The steps were made of cool, well cut slate. I made myself climb them, even though I wasn’t very keen on the idea of what I was about to attempt, even to the point that my heartbeat soared and I found myself shaking just a little. It was a lesson that I was about to learn very well: That courage was not defined by not being afraid of anything, but by stepping forward even when one was afraid.

Something that even to this day, I have to remind myself of sometimes.

The Sun’s last rays faded from my view as the Moon took its place in the sky. The door before me was large but not as large as say, the ones in Canterlot leading into the Palace, but still large. A pony could stand on his friend and the top of the frame would still be out of reach. Each door was made of riveted steel and was very imposing. I began to wonder what sort of thing they could possibly be housing within that needed such security. I mean, surely they weren’t afraid of something trying to get in, right? My hooves came to rest at the foot of the doors.

“What is your business?” a guard asked.

I cleared my throat, and gathered some more confidence than I had been affording myself, “I’m just here to see someone.” I told the guard.

“Prisoner or Guard?” he asked.

Tilting my head I considered the question for just a second, “Both, actually.” I admitted.

The guard had not looked at me even once while he’d asked me the questions, I realized.

“Proceed.” he commanded simply, “But watch yourself inside. No funny business.”

Nodding in silence as the doors opened, I prepared myself to enter. The great metal doors opened with a creaking, groaning slowness that was as ominous as their size, making me wonder once again what sort of thing could be hidden behind those doors. What could possibly need so much security as to have armed Guards and a door so thick?

It didn’t matter.

Inside there was a large, long desk with officers set behind them, each one writing something and occasionally looking at the clock. I assumed that the room was a lobby judging by the decor. Walls that were painted what I could swear was the very color that defined boring, accented with the occasional hoof-painted picture, were carefully moulded at the base with more boring colors to, I assumed, add to the depressing mood of the place. A few other ponies besides myself sat in chairs, awaiting their turns to do… well, whatever they’d come to the Guard Station to do. I sat in a place, and waited. One by one, each of my silent companions were called to the desk, their questions addressed, and actions taken in accord. Some were escorted behind a small steel door, others left of their own volition after conducting their business. My turn came after about a half hour, and I found myself wondering if Scootaloo had enough patience to have waited this long. She was awfully young after all.

“Come forward” a rather prim, tan-coated, red-maned, young mare called at me, her gaze was cold and piercing, “State your request.”

I stepped up to the desk, and placed my hooves upon it, preparing to ask, but was instantly stared at by the mare with a gaze that I feel could have made even Thunderstep cower. I removed my hooves and placed them back on the ground, standing of my own power, instead of leaning.

“State your request.” she repeated.

I nodded, “I need to talk to a Guard.”

She snorted, “You’re already talking to one.”

I shook my head, “No, I need to talk to a specific one.” I admitted.

“State your business, and I will make a decision.”

I smiled sheepishly, “It’s a personal matter.”

The mare’s eyes went back to her work, “Then stop wasting my time. We don’t take personal requests of any kind here.” she told me.

“Listen, miss.” I insisted, ignoring the warning glance she shot me, “It’s important that I speak with Thunderstep or Lieutenant Cold Thorn. I have information that they need to hear.”

It was a blatant lie, but worth a shot.

The mare tilted her head and narrowed her eyes at me, “I am not a foal, Mr. Air Ramp. I know who you are, and your connection with our current high-profile prisoner. Please leave.” she insisted, returning to her work.

“It’s important!” I hissed, “I’m about to lose everything I love, everything that means anything to me. Please, have a heart.”

The mare sighed, and scrunched her nose at me, “One.” she said simple.

“... what?”

“One. You get ONE chance. I’ll call Thunderstep in. If he tells you to leave, then do not come back unless you have an emergency that actually needs a response from the Equestrian Guard. Now go.” She commanded, “Sit and wait.”

I did as she asked, my footsteps feeling a little shaky. I had been certain that I was going to be forcibly removed from the building for arguing as I had, and I sighed heavily when I took a seat. When I looked back to the desk, the mare was gone. However, a few moments later she returned, this time with the oversized Sergeant Thunderstep in tow. The mare pointed towards me with one hoof. I swallowed a bit as a grim look crossed Thunderstep’s face. I didn’t know him as well as I wished I did at that moment, but he was my only option beyond the truly illegal.

“So.” Thunderstep rumbled, “You have information for me.”

“No. That… was a lie.” I admitted.

The big Earth Pony sighed heavily in his Guard armor, “You know, I could have you put behind bars for that. For lying to an Administrator of the Law.”

I shrugged, “But I bet you won’t, because you know I wouldn’t have come here if I didn’t have a reason.”

We stared at each other for a moment. When it became apparent that I would not back away, Thunderstep sighed again.

“Alright… fine. I’ll hear you out, but after the escapades you pulled off with Trixie and her dark magics, I’m really tempted to kick you out.”

I needed to be careful about how much I revealed and when. Outright honesty would likely have been the best policy, but it was also too risky, as I’ve stated before.

“Look. Trixie… isn’t what she seems.” I began, fighting back my reaction to a sudden scrutinizing eye from my old acquaintance, “She is the Princess’ Student. She can’t be behind bars.”

Thunderstep shook his head, “Student or not, she is not above the Law, which is very clear about the use of dark, or forbidden magics. It’s also just as clear about those who seek their usage.” he warned, “Be sure to remember that, and how lucky you are.”

“Thunderstep, please.” I began to beg, “There’s… it’s just important I talk with Trixie. If I don;’, I could lose Aurora.”

“We’re through talking.” Thunderstep told me as he pushed me towards the large door that blocked the entrance, “I’ll escort you out.”

The great doors opened, creaking and protesting as they had when I’d entered. My acquaintance, whom I’d thought of more as a friend than anything else for years, pushed me through and followed me, somewhat to my surprise. He walked silently ahead and out into the cold night air, past the stone steps to come to a stop some distance away from the Guards at the front door. There he waited, and to there, I followed.

“I know what you plan to do, Air.” he said with unexpected suddenness, “I don’t know why, and I don’t care. I know you well enough that I don’t need to care.”

My ears pressed down, and I feared a further warning was to come.

“For you to have come to me, it must really be important, as you’ve said, and I won’t stop you.”

I began to speak, but he held a hoof up signalling a need for silence and that he was not done speaking. The motion made me simmer a little.

“In fact, I’ll help you. Just this once, and this is the last time I will do it. If you screw up, I won’t be able to help you and I won’t stick my neck out. I have a family too.” he told me as he turned to face me directly, “You know of the sewers?”

I nodded.

“Go there.” Thunderstep instructed, “There’s a drain that leads directly into the deepest, most secure cells. Somewhere in there is where Trixie is being held. You know you’re close when you see markings labled ‘C-16.’ Go through the doors labeled with those numbers.”

I nodded and didn’t tell him that I already knew about the passage in the sewer. Scootaloo and I had discussed it earlier, and in doing so revealed her extensive knowledge of the underbelly of Ponyville.

“Why are you helping me?” I asked.

Thunderstep laughed a little, “You really shouldn’t ask considering your position, but I’ll tell you anyways. There’s more going on here than I know, I’m sure of that.”

“What do you mean?”

“It’s just… some things don’t add up about the investigation, about what happened to you.”

Thunderstep was avoiding the question, of that much I was certain. I pressed.

“I’d like to ask the same question again: What do you mean?”

Thunderstep gave me a warning stare, “Look… you need to learn when not to ask questions. Sometimes it’s better not to know, but I’ll tell you what… If you find out what I think is going on, actually is going on, I’ll let you know.”

I snorted, but didn’t press again. It wouldn’t have been worth it anyways. I’d gotten a little more information about Trixie’s whereabouts, and that was more than I’d known earlier. IIn fact, up until that point, I had just assumed that there would be a way down there based on Scootaloo’s information. After the conversation with Thunderstep, I could confirm Scootaloo’s knowledge and knew a little more about what I was looking for.

Our conversation ended there. He turned and walked away, back into the great steel doors atop the steps. I too turned away, heading into a nearby alleyway after trotting down the street some distance so as not to draw suspicion by any of the Guard ponies nearby. The alleyway was dank and a thin trickle of water pooled and dribbled between the cobblestone that made up the ground there. My younger orange companion was resting atop a small shed at the end of the alley. She seemed lost in thought, staring up at the sky.

“Scootaloo.” I said aloud, bringing myself to her attention.

Scootaloo jumped and nearly fell off the small roof, but managed to right herself before she hit the ground, landing much like a cat might have.

“What’s up Air?” she asked, a little bit of barely contained excitement escaping into her voice, “Are we go for the mission?

I thought it was cute that she called it a ‘mission,’ like we were spies or something. When I really thought about it though, I guessed we kind of were.

“Yes Scoots, we are a-go.” I smiled, then took on a more serious look, “Thunderstep told me we needed to look for something labeled ‘C-16’. Do you know what that is?”

Scootaloo shook her head, “Sorry, Boss. I don’t remember anything like that being down there.” She frowned a bit, ”But I know where to go to get near the underside of the jail.”

We left a short time after that and headed into the sewers. It wasn’t that hard to get in, just a matter of finding an unguarded sewer drain, of which there were plenty in Ponyville. Not many ponies cared to go underground and so it didn’t seem that there was a reason for anypony to guard them. After we, mostly me, pried the grating open, Scootaloo slipped inside and I followed, making sure to close the grating behind me and drop the screws in my pocket.

We’ve been over the pockets thing, haven’t we?

My gaze scanned the area before us, to be greeted by soft-glowing magical lights, sigils and magical seals lining various pipes and conduits that snaked across the walls and along the ceiling. It reminded me a bit of a slow-motion version of the lights that accompanied most night-clubs, being that it was all very bright and very colorful. We had entered the sewers in what looked to be something called a ‘hub,’ according to Scootaloo, which was a place where a large number of pipes and wastewaters all came together to go somewhere else as a whole. Many arches, tunnels, and overhangs provided multiple paths for the water and electrical wiring to flow and dangle from respectively, and I found myself wondering how we would find our way to the alleged ‘C-16’ that Thunderstep had mentioned earlier that night.

“Which way?” I asked my flying orange friend.

Scootaloo stared at the pathways ahead of us, “I think it’s this way.” she pointed with a hoof at one of the 4 different archways leading to only Luna knows where, “Should be that way…”

“Take the lead?” I asked.

Scootaloo nodded, and flew ahead of me. I followed my young friend down the long corridor until we reached a set of stairs made of metal that spiraled upwards. Scootaloo motioned to go up them with her. I made note of how absolutely silent it was in the sewers, other than the sound of running water and that unusual “glowing sound” of the sigils and spells that lined walls.

I stared at one in particular as I passed it. It was a red, curly thing that seemed to bounce and shiver in the place it occupied.

“What do you think they all do?” I asked Scootaloo.

At first my friend didn’t know what I was asking, until I made motions at the wall.

“Hm…” Scootaloo muttered as she scrutinized a few of the symbols, “Probably make it so that this place doesn’t stink or something.”

I thought about that for a moment. It made sense, I guessed.

“Gotta wonder why so many, though.” I mused.

Scootaloo shrugged, “I dunno, but have you ever smelled… you know...” I could see she was searching for an appropriate word, “... crap before?”

“... yeah, I guess.”

So much for an appropriate word.

Scootaloo fluttered ahead, “Think about how bad that smells and how EVERYPONY’s crap comes down here.” she offered, “To be honest, I’m pretty sure it would take almost all the magic that’s on the walls to cover that smell up.”

It made sense. Maybe all of the spells on the wall really were just massive amounts of magical air freshener.

Maybe.

Silly thoughts aside, we made our way down the winding pathways, halls, and past a multitude of small storage rooms to eventually end up in a chamber much larger than the one we had found ourselves in at the beginning. Scootaloo and I looked around at the sprawling room before us, no words came to our lips. It was massive, four floors of pipes reaching for the ceiling, scaffolding covered it, providing a multitude of pathways from where we stood, all the way down to the bottom of the place where it was far too dark to see beyond the glow of what I assumed were more sigils and spells.

Finally, my guide said something.

“We’re here.”

“Scootaloo… are you sure?” I asked, “Are you sure we’re under the jail?”

Scootaloo swallowed visibly, nodding, “This should be the place. If my sense of direction isn’t off.”

I glanced at her, “And how often is that?”

She didn’t respond at first, but it didn’t matter. A loud, thunderous crash echoed throughout the superstructure, making both Scootaloo and I jump in surprise before she could

“Whuzzat?” Scootaloo whispered.

I didn’t answer, something was shimmering at the edge of where the light that was illuminating our position ended. I could just barely see it.

“Who’s there!” I called out, demanding they identify themselves, “Come out!”

The shimmering solidified, revealing a pony. A Unicorn, though I could not see its face as a result of the large, pyramid-like hat that covered his face in shadow. I recognized him however, and I was unsure how to feel about his appearance.

“Perceptive…” Cold Thorn growled.

“Why are you here…?” I asked, walking towards him.

The Lieutenant snorted, “I should be asking you the same.” he started, then looked towards the light, making his eyes shine with menace as he glared at me, “In fact… No. I shouldn’t. You shouldn’t even be here.”

“Thunderstep told you about this, didn’t he?” I asked.

“No.” the teal Unicorn hissed, “I followed him. You should know that much by now. I never ask directly.”

“So you know why I’m here.”

Cold Thorn nodded and dropped into a wide stance, “Yes. And I won’t let you talk to her.”

I backed up a little, “Why not?”

“Because… you’re too weak. Too weak to beat me without Aurora’s help, too weak to control that magic that Trixie wielded on you, just too weak.” the teal unicorn asserted, “You don’t deserve Aurora, but she loves you anyways, despite your-”

“Wait just a minute, what does Aurora being in love with me have to do with any of this?” I interrupted, “I could almost understand the first part, but…”

Lieutenant Cold Thorn roared, “You dumb foal! I’ve been in love with Aurora since before you even MET her! It was I who tried to bring her away from her life of petty crimes! All you’ve ever done is perpetuate those notions!”

“Wha-” I started, but was quickly drowned out by my former friend’s raving.

“Shut UP!” he barked, “I’m going to beat you into submission… and then I’m going to put you behind bars with that halfwit magician of yours! I’ve caught you sneaking around in a restricted zone… and now all I have to do is bring. You. In.”

I stood shaking my head with a furrowed, confused brow, “Cold Thorn… I thought we were all in this together. I made trouble, you catch me, or sometimes don’t, and it entertains the night ponies… Isn’t that how it’s always been?” I asked him.

“I only did that… I only did that to keep an eye on Aurora… make sure you two didn’t do anything STUPID together… but recently, you have been. Both of you.” I could hear him seething between his teeth as his voice lowered into a growl, “You’ve been bedding her… I know it.”

I stepped back a little one more time, “You’re sick, Cold Thorn. You’re right, but that’s messed up that you know.” I said, getting closer to my objective.

If I could just get him to move a little closer to me...

“And you’re a CRIMINAL, a criminal who stole my chance with Aurora!” the teal Unicorn raged, “And now… I’m going to steal it back!”

Perfect.

I kicked a valve lever, hoping for the best. A burst of steam filled the air between myself and Cold Thorn as a glowing blue sigil brightened angrily. Some of the steam caught his face, presumably scalding his coat as he let loose a wail of pain and anger. I took my chance and flung myself over the railing, caught the bottom of the catwalk we had been standing on, and swung upside down to hide underneath.

“Scootaloo! Hide!” I commanded.

I saw Scootaloo fly into the darkness and watched Cold Thorn flail backwards, stomping around in rage.

“Coward!” the teal Unicorn roared, “You never could face me head to head!”

“So says the Unicorn that hides in the shadows!” I bellowed back from my hiding place underneath where he stood.

Probably not the best idea, but I was partially counting on how enraged he was. A plan was forming in my head, but it was loosely tied together by assumption and guesses. My heart pounded, and I was afraid. I wasn’t sure if I could win against such a powerful spellcaster as Cold Thorn.

My opponent sunk back into the shadows, disintegrating into a fine black dust as he did. I considered grabbing Scootaloo and running, bolting for the exit, but what Cold Thorn threatened next made me forget the notion completely and solidified my willpower against the situation.

“For that…” he whispered, his voice echoing through the room like a poisonous cloud, “I’ll put your little pegasus friend in jail with you…”

“Awe man! Really?” Scootaloo called out, “I’m just a kid!”

“Oh be quiet!” I yelled back, “About an hour ago you were insisting otherwise!”

“That was before I was going to jail!”

“SHUT UP, BOTH OF YOU!” Cold Thorn called from the darkness, “She needs to learn what comes of following cowards and miscreants!”

“Again, says the pony that hides in darkness!” I chided, “Why don’t you come out and fight me like you claim you can!”

With that, I let go of the walkway bottom that I had been clinging to, and fell. Scootaloo cried out and rushed towards me from her hiding place, but I landed with a grace that came from years of running across rooftops and jumping from porches.

“I thought you were going to fall!”

“I did, though.”

“You know what I mean!”

“Yeah bu-”

I was interrupted by a cloud of soot-like blackness, which hit Scootaloo and sent her off the catwalk.

“No!” I gasped, propping myself up over the railing to just barely see her fall out of my view and into the darkness with a look of surprise and fear on her face, calling out to her a few moments later, “Scootaloo! Scootaloo are you there?”

I heard a crashing thud, the clang of metal and a roaring that sounded like a wounded Cold Thorn.

“I’m okay!” Scootaloo yelled back, “Your big dumb friend just hurt himself though!”

I smiled, “Good, do you see him?” I asked her.

“No!” she yelled back, “I’m covered in this black stuff! It’s pretty gross.”

For a moment, I began to wonder if the sooty-looking powder had something to do with his magic. A hissing in my head broke my train of though, causing a pressure in my skull.

“Cheehhhhhhk.” it said over and over again, “Chehhhhhhhk thhhhee shhhhaaaahhh-”

I forced the noises back, I didn’t have time for an episode there. Scootaloo’s life as well as mine were in the balance so breaking down would have been catastrophic. I cringed, because the more I pushed the hissing back, the more it resurged, filling my mind with its noises and crippling my ability to move and think.

“Shut up!” I barked, concentrating hard and finally forcing them to quiet down.

That’s when Cold Thorn chimed in, starting a succession of events that would change everything.

“Can’t stop hearing them, huh? Trixie told me all about what she did to you. The voices, the noise. You can’t move when they call, can you?”

“Dhhhuuuuuhhhk.” they called out in my mind just before I was thrust from my position on the second floor catwalk from the bottom.

I fell, slamming down hard on the catwalk one floor below, landing on my back. The fall crushed the wind out of my lungs, and made me feel like everything in my body was broken. My wing nubs under the bandages that still covered my sides burned harsh, further immobilizing me. I could hear the sound of rushing in my ears, and somewhere in the distance, a small voice. Scootaloo was calling out, and through the haze covering my vision, I could see her flying towards me. Just as she reached me, a cloud of black engulfed her and sent the small orange pegasus into a heavy iron steam pipe. She struggled against the force of the rushing shadow-form. I dazedly looked around for something the help her, sure that she was being crushed based on her expression of anguish.

“Liiiihhhhhht.” the voices simmered.

It gave me an idea, and with Scootaloo’s anguished cries driving me on, I crawled towards a panel with many switches on it.

“Yhhhheeehhhhs.”

I reached the panel just as the shadow let Scootaloo go, and mashed down a large red button amidst a group of smaller switches, flooding the room with bright fluorescent light. Cold Thorn materialized before me as I arose from the ground to stand on my own four hooves completely.

“You shouldn’t be able to walk.” he stammered, “A fall like that should have shattered you!”

I grinned, the pain fueling a building determination, a rage I hadn’t known before, “Guess you didn’t try hard enough.” I told the teal Unicorn as I wiped a little bit of blood from my mouth.

The teal, large-hatted Unicorn roared and ran at me, knocking me to the ground again. I managed to roll out of the range of a powerful stomp attack from my former friend to stand back up again. My small victory was short lived though because as I advanced, he attacked the panel that I had used to reveal him, shorting it out and leaving only the sparse lighting that had illuminated small areas along the catwalks with bright but direct light earlier. I cursed under my breath, but did not dwell, rushing to Scootaloo.

I shook her lightly, “Scootaloo… Scootaloo! Are you alive?” I asked with a building panic when she didn’t respond immediately.

In the dim light I saw her eyes open just a little.

“I should be asking you that… right?” she questioned, but as I opened my mouth to respond, she shook her head, “Go get ‘em… I’ll be fine here. I just need a minute or five… Make it six…”

I stared up at the four levels of catwalks and platform above us to see the dim outline of Cold Thorn’s shadow form floating above between and around the steam pipes that arched up towards the ceiling. For a moment, I wondered what he was doing and why he hadn’t attacked yet, but the hissing in my head returned. Scootaloo went unconscious, making things a little more desperate.

“Mhhoooohhhv Hhhhhuuurrr.”

“Stop.” I commanded aloud, only to hear Cold Thorn laugh and watch as the shadow moved towards me, preparing to attack.

“Listen…” Scootaloo whispered, “I-...”

Wait.

“That’s it…!” I exclaimed, “I get it now.”

Scootaloo shook her head a bit, “What’re you-”

“No time!” I barked as I nabbed her up and tossed her on my back, ignoring the pain from my wounds earlier that week, “It’s so obvious, now that I think about it!”

With Scootaloo in tow, I bolted for the nearest lamp casting a harsh light down onto the dusty floor of whatever construct we were trapped within. If I was correct, and I prayed to Luna and Celestia that I was, the light would either weaken his ability to use that shadow magic of his within the limited area, or it would at least make him more vulnerable. I reached the light after a short sprint, and slid into it just in time to see Cold Thorn’s face rematerialize once it hit the light and also apparently blinded him at the same time because he roared and reared back and returned to the shadows as if he were on fire.

“Yes!” I exclaimed in triumph, “Not so badass now are you?”

“Dhhuuuuuhk.” the voices called.

“Huh?”

I was interrupted by a slash across the face by a shadowy whip, blade, tentacle, or something. It burned, made me bleed, but didn’t do any real damage.

“Jhuuuummmp.”

I had to listen hard, but it was starting to become more clear. The voices, at least at that moment, were trying to help me. It was a bit slow,and left me with little time to process the messages, made harder by the fact that it was little more than hissing noises, but it was giving me an advantage that I didn’t have before.

I jumped, only to be sliced just above my right forehoof by another attack. I assumed it had missed its target because the next attack seemed a little hesitant and missed completely. The next few instructions from the voices gave me enough time and foresight to avoid each attack in altogether. That was all well and good but I couldn’t keep it up forever and needed a way to return the attacks in kind without endangering Scootaloo in the process. I knew that if he could attack me here, that if I left he might go after my little orange friend, and I couldn’t let that happen.

“I need a little more help.” I said aloud, asking the voices openly for assistance.

“Speaking to them now?” a glowing sneer appeared before me, to which I frowned in defiance at, “You really have lost your mind.”

I needed Cold Thorn to follow me. I needed him to focus completely on me and his rage seemed to be the best way to do that. A plan quickly formulated in my head.

“Yeah maybe. But you’re still not able to hit me and Aurora’s going to marry a crazy stallion.”

The sneer turned into a grimace and roared at me, lashing out. Once more, my hissing brain-companion gave me the means of predicting most of his attacks with only a few slicing at my bandages and cutting into my ribs. Blood pooled on the ground from the lacerations but it was not enough to be worried about at the time. I had him, and with that I asked my voices to find me something specific, in part just to see if they could. If it was possible it would make my fight much easier so I could focus on maneuvering. That in mind, I made a really, really stupid face at what I assumed was Cold Thorn and made for the nearest catwalk, jumped, latched on and pulled myself over. I could hear him yell after me in anger, and made my way as quick as possible across the catwalk.

“Fhhouuunnd” the voices hissed.

I hoped that meant it knew what I was looking for, and listened deeper, sifting through the myriad of different tones and sounds that echoed around the message.

“Uhhhp.” I heard at last.

I began my climb, jumping off the catwalk and hooking my forehooves around a horizontal steam-pipe, launching myself towards another and-

“Swiihhng ahhhround.”

I had no idea what that meant and was knocked from my hoof-hold back down a level, barely managing to catch another pipe and swing up, over, and back around like a gymnast pony might to build up inertia.

“Yhess.”

Ah, alright.

I was beginning to understand the voices easier, which is probably obvious by this point in the story. Under their direction I made my way up again, looping when they told me and launching myself into the nearest light. Cold Thorn followed my exact movements, all the while roaring and slowing down with each light he followed me through. Up and up, level by level I went. My forehooves were tiring and I’m certain that even then the voices were picking up on my physical state. A few moments later, they directed me to a storage closet.

“Staaaahhhnd.” they commanded as I took up my position in front of the door, trying it and finding it locked, “Faaaaaaace hhhhhiiiim.”

“Are you sure?” I asked, “This doesn’t seem like-”

Cold Thorn rushed at me, barreling right into the light, completely enraged by the fact that he had been unable to defeat me. That light, unrealized in Cold Thorn’s rage, was much brighter than the others.

“Jhhuuump!” the voice commanded right as he entered the bright luminescence, with his horn aimed at my heart.

I sprung as his horn cut into my leg deeply, but was also knocked right through the door’s lock, shearing the lock free. Cold Thorn’s impact dazed the maniac Unicorn for just a moment.

“Khhhiiiil hhhhiiimm.” the voices commanded.

For a moment I considered it. I envisioned my victory in a flash of made-up memory. His blood on my hooves and his body broken, his threat gone forever. But I was too weak at the time to complete the action and fought the notion, knocking him cold instead as I came down atop his sprawled body. The voices surged in disappointment amidst the loud clang of my hooves against the steel walkways. The did not approve of that course of action.

I should have killed him then. So much trouble could have been avoided.

“I don’t care.” I told them as I opened the door, smacking him on the forehead with it for good measure, “I will not be controlled. I will listen, but I will not be controlled.

The voices went silent, as if they were having a tantrum. I smirked a little, realizing how crazy it all really was, how crazy I was. I shook said feelings as I retrieved a chain from the shelves within the storage closet and a light bulb that was labeled 1000 watts. I wondered why there was only one, and why it hadn’t been used, but found it would serve me well in that instant. I took the chain and wrapped my fallen foe in them, hooking them together with a heavy-duty latch that was at the end of each end of the chain and then stood atop the teal, large hat-wearing Unicorn and carefully unscrewed the light bulb above us both. It was hot, but not too hot to handle in my hooves making me wonder idly if it was magical in some way. The light bulbs at home were extremely hot when left on for a long time. Still, I screwed in the new one and was blinded upon its ignition.

Just in time too, because Cold Thorn awoke a moment later.

He also failed to use his shadow spells, much to my relief. My theory had worked.

“Damn you!” he hissed, “I’ll see you tortured! I’ll see you thrown to the demons of Tartarus!”

I stepped back as his shadow magic turned into a fine dust each time he tried to activate it, then watched him struggle against the chains in vain.

“You’ll be in jail soon anyways!” he sneered, “This area’s restricted! To everypony!”

“Maybe. But… somehow… I think that I’ll be fine.” I smirked.

In truth, I had no idea if I would be. There was too much going on, and there was no telling who would believe him or if they’d act with no evidence based on an accusation of a Lieutenant. I didn’t have time to think about it though, and jumped down off the top floor, falling and grasping scaffolding and superstructure as I made my way to Scootaloo who was just barely managing to hold herself up.

“Is he… gone?” she asked.

“No, but he’s tied up. We need to move.”

Scootaloo tried to walk but couldn’t. I offered my back and she climbed atop it. We walked back to the top via the many stairways that lead up. There was an exit sign at the end of the catwalk where Cold Thorn and mine’s battle had ended. I stopped as I reached the Unicorn. I said nothing, instead just stood there for a moment considering if I should. Scootaloo made a face, sticking her tongue out and making a rude noise. I laughed a bit.

“Well said.” I told her and began walking towards the sign.

The last thing I hear before I left the chamber was Cold Thorn cursing me to a life of misery and pain, vowing that he’d ‘take me down eventually’ or something.