//------------------------------// // Fifth Chapter // Story: Horse of Cards // by Midnight Ice Cream //------------------------------// Fifth Chapter We should certainly give Queen Chrysalis a nice warm welcome This chapter begins immediately after its predecessor Sparkling Soda Shit! Shit! Shit! Shit! Shit! Shit! FUCK! I daren’t look up! The changelings! They blasted Princess Luna off her stool! Is she dead? I sit under the bar hugging myself, and whimpering. I knew it! I knew it! They’re back! We’re doomed! We’re all so fucking doomed! I saw Twilight go down earlier. She passed out drunk! It’s all my fault! It’s all my fault! “FORM DEFENSIVE LINE!” I hear a familiar pony shouting. “SPEAR WALL FORMATION!” Earthheart! “ALL PEGASI ON THE GROUND! THEY HAVE THE SKY COVERED! ANY CIVILIANS GET BEHIND THE LINE!” Should I? No! Yes! I pant heavily. They might spot me. But if I run, I’ll be caught. No. I hate myself for this, but I can’t. The sounds of what’s going on are reason enough. How would I be safer over there? They haven’t spotted me. I try to be as quiet as I can, as I hold myself against the wooden paneling of the bar, resting next to a barrel of something. We’re so fucked. Lieutenant Sunshine Earthheart: 1st Regiment of Royal Unicorn Guards Good. Just as planned. I hold a line of six of my best guards in one corner of the room as well as Flash Sentry, along with Applejack and Rainbow Dash, who smash anything that comes near them. Our formation holds strong against anything that gets anywhere near. Behind us Rarity, Pinkie Pie and Twilight Sparkle are reaping the benefits of their debauchery as they are unable to even witness the events that are unfolding. Admirable in a way. As for Chrysalis herself, she is too busy fighting Princess Celestia, it gives me everything I need. To her credit she managed it well. She came in disguised as a giant sculpture of an alicorn, a wonderful gift from the artists of Zebraland. A marvelous trick, one can’t help but admire the creature. “Where’s Fluttershy?!” Demands Rainbow Dash. Could they make this any easier? I hadn’t anticipated my plan would work like clockwork. I stab a cocky changeling, who thought he could get away with making an attack. “She went to the train station, to see the animals.” I say, in a voice that is urgent but composed. “I’ve got to get her!” Applejack cries “No! We can’t go losing you too!” “And just leave Fluttershy? Not on my watch! I’m not having her used for them to feed!” “I agree.” I add. “If one of us can wake up Rarity, Pinkie Pie and Princess Twilight, you will be able to use the Elements of Harmony to banish them.” “I’ll go!” Flash Sentry volunteers heroically. “I can get some of my boys over to help out too. They probably didn’t know what hit ‘em.” “Yes Sir! I’ll hold out here Sir!” “Thanks Earthheart. I’m sorry I’ve ever insulted you. You’re a good soldier.” “Thank you Sir. But enough of that. The sooner you get her the better. Princess Celestia won’t be able to last much longer.” “Alright, cover my back! If you can!” Rainbow Dash flies off at full speed tailed by the incompetent fool I call a captain. It’s almost laughable how easily this is going my way. Doubtless he’s buggered. “C’mon now! Hold the line!” Applejack yells to encourage us. “We need to wake up everypony.” I say. “Ah know! But how?” I stick another changeling. By now they’re just trying to block us off. They’re going to make it as difficult as possible for Dash to get back. Suddenly I’m pressed down by one of the other guard. Just as a blast from the fight with Chrysalis tears open the wall behind me. Suddenly a changeling appears behind the crack, grabs Twilight Sparkle and tears her away from us through the ruined wall. “This might lose me my job, but protect that line!” They like it when you risk everything for them. Gives one a certain honourable, if brash appeal. I hold my spear tighter and leap over the wall. “HOLD THE LINE!” I order. Twilight, who suddenly wakes up realises her situation. She struggles for a moment, giving me enough time to stab the changeling. “Your Highness, get behind us now!” Princess Twilight looks dazed. But she quickly grasps the situation. Without a word she runs straight behind our thin circle of ponies. “You have to wake everypony up Ma’am!” The useful thing about having woken up the element of magic, is that she’ll have the ability to wake everypony else. Did I mention this was all too easy? She does just that, and within a minute we’re battling the ever increasing changeling horde across the room. At this point the changelings are getting desperate. Anything to shield Chrysalis from our attacks is welcome. But we are soon given a stalemate when Chrysalis finally knocks out Celestia. I suppose, that’s almost a challenge. If she’d have failed, then I’d be one fool. At this point there are plenty of changelings for her to sacrifice to block her from Twilight’s spells. They could carry on sparring like this for hours. There’s something incredibly therapeutic about murdering changelings on mass. Now don’t give me a look like that. That’s me just being soldierly. They are the enemy and they are in the way. It doesn’t take very long for a stern faced Rainbow Dash to fly in carrying Fluttershy in her front legs. So bloody predictable. Now here comes the rainbow magic to banish them. As I expected. They blast the changelings away. Now for the final act of this scene. I walk up to Rainbow Dash. “Where’s The Captain?” I demand sternly. She looks sadly at me. “He, he, he didn’t make it. He wouldn’t let them take him.” This day has been just perfect. Naturally I did plan for him surviving too. If he had survived, then I could probably gain the captaincy through favour or friendship. Equestria has many flaws but heroes are always rewarded aren’t they? Now all I have to do is a bit of sobbing, show some remorse, make sure everypony is okay, and then I should become captain. I very much doubt that they’ll deny me that. Did you honestly think I’d let the changelings win? If I’d have thought that for a single moment, I’d not have let them make their attack. I could tell they were desperate, coupled with Queen Chrysalis’s ego, it was a easy to get their attack to go just as I’d planned. If anything, I increased our chances of victory. Now I did say earlier that I did this entirely out of my duty to Equestria, and I stand by that. There’s only so much I can do with my current rank. Our kingdom has become decadent, and it seems as if every year or so we are threatened by some evil taking advantage of our failures. We are able to hold now because of the elements of harmony, but it is a desperate last line of defense. I demonstrated this day, that if you remove one them our entire kingdom is lost. No more. As Captain I’ll do my job properly, I’ll make sure that Equestria is safe. I’ll halt the decline of our empire as best I can. This day I did my duty, my patriotic duty. If you still have moral qualms about my methods, get rid of them now. Grind them under your hooves like old cigar buts. Judge me all you like for what I did here, you may think it evil, you may think it wrong. I dare say you’re right. All I ask you to do is judge if or not it was necessary. For that judge what I am able to achieve with it. Then it is for you to decide if I am in the right. Sparkling Soda It’s quiet, I think it’s safe. I take a quick peek. It’s fine, well considering there’s no changelings. But the place is ruined. Broken glass everywhere, smashed bottles. I can feel a cold night breeze coming from what was once a window. But it’s fine. I’m alive. Fallen changelings litter the floor, injured ponies are leaving the area. Their mangled armour, so battered that it offers no protection barely stays on their body. Some ponies vomit, others just sit there tired. Taking in all that’s happened. I breathe the heaviest sigh of relief I can remember, and scan the ponies. All three Princesses are being tended to by medics and Guardsstallions. Earthheart is standing stoically talking to the other Elements of Harmony before nodding and marching quickly away probably to do his job. What a hero. I run towards the pony, and hug him. That’s when I let the floodgates open. I cry into him, and he comforts me. “Thank you” I whimper. “I did my duty.” He mumbles back to me. “I did my duty.” I’m glad he’s willing to admit that now. “Thank you.”