Cimmerian's group appeared outside Freeside in a flash of light and were soon surrounded by both griffon and pony soldiers alike. Before the groups could even start to go about their business after confirming there wasn't a threat, a white and pink blur threw several full grown and armored stallions to the ground with her passing
"Cimmerian! Did you..?"
He moved one of the queen's out of her way and allowed the almost-crying mare a view of Luna, still motionless on the litter and had to move fast to catch the white alicorn as she darted forward.
"Let me go I need to-"
"She's hurt, Tia," Cimmerian said, wincing as she pressed against his injured leg. "Let us get her looked at and we'll leave you two to get caught up like you want. For now though she's been stuck in a sensory deprivation chamber for a time and I want to be careful about overloading her. No reason to cause more harm than she's already been through."
"I'll take her to the medical facilities," Celestia said a moment later. She whizzed around him and grabbed the litter in her magic, rushing off before anyone could do more than watch.
"You need to get checked out as well," Zelus told him, poking his flank right where she'd pulled the arrow from his rear. "The arrow wasn't the only injury you suffered."
"I'll get there, I want to make sure these ladies are taken care of first. Heart? Where's- that will work. Where does heart want us to put the queens?" The dark stallion asked a nearby drone.
Zelus rolled her eyes.
"I'm already talking to her about it. She has a small underground chamber that will work for now, we just need to be, damn, no Rasahus, you're fine. We're going to be forcing the changes to reverse, okay? We'll get you'll be free soon. In the meantime you can use those drones to explore the area. Just speak with Heart about any rules she's set up beforehoof. We don't want to, oh, here she is."
Cimmerian and Zelus both turned the queens to face the approaching footfalls of a dragon. It still brought a smile to his face seeing the dragon so protective of the queen that had kept him sane. Not only that, but he could smell whatever medical paste had been applied to his eye.
"Spike. How's the eye healing up?"
"It will be fully healed in time, according to Zecora. She has cautioned against using it too quickly even when it works again though. Heart has promised to seal it shut if I try anything. That or stick me in a hole in the ground until it is safe. I see you managed to find the queen's. Did you also-"
"Celestia already took her to medical. I don't think anyone should get in her way right now, she'll run them down."
Heart dropped down from the dragon's back even as Spike rumbled with laughter.
"Yes, I barely had time to move my people out of her way when she tore through the town. If I hadn't had the heads up from Zelus there may have been some injuries."
"So these are the survivors. I thought there were...right. They didn't have a focus. Just, okay. I'll see to them and give them the official welcome and rule packet. Some of the unlinked ponies are kind of nervous about this but the ones who are linked know how it feels to have your body stolen. I'm certain seeing the condition of the queens here will leave many of those who were uncertain more firmly on our side."
Heart approached the queens, first walking up to the one Zelus was still standing protectively over.
"Did you wish to be the one to link with her or-"
"You will have to do it," Zelus told her. "She's still scared of me. I don't really blame her, but after the last few weeks...it feels odd to think about how I would have acted to her presence before all of this..."
"It is a different way of living, a different way of even thinking. I'm certain she will feel better once she recovers a bit. It will also help if she sees what we have achieved here," Heart soothed. "Give her some time to adjust."
Leaning down to speak with the mare, Heart smiled kindly.
"We're going to link you to this hive so we can start reversing the changes. Then we'll get some real emotion in you, okay?"
"So that's it? Turn ourselves over once more and you'll help us?" The older queen spat. "How do we know you'll not just do the same to us? How do I know-"
"I see you're as paranoid as ever, dear Migidae," a voice called out from behind the group, calling them to turn to the sound. It was quite shocking, but Pulmonus stood tall and proud now, her body about half of Zelus' size already as she strode casually up to the mares.
"Truly, it is not as though they had to remove you from that prison and the colt does not hide his emotions. All you need to do is reach out and touch them. What his intentions are is quite clear. He wants the changelings to survive."
"I'll have nothing to do with your games, Flesh Sculpter. Mother warned me about your games, about your-"
"Your mother and sisters all invited me into their hives and tried to kill me. It has been millennia since I last attacked another queen without provocation, and not once did I use my own hive to do it. I give them all a chance, dear. Sometimes I'm even pleasantly surprised. Several of the queens who invited me to their hives were wonderful hosts. I enjoyed seeing their hives and would do what I could to well, sway the happenings of the world in their favor. A monster hunting guild getting robbed and having to pull out of an area, easing of patrols due to lack of crime or monsters, that sort of thing. I treat those who are respectful well, nymph. Those that are not get paddled."
"And by paddled you mean absolutely destroyed," Cimmerian said, raising an eyebrow.
"Well, the loss of drones doesn't strike queens equally. Some are hurt by such a loss, especially younger ones. Some don't care. That would be like Migidae here. She's laid enough clutches that she lost her connection with the drones. They just don't mean as much anymore."
"It happens, I'm afraid. Even I experienced that disconnection after my thousandth or so clutch. It's a form of insanity some queens recover from while others do not. Perhaps Zelus and Pandinus will never truly fall to it, considering their new outlook. It is something to think about in any case. Now let me see you, I can see you favoring those legs. What did you pull this time, colt?"
"How did you even get here?" Cimmerian asked the queen even as she began slowly running a hoof over his foreleg after forcing him into a sitting position. "Last I saw, you were recovering in High talon and were the size of a small foal."
"That was not the first time my body was damaged. I've done this sort of thing before and I keep caches of emotion in most high-travel areas. All I had to do was find out where it was in comparison to the changes in the city since last I'd been there."
"I can think of a friend who did something similar," Twilight chuckled, drawing a curious look from Pulmonus.
"A friend of mine tends to leaven supply caches of all sorts all over. Balls, disguises, party supplies, snacks. You name it, Pinkie has some stacked nearby."
"Pinkie, Pinkie..." Pulmonus mumbled, frowning in thought as she inspected the alicorn's injuries. "That name, I have heard it... Ah! She attempted to throw me a party when I wandered into Ponyville one day. Even had the proper number of candles on the cake which was impressive. Well, her tally was correct. She had different colors for different numbers. Most of the guests didn't understand but I found it quite impressive."
"Wait, you were in Ponyville? When?"
"Dear I don't keep track of the time anymore. It wasn't too long ago but I couldn't tell you the year. Your friend likely could though. And of course I was there. I visit all the towns now and again. I like to see how things develop. In fact the only place I don't visit is the dragon lands. They aren't very good hosts, though the dragon lord is nice enough."
"I...the Nightmare kind of took his treasure. The First Dragon Queen's Eye is in Canterlot."
"It will likely be in Minotaur hands before too long in that case. They were closing on the city last I saw and we wiped out most of the drone production. Oh, once Canterlot is clear or better yet, back in our control you're going to show me the eggs you stashed away. We'll take them to the temple and raise them there."
There were a few confused murmurs from the new queens but Twilight nodded. Pulmonus also nodded in agreement.
"I would like to see that. A few queens raised in that sort of climate and condition. They would undoubtedly grow quickly if Zelus was showing me the truth about your fountain. That I would also like to see. What about you, Migidae? How does a fountain filled with love tickle your fancy?"
"I'd see before I believed. And I will-no, stop! Put me down!"
Cimmerian chuckled as the bloated form of the angry queen, Migidae according to Pulmonus, was levitated away. The mare was flailing as much as she could manage until her bloated behind dropped an egg.
"Got it," Twilight called, causing the queens to relax.
Pulmonus nodded in thanks before looking to the other queens.
"Zelus and Heart, if you dears could grab the others we'll get them settled in and I'll work with them to begin the process of shrinking everyone back down. And you, Cimmerian, are going to follow the other alicorns and go to get those legs looked at. You have crystal slivers. Those wont heal on their own even with your alicorn anatomy and if you don't get them removed they'll start to grow in your legs due to your body’s high magic concentration. Not something you want to experience. They also become extremely difficult to remove once that starts."
The dark stallion winced but brought a hoof to his temple.
"Yes ma'am, right away."
"You laugh now but Zelus will be coming after you if you're not being seen to by the time we're finished settling the queen's in," Pulmonus warned him with a smile.
"Well, I guess that's my cue. Spike, if you could ask Hackett to either send someone to me or show up himself I'd like to let them know the full details. I really don't need crystals growing in my legs. That doesn't sound very pleasant."
<-(0)->
Cairn scowled at the chaos before him. His scouts were dead, his general was dead, even his spy was dead. The army Discord had summoned to battle him with had decimated his own, leaving the bull with only a handful of soldiers left, and at this rate...
"There's a lot to be said for a simple game of strategy, wouldn't you agree?"
The bull’s scowl deepened as Discord moved another piece on the board, using a simple scout to take his flag.
"This makes no sense, why does the flag matter? Why is it more important than the general?"
"Normally I would ask what fun is there in making sense but that would defeat the purpose of this little experience. The flag is your goal. It is your beliefs, your morale, what your army fights for. Some armies are able to continue even when leadership is lost, but when their cause is defeated? Most will fold. Why does your army fight?"
"To defeat these ponies," the bull growled. "I'm sick of them flourishing while we do not. I will-"
"Your people don't flourish because they don't change," Discord interrupted. "You still teach by oration, still train your warriors one at a time. You still have chiefs who teach their sons to rule the way they did, as their fathers did before them. You have one or two cities, true, but what do you use them for? They are mostly used as gathering places. You still have tribes that roam like the buffalo. You have foragers and hunters who can't read or write."
"Change means many things. It can be disastrous, or it can be for the best. The ponies, slow as they move, still advance; they still change. They have scientists paid by their rulers to find new spells or materials. They have soldiers that do nothing but fight, farmers who do nothing but farm. They specialize."
"Yet we crushed them. Took their city."
"No, you took an abandoned city in a shattered country. Not only that but you took it because he wanted you to," Discord chuckled. "While your army distracted the drones Cimmerian removed the queens. The source of the eggs; or did you think you and your soldiers were able to kill them all? He also ended that battle with a higher kill count than you."
Cairn grit his teeth, remembering the troops attitude even as he searched for the super weapon. It had been muted instead of the normal boasting of who had done more damage. No one could come close to the alicorn’s count after he slammed the drones into the mountain. Not even him.
“He played you like a damned fiddle, Cairn. He told you to jump and you asked how high. Your quick temper and unreasoning hatred of his race...races allowed someone around own age to manipulate you like a mastermind.”
Cairn looked to the door, his soldiers still attempting to hack through the cotton candy barrier.
“Why do you tell me these things? Why do you not destroy us like you are known to do?”
“I don't destroy people, Chief Running Water. I pester, I poke, I prod, but I don't destroy. And I never kill. Death is the realm of absolute order. When all life is gone, chaos is at its weakest.”
“As for why I talk, well, I have to mix it up every now and again. If I turned you all into frogs you’d be expecting that. In fact you’d be expecting anything in that vein. So I tried something else.”
Rising from his chair Discord opened his mouth, reached in a talon down his throat, and pulled out his spine. He stretched it out, causing a few pops before slurping it back up like a piece of spaghetti.
“Think a bit before you act. Odd coming from me I'm sure but it's not just you and I that are impacted by our actions. With the power I throw around everyone gets a taste of chaos. With you orders a country moves. It's no longer about catching daddy’s attention. If you don't you’re forever going to be dancing to the tunes others play. Why do you think Celestia stopped me not once, not twice, but three times? Because she thought ahead. Because she knew how I acted.”
“Right now you’re doing exactly as that alicorn wants. In fact if I were in your position I'd take what I wanted and leave. I wouldn't stay here a moment longer than I had to. Now I have somewhere to be. There is an adorable pair of cheeks I haven't pinched in decades and I can’t let that stand.”
Cairn frowned in thought, not even noticing the spirit’s departure. Why would Cimmerian want him to take this city? He’d...he’d cleared the drones out of the city while Cimmerian went after his own goal. In fact the alicorn had helped him take Canterlot because now there were no more drones left, not to mention the traps his people started running into. He’d lost more soldiers to the traps than the drones.
Closing his eyes in thought, Cairn tried to calm himself. It wasn't easy, not with the realization that he’d been used by the demon.
‘Why would he want us in Canterlot? The ponies wouldn't let him take down the mountain, even if it would end the threat. But what-’
“Sir? My chieftain, we have cleared the obstruction and the chaos bringer has left. What are your orders? Shall we begin our victory celebration?”
The young bull was about to give the go ahead when he stopped, his mouth hanging open. The food. They were on a mountain that the ponies used their magic to maintain. Even the gardens produced more than they were supposed to because of that magic. Without such an advantage and without the ponies bringing more food in from the countryside...
“Go ahead. We will enjoy this victory.”
Even as his lieutenants took off to begin the celebration the Minotaur ruler continued to sit on the chair the Chaos Bringer had given him. He wasn't certain what was more terrifying, the fact that he’d been so easily manipulated, or the fact that what the monster had said made sense. He was supposed to be a monster, a trickster. And yet there was no way Cairn could find a falsehood in his words.
‘Then again that would be the point. At this point none would believe him so he could tell us all our futures and none would believe him.’
Cairn hunched forward, sitting his chin on his entwined fingers. He had to learn to focus, he had to get better at holding his temper or that alicorn would be leading him around by his nose for the entire war.
“Finally taking a moment to think about your actions?”
“Leave me be, crone. I have things to think about.”
The old female slowly walked around him into his range of vision.
“I told you to be weary of that demon. I warned you about his appearance in your dream to taunt you, I warned you about his antagonizing you with such a childish way. Yet you stormed ahead and did what you like. Now the Chaos Bringer is free to decimate the countryside! We are powerful, Chief Cairn, but our affluence in magic is not even worth mentioning when compared to the power Discord wields."
“And the Demon has found favor with the Chaos Bringer,” Cairn muttered, nodding. Cimmerian’s taunting had led Cairn to Discord’s prison and had led the minotaur to believe there was something of great value inside. All of this, his greatest victories, the greatest victories of his people, turned into a deadly trap that could destroy them all if they were careless. Without the monster’s warnings...
Cairn stood from his seat and moved to the door, looking back to the crone even as he left her behind.
“Bring me all you have on the Humans and their trickery. Make certain it is in my tent by tomorrow morning. Use the Canterlot library if you must, but I need to know about these creatures.”
“And where will you be?” Ravendraft asked, irritated at his quick dismissal.
“I have to make an appearance, but after that I will be in my tent. I have things I need to check on.”
As he left, he grabbed a nearby minotaur warrior and ordered the young bull to have his tent set up in the gardens and to have his commanders meet him out there in two hours. He’d let his soldiers celebrate, but he needed information. He needed to know if the monsters words were true. He just hoped his commanders had a better grip on the situation than he did at the moment.
<-(0)->
Cimmerian winced, looking down to his bandaged legs. There were a few red spots on the bandages but most of the cuts were already healing. On the table beside him were a couple dozen magically charged splinters of crystal that even now were growing due to being soaked in alicorn blood. Most were fusing together, leaving no question as to whether or not Pulmonus was correct in her prognosis. Crystal splinters were no joke. Nor was the fact that it had turned out to not just be his legs that had needed to be checked. He was currently sitting on his side, his barrel wrapped in bandages that had similar spots from the bleeding. The doctor had demanded to check somewhere else because of how he’d landed and at first he’d almost refused but...
‘Oh god, kidney stones are scary enough,’ he thought, shivering as he remembered the last crystal sliver the doctor had removed, and from where it had been removed. Luckily he was still numb, the result of his impact against the wall and a minor concussion (again) but feeling was slowly returning to him and with it an aching pain as his body was finally able to tell him just what it thought about his ‘awesome move’ he’d copied from a show. From now on he’d do a bit more studying before trying out physics defying feats like that. Or maybe talk to an expert on the topic first.
One such expert had spent several minutes going on about how stupid he was while the doctors checked her own wings, making certain she hadn’t strained anything during her scouting flight. Rainbow Dash had sworn up and down she could have pulled the move off ‘in her sleep, with her eyes closed and blindfolded, while wrestling a dragon,’ and that she’d show him how to properly pull out of such a roll once he was done healing from his injury. Which she knew wouldn't be long, given his quick healing rate.
Zelus had also been irritated, citing the fact that she’d promised Pandinus a full list of his stupidity and injuries once they’d returned home.
He couldn't help but grin at that. The Temple really was home, and he really wished he was there right now. Din was grumpy but that was completely reasonable considering her current condition. The place was picking up, looking better every time he’d taken a tour around the area. He could even advertise the healing springs later on, though they’d have to make certain everyone followed the rules. He wasn't going to fight off the entire jungle because some idiot got it in his head to take a bottle of the water.
‘It only takes one idiot to ruin it for everyone.’
He shifted, raising his head and looking across the way. Luna was still blindfolded and had earplugs on, but Celestia was brushing her mane even as the smaller alicorn was holding onto her big sister with a death-grip. They were together and they were free. It would only be a matter of time before they began returning to their previous states. Of course he’d be asking Heart to give Luna a love-bath at some point, or even taking her to the Temple for it, but for now a bit of sisterly affection was all the two needed. That and plenty of time.
‘Time is something everything needs,’ he thought, looking to the door. The queens would heal in time. Luna would heal in time. In time, Equestria would be back in pony control. In time...in time he’d have a few kids of his own.
It wasn’t something he’d ever really thought of before he arrived in the Temple. It was something to worry about later. It was something he’d get to eventually, once he’d settled into a nice comfortable life. Now he was waiting for his wife to give birth to triplets. Not because of some cosmic lottery, but because she’d decided to be cautious and limit herself to three embryos for her first clutch. In reality she could have used more, though stars help him if the mare ever tried a larger clutch with an alicorn as a mate. She’d likely balloon up so quickly she’d be bedridden for a good portion of the pregnancy. Not that seeing a changeling get, for lack of a better word, fat, wasn't weird enough. The few chitin plates Pandinus had kept after her molt into a queen had been a little strained last he’d seen and he could only imagine it would get worse. The mare would possibly even forgo them entirely if she was even willing to go through this again.
Nodding, Cimmerian made up his mind. It would be dark back home, so at the very least some of the drones would be asleep and able to tell Din to go to sleep herself.
Finding the dream hive at the Temple wasn't that difficult, nor was it hard to find the changeling queen currently resting in her dream hive throne. The tough part was getting this far without any of the drones noticing him. He wanted this to be special. He wanted to be able to surprise his mare.
Coming up behind her, he faded out of the dream enough to slip through the walls of the hive, a large grin appearing on his face. He slipped in behind Pandinus, wrapped his hooves around her even as he altered the dream to remove the throne, and bit lightly on the back of her neck even as she squeaked in surprise. The squeak turned into a mewl, the changeling queen melting into him as he began kissing up her neck.
“Missed you,” he whispered, punctuating the statement with another kiss. “Couldn't wait until I get back to see how you’re doing.”
“I’m, oh I hate when you do this to me, I can’t actually feed on this. I’m fine, just slow. It’s frustrating but, but I think it’s worth it. I can feel, my belly feels warmer. I’m getting hungrier and hungrier for both foods as time goes on but, oh stars, I hate you so much right now.”
Cimmerian chuckled, his hooves roaming the mare’s body. It’s not like he had anywhere else to be, he just had to make sure she didn’t get a chance to return the contact. It would be hard to explain to the doctors or the others in the medical center. It may also be painful, considering his recent injury.
“You mean I can’t spend time with my favorite love bug?” he teased, nipping an ear.
Pandinus said nothing, pressing closer to him as he continued to tease her, his hoof reached her swelling belly and he slowed, pulling her tightly against his barrel.
“Canterlot’s fallen to the Minotaurs. We saved a few queens but had to put the rest down. They were gone. The arrays are done though, Din. You tell everyone that those things will soon be gone, and I'm going to be going through Equestria to make sure every single one of those things is ground into dust.”
The changeling queen purred in his grip, the odd vibration by now a familiar sensation. They sat there peacefully enjoying the time together for as long as they could manage, which for Cimmerian wasn’t nearly enough.
The stallion blinked as he was called back to his body and shaken awake. A panicked griffon hen was at his bedside, shaking him and attempting to get his attention.
“We, there’s... Outside, please, just...”
Cimmerian nodded before letting loose a yawn. Just because he had all of this magic didn’t mean he didn't need rest and with the recent mission and surgical removal of the crystal slivers he was running a bit low on energy. Nevertheless he managed to pull himself out of his bed and carefully began walking to the door, leaving behind the still-panicking nurse.
“So much for sleep,” he muttered as he found the source of the trouble. Discord had finally showed up and there were several things out of place around him. A floating crate, a pink door, a few singing apples. It didn't appear to be a focused effort however, as the Discord was much too focused on the butter-yellow pegasus he was swinging around by her impossibly stretching cheeks.
“Oh I’m so happy to see you again in the flesh, Fluttershy! It’s just been so long...well, for me it has. In fact I think it’s been a long time for everyone but the five of you. Oh the things I want, no! the things I need to show you! I took pictures of the animals like you asked.”
Discord stopped spinning and tapped a talon against his chin while holding the pegasus under his other arm.
“There were a few that I had to remove from my album of course, Shoggoths and Mind-flayers tend to not like having their pictures taken. Who knew? There were also a few creatures that tend to cause madness when a mortal looks upon them. I wonder if... Oh! Cimmerian, would you mind helping me with an experiment? You were mortal and now you’re immortal right? I want to know what happens when a relatively fresh immortal looks at a Shoggoth.”
“Shoggoths don’t cause madness on sight, Discord. They’re scary as hell but not memetically madness-inducing,” Cimmerian replied, stifling a yawn with his hoof. “Now if you had a picture of an Old God or something like that, please keep that away from me. I don’t want to spend the next several decades recovering from madness. Also, Din would try to kill you if you did that. Then she’d kill me if I volunteered, which I wont because I'm quite attached to my life and what little sanity I have left.”
“Says the stallion that flew headfirst into Canterlot Mountain,” Zelus snorted.
“Hey, I was pretty sure I'd survive! I mean, alicorns are tougher then pegasi and pegasi can survive crashes at high speeds so logically-”
“It’s fine, Zelus,” Pulmonus chuckled. “I find that the heads of young males tend to be thicker than the densest rock. It is little wonder his skull won against the mountain.”
"In all seriousness," Cimmerian said, ignoring the gasp of horror Discord made at the word, "it's good to see that you're free. Cairn and the minotaurs didn't give you any trouble?"
"Not a bit. I did have a wonderful chat with the leader while his minions were busy panicking, but after his initial panic he calmed down. I think I've given him a bit to think about as well."
Cimmerian frowned at Discord's odd words.
"What do you mean you...you told him what I did, didn't you? You actually went and explained this to him? Do you know how much more difficult it will make things in the future?"
"Oh pshaw, you have three alicorns and several changeling queens. I'm sure you'll have not trouble-"
"No, Discord, that's not the issue," Cimmerian pursued, stomping a hoof into the ground. "I don't like direct fights! If I can help it I'll never take someone head on! Why do you think I keep hitting important places? Surgical strikes! Full-scales battles are the worst possible thing for both sides. It guarantees a large loss of life and you know as well as I do that Cairn won't fight me one on one. He wants a battle, he wants there to be bloodshed!"
"He wants to prove himself," Discord countered. "He thinks the best way to do that is by becoming some glorious leader-general that will bring his race into a new age of power and prosperity. He is forgetting half of the equation though, and that's what I told him."
"That's surprisingly insightful of you," Twilight said, her muzzle scrunching up at the idea. "I'm not sure how I feel about having just said that to Discord."
"Yea, since when did you get all sappy and smart?" Dash asked, flitting up to bop him on the nose. "I mean, you're supposed to be the one who makes fun of everything and causes headaches for the rest of us."
"It's been quite a while since I last saw you all, and besides! Why would I do what everyone is expecting? When chaos is predictable, then order needs to start becoming unpredictable. And personally, I don't see Tia walking out the door over there in a clown suit. That's my shtick."
"Well depending on who you ask, some of the olden styles looked pretty clownish," Cimmerian said, frowning afterwards. "I really need to get that seal checked again."
Immediately Discord slipped right up next to him, holding the stallion's ear up and looking deep into Cimmerian's ear. He then pulled back and stuck his hand in, making the alicorn wince.
"Yea, it's been cracked," Discord said, holding up a small stone tablet with runes written on it. "Probably when you ran into the mountain."
"Magic does not work that way!" Twilight barked, her wings buzzing in irritation. "Rargh, I can't take this anymore! Goodnight!"
As the drone buzzed off in a huff, Cimmerian and Discord looked at each other.
"We found it to be funny," Cimmerian said, "Though I'd be most grateful if thou wouldst return the seal, I'm kind of feeling strange from losing it suddenly."
Discord sighed, grabbing Cimmerian's ear again and stuffing the large stone tablet back into the alicorn's head. Cimmerian's wings extended in surprise at the odd sensation but he shook it off with a quick rattle.
"Yea, that was odd. I think I can understand why you drive ponies up the wall. In small doses it's funny but after a while that would get irritating."
"Well excuse me for having a sense of humor, princess" Discord huffed, crossing his arms and leaning backwards to sit on his tail.
Cimmerian blinked, looking under his barrel before looking back up and raising an eyebrow.
"Fine, fine, excuse me prince. Better? Or maybe I could- Yes, a quick spell and-"
"It is nice to see you again, Discord, but there's just so much we need to do," Fluttershy interrupted soothingly, flying up and petting his nose. "We just have a lot to think about. After everyone's rested we can-"
"-Have a party! Oh we definitely need to do that! Luna's back now, and she's not gotten her birthday cake in sooo long so I need to make a bunch of cakes and find the candles; Dissy! You're with me, we're going to celebrate and-" Pinkie snatched the draconequus' tail in her mouth, trying to pull him to Freeside's kitchens. Or at least his tail, which started stretching from his body while the rest of him remained in place, "-den we're gunna mek eh ton'o ceks 'nd cukies 'nd Eh nee' te hear 'bout yer trip 'nd...."
"Well, I suppose that's my cue. I have some catching up to do, and even if I'm not the best cook, nobody in their right minds would miss out on getting to lick the batter out of the bowl when the cook is finished," Discord said.
With the sound of a rubber band, the rest of Discord's body snapped back to his tail and Pinkie finally stopped pulling him along, content to chatter at him as he floated along lazily beside her.
Hackett stared after the strange pair before looking to Cimmerian with no small amount of worry in his eyes.
"Can't you do anything about him?"
"Discord?" Cimmerian asked. "The hell do you want me to do about him? I'm fairly certain he's the strongest thing on the planet right now. I understand, he's weird and he doesn't think through what his magic does to others, but you guys are going to have to put up with it until he wanders off. Besides, all of this? This isn't anything focused, it's little sparks of magic that he's letting lose without thinking about. He's just excited to be around people he knows again."
"I don't like it, nor do my griffons. Aren't you alicorns supposed to be all about harmony?" Hackett shot back.
"Harmony, right. When I figure out how to be peaceful and harmonic I'll let you know. Don't hold your breath though, you'll likely die of old age before that happens."
With an shake of his head, Cimmerian looked to the four remaining mares.
"You guys don't think he'll do anything too out there, do you? I mean, this seems pretty calm considering who just walked by."
"He's just very happy," Fluttershy agreed, smiling. "It used to happen when he'd get excited about something. He sort of leaks magic when that happens. It usually only lasted a few-"
Suddenly the door behind her turned back to a plain wooden door with a pop, causing the pegasus to eep and jump several feet in the air.
"Oh my, yes. As I was saying it only lasts for a few moments once he leaves because there's no real power or focus put into it. It makes him easy to find, though. The same goes for when he's upset. Anytime I needed to find him I just followed the trail of random magic."
"Eh, Shy's right," Rainbow said, waving a hoof in the direction Pinkie and Discord had taken. "I think Pinkie does more strange stuff than Discord, though. I mean, with Discord you expect it. But an earth pony? I think it's why those two have always seemed to get along."
Nodding Cimmerian turned back to the griffon with a smirk.
"Think of it as a little practice with working past distractions or the unexpected. I don't think it gets much more unexpected than doors changing color, but it was still a door. That and as far as I can tell nothing was actually damaged. If something does get damaged just talk to him. See if he can fix it. As long as you don't snap at him or let him bait you there won't be any issues."
"I'm the commanding officer of this town, Cimmerian. I do not go up to anyone and-"
"You will ask nicely, not because it's what you need to do but because it's the proper thing to do," a voice cut in, catching the attention of those present.
"Ah, Herrick. Good to see you again," Cimmerian said with a smile. "I thought you'd be spending time in High Talon."
The griffon commander shook his head with an irritated scowl.
"The minotaurs wont talk to us anymore. I'm here to try again and see if we have to worry about them making an attempt on our own lands. I also have a few new reports to go over, mostly ponies surrendering their positions or being held until we can either link them to one of your queens or break any nearby arrays. Care to join me in the situation room? Considering your bandages, you've undoubtedly a story to tell."
'Yea, definitely not getting much sleep,' Cimmerian mentally complained, nodding and following the griffon. He'd catch up on sleep later. Likely by sleeping for a solid day.