“Apple Bloom!?” hollers Pipsqueak.

Silence.

He takes a breath and walks in a circle, biting his lip and trying to keep his thoughts in check so he can predict where Apple Bloom would be. All this is made harder due to the fact that Apple Bloom had become increasingly more recluse and paranoid as the trip went on, especially after Twilight's death.

“Apple Bloom!?” calls Pipsqueak again.

A rustle in the bushes turns Pipsqueak around, a part of him believing that it is Apple Bloom walking around in one of her trances, and another part believing it is a member of the Fellowship. He is right in regards to option two, but is caught by surprise when he sees that it is Spike running like the Devil is hot on his trails.

“Run!” shouts Spike, bolting right past the Foaling.

“Why?” asks Pipsqueak.

“Lots of bad guys!”

Pipsqueak watches Spike run, and when the drake disappears into the trees, he hears shouting and looking back to where Spike came from. His eyes nearly pop out of his skull when he sees a horde of Lulamoon soldiers running towards them, and he instantly runs after Spike.

“Find the Foalings! Get the unicorn!” shouts a rough stallion in the distance.

Apple Bloom slides to a large root and in one fluid move she slips over it and presses herself underneath it, clutching her beating heart and pushing herself deeper as more boots pass her.

Spike runs through the forest, looking over his shoulder to see Pipsqueak is running after him, but the Lulamoon soldiers are gaining and gaining fast. He forces himself to stop, nearly falling over in the carpet of dead leafs, and he scrambles to Pipsqueak, using his fire to engulf his sword in flame. When he is close enough, he pushes Pipsqueak aside and rams his fiery blade through the chest of the nearest soldier, and swings him into his partner.

The two flop to the ground, one screaming and the other quiet, and Spike quickly brings his blade up to block a strike from another soldier. It is during this that another soldier rushes him and tries to stab him in the back, but before he can do so a bolt stabs him in the shoulder.

The soldier screams and stumbles, and Spike growls and throws his first attacker down, slashes the injured soldier across the chest, then stabs the one on the ground.

Another bolt strikes a Lulamoon soldier in the chest, and as he crumbles to the ground Applejack swings her axe into another soldier, splitting his chest open and flinging him off his feet. The blow brings a stumble to Applejack, and while she tries to regain her balance a Lulamoon soldier charges her, roaring viciously. That is until a bolt strikes him in the head.

The newly made corpse flops to the ground and Braeburn runs up to Spike and Applejack, panting and vigorously scanning the forest.

“Applejack, get Pipsqueak outta here,” orders Braeburn. “Me and Spike will handle these vermin!”

Applejack nods, puts Pipsqueak under her arm and disappears into the cover of the trees. Her steps quickly fade, and Braeburn and Spike look down the forest to see more of the attacking party rapidly closing the distance between them.

“Ya ready to die, Spike?” asks Braeburn.

Spike narrows his eyes and brings his burning sword up. “No.”

“Good.”

Armored boots stampede past Apple Bloom's hiding spot, her body now pressed into the damp, dark crevice of the root. She bites back her whimpers, not wanting to hear the screams of pain, the clanging of metal and explosions of energy discharge rocking the forest.

“Apple Bloom?” says Sweetie Belle.

Apple Bloom opens her eyes, and her ears droop when she sees Scootaloo and Sweetie Belle across from her, waving at her from the safety of a lush bush, their eyes glowing like terrified animals.

“Come here,” says Sweetie Belle.

“Come on, slowpoke,” says Scootaloo. “Hide here.”

Apple Bloom shakes her head, swallowing her tears, and Sweetie Belle blinks in confusion and looks at Scootaloo.

“What's she doing?” asks Sweetie Belle.

Scootaloo and Apple Bloom lock eyes, and the small pegasus' feathers ruffle as she nods subtly.

“She's leaving,” says Scootaloo.

Sweetie Belle looks between Apple Bloom and Scootaloo, and after seeing the tears on Apple Blooms face, she grits her teeth and scurries out of her spot, despite Scootaloo's protest.

“No!” says Sweetie Belle.

“Sweetie!” hisses Scootaloo, now crawling after her.

With the two now out in the open, they look down the path, ears drooped and colors pale, and Scootaloo flicks her eyes at Apple Bloom for the briefest of seconds.

“Run, Apple Bloom,” urges Scootaloo. Then she waves at someone Apple Bloom cannot see. “Hey, stampcrabs! Over here!”

“Yeah, look at us!” shouts Sweetie Belle.

And then they run off in the opposite direction of Apple Bloom, leaping through the bushes and scurrying over the roots and logs of the forest. Seconds later, a swarm of Lulamoon soldiers run past Apple Bloom's spot, plowing through the forest and using magical bolts that light up the trees and leave smoldering blotches on the ground and trees.

“Don't let them get away!” barks a soldier.

Once all the soldiers are gone, Apple Bloom, shakily crawls out of her spot, and stays on her hands and knees as she looks around, and then she flips her hood on and disappears from sight.

Sweetie Belle and Scootaloo's feet are barely touching the ground as they run through the forest, nimbly scrambling over crumbled ruins and leaping over roots and logs. Unfortunately for them, the taller ponies are still catching up to them, and the unicorns in their company lobbing balls of crackling energy are not making their distraction any easier to escape from.

“I think our plan is working!” says Sweetie Belle, yelping and stumbling when a ball of sparking blue energy streaks over her head and blows out a chunk of bark.

“You think!?” snaps Scootaloo.

A ring of Lulamoon soldiers are blasted off of their feet by a telekinetic blast, clearing up the area for Blueblood, who is panting and sweating with blood dripping from his sword. Next to him, Rainbow Dash and Flash cut down a group of four soldiers with quick slashes, and when a particularly vocal Lulamoon soldier rushes Rainbow Dash, Blueblood holds out his hand, and with a glow of his horn and hand, the soldier is lifted off the ground. He grabs his neck, choking and kicking the air as he desperately claws at the invisible hand, but his struggle is put to an end when Blueblood throws him into a stone pillar, leaving a circle of red and a limp body.

Once that is done, he takes a breath of air and marches off in a random direction, using a handkerchief to wipe the blood off his blade.

“Find Apple Bloom!” orders Blueblood.

“Where are you going?” says Rainbow Dash.

“To find Shining Armor.”

Applejack hops over a log, lungs burning, legs heavy and eyes focused on her path with only three goals in mind:

Get to the boat.

Find Apple Bloom.

Survive.

The chaos in the forest is all she needs to keep running. The clashes of steel, the crackling of energy discharge, and the flowing smoke is too much of a reminder of when Apple Manor burned during the Davenport treason. So she runs, not wanting to see the bodies, not wanting to see the swarm in the forest, and most certainly not wanting to see any more of the Fellowship die.

“Look out!” shouts Pipsqueak suddenly.

Applejack barely sees the spiked mace swinging at her, and she gasps and tries to change course, but slips instead and lands on her side, sliding on the damp ground with Pipsqueak still in her arms. The mace, however, obliterates a tree trunk with its impact, showering the two with splinters and bark. The tree groans and tips over, its trunk snapping and popping, and Applejack cringes when it hits the ground, kicking up leafs and dirt. Seconds later, the fallen tree is broken in half by the same spiked mace, and the remnants are rammed aside by the biggest pony she has ever seen. Just the mace alone is around her size, with the spiked head the size of her noggin. And his intricate network of metal scales and chainmail guarantees no weakness in the new foes armor.

Applejack gulps and looks up at the dark pools of Tam O'Shanter's eyes for his full faced helmet, and pushes herself up with her axe at the ready, despite her body shaking and a stone in her throat.

“Applejack?” says Pipsqueak.

“...Yeah?” says Applejack, too terrified to take her eyes off the beast.

“...Good luck.”

“Thanks.”

Scootaloo and Sweetie Belle run across a small bridge over a shallow creek, both looking over their shoulders at the pursuing mob. But after getting to the other side, Scootaloo skids to a stop and tugs Sweetie Belle back, and both watch with wordless terror as a dozen more soldiers run towards them from the hill. One in particular is a buff earth pony with a long axe held high for a kill, screaming like a maniac. The Foalings feet lock and Scootaloo's hands shake when she draws her sword.

“It was nice knowing you, Scoots,” says Sweetie Belle, also drawing her sword and pressing her back against the pegasus to stare down the Lulamoon soldiers across the bridge.

“Meh. You were all right,” says Scootaloo.

Sweetie Belle shoots her companion a glare, but before she can say anything a wall of crystal suddenly goes between the Foalings and soldiers, and a spear suddenly arcs over their heads and impales the axe maniac through the chest. The force knocks him off his feet, and a blur of yellow and pink and leaps over the Foalings, rolls in front of a pair Lulamoon soldiers and in two quick bashes of a shield, they too are knocked to the ground, limp like dolls. The newcomer then blocks a sword with her shield, punches him in the face, and as he staggers away she grabs the wrist of another attacker, twists the sword out of his hand and slams the side of her shield into his arm. He crumbles to the ground, sobbing and holding his arm, which has white bone poking out, and the one that got a fist to the face tries yet again to attack, but he is deflected with the shield and in a mere blink of an eye has his face flattened with said object.

The remaining Lulamoon soldiers stand back, eyes wide and bodies stiff, and Scootaloo finds her mouth hanging open as Fluttershy pulls her spear out from her first victim.

With her weapon now in hand, Fluttershy coils her body behind her bloodied shield and aims her spear at the soldiers while Rarity ushers the Foalings towards the pegasus.

“Girls, get behind me,” orders Fluttershy.

Shining Armor's feet dig into the ground, and the crystallized barrier between him and Pinkie Pie cracks with pieces popping off and flickering away. The two ponies lock eyes, both growling and pushing against each other, muscles straining and eyes burning hate into each other.

“You're pretty strong for somepony with a bad liver,” says Pinkie Pie.

Shining Armor pushes Pinkie Pie away, and as she stumbles back he swipes his broken blade at her. She side steps it and swings her hammer against the unicorn, but his shield spell blocks the impact at the cost of more pieces falling off. The blow does send Shining Armor off his feet, his shield finally disappearing, and when he lands on his back the Ranger brings her hammer down on him. He rolls out of the way and uses his telekinesis to push her back with enough force to put her airborne.

She flips in the air and lands flat on her face in the mulch, and Shining Armor rolls to his feet and forms another energy shield around his arm.

“You're not too bad for a harlot,” says Shining Armor.

Pinkie Pie presses the head of her hammer into the ground and stands up, wiping her sweaty mane back, and she flashes a smile as she brings her hammer up.

“Thanks. But I'm still going to hurt you,” says Pinkie Pie.

Shining Armor twirls his sword. “Uh huh, sure.”

Pinkie Pie snorts, then charges with a vicious yell, and Shining Armor returns the yell and runs towards her, horn glowing and his manifested shield becoming thicker.

Then an arrow suddenly strikes Pinkie Pie in the shoulder, knocking her off balance, and Shining Armor's sword slashes her across her gut, throwing her down to the ground with a stream of blood flying. When she hits the ground, another arrow comes from the trees and impales itself in Shining Armor's leg. The unicorn screams and drops to the ground, holding his wound, and a pegasus with a red coat and a green pony tail lands not too far from them.

Shining Armor's feral expression shifts to confusion and pain, with thick droplets of sweat dripping off of him he looks Pinkie Pie, who is groaning and shifting on the ground, holding her bleeding gut. It does little to stop the flow, for within seconds her hand is stained in thick red and globs of blood patter to the ground. Even droplets of blood drip from the arrow, and Pinkie Pie looks up, grinding her teeth with her eyes completely covered by her leaf covered, flat mane.

“Cheap shot, Naga!” yells Pinkie Pie.

“We all have quirks,” says the pegasus. “Mine is strategy, and yours is apparently not dying.”

Shining Armor takes another look at the pegasus, noting his green tunic, brown pants, knee high boots and red belt- and laughs.

Naga Morich stops and raises an eye brow, and even Pinkie Pie stares at him, despite her paleness and difficulty staying on her hands and knees.

“Don't tell me. You're a nihilist who embraces death,” says Naga.

“No,” says Shining Armor, still snickering.

“Oh, good. They take all the fun out of the hunt.”

“You're such a peacock!”

“... A peacock?”

“Yes! Look at you! You're such a typical pegasus with your pretty mane, your lush coat, weird attire. Did your mommy pick out that suit for you, my little explorer?”

Pinkie Pie covers her face with a bloody hand, and Naga hums and slings his bow across his back to draw his curved sword.

“I think I'm going to kill you first,” says Naga.

Shining Armor rips out the arrow from his leg, summons a small dome around Pinkie Pie, and uses his broken sword to help him stand.

“Good luck with that. I specialize in not dying, too,” says Shining Armor.

As soon as he says that, he is covered in a magical hue and tugged away. He grunts when he lands on his back, and he slides backwards a few feet before coming to a stop in front of Blueblood.

“What do you want?” says Shining Armor after a brief pause.

“Find Apple Bloom and get her to safety,” says Blueblood.

Shining Armor tenses, and he and Pinkie Pie exchange quick looks before he speaks to Blueblood.

“Oh, about that...” begins Shining Armor.

“No time for slacking. I will handle this scoundrel,” says Blueblood.

The Viceroy readies his sword, and Naga grins and clamps both hands on his blade and slides his foot back with his wings prepping for a charge.

“That's fine by me. I can kill all three of you,” says Naga.

Rainbow Dash leans against a tree, gritting her teeth as she pulls out a jagged piece of wood from her arm. It comes out with some difficulty, and she tosses the bloody piece at a dead unicorn at her feet, whose horn is dimming, and behind her is a tree that looks as though a fire monster took a bite out of it.

There is a rustle and scream and Rainbow Dash blinks, trying to decipher the blurs across the way. She sees the gamboge and gray colors of Flash engaging other blurs, but while he is fighting them off another one rushes behind him. In a blink of an eye, Rainbow Dash zips over and intercepts the potentially fatal blow, deflecting it with her first and slashing the target across the chest with her other sword. Her victim gurgles and falls against the tree, then slides to the ground, and Rainbow Dash turns to Flash, squinting her eyes just a bit so she can see his face a little better. A cut has gone from his ear down to his cheek, coating the entire side of his fade, his neck and collar in blood. It takes Flash a moment to realize that Rainbow Dash is behind him, and when he does, he turns and looks at the corpse, then at her.

“Thank you,” says Flash.

Rainbow Dash nods. “No problem. But I'm definitely going to cut off Blueblood's feet when I find him for ditching us like that.”

Flash only nods, but the two pegasi leap and turn around with their weapons at the ready when twigs and branches snap, and a moment later the hazy figures of Spike and Braeburn hop out, both wheezing for air.

“Whoa! Whoa! Hold it! Allies, here!” says Braeburn, having to use a tree for support and barely able to speak.

“Out of breath, already?” says Rainbow Dash, being discrete when she sucks in more air to hide her weariness.

Spike raises a couple of fingers, but keeps his head dipped as he tries to swallow air.

“You have no idea what we have just been through,” says Spike.

“You? Me and Flash just killed fifty guys by ourselves!” says Rainbow Dash.

Flash shakes his head, and Braeburn straightens himself out and stares at the mare skeptically.

“Really? Me and Spike just killed a hundred,” claims Braeburn.

Rainbow Dash narrows her eyes, and Braeburn reloads his crossbow.

“Any of ya see Applejack or Apple Bloom?” asks Braeburn.

“I probably would have seen them if I wasn't killing two hundred guys by myself,” says Rainbow Dash.

“Where did all these guys come from, anyway?” asks Flash.

“They're Trixie's soldiers,” says Spike. “They had to have been running fast to get to us.”

“Well, they are terrible. I haven't had a challenge this disappointing since I was fifteen,” says Rainbow Dash.

“And how old are you now?” asks Braeburn.

Rainbow Dash sighs thickly and pinches her brow. “Braeburn, I swear to Faust...”

Braeburn snickers, and Flash steps in between the two and keeps his hands up as a barrier between them.

“Not to be disrespectful, but this is not a good time for bantering,” says Flash.

“He's right. We have to meet up with the others and draw these guys away from Apple Bloom,” says Spike.

The rest nod in agreement, but everyone freezes when a distant horn suddenly sounds off. The horn's call echoes through the forest again and everyone's ears perk as they look around, eyes questioning, expecting to see more Lulamoon soldiers. But all they see are corpses and trees.

“What is that?” asks Rainbow Dash.

The horn sounds again, and Flash's eyes widen.

“Fluttershy!”

Fluttershy blows her horn again, hoping, praying that the rest of the Fellowship will come to their aid against the swarm. But it seems every call only draws more of the Lulamoon soldiers to them.

Rarity has been sprouting crystal walls, but the attacking unicorns reduce them to shards as quickly as they rise, and the Foalings have not been able to do much except stay close to Fluttershy.

In her attempts to call for help, the Hurricane has slung her spear over her back, and has been using her shield to block and bash anybody that has gotten too close, with the little ones finishing them off.

Her body, from muscle to soul, shakes at the sight of the swarm, but she keeps fighting. She keeps blocking. Today, failure is not an option. Today, timidness must rest and the past must take hold.

Fluttershy readies her horn, but stops herself when an earth pony charges her with a hammer. She narrowly blocks his swing, and her feet dig into the ground as he slams his hammer against her shield, again and again and again. The pain ripples through her arm, and the impacts bend her knee with every strike. Then, one strong whack and there is a crack, followed by a fire of pain erupting from the bones of her arm.

Fluttershy bites her lip, growling with tears flowing freely down her face, and when the earth pony goes for another swing she pivots around him and lets her dented shield slide free from her limp, bleeding arm. She then grabs her spear, side steps another attack and stabs him through the side. The earth pony falls to his knees, choking with blood bubbling out of his mouth, and his vicious eyes changing to fear. When he falls flat on his face on the bloody ground, Fluttershy's ferocity fades to horror and steps back with her good hand pressed against her muzzle, and she looks at the carnage around her. She looks at Rarity, who barely has the energy to summon a row crystal spikes, and then at the Foalings, who are striking down a soldier who has had trouble getting them. Then she looks at her bloody hand and staggers away from her latest kill serving as a stark reminder of why she renounced the life she has briefly returned to.

Then a sudden sharp pain rips past Fluttershy's armor and flesh, and breaks the back of her ribs, and she stumbles forward, gasping and wheezing for air with tears cleaning streaks of grime off her face. Seconds later, her knees give out and she crumbles to the ground.

Rarity, Scootaloo and Sweetie Belle watch, mouths hanging open in disbelief as Fluttershy drops to the ground with an axe lodged into her back, quiet and limp. Behind her, a black and white unicorn stallion with a crimson cape marches down the steps of ruins, unslinging a larger axe from his back.

“You are outnumbered,” says Crimson Cape after he passes Fluttershy. “Surrender and spare yourselves of further consequences.”

“You will not touch them,” says Fluttershy weakly.

The four look towards Fluttershy and see she has pushed herself on her knees, with her good fist pressed into the ground and her ruined arm hanging limp. She is seething with a bloodshot glare burning past her sweaty locks, but Crimson merely scoffs dismissively at the display.

“We'll see about that,” says Crimson.

A purple blast suddenly hits him in the side and he twirls in the air, limbs flailing and axe flying, and when he hits a tree he crumbles to the ground, kicking up leafs and twigs upon landing. The two Foalings are stunned beyond words, and their eyes dumbly follow Rarity when she runs past them and helps Fluttershy to her feet. The pegasus' complexion has paled, her legs are wobbly and her entire back is covered and dripping blood. She barely has the strength to hold Rarity, much less lift her feet when she starts walking with haste.

“Get to the boats!” orders Rarity.

“But what about the others?” says Sweetie Belle.

“They'll be fine,” says Scootaloo.

Scootaloo grabs Sweetie Belle and starts running, but the two stop when there is a crackle of energy, followed by the air breaking and Rarity screaming. They turn around and gasp when they see Rarity being dragged across the ground by a sparking, red chain wrapped around her neck. She claws at it and kicks her legs wildly, and her horn ejects useless sparks as Crimson pulls her in, leaving Fluttershy as a heap on the ground. When Rarity is at his feet, he pulls out a horn cuff, and she shrieks and tries to fight him off, but he overpowers her and clamps the cuff on. There is a flash of light and Rarity's eyes become milky white and her body goes limp.

“Rarity!” cries Sweetie Belle.

Sweetie Belle and Scootaloo run towards her, but Crimson's horn and hands light up, and they too are wrapped in the sparking red chains. With the chains wrapped around them, a strong heat goes through their clothes and burns their skin. They collapse and thrash on the ground, sobbing and screaming as they are dragged closer. When they are at Crimson's feet he slaps the cuff on Sweetie Belle's horn and another on Scootaloo's wrist. In seconds time, both of them are blinded by a light and every limb becomes weak, and despite them wanting to move and fight, all they can do is watch with fading vision as a group of Lulamoon soldiers rush towards them, with the injured one needing assistance to walk.

“Get them out of here!” orders Crimson.

The soldiers quickly sling the trio on their soldiers and carry them off with great speed, and the last thing the Foalings see is Crimson approaching Fluttershy.

Fluttershy whimpers weakly. Her fingers can barely move and the coldness on her skin clashes with the warm streams of blood running down her back, soaking her armor and limp wings. She is finding it near impossible to push herself up, much less sit on her knees, and her vision fades in and out from dull to black with each heavy beat of her heart. Her ears sluggishly trail Crimson's steps, and she shivers as the cold, sharp axe head is pressed underneath her chin and forces her to look into the eyes of her killer.

“So, the rumors are true. Clan Lord Hurricane did send his daughters to save the world he takes pleasure in killing,” says Crimson, his voice distant.

Fluttershy quietly glares at him.

“I think its time somepony kills his world,” says Crimson.

He swings his axe, but rather than meeting flesh, it meets steel, and the two look to the side and see Rainbow Dash's snarl and her obvious struggle to keep the axe from Fluttershy's neck.

“There's the other one!” says Crimson.

He twists Rainbow Dash's sword away and uses a telekinetic blast to push her back, and he rolls out of the way from Flash's swipe and skids to a stop, axe held tight and his eyes, horn and hands glowing. From his horn comes a red gaseous stream that engulfs his axe, and he chuckles as he taps the ground with its blade. The mulch glows red and disintegrates like embers, and Crimson uses his magic to yank out the axe lodged in Fluttershy. She collapses, and Flash narrowly avoids the flying axe as it goes to Crimson's hand. Upon grabbing the second axe, it too becomes engulfed in the strange energy and he aims his weapons at both pegasi.

“I'm going to take great pleasure in killing some Hurricanes!” says Crimson.

Streaks of silver bounce off each other with metallic clanks echoing from every collision. Blueblood keeps his feet steady and constantly moving in clockwise path, putting the pegasus on a defense.

Blueblood swings at Naga, and the pegasus blocks the blade and pushes himself against the Viceroy. Steel scrapes and the two stallions growl as they push into each other. Blueblood then forces Naga's sword down and elbows him in the jaw, and as his target stumbles back, he goes for another swing, but he is barely blocked and the slender pony twists away from Blueblood.

The two ponies step back, breathing heavily, and the pegasus wipes blood from his lip, then scoffs angrily and charges Blueblood with a burst of speed.

Blueblood brings his sword up and blocks the flurry of slashes with ease, and his feet stay steady as he backs up, keeping an eye on Naga's motions. When his target goes for a stab, Blueblood slides to the side, uses his sword to push down the opposing blade and punches Naga on the side of the head. The pegasus stumbles, but before he can fall his neck is enveloped in a magical aura and he is hoisted off the ground, bringing him to violently kick his legs and flap his wings as he gags and curses.

“I've entertained you long enough,” says Blueblood over the chokes.

With one hand clawing at the aura, Naga pulls out a white canister from his belt, then pushes the canister's button with his thumb and covers his eyes with his arm. Immediately there is a bright flash of light that burns Blueblood's eyes, and he tries to shield himself from it using his hand and closing his eyes, growling painfully, but the light breaches his eyelids. When he opens his eyes a second later, he sees the sleek blade coming at him, but before he can lift his sword everything goes dark.

Shining Armor blinks away the colorful blotches that float in the field of white, and when the white breaks apart to reveal the forest his burnt eyes widen at the sight of Blueblood. His body lays on the blood soaked mulch, his head rolling far from him, and standing a short distance from him is Naga Morich. He is partially crouching with his bloody sword extended and a proud smile stretched across his muzzle. His eyes drift up to meet Shining Armor's horrified expression, and the Exiled Prince's eyes become wet and red and his chest heaves from his heavy breathing.

“One down,” says Naga. He glances at Pinkie Pie's still form. “No, two down. You're turn, hobo.”

Shining Armor pushes himself up, ignoring the pain from his wound with his mouth sealed tight, but nostrils flaring with his ragged breathing. His sword shakes and he holds out his free hand to Naga, horn and palm sparking with a heavy weight crushing his heart.

The pegasus charges him, but is abruptly knocked on his back when a rose colored shield wall comes up between him and Shining Armor. Naga groans and holds his bleeding muzzle, and glares at Shining Armor.

“That was cheap,” sneers Naga.

Shining Armor is silent, but his hand and horn glows brighter and four more shield walls surround the pegasus, completely blocking him in. Naga looks around his prison, then looks at Shining Armor with an unimpressed frown.

“Really? You call this a fight? This is just a fancy display of cowardice,” says Naga. “Fight me like a stallion, hobo scum!”

Shining Armor's eyes glow and his breathing becomes heavier as his hand gradually clenches into a fist. As his hand closes, the cube shrinks, and Naga's ears droop and hi eyes frantically flick around for an opening when he realizes what is happening. He bangs against the shield wall, screaming at Shining Armor to stop, but they fall on deaf ears, and the closer the walls get, the louder he screams and the harder and more desperate his banging becomes.

Soon the banging stops and the begs turn to screams of pain. Shining Armor cannot break his eyes off, though. He has to watch Naga fold inside the prison, and even when his hand is fully clenched, he squeezes tighter and clenches his teeth harder. In seconds, the screaming stops with the sounds of sickening crunches, but Shining Armor holds his shaking fist for a few more seconds before he releases his fingers.

The cube vanishes, and in its place is a gory, bleeding cube of crushed flesh, bone and material, and Shining Armor drops to his knees, shaking and covering his face with his hand. Seconds later, he flicks his fingers towards the shield around Pinkie Pie, and it disintegrates, but she does not move. Nobody moves.

He looks at Blueblood's headless body, then turns to the Ranger and sees her eyes are closed and her hand loosely pressed against the wound he inflicted upon her.

Shining Armor swallows and makes his way towards her. Once he reaches her he puts her head on his lap and pulls out a vial from his pouch.

“No more,” says Shining Armor quietly.

He gently pries her mouth open and empties the contents down her throat. He then closes his eyes and bows his head and presses his trembling fist against his muzzle.

“Please no more.”

Rainbow Dash curses as she narrowly dodges the two axes. Her ducking saved her head for the first swing, and her rolling away saved her shoulder when the unicorn brought the second axe down on her.

Flash screams and slashes at Crimson, but his sword is blocked by the first axe, and Rainbow Dash has to use her sword to block the second axe. The two pegasi push the unicorn back and rush him as he stumbles, but he still manages to deflect their blows with swift motions as they bring their blades against him.

As this happens, Spike and Braeburn rush to Fluttershy, and Spike carries her to safety while Braeburn sweeps the area with crossbow. Once she is safe behind a tree, Braeburn pulls out a medicine vial from his pouch and Spike takes off his shirt to bandage her bleeding back. It quickly becomes soaked and drips blood all over his hand, and in a panic he looks at Braeburn.

“What are you waiting for? Just pour it down her throat!” says Spike.

Braeburn's muzzle scrunches from annoyance, but he wordlessly pours the liquid down her throat. Fluttershy gurgles and coughs weakly, and Spike cradles her in his arms, pressing his back against the tree as much as his spines will allow, all while Braeburn kneels next to him and aims his crossbow at the dueling trio.

Flash and Rainbow Dash are moving in circles around Crimson, forcing the unicorn to constantly pivot and block, bringing his footing to a less stable position. Their blades bounce off and slide against the axe heads, and they use their wings to give them bursts of speed that kick up the mulch. Crimson stumbles after failing to strike Rainbow Dash, and he growls when he swings at Flash, but Flash ducks and pivots underneath Crimson's swing, and with a vicious yell he slashes the back of the unicorn's legs. The soldier screams in pain and drops to the ground with blood pooling around him, and before he can bring his axe up for a block Rainbow Dash stabs him in the chest with both of her swords. He gasps and stiffens, and the two blades poke out his back with beads of blood dripping off of them, and when Rainbow Dash yanks them out he falls to the ground, twitching in a pool of blood, though she does not marvel at her kill. Instead she sheathes her weapons and runs towards where Spike and Braeburn took Fluttershy, and she slides next to them, using every ounce of willpower she has not to yank her sister away from Spike's protective embrace.

“Please tell me she's not dead,” says Rainbow Dash, breathing heavily.

“Braeburn gave her some of the deer healing potion, but she hasn't woken up yet,” says Spike.

“Give her to me.”

Spike carefully passes Fluttershy to Rainbow Dash, and she hugs Fluttershy tight with her wings wrapping around her limp body. She then looks at Spike, putting on a brave face, but a line of tears has left a streak on her cheek.

“Thank you,” says Rainbow Dash.

Spike nods and Flash jogs next to the group, sword still in hand.

“I'm not seeing anypony else. No soldiers, no Shining, no Pinkie, no Blueblood, nopony,” says Flash.

Rainbow Dash nods, her fingers raking Fluttershy's mane. “Okay. Just stay here... Please.”

Flash nods, and Braeburn stands up and looks at the group, his finger and tail twitching.

“Y'all can stay here, but I'm going to find Applejack,” says Braeburn. “You coming, Spike?”

Spike nods, grabs his sword and stands up. “Let's go.”

Applejack hops out of the tree line, cursing up a storm as the ground shakes. She looks over her shoulder and yells in fright when Tam o'Shanter's mace shatters a tree, bringing it to fall towards her. She leaps out of the way, briefly being blinded by the kicked up dirt, but she is able to see enough to roll away when the massive mace comes down on her. More sand is kicked up, and Applejack scrambles to her feet, grabs her axe and turns around to block the incoming mace. The blow knocks her off balance, and she clumsily brings her axe up again to shield herself from another swipe, but this time she is sent into the air.

She lands on her back, her axe now broken and her head throbbing, and when she pushes herself to her knees Tam o'Shanter grabs her by her neck and hoists her off the ground. She gasps for air and kicks her legs as her fingers claw in vain at the massive hand. Then everything becomes a blur and all the air is forced out of her lungs as her back crashes into one of the boats, flinging broken wood up and around her. Her eyes roll and her muscles become limp, and all she can do is groan when Tam o'Shanter drags her towards the water.

When the freezing liquid flooding past her armor Applejack is shocked awake, and she screams in fear and tries to pull his hand off of her collar, but her scream goes silent when she is shoved under water.

The cold water surges past her mouth and into her lungs, and she kicks and beats against him, but it does nothing. His body warps and breaks from the water's ripples, but his hand gets heavier and her head is pushed into the sand, filling her ears and mane with thick mud.

Darkness bleeds in and her thrashing gets weaker. Her heart gets heavier, her lungs fuller, and her eyes roll back. Soon her hands release Tam's wrist, and everything becomes dark.

Apple Bloom stumbles out of the forest, short of breath and eyes zipping wildly for signs of enemies or the Fellowship. At first she does not see anybody, however, upon exiting she hears a scream, followed by a splash, and that is when she sees a titan of a pony with a giant mace on its back holding someone in the water.

“No!” screams Apple Bloom.

She runs, her legs giving out underneath her within the first few steps, and she scrambles to her feet and runs again.

Pipsqueak charges the monster and whacks his sword against it, but it effortlessly beats him away with one swipe, sending him crashing into the river bank.

The water becomes still and Apple Bloom''s eyes burn with tears, and everything becomes a gray tint when she extends her marked hand, which has become encased in dark crystal. With her hand extended comes a flash of pain in her eyes and hand, and the monster turns to her, but before he can react jagged crystal spikes erupt from the ground, shattering another boat and lifting him a dozen feet in the air with water bursting around him.

His blood trickles down the grooves of the spikes from his destroyed, twitching body, but Apple Bloom does not stare at the gruesome display. Rather she hurries towards its victim, her little body splashing in the bloody water, and when she yanks up Applejack her eyes return to normal, and she grits her teeth as she pulls the larger pony out, struggling to keep her head out of the water. Thankfully Applejack coughs out a glob of water and wheezes for air.

“Pipsqueak, help me!” yells Apple Bloom.

Pipsqueak hobbles towards Apple Bloom and grabs Applejack's feet, and the two Foalings carry her out with great struggle. When they reach the shore they drop her on the mud and collapse, panting and shaking with Applejack coughing and being turns to her hands and knees by Pipsqueak. The larger pony pukes out more water, and sucks in air, only to cough and whimper. With all the water dripping off of her, it is hard to say what is water and what is tears, but with Pipsqueak and Applejack distracted and not dead, Apple Bloom slowly backs away to the boat.

“Its okay, you're safe. Just breathe,” says Pipsqueak as he rubs Applejack's shoulder.

Apple Bloom looks at the destroyed boats, then at the mangled body, and with the soft words of Pipsqueak and Applejack's sickly wheezing in her ears, she looks at her marked hand. A moment later she balls her hand, closes her eyes and then runs to the last boat.

Water splashes around her and Pipsqueak's voice stops, which only pushes her to go faster. Her muscles strain and tears rolls down her cheeks when she pushes the boat into the water.

“Apple Bloom?” says Pipsqueak.

The boat rocks and Apple Bloom quickly, yet clumsily climbs aboard and uses the oar to push herself further from shore, unable to look behind her.

“What are you doing!? Stop!” shouts Pipsqueak.

Apple Bloom rows, her eyes burning and teeth grinding hard from trying to keep herself from sobbing. In seconds she is a good distance in the churning water, but her ears perk when she hears splashing, and she looks over her shoulder to see Pipsqueak swimming towards her, his little body fighting against the river's rough current.

“Pipsqueak, go back!” orders Apple Bloom. “I have to do this alone!”

“No you don't!” says Pipsqueak.

“Go back!”

“Not without you!”

Pipsqueak still swims, and is briefly submerged in the river. Apple Bloom's ears droop and she strains her eyes, heart racing and breath short, and when Pipsqueak reappears further down, gasping for air and kicking in the water she screams for him and rows after him. The boat quickly catches up to Pipsqueak and Apple Bloom holds the oar out to him. Once he grabs it she pulls him in and with a great struggle she pulls him on board.

With no one steering, the boat drifts down the stream, but Apple Bloom does not care. Not now, anyway. Her hand cups Pipsqueak's cheeks and she looks into his eyes, sniffling and blinking tears away.

“What were you thinking? You almost drowned!” says Apple Bloom.

“I couldn't let you go,” says Pipsqueak, his voice shaking and airy. “I lost too many friends. I'm not going to lose you, too.”

Apple Bloom swallows a wet lump, and Pipsqueak hugs her tight against him, cupping her head into his shoulder.

“You said you had to do this alone, but you don't have to. I'm here,” says Pipsqueak. “I'll be with you until the end.”

Apple Bloom's lips quiver, and as much as she wants to say something all she can do is bury herself into Pipsqueak, sniffling and gripping his shirt tight as he rocks her gently. And there the two sit in silence as the current drags them away from the Fellowship.

Applejack stays on her hands and knees, coughing and watching the boat drift down the current. After some time passes the boat drifts out of view around the curve and Applejack gulps in air and looks at Tam o'Shanter's destroyed body.

“Holy Faust and the alicorns,” says Braeburn. “What happened here?”

Applejack looks over her shoulder, not realizing that Braeburn and Spike had come up behind her. Both are battered and bleeding, and Spike is missing his shirt entirely with a lot of blood on his chest. She sincerely hopes that that is not his.

“Are you all right?” asks Braeburn.

Applejack nods.

“Where's Apple Bloom? Have you seen her?” asks Spike.

“Pipsqueak and Apple Bloom are gone. They took the last boat,” says Applejack, nodding to the wreckages. “I couldn't stop them. I'm sorry.”

Spike oddly enough seems relieved, and Braeburn puts his hand on her shoulder, but says nothing. A moment later, Rainbow Dash and Flash come out of the forest with Fluttershy being carried in Flash's arms. He gently sets her down next to a tree, and Rainbow Dash sits on a log close by, her hands clamped together in front of her muzzle and her eyes red and wet as she rocks back and forth.

“Did you find Apple Bloom?” asks Flash to Spike and Braeburn.

Braeburn looks across the bay. “Applejack said that she and Pipsqueak high tailed it out of here. Have any of you seen Shining Armor?”

“Or Pinkie Pie and Blueblood?” adds Spike.

Flash shakes his head, but a rustling of leaves brings all able eyes to the forest, and Rainbow Dash stands up when Shining Armor comes out, carrying Pinkie Pie in his arms. His eyes are dead, his steps sluggish, and covering his wrists are Blueblood's white vambraces with the roses stamped on them.

Braeburn, Spike and Flash step back to give Shining Armor room, and he lays Pinkie Pie in the sand and wipes tears and sweat from his face.

Spike looks at the vambraces, then looks at Shining Armor.

“Where's Blueblood?” asks Spike.

“Gone. Just like Twilight,” says Shining Armor. He looks at the rest of the Fellowship's defeated faces. “Where's everypony else?”

“Apple Bloom and Pipsqueak took the last boat,” says Applejack.

“And Rarity, Sweetie Belle and Scootaloo were taken by the Lulamoon soldiers,” says Flash.

Rainbow Dash begins pacing in circle, clawing at her mane.

“We can't just stand here. We got to go after Apple Bloom!” says Rainbow Dash. “Me and Flash can-”

“No,” interrupts Shining Armor.

The Fellowship looks at him, baffled, and he looks down, exhaling slowly as he adjusts his scavenged armor, his eyes on the faded rose imprinted on the thin armor. He glances at the forest across the river and quickly looks away, swallowing and fingers trembling while he finishes tightening the vambrace.

“Apple Bloom's fate cannot be in our hands. It is best that she goes alone with somepony she can trust,” says Shining Armor.

The Fellowship exchanges confused looks, save for Spike, who nods in agreement, and Breburn steps forward, eyeing Shining Armor critically.

“So, all of this was in vain, then?” says Braeburn. “All the friends we lost was for nothing?”

Shining Armor holds out his hand to Applejack, and after she takes it he pulls her up and then he walks to Braeburn. He is barely able to meet the group with the guilt in him, but nonetheless he forces himself to look at each of them.

“I made mistakes,” says Shining Armor after a pause. “I wish I can undo what I've done, but I can't. All I can do is live on to make things right.” He puts his hands on Braeburn's shoulder. “We will march on and not abandon our friends to the torment of the enemy while we have breath in our lungs. We're going to find Scootaloo, Sweetie Belle, and Rarity and we're going to save them. No more of our Fellowship will die.”

Shining Armor's hand slides off of Braeburn's shoulder and he begins to gather supplies from the wreckage of the boats.

“Rainbow, Flash, stay with Fluttershy and Pinkie Pie until they are better. Spike, Braeburn, Applejack, you are with me. Leave everything we can spare behind. We leave now,” says Shining Armor.

The three in Shining Armor's party nod and quickly gather supplies, and while the Exiled Prince loads his bag, Rainbow Dash grabs his shoulder.

“Where are we supposed to meet up?” asks Rainbow Dash.

“We will meet in Ponyville. King Adirondack has pledged support for us, so it should be a safe place to regroup and resupply, hopefully with our friends rescued,” says Shining Armor.

“But Davenport left. Can we trust him without his kid?”

“No, but we don't have much choice.”

Rainbow Dash sighs. “All right, but if that backstabber tries anything funny on us I'm going to kill him and then break your balls.”

Shining Armor pats Rainbow Dash on the head. “You already did.”

Rainbow Dash blinks in confusion, and Shining Armor hoists his refilled pack on his back and marches to the tree line. He stops, hesitates, then looks over his shoulder at his party. Braeburn has a pack on, Applejack has found another axe, as well as made a pack herself, and Spike now has a shirt as well as a pack of him own.

Seeing this, Shining Armor nods approvingly, grips the hilt of his blade and says: “Let's go hunting.”