Worth Less Than a Fly

by nightshade745

Chapter 17: Going Cold

"What do you want?" Shadaico couldn't understand how this alicorn was speaking the same language as him.

"I'm just looking for entertainment. And you my friend, are a fantastic supply!"

"I take it your not with those other two alicorns then?"

"Other two? Ohhhhh! You mean Celestia and Luna? Yeah we've never seen eye-to-eye. Then again, I haven't spoken to either of them since the Nightmare Moon Rebellion!"

"Nightmare Moon Rebellion?" Shadaico tilted his head slightly.

"Almost exactly a thousand years and we haven't spoken once. Such a shame really," he suddenly looked depressed. "Nightmare Moon had so much to offer this world. I only wish she'd been around a little longer for me to get to know her."

"What are you talking about?!" Shadaico was still a little bit in shock and not sure where this lunatic was going with the conversation. "Who are you?"

"I could have sworn I already told you. Oh well. My name is Blank." He gave a mock bow. "What is yours?"

"Shadaico. What do you want then?"

"Again, I thought I already told you. I want entertainment and you can clearly provide."

"I'm not a circus performer!" Shadaico was angry at just the thought.

"Not that kind of entertainment my boy. I just want you to continue to do the things you do," he put on a creepy smile.

"The things I do?"

"That's right. Destroy things, start fights, cause pandemonium. I love a good show. And I'm willing to offer you assistants as long as you provide the fun."

Shadaico's ears perked as he heard the guards begin to close in! "Can you get us out of here?" Shadaico asked jokingly.

Blank smiled more intensely as his horn began to glow. "Careful what you wish for my doggy friend."

There was a flash of light and Shadaico found himself standing exactly where he had before. "So much for your assistants," he snarled.

"Really, look around. Is this the same place you were before?" Blank turned and looked off towards the horizon.

Shadaico copied him and froze. The great white castle was miles away on a distant mountain now! "How'd you-?"

"Warp. We're now just outside the small town of Ponyville. Anything else I can do to help you?" He smirked wickedly at Shadaico's stunned face.

"Alright mister Blank, you've got some powers I'll give you that. But why do you need me to do...stuff? You've clearly got the power to do it yourself," he looked at Blank suspiciously.

Shadaico was getting a familiar impression from him. He'd met men like this guy before. Guys who believed they had all the power in the world. Guys that thought everything and everyone was just wrapped around their fingers! Shadaico hated to admit it, but he had been like that. Overly cocky and a bit too naive. This Blank guy was without a doubt, a bad guy on the inside.

Blank's face turned to one of boredom. "I've been...oh what's a good way to word this? I've been lying low for just under a thousand years now Shadaico. Before that, I was involved in several major wars and uprisings."

"And?"

Blank raised a hoof, "please let me finish. The last of the three truly great moments in my life left me broken. I could no longer go out in public you see. I'm a fugitive sort of speak."

"So you want me to make war so you can relive your glory days?" Shadaico accused.

"Of course not. My days in the military ended long ago. But you misunderstand my motives here. Its not that I want you to do anything you're not already going to do. I just want you to live is all."

"What?" Shadaico was beginning to understand the bizarre request.

"That's right. I don't want you to die. I want to be able to watch the course of events you create. I want to watch you grow and change this world on your own course."

"So you want to just stalk me and make sure nothing kills me?" Shadaico cocked an eyebrow.

Blank thought for a moment. "In a way...yes."

"Oooookkkkaaayyy, you sound like a crazy person--pony--alicorn--thingy...whatever!"

"I'm not technically an alicorn or even a pony," again his smile returned.

"What are you then?" Shadaico asked not very interested in the conversation now.

"It doesn't matter. Now; do you need any more help?"

Shadaico looked around and pondered that. This Blank guy was offering him help just because he thought he was entertaining to watch. Shadaico wasn't sure if he should be flattered or disturbed. "I need to lay low for a while. Those alicorns I beat up are going to be looking for me. You have a way to keep me hidden?"

"You are correct, they are going to be looking for you," Blank said menacingly. "The alicorns you fought happen to be the two most powerful creatures on this planet...when it comes to politics at least. They rule the single largest and most important nation there is. So you have indeed made a very dangerous enemy." Shadaico groaned. Not the news he needed to hear. "As for hiding you, I brought you here for that specific purpose actually. I'm going to hide you in Ponyville in plane sight!"

"How?" Shadaico asked skeptically.

"There is no time for details, just know that I apologise in advance for this," he didn't look very apologetic.

"In advance for wha-" he was cut off as a blast of magic slammed into his chest!

Several Minutes later...

Blank was walking through the trees of the Everfree Forest with a wicked grin on his face, blood splatters clinging to his coat. "I love this part of the job," he thought out loud. "Now to get some rest and watch these events unfold as I've set them up..."

***************************************************************************

"Princess, we couldn't find anything," Shining regretfully informed Celestia as she lay on mat with a team of doctors and nurses.

She and Luna were both still in the gardens, but a swarm of medical professionals from throughout the city were swarming to the castle to treat the nearly endless number of burn victims. It wasn't a pretty sight. Some ponies looked like crisped bacon, but in an unbelievable twist of fate, there'd only been one casualty. It was likely that number would increase as the night drew on, but there was always hope.

Celestia hummed in thought for a moment. "Contact all neighboring towns and villages, rally as many guards as can be possibly reached. We need to find that wolf."

"I know. But there was something else."

"What's that?" Celestia raised a cautious eyebrow.

"We detected chaos magic," Shining bowed slightly nervous.

"Excuse me, but I just realized that I need to check on something." But before she could go far, "Shining?"

"Yes princess."

"Don't let the public find out about any of this. As far as my little ponies should know, the wolf was defeated here. Understood?"

"Of course." Shining didn't like the idea, but it was the smartest and safest course of action. If the public knew something had almost killed Celestia and Luna and was still on the loose, there'd be panic. Then again, it was like lying to everypony. Didn't they have the right to know something that threatened their lives was out there?

*****

In the barracks of Canterlot Castle, Cadence was having a battle of her own. She had the lantern with the changeling floating just behind her and three unicorn guards in front of her. All of them were angry and Cadence was trying to reason with them. It wasn't going well.

"Either you kill it or we will!" barked the one in the font.

"Luna gave specific instructions to protect him," Cadence protested.

"You really think that thing deserves to live after all this?!"

"How is any of this his fault?" she tried to point out.

"I don't know what you've heard, but that wolf came here for him. As far as I'm concerned, he destroyed the castle!"

"He's been right here with me the whole time!" Cadence couldn't help but notice how the other two guards remained silent for all this.

"He brought that monster to us and he needs to pay!" He stomped his hoof forward.

"I don't know what's so valuable about this changeling, but my aunts want him," she looked at the mentioned creature, "and that's all I need to know."

"Our families, our comrades, our city was nearly destroyed! And that little abomination is the reason any of this happened. Or did you miss the part where the wolf almost killed your precious Shining?!"

Cadence froze. She hadn't been on the battlefield so she didn't know everything that had happened. Had her husband really almost been killed? "You lie," she growled.

"The princesses were nearly killed, what makes you think he wasn't too?" He began to smirk, thinking he'd gotten through to her.

Cadence's anger burned with an unbreakable passion, "YOU SHUT UP! You weren't even in the fight, you don't know anything!"

"I know that that changeling deserves everything we intend to give him," he was practically snarling.

"I'm warning you to stand down," Cadence told them coldly.

"Or what?"

"I am a princess too, I can have you dismissed with the wave of my hoof." She demonstrated by swiping her hoof through the air.

"I can just reinstate them!" came another voice from the hall. Cadence recognized its snobbishness immediately.

"And where were you during all the chaos?!" Cadence barked at the darkened doorway into the hall. She ground her teeth knowing who it was. The clacking of well manicured hooves entered the room with a unicorn stallion who held himself high and proud. "Blueblood," Cadence spoke with hate.

"Hoof him over," Blueblood demanded.

"They're your aunts too," she threw at him.

"They brought that bug into the castle without knowing the price. Let somepony who knows what he's doing correct such foolish mistakes," his ego just wouldn't let up.

"Look at this from another perspective. That wolf was obviously this changeling's friend. What we saw was a rescue attempt, not an attack!"

Blueblood scoffed. "What kind of rescue leaves an entire castle in such a distraught state?"

"The kind that goes wrong, Blueblood."

"Some friend he has then. An ally that goes on a rampage and brutalizes everything in his path? Worthless!"

"SHUT YOUR MOUTH! What would you know about friends or allies?!" She practically screamed at him. Blueblood stared back at her. "That's the best kind of friend a pony could ask for. He did all that," she gestured out the window to destruction that had been caused, "just to save his little buddy." Cadence couldn't help but look back at the changeling and smile. "I may not like being on the receiving end of that wrath, but if that's not a powerful bond, I don't know what is."

Cadence beamed with pride for her speech. The three guards seemed to lose some of their resolve while Blueblood was clearly enraged. "How dare you try to stand in the way of an official arrest! That changeling is an enemy of more than just Equestria, but of ME!" he acted like that was a huge difference. "He must pay for that!"

"Would you really take his life with your own hooves?" Cadence asked him coldly.

Blueblood paused for a second, his eyes darting to the floor and back. "Yes!"

"Then you'll have to take my life with your own hooves as well," Cadence took a step forward and wore the hardest gaze she could muster.

Blueblood clearly hesitated and thought over his options here. With great strain and the shaking of anger, "fine. Just know you've made an enemy today, Cadenza," he spat at her.

With that, he and the three guards stomped off. Cadence let out a massive breath of air she'd been holding. She looked back at the changeling who just stared at her in return. It seemed so ironic to her that just a few months ago, the changelings were trying to ruin her big day. But now here she was standing up for one of them.

*****

Celestia approached Discord's statue hesitantly. She could see a single crack in the stone on his chest. She narrowed her eyes and looked closer. It was slowly closing on its own and no chaos was leaking, but it still worried her. Discord's magic was absolutely unique. No other living thing she'd even seen had the powers of chaos...except one. There was only one other being she'd ever met that could use chaos magic. Celestia scowled as she turned away from Discord.

"So you've returned, Blank." Blank could use chaos magic, but he couldn't create it. In other words, he needed to take it from him or get Discord to give him some. Even so, he was dangerous. Even Celestia hadn't been able to determine his ultimate goal or his true motives back when they first met. During the overthrow of Discord, he was her enemy. When King Sombra tried to take over, Blank served as Celestia and Luna's spy. And finally, during the Nightmare Moon Rebellion, he tried to help plunge the world into darkness by destroying the Elements of Harmony. Obviously, said plan had failed, but it was the thought that counted.

But that's where his trail ran dry. Blank vanished promptly after Nightmare Moon was sealed away. That was always something that had bothered her when she thought about the pony. He had shape shifting powers not unlike changelings, he possessed knowledge of ancient spells that not even Celestia and Luna's parents knew about, and he never stayed loyal to one side. He was a mystery. A pony with no true alliances or friends. He sided with whoever the winds of change blew towards.

He had been missing for a thousand years and it was clear he was back. No other pony could have opened up the seal on Discord and made off with some of his magic without fully releasing him. But why was he back? A thousand years in hiding was not something you changed without a reason. Celestia suddenly looked up at her castle with wide eyes. Did Blank intend to help the wolf?

Blank also had an ability to see who would be victorious in a long term skirmish. He couldn't see the future exactly, he just seemed to know what would happen at the end of the day. As such, he would almost always take the side of whoever was going to win in the end. If Blank was siding with the the wolf that had attacked Canterlot, then he must have foreseen that whatever the creature's intentions were, they were going to succeed. Needless to say, Celestia was scared for her subjects.

Speaking of which, a familiar green flame appeared in front of her and became a rolled up parchment. Celestia opened it slowly as she tried to gain control of her emotions. She needed to get control of herself. How could she be sure Blank was back? Maybe he just stopped by to talk with his old master while everypony was distract. It was the best opportunity to do so in a thousand years after all. Celestia shook her head and read the letter from Twilight.

As she finished reading the short few lines, she sighed. Her student was worried about her and Canterlot. Celestia didn't think a few letters on a page would be adequate to comfort her. Now the question was who was going to go to who. Should her student be called to come to Canterlot or should she go to Ponyville? If Twilight came to Canterlot she'd surely think something was wrong and panic, especially once she got a glimpse of the damage. If she went to her student, she wouldn't be in Canterlot during this emergency situation that was going to positively eat her time. She hated to admit it, but her kingdom had to come before her student. She could always calm her down once she got here...hopefully.

Looking to the moon as it drifted closer to horizon, she sighed. It had been a long night. The days to come would be full of excitement too. They had so much to do now. Numerous meetings with foreign dignitaries would have to be canceled, the castle would need to be repaired, and most importantly, they needed to find that wolf. She also needed to work on a way they could understand the small changeling that the wolf had obviously come here for. Those two were--maybe not trouble--but something. She needed to figure them out and fast.

Author's Note:

Finally, the night is almost over. I have just one more tiny segment of it left and then the story can move on. But let's do a recap of all the OC characters I've created.

Obviously there's Nash and Shadaico. Need I explain anything there? There's Crash, Butter, Bee, Skipper, and Bore. Forget these characters please, they were temporaries, fill ins if you will. Just there to progress the story. (I may bring them back but I have no plans to) The changeling Kings/Queens Firethorn, Milkweed, Nightshade, and Paradise. Maybe I'll add more, but again there aren't any plans to. Then there's the mysterious Blank...

Comments

[The Random Lord]

ooh i just love this story
i just want to read more