The Shadow of Equestria
Chapter 16: The Start of the War
Previous Chapter Next ChapterDeep in the Frozen North, a cloaked figure treked through the snow. In front of him, a deep trench had been carved through the frozen dirt. Following the trench, the cloaked figure found a blue crystal pegasus mare with her face buried in the snow. Bruises and cuts adorned her body. And with her hair flung over her head and buried by the snow, a single stitch mark was visible down her nape.
"Amber," the cloaked figure greeted.
Amber yelped, pulling her head from the snow.
"M-Master Scale," Amber whimpered.
"Do you not have the Shade's Power Fruit?" The cloaked figure growled.
"I... well..." Amber whimpered, as he marched towards her, a scaled arm withdrawing from his cloak.
"You failed your mission?" Master Scale snarled, seizing her by the neck.
"I..." Amber could get no other word out, as the scaled arm slowly crushed her stiched up neck. She squirmed and kicked, desperately trying to get air into her lungs, but the figure's grip was merciless.
"Give me one good reason why I don't resnap the spine I repaired," Scale growled. Amber twitched and gagged, desperately sucking the little air he allowed her.
"Three... more... Users!" she gasped out.
Scale dropped her. For a moment, she inhaled breath like a starving man inhales food. However, she barely got a moment to recover before Master Scale was bearing down on her.
"What do you mean?" he barked.
"There's three more Power Fruit users," Amber explained as quickly as her battered throat allowed. "On the island."
Scale knelt, his slit pupiled eyes flashing from under his cloak. They reflected Amber's scared expression.
"Explain," he growled.
"A-A blue pegasus," Amber said quickly. "Elemental, like Ronin. B-But it's fire instead of sand."
The master hummed, running his scaled arm over his chin. "That could be a problem." His eyes narrowed. "But according to Jasper, this Reaper that took his arm is by far our main priority." Master Scale paused before turning back to Amber. "What about the other two?"
"Earth ponies," Amber reported. "An orange earth pony who can turn her legs into blades..."
"Physical type, though I doubt it only works on her legs," Scale analyzed with a grin. "It could probably turn any part of the users body into a blade or sword."
"And a pink one," Amber growled angrily. "With a body made of rubber."
"And all three of them fought you?" Scale asked
"They did," Amber answered.
In response, her master seized her by her throat and lifting her off the ground. As he lifted her up to his face, a strong winter wind blew the masters' hood off, revealing a the glacier blue scales of a Ice Dragon
"And you lost to them?!" Scale yelled, baring his fangs at the pony. "After you beat thirty of my troops, at the same time, with barely a scratch?! After you fought one of my Tundra Dragons and emerged unscathed?!"
"I-It was the pink one!" Amber cried, her words coming out in a rush for fear that her throat would be blocked for good this time. "She used something called 2nd Gear! I've never seen anything like it! She started emitting steam and moving faster than I could track... she-she broke my strongest shield like it was glass!" Tears began to stream from Amber's eyes. "Please forgive me, Master! She wasn't like anything I ever fought before!"
Scale slightly relaxed his grip on the pony. His eyes narrowed.
"Who else was with with them?" he demanded.
"The Shade that took Jasper's arm, who I gravely injuried," she listed. "The Dark King, Sombra. Two unicorns, a yellow pegasus, a royal changeling, and the Princesses; Celestia and Luna."
Scale dropped Amber again, and she coughed and hacked for air, rubbing her throat gratefully.
"The princesses of the Sun and Moon?" Scale asked, chuckling darkly. "Well... with them here I can finally bring back my strongest General."
"Master?" Amber asked. She flinched as Scale glanced down at her, but relaxed upon seeing his icy smile.
"I have a special job for both you and Jasper..." he began.
My eyes fluttered open, catching a purple shine. Blinking a few times, I saw it was the flowing hair of Princess Luna. Dimmer than usual.
"She has barely left your side," a voice I didn't recognize noted.
Glancing to my right, I saw a pony hidden in the shadows of the dimmed medical ward.
"Who are you?" I growled out, despite my limbs feeling more like clubs.
"I guess you wouldn't know me," the figure admitted. "Considering we've never met before."
She stepped into the moonlight. Her fur was pink, and her eyes were blue. She looked like Pinkie. And yet... everything was the wrong shade. Her pink fur was darker. Her blue eyes were colder. Her hair hung in a straight curtain instead of being puffed up and fluffy.
"Pinkie?"
"Try again, shadow man," she growled.
It clicked. "Pinkamena," I tried again.
She huffed, but a shadow of a grin played across her scowl.
"Two tries," she commented. "Not bad." She crossed over to my bed. I tried to lift myself up, but my body ached in protest, keeping me on my back. I glanced down at my chest, shivering at the scars across it.
"What happened?" I asked.
"Well for starters you royally - and I do mean 'royally' - bucked up." She stretched her arm and pulled a jar to her side. The jar was half full of what looked like musket balls.
"And got..." Pinkamena continued, briefly counting the bullets inside. "73 of these things lodged in your body." She set the jar down and fixed me with a glare. "And because of that," she continued. "Applejack got one of these stuck in her leg, and Rainbow Dash got a knife in the arm."
There was no empathy in her voice. She said each fact slowly, like she was reciting the periodic table for a bored teacher. I leaned my head back.
"I'm guessing Pinkie's the one that has more sympathy?" I noted
"You want sympathy," Pinkamena growled before turning her back on me. "Try looking in the dictionary between Shit and Syphilis."
"Thanks," I muttered sarcastically as she walked away. My word caught her ear, and she paused, sighing like I was the biggest drag on her life.
"Can you stop being a senstive sally?" she asked. "Pinkie... fine, the both of us are happy you're alive." She turned to me, her death glare sending a shiver through my repaired heart. "But if you ever cause Pinkie to worry about you like that again..." She stepped closer. "I will beat you to within an inch of your life."
And with that Pinkamena left the room. I was left alone, in the dark room. With only my breathing and the light snoring of Princess Luna.
"You really are a fucking idiot," I admitted to myself, gazing at the ring around my finger. "That wasn't her. She's dead... and she's never coming back."
My brain may have been correct, but my heart was singing a different song. And unfortunately, my powers voiced my hearts desire.
'In a world with Devil Fruits,' the voice of my shadow commented. 'Maybe we could find one to bring her back'
I shut my eyes. I didn't want to listen. I wanted to block my ears.
'You know I'm right,' my shadow commented.
I waved my hand, dissipating my shadow, and pulled myself from bed. My body screamed in protest, and I barely managed to get off the bed before I fell to my knees, my entire body refusing to cooperate.
"D-Dammit," I growled, clutching my throbbing gut.
"Hmm..." Luna groaned. Her eyes fluttered open, and she let out a yawn, sitting up and stretching.
Rubbing her eyes, the Lunar Princess shifted her gaze to the bed that I was once on. As she noticed my absence, Luna's eyes shot open. She almost frantically looked around before catching sight of me on the ground.
"Eric?!" she stammered, racing to my side. "What are you doing out of bed? Your body has yet to heal!"
"Didn't you guys use a healing spell on me?" I asked, using the bed frame as leverage to pull myself up.
"Healing spells aren't perfect," she replied, giving me her shoulder to lean on. "The spells can accelerate the healing process, but the body still needs to adjust to the rapid healing."
"Well, my body needs to adjust fast," I growled, trying to limp for the door. "We still have an army practically on our doorstep, who could attack us at any given moment!"
Yet as I tried to reach for the door, Luna pulled me back. And the mere act sent another throb of pain through my stubborn nerves.
"Eric, please," Luna begged. "Rest." She tried to guide me back to the bed, but I resisted despite the pain.
"Once this army is six feet under" I insisted, pulling myself from her grip. Trying to ignore the waves of pain washing over me, I limped from the room. Luna chased after me.
"At least let me try to relieve you of your pain," she bargained, her horn and hand glowing as she reached out to me.
With the pain wracking my body, I stopped and let her place her hand on my back. Her aura covered my entire body, and soon after, I felt the pain in my body lessen by a marvelous degree.
"Thank you Luna," I whispered, turning back to her with a smile.
She grinned sheepishly, a small blush forming on her face. Noticing the blush, I turned away, my smile fading.
"We need to find your sister," I said. "As well as Shining and Cadence. We need a plan for the battle ahead."
"I agree," Luna said, as we walked together, her hand on my shoulder. "But we still know nothing about the master or what Devil Fruit they have. If they hold one at all."
"We can figure it out," I offered, heading down the halls. "You should get Shining and Cadence. I'll get Celestia. She's set up in the royal guest rooms, right?"
Luna tilted her head. "You know that?" she asked.
"It's kinda obvious," I replied. "That room was only ever used for the most important of nobles."
Humming at my logic, we reluctantly parted ways to get the royals. Though the pain came back in force, I managed to grit my teeth and bare through it.
Of course, not long after I left Luna behind, I heard something.
The shattering of glass. The sounds of a fight.
I picked up my pace, calling upon my shadows and racing into the darkness.
Surfacing in the guest room, I found the place in shambles. A small note with Luna's cutie mark on it lay carefully among the wreckage.
My heart skipped a beat. I picked up the note and began to read.
If you want your sister back, bring all your fruit users to the south-east end of the Empire.
The note crumpled in my fist. Shadows poured from my body as my vision turned red.
"Looks like this war just started," I growled, as my shadows covered the room in darkness.
Stuffing the note into my pocket, I raced to the throne room.
Disregarding the muffled voices inside, I slammed the doors open. The resulting CLANG resounded through the room, instantly grabbing the attention of the three royals inside while echoing throughout the castle.
"Eric?!" Shining stammered, glancing behind me. "W-Wait... Where's Celestia?"
I held out the note. "She's been ponynapped," I growled, my shadows continuing to cover the floor. "By the leader of this army."
Shining and Cadence gasped. Luna's eyes darted to the note, and she shot forward on blue shadows of her own, yanking it from my grip. Her eyes skimmed across the inscribed words as Shining marched towards me.
"I-Impossible," he said. "How'd they get past the guards?"
"I don't know," I admitted, putting a hand on Luna's shoulders as her eyes brimmed with tears. "But apparently they planned on Luna finding out in the morning."
She turned to me with horror in her eyes. "Do you think they also know about the children?"
"No idea on that either," I admitted. "But it's for the best that they stay here with Cadance and Shining"
"Wait, children?" Cadance asked. "What children?"
"Applebloom Sweetie Belle, and Scootaloo all possess Devil Fruits," I explained. "It's the reason I brought them here in the first place."
"But if even Celestia wasn't safe here..." Luna turned to me. "Eric, what are we going to do?"
"For starters, we wait until everyone wakes..." I paused, feeling the presence of someone just outside the room. "Hang on." I turned to the door, raising my hand and summoning a shadow blade. "Get out here. Now."
Twilight and Pinkamena poked their head out from behind the door; Twilight with worry etched across her face, and Pinkamena with her trademark scowl. I dissipated my blades with a sigh.
"I thought you went to bed," I noted.
"I saw Twilight snooping around," Pinkamena replied non-chalantly, jutting her head at the worried purple mare.
"The Devil Fruits..." Twilight mumbled, turning to me with a worried glare. "Is that why you lied about bringing the Crusaders?"
"I never lied about why I brought them here," I pointed out. "I just never told the entire truth." I took a breath. "But since you're here, you should know Celestia's been taken."
Twilight's eyes widend, and her jaw hit the floor. "What?!" she screamed so loud the entire kingdom probably heard.
"They took Celestia, and left a note saying they want our Devil Fruit users," I said, trying to think of a plan while Pinkamena grabbed a hyperventialting Twilight and slapped her across the face.
"Get ahold of yourself," Pinkamena growled at her before turning to me. "Then send them your Devil Fruit Users," she replied to me. "Me, Rainbow, Applejack, and yourself." She crossed her arms. "We're the only ones they definitely know about, and we know how to fight." Her eyes narrowed. "Assuming you don't let that Amber horse trick you again."
I grimaced at her bringing up Amber, but managed to ground out, "She's got a point." But at that moment, the rest of the Mane Six burst in, along with the Cutie Mark Crusaders, the Changeling King, and Sombra.
"We heard a crash, and a lot of screaming," Rainbow said, glaring around as her body coated itself in flames. Echo, at the same time, covered his own body with gas.
"What happened?" he demanded. "We're ready to help."
I sighed, glancing at Luna. "You explain it to them," I said. "I'm not explaining this stuff a third time." I walked out of the throne room, leaving the group staring at me in confusion.
"But... where are you going?" Shining asked.
"To get something I haven't worn in years," I replied.
Sombra went wide-eyed. "You don't mean..."
"I do," I replied with a grin. Then I walked out of sight.
Trekking through the castle, I made my way to my office. The office for the Captain of the Royal Guard. I grit my teeth as I found my name gone. Shining Armor's name had been placed over where mine had stood.
"Deal with the army first," I whispered to myself with a calming breath. "Kill Shining later."
Reaching into my shadow body, I pulled out a key ring with numerous keys attached to it. Picking a dark silver key, I unlocked the door and walked inside.
Place was just as I remembered it, though the pictures of Cadence had replaced my pictures of Amber. Holding back another bout of irritation, I moved to one of the bookshelves. Removing a stack of them, I set them on the desk before returning to the bookshelf. Seeing the keyhold inside, I selected an obsidian key and unlocked the secret keyhole.
Then I heard the wooden desk creak.
I spun around just in time to catch Amber jumping at me. Her blade dug into my shoulder before I managed to throw her off.
Rolling over the desk and onto the floor, she briefly went limp.
"A-Amber?" I stammered, concern washing over me despite my fears. I stepped towards her, before stopping. "No," I forced myself to say. "You're not..."
She didn't give me the chance to fight my conflicting emotions. Leaping back up, she lashed at me with a long curved blade. I dodged away, only to trip over one of the books she had knocked over. I hit the ground, the dagger in my shoulder digging deeper, but I forced myself to ignore it, rolling as Amber jumped on top of me.
Her arms shifted into scythe blades, which she tried to bring down on my neck.
Despite my entire body screaming in protest, I caught both of her wrists, struggling to push her back. It wasn't working; I was still too weak from the damage she had inflicted. Inch by inch, the blades sunk closer. With all my strength, I tried to push them back... only for something wet to hit my face.
I looked up. Amber was crying.
"Please, Eric..." she begged.
My grip faltered... and she promptly sunk her right blade into my shoulder. Despite that, she continued to cry.
"Just let me kill you!" Amber shrieked as her tears streamed onto my face.
I screamed back as her blade dug deeper.
'Damnit man, think!' My thoughts roared at me. 'It's not her! Amber would not do this! She's not her! She's not my wife! She's! Not! Amber!'
As my thoughts roared in my mind, my shadow powers came to me. Gritting my teeth, I released the arm holding back her blade, letting it form into a fist of darkness. Bellowing in rage, I struck the zombie mare across the face.
As she reeled back, I caught her by the shirt and punched her again, throwing her right out of my former office.
I glanced down at my hand... and noticed something more than shadows covering it.
The Armament Haki, I recognized.
However, I couldn't let it distract me. I heard the familiar spin of gatling guns, and looked up in time to see her pointing her gun arms at me.
"Why won't you just die already?!" Amber screamed. But before I could think of dodging...
"Leave him alone!!" shouted a familiar voice.
An orange and purple flash smashed Amber's aim away. The next thing I knew, Amber was screaming as she attempted to bat away an angry orange and purple falcon pony hybrid.
"Scootaloo!" I yelled.
"You little brat!" Amber snarled, her guns shifting back to arms as she threw Scootaloo off her.
"Apple Bloom!" Scootaloo screamed as she was thrown into the air.
Amber briefly tried to make a musket to aim at her, only for her eyes to grow wide. My instincts stopped me from leaving my office, and I got to watch as a white and red flash smashed Amber further down the hallway.
I rushed out, finding Apple Bloom in her bull form, trampling over Amber and sending her rolling down the hall. As Amber managed to scramble out behind Apple Bloom, a fiery bird shot past me and tried to set Amber's mane on fire with her blazing talons.
"Eric!" Scootaloo yelled, landing before me and shifting back to her normal form. "You're hurt!"
"I'm fine," I insisted, even as the dagger demanded my attention, forcing me to one knee.
Scootaloo looked over the dagger with a grimace. Hesitating for a second, she pulled the bloody dagger from my shoulder, eliciting a scream of pain from me.
"Sorry," she stammered, before turning to her friends. "Apple Bloom! Sweetie Belle!"
Apple Bloom spun on a dime and charged back into Amber. As she bulldozed the zombie mare over again, Sweetie Belle leaped from Amber's flaming mane, landing in front of me with a grimace. Seeing my stab wound steeled her gaze, and Rarity's sister rubbed her hands together. Blue and yellow flames mixed together before she placed them on me.
The flames spread over my body. But unlike Rainbow's blaze, this was more... pleasant. Like lying in front of a hearth fire. The pain left my body, and I watched as the wounds Amber had given me fade away.
"Heh," I chuckled. "Phoenix healing."
Sweetie Belle nodded, while Scootaloo turned back to Amber. The zombie mare had managed to wriggle out from Apple Bloom's trampling, and tried to aim her arms at the half bull.
"No you don't," Scootaloo growled. Bursting back into full falcon form, she caught Amber by the arms, lifting her into the air and setting her up for another bulldozing charge by Apple Bloom. But as Apple Bloom rounded on her, Amber swung her legs forward.
Danger flashed in my mind. "Apple Bloom, no!" I yelled.
But it wasn't enough. Amber's legs shifted into musket barrels, and she sent two shots into Apple Bloom's leg and chest. The half-bull fell to the ground with a shriek of agony.
"Apple Bloom!!" Scootaloo screamed. She clawed down at Amber hatefully, but the mare merely smirked up at her.
She stuck out her tongue... which promptly shifted into a gun of it's own. Before I could even reach out, she fired... and Scootaloo hit the ground, back in her normal form. Clutching at her eye as it oozed blood and vitreous gel.
Before Amber could follow up, I plunged my hands into the ground. My hands shot up from the fillies' shadows, yanking them into the darkness and pulling them out at my side. Amber huffed as she turned back to me.
"This is why you always fail," she noted coldly. "You protect them at the cost of your own life!"
I merely glared at her, rising up and planting myself between her and the fillies.
"Thank you," I growled.
Her glare faltered. "For...?" she asked.
"Because of what you did," I growled, shadows pouring off me as I aimed at her. "I now know that you are not Amber."
Amber tried to draw her weapons, but I was faster, firing a shadow spike into her shoulder and rendering her dominant arm useless as she wailed in agony.
"Amber adored children!" I snarled, firing another spike into her other arm. "She cared for children!"
I sent another spike into her leg, sending her to the ground as she moaned in pain.
"And she would never so much as raise a hand to harm children!"
I seized her head and slammed it into the ground. I lifted her up, watching her eyes flutter and her mouth gape, uttering small squeaks of pain and fear.
I wanted to crush her head. I wanted to gut her. I wanted to smash her head again and again until it was nothing but pulp. But logic helped me resist. She could have information that could be useful.
And so, with one final smash that cracked the ground on impact, I watched as her eyes fluttered shut, before letting the shadows imprison her.
Once she had vanished into the darkness, I raced back to the Crusaders. Thankfully, Sweetie Belle had not been complacent with her healing fire. Scootaloo was blinking her repaired eye, and she was already resting her hands on Apple Bloom's leg and chest.
"Wait," I warned, using my powers to create small thin tendrils. "We need to remove the bullets first."
Sweetie Belle blinked in shock, but I didn't waste time, letting the tendrils into Apple Bloom's wounds. The filly groaned in pain, but with the power of shadows on my side, I quickly removed the bullets.
"Go ahead," I said.
Sweetie Belle nodded, and just put her flames onto Apple Bloom... when the Mane Six charged around the corner.
For a moment, we stared at each other in shock. A shock that only lasted a second.
"Apple Bloom!" Applejack screamed, racing over to her sister.
"Scoot!" Rainbow Dash yelled, practically teleporting over to the younger pegasus.
"Sweetie Belle?" Rarity stammered, stepping forward and raising a hand towards the flame covered unicorn.
"What in..." Applejack watched as Sweetie Belle tried to heal her sister. "What happened?"
"Why is Scoots crying?" demanded Rainbow
"And why does Sweetie have flames around her?" demanded Rarity
"Amber came after me again," I growled, lifting the unconsious mare out of the shadows for a moment. "The crusaders saved me"
"But how?" Applejack demanded.
"Yeah," Rainbow Dash agreed. "They're just fillies!"
I glanced at Sweetie Belle. "You wanna tell them?" I asked.
Sweetie Belle sighed with guilt. "Because..." she looked fearfully up at her sister. "Because we have Devil Fruits."
To prove her point, Sweetie shifted into her full phoenix form and spread her healing fire over her friend. Applejack watched in stunned disbelief as her sister was completely healed in seconds.
"But... How?" Applejack questioned.
"Sometime after you all left for the Crystal Empire," Sweetie Belle explained, shifting back to her normal form. "Apple Bloom, Scootaloo and I found some weird looking fruits in the orchird. We took them to the club house and..."
"W-We thought they were just fancy apples," Apple Bloom added, though both of them shuddered from the memory of the taste.
"They sure didn't taste like apples," Scootaloo noted, grinning at Sweetie despite everything. "Tasted almost as good as your cooking, Sweetie Belle."
"Hey!" Sweetie Belle protested. But with the gazes of their sisters on them, they didn't have long to banter.
"Later that day," Apple Bloom continued. "When we were playing in the orchird we found we could turn into animals."
To prove their points, Apple Bloom shifted into a bull, while Scootaloo showed off her falcon form. Sweetie Belle briefly glanced down at her hands, before shrugging and assuming her phoenix form again.
"Zoan types," I noted, gazing at their forms with a look of pride. "Bird-Bird Fruit Models Falcon, the Ox-Ox Fruit Model Bull, and Mythical class Bird-Bird Fruit Model Phoenix." I grinned. "The fact that you three somewhat mastered your fruits in just under a month is pretty impressive."
Noticing the glares the three older sisters were beginning to shoot at me, I quickly morphed my look of pride into one of disappointment.
"That being said," I continued. "You three need to go to bed, and stay within the castle."
"But..." Apple Bloom tried to say.
"No 'but's Apple Bloom," Applejack chastised.
"She's right," I agreed. "If you follow us, your sisters will worry about you. It will distract them, and if they're not focused, they will die. Do you understand?"
The three fillies paled at my words, and with a mutual look to their families, they lowered their heads in understanding.
Leaving them with their sisters, I made my way into the deeper levels of the castle. Eventually, I reached the castle dungeon. The guards flinched and sprang to attention as I came into their sight.
"C-Captain Von Shadow," the head guard said with a salute.
"I've got a prisoner that needs a new home," I declared.
The guards nodded and moved out of my way. Passing cell after cell, I stopped at one in particular.
Summoning the zombie mare from my shadow, I threw her inside, clamping her wrists to the wall-mounted chains. Giving her one last look of disgust, I slammed the door shut, and left to head to bed.
My prisoner was still unconsious when I returned the next morning. That, or she was just faking it. Though, with Sombra, Echo, Shining Armor, Cadence, Luna and the Mane 6 all with me, I had no time for her tricks.
I dumped a bucket of ice water on the mare, grinning as she thrashed awake with a scream.
"What in Tar... Wait. Where am I?" the mare stammered, pulling at the chains around her wrists.
"Don't bother using your powers," I noted before she could try. "Those chains are made from Sea Prism Stone." I grinned as she spun to me. "It was the only cell that could hold me. And now it's the only cell that can hold you."
Snarling at the sight of me, she lunged forward. She didn't even get a foot closer before the chains yanked her back. She still snarled, pulling at me like a territorial dog staked to a chain.
'Hmm... why does this look familiar?' I mused, remembering how I did the same thing to Sombra.
"Ah swere," the mare growled in a confusing southern accent. "The moment I get out of these chains, I'mma blow so many hole in ya, yer guts'll be leaken lead!"
"Eric!" Applejack said solemnly. "I know that voice."
"Oh yeah?" I asked, turning from the angered prisoner. "Who is it?"
"Silver Rain," Applejack growled, walking up next to me. "And she used that exact same threat a few years back. On the Sheriff of Appleloosa no less, just fer keeping 'er from stealing apples from a fair me 'n Big Mac were participating in."
'Another's mannerisms in another's body,' I mused. 'And all the bodies have been repaired using the flesh and scales of Tundra Dragons.'
It clicked. I remembered one of the Arcs of One Piece.
"Thriller Bark," I said. The others turned to me.
"What?" they all asked.
"I know what Devil Fruit the leader has," I stated.
"Which one?" Pinkamena asked, her very presence causing Silver Rain to back away with fear in her eyes.
"The Shadow-Shadow Fruit," I explained. "It allows one to manipulate all forms of shadow. A known trademark is creating zombies, by taking one's shadow and putting it into a dead body, bringing it to life." I turned from Silver Rain, grinning at Pinkamena. "Would you like to see if you can get any other information from her?"
For the first time, Pinkamena gave me a smile. Though it lacked any of Pinkie's warmth. It was cold and ominous. And when she turned it to Silver Rain, the zombie mare began to cry tears of fear.
"It would be my pleasure," Pinkamena growled cracking her knuckles and bearing down on the whimpering zombie mare. "I am absolutely livid towards her for harming my favorite crusaders."
"No! Get away! " begged the zombie mare. "Keep her away from me! I'll tell you whatever you want, just please!" Briefly, she shifted into Amber's voice. "Eric? Eric, you wouldn't!"
But I had long lost any sympathy for the mare, and the others shared my thoughts. As we walked away from the cell, the zombie mare's screams of fear soon turned cracked with pain, and joined with Pinkamena's sadistic laughter in a cathartic duo of torture.