Author's Note:

Hi guys! It's been a while. The hiatus this story has been in invoked several requests to continue the tale, and though I was away from the world of fanfiction during all this time, I read each and every request personally. The truth is, I'm not out of ideas or anything like that. I still love this epic plot I've been building up, and its sweetest and most shocking moments still lie ahead. But besides any reservations I may have had, I partly could not continue the story due to circumstances in real life. These events have since ended, and I got a new computer suitable for my needs, but that left the issue of narrative design choices for me to overcome. I have since rethought certain plotlines I introduced in earlier chapters, and though I loved the character development and craziness of them, I could not shake the feeling that my intent was lost as a more scattered final product resulted (for example, the Wipe-Out and The Room chapters, etc). For this reason, I toyed with the idea of revamping the fanfic from scratch. However, I did not want to lose the journey that I had trailblazed here first.

And so, I return now with my resolution: To resume writing, and provide entertainment that's part Code Geass, but 100% unique. I know where I want this story to go from here, so as I thank those who have read my story up to this point, I invite you all to follow as I get back into the groove of Code Pony: Twilight of the Rebellion!

Chapter 22: Still Beating Hearts

~Sky Above New Fillydelphia~

The wind howled through the ears of the Celestian Resistance Force as they advanced under the command of their boss, Rainbow Dash. They were one, united under a cause made of the foremost importance after all their friends, family, lovers, and neighbors had fallen, or worse. Their Ponyville was gone. Their Cloudsdale- from which most of the CRF hailed- was lost. Their Canterlot- home to a once benevolent and proud monarchy- was decimated. And all of the death that resulted from enemy conquest was permanently etched into the memory of each and every single flyer on Rainbow's team. Perhaps they simply were stubborn, and wouldn't forget the past. But the truth of it was, they COULDN'T forget. And those painful memories empowered the beat of their wings as they flew towards the Justiciar.

"So let's go over the plan real quick, guys. We'll sneak up on the Justiciar from high above as I do a sonic rainboom strong enough to break the top hull. You'll all follow my tail as, like, a boarding party, and we'll take out everypony that's manning that thing. Once we wreck the crew, we blow the joint- literally!" Rainbow ordered.

"Aye!" A general chorus arose.

"Rainbow Dash, Trixie's mine, right?" Kade asked with a warlike eagerness.

Rainbow turned to Kade. After reading his eyes, she nodded.

"I won't let the team down!" He thanked with a partial Celestian salute; it was all he could manage while flying.

Rainbow knew just the reason for why he wanted revenge. He was a former member of Celestia's Royal Guard in Canterlot, under Shining Armor. He was a survivor from Trixie's attack on the castle, though he saw all of his fellow guards fall. He held a grudge on her that could only be repaid in kind.

But Rainbow was different. She kept Kade around as a valuable ally, but whereas he fought to kill, Dash fought to protect. It just so happens that protection requires a little butt-kicking sometimes. Can't help it, you know?

"Rainbow, it's an ambush!" One of her teammates warned.

They were, in an instant, surrounded by a squad of Nightmarian pegasi that had been using the dark clouds of the night sky as cover. The group was at least twice the size of Rainbow's team, and it was led by-

"Vandango Sadiz!" One of the Celestians called, recognizing the organizer of the opposition.

"Who?" Rainbow questioned.

"A Nightmarian ace. A big deal, you know. One of those." Kade mocked with a defiant eye towards Vandango.

Vandango did indeed look primed and ready for this battle, however. He held a satisfied expression as he turned to Rainbow Dash.

"Well, look who took the most direct route to the Justiciar! I might call it predictable, but then again, you ragtag lot aren't real soldiers. 'Least, I'd wager that most of you aren't." Sadiz condesended.

"I didn't expect an interception! Damn, how'd you do it?" Rainbow spoke with anger and disappointment.

"Oh, an appropriate question... Rainbow Dash. Of the Mane Six, of the Element of Loyalty, of Ponyville." Vandango said as he looked for a reaction from his opponent.

Rainbow was floored by this breach of her anonymity.

"H-How?"

"I've been reading up on you, ever since you caught me off guard two days ago. I noted your colors from the instance you came at me with a kick. You let down your guard, but I didn't quit then. I picked myself up from the ground, and researched. I searched through files of Nightmarian Intelligence until I found you. And now I know as much about you as Celestia and Luna did. They were watching you six back then, and that fixation became a permanent weakness for you and your friends," Sadiz said darkly. "Of course, my knowledge surpasses theirs. I know everything you do, everypony you talk to, and everywhere you go in New Fillydelphia as long as it's in public. I simply set up a hypothetical route from your home to the Justiciar, and sat in wait. And now, you're mine. All mine."

At that point, something inside Rainbow Dash that had been waiting to come out had finally burst to the surface. It was self-pride. A casting aside of false identities. And it was long overdue.

"Yeah, you got me. I'm Rainbow Dash. And your info was spot on. But you messed up on one thing: I'm not afraid of you, or the Nightmarian government. You were gonna find out all about me anyway, one day. I knew it was coming. But now that it's here, I'm all fired up," Rainbow Dash challenged as she flew right up to Vandango. "And I'm gonna kick. Your. Ass!"

"Try me, Rainbow Dash!" Vandango spat as his Geass began to glow on his tongue.

The Celestians and Nightmarians clashed in a flurry above the anxious city of New Fillydelphia as she cried out for a savior. The savior would be whoever could get to Trixie in time.

~Through the Streets of New Fillydelphia~

"R.R., how close are we?" Lemni asked through her Neo Nightmarian mask.

"Not altogether too far, dear, but it's still a pace until we're there." R.R replied.

"Hey, where is everypony?" Spike, who was struggling to keep up, said in between pants and wheezes.

It was a fair question. The streets were empty, barren as though a phantom Cleansing had already silently swept the area.

"They're afraid. Not just the Celestians, either, but the Nightmarians as well. Everypony's afraid, Spike. The will of the superiors isn't what anypony wants. Locked up in their ivory towers, leaders forget how ugly death really is." Twilight spoke solemnly.

"That's beautiful, Twilight. You'd make a fair queen." Rarity praised, though not without respect of the grim truth in Twilight's words.

Twilight shot a glance of returned acknowledgement back at Rarity.

"I just want to do as Princess Celestia did. Maintain harmony between the royals and the subjects." Lemni responded.

"Just as the Sisters!" R.R. seemed excited.

"...I don't know about Luna. I thought we were friends. I still can't help but wonder if it was all a facade." Twilight held back bitter memories.

"...We can find out one day, can't we, Twi- er, Lemni?" Spike reassured.

(One day. You're right, Spike. But until then, one thing's certain.

I hate you, mother.)

~Near the Outskirts of New Fillydelphia~

"Keep close, y'all! Don't lose contact with each other!" Applejack ushered.

"Si, Manzana is right! Keep calm and march your bodies on!" Contove encouraged.

"I don't usually like order, but this is a-okay with me!" Pinkie approved to the group.

"Oh, my... oh, my..." Fluttershy, as a highly sensitive pony, was in much distress.

Fluttershy's thoughts were all over the place. She worried about the safety of the group she was with, she worried about Rainbow Dash, and she was especially worried about Twilight. She had seen Rainbow Dash aggressively pinning down Applejack just before she flew off to Celestia knows where, and Twilight left just the same. For how much she loved her friends, they seemed to be leaving her in the dark. Well, if that was so, it was working. Fluttershy really did feel in the dark.

Pinkie turned to Fluttershy as her pace was slowing down. The CMC and the rest didn't seem to notice.

"Come on, Fluttershy! We're going that way!" Pinkie reminded her friend, and pointed for clarity.

"I-I know..." Fluttershy muttered with a frown.

She slowly lifted her head back up... and met the eyes of somepony. Startled, Fluttershy jumped back a bit and shrieked. It was a wispy resemblance of a blue mare with white hair... wait...

"T-T-Trixie?" Fluttershy whimpered.

"What?" Pinkie asked as she looked around wildly.

"You can see Trixie, eh? Wait... you're the Element of Kindness. One of the Celestia's weapons, and one of the traitor Twilight's friends." Trixie said, though without moving her mouth. It must've been telepathy.

Trixie's eyes narrowed, her mouth curled in a smirk.

"No! Stay away from me!" Fluttershy swatted at the mirage.

"Fluttershy?" Pinkie asked with worry and concern.

"Yes, I'll make a movement of you... you'll distress them... and lead them astray." Trixie thought out loud, with a sadistic smile.

"NO!" Fluttershy shrieked.

But it was too late. The ghost of Trixie merged with Fluttershy, and possessed her. After a brief collapse to the ground, she picked herself up and stood slouchedly, almost soullessly.

"Fluttershy? Guys, I think something's wrong with-" But Pinkie was cut off.

Fluttershy had run to the front of the group and snatched Contove's digital map right from his hooves. She then charged away from everypony else, much to the group's shock.

"Fluttershy! What the hay is wrong?" AJ called out in shock.

"Follow her!" Pinkie reacted without thinking and ran after her.

"Pinkie! Fluttershy! Don't!" AJ shouted with worry.

As everypony else stood there for a moment, exchanging frightful glances, Applejack screwed up her courage.

"I need to save them."

"And I'll need the map; we're not close enough to a safe house yet. Damn it all!" Contove shouted as he stomped his hooves.

Applejack felt dread at the thought of returning back to the more central parts of New Fillydelphia, but what choice did she have?

Little did they know where Fluttershy was headed...

~New Fillydelphian Skies~

The whole sky was in motion as the Celestian Resistance Force tried their best against the trained military of Nightmaria. In aerial combat, melee was often more effective than gunslinging, but the Nightmarian military were able to alternate sharply between both. The Celestians lost some feathers here and there, but thankfully they were still in the game. Rainbow and Vandango were locked in a tense struggle.

"Hey, you're not as much of a pushover as I thought!" Rainbow taunted.

"Pushover. Yes, how well you know that word, Rainbow Dash. How many ponies have you mocked in a sense of competition? Even your friends have been belittled by you, have they not? Calling Twilight an egghead? Choosing not to associate with the way Fluttershy flies? Just how full of yourself are you?" Vandango's sharp words came through smooth lips.

To Rainbow's surprise, she actually found herself affected by the words of this stallion. What he was saying made so much sense, and was even appealing to admit. How true were the words from his mouth, from his oddly-marked tongue...

"Rainbow, keep moving! Don't become a stationary target!" Kade yelled from yonder.

Rainbow shook her head to clear it, and realized how silly she was being. She could take this guy! Him, and his sassy mouth! Vandango's smile dropped as a flash of anger worked its way across his face, only to vanish again as soon as it came. Vandango aimed his hoof-gun at Rainbow, but she noticed his motion and flew into a nearby cloud.

"Cowardly, Rainbow Dash. If you disappoint me so much, as somepony you've just met, I can only fathom how much of a let down you were back in Ponyville. Is that why you fluff yourself up so much? Are you compensating for something? For the love you never had? For the pangs of inferiority rocking you to the core night after night?" Vandango assaulted with his Geass-enhanced speechcraft.

Just then, Vandango was smacked out of the air and lost altitude. He quickly regained it and whipped around in the air to face his attacker, Rainbow Dash.

"Yeah yeah, you can talk, but I don't gotta listen! So save your breath!" Rainbow stated with her usual moxie.

"You never listen! Never give anyone else a chance! How many times have you made Fluttershy cry because you were jealous of her inner peace? How many ponies have you killed in the name of your desperation and madness? Pinkie Pie, Twilight Sparkle... they're all dead inside! And it's all your fault!" Vandango wailed madly as he cranked his Geass to maximum levels.

Rainbow merely looked Vandango straight in the eye, as her own eyes glowed faintly with Geass.

"You're crazy, bro. You need some help, 'kay?" Rainbow responded in a 'you're not getting to me' kind of way.

"Y-You've already been affected by a Geass! But who the hell?" Vandango asked as he began to tremble.

"Dear zealot, did I not tell you? Silly me, and how forgetful. The rightful heir of Nightmaria has received the Mark of the Queen from yours truly. I've found her to be a more fruitful investment already." The recurring voice of Geass said to Vandango.

"Rightful heir of Nightmaria..." Vandango muttered before his eyebrows shot up in epiphany. "Twilight Sparkle!"

"Rightful whatnow? And what about Twilight?" Rainbow asked; she hadn't heard the first part very well.

"Your conclusion is sound. Here, have a memory..." The Voice of Geass granted before Vandango's surroundings got swept up and turned into the inside of a classroom. He could only bear witness to the scene of Twilight interrogating Rainbow Dash.

~Lunch Detention in Contove's Room (Memory)~

Twilight was staring intensely at Rainbow with a Geassed eye. Vandango was a paralyzed witness in the corner; a phantasmic fly-on-the-wall.

"I am here to extract information from you. You will comply." Twilight commanded.

"Yes, Twilight." said a tranced Rainbow.

Twilight gave a smile that was almost psycho. Vandango cringed uncomfortably.

"Now, first question. Are you the one responsible for the damage to this school?"

"Yes." Rainbow answered.

Vandango held back profanity at this usurper he had failed to stop that fateful night.

"Why did you do it?" Twilight insisted.

"I am the leader of the Celestian Resistance Force; a terrorist group." Rainbow explained.

Twilight looked upset. Disappointed, even.

"W-Why would you go off to do something like that without someone to guide you? You need a leader! Someone to supervise and manage the whole thing!" Twilight spoke louder.

Rainbow was silent. But Twilight's words were ringing repeatedly in her- and Vandango's- ears.

"You need a leader... you need a leader... you NEED a leader..."

"Yes, your highness." Rainbow stated inaudibly.

She had moved her lips, but not used her vocal cords. Twilight had not noticed. Vandango understood what had happened.

(Geass, the Mark of the Queen, signifies exactly that: A leader. Rainbow Dash assigned Twilight as her leader since she had the Queen's Mark. While this is in effect, I cannot use my own Geass on her. I cannot lead her, even if it's through persuasion. But why is she not completely subservient to Twilight vi Nightmaria, if this is the case?) Vandango wondered through his thoughts.

As if in response, the memory fast-forwarded a bit.

"I will prove myself to you. You will be willingly under my hooves, and you won't even know it. That is your fate. You will protect me by being my finest pawn." Twilight told Rainbow.

(I see now. Once Twilight proves herself to Rainbow Dash, Rainbow will freely serve her queen. The only Geass requirement is that Rainbow protects Twilight as an elite pawn,) Vandango thought. (And thusly, their paths are now forever connected, whether they know it or not.)

(Lesson learned, I take it,) The Voice of Geass inquired. (If so, I'll drop you back. Try not to die. Or not. Your contract is expiring, whatever the case.)

As Vandango was being whisked away again by forces beyond his control, he stared at the heir to Nightmaria one last time. He saw traits of both Celestia and Luna in this mare.

She was truly the twilight between the two Sisters.

~Aerial Battlefield~

Vandango's consciousness returned to the fighting as though he had never left. He ceased his Geass as he looked upon Rainbow Dash with renewed ferocity.

"If I kill you, you'll have no one to protect." The Nightmarian Ace threatened.

To Rainbow's surprise, this actually struck a cord with her. Unlike all the BS this guy rambled on about earlier, he was right about this. Without her, the Celestian Resistance Force would crumble! Scootaloo would be truly alone! And Twilight...

(I can't let them get me. To protect my friends, I have to protect myself, too. And to protect my identity, I'll need to break this guy.) Rainbow concluded.

"...I guess I do matter after all, huh? You can really wreck things for me and my friends if I take your blackmail lightly. I can't just take all the burden on myself and expect it not to come back at everypony else. But that's what I've been doing, anyway. Avoiding my friends, and for what? They all got hurt anyway." Rainbow reasoned.

Vandango smirked sociopathically. Rainbow ignored him.

"But I get it now. We're all in this together. I think I finally understand what Rarity meant back then. She's not just crazy. It's just that... I'm not the only one who's gonna rebel here. Me and all of my friends are rebelling against you bastards, in our hearts. Whether it's just one other pony, or many, I'm not alone here. And," Rainbow smiled a bit. "I can't explain it, but back in lunch detention two days ago- not that you'd know- I felt something back there. Before Twilight started crying and all, I felt like I knew that she was on my side. It's like she... spoke to me. And made me remember how important I was to her. How much she needs me."

Vandango's jaw dropped. How could she possibly remember the Geass?

"You know, she was the pony who brought us all together against Nightmare Moon that day she kidnapped Celestia. It was the day we discovered our Elements of Harmony, and became friends. She led us back then, and if she really wanted to, I think she could do it again. She just needs to take a stand, and that'll be proof enough for me!" Rainbow declared in higher spirits than she had been in for a while.

Vandango dashed at Rainbow like a madman at those words, and tried to punch her repeatedly. Rainbow had quick reactions, though, so she dodged every single blow and kicked him in the chest. His armor couldn't stop the dull pain as he put some distance in between the two of them.

"Easy, tiger! You're seriously starting to freak me out." Rainbow called.

"You'll never reach the Justiciar! You, nor your friends!" Vandango challenged.

But a look to Rainbow's peripheral could vaguely make out the giant tank of which he spoke.

"Oh yeah?" Rainbow teased, and... vanished?

Vandango was on high alert, his eyes darting here and there, seeking his- BASH!

Rainbow did a full-body charge against Vandango, then another and another, leaving the so-called "ace" helpless as he got knocked further and further away from his ambush squad. The Celestian was relentless, increasing her quarry's momentum with each passing impact. Vandango thought it wouldn't stop, until he felt his body gripped, swung around, and thrown. Rainbow flung the other pegasi into a building as hard as she could, and saw as he broke through the glass and fell somewhere inside.

Rainbow sped after her target until she found him lying weakly near an office cubicle. She picked him up again and hurled him so hard that he fell out the other side of the building, shards of glass accompanying his fall. But she would not stop until he couldn't fight any more. She grabbed him in mid-air and flew with him way up high, nearly to the stratosphere.

"Never lay a hoof on another Celestian ever again." Rainbow sternly demanded, and dropped him.

Vandango screamed as he freefalled down, down, down... on top of the Justiciar! Ouch. But Rainbow had planned this, as she began to descend rapidly... she was going to sonic rainboom through him, and break inside the Justiciar in one fell swoop! But then she remembered how her allies were still fighting back where she left them, and in a moment of hesitation, she resolved to return there. She gradually adjusted her angle until she was en route to them, and did a horizontal sonic rainboom to drastically increase her speed.

The ensuing rainbow cut through the false night, as if a promise of safety to the Celestians, and a warning to anyone who dared to hurt them.