By the time my test subject was past the point where even ambient life force could not sustain him, Annie had already cracked open his skull and feasted on his cerebral cortex. There was nothing left but strips of chitin and a full skeleton. The amount of pain he felt was so great, that it permeated the air as ambient emotional energy. Pain in this case, as all cases, was illogical. Death was inevitable for the changeling, and yet his body continues to torment, screaming its protests to his already shattered mind. Pain, is weakness.
Analysing my latest findings, I found several points of data to be mildly disturbing. There was a plan underway here in Canterlot. Something covert, and riddled with malicious intent. A complex, well-thought plan worthy of the backstabbing rogues of Noxus. I wished not to delve further, as any incident regarding this might provide ample distraction for my next goal.
Speaking of my next goal…
In a burst of purple energy, I emerged into the Canterlot archives, a vast collection of books and artefacts. I quickly took in the vast area of stored knowledge, all under a large domed skylight. Donning Annie’s body, and ignoring her feeble protests, I greedily read every piece of text this place had to offer. Quickly snatching the books and tomes from their high shelves, processing their contents for later examination, then replacing them with more. This knowledge was sufficient enough for the next phase in my plan.
Gathering my findings into a single bag draped over my right, I exited the archive, carefully bypassing the recently unconscious bodies of its attendance. Stepping out into the harsh sunlight once again, the flood of sensation almost overwhelmed me. The normally blue sky was obstructed by a barrier of pink energy. A masterfully constructed barrier of magical energy, I do so look forward to meeting its conjurer.
The public seemed less busy, more of them were making haste towards the main palace, a grand ivory white castle trimmed with purple and gold. My subjects have informed me that a wedding was taking place. Hopefully, I can catch my quarry before she reaches the ceremony. I would hate to delay my own progress for other’s benefit. I also revelled in the freedom that came with being alone. Fighting as a team proved tiresome at best. It made me feel no better to know that my colleagues were at most, narrow minded, power hungry savages.
With a new goal in mind, I set forth, towards the main castle.
-{>(|)<}-
The castle was easy enough to find. It was similar in architecture to the surrounding city, but carried an air of royal grandeur unmistakable to a palace. In my mind’s eyes, I see the complex criss-cross of emotional links between ponies all settle on a single life form inside the castle. However, adjacent to this radiant focus of light, there was a darker star. This one had fewer links, but shone in a way similar to the brighter one. I sensed a dark presence within it as well as a veritable wealth of knowledge. The perfect target, just beyond my grasp.
Donning the body of Annie yet again, I plunged into the sea of ponies, all heading towards the castle gates. Fortunately, my dark colouring and lack of clothes remained unnoticed in the crowd by the dozens of guards by the gate. However, it did earn me the stiff lip from the Canterlot nobles. The dark nexus I sought after lay in the inner building. I could see it pacing back and forth, as if in a nervous state. I could see a bright, gold line between it and what I would presume to be her sister. Six lines of average brightness went to a corresponding character in the castle’s main hall, while fainter ones branched out to every guard in the building.
Just before I entered the grand doors to the main castle, I took a detour and headed for the statue garden towards the southwest side of the building. From here, I could see my quarry, still nervously pacing in a room about five storeys above. I fabricated a coma in Annie’s body and relinquished my hold, watching her limp form sleep hidden in a nearby hedge.
Formulating a plan, my goals were first to subdue the guards, which should have no consequence on my objective’s condition. However, when she does leave the room, I must take caution and establish a preemptive strike.
With spells at the ready, I ascended to the fifth floor, ready for battle.
[3rd person: Luna’s POV]
The wedding, how she forget. The princess of the night paced busily in her room, a wide space filled with all the luxuries that came with being a princess. A pristine, four poster bed, dresser, vanity and a whole shelf of texts, official and personal. This Royal Wedding would be the first in many centuries. As such, she had to look, act, be at her best.
After a few minutes, she decided to just be off with the nervousness, and get on with the event. Looking back at her In the mirror, was a dark blue alicorn, with an ethereal flowing mane, the colour and pattern of the night sky. She wore and elegant blue dress, as well as the small black crown and necklace she always wore. Taking one final breath for good measure, she strode out of her room with practiced confidence.
And in that instance, her mustered courage, fell to pieces.
“There you are,”
A huge, creature of chaotic energy floated above the ground before her. Three tentacles sprouted from a face of bone, featuring only a single purple eye nestled in its centre. Looking beyond the ungodly monster, Luna could see the beaten and bloodied forms of the Royal Guard. The golden and blue clad ponies who vowed themselves to the sister’s protection, lay defeated in the hallways, mere metres from their posts.
“What in the…” Luna breathed
The creature struck first, with the speed of a striking snake. A purple tentacle lashed out, catching Luna on the left cheek. She gave a startled shout at the strike, as well as the jolt of electricity that preceded it. A small white triangle burned itself into her hair. Recovering, the blue alicorn aimed a blast back at the monster, only to see it vanish into a torn, star-riddled oval in the adjacent wall. She realised little too late that a similar portal opened beneath her hooves. A long purple tendril emerged from it, wrapping itself around her midsection and pulling her screaming into the portal.
The portal opened up on a vertical wall, the sudden change making the night princess slightly nauseous as she tumbled out head over hooves. However, she was alert enough to dodge an incoming beam of magenta energy, springing into the air before it made contact. The creature floated across from her, agilely weaving around the statues that dotted the Canterlot Gardens. Luna had trouble keeping up as the thing darted between cover, sending a small hailstorm of magical bolts.
Focusing on her frustration, she sent her own storm in return fire.
“Stay still!” she screamed
The confrontation soon turned into a heated exchange of magic. Streaks of light blue and hard pink flew through the air, heating it quickly and filling it with the smell of ozone. The thing in the statues moved effortlessly, evading each and every bolt cast its way, while Luna’s stamina quickly depleted. If the fight continued like this, she would surely tire first, and be at its magical mercy.
With this in mind, she stalled her blasts and channelled for seconds. The opposing bolts slammed into her now that she was still. She grit her teeth at the sudden feelings of pain, coupled with near exhaustion. Each one stung greatly leaving a burnt streak in her dress and soot in her fur. Ignoring the pain, she released the energy. A maelstrom of blue light cascaded from her horn, quickly reducing the garden before her to ash and soot. She directed the beam across the landscape, sweeping from right to left.
When her attack finally died down, Luna collapsed onto her haunches, surveying the absolute mess she had made. The garden was nought but crumbled statues and burning bushes. The skirmish didn’t go unnoticed as a squad of six Royal Guards ran in quickly to her aid.
“Princess Luna, are you alright?” one asked
The princess’s response was a heap of ragged coughing.
“I’m fine,” she wheezed, getting up on shaky legs “Where’s the monster?”
“Monster?” another asked
“Nevermind that. Warn my sister! There’s a monster in our midst!” she barked “Go, make haste!”
The guards made it no further than two metres, before being reduced to ash.
In a hot, blast of pink light, the once proud guards of Canterlot, cast shadows of soot on the wall and stone. Luna turned in shock to the source of the blast. The monster, somehow still alive climbed out of the fallen rubble. Its single eye poured smoke from its recent attack.
“You killed them!” Luna screeched, pawing at the ground in rage
“Your actions condemned them to death,” it said simply, in a voice like grating metal “No witnesses are to be tolerated,”
Letting loose a mighty cry, she shot another burst of magic, straight at the creature. It in turn, spun right, avoiding the blast, then returned fire mid spin. The purple dart stung just like the very first strike back inside the castle, but somehow, this one was different. Luna gasped in shock, falling to her knees as purple tendrils of lightning wrapped around her. She looked down onto her chest, where two thirds of a triangle seared themselves into her fur, burning a painful white.
The monster shot another bolt, and Luna was powerless to stop it. It hit her chest, completing the mark as a full triangle. A new wave of electricity burst forth, eliciting a scream from the lunar princess. The mark pulsed against her chest, amplifying the power of the streams with each beat. Clothing, feathers and fur fell straight off her body, like burning paper in a firestorm. When the surge finally ceased, she all but a burnt, defeated, near lifeless shell.
She squinted up at the giant creature that almost spelt her demise.
“Atomic structure analysis completed,” it informed “Your power is impressive, but your body is lacking in integrity. One false move and I’ll have you reduced to ash,”
Luna took a nervous gulp
“Your cooperation is highly recommended,”
The lunar princess did not resist, as the monster tore a rift into the air above her, a ragged oval of cyan blue, then dove into it.
Then, she cried her agony to the sky above, with no hope of salvation.
-{>(|)<}-
Luna awoke in an endless sea of blue, strewn with stars and wisps of pink energy. It was a place she was familiar with, the calming flow of safety rippled around her active consciousness. She was in her own mind, but she was not alone. Purple wisps of energy flowed out of an obscure, magenta shape bleeding through the false horizon, like poisoned veins on sickly skin. Luna had no idea what to do, the energy slowly consumed her peaceful blue dreamscape in its fire. The shape grew closer, like an encroaching tropical storm, bathing its surroundings in magenta lightning.
The lights spread across the ground, nearing the lunar princess in seconds. Luna gasped in surprise as the light reached her hooves, briefly burning them black on the spot. With nowhere to escape, she ran the other way, taking fearful glances behind her at the all-consuming storm. The sounds of the storm grew ever closer, despite the efforts of the Lunar princess. Everything she tried to conjure, from guards, to barriers and even a way out did not heed her call. It was as if her whole mind was going rogue.
Just when it all seemed hopeless, the whole dreamscape bottomed out at an incomprehensibly deep and expansive chasm. It was a deep, ugly scar in the featureless blue realm of her dreams. Nothing could be seen below as the darkness soon claimed all vision. Luna took a fearful glance behind her to see the unrelenting storm approach faster than before. The calm blue sky and ground gave way to the burning tendrils from before. Soon they consumed the ground beneath her hooves, eliciting a barely contained shout of pain from the lunar princess. For whatever reason, she couldn’t fly, or use magic in her own dream. Just when the pain was reaching breaking point, the whole sky folded over like a gigantic eyelid. It was the creature from before, stairing down at her with its single slit eye. A voice like rumbling thunder echoed across the dreamscape.
“Beginning analysis,”
Then her mind shrieked again, shattering the calm blue, fully succumbing to the flames.