"Be confident my little pony."

The azure unicorn idly flipped through the thick folder before her, eyes scanning through the various reports she had received that day on the state of Reinsville. The fortifications were finally done after three months and according to Misty, the pegasi were coming along swimmingly in their training as were the earth ponies. The unicorns though were a mixed bag, while most excelled at basic offensive and defensive magics, archery and anything more powerful than a fireball was so far out of reach.

"For you have a great future before you."

Pushing her cornflower blue mane out of her eyes, she closed the folder and opened the one beside it. This one was easily as thick as her foreleg and took up half the desk. Flipping it through the pages, she began reading about the resources and sighed – seems like the they were running low yet again. The guards outside must be intercepting the supply train yet again, which meant she'd have to organize another outing. From the looks of things though, there'd be enough to last them another week without any difficulties. Her eyes flicked up to the clock on the wall and sighed. Misty was late. How dare she be kept waiting?

"You are powerful, more powerful than you or anypony could possibly know."

Rubbing her eyes, the unicorn glanced up at the clock yet again. Three hours? She had spent three hours reading reports!? Resisting the urge to slam her head against the desk, she stood up and with her light blue magic, grabbed her star covered coat and hat. Making her way to the window, she looked out and couldn't stop the smile that graced her lips. She had done this. She had created a resistance, a fortress – her! A random showmare who had lived on the street all her life had done all this while those useless Canterlot guards did nothing. Then again, she was both great and powerful.

"You will do great things my little Trixie."

There was a polite knock on the door and without even turning around, Trixie opened it and in strolled a yellow pegasus with light blue mane clad in a Wonderbolts uniform, almost four hours late and sporting a particularly nice bruise on her shoulder.

"Wonderbolt Misty reporting for duty ma'am." She gave a crisp salute.

"Trixie was wondering when you'd be turning up." At the various tears and splotches of blood on the uniform, Trixie cocked an eyebrow. "Trouble on the road? I thought Wonderbolt's were meant to be an elite unit."

"They bought in some pegasi and unicorns which took us by surprise. It won't happen again."

"Very well, give Trixie your report on what happened in the Everfree Forest last week." Walking back to her desk, she pulled out a quill and paper.

"Well..." The hesitation was very odd coming from the usually composed mare. "A lot of things were said, but I am uncertain on the validity of the statements."

"Trixie still wishes to know and she'll decide what's important and what isn't."

"Yes ma'am. Reports indicate it was an attempt to flush out Dawn from the Everfree Forest. While their base was discovered, it was completely empty and everything of importance was either removed or destroyed suggesting they had warning. Furthermore, out of the two thousand ponies taken there by Nightmare Moon, approximately two hundred were severely injured or killed. Another three hundred were injured. Al-"

"Wait. You're telling Trixie a band a rabbles managed to take out two hundred ponies? Even with warning, that is impossible."

The pegasus hesitated before speaking in an almost meek voice, "Well reports claim the very beasts rose up to protect them and defy the tyrant, and that the very sky turned upon the army raining thunder and lightning on them."

"What."

"With all due respect ma'am, but I did warn you about the validity of the comments I gathered." Rubbing her temple, Trixie gestured for Misty to continue. "Though I don't know the casualties sustained by Dawn and it's probably more speculation than anything on the parts of those I asked, but I'd be surprised if more than fifty ponies were either seriously injured or killed."

"What." Trixie's ear twitched dangerously. "Let Trixie get this straight, somehow this... this... group of foals managed to take out a two hundred ponies while barely losing any of their own in the process. You expect the Great and Powerful Trixie to believe that!?"

"That was the information I gathered ma'am."

Sighing, the blue pony slammed her head into the desk. "Leave. Just... just get out of Trixie's sight." A smart salute later, the pegasus was out the door.

"Change the world my little pony, I know you have what it takes within you."

A deep breath later, Trixie managed to compose herself and shelf all the various folders. Sweeping out the room, she walked out onto the balcony outside her office and down below ponies saluted or let out a cheer. A random showmare with no real formal education had achieved this – all of this. Walls built, weapons manufactured, armors found, tactics and warfare. She had done all this. She found this town, she inspired them, she was their commander, their hope.

She was the Great and Powerful Trixie after all.

"Your name shall be remembered forever, I just know it will."

"I'll make you proud mother. I promise. And Trixie always keeps her promises."

Lies.

Everywhere Applejack looked, all she could see were lies. Masks worn to hide their true self, constantly changing costumes as they danced from pony to pony. Not once did they show their true selves. There was Gilda pretending not to care about those close to her and beside her on the bed was Silvia, trying her hardest to not show the pain she was in. Up came the nurse, fake smile in place as she reassured the nearby unicorn he'd be perfectly fine and would make a full recovery. And here came Spike, worry and fear hidden behind a mask of professionalism. On the other side of the makeshift hospital stood Fluttershy, pain hidden behind a disguise – literally and figuratively.

How had she missed it all before?

All day she had watched. They weren't ponies, they weren't even living – it was a state of being half dead. It was no way to live, no way to go about life – what if they fell in love? What sort of pony would be content with loving a lie? This was wrong, completely and utterly wrong. Just seeing it made bile rise in her throat.

"We need to talk."

Applejack glanced over at Spitfire and made a polite smile. "Of course sugarcube, it's not like Ah'll be going anywhere." She waved her hamstringed leg for emphasis. "Never thanked ya for finding meh though, so thanks!"

"Thank General Fluttershy, she sent me back from Ghastly Gorge to double check everypony had made it through safely and we just happened to find you. Of course, after I got you I couldn't exactly lead the enemy back to the new base."

"In either case, thanks." Tilting her hat up, Applejack regarded Spitfire silently. "So what was it ya wanted to talk about?"

"It's about Dash." Without even asking, she sat down on the bed. "I'm worried about her. The other night I heard her bragging to the new recruits over how many ponies she's taken out as if it's some kind of achievement." Her body shook with barely constrained anger.

"Why don't ya tell her yourself?"

"I'm just really swamped with training the new recruits so I don't have time."

"Lie." It was a mere statement with no malice behind it, but the accompanying stare was one that bore straight into the pegasus. "Try again sugarcube."

With a sigh, she flopped back onto the bed. "Fine, we had an argument."

"Better, but the whole truth." If there was one thing that annoyed the apple farmer more than an outright lie, it was half-truth where the pony was hiding something. Subtle wording and deliberately missing out information was worse because it was near impossible for her to detect.

"It's none of your concern."

"Tell me." She was the Element of Honesty, if they wanted to defeat Nightmare Moon they'd need get closer to their elements. It was her duty to Equestria to seek the truth and bring it into the light. No matter what the truth was, she'd find it and she'd reveal it. That was her duty.

The stare intensified. It was like reaching towards something with her mind, as though it was a ghostly limb that she could control. Somewhere, Applejack was dimly aware of a voice, or something pushing back against her, but she didn't care, she kept her gazed locked on Spitfire's. There was something behind those eyes, something further down that she was afraid of – no, not afraid... ashamed, that was it. Whatever had occurred, she was ashamed of it.

"Tell. Me."

"I asked about her mother." The words were oddly hollow yet strangled.

There was a second of silence as Applejack examined the pegasus before her. "See sugarcube? Was that so hard?" And just like that the spell was broken. Half collapsing, half stumbling back, Spitfire began panting heavily and sweat trickled its way through her coat.

"Could you also check up on Fluttershy? She's acting far too calm for a pegasus who just lost her wings and I don't think she's been out of that disguise since the meeting." Not once did the Wonderbolt's captain meet Applejack's eye. "Anyways, got to do some stuff, you know how it is. Later!"

Before the earth pony could point out just how bad a lie that was, Spitfire was already out the door. With a confused look on her face, Applejack sighed and leaned back in the hospital bed. Well Fluttershy was helping out with the rounds tonight so it was a mere matter of waiting, but... Glancing down at her bandaged leg, another sigh escaped. After her little (and totally friendly) scuffle with RD after the meeting, she was confined to a bed under the expert and tyrannical rule of Nurse Fluttershy. Something about aggravating the wound or whatnot.

"Hello Applejack." Speak of the devil. "How are you feeling today?"

Sometimes the earth pony wondered just how many masks Fluttershy had.

"A bit stir crazy, but perfectly fine."

Nodding absentmindedly, she began checking over Applejack's leg and doing whatever it was doctors do. Tipping her stetson back she peered at the pegasus examining her with a confused expression – try as she might, Fluttershy didn't give off the same innate unease all the other ponies radiated. In fact, it was almost as though she was being true to herself. But that was impossible.

Right?

After all, she was in her disguise as well and when she was all pink, you don't mess with her unless you have a death wish. There was no way she wasn't lying or hiding behind a mask when she was in her disguise. Absolutely no way. And yet... everything her element was telling Applejack was saying that Fluttershy was being entirely truthful. How the hay did that work?

"What about you 'Shy?"

"Oh, I'm fine," she said with that smile of hers.

"Ya sure? Ah know how much wings mean to pegasi."

"I'm fine." Though it was said in her usual soft voice, there was a hint of steel behind it and Applejack immediately backed off. "Never much of a flier to begin with so it's not as though it was a loss."

"Ya know ya can talk to me about anything right?"

A thankful smile, but that was it – she was already moving towards the intensive care ward. With a dejected sigh, Applejack slumped into her bed, watching the spot Flutter had just vacated. Everything about her pegasus friend was just so confusing.

It was an infection.

Flutter stared down at the unicorn before her with nothing, but sadness in her eyes as perspiration flowed freely down his entire body, drenching the sheets below him. He tossed and turned, his deep purple mane a mattered mess as it was thrown about. Brow creased in a frown, a scared whimper escaped filling the space between the moans and cries.

When the scouts had found him, it was already inflamed. By the time they got him back to base, it could have gone either way. Flutter spent all night cleaning out the wound and wrapping it out in cold wet bandages before praying to Gaia to spare the poor soul. Now it was next morning and his condition had not improved at all, instead it had gotten worse. The infection had spread and with the injury being so close to his heart and lungs, chances of survival were low, if not non-existent. It was nothing new, in fact, it was the fifth one since the battle, but the other four had managed to pull through with varying degrees of ease.

Turning away, the pegasus trotted over to the cabinet and peered inside. Four green vials stared back at her and so with a dejected sigh, she returned to the unicorn. Sure, Zecora had helped – she even knew some recipes that Fluttershy didn't – but in the end it wasn't enough. There were just too many injuries from the battle that needed to be treated. Without those crucial supplies there was no way she could justify using the antiseptic on a pony who would most likely die. Nor could she let the poor stallion continue suffering though.

Picking up the scalpel from a nearby tray, Flutter looked down at the poor pony with the sunken eyes, clammy fur, and dull coat. He would be number six. Number one was the unicorn Sunshine. Number two was the pegasus Freefall. Hymn the earth pony came next followed by her sister Radiance. Fifthly was Scarlet Blitz and now, it was Pinprick's turn.

Kindness.

That's what she told herself late at night while trying to get to sleep. It was the kind thing to do. The right thing to do. Spike had said it after all, they needed to get closer to the elements – needed to become more powerful. She needed to show more kindness and this was the kindest thing to do. More than that though, she had to do this herself. To quote her favorite book, 'If blood needs to be shed, let it flow on my hooves so nopony else shall stain their souls with impossible decisions.'

Putting down the scalpel, Flutter calmly turned around and trotted over to the small basin the unicorns had managed to set up. Scrubbing her hooves until they were practically brand new, the lone pegasus rinsed out her mane and chest, letting the pink water splash over the side and swirl down the guttering. Then stepping back, she turned back to the unicorn – that poor unicorn, not even an adult...

With a sigh, she began wrapping him up in the bed sheet then, by herself, she dragged the heavy bundle across the ground. Her neck protested and the constant throb from her wing did not help at all, but after a good five minutes or so of tugging, grunting and wincing, she unceremoniously unrolled the entire and out came Pinprick.

Bowing her head, Flutter began reciting, "Luna, give them wings so their souls may soar. Celestia, light their path and guide them. And Gaia, please have mercy upon their soul."

Trotting back inside, she came out a minute later with a vial of red dragon flame. Double checking the pit to make sure the light would not reach the night sky, she tossed it in. The magical fire quickly spread, consuming the ten bodies held within in a flame that did not produce smoke or odors.

"I'm sorry."

Her breaths came hard and fast as Pinkie desperately sought for air. Sweat trickled down her brow and her entire body ached as though she had spent an entire week partying non-stop. Pressing her back against the sticky wall, she slotted the rainbow vial into the mechanic gauntlet on her left hoof before spinning the chamber so it clicked into place. Eyes darted over to the window opposite. Two unicorns and an earth pony guard. Glancing up, she caught the faint silhouette of pegasuses flying overhead.

Taking a deep breath, she made sure she had the right vial loaded before rolling out. Couched low, she placed her right forehoof over the firing button on the mechanized gauntlet and two multicolored blobs shot out. Before anypony could blink, Pinkie shot down another alley way. The screams of pain told her they had tried to use magic. Liquid rainbow – shorts out magical connections and secret ingredient number three in her Super Special Spicy Hot Sauce.

Leaping up, the disguised pony kicked off the dumpster and grabbed hold of the piping. Scrambling up, she leapt across onto the fire escaped and crouched low. Spinning the chamber, she primed the white vial and fired three shots down. They didn't know what hit them. One minute they were running along, the next they were sliding straight into the wall. Stifling a giggle, Pinkie quickly scrambled onto the railing before leaping out and over. Expertly grabbing the piping on the opposite wall, she swung her contraption to slot six. Taking careful aim, three yellow orbs hit, cocooning their hooves in her Special Sticky Surprise!-You're-Stuck Gel (patent pending).

Carefully sliding opening the door, Pinkie crept in on tiptoes before closing it silently behind her. Darkness and silence greeted her, and she returned their greeting with a smile and wave. If there was a pony five feet in front of her, she would not have seen them. Sliding the goggles around her neck over her eyes, everything was basked in a blue tinge, but at least she could see now. Crouched low, Pinkie began slowly creeping along the ground, easily evading all those pesky beams of moonlight and those naughty creaking floorboards. Reaching the other end of the corridor, she eased the window up and slipped back out into the cool night air.

A minute passed with no action from the originally pink, but now white pony, as she took the opportunity to catch her breath. Then slowly, ever so slowly, she rose onto her hind hooves and began climbing up the fire escape ladder. Once she reached the roof, she took time out of her busy schedule to look up at the moon and sighed. Shaking her head, she jumped onto the slopped section of the roof, easily sliding down before leaping out.

Suddenly pain flared along her back as she shot through the air towards the ground. Twisting in midair, she looked up at the pegasus guard chasing her prone form. Taking quick aim, she shot a pink paintball. Hitting a wing, it was enough to throw him off balance.

Crack!

A sickly groan echoed through the alley. Rolling over, Pinkie fell off the dumpster as blood freely flowed through her fur. Grabbing the broken glass in her teeth, she ripped it free from her leg. A cry of pain was torn from her throat as her breaths came in pained gasps. Blood immediately poured out, saturating the fur in a matter of seconds. Legs shaking beneath her, she pushed herself onto her hooves only to collapse from the pain. The sound of the pegasus landing sent fear through her heart and with it adrenaline.

"Let me help."

Wincing, she raised her left foreleg, but the constant shaking made it impossible to aim properly. Before she could get a shot off, a hoof connected with her chest. The air was forced out of her lungs as a rib cracked. Tumbling along the ground, she laid there, each wheezing breath bringing more pain.

"Please, we can still survive this." The scariest thing was, Pinkamina was pleading.

Raising a trembling hoof, Pinkie managed to get a single shot off. The pegasus didn't even twitch as it sailed past harmlessly. The second shot was even wider, splattering uselessly against a trash can. Looking up at the pony, Pinkie's eyes could barely focus as she desperately tried to keep her disguise up. Already it was flickering on and off, not that it mattered much since the blood had long since turned her fur red.

"You've given us a lot of hassle you know that?" The grey pegasus stood before Pinkie. "More than once Nightmare Moon's personally come down to smack some sense into us for letting you get away all the time." Putting a hoof on her broken leg, he push down causing Pinkie to scream out in pain. "She's nice, but you do not want to get on her bad side."

"Do you want to die? What about your friends? They'd be so sad and that's not even mentioning all the parties you'd miss out on or the fact that you're the Element of Laughter – you can't afford to die," she said desperately.

"Why? Why do you want to help?" Even mentally Pinkie's voice came across weak.

The pink mare was thrown violently against the wall, her head snapped back with a loud crack. This time all that came out was a trembling groan. If breathing wasn't necessary to stay alive, Pinkie would have stopped a long time ago for each time she did so, it was like being branded.

"I want to live."

Through half closed eyes, Pinkie watched as the pegasus stopped before her. He reared up onto his hind legs, preparing a stomp that'd crush her skull and leave her brains splattered all over the ground. Before she could reply though, the pegasus fell over with a dull thump. Looking up with exhausted eyes, the pink mare could only watch in fear as her mysterious savior approached.

"Geez, I'm not a fan of the guard ponies either, but what the heck did you- Pinkie?" The reflective glasses were raised as Vinyl stared down at her in shock. "Holy crap! We have to get you to a hospital, but you're a wanted criminal. Crap, crap, crap. Dear Celestia what do I do?"

"Well this is certainly the most exciting date I have ever been on," came a cultured voice. "Seems like she hit an artery on her arm so we will have to bandage that up first."

"Right! Fabric. Er... there's no fabric anywhere."

"Vinyl," sighed the mare followed by a ripping sound.

"Your dress!"

"Please, I'm sure Miss Moonlight would be able to fix it up easily enough." There was a pause. "Vinyl dear, please bandage up your friend, hooves and teeth are not adequate tools for such tasks."

"Right!" Pinkie felt something wrap around her arm and tighten till it was almost painful. "How's that?"

"Do I look like somepony who works in the medical profession? Actually, don't answer that. Come on, you will have to carry her in your magic as she probably has broken bones. And we will have to hurry."

"Pinks? Come on Pinkster, stay with me."

The rain poured down without respite. It provided perfect cover for Rarity and her ragtag group of conspirators. Slipping through the empty streets, the small group of five easily found their way to the warehouse district on the edge of the city. Soaked to the bone and shivering continuously, Rarity would have given anything for a nice warm coat and perhaps that modified shield spell to block out the weather. But nooooo, they needed to stay concealed, hidden, silent. Well, at least no one could see the state of her mane... or her coat... or her makeup... or... well, all of her really. Who needs a magical disguise when there's a perfectly good layer of dirt to turn her pristine white coat brown anyways?

With a dramatic sigh, she glanced up at the sky and with her magically enhanced vision, made out a pegasus gliding towards them. Landing lightly, Cornflower trotted over and whispered, "There are three pegasi on the surrounding rooftops, two unicorns and three earth ponies. Uncertain about the inside, but since the number of guards outside hasn't changed, it's safe to assume the same."

"Alright, we carry on as planned then," replied Rarity. "Midnight?"

With a salute, Twilight's father gathered the three ponies that made up his squad and trotted off. Closing her eyes, Rarity began preparing the nine different spells necessary for a teleport. The first three were easy, but each one after that bought more beads of sweat to her forehead and more than once, she fumbled forcing her to start over. After a minute a whistle pierced the night and a pegasus took off from a nearby building only to be quickly followed by a unicorn. Those around her immediately pressed in close and when the blue flare went up a second later, Rarity released the spells and they vanished in a flash of light.

Appearing next to the wall, she stumbled slightly from the sudden displacement, but easily caught herself on the wall. Horn lighting up, an illusion was thrown up, hiding them from view. A quick glance around told her that everypony had been bought along and with a nod to Mirage, the female unicorn stepped forward. Horn touching the brick wall, a green wave rippled out leaving behind a shimmering surface. Cornflower and Bulwark immediately went through and after three very nervous breaths, a dark green hoof popped through the portal and gestured for them to follow.

Easing through, it was probably one of the weirdest sensations Rarity had ever experienced, the closest description the normally fluent white mare could come up with was that it was like meeting Pinkie for the first time – shocking, frightening and yet unable to stop smiling. Even as she was coming out the other side, her horn was flaring to life, creating another illusion to hide their reappearance.

"Two ponies up top on the walkway," whispered Cornflower. "Think you can pull it off?"

Rarity merely gave a grim smile as she studied the projectile's path. While it was mostly wide open space, about fifty feet in were two stacks of crates with barely a foot gap between them. Licking her dry lips, she turned her attention to her little squad of ponies.

"Mirage, can you handle the illusion shield? Bulwark, I want you and Freefall to slip off around the left side. Cornflower, go with Fleur around the right side. You've got thirty seconds to get into position alright?"

With her magic, Rarity lifted one of the glass tipped arrows from her quiver as a light blue bow formed before her. Shimmering and shifting the way magic does, a sad smile graced her lips as she knotted the arrow and drew it back to its full extension. Remember, it was like threading a needle. With a deep breath, she carefully aimed before locking it into position then she drew out a second glass tipped arrow and repeated the process. One for each pony. To think her choice of high society sport would actually be used to harm some pony.

Harm some pony. She was going to harm some pony. Dear Gaia, what was she doing here? Her cutie mark was beauty. Beauty! Where was the beauty in war? In harming another pony? She crafted this arrow. The glass tip was her idea – it'd play off her cutie mark was the thought and it had. It worked perfectly.

And that was the problem.

All her life she'd dedicated herself to beauty. Her mane, her coat, her clothes, her personality – everything. And yet here she was with a weapon of her very own creation that was specifically designed for war. Beauty. Ha! It was a lie. All of it was a lie.

"Lady Rarity?" inquired Mirage.

Shaking her head, the white mare planted a cultured fake smile on her muzzle. "I'm fine, merely lost in thought was all."

Sighing, she sent a prayer to Celestia and let loose. Both slipped between the crates and arced gracefully through the air. Reaching the peak, it curved like a dolphin's back and glided down. The first one struck the pony on the left, the glass shattering causing the air to waver as magic was released. Before the unicorn beside her could react though, he too was struck down. In the blink of an eye, Freefall and Cornflower were there, easing them down onto the metallic walkway without causing a sound.

Tense silence followed as everypony tried to catch the barest hint of sound. Other than the occasional hoofstep and cough, there was no other sounds. Five seconds later, even the coughing had stopped and Bulwark stepped into view. "Everything's taken care of ma'am, all hostiles are down."

"Split into three groups, one unicorn with each. I'll take the earth pony armor, Fleur can take the unicorn armor so Mirage that means you're left with the pegasi. We've only got four bottles of flame for each group so make them count alright?"

With a simple nod, the group broke up, heading in their own personal direction. If the information Corporal Foxtrot's underlings had sent them was accurate then the earth pony equipment should be in the Northwestern section of the building... Ah ha! Trotting over, Rarity lifted the lid and peered inside. Perfect, just where he said they'd be. Working with Cornflower, the two transferred as much armor and weaponry as possible into four crates before casting a light filter around them and tossing a vial of green dragon flame into each one. With a satisfied smile, the squad regrouped and with a bit of magic and a whole lot of concentration, they vanished in a flash of blue light.

"Woo hoo! Look at the armor, man it's awesome!"

Dash leaned in, a massive grin plastered on her face as she regarded the reflection. Each ceramic tile was overlaid like dragon scales and it fitted her body perfectly, it wrapped around her curves the same way a blanket would on a cold night. It was light, durable, comfortable and most importantly, offered some protection to her wings even if it was just along the leading edge.

And that wasn't even getting into the weapons that had been delivered. Awesome didn't even begin to cover it. Cool was closer, but still not quite there. Radical? Nah. The closest description Rainbow Dash could come up with was a sound usually reserved for the Wonderbolts.

Four perfectly stainless steel gauntlets that went all the way up her forelegs and along the sole of each were sharp spikes designed to dig into the soil and inflict maximum pain. But that wasn't the best part, oh no, the best part were the blades along the outside of the forelegs. Each one gleamed in the torch light and seemed sharp enough to slide through metal. Of course, she wasn't allowed to actually wear them on account of her burnt hooves, but still she could admire them.

Of course, that just reminded her she was admiring a weapon of war. If the ponies made up Equestria then doesn't harming ponies go against her loyalty to protect Equestria? It was times like these that she wished Twilight was around so that she could get a straight answer.

Twilight... Friend or foe?

"Hey there sugarcube."

At the familiar southern drawl, Dash turned around. "Hey! So tell me, whatcha think? Pretty epic right?" Dash struck an adequately cool pose.

"Not bad. I take it Rarity delivered the goods?"

"Yep," coughed Spike as she took a sip of water. "My throat is killing me though."

"Go see Fluttershy, she'll no doubt have something for ya," replied Applejack. Once he was out of sight, the earth pony turned her attention back to Dash. "We need to talk."

Groaning, the pegasus threw herself onto the floor. "Geez, what is up with ponies and talking these days? Can't I get a single quite night to myself?"

"We're all merely worried ya know."

Sigh. "Just get on with it."

"Ah heard ya were braggin' about the amount of ponies ya killed."

"Yeah? So? They're the enemy. They work for Nightmare Moon therefore they're against Equestria and I'm eternally loyal to Equestria. I know you're not good at maths, but it's pretty straight forward."

"Answer me this RD, when ya say ya fight for Equestria, who is that specifically?"

"Duh, Equestria." The look Dash gave said volumes about how stupid she considered that question.

"So you're fighting on behalf of a piece of land?"

"Of course not! I'm fighting for the ponies."

There was a pause. "Do you think Twilight's on our side?"

RD whirled around with a glare on her face, daring Applejack to argue against her. "You heard Spike, she said all that stuff to you in order to help us."

With a shrug the earth pony replied, "Let me guess, none of those ponies working under Nightmare Moon could be in the same boat as Twilight or Foxtrot. Am Ah right?"

Fear gripped Dash and it was almost as though she could smell the burning fur from that night. Closing her eyes, it was meant to calm herself down, but all she could see were those pegasi plummeting to the ground leaving streaks of fire and smoke behind them. No. It wasn't true, it couldn't be true. They were the enemy, the enemy damn it! She had done the right thing, she ha-

"Look at me RD."

-d done the right thing, she had done the right thing. Keep it together Dash, keep it together. They worked for Nightmare Moon, remember that. Always remember that. All those dead pegasi, they deserved it. Their fate was sealed the moment they obeyed Nightmare Moon's first command. That was the case, that had to be the case.

"Look at me." Something in her voice made Dash open her eyes and as soon as she did so, she wished she hadn't. They bore into her skull, right through all those shields and layers of protection right towards her soul. She fought, she fought so hard, with everything she had, but it was like stopping a runaway train by herself – she was steamrolled.

"The ponies makeup Equestria, they are Equestria." AJ's voice echoed in her skull like a metronome. "For ya to brag about killing ponies is not only morally wrong, but it's also despicable. You're meant to loyalty, so be loyal to all those ponies. They had families, friends, emotions – they were ponies and if Ah hear ya bragging ever again, Ah'll personally buck you to the moon. Got that Rainbow Dash?"

The pegasus could only stand there and stare at those green eyes, completely lost in them as her voice drilled into her mind. Then, as AJ turned around and walked away, Dash crumbled to the ground as she took deep gulps of air. Sweat drenched her entire body and her limbs were shaking so much that if she was painted yellow and had a pink mane, she would have been mistaken for 'Shy.

How many ponies worked for Nightmare Moon because they had no choice? Maybe they couldn't get another job, maybe their family was threatened, maybe they were spies like Foxtrot. Perhaps they worked for her out of fear. Out of all those ponies she had killed, how many deserved it? Really, truly, completely and utterly deserved it?

For the first time in over ten years, the awesome Rainbow Dash found a secluded spot and cried herself to sleep.

Grunting, I came out of my roll just in time to parry with my short sword. Still on one knee, my second sword arced in from the left side. Without even flinching, she twisted to the side, letting it sail past harmlessly. Lashing out, my hoof hit her neck and as she stumbled back gasping, I lunged in with my blade only to be deflected by her metal gauntlet.

I quickly disengaged. A blink later her sword parted the fur on my neck. Circling cautiously, I drew both my short sides before me in a defensive position. Shuffling forward, Velocity threw two quick slashes. Like Foxtrot taught, I shifted my left sword forward, blocking both before countering with a trust from the other one. Moving at a forty-five degree angle, she slipped past and rammed me. Stumbling back, my face decided to greet the hilt of her sword.

Hard.

For the third time that day, I found myself on my back with the tip of a very sharp piece of metal at my throat. My face stung, my ego was bruised and I was sweaty, but I was happy. Sure, it was probably the endorphins released during exercise, but I wasn't going to dwell on that – I was happy and that's all that mattered.

"You're getting better," said Velocity as she hurled me onto my feet. "But you're still over extending on your thrusts."

Sheathing both swords, I checked my knife hadn't come dislodged in the sparring. "Thanks, but it doesn't feel as though I am getting better. I think I've got more bruises today than yesterday."

"But you lasted longer." She clamped me on the shoulder causing me to stumble. "Keep it up and in a couple of years you may be able to beat me. Though I still don't get why you want to learn to use a sword, after all, only unicorns with weak magic learn swordplay and archery."

"It's more energy efficient. When it comes to flinging spells, it's all about smashing through the others shield and blasting them and that takes a lot of energy. With a blade all I have to do is get close."

And Celestia believed magic should only be used to improve our lives and protect ourselves – never to harm. I may be a cold blooded murder, but I can at least keep to that rule – I promise you Celestia, I will never harm another pony with offensive magic. Out of the corner of my eye, I could see Phantom Celestia smile and nod at me.

"But there are problems with closing the gap," remarked Corporal Foxtrot as stepped up beside me.

With a grin, I channeled magic into my horn and vanished only to reappear behind him. "And that's why I learnt how to teleport."

"Impressive." Our manes fluttered in the breeze. "Especially since only three percent of the unicorn population can teleport, but can you do it in the middle of a fight? All that chaos, all those sights and sounds as ponies fight for their lives. From what I hear, teleporting require immense focus and one single distraction will render it useless."

I couldn't stop the smirk that appeared. "Who knows?"

"As much as I'd love to find out, I bring a message from Nightmare Moon. She wants you to meet her in throne room."

"Alright."

With a wave to the two unicorns, I trotted out of the training field and ran up the stairs two steps at a time. Thankfully, the ponies wandering the halls had enough sense to dive out of the way before an accident could happen. Within the minute I had navigated the castle and found Nightwish standing next to a feminine looking earth pony colt with black fur, dark red mane and some sort of mechanical thing for his cutie mark.

"Who's your friend?" I eventually managed to pant out.

"This is Silent Spell," introduced Nightwish as his companion bowed. "He's the newest member of our little squad."

"In that case, welcome to the team." We shook hooves. "What'd you do to piss of Nightmare Moon?"

"That's exactly what I said!" laughed Nightwish, but Silent merely gave an abashed smile and a shrug.

"Oh right!" My eyes darted back the pegasus. "Silent Spell here is a mute, but don't worry, he's a real easy guy to get along with and if he wants you to know something, you'll know it. He's also a genius with gadgets."

Well that certainly explained a lot. Clearing my throat, I tilted my head towards the guards and they quickly opened the door. "Well it's not a good idea to leave Queenie waiting now is it?"

"I thought I told you to stop calling me that," came the familiar and nightmare inducing voice.

Chuckling, I decided to bounce in Pinkie style. Why? To show I didn't fear her and that she needed me. If I could undermine her authority, I was going to. I didn't even need to turn around to imagine the complete slack jawed expression on those behind me. And then Nightmare Moon had to chuckle at my antics effectively making her more equine while undermining what I was trying to do. Damn her.

"You wanted to see us?" I asked with a bow.

"I've got a mission for you. Normally I'd take care of it myself, but I'm busy with the Harpy ambassador. There is a small village called Reinsville and they've decided to actively rebel – fortifications and everything. According to our sources, a unicorn calling herself the Great and Powerful Trixie has taken up command with the remnants of the Wonderbolts backing her. There is an infantry company outside and I want you to take charge."

Translation: she wanted to see how loyal I was to her.

"How do you wish for me to deal with the situation?" I asked.

Chuckling in that sadistic way of hers, she unleashed her smile onto me. "Tell me Twilight Sparkle-" Oh crap, full name. "-what do you believe you should do?"

I took a deep breath. "Crush them."

She cocked an eyebrow and gestured for me to continue.

"They represent a direct threat to your rule and authority. With the riots and Dawn and now them, it's giving the public something to rally around – a sign that you are not all powerful. If you go easy on them, they'll merely think you're a weak ruler and more rebellions will pop up."

"Very well." If anything her smile grew wider.

It was then that I realized the truth. Nightmare Moon wasn't under any sort of illusion, she did not believe I was broken or that I was her faithful servant, in fact it was probably part of her plan. How could I have been so stupid! Anything I told Applejack she would have heard and she would have deciphered. If I tried to meet up with them, she'd probably know thanks to the stupid collar. If I tried to earn her trust, I'd be doing all her dirty work for her and that meant acting the villain effectively destroying my role as an icon to rally around. Worse than that, how far was I willing to go? I had no confusion over my limits – after all, right now I could see Princess Celestia sitting on her throne waving at me. The last time I slept was four days ago and when I did sleep, I woke up drenched in sweat.

It was a lose-lose situation.

I was fucked.