Grayson prodded Fierce’s paw with a talon. “Get up, you lazy hound. We’re in the Empire’s territory. It’s time for Cobalt to do his trick.”
Fierce grunted. “Give me a moment. The world has not come into focus quite yet. It still appears rather fuzzy.”
“That could be because Bonsmara has you held like a stuffed toy.”
“That is playing a part, I will admit. Her coat also adds to her luscious warmth, which I am hesitant to remove myself from.”
Bonsmara stirred, shook her head, groaned, and asked Grayson, “What is going on?”
“Nothing, I hope. Our changeling and pony friends didn’t come in last night, and I’m afraid we might have to pry them from the deck like popsicles stuck on a cold floor.”
“What a lovely image.” Fierce shifted in Bonsmara’s arms and gave her a peck on the cheek. “Good morning.”
She gave him a return kiss on the nose, while telling him, “Good morning to you too.”
“You two are beyond hopeless.” Grayson made his way up the stairs and to the hatch.
“He sounds worried,” Bonsmara said, as she released Fierce and got to her hooves.
“With Nightmares and windigos around, he has reason to be.”
Bonsmara led Fierce up the stairs. Stopping a few stairs below Grayson, she caught his lashing tail in her hand before it could strike her in the face. “Grayson, you need to tell your tail they are fine.”
Grayson looked over his shoulder to her. “Sorry about that.” His tail twitched in her grasp. “You can let go now.”
“Not till you get the hatch open, and we step on deck. This thing stings when it connects.”
Fierce reached up and fluffed the tufted end of Grayson’s tail. “You are supposed to catch tigers by the tail. I do not believe griffins count, particularly those with a lion’s tail.”
“I should have left you two asleep.” Grayson opened the hatch and peered out. “There is a magic bubble out there, which is a good sign. That it is half covered in snow and ice is not.” He led them out on the deck.
From inside the shield, Stone waved. “Good morning,” he silently said to them.
Bonsmara grinned. “They are so precious! It looks like a pile of ponies sleeping in a snow globe!”
Grayson poked at the shield as if to pop it, only to have his claw pass through. With an expression of surprise on his face, he waved his talon around in the sphere. “It’s warm in there.”
“Trapped body heat,” Fierce explained. “I have seen this spell before.”
Cobalt’s head appeared from the center of the bodies surrounding him. His mane was a mess and his eyes still held traces of slumber. He waved at the trio outside the bubble and yawned. He then put his head on Cadance’s wing, which was partially covering him, and gave them a contented smile.
“He looks cozy,” Fierce said.
“He looks adorable,” Bonsmara voiced.
“How do you pop this thing?” Grayson grumbled.
“I see that Puca and Stone are bundled together,” Fierce said, a teasing lilt to his voice.
“Leave them be,” Bonsmara chided.
“I have an idea.” Grayson reached into one of the pouches on his belt and drew out a magic nullifying stone. He touched the stone to the magical bubble. The bubble rippled violently from the point of contact, lost its blue coloring, and popped with an electrical crackle. Grayson smiled with malicious satisfaction. “That is going to be quite useful.”
Puca lifted her head from Stone’s shoulder. “What’s with the cold air?” She wiggled her ears and looked around, bleary eyed. As her eyes settled on Grayson, she snorted. “I should have known. Found a new toy didn’t you?”
“I did,” Grayson said, smiling and presenting the stone to her. “Looks like making direct contact with the stones can disrupt magic shields.”
Cadance tucked Cobalt closer to her. She did not open her eyes, as she told Grayson, “Five more minutes.”
After ducking under Cadance’s wing, Cobalt cuddled into her. “You’re a princess; you can order him to go away.”
“I wouldn’t listen,” Grayson said.
“For some reason I don’t doubt that.” Cadance raised her head. After studying Cobalt for a second, she smiled at him. “For somepony who didn’t want me to put them under my wing last night, you certainly seem to have changed your mind.”
“Shining is going to be jealous,” Fierce said.
Cobalt poked his head out from under his feathery blanket. “What do you mean?”
“You spent the night with his wife under the stars and he didn’t.”
Cobalt’s eyes slowly widened. He looked up at Cadance. “He’s going to throw me in the dungeon isn’t he?”
“I don’t think he’s the jealous type.” She put a hoof to her chin and acted as if in thought. “Though, you are the only other colt I’ve fallen asleep with my wing around. I’m not really sure how he will react to that.”
Cobalt blushed, even as he looked like his world was ending. “Yep, I’m going straight to the dungeon.”
“Do you really think he would be willing to get so jealous over me that he would put a colt in the dungeon?”
Cobalt nodded without hesitation.
“You really think that? Why?”
Ears folded back, Cobalt looked to Stone with a silent plea for aid.
“You’re in too deep for me to be able to help you now. Remember what Granddad taught us, and you should be fine.” Stone smirked. “If not, I’ll visit you in the dungeon when I can.”
“Thanks a lot.” Cobalt swallowed nervously as he looked back to Cadance.
“I’m waiting,” Cadance said, with a teasing smile.
“You’re pretty, warm, and give the best wing hugs.” Cobalt fidgeted, and looked away from her as he added, “You’re really brave and nice too.”
“Brave? Why do you say that?”
“You were going to fly into a storm and face windigos to get back to Shining and the ponies of the Empire. That’s brave.” Cobalt looked up, and his blush intensified. “I would get jealous over you too, if you were my special somepony.”
Cadence’s cheeks turned a darker shade of pink. “That’s quite a complement. I’ll be sure to have a talk with Shining, so you don’t end up in any trouble.”
Puca tried not to laugh, but let a couple of giggles out. “I think you have a fan, Princess.”
“I think it’s more of a crush,” Grayson said.
“A case of hero worship, or, in this case, heroine worship, I would say.” Bonsmara stooped over Cobalt up and ran a hand over his mane. “Pity I did not think to pack a brush.”
Grayson turned to Puca and Stone. Grinning like he had caught them in the middle of a crime, he made a show of looking at the cloak draped over them and rubbing his chin with a talon. “One blanket and two ponies, strikes me as being a bit cozy.”
“It was,” Puca said.
“I hope you behaved yourself as a proper stallion would,” Grayson said to Stone. “Especially considering that your brother and royalty were with you.”
“I did,” Stone assured.
Grayson looked to Cadance. “Can we take him at his word?”
Cadance shrugged. “I don’t know. I wasn’t awake most of the time.”
“So there is still potential for scandal,” Fierce said, earning him an elbow from Bonsmara.
“Stone’s too much of a stick in the mud for anything to have happened,” Cobalt said. “He wouldn’t even give her a real kiss.”
“Changing the subject, before this gets more awkward for me than it already is,” Stone said. “I saw a large flash of light not too long ago towards the north.”
Cadance’s ears perked up. “What kind of flash?”
“It was big and white. It looked like someone had used a really powerful spell for a couple of seconds and then stopped. After the flash, there were streaks of color in the sky.”
“The Crystal Heart,” Cadance said, as if she had no doubt. “I don’t know if that is a good or bad sign. Sunburst was helping Shining learn how to activate the Stone’s powers on his own not too long ago. If he used it, I hope it wasn’t because he had no other choice than to try.”
“We’ll find out soon enough, one way or the other.” Grayson patted Cobalt on the head. “It’s time for you to do your compass act again.”
Cobalt stood and took a determined stance. “I’m ready.”
*****
“Signal me when to stop,” Freight said, as she steered the ship to starboard.
Cobalt tapped on her right foreleg, and Freight straightened the ship out. Cobalt, keeping his eyes closed, nodded, as the ship found its course. “That feels right.”
“That means they do not have their main camp right at the gateway, which should work in our favor,” Cadance said, while looking over the ship’s navigation chart. “The gateway is here and we’re here,” she said, pointing at the respective positions on the chart.
“Do you think that they found one of Sombra’s bolt holes?” Grayson asked.
“I hope not, but I have a feeling they have. We’ve done what we can to find Sombra’s lairs, clear them out, and seal them. If they did manage to find one that we missed, there is no telling what kind of artifacts or spells they might have gotten hold of.”
“We’re getting close,” Cobalt said. His eyes still closed, he turned his head as if listening for something.
“There isn’t anything but snow and hills for miles,” Stone said, looking out the ship’s cockpit canopy.
“We can’t trust our eyes on this one. The entrance to their hideout is sure to be hidden with some kind of spell.” Grayson nodded towards Cobalt. “It’s up to him to get us close.”
Cobalt pointed down and to his right. “They’re somewhere under there.”
“I’ll land us somewhere close, but not right one top of them.” Freight maneuvered the ship towards a relatively flat area near where Cobalt had indicated, and, with the help of her flight crew, set the ship down. “Lock everything up! Nothing and nopony that was not already on this ship gets on unless I say so!”
A chorus of “yes ma’am” from the crew answered her.
Freight turned to a member of the Guard. “Starry, I have a task for you.”
“Yes, ma’am,” Starry said.
Freight put her hoof on Cobalt’s head. “This one does not leave this ship under any circumstance. Do I make myself clear?”
The stallion nodded. “Crystal, ma’am.”
Cobalt turned around, so that he faced Freight, and put a hoof over his heart. “I will not leave the ship. I promise.”
“Good colt.”
Cadance moved to stand beside Freight and nodded towards Starry. “So he’s staying on board?”
“I am, Empress,” Starry said.
“Stone, could you come over here for a moment?” Cadance asked. As Stone approached, she directed him, “Stand by this stallion for a moment.”
Stone glanced at Starry, shrugged, and stood beside the guard.
“I thought so. You two are about the same size.” Cadance said.
“I see where this is going,” Freight said. “Starry, strip.”
Starry gave her a disbelieving look. “Ma’am?”
“You heard me. I don’t care if you take it off fast, slow, or dance and make a production of unbuckling each strap, but you are coming out of that armor.”
Starry blushed and answered, “Yes ma’am.”
Cadance turned to Freight, looking shocked. “Don’t you have spare sets of armor?”
“Not on board, back at base we do.” Freight pointed to the near complete set of armor. “Well, Stone, are you going to put it on or not?”
“You’re sure?”
“I didn’t have him take if off just for the eye candy. Starry, if things turn bad, you grab Cobalt and get your and the flight crews’ flanks straight to the capital. No heroics, do you hear me?”
“Yes, ma’am.” Starry broke his professional demeanor and gave Freight a grateful, worried smile. “Thank you, ma’am, but part of me says that I should be with you out there.”
Freight hugged Starry around the neck. “If the horse apples hit the fan, you get home to your family, no matter what. Promise me you will.”
Starry hugged her back. “I will.”
As Stone picked up the first piece of armor, Chart’s voice came from the hold of the ship, “We have incoming, and they’re not ours!”
Freight released Starry and ran towards the hatch. “What are we dealing with?!”
“Two unicorns, they look like they’re dragging something between them!”
Cadance quickly followed Freight through the hatch to the aft of the ship. “I’ll take point. Guard to me!”
Freight patted Stone on the shoulder. “Looks like you won’t have time to get geared up. Come on.”
Cobalt urged Stone, “Be careful.”
“I’ll will. I promise.”
*****
“Halt!” Cadance shouted down from the ship’s deck and through the falling show to the vague shapes approaching the ship. “State your intentions!”
The shapes paused. “We wish to parlay!” one of the figures called. “We have sick unicorns and wasting companions here! We are unarmed and do not wish violence!”
“Approach!” she called to them.
The figures came closer to the ship and became recognizable through the falling snow. Moon Dancer and Lemon Drops drew Minuette, who was unresponsive, on a makeshift litter towards the ship. The effects of Nightmare possession marked all three of them, making them taller and altering their natural coloring in striking ways.
“Medics!” Freight shouted into the ship. “We have a pony down! Stone, looks like you’re going to be in action sooner than we expected!”
“Keep your guard up,” Puca said to Stone, as he moved past her and out the hold’s loading doors.
Cadance moved to greet the Nightmares ahead of the others. “I speak for the Crystal Empire and Equestria. We ask that you surrender yourselves peacefully.”
“We gladly do so.” Lemon Drops said. “We have all but exhausted our powers and our strength. The unicorns too, have given their utmost. We must find alternate sources of nourishment posthaste, or we endanger their and our lives.”
“I’m the solution to that,” Stone said stepping forward. “I will able to hold you.”
Lemon Drops turned to Stone and regarded him before asking, “Are you willing to host us all?”
“If you need me to, I will.”
“We do. However, such a thing would not be without risk to you. We have never joined with an earth pony or pegasus before. We cannot guarantee that we will not drain you too swiftly. We are fourteen of our number, and our former compatriots sapped us of a good deal of our strength before allowing us to depart.”
“We’ve got that covered.” Grayson stepped forward, a feed bag and a heavy satchel of gems clutched in his talon. “He keeps eating, and so do you.”
“Where did you get a feed bag?” Stone asked, appearing a bit disturbed. “Why does anypony here have a feed bag?”
“From me, from our supplies,” Freight answered. “It’s a standard medical device that we keep handy.” She grinned. “I thought of it last night, after hearing about the plan.”
Stone gave Grayson an unamused look. “I take it you liked the idea.”
“I’m the one holding the thing aren’t I?”
“Time is short,” Lemon Drops said. “We will inhabit you first, and then we will draw our companions from Minutte.” Lemon Drops moved so close to Stone that he drew his head back to keep from touching noses with her. “Steel yourself.”
A dark form poured from Lemon Drop’s eyes, nose, and open mouth. Stone, looking apprehensive, opened his own mouth and allowed the Nightmares to flow into his body. After the last traces of the Nightmare vanished from sight, he closed his eyes and shuddered. He held head between his forehooves and moaned.
“Stone!” Cadance yelled.
“Give them a moment.” Moon Dancer barred anyone from approaching Stone by putting herself between him and those moving to help him. “The first blending can be difficult, if the host has a strong will.”
“He does,” Puca stated.
Stone shook himself as if trying to dry his coat and smiled. “We are doing well now. Having the breath knocked from you mentally is the best way to describe how it feels. While not painful in the truest sense, it is intensely uncomfortable. It will not be as trying a process from this point on.”
Puca took a step back from him. “You’re not the same pony.”
“No, we are not. We will not be the same after the others have joined us as well. We will be a new individual each time. We would like to join you in your efforts to stop our fellow Nightmares, if you would have us.”
“Can we trust you?”
“A valid question, but you need not fear. We sought to use the portal, but in our efforts to do so it has become apparent how dangerous a proposition of unsealing it would be. Those still in sanctuary might bring about the end of us all if they succeed.”
“The other Nightmare’s told us you planned to use the portal to bring the Nightmares from the moon here or unleash the Umbras and strike a deal with them.”
“So they yet live.” Stone appeared relieved. “We feared that our spat and the resulting tussle had drained them too much for them to survive. As to our plan to open the portal for our brethren or the Umbras, we few that left those still in Sombra’s sanctuary have come to realize that the Nightmares we fought with previously were right in that doing so would most likely culminate in the destruction of this world and the very beings we need to exist. The other’s feel that such a doom could be avoided, but we are of the mind that entertaining the possibility is too great a risk. For our change in outlook, the others drained a good portion of our strength and turned us out into the snow. We have not been long in our trek to the capital when you arrived.” Stone bowed to Cadance. “Empress, we offer our determination, our knowledge, and our strength to end this shared threat.”
“We would greatly appreciate the help,” Cadance said.
“Then you shall have our aid.” Stone approached Moon Dancer and drew in the Nightmares from her. He then knelt down to Minuette and stroked her mane with a hoof. “She has done so much for us. Using her talents in time magic, she slowed the ill effects that being away from our home cause us. We pray that she has not injured herself irreparably on our behalf.” Stone put his mouth near Minuette’s and took the Nightmares from her into himself.
“Good thing he didn’t get the chance to put that armor on,” Freight said to Cadence. “It would have torn off him, big as he is now.”
When Stone regained his hooves, he stood as tall as Bonsmara. “It seems we will have to acclimate to this form.”
“Feeling a bit uncoordinated?” Bonsmara asked. “You are quite a bit larger.”
“While gaining in stature is playing a part, the experience of being male is novel to us. Till now, our hosts have been female. This body, while similar, is different enough to cause us to focus on each movement. This ungainliness should pass swiftly.”
Freight snickered and said, “Being a stallion after being a mare would take some getting used to.”
“Stone, is that you?” Cobalt’s question, while not spoken loudly, cut through the wind with its tone of concern. He stood beside Starry, at the opening of the ship’s hold, who had donned his armor again. Cobalt glanced at Starry, then Freight, then Stone, as if torn by an inner debate.
“You can see him off,” Freight said. “Make it quick, though.”
Cobalt dashed into the snow, but its depth kept him from making progress.
Stone, with a couple of unsteady strides, met Cobalt. “We are fine. Your brother is safe.”
Cobalt started to reach up for a hug, paused, and then dropped his hooves back down. “I know you’re you’re not Stone, but he’s in there somewhere. Promise me that you’re going to bring him back.”
“We can do no such thing. While our fellow Nightmares are not at the height of their strength, they remain formidable.”
“I want to go with you.”
“You cannot and should not, as well you know.”
“I know and I’ll keep my promise to stay here.” Cobalt sniffed. “When we were going into the Everfree and the Castle of Sisters, I wasn’t scared like I am now. Knowing that he is doing something dangerous and not being able to go is so much worse.”
“You are a brave, noble soul. Return to Starry, keep warm, and do not worry overmuch about us.” Stone looked over his shoulder and nodded towards the others. “We are in good company.”
Starry stepped from the ship and put Cobalt on his back. “Chart and I will show him around the ship’s bridge. That will help him keep his mind off of things.”
“We need to go,” Grayson said.
“We shall serve as your guide.” Stone moved in the direction the unicorn’s had come from. “Have the main force follow us at a distance. The other Nightmares may have devised traps since our departure.”
“Come back safe!” Cobalt called, his voice breaking. Cobalt gasped and swallowed, fighting back tears, as the departing ponies outlines faded into gray of the falling snow.
Starry looked over his shoulder. “Come on little guy, let’s go back inside. Standing here in the snow and getting cold isn’t going to change anything.”
“Do you think they’ll be all right?”
Starry took a deep breath, before answering, “If the other Nightmares are as reasonable as the ones that turned themselves in, I think so.”
“What if they aren’t?”
“I don’t know.”
*****
Fierce stared at Stone, who was chewing a mouthful of gems from the feedbag, with amazement. “You gobbled down two whole bags of gems as if they were nothing more than a snack.”
Stone paused and reached up to take the feedbag off. He fumbled with the straps, unable to loosen them from his head.
“Let me help.” Puca took to wing and carefully helped Stone remove the feedbag. “There you go.” As she landed and met his eyes, she looked away from him.
“Thank you.” Stone hooked a hoof into the opening of the feedbag, keeping her from leaving. “Puca, look at us, please.” Her ears folded back, she turned to Stone, but did not look at him. “What is causing you to fret so?”
Not meeting Stone’s eyes, she asked, “How much will he change?”
“If he does change, it would be all but inconsequential. We could compare the experience of Sharing with us to having a deep conversation with another for a long period. While both parties remain the same individual, the information given can affect them deeply only if allowed to.”
“Changelings can do something similar, and it does not affect our personalities. Knowing the same thing happens with you helps.”
Stone looked at her, seeming to ponder something.
“What is it?”
“You stated that we were not the same individual after Stone became our host. Cobalt said much the same and would not embrace us. Could you sense Stone as an individual among us?”
“I don’t know.”
“Make an attempt. It may prove pivotal, if we can somehow use the fact that the host remains their own entity to our advantage. Rarity was able to remove herself from our influence due to the strength of her bonds with her friends. We may be able to encourage or force such a separation, if we apply the right stratagem.”
Puca closed her eyes. After a few seconds of concentration, she shook her head. “I think I might be feeling him, but it’s real vague.”
“Move it, you big lummox,” Grayson said, coming from behind and prodding Stone in the back. “It’s too cold to sit still, and we’ve only a little bit left before we get there. We can’t stop for you two to talk.”
“Afford us this moment. She may provide us the key to subduing our fellow Nightmares.”
Grayson’s tail lashed. “We have to reach the Nightmares before we can do anything to them. Besides, they might be cracking open the portal while we sit here.”
“Even with the fear we siphoned from the ponies of the Empire they lack the power to force the gateway open. They will have to manage a more artful solution, which will take time.”
“So the windigos were your doing after all.” Cadance said, landing close to where the friends had gathered.
“We were at our limits and needed sustenance for us and our hosts to survive. We reasoned that employing windigos would arouse fear without being directly harmful, summoned them to menace the capitol, and used a spell to draw the fear they inspired to us. While it was ultimately unsuccessful in giving us the power we needed to succeed in our plan, the gambit saved our lives. Had they not been repelled by somepony, things could have turned out quite differently.”
“That makes me feel a little better,” Cadance said, as she joined them. “If I had to bet, it was my Shining and the Crystal Heart that drove off the windigos.”
“Judging by the amount of power that was displayed, I would agree that would be a safe assumption.” Stone looked to Puca, who was still deep in concentration. “Do not tire yourself. It was a mere theory.”
“What was the theory?” asked Cadance.
“Rarity proved that hosts have the potential to reject us Nightmares. We may be able to use that in some way, if we can isolate the host’s mind. She is able to sense Stone within us, but not with sufficient clarity to form a stratagem on how to use it to our advantage.”
“I know he’s there,” Puca said, through clenched teeth. “I just can’t pick him out!”
Cadance’s looked as if she had been struck with inspiration. “If you can’t reach Stone that way, we’ll get him to react to you. Give him a hug.”
Puca opened her eyes and stared at Cadance. “What?!”
“I’m sure Stone will sure to react to you hugging him, after seeing you two last night. Go on.”
Stone sat as still as his namesake, as Puca hugged him. “I’m feeling something.” She put her head against his chest. “He’s there, no doubt about it.”
“Let me try something.” Cadance’s horn lit as she surrounded Stone with her magic. “There you are!”
Stone shook his head as if trying to get rid of an annoying insect. “Cease! You are making it difficult to maintain the bond between Stone and us!”
Cadance’s smile grew, as she ended the flow of magic. “I tried using a variation on the spell that I use to help those having relationship problems. It focuses on the connections between individuals to make them stronger.”
“So using your magic on a pony taken by Nightmare’s to strengthen their bond with someone else you can draw out their personalities from the mixture.” Grayson snorted and shook his head. “Leave it to ponies to make a weapon of warm fuzzies.”
“I foresee an issue with this,” said Stone. “She has to be in contact for it to work.”
“Maybe not, we’ll see. Puca, take a couple of steps back. I want you to try something.”
Puca took a couple of from Stone. Cadance moved to her side and whispered in Puca’s ears. “Ready?”
Puca nodded. “Ready.”
Cadance surrounded Stone with her magic again. “Now, give it a shot.”
Puca changed her form so that she appeared as Cobalt. Using Cobalt’s voice, she pleaded, “Stone, don’t’ leave me here!” She shrunk down into the snow, looking pityful. “Please, let me come with you!”
Stone fell to the snow and pawed at his head. “Release us! This is maddening!”
Cadance stopped her magic. “That’s what we needed to know. If we know who the pony holds dear, Puca and I can reach them emotionally and force the Nightmare’s out.”
Puca shifted back to her true form and moved to Stone’s side. She put a hoof on his shoulder. “Are you okay?! That felt nasty.”
Stone rolled to his belly. “That was most unpleasant, but we were not injured.” Even while on the ground, his head was near to being on level with Puca’s. “You did well in using Cobalt. Leaving his brother behind upset Stone, despite knowing it was the prudent choice.”
“I hope that I can do as well with the others.”
“Of that we have no doubt. Let us speak of their feelings towards one another.” Stone stood, shook the snow from his coat, and took point again. He motioned for the others to follow. “We may be able to deduce what could be the most effective emotional triggers for them and what our stratagem will entail.”
“If I were to guess, a frontal assault with the guard is out of the question,” Fierce said.
Stone nodded. “The entrance to cavern will only allow for a couple of ponies to pass through at a time without risking an ambush that would wipe out a tightly drawn group.”
“So it’s just a cavern?” Grayson took to the air, hovered, and shook his paws and talons free of snow. “That will help.”
“I should clarify. The initial cavern is natural, but the chambers beyond were constructed by Sombra.”
“Not good.”
“The chambers house no weapons or traps. They were a place of rest and study for Sombra, when he was trying to open the portal for the Umbra’s himself. There were remnants of some of his experiments with crystal magic as well, but they were not meant for war.”
“I knew that we had to have missed a couple of his workshops,” Candance said, sounding bitter. “Sunburst even said there had to be a hooffull still scattered around, since Sombra’s notes alluded to locations we knew we never found.”
“The tomes held in this particular collection were connected to the portal but were not the main body of his work, from what we could discern.” Stone turned to Cadance. “What do you know of Sunburst’s relationship with Starlight?”
“I know that he has a crush on her and has for a while. I think it may be turning serious. Why?”
“We suspected as much. Starlight’s feelings for him are well known to us. She harbors a good deal of affection for him. We can use their feelings for each other to loosen my fellow Nightmares’ hold on them.”
Grayson pulled out one of the magic nullifying stones. “What about Trixe?”
“We are not certain, since she is not certain.” Stone turned his head and looked, as Grayson poked him in the side with one of the magic shielding stones. “Pray tell, what is it that you are hoping to accomplish?”
“I take it that didn’t do anything,” Grayson said.
“Beyond being somewhat irksome, it had no effect on us.”
Grayson guffawed and returned the stone to its pouch. “I was hoping that it would mess with your connection with Stone.”
“Our bond is of a different nature. It cannot be disrupted by such an instrument. An inspired notion, though.”
“Back to Trixie, what did you mean that she is not certain?” Cadance said.
“She does not know which she has more affection for. She formed a bond with Starlight, who introduced her to Sunburst. Afterward, she grew to like him as well. Her jealously of what Sunburst and Starlight have between them being what she wants from either of them compounds the issue.”
Grayson’s wing beats paused long enough that he had to make a couple of quick wing beats to keep from dropping into the snow. “Are you saying what I think you’re saying?”
“She would be more than willing to enter a relationship with either of them,” Stone said, sounding certain. “Perhaps even with both. She has entertained the idea more than once.”
“What do mean, ‘both’?” asked Grayson.
“Surely the notion of two members of the same gender being together is not novel to you,” Fierce said. “We’ve encountered it in our travels more than once, and you never batted an eye at it.”
“I don’t think the idea of the genders involved is what is foreign to him,” Cadance said. “Griffins are natural monogamists. They form a bond on a very deep level with one other and will never take another lover so long as their mate is alive.”
“We were unaware of that,” Stone said. “Considering you are the Princess of Love, it comes as no surprise to us that you knew such. Does Trixie’s feeling the way she does have something to do with the herding practices that ponies used to do?”
Cadance giggled. “The ‘herding’ arrangement between ponies is still done, occasionally. The tradition has died out, for the most part. Life has become easier and having an extended family under one roof, blood related or not, is not as important for survival as it once was. And since mares still outnumber stallions by a good margin, there are a number of mares who do not have a preference as to either gender or form relationships with other mares exclusively.”
“Thus, her feelings may not be as easy to manipulate since she does not have a true focal point for them,” Stone said.
“Quite the opposite,” Cadance assured. “It means that she has not comes to terms with what she is feeling and wants and will be all the more vulnerable. While I hate that she suffering, it may be the weak point that we need to reach her.”
“We will defer to you expertise in the matter.” Stone nodded towards a rise in the distance. “We draw close to our destination. We should address the more practical aspects of our assault, before we are on our foe’s threshold.”
“From your tone, I take it you have a plan,” Bonsmara said.
“I will enter first. I know the layout of the cavern and Sombra’s chambers. If we face resistance, due to us inhabiting this body, there is little chance of injury to us due to a direct blow of a physical nature. Directly behind me will be Puca, who can change to the form most likely to emotionally impact our foe.”
“I will be right behind her,” Cadance supplied.
“That would be prudent. Grayson, Bonsmara, and Fierce will follow after.”
“What about the Guard?” asked Puca.
“They may follow us into the cavern, no further. While not devoid of space, the rooms that Sombra crafted would not allow for a full force to enter and fight effectively.” Stone’s voice turned grim, as he added, “They would also need to make ready to carry any wounded back to the ship as swiftly as possible or cover our retreat, if things take an ill turn, which would require the room available in the cavern.”
“Sisters forbid it comes to that,” Cadance said.
“There.” Stone pointed a hoof towards what appeared to be a sharp incline in the hill they had been walking up. “While it lies beneath an illusion, this is the entrance. All need to make ready. Once we enter, events will unfold swiftly and perhaps violently.”
“I’ll tell Freight and the guard about our plan. We should be ready in a couple of minutes.”
As Cadance made her way to the guard, Bonsmara approached Stone. “Hold still.” She put a crude necklace bearing one of the stones that Rarity had woven into wire on Stone, making a quick adjustment to its strap so that the necklace fitted well. “There we go. Give me a moment.” She then tied another of the stones to his tail using a small loop of the same thread. “You can thank the medics for the thread, after all this is all over.”
“Thank you. While we could bear many a physical blow that would otherwise prove fatal, this will be of great aid, if negotiations fail and magic is wielded against us.”
“I have no doubt they will,” Grayson said.
“We must ask of you a favor.” He looked to each of the adventurers. “If things do take a foul turn, let us bear the brunt of their ire. We can withstand their assaults and drain their strength so that you can make good your escape.”
Bonsmara stepped forward and caught Stone’s snout between her hands. Looking into his eyes, she told him, “We do not leave anyone behind.”
“We are not of you. We offer ourselves to you for atonement for our actions. Allow us this.”
“Stone is one of us,” Fierce said. “We have stood against danger side by side.”
“Stone and we are of the same mind. We would give our liv-”
Bonsmara shifted her hands so they grasped Stones ears and pulled him close so that her nose touched his. “I have lost loved ones to foolish, self-sacrificing heroics before. I do not care what happens to the Nightmares in there. They can burn or freeze in the depths of Tartarus, for all that I care. You are coming home with the rest of us. Mark my words, if I have to, I will knock you senseless and drag you back to Ponyville myself!”
Fierce put a paw on Bonsmara’s shoulder. “Love, let him go.”
She shook Stone’s head slightly. “I am not taking your lifeless body home to be mourned because of some idiotic sense of honor! Do you hear me, Stone?! I will not do that to Cobalt and your parents!”
Ears still in Bonsmara’s grasp, Stone slowly nodded. “We know of your nightmares over what you suffered, having enhanced and fed from many of them ourselves.” Stone reached up and gently removed Bonsmara’s hands from his ears and held them with his hooves. “We Nightmares swear we shall leave Stone and fight ourselves so that you can return him to his loved ones, if need demands.”
“We,” Candace said firmly. “We can return him. You Nightmares included.”
Still holding to Bonsmara’s hands, Stone bowed slightly to Cadance. “We it shall be then.” He released Bonsmara and walked towards the rise. “Close your eyes as you enter; doing so will negate the illusion’s influence.” He took two more steps and vanished.
“I’m next,” Grayson announced. “Every couple of seconds, someone else follow.” He untied a couple of pouches from his belt and gave them to Cadance. “Have the Guard tuck these in their armor. One stone near their chest, one near their tails. They will shield their wearers from magic.”
Cadance looked up from the bag and gave Grayson a confused look. “Why are you giving these to me now?”
Grayson grinned. “I didn’t want Stone to know that they had been passed out to the guard, in case he turns on us. Also, keep the guard out here. If we need them, we can call them in. I don’t want things to get so crowded in there that we can’t move, if things get ugly.” Grayson turned, walked towards the rise and vanished into the illusion.
“We go together.” Fierce moved to Bonsmara’s side and took her hand.
She let out a happily exasperated sigh. “Even with the world hanging in the balance, you are ever the romantic.” She walked with Fierce towards the rise and then paused. “I am going to close my eyes. If the spell affects me like flying, I do not want to enter a fight with my stomach rolling.”
He lifted her hand and kissed the back of it. “I shall be your ears, eyes, and nose.”
“Wait, stay with me for a bit longer,” Cadance said. “I have an idea and I’m going to need you two to pull it off.”
Bonsmara turned back to Cadance and raised an eyebrow. “I take it Grayson was not the only one who was planning in secret. We must make this quick and catch up to them.”
“We’ll be right behind them. Besides, those two can handle themselves and we will need a little distance between them and us for this to work.” Cadance tossed the pouch of stones to Freight, who caught it in her hooves. “Have these split up among the Guard. They act as shields against magic.”
“I heard him.” Freight opened the pouch and peered inside. “If we don’t have enough to go around, those that don’t get them will stay outside if we are called in.”
“Thank you.” Cadance turned back to the adventurers. “There is going to have to be more luck involved with this plan than I would like, but as long as we can isolate one of them, I think it might work.”
“I am intrigued,” Fierce said. “What did you have in mind?”
Cadance told them of her plan.
Fierce grinned. “Manipulative, unexpected, and wickedly clever, you could ask for nothing more of a drama, much less an attack.”
“It does sound like we will be putting on a production of sorts.” Bonsmara sighed. “It leaves much to chance, but I think we can make it work.” She turned to Puca. “You are going to linchpin in all of this. What do you think? ”
“Let’s do it,” Puca said.
“I hope that you are a quick study,” Cadance said, projecting an image into the air using her magic.
“Don’t’ worry. I’m a Changeling, being quick studies is part of what we do.”