Intense pain shot through her body, feeling heavy and sluggish as she blearily attempted to get a bearing on exactly where she was. Her head pounded inside her helmet as she scanned her surroundings, finding herself to be in some sort of room- the only thing decorating it was the teeny cot she was currently laying on, her spindly arms and legs hanging comically off the bed. She groaned as she stared into the bright lights on the ceiling, raising her arm to cover them, and to find that the syringe usually attached to her left glove was missing, as well as the mini-harpoon gun she usually carried on her right. She then shot up as she realized that there wasn't a Little Sister anywhere in the vicinity, she immediately got off the cot and went to the door, she tried it, and found it to be locked. She lifted her fist, and gave the door a solid punch, a sizable dent was made- and she tried again, this time knocking the obstruction off of its hinges- the door fell forward, falling flat on the floor as she stepped out, scanning the new area.
The first thing she noticed, was the word 'Scorchwood' printed in bold black letters on the opposite wall, confusing her as she glanced to her left, then to her right. She saw no-one coming in either direction, and performed a mental coin toss- choosing the right. Her boots squeaked against the floor as she walked, filling the hall, as well as the sound of the cage on her back rattling as she went. She walked slowly and carefully, looking to avoid any encounters with Splicers as long as she could- she'd have to retrieve her syringe and harpoon before being able to actually do any damage to them, as well as finding her Little Sister. She thought to herself as she walked, rearranging her priorities in her mind as she cautiously peeked around the corner, first and foremost being to find her stolen weapon, no weapon meant no defense, no defense meant no protection for the Little Sisters. She spied two figures running down the hall, towards her. The two of them appeared to be equine in shape, given the manes, flat teeth, and walking cycles. She growled to herself as they skidded to a halt, fear clearly plastered on their faces as they stared at her. Reaching out, she made a grab for the one closer to her- she missed, and both of the horse-like creatures bolted in the opposite direction, screaming at the top of their lungs 'She's escaped!'. She took that as her cue to pick up the pace in the search for both her Sister and her weapons. She took off at a brisk pace, her long strides clearing entire sections of different halls at a time- she soon came upon two large, double doors marked 'Armory'. She burst through the doors, barely leaving them intact as she searched feverishly for her needle and harpoon.
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"Not now, darling" Rarity sighed, her spectacled face eyeing the dress set beneath her sowing machine.
"But Rarity-" the smaller unicorn whined, grating on the older's ears "you promised we could play!"
"Sweetie Belle..."
"You promised!"
Rarity sighed again as she removed her glasses, and took a moment to step away from her work and down to her little sister.
"I know I promised...but..."
"But?"
"I need to finish these dresses!" she said, motioning to the sowing machine "A client in Canterlot loved them so much, she ordered a dozen more! By the end of the week, no less..."
The filly's lower lip quivered as her eyes grew larger than they already were.
"Sweetie...I need to do this...this is what I do for a living, I can't just stop and play with you whenever I want-"
"But-"
"Besides, don't you have Applebloom and Scootaloo to play with?"
"Applebloom said Applejack had something important to talk to the family about, so she can't do anything- and Scootaloo got grounded for a week..."
"Whatever for?"
"All she told me was that it involved her mom's rose bushes and a pair of hedge-clippers..."
Rarity winced as she pieced together at least five different scenarios involving Scootaloo and the fate of her mother's poor flower garden.
"Surely there are some other foals for you to play with? That brown colt in the beanie, perhaps?"
"Button Mash is always too busy at the arcade, he almost never wants to play anything without a screen..."
"Maybe you could convince hi-"
"Tried it"
"And how did th-"
"Ignored me, too focused"
"Well...Twis-?"
"Making candy"
"Rumb-?"
"Flying"
"Pipsqu-"
"Vacation"
Rarity groaned as she turned back to her work, placing her glasses back on her muzzle as she scrutinized the dress she was currently occupied with.
"Well then...I'm sure an imaginative filly such as yourself can find something to do" she tried, as a last resort.
She heard Sweetie Belle give a huff, before heading out of the boutique, indicated by the sound of the bell above the door ringing as she left.966Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡdqiBiONRWN
966Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡDtIGrRQWzO 966Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ3YMwRnZ7ZD
She held two of the equine-creatures, one in each fist, as they shook- fear evident in their eyes as they stared into the red light given off by her helmet. She bashed the two together, their foreheads colliding as she dropped them- she stepped over them, her long legs making it easy to bypass the two unconscious equines.966Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ39cYEQF67k
She searched, and searched, and searched, finding nothing but more and more of the equine creatures, doing the same thing she'd done to the first two. She wondered, briefly, why there were no vents, you find a vent, you find a Sister. Her mind was churning as she began to worry she might not find one, but quickly steeled herself to keep looking, pushing her to force down her worry.
'These equines are almost as bad as Splicers!' she thought vehemently, wondering just where all of them were coming from, attempting to hinder her search.
She finally had enough, and roared, charging through the gathering of equines dressed in lab coats and ties, not caring who got hurt- or who stood in her way. They began screaming, and running, and still more screaming as they attempted to escape her path of destruction. She'd cleared a majority of the equines, taking off at an impressive speed down the hall, desperately searching for any Sisters that could (by chance) be wandering around. Though, she doubted it, with so many equines running around, it was no small wonder why all of the Sisters were hiding. She spied a sign, with the words 'Exit' in red above one of the doors- she ran to it, and yanked it open, preparing to enter the air-lock.
Imagine her surprise when she discovered that there was no water outside, only this green surface, this big, big, big, big blue thing hanging above her, and a ball of brightness floating in the middle of the impossibly huge blue thing. She was temporarily blinded, and as a result, stumbled as her eyes adjusted to her new surroundings, her mind threatening to blow a gasket as she attempted to figure out just where she was. Though sound of approaching footsteps made themselves known from inside the building, and she bolted, her boots thudding against the new floor as she ran. She heard the shouts of the equines, not daring to look back, lest they catch up with her.
The new floor beneath her felt different than what she was used to, she used this to take her mind off of the current situation, though, not slowing her pace. She didn't want to admit it, even to herself, but this...new place...these things...they scared her, it scared her that she had the enormous blue thing hanging above her head, further confusing her as to how it was up there in the first place, why it was up there, how it wasn't falling under its own weight, along with the yellow ball, and when it would fall, crushing all of them. This gave her all the more motivation to find any and all Sisters, before the blue thing fell, maybe if she got to them- and made it out of wherever she was, they'd be able to escape being crushed. Her legs pumped as she continued running, the green floor beneath her flying past as she searched for any signs of life. It both relieved and angered her that she found none, relieved because she believed herself and the Little Sisters were safe from the equines, angered because that meant the Sisters were out of her line of sight, none of them to be seen as far as the eye could see.966Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ4sJuZSEv5w
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Sweetie Belle grumbled angrily to herself, kicking a few pebbles along the path as tears pricked her eyes, the salty liquid threatening to fall from her eyes, and stain the ground below.
'...it's not fair...' she thought bitterly '...she never has time for me anymore...'
She continued walking, not caring where she was going, her hooves compressing the dirt as she went.
"Stupid work...stupid dresses..." she grumbled, passing a rather large tree off to the side of the road.
She looked up to the tree's branches, a frown creasing her muzzle.
"You're a tree" she stated simply "you don't need to worry about sisters- playing with them, or ignoring them"
The tree, naturally, didn't respond, it just stood there, rooted to the spot it was planted, its leaves shaking in the soft breeze that blew, its branches unyielding to the wind, unlike its leafy counterparts.
"I wish I could be a tree..."
Sweetie's eyes shot open soon after she said this, then began to shake her head, clearing it of the thought.
'I really need to stop this...' she thought 'I'm beginning to think just like Fluttershy...'
Sweetie continued her walk, her love of her sister battling her anger at her inside her mind, temporarily distracting her from the world around her. She loved her sister, that should be a given, but sometimes...it was just so frustrating...she loved to wrap herself up in her work, and that wasn't always a good thing...she almost got as bad as Twilight did when she got stressed...almost...sometimes she'd forget things that didn't have to do with her work, or, on one occasion, forgot she was even in the room when she was trying to come up with a design for her next dress.
The sound of heavy hoofsteps were oblivious to Sweetie as she continued her inner battle.
'...though, she didn't seem to like it that one time I tried to make breakfast for her...how did the orange juice catch fire, anyway?'
The noise grew closer, practically forcing the filly shake as the ground vibrated beneath her.
'...just not...fair?'
The filly looked up- just in time to feet something heavy knock the wind out of her, forcing her to the ground as a huge figure sailed over her, crash landing into a mud puddle just a few feet away.
She stared in fear, the head of the creature was blocked by the cage and tank adorning the back, which only served to terrify her more, her mind screaming in fear at just what the cage might be used for...namely, capturing small fillies.966Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ02hiNaPkfw
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She practically jumped for joy as she heard the voice of a young girl nearby, seemingly sad about something. She turned quickly, and ran towards the sound of the voice, her worry relieved at the thought of finally finding a Little Sister. She continued her jog, continuing her run down the floor of the lighter brown floor, passing a brown pole with some algae floating on it.
'That's what this other floor must be made of...' she thought 'it must be algae, only lighter!'
Her eyes frantically searched for any signs of a Little Sister, but instead found a smaller version of the equine creatures. Her surprise caught up with her, but not until after one of her boots caught the equine, forcing her to sail over it and into a very wet, and very viscous liquid. She lifted one of her hands, covered in the substance, and inspected it, wondering just what it was.
'Not sand...' she deduced 'not the right color...'
She filed the mystery away for later, finding it to be non-corrosive or hazardous. She stood, the ball-cage on her back grinding against the rest of her suit as she did so, forcing her to wince beneath her helmet. She turned, and looked to the small equine, who was visibly shaking, her legs quivering beneath her as her knees practically knocked together.
'Why is she so afraid?'
She took one step towards the equine, oddly enough, the equine took one step back, separating them between the same amount of space.
"RUGGHHH"
The equine cowered even more, practically forcing its stomach against the ground as wetness gathered around its eyes.
She took another step forward again, this time a bit more slowly- the equine didn't move, continuing to lay on the floor. With one gloved hand, she reached down, being mindful of the harpoon and syringe, and took the equine into her arms.966Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡHaJ1cY69si
966Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ370ttLy6hF
Sweetie was hunkered down in terror, the enormous creature before her staring at her, its menacing eye staring at her with its yellow glow. What scared her most though, was the giant needle that the monster carried, along with the really sharp object attached to the other arm. What was it going to do? Where was it going to take her?
She squeaked in fright as she felt herself being lifted, no doubt by the monster. She expected the creature to hurt her, or lift its mask and reveal the horrifying face underneath, prepared to gobble her up in one bite.
Instead, she was cradled, as if she was a foal- like, Cake twins, foals. A low groan then emanated from the creature as she felt herself being slowly rocked, the two occurrences contrasting each other greatly- the moans and groans batted themselves against her ears, forcing them to go flat as she felt the sensation of being held by the creature. Was it trying to...comfort her? Why would it do that? Wasn't it going to eat her?
A thousand questions made themselves known in her mind, one of the biggest ones asking why this creature was being so nice...Sweetie tried to push away, and to her surprise, the creature let out what sounded like a sigh, before setting her down, all four of her hooves touching the ground once more. She shuffled awkwardly, staring at the creature, then the ground, then the creature again. She repeated this cycle for a few minutes, before slowly turning to leave, her eyes still trained on the creature. She took one
step forward, the creature then did the same- she took another, the creature again copying her steps.
"Um...stay?" she said, unsure if the creature would listen.
The creature raised its arm, Sweetie ducked, fearing the creature was going to poke her with the needle adorning its arm.
The head of the creature tilted to the side, as if it didn't understand.
"I- I should be going home" she stated, summoning as much courage as she could.
She took a few steps forward, and the creature followed, like a puppy.
"Why are you following me?" she asked, turning to face it once more.
The creature pointed directly at her.
"Yes, why are you following me?"
It kept pointing.
"Me?"
It nodded.
"Why?"
It let out a low moan, still pointing at her.
"I can't understand you" she said, pointing to her ears.
It groaned again, taking a step forward.
"No, you stay there, stay away from me!" she cried, backing up.
The creature stopped, and the light in its head turned green.
"Stop following me around" she stated.
And with that, she turned and ran, not looking back, and not hearing the sound of the creature's hoofsteps following her.966Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡa2RshfFUET
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She stared at the small equine running away, genuinely confused as to why she ran, and why she seemed so terrified. The other Little Sisters never ran at her appearance, and certainly never displayed that much fear. This, however, was something entirely new to her- there was this new world, and with it, she supposed, came a different set of rules. She turned, and headed in the general direction of the equine. A piercing shriek filled the air, belonging to none other than the equine- instincts kicked in, and she ran in the direction of the noise, her harpoon at the ready. Different world or not, Little Sisters were Little Sisters.966Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡKQQz5bWI59
966Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡifnlngjKdc
Sweetie Belle was petrified with fear as she stared into the hungry, glowing eyes of the Timberwolf before her, circling its prey as it licked its chops. The wolf opened its maw, slowly advancing towards her, prepared to turn her into its next meal. She knew that running would be pointless with the wolf this close, at this range, it could easily outrun and catch up with her in the blink of an eye.
She closed her eyes as she whimpered, wishing she hadn't ventured this far into the forest, and to a greater extent, gotten so mad at Rarity- now though, she'd disappear completely, her sister and family never knowing what became of her.
The sound of heavy hoofsteps suddenly made themselves known, tromping through the forest while barreling through the foliage. Both the wolf and herself stopped- guessing what would come next, Sweetie dove into the rough foliage, just as the creature from before stomped into the clearing, its single eye glowing bright red. The wolf realized it'd been tricked, and went after Sweetie- she flinched as the wolf practically jumped on her, and was taken aback as the creature dragged the wolf backwards by the tail. Still holding the wolf's tail, the creature readied the weapon on its right hoof, and pressed it against the wolf's side. Before it could discharge it, however, the wolf turned and snapped at the creature with its wooden jaws, forcing the creature to let go of the tail. The wolf, now free, nipped at the creature's two hooves, the creature following its every movement, keeping its right arm trained on it. The wolf lunged, diving for the creature- who raised its arm. Sweetie Belle heard a 'click', and something rocketed off of the arm, tearing through the wolf's mouth, splintering the mouth into a hundred pieces. She stared in horror at the two, the sharp object came out the other end, reducing the wolf's back to kindling. The wolf whimpered as the creature dropped it to the ground, Sweetie averted her gaze, assuming what would come next. There was a loud *crunch*, and everything was silent- Sweetie Belle looked up, and found the creature staring at her once more, its eye now green. Her gaze shifted downward, and spied one of the creature's boots, covered in sap. Sweetie resisted the urge to hurl, and stared up at the creature once more.966Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡb691gHDXuR
966Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡJs0dydO6Kd
'Sister...sister is safe...' she thought to herself, wiping her slime-covered boot against the algae.
The Sister looked up to her, then down to her boot- she swore her face briefly turned a shade of green, and the equine looked to her once more.
"Is- is that why you're following me?" she asked, vaguely gesturing to the remnants of the wolf "To protect?"
She nodded, kneeling down to the equine's level. The equine backed away a bit, then hesitantly stepped closer.
"Wh-what's your name?"
"SRRRRR"
"Um...can I just call you...Mrs. Needles?"
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Sweetie Belle stared out at Ponyville from the cover of the forest, the tall creature still following her, practically hovering.966Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡQduzG2sr5q
"So...um...I need to get home, my friends are probably worried..."
The creature's eye flicked to yellow, staring at her.
"Well...um...bye...thanks for everything back there..." she trailed off, not knowing what to say next.
Sweetie took off at a trot towards Ponyville, and promptly heard the hoofsteps of the creature just a few feet behind.
"No! You stay here" she said.
The creature pointed toward Ponyville.
"No, you can't come with me, they'll have a heart-attack if they see you following me"
The creature's eye remained yellow.
"Just...stay here..."
And with that, she walked into town, passing Lyra's house, as well as town hall. She soon came upon her sister's boutique- she sighed as she pushed the door open, the little bell above the door ringing as she entered.
"Hello darling, how was your day?" Rarity asked, walking out of the backroom.
"Pretty uneventful..." she lied, believing her sister would skin her alive if she found out she went into the forest.
"Well, I'm glad you had fun"
'Yeah...'fun'...'
"So...did you finish those dresses?" Sweetie Belle asked.
"Why yes, I got them done just a few hours after you left" she replied.
"So...does that mean..."
"Yes, Sweetie Belle, I can play with you..." her sister sighed, smiling.
"YAY!"
Sweetie Belle was practically bursting with joy, the opportunity to finally have some time with her sister had finally presented itself.
"So, what would you like to do first?" Rarity asked, walking into her room.
All of her excitement left her, however, as she sat on the bed with her sister.
"Can we...can we talk?"
"Of course, but...wouldn't you rather play tea party? Or pretend?"
"I...I just...I was mad...at you..."
"That's perfectly underst-"
"No...I need to get this out there...I was mad at you...and, I know it's not your fault, you have a business to run...but...it just makes me so...so..."
"Frustrated?"
"...yeah..."
"So what makes you frustrated?"
"...that you work all the time...I mean, we used to spend time together, we used to do almost everything together...and now..."
"Now all of that is changing..."
"Yeah...and-"
Sweetie Belle stopped as she was pulled into a hug by Rarity, her muzzle pressing into her mane.
"I'm so very sorry..." Rarity sighed, hugging her tightly "I get a bit of inspiration, and then I go off...I'm so sorry if I've ignored you..."
"S'alright...I mean...you really didn't-"
*Crash*
*Ksssh*
Rarity gasped as a giant creature with a single, glowing red eye crawled in through the window it had broken to gain access.
"Sweet Celestia!" she cried.
The monster effortlessly tossed her aside, bearing down on Sweetie Belle. Rarity's horn charged, and she prepared to ram the creature, preventing it from taking her sister. She stopped however, jaw agape, as she saw her sister actually talking to the behemoth that had so carelessly broken into her home.
"-told you not to follow me!" Sweetie Belle cried.
"URRRGGG"
"I know! But...um...*ahem* I mean- go away you scary monster!"
"Sweetie Belle...what in the world...you mean...you mean to tell me...you actually know this...this thing?" Rarity managed to rasp out.
"Um...not exactly..."
The creature turned its attention to Rarity once more, its eye immediately flickered back to red, and advanced, the over-sized syringe it was carrying pointed directly at her.
Rarity backed away in fear, her pupils the size of pinpricks as the creature edged closer.
"Mrs. Needles! Stop it!" Sweetie Belle shrieked, grabbing the leg of the gangly creature, attempting to pull it back.
"Sweetie, you need to run- don't worry about me"
Sweetie rolled her eyes, and pleaded with the creature to spare Rarity, the creature still held its syringe at the ready, still standing in a defensive position.
"Mrs. N, this is my sister, you can't attack her!"
The creature stopped entirely this time, lowering its weapon as its eye turned yellow, staring down at the unicorn filly.
"She's my sister...please don't hurt her..." Sweetie pleaded, her hooves still tightly wrapped around the creature's leg.
Everything was silent for a few seconds- until finally, the creature knelt down, and picked up Sweetie Belle, its suit grinding against itself as she held her in her arms.
"Sis...I don't know who or what this is..." Sweetie said, still being held in the arms of the creature "..but..I was just walking in the forest...and...she tripped over me..."
Rarity, who's heart was pounding a mile-a-minute, stared in shock at her sister, being held by this creature...who had just broken into her home, and almost attacked her. Once the adrenaline in her system died down a bit, she finally found the ability to speak again.
"...go...go on..."
"And then...there was this Timberwolf, and- and- I wouldn't be- be here if it wasn't for her" she finished, pointing a hoof to the creature.
"I...I see..."
Rarity turned her attention to the creature, who was staring at her with its still-yellow eye.
"Thank...thank you for saving Sweetie Belle..." she said.
The creature let out a low groan, which she took to mean as a 'You're welcome'.
"So...I do believe we must discuss...this..." Rarity stated, motioning to Sweetie Belle, the creature, and herself.
"Y-yeah..."966Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ6jb2lVtLgr
966Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡYbdv8XbVT4
"And...I suppose my last question would be...what exactly is Mrs. Needles?" Rarity asked, the creature Sweetie named 'Mrs. N', was dozing on the bed, one arm hanging off the bed, the other securing Sweetie.
The unicorn filly shrugged, careful not to disturb the sleeping...thing...
"I don't know...she doesn't talk really well, or that often..."
Rarity sighed as she rubbed her temples, the stress of the days events catching up to her.
'And here I thought making dresses was difficult...'
A knock came from below, prompting both of the unicorns to freeze.
Rarity went to the window, opened it, and found her friends standing in the street in front of the boutique, the actual shop having been closed for a good few hours.
"'Bout time y'all answered!" Applejack called "We got somethin' ta talk to y'all about!"
Rarity's inner battle raged inside her mind, wondering whether she should let her friends in, and meet this 'Mrs. Needles', or turn them away, and keep the creature a secret.
"Oh...um...yes! I'll be right down!" she called back, before closing the window, and walking back to the bed.
"Sweetie Belle...I need you to be quiet up here-"
"Please don't let 'em take Mrs. N away!" Sweetie pleaded "She didn't do anything wrong!"
"That may be...but...we have to consider the possibility that she is dangerous," Rarity replied "and perhaps the quickest way would be to introduce her to the others"
"They're not gonna banish her?"
"I have the utmost confidence they won't" Rarity replied.
"...thanks sis..."
Rarity smiled, and left the room- she trotted down the stairs and into the darkened boutique, she crossed the room, and opened the door for her friends.
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