As Scootaloo was about to be finished inside the dreaded factory, a new light saves her.
Taken place straight after Rainbow Factory; Scootaloo finds herself saved and escapes the horrid factory, but her adventure is not over yet. In fact, some would say it has only begun.
There is something not right. And Scootaloo, alongside her new friends, must stop it, before it takes more victims. But as lives are saved, revelations will be found and friendships will be forged, broken and gained.
Also, take note that I did not realize there was an official sequel.
Authors Note: This takes place after the end of the original Rainbow Factory, when Rainbow Dash had just captured Scootaloo at the end. All events taken after are all my own work.
Rainbow dash pushed hard on the now-trapped Scootaloo's chest, making her scream in pain.
"You think this is funny" she answer back, with anger in her tone "You have wasted my own precious time in capturing you back. You should have just stayed and died, like a good little filly, but nooooooo, you just had to go out of your way and cause a ruckus, making us tear up this Celestia damn place to get you back. Do you know how annoying that is?"
Scootaloo didn't replay, still rearing back with pain, and did not notice the two mares fly down and stand beside Rainbow Dash. Neither did she notice other pegasus coming by, some landing, others just hovered in place. Yet they all seemed to make sure they were around Scootaloo, no matter how far away they were. Unexpectedly, Rainbow Dash started to laugh, and not to soon later the other pegasus did too, all laughing in garrison, echoing all other the area.
Scootaloo took this opportunity to try to escape, but sadly, did not get far, as Rainbow Dash noticed her trying to escape, and quickly closed the short distance Scootaloo had made, pinning her to ground once again. Scootaloo screamed in pain, as she felt like her ribs were being crushed.
"No. You're not getting away this time, Scootaloo!" Rainbow Dash smirked wickedly as she picked her up by her chin, but Scootaloo did not move an inch when she did so, knowing she had no chance of escape. She just simply closed her eyes as she remembered the two ponies who had never let her down. Her friends.
She remembered the fun times she had with the Cutie Mark Crusaders, playing with them and trying her best to get her Cutie Mark. Applebloom. Sweetie Belle. She will never see them again, she knew that, and yet, she was glad; glad that her friends would never have to go through the same pain and torment she went through. They would live on, leading amazing and wish-fulfilling lives. Her only regret being she is never going to meet with them again. Not for the last time.
And Rainbow Dash, the one pony she looked up to, the one pony who she thought was going to help her through her flying, was, ironically, the one pony who was stopping her from flying at all.
And Aurora. Not her. Why? She did not deserve her fate. But it happened.
Scootaloo snapped out of her resistance and finally stood up. "Go ahead, kill me" she half-angrily, half-groggily yelled "At least now I know the truth about you."
"What? As if you know anything about me" Rainbow Dash replied nonchalantly
"I know enough" a sense of serous in her tone. "I know you love the Daring Doo novels, spending entire nights awake just reading them. I know you always wanted to join the Wonderbolts. Anypony who knew you knew that. I know you are the fastest flyer in all Equestria. as if I even needed to say."
Rainbow Dash didn't say, or do, anything. Seemingly being engaged in Scootaloo's speech.
"And I know", now in a completely serious tone, "that you are willing to kill poor, innocent pegasi if they aren’t up to your standards. Am I right? Huh? Am. I. Right? Scootaloo smirked at the end of her speech."
"My standards?!" Rainbow Dash yelled in shock!
"Yes, your standards." Scootaloo copied. "To you, Useless wings mean useless pegasus. That's what your standards are. So go ahead, be rid of me. At least I’m not giving you the satisfaction of trying to please you. At least I’ve proved myself worthy enough to go against your standards. So just go on ahead, I no longer care." And Scootaloo ended her seriousness by sticking a tongue out at her.
Whatever Scootaloo said, it must have been something that caused fear, of all things, inside Rainbow Dash, as it caused Rainbow Dash's grip on Scootaloo to loosen, and she dropped Scootaloo back down with a thump. "I, you, you little..." she trailed off, somehow taken back by Scootaloo's speech. "That's, IT!!! Shut up! Just! Shut! Up!" The other pegasi watched in a silent spectacle, confused by Rainbow Dash's broken outburst.
Just! You! Shut up now! Shut up ! Shut up! Shut UPPPPPPPPPP! She screamed as loud as she can, and, somehow, appeared to have been broken down. This didn’t last long, though, as her face changed unexpectedly from anger to a snarling disposition.
Rainbow Dash frantically looked round at the other pegasi, who seemed to just stare in disbelief at the mare in front of them.
"Huh? What is it? What the buck are you staring at? Do I look funny to you?" Her voice now rife in anger.
"Not fun being the centre of an awkward situation, is it?" Scootaloo smirked, and chuckled lightly.
Rainbow Dash stared back down at Scootaloo, and started to hit her! Repeatedly. Each time, Rainbow Dash yelled. And each time, Scootaloo yelled in pain. As suddenly as it happened, it stopped, with Rainbow Dash now slowly and heavily breathing.
Rainbow Dash said nothing. Apparently taking her time to collect herself.
As Rainbow Dash cleared her throat, she flatly said "Come on", now back to her cold, heartless self, and not even seeming to act like she remembered what she did not too long ago.
As Rainbow Dash put a hoof on Scootaloo, she now knew this is it! The finale for Scootaloo. Her last chapter. No one is going to save her.
"Goodbye" she barely whispered, before closing her eyes and waited for her impending doom ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Smash
Scootaloo reopened her eyes, and what she saw, made her jaw reopen too. In fact, it made every pony in the vicinity do so as well.
A pegasus pony had smashed straight through a window, and landed quickly, and yet somehow also gracefully, landed straight down onto the metal flooring, no less 15 pony lengths away from the young captive.
"Let her go!" it ordered in a stallion's tone. "Now!”
“And just who the Tartarus are you?” Rainbow Dash ordered.
The pegasus didn't reply , and instead, just stood there, unfazed. Scootaloo took a good look at the un-shifting pegasus, but could not believe what she saw.
This particular pony appeared to be wearing an all-over black body suit, an attire which reminded of her of the mysterious Mare-do-well, except this pony was wearing flying goggles, similar to the ones worn by the Wonderbolts. This pegasus pony also wore wearing armor, very much like the guards in Canterlot, but were silver, and had no head dressing, in place a lock of messy, deep-blue mane. The thing that most stood out for Scootaloo, however, was what the pegasus was wearing over his wings; armor. Not just normal amour, but openly covered armor, with protrusions coming out the sides; thick, metallic yet blunt protrusions.
What, am I staring at? Scootaloo thought to herself, to weak to speak out.
The unknown pegasus and Rainbow Dash stared directly at each, in a stalemate which looked like it could go on for eternity, until Rainbow Dash finally spoke up, ending the pause of silence.
“I said” clearly ireful of the situation “Who in Tartarus are y-”
“Let her go!” he quickly interrupted “Don’t make me repeated myself. I said, NOW!”
Who is he.
Once again, the two ponies stared directly at each other, once again in a stalemate, and once again Rainbow Dash intervened; she raised a hoof at him and said “No matter. Guards, take him out. I want him out of my way. He annoys me. And he’s rude. Dispose of him already.” She said nonchalantly.
On that remark three guards up above them dove straight down at the armoured Pegasus.
Run. Move. Leave now. Get out while you still can. Why are you here? She wished she could speak out, but her voice left her alone with her thoughts.
The stallion did not move, or even flinch, even as the guards were nearly on him. Instead all he did was crouch slightly downwards.
What are you doing. Move. Get out.
And all he did, was inhale. Deeply.
Whack
To the surprise of everypony, Scootaloo, Rainbow Dash, the guards ever pony the stallion quickly and powerfully unfolded his wings, rising his body as he did so, and smashed all three guards away with his wings, knocking them high upwards, but did not try move away, instead, just dropped limply to the metal ground. After, he just simply exhaled deeply.
Are they, dead?
As the bodies hit the floor they all screamed in agonizing pain.
No, they aren't, Scootaloo thought, but, how did he do that. Are his wing- armor (as she called it) really powerful enough to do that to three guards in one go. “Who- who are you?” Scootaloo heard worry in Rainbow Dash’s question.
Could she be scared? No, that’s not possible.
“Me?” He said, before crouching his body once again, his back legs higher than before. “You can call me Soar.“ ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Soar? Have I heard of this name before?
“Soar?” Rainbow Dash quizzed . Even through his goggles she knew he was looking directly at her. Staring at her. She did not find this pleasant.
“No matter” she replied calmly “Your name, as interesting as it is, it is not going to win any favours for me”
“And I don’t plan to.” He replied straight away, a hint of snicker in his voice “Now, for the last time. Let. Her. Go.”
Why is he risking his life for me? Why? I am nopony special Scootaloo mused.
“And what if I say ‘no’” she snickered back “Oh waaaiiiiit, I’m not going to let her go, am I, so no. Guards?” She pointed at Soar again. As on command, the rest of the guards (four of them it appeared) landed on the metal ground, creating a barrier between Rainbow Dash and Soar.
She inhaled loudly, before yelling out enthusiastically “Fuck him up!”
“Gladly” one of them replied, and charged directly at Soar, with the other guards quickly in tow.
Soar, still in his earlier position, now charged directly at the guards, his position giving him the charging advantage. As the first guard Soar came into contact-range with struck a hoof out at his neck, Soar immediately parried by jumping over the guards swiping hoof, and landed a flying kick in return, flipping him over the metal railing, and hearing his yell gradually turn over into nothingness. With Soar seemingly distracted by the yell of the flipped-over guard; one of the other guards took this opportunity to attack, and nearly landed a hit on Soar’s face. Nearly. Soar blocked the guards hit with his own, and returned the favour by breaking the guards hoof backwards, making him scream in pain. Soar then took hold of his other hoof and threw him over his back, making him yell even louder, before double-bucking him out of conscious. The stallion was left with the two remaining guards, staring directly at each other in disbelief, stopped in their tracks to take in what they both saw.
Impossible. How did he just..... do that?
“Don’t just stand there and stare at each other like twats, I told you to fuck him up, and when I say fuck him up, I mean kill him” Rainbow Dash ordered in outrage
The two knew that fighting Soar was better then going against their leader. She doesn’t take kindly to subordination. At least with Soar, they thought, they knew, death would be quick; at least they won’t be turned into a rainbow. The two nodded to each other and were ready to re-charge at Soar, but were cut off from charging when two rectangular, blunt metal objects hit them both in the sides of their faces, fired with such force they both passed out before hitting the ground.
Scootaloo was able to see Soar’s bodies was facing sideways, with the exception that one of his wings was aiming directly at her. No, it was aimed at the guards, of which Scootaloo could now see his wing-armour was missing two pieces from it’s body.
So that’s what is on his wings.
This now leaves only Soar, Scootaloo (still too weak to talk), a rather pissed-off Rainbow Dash, and two mares, unmoving and unresponsive.
The three mares stood in silence, unable to comprehend what they had just witnessed: One, single lone pegasus just took out seven guards with ease, not one single guard was able to land even one hit at the stallion. Seven. Seven highly trained guards against one annoying pegasus. And yet…..
“Well that was boring” Soar announced, snapping the mares out of their shock. “Really, I mean, I thought that you guys were…. Actually, I didn't know what you guys were like, but jeez that was pathetic." Rainbow Dash was getting more and more frustrated with every word Soar said. “Seriously, I though these were highly trained guards, not weaklings."
WHAT are you? Scootaloo thought to herself, hoping her mind would have the answers.
“Equestria to mares!” Rainbow Dash announced, letting out all the frustration she garnered earlier towards the two mares that stood before.
“Yes” they both responded, looking towards the annoyed Rainbow Dash
“Do something, for fucks sake”, The mares now turned towards Soar, who just stood in his place, unmoving.
“But what do we do” One of the mares replied in fear, not wanting to look back towards the ruthless Rainbow Dash, as the other mare said “What can we do-”
“Fight! What else!? That is what you are supposed to do! When I say ‘jump‘, you don’t say anything, you jump, that is what subordinates do, you useless daughters of a whore! And when I sat do something I mean-”
*Bonk*
Huh?
Both mares worriedly looked back, not only find out why Rainbow Dash stopped mid-sentence, but also to find out the source of the off noise, but all they saw was a near-blacked out Scootaloo and a still Rainbow Dash, whose facial expression was not that of hatred, anger or frustration, but that of surprise.
“Rainbow….” one of the mare’s voice trailed off, as if waiting for a reply.
There was none.
“Dash….” the other mare said, trailing off as well.
She did respond this time, but the response was done by leaning forward slightly. She didn't stop. She just kept leaning forward, until she slopped down to the ground, revealing a pony behind her; carrying a rather overly-suspicious wooden board in her hoof.
Wha? Scootaloo thought confusedly
The pony that was behind Rainbow Dash less than a moment ago was similar, no almost identical, to what Soar is wearing, identical armor, identical goggles, identical body-suit, the only difference being this pegasus was not wearing any wing-armor, and the mane was a rather pale blonde.
Another one. Where did this one come from?
The two mares just stood in awe at the image they are witnessing before them.
“Hi” it said, in an oddly cheerful tone (and in a tone of a mare‘s voice too).
“ Aren't you going to ask me my name? You asked his” She asked.
“Ditz” Soar dubiously asked “Where did you get that plank of wood?”
“Found it” She replied in a somewhat guilty tone.
“Ditz…” he trailed off
“What”
“Where did you get that plank of wood?” he repeated.
“I told you, I found-”
“There is not any wood here. Only metal and cloud”
“Yes but they can keep wood, you know. They can have stores for this of thing”
"WHY would they"
Scootaloo just watched the two strange pegasi talk on, all to be more precise quarrel, over, well, pretty much nothing, to her mind. What she didn't notice was the two factory mares, and with good reason to; because they weren't doing anything. Nothing. Just fixed there. Inert. Unable to apprehend anything.
With the others distracted, the two factory mares knew this was a good opportunity to attack. Now was just as good a time as ever, they both thought.
“Sister” one of them whispered, just quiet enough so the armored pegasi wouldn't overhear. “Yes” the other replied in the same whisper.
Unexpectedly, they both instantly charged directly at Soar, barely four pony lengths away already.
“Wha-” Soar retorted startlingly, but promptly changed stance, and charged directly at the oncoming mares. The two mares in garrison jumped and stuck out their front hooves; ready to strike at the oncoming stallion.
“You will-”
“-die now!”
As they were about to collide, with Soar, he instantaneously ducked and swerved, unfolding his wings and sending them upwards; hitting both the mares on their necks and flipping them well over his head, floating almost seeminglessly in mid-air before painfully landing back down, muzzle-first on the floor.
“I know” Ditz interrupted softly, a sense of sadness in her tone as she carefully picked the filly up in her hooves.
Wait. What are you-
“Poor pony” she said slowly; but to Scootaloo, it was a whimper.
“Just, just why; no pegas- no anyone should have had to go through this. No one. I-I-I-I should have- we should have been here sooner”. Ditz was saying, heavily despondent.
Is she… crying? No; she’s…bawling.
“Ditz”
“If we had been here sooner, who knows how many more baby pegasi we could have saved”
“Ditz”
“Do you know how worthless I feel? I mean, we were lucky, lucky, to just save her, if we were here a moment later, who knows what would have hap-”
“DITZ!” Soar yelled surprisingly
“What” she yelled back, before she realised she was crying in her goggles. “Yes, sorry” she said calmly, pulling her goggles off her eyes slightly, allowing the tears to stream out before putting the back on. Scootaloo could have been mistaken, but she could have sworn she only saw one iris in her two eyes.
“Sorry, I just feel so worthless” Ditz said softly towards Scootaloo.
You’re not worthless, I know that
“Let’s leave now, Ditz” Soar said calmly, as to appease Ditz’s sadness.
“Yes, lets” Ditz replied, now appearing to cheer up.
But before they could move, Scootaloo blurted out groggily yet quickly “Wha-wait”
At that, Soar and Ditz both immediately looked at Scootaloo, but stayed silent to hear her out.
“Tha.. Tha…thank you.” Scootaloo said under her breath
“Don‘t worry about it.” Ditz replied motherly, bringer her closer to her body. Ditz saw Scootaloo open her mouth and looked at her, as if to reply, but interrupted her with “Don‘t say anything. Now, your troubles are over. Just relax. There‘s no more for you to say”
Scootaloo at that, closed her mouth and untensed her body, as if her body agreed to her remark and did just so.
“Hey, What’s going on here?” Yelled a unknown yet commanding voice.
The two saviors looked towards the voice and saw a small, but rather impressive, group of flying factory guards, one distinctly more heavily armored than the others. “What has happened here?” the armored guard yelled in the same commanding voice as before.
Must be the leader of the group Soar thought to himself
“See. I told you we were attacked.” Came another voice from the group, a slight tone of annoyance in his sentence “And you did not believe me” Now a tone of smug in sentence.
The commander of the group did not answer, or even respond, instead just looking straight ahead towards Ditz and Soar, giving off no emotion in his dead, unnerving eyes, as if peering into there souls.
Buck, he’s creepy Soar thought to himself, before the leader spoke up “Well? What do you have to say for yourselves?” he directed at Soar and Ditz, as if they would answer the instant he finished.
“Why are you asking them that?” The other guard desperately replied. “Can’t you see the other dead guards around them. Isn't that your answer?” Soar realized this guard had a particularly annoying shriveling in his voice.
“They‘re not dead” Ditz answered flatly
Buck, he’s irritating Soar thought again shaking his head in vexation. “Wait” he said to himself, and looked behind him towards the so-called dead guards 1...2...3... Soar then realized one of the knocked-out guards was missing from his spot.
Soar returned his gaze to the guards, more precisely, the irritating guard, who was still arguing with the captain of the group, sprouting off nonsense as if he wanted to prolong Ditz and Soar’s stay at the factory. “What do you mean let them say there side of the story, I told you there side of the story”
“I just want them to explain themselves, who knows, they-”
“You can SEE what is going on! Have you no eyes?” The guard still arguing with his commander, with no apparent to stop anytime soon. Soar was using this time to take a good look at the guard.
Broken hoof
Bruises on face
“Oh yeah it’s you” Soar said nonchalantly, accidentally interrupting the two guards ‘talk’, as it were.
“What do you mean it’s you?” he answered in a rather unhappy way. “I’m the pony who you broke their hoof. How could you forget something like that?”
“It’s not like that was something I would really remember-”
“Ah-bu-duh that was only moments ago!” The guard was easily frustrated with Soar’s laid-back demeanour on this.
“Yeah, but still…”
“ENOUGH!” The commander bellowed, breaking the awkward exchange of recent memories, causing all eyes to shift to him. “Enough.” He motioned to the guards as he pointed a hoof towards Soar and Ditz.
“Get them!” he bellowed, with the rest of the guards charging in suite.
“Ditz”
“Yes”
“Run”
Ditz, at that motion, immediately took flight, heading towards the ‘open’ window. However, Soar did not. He just stared at the unconscious Rainbow Dash, a look of sadness was worn on his face.
“Soar, come on!” urged Ditz, who was already by the ‘exit’.
Soar didn't move, still staring as if contemplating something on his mind.
“Soar they are getting closer! Move!” She was right; as the guards were now already upon him, the beaten guard at the front of the pack; he was the one that was wanting blood the most.
Almost on instinct, Soar suddenly jumped forward, grabbing the knocked-out Rainbow Dash and rushed backwards, just in time to dodge an oncoming attack from the blood-lust guard, barely missing his hoof as it clattered to the ground. Soar, at that, took flight, carrying the body between his hooves as he flew.
“Don‘t let them escape!” the captain of the group yelled to his subordinates as Soar caught up to the mare.
“Why did you-”
Ditz tried to asked quizzically, before being urged by Soar to move as he passed Ditz and escaped the factory, with Ditz, and the guards, shortly in tow.
“Get back here!” yelled the blood-lust guard as he, along with the other guards, flew through the window, before being abruptly stopped by a strong hoof draped across his shoulder. As he looked back to protest, he noticed that all the other guards had stopped as well, hovering in the air and watching the two ponies escape.
“There getting away, let go, we need to-”
“They aren't escaping” The captain interrupted, the pony who was holding the guard back. “They can never escape us” and grinned menacingly at that
Scootaloo weakly opened her eyes to take in her surroundings, her body faint; and was surely surprised by what she saw:
She was in a room, a bed to be more precise. She could see that she was in a cloud house (which was easily identifiable by the house being made out of clouds). As she looked around the room she could see it was somepony's bedroom; a closet stood on the side opposite her bed, clothes littered the floor untidily and simple desk sat near her bed. Posters unkempt stuck to the walls, stuck up in a random fashion. A door faced her, opposite her bed.
Scootaloo tried to stand up from her bed; she needed to move, but quickly found herself falling back down as a painful surge ran across her body. Scootaloo quenched her body as she lay back down.
Ow. That hurt.
Scootaloo stroked her chest to help relive the pain she just felt over the covers, but the then felt a strange feeling from underneath. She pulled up the covers to relieve that her chest was covered in bandages.
Where did these come from? They weren't here before.
Wait. Where am I?
The pegasus pony remembered. An odd time to remember, it would seem, but she remembered nonetheless.
She remembered it all. She remembered too much. She had to stop thinking just to collect her thoughts.
She remembered what happened to her before; captured, and ready to be killed by the bone pony she admired: Rainbow Dash.
Why did she do that? That wasn't the Rainbow Dash I knew- she couldn't be, but, she was. Why? Why Why Why Why Why
Scootaloo, awakening from her shocking memory, realised she was crying, hugging, the pillow she rested her head on.
"No" she assured herself quietly "No. No more crying, Scootaloo, she betrayed your trust, don't cry for her."
And yet, she sadly still was.
"Go away, you stupid tears" she berated to her eyes. "Stop thinking about her brain, I need to think about the rest of what happened. I need to know."
As suddenly as it appeared, it stopped. Her thoughts on Dash were gone, leaving her to think about what she wanted to think about. Scootaloo then closed her eyes allowing her to be perfectly alone with herself.
As she thought back, it didn't take her long to remember how she was saved; that was the thing she wanted to know about. She remembered almost perfectly the sight of a mysterious, armored pegasus swooping down the factory from out of nowhere, and him yelling, no, ordering, Scootaloo to be released. This was a memory she would not soon forget.
Who...was he? And why did he...help me?
She remembered how he took out those three guards in one go; with just a swipe from his wings. And his name:
Soar
Soar. That name. Who was he. Could that be his real name. No, couldn't be, it's seems too short for a name. But it seems so familiar, like i've heard it somewhere before.
The rest of the guards came next, and, just like before, he took them down without any problems.
Just, how was he able to...wait...
Her
That other pony. The mare that appeared behind her. Her name;
Ditz
Ditz, the pony that took out Rainbow Dash without anypony even knowing she was there. Scootaloo wondered how she was able to sneak into the factory. The stallion crashed in, so maybe she snuck in when all the commotion was turned to him. Or maybe she was in the factory the whole time.
That was not the only thing she remembered clearly about her, Scootaloo remembered how she acted so
Kind
She was acting so motherly. So gentle. She took out...her... in one go, like a fully trained Celestia guard, but she was as soft as a mother to her daughter. She was so...off. She, perhaps, treated Scootaloo in that short time than, anypony else did in the whole time Scootaloo was in the factory. She even
"cried" Scootaloo realised She cried. For me. No. She cried fro everypony. Everypony who fell victim to that...Celestia forsaken place. She cried for everypony who died.
"I got saved" Scootaloo said to herself "by a badass...and a mother"
"What?"
Scootaloo, though not contempt on removing from her thoughts what she had just realised, when back to her memories.
Then more guards came; there was yelling, and then they escaped. Ditz carried me out, and the pony was-
Scootaloo's eyes opened suddenly, trembling with fear, as she realised what Soar had done
The words were stuck in Scootaloo's throat; she was having trouble to bring her mouth what her brain wanted to say.
"Soar was...carrying...Rainbow Dash?"
She remembered back to when she had escaped from the factory, and was being carried by the mare known as Ditz. As she was being carried away Scootaloo weakly, and just barely, managed to see a simple image in front of her. It was Soar. But that was not what was troubling her: It was what he had in his hooves. Blury, and almost impossible to make out, but she did indeed see a blue...blob with a small patch of multi-coloured...string coming off it. To a normal pony in her position, they would be able to figure out what that was. But to Scootaloo, she knew exactly what it was. She had only a second to look before she blacked-out, but it was all she needed.
"No" Scootaloo whispered out "No!" she said "NO!!!" she screamed out loud "NONONONONONONONOOOOO!!!!"
How could he? Why would he? Doesn't he know what he has done?
Why didn't you just leave her there? She was... she. She's a monster. Why....take her?
Scootaloo was brought out of her devastating realisation by a sudden knock on the door.
"Hello. Are you awake?" Came a voice from behind the door.
Scootaloo's heart thumped so hard in her chest it felt like it would ultimately burst out.
Oh no! What do I do! I'm trapped! They're gonna...wait...
"Hello" the voice repeated
"Yes" Scootaloo answered
Why am I scared? Stupid Scootaloo she berated herself
"May we come in?" the voice asked softly
"Yes"
Scootaloo recognised that voice: the voice of the mare that saved her.
Scootaloo watched the door open, to reveal, as she was correct, the mare that saved her walked in.
"Is everything okay?" She asked as she stepped in. The voice belonged to a grey pegasus with a blonde mane and a cutie mark composed of bubbles (of all things), along with a peculiar set of criss-crossing eyes.
"Yes" Scootaloo said, her heart now fully calmed down as she saw the smile on the mare's face; it was the kind of smile a mother takes on when giving sympathy to her child.
"Good to know" came another voice, diverting Scootaloo's eyes to another pegasus, this one coming from behind the mare.
Scootaloo could see the other voice belonged to a pegasus stallion with a light blue body, dark blue mane and a winged bolt as his cutie mark.
"Where...am I?" Scootaloo asked cautiously, after both of the two ponies stopped at the side of the bed.
"Home" said the mare.
"My home, to be exact" the stallion stated matter-of-factly.
"What happened?" Scootaloo asked as she tried to sit up, but found herself being stopped by the mare's hoof as she gently pushed Scootaloo's head backed down to the pillow.
"Rest" said the mare "You need it".
"Don't you remember what happened?" the stallion asked quizzically.
"Yes" she answered, but couldn't hold back her eyes from making tears.
"Soarin!" the mare berated to him, turning her head to gaze angrily at him, before turning back to Scootaloo."Then don't" she said to her.
"Sorry" the stallion, now named as Soarin, said guiltily "Didn't mean to."
"Wait....Soarin? As in the Wonderbolts Soarin?" Scootaloo asked, seemingly forgetting she was crying not a moment earlier.
"Yes. You know me?" Soarin asked.
"You are one of the Wonderbolts. Of course I know you" excitement appearing in her voice "who doesn't?"
"Well-"
"Enough!" the grey mare interrupted.
Before Scootaloo could interject, the mare looked straight at her, the expression on her face telling her she knew best.
"You need to rest now" she said calmly
"But" Scootaloo tried to ask again, "what about-"
"Rest" she repeated simply
Scootaloo, no longer wanting to talk back, quietly retracted herself back into the covers, signalling she was ready to sleep.
At this motion, both Soarin and the unnamed mare walked out, closing the door behind them as they did so.
Scootaloo was now alone to her thoughts, but she didn't want to be; everything she had remembered- the only things she could remember- had caused her nothing but pain and misery. She didn't want to think, and so she didn't now, as she almost immediately fell asleep. She was weak.
The two ponies left the room and walked down the hallway, not ushering a word until they were out of earshot of the young pegasus.
"What do we do know" the mare asked as they walked down the corridor of the house.
"The same plan thing we had from the start" Soarin replied flatly "We just was a little side-tracked, that's all"
"That's all? That's all!" her voice now a barely contained anger. "You knew what the plan was, YOU were the one who thought of it!" She stopped walking.
"I don't see what the problem is" Soarin stated, he too stopped walking and turned round to look at the mare.
"You don't see what the problem is?" She said in an almost mocking tone. "The plan, Soarin, the plan-"
"DERPY!" Soarin yelled out.
The mare, now called Derpy, froze up at his yell, never before had he yelled out directly at her. He said nothing more, and continued walking down the corridor as if nothing happened.
"But" Derpy ushered out, trying to think of something to stop him, but nothing came out, until she thought "What about the other her? Why did you..." she trailed off.
The mare was trapped, chained up against the hard wall, back to it. All four of her hooves chained up purposely so that she cannot move; strung across from each so they couldn't touch. Though rusted and old, they did the job just as well. Her wings are restrained with chains as well, though they appeared to be considerably newer and unused. Her spectrum hair was more rough and frazzled than ever. Despite the harsh condition she was in; she still deserved worse.
Much worse.
Her voice was acrid from screaming for so long to be free; to be released, but what felt like only an hour for most, seemed like an eternity to her. Despite yelling out to be unchained for an hour now, a hour after waking up from unconsciousness, she never yelled out one thing; help. She had stopped by now, knowing that nopony was going to help her, she hung her downwards now, not just in anger, but in hopelessness.
She was alone in her thoughts, but everything she was thinking were way too grim to be seen here. (This wasn't grimdark, after all)
The sounds of a door opening took her notice sharply, the only sounds that were ever heard in this room other than her own voice. The mares head turned sharply to see, but recoiled just as sharply as the bright light hit her eyes. She had been alone in the darkness for a long time.
"Who's there?" she called out, her voice just as horrid as ever, but dry from yelling. "Show yourself"
As Rainbow Dash's eyes accustomed better to the light, she could know get a better look on her captor. It was Soarin, walking down the steps of the basement towards her. Now fully able to see, she saw that she was in an old, abandoned basement; the area was home to only dust and a few wooden tables, covered in nothing but a random assortment of mismatched tools and dirt. Alongside the wall was a pair levers, though the purpose of them seemed to be unknown for know.
"Who are you?" She asked to the stallion, who stopped but a pony lengths away from her, staring straight at her from with seriousness in his eyes.
"Don't you remember me?" He asked to her in a nonchalant voice, a tone that didn't fit his longfaced demeanor.
Rainbow Dash blew an angry raspberry at him in retaliation. "As if" she said in a mocking tone "Like I'd know you"
"Really?" He said in calm tone. "Tell me Miss Dash, did you or did you not ever want to be in the Wonderbolts?" His eyes firmly locked on her own.
Rainbow Dash was taken aback by his question How did he know that? Soarin saw the shock in her eyes when he asked; he knew the answer.
"Why did you change dreams?"
"I never said-"
"Did you need to?"
Rainbow Dash looked away from Soarin, before admitting "I had a new dream, one that didn't involved the Wonderbolts, why would you even ask...that..." She trailed off.
"Soarin. Now I know you, you are one of the Wonderbolts. I remember you" she smirked before "And I care about this because?"
"Was one of the Wonderbolts."
"Was, HA" she laughed at him "What happened, did little Soary-woary get fired" she mocked at him, enjoying herself as much as she can, considering her situation.
"Nope: Quit. And do you know why I quit?" He asked
"As if I care" She said dismissively
"I saw something, something else, something better I could do with my life. Something that was more than an entertainer, something that could help ponies; rather than just make them smile for a short time, I could make them smile forever. A smile that could last for them for as long as they live" Soarin moved closer to Rainbow Dash until his face was just a breath away from her "When I found out there was something better I could do, I quit the Wonderbolts and became what I am today" His voice now barely a whisper "I became...your enemy"
He let a smirk appear on his face as he moved back to his original place earlier, admiring his work.
"You...you....you BASTARD!!!!!" She screamed as loud as she can muster, anger brimming inside her as she realized "It was you!!! You were that pony that broke into the factory!!! You were the pony that took down all the guards!!! You were the one called-"
"Soar"
Her anger calmed down as he took a second to collect herself. "Why you little." Her voice low "When I get out of here, I will-"
"Do you know why I brought you here?" He interrupted, his voice and tone back to his original calm way.
"Let me guess" Her tone almost sarcastic "To torture me. Isn't that right? Nah, you wouldn't dare. You don't have the balls."
"I brought you here to give you a revelation. You needed to learn something"
Rainbow Dash just looked at him in disgust. "I need to learn nothing."
"Is that so." With that, he unfolded his right wing to reveal a small piece of paper that was stuck in between his feathers. He grabbed it out and stared directly at it as if his mind was full in thought. "Do you now Scootaloo's family?" He asked suddenly as he turned his focus at Rainbow Dash.
"pfff" she dismissed him "I don't think anypony knows that. In fact, why are you asking me this? What does that have to do with me?"
"Because if anypony knows about Scootaloo's family, it should be you."
"Me, ha. As if I would even care about her, let alone even know" Her voice as cold and uncaring as ever.
With that, Soarin moved his hoof around to show the paper he was holding for Rainbow Dash to read; it wasn't a piece of paper at all, it was a picture. On the picture Rainbow Dash saw a pegasus mare with an orange coat, a purple mane and a simple wing as her Cutie Mark. She had a look that seemed similar to:
"Scootaloo's mother?" She asked quizzically, shock filling her tone.
Soarin nodded before saying "She died during giving birth to Scootaloo. That's why she has no mother; she could never meet her". He gently put the picture down before unfolding his left wing, revealing another paper, he which again pulled out and focused on just like before. "And do you know her father?"
"If I never knew her mother, how would I even know her father?" She laughed at him.
"Really" he laughed back "Because, out of anypony, if would think that you would know him better than anypony else."
"Bah, even if I knew him is not like I would.....ever......" she trailed off before stopping completely as she saw the image on the new paper, which Soarin was holding but a hoofs away from her one face, her eyes now completely locked in shock at the picture in front of her. She could not take in what she was now looking at.
"It.. couldn't be? No"
"You, you're lying-you have to be." She broke down. In a matter of seconds, the cruel and unwavering Rainbow Dash; broke down into a scared and unhappy mare. "Th-th-there couldn't be any chance of him-"
"It did happen. Records never lie."
"But-but that would mean that Scootaloo-"
"Yes, Rainbow Dash, Scootaloo is, indeed, your sister."
A good stallion may know the truth about somepony, but a great stallion knows when to reveal it. Quote from Don Calamum ictu the fourth, beloved writer from the 600th-year solo reign of Princess Celestia.
Rainbow Dash was taken aback from what she was seeing. Nopony-not anypony- may be able to handle what was running through their mind. How could they? They can't; not even the once cold and heartless, the dark and deceptive, Rainbow Dash, was able to. And to think, this mare was the one responsible for the deaths of countless ponies, never once caring for their original lives, family and friends or anything else, just for the the sake of keeping the factory running. And to be brought down to her hooves in a matter of seconds, just by two simple pictures of the past.
"But...but...how can this be?" Stuttered the helpless mare, her body limp and hanging down from the strong chains, as if they gave up on herself, and her eyes sore from tears. Her voice thick with sorrow and despair, with the ever-vigilant Soarin staring down into her eyes and into her soul. He had won. His emotionless face somehow showing that.
"You tell me." Soarin replied, his voice as deadpan as ever.
"Why....why...why did he.....what about my...." Rainbow Dash tried to say, finding the words being caught in her throat. She was trying to find the right question to say to him; answers are needed for her, being the only thing she could have in her situation.
"I don't know" he sighed, facing down to the floor, "there's no point asking me these questions." Not wanting to meet her gaze, he threw the picture of the mare's past across the room, not caring where it will land.
"But you knew about-"
"I only knew that!" He said quickly, cutting her off, his eyes still staring down to the floor. "If you wanna know more, you're asking the wrong pony."
"But-"
"But nothing!" He sighed. "But. Nothing." And after finishing this, he moved away, walking calmly towards the wall on his left and leaving the mare on her own.
"Where are you going?" she asked as she noticed him walking away, any hint of anger or hatred in her voice was now drowned out by sorrow and confusion.
"Here" Soarin said as he stopped short of the wall, leaning his body against a rusted panel on the wall. The panel bearing two visible, albeit old and in near-unusable conditioned, levers. "What are you going to with those?" she asked as he placed his hoof over one of the levers.
"I'm going to relieve you" he replied simply.
"I see" Rainbow Dash said, a small smile suddenly appearing on her face. "Why are you smiling?" Soarin asked quizzically as he noticed her face.
"Do it!" she yelled abruptly "Do to now! Kill me! End my life! I don't deserve to live! I don't....deserve.....her..." Rainbow Dash's swift and unforeseen ordering soon became a saddened revelation. Soarin, on the other hoof, just stared at her in utter confusion, mouth agape, as if ready to tell her wrong. But nothing came up, and instead he just placed his eyes back towards the lever his hoof still clung on to, and placed his other front hoof over it as well, ready to pull.
"Rainbow Dash" Soarin said, attracting her attention.
"I'm sorry" and promptly his strength to pull the lever down with force.
"Bye" the mare whispered out, and clenched her body in the immediate action that was about to befall her.She was ready. Almost. There was still one last thing she wanted to do, to say but she knew there was no chance of that happening; not now, not ever.....
*Clunk*
*Grind*
*Whir*
Those are not the sounds the mare had expected to hear. Instead, she had only expected to hear just two sounds; the sound of electricity coursing through her veins, and sound of her own voice yelling in agony as her body was dying from the shock. These were not those sounds.
Before she had a chance to react, her body was almost flung forward as she fell down onto the hard floor. Her mind in utter confusion over what just transpired. She struggled to push her body off the ground as she found her hooves were weak and strained from the hours of being hung to the wall previously.
"What...happened?" the mare asked "Why...why am I still here?". She eyed her own hooves, seeing there are still trapped by the chain's shackles, but were now loose enough for her to move, if by not much. Her wings were still wrapped, though, as they were not connected to the the others.
"What do you mean?" Soarin said quizzically. He had apparently moved away from the levers on the wall and stood just a pony-body length away from the mare. "What did you expect to happen?"
"I EXPECTED TO DIE, WHAT DID YOU THINK I THOUGHT!?" she yelled in disbelief "I JUST REALIZED I WAS RESPONSIBLE FOR THE DEATHS OF.....OF......CELESTIA'S KNOWS HOW MANY POOR PONIES! DOESN'T IT MAKE SENSE TO EXECUTE ME FOR WHAT I'VE DONE!?" She finished. Despite her shouting in protest, Soarin knew there wasn't a trace of anger in her tone, just sadness. "I'm a monster. I'm a murderer; a heartless, cold-blooded killing machine. I'm no different to those contraptions in the factory. No difference, other than flesh and blood. No, just flesh." She cried, wiping her eyes with her spectrum mane, sobbing down on the floor with defeat.
Soarin didn't talk back to her, and showed no sign of response. Instead, he faced away to her and to his left, eyeing the two fallen picture's on the floor. Staring at them, he moved over and scooped them up in his wing, contemplating, just for a second, what he should do.
And he new what he had to do.
Turning back, he walked across the floor of the room, and stood just inches away from the fallen mare. "Here." He ordered offering the two photos towards her. "Have these" he offered.
"Wha-what?"
"Take them" he said warmly. And for the first time in years, she saw the one thing she never expected to see again. A smile. A real smile; the sincere kind of smile. And she never, ever expected to see it come from him, even from the short time she knew him. "They are yours now. And I ain't taking 'no' for an answer." And with that said, she reached forward with her left hoof and grabbed them, staring wide-eyed at the photo's, tears still falling down her cyan face.
Soarin turned round silently and made his way to the stairs, felling a small sense of pride in himself as he as about to leave.
"Are you gonna tell her?" she called out meekly, attracting his attention and causing him to pause mid-step.
"No" he replied simply and continued to walked back-up across the stairs. "You are" and shut the door behind me, leaving her alone in the dark once again; with but her mind and the now-hers photo's. Hugging them dearly, she closed her eyes and drifted off to sleep, ushering out only three words:
It had only been a few hours since Scootaloo had last woken up; a few hours since she had seen who had saved her, a few hours since she made herself to never tear up at her unwanted memories, and some time since she had been rescued for that Celestia-forsaken factory. In truth, she wasn't sure how long it had been since she was saved from her near-death fate; a few hours, a few days, heck, she even contemplated that it might have been a few weeks since she was rescued, but, however, she only thought about this for a minute, as she remembered to no longer think about these thoughts.
She had an epiphany; forget about the troubles of her past, and only care about the problems that will arise in the future, for they are what truly matter. Or at least, that was what only mattered to Scootaloo's mind. She had no idea how long it had been since she was awake again from the last time she awoke in the same bed in the same house and still wrapped in the same bandages. A couple of hours, maybe, but sadly she hadn't awoke again of her slumber from a normal awakening. No, she had awoken from a terrible, unforgettable nightmare:
"Your a terrible flyer, you know!" Came a voice from seemingly nowhere, and at the same time it seemed to come from everywhere.
"You couldn't even pass the bleeding factory exam!" Yelled another voice that was both different and the same than the last.
"Your wings are pitiful! You shouldn't have been born a pegasus to begin with!" Announced another voice.
"Heck, you shouldn't have been born at all!" Snide another unknown voice, laughing at the wreck of the pony.
She was alone, scared and breaking out in a fear-induced sweat, but her whole body was shaking and cold. The cowering pony, Scootaloo, was quivering as she listened to the harsh remarks of the voices. She was nowhere; as all she could see around her was darkness, darkness to everything but a small circle that seemed to be formed around her, illuminating her and a small space on the floor. This was all she could see.
"St-st-stop it! Pl-please stop i-it!" the scared young mare uttered out, her body bathed in fear from the onslaught of insults coming from the hidden voices. "You-y-you are-"
"We are what?!" The callous voice interrupted "Telling the truth!"
"No-no!" she opposed, backing up behind her, hoping to get away from the ignominious voices spurting out insult after insult.
"You can't get away!" A loud sudden voice came out from behind the orange pony, causing her to scream and fall forwards back into the center of the lighted void.
"WHERE ARE YOU!!" Scootaloo yelled frantically towards the darkness enclosing her. "GET AWAY!! I DIDN'T DO ANYTHING TO YOU!!"
"Oh really!" another unknown voice replied with hate. "Who's to say you didn't"
"But I don't know you." Scootaloo said in weak, hopeless tone. "I don't know who you are."
"That saddens me" came a more gentle, familiar voice to Scootaloo, coming from behind her. As Scootaloo turned her head to look behind her, her eyes widened and her mouth stood agape as her gaze fell onto the identity of the voice.
"Au.....Aurora" Scootaloo uttered out in disbelief. Her whole body froze as she eyed the said filly. "Is that really you?"
The pony is question was none other than her friend, Aurora Dawn. The same pony that she met and befriended in the deathly factory was sitting near her, no more than a few pony lengths away. She was sitting in her own light, much the same as Scootaloo was. However, the orange pegasus noticed that her friend was not looking at her, instead her she was staring at the ground in front of her.
"Yes" she finally replied, but her eyes not moving off the ground "It is me."
"Oh Aurora you're alive!" Scootaloo said as she immediately twisted her body around to face her properly "How are you alive?" She asked as unconsciously formed a grin on her face.
"I'm not" she replied in an emotionless tone.
"Wh-wh-what do you mean?" She stuttered as her mouth turned into a frown. "You can't say 'I'm not' when your'e right there, you-you're not making any sense." She finished as she cautiously took a step towards her.
"Don't take a step towards me!!" Aurora abruptly yelled when Scootaloo placed her hoof forward. "Never come near me."
"But...but Aurora it's me your friend Scootaloo. Don't you remember?" Her eyes started to fill with tears as she couldn't believe what her apparently dead friend was saying. "You gotta remember me."
"I don't wanna remember." Aurora Dawn announced as she slowly lifted her head. "I don't wanna remember" she paused as she looked Scootaloo dead in the eye "A FRIEND THAT LEFT ME TO DIE!!!" She screamed as she gave Scootaloo a cold, uncaring gaze into her eyes; freezing Scootaloo's body frigid as if she was lying in the coldest snow in Equestria.
"But-but Aurora I didn't leave you to die!" She yelled back at the filly as tears fell off her now-soaked face. "I didn't want this to happen! We both know this!"
"But you LET this happen!" Aurora shouted out in an accusing manner. "And because of YOU, I'm now nothing more than gone. Because. Of. You."
"N-n-n-NOOOOOO" Scootaloo screamed at the top of voice, her body shaky and her voice weak. "It! Wasn't! My! Fault!" And before she even realized it, she was sprinting towards Aurora, her face still damp with tears. "It can't be my fault!" As the crying pony ran towards her friend, she did not notice that the light that encompassed her was following her in toe; as if it was a part of her.
"AURORA!!" Scootaloo screamed as she jumped at her unkind friend, reaching for her and wanting her to stop the hurtful accusations. As the young mare was about to reach Aurora, her hooves out-stretched, she vanished instantly, both her and her own light disappeared, making the now-alone pony fall and slam into the alabaster floor with a thud.
"Au...Aurora?" Scootaloo asked in disbelief as she picked herself up from the floor and looked around the void of darkness. "Aurora?" she repeated again, her voice broken and hopeless.
"AURORA!!!!" She hollowed at the top of her voice, before running of in a random direction. She did not know where she was going, all she know was she had to escape, find a way out of this terrible and heart-breaking place. Her light still following her in toe.
Scootaloo ran and ran across the cold white seemingly metallic floor, crying and yelling to escape and get away, but all that happened was her face went damp from tears and her body was continuously getting more exhausted with every step.
"What about me?" Came a new but familiar voice, which made the pony skid to stop and turn her head round; seeing a another old 'friend' of Scootaloo, a colt pegasus she recognized as Orion. "You left me to die too!" He yelled to the breaking down orange pony, and just as quickly as he appeared, he vanished.
"Not you too Orion?" she asked through falling tears, before receiving an unexpected blow to her face, the punch strong enough to pass her backwards and onto the edge of the light. "Wh...what?" she said before a powerful hoof landed dead center on her stomach. Telling her head slowly to face her adversary, she gazed upon the hulking form that was her previous enemy, mentor, and near-murderer: Rainbow Dash.
"What?" The cyan pegasus asked coldly. "Did you think you could escape my clutches? I mean, just look at you? You don't even have wings!" As a mixture look of confusion and terror held a grasp on her face she looked down, and did indeed notice she had lost her wings.
"How-" she began before feeling the clutch of the larger pegasus press harder on her stomach.
"Shut up, you worthless cunt!! Come on now, you shouldn't be here! You should be six feet under by now! But nooo, you instead had to cause me bother! ME!"
"Please Rainbow you gotta understand-" she stuttered out as she tried to squeeze herself out of the grasp.
"Enough!!" The cyan pony yelled out to interrupt Scootaloo, and swiftly held out her other front hoof, as if ready to punch her again.
"No-please" Scootaloo said, trying to reason with her; but to no avail, as the last thing she saw was the hoof striking her!
"NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!" Scootaloo screamed out in terror, her heart racing in her body. Her mouth panted heavily and her body shaking with pure unadulterated fear. Opening her eyes slowly, she noticed she was back in the bed of her rescuers house. "My wings!" Scootaloo said as she looked to see if her wings had not disappeared, and just as she hoped, they were still there.
Lying back down on the the bed, she brought her hooves up to her face, as her crying once again returned to her.
"Rainbow Dash" she said through gritted teeth "If I ever see you" her voiced wracked not in sadness, but in anger.
Scootaloo slowly rose out of the bed as she got up on her hooves, being assisted by a grey pegasus mare as she dropped down on the floor of the room. Scootaloo's face is unreadable; neither happy, sad, angry, anxious or any other emotion, just unfeeling and unnerving, which worried Derpy to no end.
"Thanks." Said Scootaloo to the mare when she helped her down.
"It's not necessary." Replied back Derpy, in a slightly hesitant manner.
"No, I mean." Sighed the orange pony. "Thanks for everything. And I mean everything."
"And I said before, it's not necessary. It is my job to stop the factories, alongside with Soarin, and it is my job to save you." Derpy stated, but couldn't help but feel a bit guilty with the last part of the sentence. "Are you OK? You seem a bit..out of it."
"Yes I'm fine, just had a nightmare and all, nothing more." Scootaloo said back, sadness littering her tone.
"You sure?" Asked Derpy worriedly.
"YES!" Scootaloo spat suddenly, before turning her head away in shame. "Sorry. I didn't mean to shout at you."
"It's alright." Derpy chimed. "I don't blame you. If I had a bit every time I was yelled at by somepony when they cared about..." She started, but didn't finish when she realized she had no answer.
"You'd be rich." Scootaloo finished for her nicely.
"......yes, I would be." Derpy smiled sincerely.
Just as soon as she finished her sentence she was interrupted be a sound of a knock on the cloud-made door. "Hello. Can I come in now please mum?" A new voice called out from behind the door. This voice was higher than a normal mare's voice was, as of younger.
"Yes, Dinky dear, you can come in." Derpy replied to the unknown pony, who immediately started to open the door from hearing that sentence. In a moment the new pony appeared, this one being a lot younger than both Soarin and Derpy. In fact, she appeared to be around Scootaloo's own age. She was a unicorn pony with greyish-violet coat, pale yellow mane, one side being more golden than the other. Her eyes were also that of a pale yellow. On her flank rested a cutie-mark consisting of a few white sparkles; mostly likely her talent was to do with magic.
"Hello." The unicorn pony addressed to Scootaloo. "My name Is Dinky Doo. What's your name?" She asked innocently.
"Um...my name is Scootaloo" The orange pegasus replied almost reluctantly, taken aback by the rather front-fullness of her question. "And what didn't you earlier say that Derpy was your mot-"
"Great!" The unicorn interrupted abruptly, grabbing Scootaloo's hoof with her own. "Come with me."
Before Scootaloo could answer back, she was suddenly pulled off as she the grey unicorn ran out of sight, leaving the silent mare alone to herself.
"Just like her mother." Derpy mused to herself, smiling slightly at the innocence of her daughter. Despite her hidden job as a fighter, that of a technically illegal freedom fighter, she still believed there is always something worth fighting for, there is always a right to a wrong , a good to a bad, Never give up on your beliefs; if you do, there's no such thing as having a life, as if there is nothing to live for, there is no need to live. This was the sentence that Soarin told her, a sentence that made her always continue her fight.
"Thank you Soarin. If you didn't help me, I don't know what I would have done."
Just as she had said that she heard the front door of the house opened and close, followed shortly by the call of a familiar voice call out.
"Derpy. I'm back."
Upon hearing that the said mare literally ran off towards the front door, not taking long to find and greet the stallion. "Soarin." She called out as she ran towards "How was-" before she could finish she clumsily tripped and fell face first into the wall of the cloud home.
"Oh Derpy," Soarin sighed into his hoof, "I don't need this right now."
"Sorry." The mare apologized as she righted herself off from the wall and onto the floor, doing her best to stop being dizzy. "So...," she started, trying to change the subject, "How was it?"
Rather than say it, Soarin just looked away, as if in defeat. "How did you think it would go?" He asked in a monotone voice. Before he allowed her to speak, he spoke up. "I just told her, and truly made realize, that she had tried kill her own sister. Nopony should ever be told that, no matter the situation."
"How did she act when you told her?"
"In a word; brainshocked." He replied flatly. "She doesn't seem full of hate now, just remorse and guilt. She's still chained, in there. To be honest, I almost feel bad for her. Almost." After a few moments of awkward, but somehow needed, silence, he asked her a question. "Where is the young pony now."
"In the living room, I think, playing with Dinky." She replied.
"Thank you." Soarin said as he walked off towards his designated room.
"Aren't you gonna tell her?" She suddenly asked him.
"About what?" The stallion asked as he stopped walking and rested a hoof on the wall.
"Your feelings? For her?"
After a brief moment of silence, Soarin replied "There isn't any need. They have been missing long ago. Nothing left but a hole of deceit and hatred. No pony could ever love a monster, not after what she had done." Soarin walked off down the hallway, but not before stopping momentarily to say: "There's nothing that she could ever do." And then disappeared out of sight.
Frowning, Derpy mused, "You're wrong Soarin. You said she is now full of remorse and guilt."
A monster cannot feel remorse. Soarin thought deeply as he continued to walk down the hallway of the cloud house. A monster cannot feel remorse. That can't be true can it?
Can it?
Soarin stopped moving as he mulled over his thoughts "Sorry Derpy, but my feelings have gone long ago. I got rid of them to become what I am now."
"Why need them?" He mumbled somberly.
However, only a second later did he hear the sound of laughter coming from behind a nearby room; the purest sound of innocence he had truly heard in a long time.
Soarin walked up to the closed door of the room where the sounds of unexpected happiness can be heard, his mind gone from deep thinking to curiosity. Soarin shook his head, wanting to get rid of any lingering thoughts his mind refused to stop thinking of. The stallion sighed heavily as touched the door with his hoof. The only ponies that deserve feelings are those who are innocent enough to need them.
Soarin opened the cloud door and walked in, watching the pure image of two ponies playing. Scootaloo, and her new unicorn friend Dinky, were playing around with a small glass ball. In the sphere was a blue-colored liquid as it was being held up by Dinky's magic.
"Do it again." Asked Scootaloo happily as she eyed the floating ball.
"Ok, watch carefully." Dinky replied as she closed her eyes and concentrated on the sphere, and only a second later the blue fluid changed to red, then to green, then to gold, and then to purple.
"Wow how did you do that?" Inquired the amazed pegasus as she examined the sphere up closely.
"It's a called a magic flux ball. The stuff inside this ball can change color if a unicorn, like me, wants it to. All you need is a bit of magic and a little concentration." Explained Dinky.
"Really?"
"Yeah really."
Soarin couldn't help but crack a smile at what he was seeing; Scootaloo, the young mare who he saved from near-death by the hooves of her once closet companion, was now smiling and being cheerful with her new friend.
"If they can feel, why can't you?" Asked a sincere voice, which shocked the unsuspecting stallion. As he turned his head round, he saw Derpy standing right next to him.
"How did you-"
"I overheard." She interrupted him in a deadpanned tone. "You always said I was the best at stealth."
The stallion looked away from the mare nervously.
"Why? Why did you say you have no feelings? The two girls over there do, you can see it on there faces." She said as she looked at the two ponies with her mismatched eyes.
"Because they haven't attacked others, have they?" He said to her in a emotionless tone as he stared at her with his own cold eyes. "I thought not." He said as he shook his head.
Walking past her Soarin made his way to the two young ponies. "How's it going you two?" He asked them in a friendly tone, unbeknownst to them he was smile just a facade.
"Oh great uncle Soar." Dinky exclaimed suddenly as she jumped and hugged the stallion. "I was just showing Scoots here my magic flux ball."
"That's good to know." He chuckled to her as he rubbed her mane playfully, before looking towards the other young mare. As he looked at Scootaloo his expression dropped as his smile turned neutral.
"Hey Scootaloo, is something the matter?" He asked her worriedly, a question that she obviously was not expecting as she almost jumped when he asked.
"What, no." She replied in an almost defendant manner.
"Come me with." He ordered her in a deadpanned tone, pointed towards a door with his hoof.
"Why?"
"Come." Soarin said simply as he urged her out of the door, following behind her as they moved to the open door, the same one through which Soarin had entered.
"What are you doing?" Derpy inquired to Soarin as he brushed past her, looking at him with worried eyes.
"The same thing you'd do with your own daughter." He answered cryptically as he closed the door behind him, leaving a befuddled pegasus mare staring at where he once was.
"Where is Soar going with Scoots?" Dinky said to her mother.
"What?" Derpy blinked. "Oh don't worry." She said to reassured her child "He's just doing what he needs to do." She finished as she smiled, as if she now figured out what he had meant.
Scootaloo was walking behind Soarin as they made their way down the hall. She didn't, however, dare look at him, for fear that she did something wrong.
"This is far enough." Soarin unexpectedly announced as he stopped moving and turned around.
"Far enough for what?" Scootaloo asked apprehensively.
"Far enough for privacy." Soarin stated in a blank expression. "Now tell me, what's on your mind?"
"Th-there is nothing on my mind." Scootaloo answered rather quickly. "Why do you ask that?"
Sighing heavily, the stallion looked the orange pegasus dead in her eyes. "Kid, I can tell it in your eyes. There's a hundred questions you wanna ask, and you can't bottle them up. You will never continue until your mind is at rest."
Now it was Scootaloo's turn to sigh, as she looked down at the cloud floor. "I don't know where to start. There's too many to even think about, let alone say."
"Where would you like to start?" He asked her. "There's has to be one question you want to ask now?"
"Well...." Scootaloo mumbled as she scratched the back of her head. "How about 'why are you and her doing this' then?"
Upon hearing this, Soarin closed his eyes and breathed in deeply, as if relaxing and concentrating hard. As he exhaled, he opened his eyes and looked straight at the orange pegasus. "Being a Wonderbolt had it's perks. You pay was good, there was a respectable amount of holiday time and there was also a number of other miscellaneous benefits. And one of them was accidentally finding out about the factories."
"Wait?" Scootaloo said in shock. "You mean that, the Wonderbolts know about the Rainbow Factory?"
"No." Soarin said simply as he shook his head. "I doubted even Spitfire knew about it. Only I knew about the factory. And honestly, do you think anybody would believe me if I told you. I might have been a Wonderbolt then, but that doesn't make what I say any more tangible then the next pony."
"But...but...how did you know about it then?"
"As I said, by accident. It was just when I was looking through some paperwork late one night, and I came across something that just didn't seem right in my mind. I didn't recall back then about large machines needed for the Rainbow Factory. I had thought all work was done by pegasi, not engines. So after a some time snooping around, well, let's just say everything I used to knew about the factory was wrong. So I quit my job, and, well, the rest you know."
"Oh." Said Scootaloo out loud, mulling over the answer Soarin said. "Well, what about Derpy then? Why is she with you? Last time I had remembered she was just a postmare."
Soarin blinked at this statement, his face apparently showing regret from what he was about to say. "Derpy's reason," he started to say, "is not a happy one. Actually her story explains why were partners. In our job, of course, she's already married."
"Yes." Scootaloo wished to continue.
"While I was trying to figure out more about the factory odd purchases, early back when I found out about it, I managed to talk to one of the workers there at one point. Managed to do so when he was away from the factory and alone . And by talk, I mean literally cornered him for him to tell me everything he knew. And he did."
"And he broke down when I forced him to tell me. He told me everything, and I mean everything: the true purpose of the factory, the ponies who were behind it, and even that if he ever tried to quit he would become their next victim, alongside her most closet friend." He finished somberly.
"His most closet friend?" Scootaloo asked skeptically.
"Yes. The stallion who was told me everything was Derpy's own brother."
"Wha-wha-what?" Scootaloo stammered out in disbelief. "Her brother?"
"Yes." Soarin sighed under his breath. "The stallion I cornered and forced to tell me everything was a pegasus named Spirited Seed."
"Spirited Seed?"
"Yes. Though I only found out about his name after I figured out the full truth." Soarin said deeply. "I found out a lot of things after the full truth" He mumbled inaudibly.
"What did you say?"
"Listen Scootaloo" Soarin dictated unexpectedly. "Are you completely sure you want to know the whole truth. I'm warning you now, It's not a happy truth."
Scootaloo looked away from him for a few moments, thinking about what she has to say. "I know." Scootaloo replied sternly. "I know what I'm in for, and I want to know more. This is something I have to know I have to know."
Few a moment Soarin gave her look of shock, taken aback by the pony's response, before giving her a lack of satisfaction. "Smart kid." He said out loud. "And now it seems I have to tell you what I know, so, let us start then:"
Some years ago, in a shipping storage area.
"Oof!" A grey-skinned yellow-maned pegasus stallion spat as he was pushed towards the wall. Standing up, he was pushed back down by a set of hooves. This second pony was a light-skinned blue-maned stallion, but his face and most of his body was covered up in loose, plain clothing. Even his eyes were obscured by thick goggles.
"Now listen here!" The other stallion yelled with authority and un-rivaled anger. "Now you listen to what I say, right now, and then you answer, you got that?!" He said as he stared daggers to the other pony. The first stallion only weakly nodded in response.
"Good." The second stallion started in a much calmer tone. "Now tell me, what does the factory want with the machines?"
The first stallion looked away nervously when he was asked that question. "I'm not gonna repeat myself again." The second stallion forced out.
"Look look, I can't tell you, OK." He blurted out almost immediately. "I'd tell you if I could but-"
"Bulls!" The second stallion spat. "You know you could tell me, now use your backbone before I beak it! And don't give me any lip."
Gulping, the first stallion dared to stand up. "Please, you got to listen." He pleaded. "I can't tell you. I can't tell anypony! There isn't a way I can-"
"No! Now you listen here, there is a way you can, and you know it. It's a factory for rainbow's. Since when does that even need machines. Now you tell me now; why. Does. The. Factory. Have. Those. Machines?"
"To...to..." The first stallion mumbled.
"To?" The second stallion mimicked.
"To kill!" The first stallion exclaimed.
"...What?" Asked after a few seconds of disbelieved silence.
"Listen. My name is Spirited Seed. I'm a worker at that factory." The stallion now named Spirited Seed blurted out. "And I've seen what they are used for." Something about how Spirited Seed put emphasis on 'seen' made the second stallion feel uneasy.
"But I know what they are used for." Scootaloo said as she interrupted the story.
"True, but at the time I didn't. Now please, don't interrupt the story again." Soarin deadpanned.
"Sorry."
"Now, where was I?"
"And I've seen what they are used for." Spirited Seed just stood there, his body almost quivering. The other stallion just looked straight in his eyes. They now seemed dead to him.
"And what are they used for? To kill. What do you mean?" He asked almost cautiously. "It's a factory that makes rainbows. What use is their for these machines."
"It's not the same." Spirited Seed, said under his breathe.
"Speak up." The other stallion ordered.
"It's not the same!" He yelled unstably. "It's just...all changed now."
"What's all changed?" The still unnamed stallion asked quizzically. "And answer me clearly, what do you mean to kill?"
Spirited Seed let in a heavy breath, before answering "Look, I'm probably gonna die now for telling you all this already so now I've got nothing to lose." He stated.
"The reason of their being machines in the Rainbow Factory is because they have found a new source of making rainbows. One which they believe is a better source than the original."
"And that is?"
"..foals." Spirited Seed deadpanned.
"If you are joking with me-"
"I'm serious!" The other stallion practically yelled! "All foals that have failed the test are...committed to being a resource for the factory's own personal use!"
He just stared. The other pony, still with an unknown identity, just stared. And after a moment of awkward silence, a moment too long, he spoke up. "I see." He said, chillingly calmly, not even letting out a single sense of emotion in his tone. And after a second long pause, he turned around and walked away.
"Wait where are you going?" Spirited Seed blurted out in disbelief.
"I've heard enough." The other stallion called back.
"Just...before you go, can you promise me one thing?" And at that he stopped walking.
"I have a younger sister, she lives in Ponyville. Please, take care of her, she's all I got left Her name is Derpy Hooves." He pleaded.
"I will." The other pony promised without a second thought.
"What's your name?" Spirited Seed asked him as the stallion's wings came out from under the cloak.
"...Soar."
"And then I took off." Soarin finished. Scootaloo just sat there, dumbstruck. "See kid, that's how I knew Derpy. And I will forever keep that promise."
"...wow." Scootaloo managed to say. "That is just...wow."
"Scootaloo?" Soarin said to the young mare. "You OK."
"Ye-yeah yeah." She stammered. "It's just-" But she was interrupted by the sound of Soarin's hooves walking away. "Did they get him in the end?" She asked too him.
Peering around, Soarin replied, "No. He got himself."
After Soarin told Scootaloo about the whole ordeal of how he came to know about Derpy, she suddenly felt really tired.
*sniff*
Or at least that's what she thought she felt.
*sniff* *sniff*
Whether or not that's what she had truly felt, she still went straight to bed. An nopony questioned that.
*sniff* *snort*
Even still, there was still a thought that lingered in Scootaloo's mind: "He got himself."
"He got himself."
All the while as she was trying to sleep that thought couldn't help but repeat back into her mind.
What does it mean?
And despite how tired she felt she felt restless as that curious thought stayed inside her mind.
*snifffff*
"Huh?" Said a drowzy Scootaloo, half opening her sleepy eyes.
*sniff*
"What's that?" She said somberly as stood up from the bed, wiping at her eyes to push away the dazyness.
"Ugh, what's that smell?" Scootaloo asked in between yawns. She sniffed more at the air as her eyes were too tired to see straight. "What is that stink? It smells like smoke."
Smoke? Why does it smell like smoke?
The young mare tried to force her eyes opens more, sniffing again at the air as she did so.
Wait...that is smoke!
At that moment her eyes immediately opened wide.
"What the..." Scootaloo said in disbelief as she watched smoke rise from under the door of the cloud room. "But this is a-"
"Scootaloo!" Called out a voice she recognized as Soarin, being muffled by the closed door. "Scootaloo you in there!" The stallion called out again, louder than before.
"Y-yeah. I'm in here. What's going on?" She tried to ask him, but suddenly reared back as the door slammed open and a raft of smoke poured in, causing her to cough out of instinct.
"S-so-Soarin, what's happening? Why is the house burning?" She asked him as she rushed out of bed and onto the cloud floor of the bedroom, however, did not reply with a sentence but with a movement, as he grabbed her by the shoulder and urged her out the room.
"Um, Soarin?" She asked meekly, almost afraid to say something as she glanced at the stallion's face; stoic and near emotionless. The only emotion it appeared to show is hate, and this confused, not to mentioned scared, Scootaloo.
"Soarin wait!" The orange pegasus practically yelled as she dug her hooves into the floor, stopping at the edge of the door. "Soarin what's going on? How is there smoke? This is a cloud house, clouds don't burn." She almost pleaded to the rigid stallion, who looked back at her indifferently.
Soarin didn't return the question, as he just looked at her as if in deep though, not even caring about the smoke lingering in the air, before stepping out of the bedroom, looking down at the questioning pegasus, before simply pointing down the corridor with his hoof.
As Scootaloo looked out the open door and down the way, her eyes widened at the sight she saw before her; the home was indeed set ablaze with fire! But this wasn't what just greatly shocked her, it was also a something else; the color of the fire. They were not the common fiery orange and yellow flames that she rightly new, but were instead a soulless rich purple and blue that seemed to burn the cloud's that surrounded her.
"But..." Scootaloo stammered out of shock. "The fires all-"
"Wrong. I know." Soarin interrupted her as he once again grabbed Scootaloo by the shoulder and promptly urged her out, more forcefully then before. As they quickly made there way down the hallway, Scootaloo had noticed Soarin start to violently cough. But before she could speak up, she felt herself held back by a hoof.
"Damn." She heard Soarin mutter, his sentence barely audible over the sound of the raging flames. "We have to find another way." The stallion announced as he saw the way blocked by the sight of the large fire. As Soarin turned round, he immediately recoiled as the way back was now blocked by another large oddly-colored fire.
"What do we do now, Soarin, were trapped?" Scootaloo asked him in a feared tone. However, he did not reply back, and instead turned around.
"Soarin!?" She called out again. Soarin did nothing but close his eyes and breath, then cough.
"SOARIN!?"
"It seems like there's only thing for it!" He announced suddenly, and in one quick movement he grabbed Scootaoo unexpectedly by the chest, held her close to his own than plunged straight through the fire itself!
"SOA-RIN!!" Scootaloo screamed as she felt the heat of the flame reach, even with the stallion shielding her as best he could, her whole body tensing up to lessen the fire burning at her.
"AAHHHHH!!" Scootaloo yelled in a mixture of fear of pain, screaming as she felt the rush of the fire suddenly turn to the rush of air as Soarin leaped out the open door at the end of the corridor .
...
...
Scootaloo waited. She didn't dare move, fearing she lost her life in the fire that ravaged her new home. She held her breath and waited for something to happen, and when nothing did, she slowly opened her eyes and peered out. And instead of seeing, well, something, all she was the singed and stoic face of the stallion that cared for her.
"S...Soarin." She called to him meekly. Soarin than peered down and matched her gaze.
"It's OK." Soarin said deeply, and in an reassuring tone. "Your safe now." Then he safely placed her down on the soft grass on where he stood. It was just then Scootaloo noticed two things:
One, she one standing on grass. Real grass. In fact, if she looked around she would have seen that the now-on-fire home was situated on a cliff, with only a few trees randomly placed around them. Behind it there was nothing but a large mountain blocking the rest of the view.
And second, she noticed that Derpy herself had escaped the retched fire, and was calmly stroking a silently crying Dinky, softly stroking her back as she left the tears of her daughter fall onto her welcoming chest.
Turning back to Soarin, Scootaloo watched him stare at the burning house before him, it going up in smoke from the purple and blue flames that surrounded it. The young pegasus couldn't help but just stare at Soarin, as he blankly watched his own home fall apart.
"Um, Soarin?" Scootaloo tried to ask him, only to have her question stopped by the stallion slam his right hoof into the ground with as much force as he can gather, quiver as if to hold in an explosive force, then yell out with as much gusto, anger, and hatred as one pony can muster:
Known status- The stallion in question was a pegasus stallion born in the Cloudsdales Hospital at 19:05 pm, fathered by pegasus stallion High Wing and mothered by pegasus mare Low Sail, both as of now deceased. He, as far as our records show, grew up and lived all his life in Cloudsdale, entering the Cloudsdale primary and secondary schools. No further information on these subjects are particularly noteworthy for this.
More investigation shows that, after graduating, he worked at the much important Rainbow Factory as a shipping handler. This is where our information ends regarding the life of the stallion in question.
Cause of death- At around 10:30 am the pony in question was seen by other residents to be walking in the Cloudsdale park, where he then as said many on-goers at the time, he stood atop the brass statue of the Cloudsdale founder. There, onlookers heard him shout the words:
You made my life a living hell for the past few years! You made me do things I don't think anypony was able to do! But today no more! Today, I shall live me life the way I want to live! I'm in too deep to escape now! But I know, I know you will never let me do this! I know what I must do now.
After the speech, many on-goers saw he him take out a metal object, with what many have seen to be a handle-less blade, unknown type, from under his wing, where he then placed the object towards his neck. He later when on to say:
I'm sorry, my new friend, but this is where my adventure stops. Never give up, never surrender. Please be careful sis.
Upon uttering those words the stallion then immediately sliced open his throat, ending his life a few seconds later.
Medical assistance and Cloudsdale guards arrived no less than 5 minutes later. All civilians were evacuated from the park until further notice.
Aftermath- Due to the nature of his death, it is heavily summarized this to be a natural suicide (where the pony in question did so of there own accord). Due to the only personal connection we can find at the time was with the Rainbow Factory. As with procedure, we talked to Spirited Seed's indirect employee, which would be the shipping supervisor. The supervisor had said that his employer, for the past week or so that his work was, and quoted, "sloppy" and "slow", unlike what his normal record was, which was generally strong and lacked any blemish's. Sadly, no further information could be given to us.
As such, our strongest answer could be he was over-stressed or had taken to consuming illegal and addictive substances, though no evidence of either of these were found in his home or his work locker, or any other personal places of interest.
Next of kin- The only remaining direct member of family of Spirited Seed was his sister known as Derpy Hooves. We connected her about this the next day after his death.
Notes- As of 20/11/1007 the investigation for his death was stopped, as no more evidence for the case can be found. As of now, it is officially closed and called off as suicide. Spirited Seed's will was sent out to Derpy Hooves two days later.
"Soarin, where are we going?" Scootaloo asked Soarin as she followed him, or more precisely he told her to follow him, as they started to walk along the cliff side. There seemed to be walk path that moved alongside the mountain, but she didn't know where it would lead. Soarin had stayed eerily quite, she noted, which scared her a little. He hadn't said anything else after he told her to follow him.
Actually, the blue-maned pegasus telling her to follow himself was the only thing said since the outburst, the yell of hatred he spat as he called out to the Rainbow Factory, the shout of pure anger as he watched his house burn to the ground. Afterwards he said nothing else and simply just stared at the burning remains of his cloud home.
This happened about 3 hours ago, and Celestia's sun was already beginning to appear on the horizon. They seemed to have set off around the time dusk began.
"Soarin?" She tried again, but this time he reacted as he stopped walking but still stared straight forward; his stoic face as expressionless as ever. "Were here." He said simply. Scootaloo looked and saw he was looking at another cliff side; this one smaller and the only thing that appeared for this side to be out of the ordinary was the fact that slap-bang in the middle was a wooden door lying on the ground.
It was the opening to an outside basement.
"There's something you need to meet." He said to her in his deadpan manner. Reaching for the door then opening it up, allowing fresh air and bright sunlight to enter the lower room since the whenever it was opened last. "Come." Soarin gestured to the young mare. "Lets not beat around the bush any longer."
Scootaloo followed Soarin as he lead her down the steps of the basement until she reached the bottom, her breath lingering in her mouth as her body was tense; she herself had no idea what awaited her inside the below-ground room. When she hit bottom of the stairs she managed to get a good look at the desolate room.
There was not truly anything to say about the basement; it was cold, dark and practically empty. There was barely anything there, apart from few tables and a bunch of rusted tools that look past their use-by-date. The place looked like it hadn't been used in years, decade's even. It was old, damp and lacked any source of care or color.
Except one thing. Right there, straight in front of her was a pile of molded muddy blue added with mixture of other common colors. The strange mass was quivering, shaking even, and had what appeared to be legs sprouting out it's body covering what seemed to be its front half.
But Scootaloo knew once away what was in front of her, or more preciously, who was in front of her. She gulped.
Taking a slow and precocious step towards the off-blue mass, she opened her mouth and slowly said "Rai...Rainbow....Dash?"
Soarin remained silent, watching the events that will unfold with his ever-steel eyes.
The quivering mass stopped shaking and, ever-so-slowly, looked up from underneath her legs and peered out, her cerise eyes opened wide, and any onlooker would see them being a swollen red and stained with tears.
"Scoo....Scootaloo?" The trembling mess, remembered to be named as Rainbow Dash, barely spoke back, her voice hoarse and dry. "Is that you?"
"Rainbow Dash?" Scootaloo repeated as she took another step towards her.
"Is that really you?" Rainbow Dash asked again. Her voice seemed to become slightly uplifted.
"Rainbow..." Scootaloo started, but was unable to finish her sentence as a wave of something foreign washed over her. A new feeling that had arisen the moment she laid upon the falling pegasus, the same one that many years ago she idolized like an older sister, the same pony that tried to kill her by her the rainbow-maned pony's own hooves. This feeling made her body tense, her teeth clench, and a new instinct take over her mind.
Rage.
Pure, unbridled, hatred-filled rage.
And in one unexpected instant she let out all the anger she didn't even know she had contained onto the weakened pegasus and one feel strike; in just a few second after muttering the first half of her name, Scootaloo quickly followed this by spitting it all out in one, quick, loud go:
"DASHHHHHH!!!!" She practically screamed as she immediately lunged forward and before Rainbow Dash, Soarin or even Scootaloo could properly react the orange pegasus strook the chained mare flat across in one singular punch to the face, the sounds of thrown around chains and an attacked pony hitting the wall resonated in the small barren basement.
Soarin watched on with wide-eyes as he witnessed the young mare smack down the older equine, her body becoming limp as soon as she was smacked at the wall and fell to the floor. He didn't even dare breathe. He just simply stood and and looked on as Scootaloo let out heavy loud breathes, her body standing their frozen, as if it didn't know what the next course of action it should take.
Meanwhile, the stricken pony known as Rainbow Dash had just then managed to regain her senses and knowledge of her surroundings, unsure of what exactly had just happened. Looking up, she saw the face of something she never, ever wanted to see in her life; the face of the pony she once cared about looking down at her with mixture of disgust, anguish and hatred. If looks could kill, she would have been dead the second she looked at her.
"Scoo...Scootaloo..." The chained pony murmured out, trying to reason to the angry pegasus standing before, but her voice carried to no avail as directly after Scootaloo raised her hoof up again and looked down at her with a face full of nothing but anger and malice.
"YOU HEARTLESS BITCH!" Scootaloo roared as she threw her hoof down directly forward towards Rainbow Dash's face, to which she responded by tensing her body, awaiting her fate.
But nothing happened.
Daring to look up, Rainbow's eyed widened as she Scootaloo's held back by the grip of Soarin, his face remained seemingly unchanged, even after what he just witnessed before him.
"Do you have any idea how many ponies have died by your hooves?" Scootaloo snarled at the quivering mare, spitting out as much disgust and hatred a pony of her caliber was able to say. "Do you? No, you don't! Because you're nothing but a soulless, cold, cruel...thing that doesn't even deserve to even exist!"
Hearing enough, Soarin, by unfolding his wings and using them as balance, started to pull back, silently moving back away from the chained mare done by use of his hind legs.
"Soarin what the tartarus do you think you're doing?" Scootaloo's attention suddenly changed to the pegasus currently carrying her away from the scene, struggling to get out from his grasp but his strength overpowered her own. "I ain't done yet, put me down right now."
"No." He replied simply as he was already on the steps of the basement.
"I said put me down right now!" She ordered but to no avail. "This isn't over you here me!" She yelled back straight to the chained bruised pony lying meekly on the ground as she started to disappear from sight as she was being carried out.
"You hear me!" Scootaloo shouted just before the door was shut, as her shouts, though still noticeably heard, inaudible to the pony still there. With the silent, lonely, light-absent room all to herself. Rainbow Dash immediately broke down not for the first. Crying into her own hooves, she let out in a whispered tone.
"Scootaloo...I can't blame you. I deserve worse." She sobbed. "Much worse."
"WHY!?" The orange pegasus yelled as she was finally put down by the larger blue-maned pony, resting just outside the open basement and sitting down on the grass cliff (well, one was sitting, the other was too mad to even stay still), the larger pegasus listened intently at the rant the other pony was about to commence from her lips.
"Why, for all the evil that exists in...Tartarus, is...that thing doing here?" She yelled, ranted, hated as she skulked back and forth on the grassy rocks. "And what did you mean 'I had to meet'? Do you expect me to just...sit down and have a nice cup of tea with her like we were good friends? Is that what you had wanted?"
Soarin, who had remained quite and unreadable since he was back outside, decided now was the right time to speak up. "I thought now was as good a time as ever." He replied rather non-nonchalantly. "You needed to find out sooner or later. And this seemed the best opportunity."
"At what point does that make it OK for her to be here?" Scootaloo snapped back, her voice now more quiet and at an almost normal tone, but the venom still lingered in her words. "I didn't want to meet her. I didn't want to hear her. I didn't even want to know if she's still alive. And now you bring up the fact that your keeping her alive. Why?"
"Because." He simply replied back.
"Because?" Scootaloo repeated.
"Because. I needed to keep her alive."
"Why?" Scootaloo yelled, getting restless.
"Because she would benefit is in our eradication of the factory's; what with her extensive knowledge of what and where important data would be in the industrial building." He stated, rather thoughtfully, as a reply.
After a few seconds of thinking it over, Scootaloo said "That's it. That's it! You brought her here just because you thought she would help you! Just..." She lingered slightly, until it restarted in a more calmer tone. "How? How are you even so sure she would help you?"
Closing his eyes and breathing heavily, not making any of noise, Soarin, opened them again to look across the and stared, if few a few seconds, at the basement door, and them turned his head back around to meet the gaze of the pegasus. He then, to her surprise, started to learn forward, inch by inch, until he was a few inches close to her face.
And then he smiled.
"Because, I can tell you right now, that with complete confidence, she has now defected to our side." He then leaned his back to its original position. "And I don't take trusting ponies lightly."
This, however, only spurred Scootaloo's hate bigger. She scowled, glaring at the larger pony. "What does that even mean!? Just...what is going on inside your head? How in Equestria are you able to think that she is on are side know. Did you say something to her that just made her think she's on the wrong side now. Is that how it worked?"
"That's exactly how it worked." He stated quickly back to her (with a hidden smirk).
"Are you serious?" She said in disbelief.
"Very. Now, I hope you've stopped yelling and we can move on. There's other stuff on the agenda that we need to attend to, things more ." Soarin said as he stood up and walked away; if only for a few seconds until a he realized he was walking alone.
"I'm not going to just forget about this." She spoke in a slow, low tone. "This isn't something anypony can forget in an instant."
He frowned. Though he kinda knew this was an inevitable sentence since he first brought her down the basement.
"I know." He sighed out. "But I promise you, in due time, you will find out why." Turning around, he urged her to follow him back to the burnt remnants of his own home.
"I don't know how I can deal with all this. My life is Tartarus as it is." Scootaloo murmured, with Soarin waiting patiently forward of her.
"You can get over this." The older pony spoke up. "You will find a way over this. You're doing fine as it is know. Actually I think you are handling this better than a normal pony probably should." He spoke comfortably. "I do not believe many other pony's can go through what you have gone and come not even a little bit broken. I think you should take a little pride."
And as strange as it may be, it actually did help the young pegasus. If only a little. Taking the new resolve, she got up from her seat and walked towards the blue equine, as he walked alongside her when she caught up, neither of them spoke any other words to each other; there wasn't any words left to speak to them. As they walked away, Scootaloo stopped and took one last look at the door of the basement. She was indeed going to find her answers soon. But not know.
She had been through too much for the past few, well hours really. She needed some time to breathe, or at least this is what Soarin was thinking.
Scootaloo. Soarin thought. I hope that you will one day forgive her. You are the only one who is able to help her now. It's too late for anypony else.
