Princesses of Equestria

Chapter 9: Flight, and Fight

"Welp, y'all don't see that every day," said Applejack, pausing on main street to stare up through a gap between Ponyville's cottages.

In point of fact, she hadn't ever seen a whole gosh-durned tree scuttle on up the mountain like a leafy tarantula with way too many legs. Least of all Fluttershy's tree.

Applejack squinted at the porch. Eyup. There was Discord. And there was Shy herself, far away but getting closer. She'd thrown a fit when those phoblin varmints had gone arson crazy, hared off to her cottage before Twi, Dashie or even the high-falluting Princess Celestia could stop her. Course, they'd been slightly distracted by an inferno of black magic and the horde of shadow ponies and ...

The other Princess. The one that weren't Luna, weren't Nightmare Moon, weren't like anything Applejack had ever heard tell of. She'd met some mean customers in her time; manticores, ursa minors, elder dragons, that love-sucking parasite Queen Chrysalis, and that pony-enslaving tyrant King Sombra. But this so-called 'Princess' took the cake, robbed the rest of the cake shop blind, torched the place, then torched the rest of the town just for afters.

Applejack snorted, dug under her Stetson, and pulled out the zap apple she'd saved for a midnight snack. Panicking townsfolk ran past on either side. Applejack didn't join them. She'd had her fill of fleeing.

"No place to run!" screeched two phoblins, swooping in from behind. Applejack bit her fruit, whirled, ducked their claws, and spat twice.

Zap zap!

Goodbye phoblins. She huffed at their greasy stains, and checked on Shy again. Nearly reached Ponyville station along with the first evacuees, thank heavens. Applejack was only a minute's gallop away herself, but she stayed put, braced herself for a throw, and searched for a certain town torching piece of work.

Let's see how her royal majesty handles an overcharged zap apple fastball straight up her—

Lightning. Red as blood. Coming right at her, then ten feet to her left as Celestia's telekinesis plucked her out of the way. Cobblestones fractured. Dust and sparks scattered. And phoblins flew through it.

"Don't stop moving, Applejack!" Celestia yelled, burning the bugs away. "If you do, Armonia will take you!"

Armonia? Was that the other Princess's name? She hadn't given one. How'd Celestia know—

"Move!" A Royal Canterlot holler and telekinetic push that allowed no argument. Applejack got her move on.

More lightning struck the street. More phoblins swooped in. More folks went cold and stiff. Applejack wanted to help. She and her friends were the Elements of Harmony. They were supposed to put a stop to awful stuff like this, not run away from it!

Sure, Twi, Rare, Dashie and Pinkie were making themselves useful, with their thunder and pebble projectiles and wind blasts and doona club and all ... which didn't hold a candle to the Elements' combined power. Just one blast of their good old friendship laser had done for Nightmare Moon. Another had done for Discord. Why in tarnation hadn't they used it back when Armonia had been a sitting duck?

Because Celestia shouted 'FLEE!'

Surely 'OPEN FIRE!' would have gotten better results. Wouldn't it?

What did Celestia know? What was she hiding? On Applejack's chest, Honesty's Element stung. The truth had to come out.

"Princess Celestia," Applejack panted as she ran. "This alicorn. Armonia. What is she to you?"

"Later," Celestia said, deflecting another thunderbolt aimed at the train. "I'll ..." She swallowed, looking suddenly haunted. "I'll tell you later, as soon as it's safe."