great power, and much experience as rulers would agree that that is the best solution. For example, my sister believed that was the correct solution."

Twilight looked confused. "I don't get it," she said. "What's wrong with everypony being happy?"

"Absolutely nothing," Celestia said in a heartbeat. "In fact, if everypony could be forever happy, and forever safe, then everything would be black and white, and ruling Equestria would be one of the easiest jobs there is."

Twilight cocked her brow. "So, what's the problem?"

"The problem is information," Celestia said. "Once all the ponies are rescued, how many of them would know exactly how the rift to the other world was created?"

Twilight shrugged. "Who cares? Everyone who survived would want nothing to do with it anymore. It would be useless information."

Celestia eyed her closer. "Do you know that?"

Twilight put a hoof to her forehead and made an exasperated noise. "I don't even know why this is an issue! Nopony would ever want to purposefully risk destroying Equestria! Especially not after almost being killed in this giant mess!"

Celestia didn't move. Her eyes were still on Twilight, with an almost aggravatingly understanding look. It made Twilight feel like a little filly again.

"What?!"

Twilight didn't know what made her ask it, but she couldn't stand being looked at like that anymore.

Celestia just kept staring at her though.

"Oh, nothing," she said simply. "You just remind me of a certain Princess, long, long ago."

Twilight cocked her brow. "Your sister?" she said sarcastically.

"Me," she said simply.

Celestia shifted in her spot. "Let me try explaining it to you this way," she said. "Everypony at this facility looks at their job as more than just an occupation. Science is their passion, Twilight, just as magic is your own passion."

Twilight gave her a "get to the point" look, but tried to hide it behind an understanding guise. She desperately wanted to understand, but nothing she had heard so far made any sense.

"If Canterlot were to be destroyed, and you were nearly killed at the hand of your own magic, what would you think? Would you forget everything you learned?" She leaned in closer. "Or would you be driven to learn more? Perhaps, to find out what went wrong? What you did wrong? And try to correct it?"

Twilight opened her mouth to say how she obviously wouldn't want to use magic anymore, but the last questions made her think. It was very unusual for anything to go wrong during her spells. However, every time it did, she had always delved that much deeper, checked out that many more books, and studied that much harder.

"I—"

What was she going to say? That she wouldn't give up until she got the spell right? That she would keep researching until she found out the cause of the disaster? That everything that happened would define her lifelong goal of realization and redemption from that day forward? Nothing that was going through her mind could help with her argument. Attempting to give up magic entirely would only increase her curiosity, and make her life miserable.

Celestia seemed to be able to read all these thoughts just by looking at her.

"I think," Celestia said quietly, "you're beginning to see the problem." She lifted her head back up and shifted in place. "The first time this happened, it was a small group of fanatical unicorns experimenting with a new kind of magic. Back then, they found themselves in trouble, just as these scientists are now, and I did exactly what you would have done: I rescued every pony involved, told them of the dangers of what they were doing, and let them go their way." She closed her eyes. "That was over two thousand years ago." She opened them. "But the memory is still with me today. Those few ponies rebuilt their magical domain into a massive cult, and they did it so quickly and stealthily that I wasn't even aware of it until they were threatening half the country." She leaned back in towards Twilight. "Perhaps you've read of the event that came of it in your history books."

Twilight felt her stomach drop. "You don't mean... " Her eyes went wide. "The Equestrian Mage War?" she whispered.

"Followed by the Great Unicorn Purge," Celestia finished. "It was a dark time, Twilight. It took five hundred years to recover." She bowed her head, and spent a few seconds in silence before lifting it back up. "I was young back then. I had only first started ruling. I was tired of ponies before me ruling with such an iron hoof. I wanted to be more trusting."

"But you are trusting!" Twilight said. "I've seen the way you rule. You've never left ponies to die before, or killed anypony because of something they did, or studied, or thought. It's not like you—"

Celestia shook her head. "And I don't want it to be," she said. "I was much more harsh before you knew me. After the purge, I was afraid of making the same mistake again, and I did some things that I still regret." She took a deep breath. "But that's all behind us now. I have tried very hard to return to the trusting sovereignty I had first sought."

Celestia shook her head. "Not this time, though," she continued. "This time, it's almost an exact repeat of the events from before. And with the information I've been gathering, it has the potential to be worse than anything seen during the Equestrian Mage War. I cannot take that risk."

"So you're simply going to kill everypony off?" Twilight said.

Celestia's smile faltered, and the light emanating from her wavered, and nearly turned to shadow. She looked like she was fighting off a large weight that was crushing her from above.

"They're already dead, Twilight," she whispered. "They've been dead ever since the portal was opened. Whether their bodies live through this event or not, they will never be able to return to the life they once had."

Twilight was having a hard time getting past the look on her face. It really did look like she had given up on the situation: like she honestly believed that this was the only option.

"W-What about closing the portal?" Twilight asked. "How do you expect to close all the rifts—close the way to "Xen"—if you kill everypony who knows how to close it?"

Celestia shook her head. "That is beyond our control," she said. "The rift is impossible to close."

Twilight stood up. "Lambda!" she said. "Lambda can close it. I know. They've been working on it ever since it opened!"

Celestia remained on the floor, and gave Twilight a look as though she wished Twilight would do the same. "Lambda," Celestia said, "is the team who opened the rift in the first place. If anything, they are the most dangerous group."

"But we have to get to them! Even if they're going to give up their lives, they at least can spend the last few hours of them trying to redeem themselves! At least give them a chance."

This time, it was Celestia's turn to stand up. "If you knew what I do—if you could see what I have seen—you would think differently."

Twilight backed up. "If I knew—but, how would you know?" Her eyes widened as she started to realize something. "You've... wait a minute—" She stopped and lifted a hoof. "You've been in contact! But, who would—"

She felt a chill run from her head down through the rest of her body.

"That... pony in the suit!" She backed up even further. "That pony that's been watching me. He's been contacting you, hasn't he?"

Celestia stepped up to Twilight, and her countenance almost looked frightened. "Now, Twilight—"

"You've been talking to him this whole time!"

"Twilight, this has nothing to do with you."

"THIS HAS EVERYTHING TO DO WITH ME!"

They stared at each other for a moment, and Twilight could see Celestia's thoughts racing as her face went from scared to angry to confused and back again. Neither of them moved. The air was particularly thick, and she could feel the heat from the lit sconces on the wall.

"I believe this discussion is over."

With one swift move, Princess Celestia stepped around Twilight, approached the door, and turned with one last look. "We'll discuss this further in the morning, after you're well rested." She crossed the threshold, and was just about to leave entirely when she stopped. "I'm..." she paused. "I'm glad to see you're safe."

With that, she stepped away, and the entire room dimmed as her aura disappeared with her.

Twilight ran off down the hallway, and stepped out the door a moment later, only to see Shining Armor standing at the foot of the stairs.

"Twilight," he said, walking up to her. "I just saw Princess Celestia leaving. What happened?"

Twilight looked off in the distance as the bright aura faded away. Thoughts raced through her head, each one vying for attention, and she had to work to keep from drowning in them. She desperately wanted answers, but nothing she could think of would convince the Princess to speak rationally.

She thought about Rarity, and Rainbow. She thought about the Lambda Lab. She thought about everything Celestia had said.

And then, she thought about Canterlot, and her brother. The Princess wanted her home. She wanted her under her visage. She wanted to under her control. And the more she thought about it, the more furious she got.

Finally, she turned back towards Shining, and uttered two words.

"We're leaving."

=========================================================

It took a while to explain everything to Shining Armor, and even then, he only partially understood. They walked as she explained it, trying to whisper everything so no other pony would hear.

"So, you really think the Princess has lost it?" Shining Armor asked.

"I don't know." Twilight looked up to make sure no other ponies were looking at them. "But I think she may have been influenced somehow. If I go back to Canterlot now, I'll never get another chance to help close the rift."

"Twily!" Shining Armor stopped and spun Twilight around. "This isn't a light decision. If you choose not to go back to Canterlot now, you may never see it again!"

Twilight couldn't help but remember what Celestia had said about never truly returning to her former life.

"I'm not sure I could really return there even if I wanted to."

Shining Armor cocked his brow. "Huh?"

Twilight shook her head. "Nevermind. I need you to do me some favors before I go." She looked around. "Two of my friends were captured before I was taken prisoner. I need you to find them, and free them."

Shining Armor scratched his head, mouth gaping, trying to work out what was being asked of him. "Twilight, I don't even know what they look like. How am I—"

"One is a white unicorn with purple curly hair. The other's a blue pegasus with a rainbow mane and tail."

"Rainbow mane and—Twily, are you sure you're not just making this up?"

Twilight ignored him. "Once they're free, I need you to go to the cage that's on the street and free the three fillies that are trapped inside." She indicated a hoof in the direction of the cage. "One of them is related to my friend. I need you to take them away from here, somewhere far away. Ponyville, perhaps."

Shining Armor closed his mouth and glared at her. "Twilight, Ponyville is a long way a way! How am I supposed to do all this without—"

Twilight waved her hooves. "I really don't care," she said. "Just... do it somehow. We need to get out of here while we still can. I need to reach the Lambda Complex, and I'm going to need all the help I can get."

She reached out and grabbed her brother's hoof, lifting it up and grasping it close to her chest. "Promise me, brother." She made a face she hadn't made since she was a filly, trying to convince her brother to let her have a second scoop of ice cream. It was a face Shining Armor had never been able to resist.

Shining signed. "All right, Twilight, I'll do what I can." He lifted a hoof. "But no promises!"

Twilight smiled and almost jumped at how well that face still worked. "Great!" she mouthed. "Now, what's the best way to get out of here?"

Shining glanced around, and lead Twilight off the road, into a shadowed area where there weren't any soldiers. The path wound around and twisted, going around small buildings, sword-sharpening stations, target practice boards, and other places that were not being used at this time of night. Eventually, they made it to the wall in the back, in an area almost impossible to see due to the lack of light.

"There's a sewer drain right around here," Shining whispered. "I don't know where it leads, but it's large enough for a pony to slide down. The guards use it as a dumping place for some of the left-over trash and scraps of food. Your best chance of not being caught is through there."

Twilight peered through the large pipe opening and cringed at the smell. She held a hoof up to her nose and looked up at Shining Armor. "Thanks," she said.

She was about to start climbing in when Shining Armor grabbed her and hoisted her into a tight hug. Twilight almost cried out from how tight it was.

"I love you, sis," Shining said. "Don't get yourself into too much trouble, okay? I'd like to see you in one piece again."

Twilight took a deep breath as soon as her brother released her. "I'll see what I can do, BBBFF," she said.

They both smiled.

"If I manage to complete my task at the Lambda Complex, I'll see if I can meet you over in Ponyville. That's where Rarity said she used to live. It's probably the safest place to be."

Shining Armor nodded. "That'll be the first place I go." He looked around. "I just hope I don't forget any of those errands you gave me."

Twilight pushed Shining Armor in the chest and giggled. "Get going, big brother."

Shining backed up and gave her a sarcastic smile before looking at her normally again. "Good luck, sis."

He turned around and started heading back to the camp. Just before he made it back to the main road, he turned his head, and they looked at each other one last time. It only lasted a second. And then he was gone.

Twilight turned back towards the pipe. She held her nose and wafted her hoof in front of it, trying not to imagine what kind of trash had been poured down recently. Then, taking a deep breath and holding it, she bowed her head down, and dove straight into the pipe.

Half-Life: Equestria

by Ganymede

Pony Mesa Inbound

Anomalous Gemstones

Unforeseen Cons-equines-es

Office Colt-plex

We've Got Horstiles

Blast Bit

Pony Up

On A Bale

Appre-hay-sion