Celestia collapsed into her chair.
“There’s nothing more that we can do,” she sighed.
“Uh…. what?” I asked, taking my seat again.
“Things are… less stable on our side,” Luna explained. “This public record will make waves. Only time can tell how big these waves will be.”
“Oh. Well, good luck with that.”
“The next thing we would like to discuss most certainly will not be released to the public,” Celestia said.
Cadence giggled, “That would be counterintuitive.”
Luna nodded, “The time has come to discuss the Fourth Hive.”
“What’s there to discuss?” Coxa asked. “They have to go, and Phasma here will be the sole royal after we’re done with ‘em.”
“There is the matter of ‘dealing with them,’ as you put it,” Celestia said. “Stenographers, you are done for the day. Thank you for your excellent diligence,” she dismissed the other ponies in the room. “We must end this war as soon as possible, so it is imperative that Queen Chrysalis is taken down, one way or another.”
“And only changelings can use their magic inside the null-zone,” I said.
“Precisely that. What can you tell us about this null-zone?”
I shrugged, “Not too much, I’m afraid. It’s projected from the Mithril Throne, which sits in the Fourth Hive’s throne room, near the top of the hive superstructure. Mithril is a rare blue metal that somehow counteracts magic, though anything more specific about that particular relationship is beyond any of us. Perhaps only Chrysalis understands the metal and how it works, given that she forged God-Splitter, my Adamantine-Mithril hammer, but if she does, she guards its secrets jealously.”
“So it is projected by an enchanted object,” Luna muttered. “If we were– and by we, I mean you– able to destroy this Mithril Throne, the field would go, correct?”
“Correct.”
“So the question is then how to destroy it…”
Coxa and Cricket grimaced. Cricket stood, “You can’t be seriously suggesting that we destroy the Throne! That is a cultural artifact, one that has symbolized changeling royalty for generations! Destroying it would be destroying one of the only pieces of culture that we even have!”
“Sacrifices must be made,” I explained.
“But it’s something we barely understand ourselves–”
I cut her off, “We will survive its loss. Believe me, I don’t want to destroy it, but I absolutely will if I have to. Now is not the time to pull our punches. If we have to destroy it in order to bring the Equestrians in and end the war, then that’s what we’ll do. Every day not spent working towards ending the war is a day wasted, especially with the Nightmares always lurking beyond the horizon. And I’m sure that the Princesses want their ponies back as soon as possible.”
“Their loss is something that cannot even be understood,” Celestia whispered.
“We have the Civilian Conservation Corps, but that just manages the problem,” Cadence explained. “Entire towns are just… gone, and all we can do is organize ponies to make sure the lights stay on and the flowers are watered. Hundreds of ponies dedicated to just making things look normal for when we rescue our ponies...”
“You’ll get them back,” I said.
“We will get them back,” Luna corrected me.
“We,” I nodded. “The plan should be pretty simple. I take a battalion of lings, I approach the Fourth Hive from above, and break into the throne room. Such a task would be impossible for anyone but a ling, but we know exactly where the throne room is, and more importantly, we can use our magic. Once the field is gone, you need to move in. Or better yet, start moving in long before the throne is destroyed. Preferably, the Equestrians should be in position and ready to begin attacking the Hive the moment the Mithril Throne is destroyed.”
“This sounds familiar,” Cadence said.
“It’s a somewhat similar plan to how we attacked Canterlot,” I admitted. “A primary army grabs attention, while a secondary force stealthily destroys the defenses. I’ll be sure to target the Throne and just try to delay Chrysalis while you two– or three, if Cadence is coming– reinforce me. All of us will attack the Queen together. Alone, each of us would fail, but together, yada yada yada. You get the point.”
Celestia rolled her eyes, “Do not scoff at the power of friendship, Phasma.”
“That’s exactly what I’m scoffing at.”
“Sounds like a solid enough plan. If it is not broken, do not fix it, as they say,” Luna smiled.
“Sounds like a plan that will get changelings killed. Or worse, put the entire Equestrian army dispatched at risk if the changelings sally out to attack before we are ready,” Celestia said.
I crossed my forelegs, “Ponies getting hurt is worse than changelings dying?”
“That’s not what I meant. This plan would put an entire army at risk; we would not be able to fight back if the Fourth Hive chooses to sally out from their defenses and attack us.”
“We’ll have changelings disguised as unicorns in your formations. If the Fourth Hive sallies out, they deploy the shields. No matter how prideful or ignorant Chrysalis is, she cannot deny facts; the sight of ponies using magic within the exclusion zone proves your capability of defying it.”
Celestia shook her head, “That still poses risks. Not only to all of us, but to you and your team, too. Just how long do you hope to hold out against Queen Chrysalis while targeting the throne? How long will you have to survive her attacks while we fly over?”
“I’ve gotten quite a bit stronger since our last duel. I was running on empty back then, and I didn’t have Unbroken Radiance. If Chrysalis thinks she can easily dispatch me, then I’m all for her acting on that assumption. Her loss is my gain.”
“Is there any alternative plan? One less… openly confrontational?”
“What do you mean?” I asked.
‘She’d better not be suggesting I give peace a chance or some other bullshit. Enough lings have died already, I’m not throwing away any more lives on meaningless grandstanding on morals.’
“Why not send an infiltration team in to destroy the throne?” Celestia offered.
“Magic won’t–” I began to say, but paused. “Changeling drones won’t have the power to destroy the Mithril Throne with spells–”
“But explosives will,” Cadence of all ponies said.
“But explosives will,” I confirmed. “At least, in theory. Maybe it’s too durable or anti-energetic or something, but it should work. The problem then is two-fold; infiltrating the Hive might be impossible and the amount of explosives used would destroy more than just the hunk of metal Chrysalis parks her ass on.”
“It would destroy the entire room!” Cricket hissed. “Every single piece of history! Every artifact! Your Majesty, a cost must be paid, surely, but we would lose everything!”
“Which is why I won’t pursue that plan,” I said. “Not only would it destroy what precious little cultural artifacts our species has, it will also give away our plan. We would have to infiltrate the Fourth Hive, which by this point would probably shoot any outsiders on sight out of fear of spies. We would have to smuggle in explosives and plant them in one of the most secure rooms in the entire continent. Finally, it would clue the Fourth Hive into the fact that they are now our combined target. To say the odds would be stacked against the team is an understatement. I’m not going to throw away the element of surprise and the lives of this infiltration team on a fool’s gambit.”
“... Thank you, Your Majesty,” Cricket sighed, visibly relaxing.
“Is this the right move, Luna?” Celestia turned to her sister.
Luna tapped the table quietly.
“.... Perhaps. What Phasma says holds merit; this Mithril Throne will be guarded by the Fourth Hive’s best, including Queen Chrysalis. We should not waste our chance with a doomed team. Phasma and some explosives should be enough to get the job done.”
Celestia sighed, “I don’t like the idea of marching an army that can’t fight. This is something I must think about. I assume we are all fine with adjourning for the day?”
We all gave our yes’s, and Celestia declared the day’s negotiations ended.
“Now is the part where we eat the food,” Luna announced, reading off the note she held.
“Is it, now?”
Luna sat down on the picnic blanket, opening the basket and spreading out its contents. We had decided to eat our lunch alone together in a secluded part of the gardens. The little clearing was bordered by tall hedges, with a lone tree taking up half of the circular space. A heating spell imbued on a white oval stone she had brought projected a bubble of warmth that kept out the autumn’s chill, allowing us to enjoy the garden without having to bear the wind’s bite.
“That is what the note says we do now. Have you not heard of this, either?”
“No I know what a picnic is, I just am interested in this note of yours.”
“Cadence wrote it for me. A step by step guide for… eating outdoors.”
“Is that the only thing you are getting notes on?”
Luna smiled, “Is that a question you really want answered?”
I frowned, “Uh….. no?”
“You have answered wisely. Now! Let us eat!”
I plopped down onto the blanket and stretched out. Luna sat down in front of me, leaning back against me as she prepared a sandwich for herself.
“I said eat. You must prepare your sandwich. ‘Tis on the list, see?” She said, lifting the list up for me with her magic.
“I am eating,” I said.
‘Delicious, delicious love.’
Luna had no reaction whenever I fed. More proof that Thorax’s method of feeding off ponies that love you for the changeling you are is the superior method, I had supposed. By this point, my internal tanks were nearing full. I had no idea how I actually knew that, or by what empirical measurement my energy reserves could be measured by. I just…. knew.
Soon enough, I would deposit any spare love into the Hive’s ration stores. That was a process I wasn’t looking forward to, but it would be a small price to pay for my Hive’s salvation.
“Oh yes, you and your ambiguous emotion-feeding. That will not be enough! I demand that you partake in this meal, Phasma.”
I groaned and started picking up the pieces to make a sandwich.
“I am told that this activity is most enjoyable, so we must enjoy it,” Luna explained.
“I am enjoying it,” I said, lying my head down and watching Luna.
“Good. No other answer is acceptable.”
Her left ear, the one closest to me, flicked backwards, and she looked down at me.
“.... I have forgotten to get drinks for us. Would you please find something for us, Phasma?” She asked, raising her voice.
‘That’s that tone of voice every girl uses to ask me for something…’
“You’re lucky you’re cute, Luna,” I said, groaning and standing up.
“Thank you. I will patiently wait for you,” she said.
I begrudgingly left, having only managed to nibble on love.
Finding drinks was a simple enough task; the kitchen staff weren’t quite allowed to start using alcohol, so I got them to create a pitcher of some fruity non-alcoholic cocktails for us. It was far too early to drink, and I didn’t want to end up like Celestia anyways. She might function drunk at all hours, but I had a long ways to go before I became that forlorn.
When I finally returned to Luna, I stopped just before entering the clearing. When I was with her, all I could really sense was love. Now, as I approached her once more, I tasted… annoyance. Disgust. Frustration. Anger.
I slowly peaked around the corner and saw Luna standing up, speaking with a unicorn. The unicorn had a white coat and blonde mane, and a distinctive Cutie Mark.
‘Prince Blueblood, if I am not mistaken.’
I stayed where I was, catching the tail-end of their conversation.
“–harmful process. It’s perfectly safe,” the unicorn was saying.
“It is not the process itself, but the act of doing so,” Luna replied sharply.
“Princess, please, the safety of the kingdom is at stake! Think of what could happen if you are wrong!”
“I am not wrong. The mere fact that I am willing to hold this conversation with you could be considered a breach of trust. Tell me, why should I not tell King Phasma about this?”
‘They’re talking about me. What the hell do they have to talk about that requires my absence? This Blueblood fellah is up to no good.’
Getting too anxious, I decided to intervene. I backed up a few paces, and then walked forward and into the clearing at my full walking speed to hide the fact that I was eavesdropping. Prince Blueblood’s head snapped towards me when he heard me approach.
I could taste his emotions as I came to a stop. Even if I was hiding the fact that I knew what their conversation was about me, there was no point in hiding that I could sense his emotions. The Prince was angry. Angry and afraid.
“.... And you are?” I asked, setting the pitcher of colorful drinks down.
The unicorn cleared his throat and straightened up, “Prince Blueblood of the Principality of Equestria. But you knew that already.”
I made a visible effort of leaning to examine his sides.
“.... You don’t look like a Prince, little unicorn.”
Luna stepped between us, “Prince Blueblood, this is King Phasma. King Phasma, this is Prince Blueblood.”
“I know who it is,” Blueblood sneered.
“Then you should know that you should be running,” I sneered back.
“Ha! As if I would be afraid of the insect that made a fool of itself the moment it showed itself in public! ‘Dread Prince’ my flanks!”
I leaned in close, “Your fear is delicious, little unicorn. But keep pretending you’re brave. Who knows? In time, maybe you’ll start believing in that lie.”
“Fine, fight it out, I have put in my token effort,” Luna huffed.
“I know what you’re up to, invader,” Blueblood growled. “Know that at every turn, ponies will stand against you and your evil. The Princesses will be rescued from you!”
“Is this the part where you tell me your plan?” I asked.
Blueblood stomped angrily and started to leave.
“Don’t worry, Princess Luna, ponies care about you and won’t give up,” he called over his shoulder.
“..... That happened,” I muttered when he left.
Luna sighed, “His heart is in the right place, so it is a shame that his mind is nowhere to be found.”
“What’s up with him?”
“In case you failed to notice, he believes that you are mind controlling Celestia and I. The fop has no idea that if anything, it is the other way around.”
“So he’s some kind of conspiracy theorist?”
“He tends to take leave of his senses at the most inopportune time… I wonder at times if he exists only to cause others misery.”
I snorted, “Do I need to worry about him?”
“.... Likely not. Celestia keeps an eye on his less than scrupulous activities, at any rate.”
‘That’s good to hear.’
“Why were you even talking to him in the first place?”
Luna sat down and started pouring herself a drink, “If we do not give him the time of day for him to list his nonsensical ramblings, then he will bring those ramblings to those we wish to keep ignorant. That is the price to pay for his silence. Though now, I suspect he will be a bigger thorn in our side than ever.”
I joined her on the blanket, “Last I checked, you and your sister don’t really have to worry about any politics too much.”
She shook her head, “That is changing. We will, for the first time since our nation’s inception, have to gather allies within Equestria. Prince Blueblood is guaranteed to be against our interests, even if in his own delusion he believes he fights for our safety.”
“And making friends with the invaders doesn’t help?”
“No, it does not. We will survive and thrive, however. We have faced worse odds than mere politics before.”
We got comfortable again, intent on enjoying the meal.
“.... Did you send me away to talk to him?” I asked.
“I feared, rightly so, that you two meeting would make things more difficult.”
“So, yes, then?”
“Yes. I heard his approach and knew he was waiting for a chance to speak with me. Sending you in the opposite direction was a deceptive measure. I am sorry, Phasma.”
“Why didn’t you just tell me, Luna?”
“Would you have left?” She asked.
“.... No.”
“I did not think so. Still, I am sorry. But while we are on the topic of plans and deception, there is something I believe you have the right to hear.”
‘More deception? At least she’s being honest and telling me, I guess.’
“I’m listening.”
“Celestia has informed me about her plan for you and your kingdom. She wishes you to integrate your kingdom completely with Equestria.”
“I’m not doing that,” I responded immediately.
“I know that,” Luna said, motioning to me to pause, “and Celestia does too. She hopes you will come to that decision on your own, eventually.”
“What’s she planning?”
“She does not plan on doing anything, other than to further sweeten the idea of integration. I felt that you should be aware of her motives, given your… paranoia.”
“Thanks, Luna.”
Luna nuzzled the side of my neck, and then gave me a kiss.
“I simply wish for you to relax. You are among friends, now, Phasma. You can leave behind your worries. Or, at the very least, share them with us.”
“I, uh, I’ll try, Luna. Here you are, worrying about me and my problems, what about you? How are you adjusting to being back? We haven’t talked about that in a while, now.”
“It gets less and less frustrating with each passing day. The aid rendered from friends certainly helps the process. And I have a coltfriend to unwind with, and share my worries.”
“Then share your worries with him. I’m sure there’s only a fifty-percent chance he’ll dismiss your worries callously.”
Luna chuckled, “I will, after tomorrow’s operation.”
“..... What?”
“Tomorrow, we will examine the brand the Nightmares put on your mind. Did you forget...? Phasma? Phasma…?”
I swallowed, “Uh….”
‘It’s already time? We have to…. I have to….’
I was suddenly reminded of the Nightmare’s torture: being strapped onto a surgery table, drills piercing my skull–
“Hey,” Luna said, squeezing my forehooves. “I will be there. You do not need to worry, okay?”
“Okay?” I repeated, trying to remain calm. “Sorry. It’s just–”
“I know. There is no need to say anything. Just breathe.”
I nodded and followed her orders.
“I am told it is called Post-Traumatic-Stress-Disorder. We had names for it way back when, but dealing with it has always been hard. I do not care if we talk more about your issues than mine, I am thankful that I have so few in comparison. Further, helping others has always been a passion of Celestia and I. It brings me no small amount of joy to help others in their time of need...”
I listened to Luna ramble on, her voice bringing me back down to Equus.
Update time. Share you'r love in the Comment section. Every bit help the Fifth Hive ♡
Ah in comes Blueblood, our generic domestic opposition for the Princesses.
Nice
Sweet! Tensions are rising once again, and Blueblood is looking to become an antagonist eh? Let’s see if he lasts longer than Chrysalis.
O for the love of any Bugwaifu in existance...
It's the Mithril Throne not the Weave that keeps the Changelings save! This is literally the Starcraft 2 plot
Magnificent! The Weave is the Kala from the Protoss.
The Weave is protected by a royal until the directly guarding matriarch is infected. Than this Communication hub and mind protection, become a death trap.
In Starcraft Amon ' the fallen Xelnaga ' (God with capital G), has altered two races with a mind connection.
The Protoss with the Kala & the Zerg with 'The Hivemind'. Both connection's bind emotions and a command structure to override higher brain functions if used as 'intended'...
Celestias plan might be a trap planted by Daybreaker to pave the way for the Nightmares having a army to inhabit
The infiltration team will never make it into the throne room, since the creature's of the underhive have already broken through the Equesian troops just outside of the anti magic field
"Yes. Destroy the Seal. Release the Bindings and unleash the Epitaph!"
Anyone else feel like the Throne is actually a Lock?
I wish Blueblood was an interesting character instead of an annoying fop.
Wasn't he, at least nominally, involved with Division P? Or am I thinking of someone else?
Would you like to know more?
The Mahābhārata (/məhɑːˈbɑːrətə/;[1][2] Sanskrit: महाभारतम्, Mahābhāratam, pronounced [mɐɦaːˈbʱaːrɐt̪ɐm]) is one of the two major Sanskrit epics of ancient India, the other being the Rāmāyaṇa.[3] It narrates the struggle between two groups of cousins in the Kurukshetra War and the fates of the Kaurava and the Pāṇḍava princes and their successors. It also contains philosophical and devotional material, such as a discussion of the four "goals of life" or puruṣārtha (12.161). Among the principal works and stories in the Mahābhārata are the Bhagavad Gita, the story of Damayanti, the story of Shakuntala, the story of Pururava and Urvashi, the story of Savitri and Satyavan, the story of Kacha and Devyani, the story of Rishyasringa and an abbreviated version of the Rāmāyaṇa, often considered as works in their own right.
11059181
I mean, his motives are interesting, and we'll be seeing more of him and what he's about..... in the sequel. Too much stuff going on to give any new antagonist any attention they deserve. Lots of stuff going on that's long-term, and we're actually getting close to the end of the story. Sorta. I thought that like 20 chapters ago, though....
Like she kept an eye on the Division-P's?
I think that's... sallay.
Shellshock moment
This invasion deal sounds like bad juju
I dont think he has a say in the matter,or will be able to detect a problem until its too late. New generations of changelings will be exposed to much, much stronger Equestrian culture. They already have to form relationships with ponies just to survive(which means making nice with them,participating in their holidays and customs), if we add nymphs going to equestrian schools/universities this leaves us with gradual increase in changelings who believe in Harmony and Alicorns,not Panathropo and Hive Eternal , and this will continue until "old believers" are minority. Then there will be no need for integration, they are changelings no longer,just chitinous ponies. The same thing canon Thorax did,just taking a few centuries longer.
Also smashing the throne(disregarding release of demons) feels destroying the symbol for both changeling sovereingty and their last means of defence and submitting themself to Equestia fully.
11059186
he and cadence were paper pushers to distract them from the unscrupulous activities that are off the books if I remember correctly
11059180
Kind of like the marker from dead space, keeping a great evil locked away, I can see that. I can also see Phasma coming in there guns blazing and realizing there's no one around
11059201
so we have at least 40 more
11059230
Unlike a lot of IRL religions (which I'm not going to go into), these 2 belief structures are not mutually exclusive, there's no reason one being can't believe in both. It's even possible some ponies would end up paying homage to Panar, especially if they're raised in mixed households.
Oh sure You will ,while other changelings will die because it will be destroyed and it will have effects.
Won't work moron
Changelings will fight even harder for being a traitor in their eyes.
Especially if you will want to destroy the throne keeping them safe.
No, don't just only "don't do that" and ignore it.
Do something and take actions to counteract integration
Also, The last time we checked in on Chrysalis she was leading the 4th hive into the underhive. I'm expecting Phasma and the princesses to go through this whole process of planning and plotting and worrying, just to finally advance and find the whole compound empty.
11059231
Well, we know Cadence was kept doing busy-work.
We don't really know anything about Blueblood's involvement at this point (unless I've forgotten something from the Investigation).
But it wouldn't surprise me if Blueblood was a little bit more involved in the Xenophobia side of things. Of course, that could just be the influence of other stories involving him.
11059248
This is true. A lot of IRL religions forbid the worship of other gods, whereas Harmony and Panarthropo are... compatible. Both prioritize a certain type of behavior, and only Panar is actively worshipped in any way.
11059157
I mean to be fair his views makes sense given everything that’s happened
At first glance I thought the title was an evil villain laughing
11059256
chapter 81
his role in the whole thing so far has been an aside so you may be right, this is pretty much all we got on his involvement in Division P from cadence herself.
Celestia and Cadance are pretty inconsiderate of the Changelings. Despite saying that the destruction of the cultural artifact from the use of explosives is not be gonna be allowed, Cadence, to me at least, sounds like she cares little for it so long as it's done. And Celestia would rather have the changelings follow her laws, as she would more than likely not budge on law changes, and would force ideals onto them.
11059265
Oh they do make sense. I'm just remarking on the fact that most of the times when an author wants domestic opposition to the Princesses, they usually invoke Blueblood. Making him the poster boy for 'Generic Domestic Opposition'.
11059275
Ah
11059181
Try this story for your "Heroic Blueblood" needs
11059157
he is a very easy villain to use, given his public perception.
Which is ironic, considering all we see him do in the show is be generically snooty towards a status climber lmao
11059284
Probably has to do something with the audience's common sense of not liking arrogant people. Especially rich arrogant people born into said wealth.
11059286
yeah lmao it's just funny how he's like the anti-christ
Shellshock. Simple, honest, direct language. Two syllables, almost sounds like the guns themselves.
Battle Fatigue. Four syllables. Takes a little longer to say, doesn't seem to hurt as much. Fatigue is a nicer word than shock.
Operational Exhaustion. We're up to eight syllables now, and it's totally sterile now. Operational Exhaustion sounds like something that might happen to your car!
Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder. Still eight syllables, but we've added a hyphen! And the pain is completely hidden under jargon.
11059284
Not true. We see him later in a blink-and-you'll-miss-it cameo during the song 'Becoming Popular'. He's beside Rarity during the bit where she's part of the crowd seeing off a zeppelin on its maiden voyage, and they certainly don't seem to be bothered by what happened at the gala. Blueblood might have let it slide with Rarity's new status during the episode if he's as much of a fop as everyone seems to think he is, but the fact that Rarity doesn't mind him being there says to me that they saw each other again and smoothed things out.
I still don't get what everyone's so mad about. Rarity may be one of the main characters, and to some she was 'best pony' even back then, but when it came to Blueblood her behavior was that of any dime-a-dozen Canterlot mare, and she didn't even have any status to speak of to fall back on to make her look good. What's so wrong about the 'most eligible bachelor in Canterlot' being able to sus out the pigs and having a mask to push them away with? All Rarity had over any others was persistence, and it was not a good look for her.
But wait, aren't they in an expedition down there? This.... Is not good. Here's to hoping he pays (and obeys) more attention to how trope detector!
Darn, for a whole moment we expected Cadance's note to get Luna in a more romantic layout but instead we get Blueblood. And it was going so well too!
At least he has some anxiety bleed before the procedure. Popping a little less is always better.
It really is too bad that they won't be able to figure out the controls on the throne instead of outright destroying it. It could be pretty helpful.
11059343
i know that reference, lol, what a guy, funny as hell
11059230
Even in the far far feature Celestia must be thinking about integration is not guaranteed. To not use the jews as an example take Spain, where Castilla and Cataluña or the Basque Country remain distinct cultural units despite centuries of political unity. Or Scotland and England in the United Kingdom, where there isn't even a language barrier. Actually, the entirety of Europe in general is an example of how hard integration actually is and, inversely, how easily it can be resisted (France probably being the most notable exception).
All that's to say that if Phasma really wants the changelings to remain a distinct nation he should be able to pull it off, without even having to go all the way to full "separate but equal".
11059275
The Best of All Possible Worlds's take on that fandom trope is my favourite one. Actually, that story sort of proves how pervasive the idea is, considering it's 9 years old by now.
11059252
i appreciate your desire to have your day, shows you care about the story, but try to tone back the feistyness a bit, trust me, it just looks edgy to everyone else and a couple years latter you will look back and cringe, i have experience in that
11059347
I went back and read the wiki article and he really did treat her like shit to an unacceptable degree.
I'm not even harsh on Blueblood, but like, dude was out of line. But my point is just, all he was was a little pompous and self centered and he's like the fandom anti-Christ now
11059171
pretty sure the weave is generated by royals specifically, it's why chryssi had a room of half dead royals acting as a giant weave generator for the hive
11059343
Right on all accounts, and I agree that the full PTSD does the emotion and trauma no justice. But in this case, none of the other names fit the cause of the trauma. Shell-shock, it was the torture after the war, so no explosions were involved. Battle fatigue, maybe it fits, but again, it was after the battle of canterlot, more fitting than Shell shock. Operational exhaustion implies that the trauma was caused by a plan being followed, but phasma was the target, not the operative. Post-traumatic stress disorder is distant and impersonal like most medical terms, but it wraps up not just the fighting, explosions, and torture, but also his traumatic death and time spent being worked in the hive.
It's a long road to recovery for phasma, and somehow, I doubt he'll have time to really heal before they fight the nightmares.
(Also, phasma's peytral was green, not the blue of mythril. I can't remember if it was adamantine or something else.)
Can't even enjoy a break with his SO, poor guy.
Then dude make plans for that not to happen at all or it would be to late
11059186
11059204
I would like to remind everyone that Celestia abolished Division P the moment she returned to existence.
If the changelings could simply mind control the princesses then the invasion would have been over before it even started. Perhaps Blueblood believes Phasma wasn't powerful enough or hadn't figured out how to do so until recently? At any rate I'm sure most dissidents share his fears. The worst thing about this conspiracy is that it is actually a reasonable precaution to take when dealing with a former villain who is know to have used mind control in the past. But I'm not sure if there's anything the princesses could do to prove they're not brainwashed. Conspiracies like this are almost impossible to dispel.
Lulu and Phasma sitting in a tree~
K-i-s-s-i-n-g~
Blueblood is, as usual, a classic inconvenience which, like a fly, does not want to detach from the MC in most of the fanfics, I would not be surprised if he dipped his hooves strongly in the activities of the Inquisition. He arrived in person for the first time in this story and I can't wait when the only non-alicorn "prince" comes off the stage... for eternity, preferably.
As for the dilemmas of Luna and Celestia, it is a pity that after so many years they themselves forgot about one important fact, if it were otherwise, they would remind the rest of the ponies WHO controls the sun and the moon, and it would end the discussion about who is in power. Especially since all the authority that the present nobility or even the other circles of society has, is an illusion created by them.
If both princesses really wanted to take over the rulership, they would not even have to go back to the old methods of governing with the "iron hoof", it would suffice if the Luna herself held the moon in place for a few months and quickly everyone would become soft in knees, without a cycle of day and night. But now Celestia grow too soft to even stomath few hardship for "her" ponies.
I also wonder if being o changeling royal is truly the last step for changeling like Phasma? Or can he futher ascend? (and I don't talk about lobotomized version)
I feel as if, regardless of whether or not Phasma wanted to anyway, the Mithril Throne was going to have to get destroyed anyway. I doubt they'd just leave it in the Fourth Hive, and I doubt the Equestrian government would appreciate a null-zone in its territory. They'll certainly be in for a surprise when they find the Fourth Hive effectively abandoned and see that they tried digging out through the Underhive. If word does get to the Fourth Hive that Phasma is still alive and has come to save the day, Id fully expect the pro-Phasma changelings to immediately flip sides and cause Civil War 2: Underground Boogaloo. Though, the optics of Phasma arriving with a joint Equestrian army is perhaps not the best.
ROASTED