Hunting Hope 2

>*BOOM*

>The door quaked as the ponies outside tried to force themselves in.

>*BOOM*

Heh, that ought to take them a while. That door is-

>*CRACK*

>The massive door glowed violet and started to quiver violently.

Looks like the rest caught up.

"Time to run!" shouted Hope to... nobody in particular.

>Hope spun around and dashed down the hallway and into the kitchen.

>The back door was directly ahead, but boarded shut tight.

>Hope took a leap, kicking out at the feeble door.

*SMASH*

>This time, the sound was from two directions at once.

>Behind, the grand doors had given way, tearing yet another terrible blow on the grand house.

>Ahead, however, Hope had set her own door into splinters as well.

>The brilliant light from outside blinded her for a moment, rays of light pouring into the dusty room like the rays of Celestia herself.

>Hope halted in place, willing a cloud to cover her escape

>None were visible, and the sound of hooves behind her spurred Hope into a gangly trot, squinting at the brilliant sun.

>Covering her oversized eyes with an upturned arm, Hope blindly escaped the dusty house into the day and, hopefully, into freedom.

 

 

Back at the ruin, four ponies searched for signs of their prey.

 

>First among them was a somewhat smallish purple unicorn.

>She wasn't muscular or plump, with little distinguishing features other than the brilliant beams of light emanating from her horn and the hair-raisingly electrifying energy that surrounded her.

>Her other sharpest feature, the one that made her stand out even when not spell casting, was a brilliant pink stripe running down her mane and through her tail.

>Some thought it was  a personal decoration, or perhaps merely one of those quirks of pony manes that go unexplained.

>Others claimed it was a conduit of pure natural magic, of the same limitless and mysterious kind that the princesses so effortlessly possess.

>Scientifically minded, Twilight Sparkle had devoted an entire month studying her stripe after the so-called mystery had been casually mentioned.

>The results were never publicized, but that moon's cycle had been punctuated by many strange events, including, inexplicably, a brilliant twilight that started on the last evening and lasted the entire night.

 

>Slightly behind her, a taller, more elegant unicorn stood. Her horn glowed as well, but with a mere echo of the former's glory.

>Tiny sparkles emanated from her horn, glinting like crystal dust as they floated around the room on an invisible wind.

>Her coat a brilliant white, shining softly from the cast rays of magic and brushed to perfection.

>Somehow even the dust, all encompassing as it was, simply passed around her in eddies and whorls without making contact.

>She was finely lined, sleek, and with slightly elongated limbs.

>Her hooves were placed with a musical *clack*, and her face highlighted with just the faintest outlines of masterfully applied makeup.

>The fussiest of the six, but also the most generous, Rarity was also the least interested in capturing the "Ruffian" as she called Hope.

>Yet despite her prissy comments, her eyes shone with nothing but concern for their wayward target.

>"Hope, darling" she demurred to herself, trailing off into silence, "the horrors that have befallen you. Dreadful... dreadful"

 

Upstairs, the steadfast argued ferociously with the brash.

 

>"I don't see why we can't just -" Shouted a magnificent peacock of a pegasus, punctuating her words with the slamming open of doors, drawers, closets, and windows, "SMASH this house into parts and dig through the wreckage"

>This winged terror, a  bright blue pony with a multi-hued mane and tail, was the smallest of the group but the most magnificently built.

>Aerodynamic and muscular, Rainbow Dash looked like the ultimate racing pony.

>That is, if it weren't for her petite size.

>This was offset by her most spectacular trait; An aggressive, and enormous, set of muscular eagle like wings.

>These wings were Rainbow Dash's pride and joy, and were, as she liked to boast, sharp enough to cut through stone and strong enough to lift a castle.

>The broad feathers were preened to perfect alignment, and when combined with her magnificent fitness and  tiny body allowed Rainbow to outpace thunder.

>Her only challenger in speed was lightning itself, but one other dared challenge her more mundane skills.

 

>"Ah know very well, sugarcube, how much ya lahk ta break things," cried a golden stetson-clad countrypony exasperatedly, "But we can't just destroy a hoof-made home lahk this simply for convenience's sake."

>To contrast with Rarity, this orange freckled earth pony seemed to be attracting dust to her coat as if with a magnet.

>One could only barely make out the bright red mark of apples on her hindquarters, but nobody needed to see her cutie mark to recognize a member of the proud apple family.

>Like all apple ponies, this orange creature was broad and tall, with a long, rough blonde mane and tail tied up at the ends with string, and positively glowing with life force.

>Plants always seemed to perk up when an earth pony was around, but for Applejack this effect was pronounced to the level of absurdity, but oddly selective.

>Flowers and trees were on the whole unaffected, but fruit, wheat, even the richness of the mud and dirt under her hooves took on extraordinary life.

>Her size and strength were unparalleled as well, or at least within their group.

>Where Rarity was sleek and Rainbow was lithe, Applejack was rippling with enormous strength, especially her two hind legs.

>Applebucking was a hell of a way to make a living, and that strength and endurance allowed Applejack to outlast her compatriots in any marathon.

>To make up, perhaps, for her lack of magical prowess, Applejack also always kept a lasso under her hat.

>This trusty length of rope had saved her and her friend's hides on many occasions, and was particularly suited for herding or capture of wayward beings, something it was most certainly needed for in this particular mission.

 

Meanwhile, a few blocks away, two ponies trudged up the steep hill towards the grand ruin.

 

>"And then! I shot myself out of my party cannon right into the window! And it was like smash! And then I was like "HELLOOOO" and she was like" The buncing pink pony stopped in her tracks only to inhale dramatically before continuing, "and then she wound up and kicked and I was like WHEEEE and then I was like OH NO but then you flew up and caught me and"

>In any one thing was concidered impossible and strange, especially in such a wonderful and bizarre world, that would be Pinkie Pie.

>Posessing the appetite of a black hole and the energy output of a large star, this curly-maned and somewhat rotund pink pony was the single most uncertain enigma of her world.

>Wielding powers to warp the very walls of reality, conjure matter from nothing, influence the emotions of those around her, and even seem to see through time, Pinkie Pie would be nothing short of a god were it not for one critical detail.

She had no control over her abilities.

In fact, no control over anything at all.

>So she laughs. Staring insanity in the eye every second of the year, Pinkie Pie does what she can, when she can to help or cheer up her friends.

>Among her friends is every single pony she's ever met, and most of those she hasn't.

>An impossible task to any being made of mere flesh and blood, but for Pinkie Pie's sugary brand of illogical magic anything is possible.

>Her friends have learned, however, that relying on Pinkie, or her mysterious abilities, is a very risky business.

>Nonetheless, the pink party pony has a good heart, and if nothing else is excellent at keeping morale up in a tricky situation.

 

>Unable to get a word in edgewise, although even when able she'd be prone to stay silent, a yellow pony walked alongside Pinkie.

>Long-limbed and extraordinarily thin and willowy, this beautiful bashful belle smiled gently at her friend's rambling (and now most definitely off-topic) tale.

>Her face was beautiful with eyes that seemed to fill her entire head, but were currently hidden behind a curtain of her silky pink mane.

>A kind and gentle creature, Fluttershy was most often found hiding from ponykind in her cottage, tending to and caring for the numerous woodland creatures.

>However, this soft-spoken and delicate being had a secret weapon.

>Not only could she tame the wildest beast with kind words and a hug.

>Nor was her ability limited to her caution and medical knowledge, both indispensable on longer journeys.

>But she also posessed the STARE.

>She could, when accosted by only the most thoughtless cruelty nature is capable of producing, stare with such intensity as to pin them by their very souls and pull compassion out of the darkest depths in which it had been buried.

>However, she was no more of a fighter than the delicate wings on her back made her a flier.

 

>As they reached the top of the hill, the doors of the grand house blown wide open, the six ponies congregated to share their findings, and plot their next move.

>For it was their job, given by Celestia herself, for find and capture the rogue satyr, and return it for safekeeping and study in the royal prisons, and to finally be set free in the wild lands outside of Celestial protection.

>A satyr that had been on the run for two years now, it is true. But with the power of friendship, and the might of Celestia at their backs, the six felt confident in their impending victory.

 

 

A note; I will be focusing primarily one Hope (I think), but to tell the story I have envisioned right now it needs a little bit more fleshing out.

Basically, they're the heroic rivals to our antihero protagonist. Or something like that.

 

inb4 story gets way too big for me, gets abandoned two chapters in.