//------------------------------// // Chapter Ten: Night Blade, Lethal Blade, Vix-Lei // Story: Picking Up the Pieces // by Evilhumour //------------------------------// Chapter Ten Night Blade “Marefriend?” two voices chorused. Night facehoofed as he realized what he’d unwittingly said. “Yes, marefriend,” he reluctantly replied. “I have been quite happily involved with somepony since that night… though given our history, I’m sure you can understand why I’ve never said anything about her before.” “Er… yes, quite,” Lethal admitted, wincing at the not-so-subtle reminder of how distant they had been with him. “But, if you don’t mind my asking… how did you meet the young lady?” “We crossed paths at the Grand Library,” Night said stiffly. “And that is all I am going to say on that matter for now. Suffice to say that she is the only pony I have ever loved, and while we’ve had some difficulties recently, she is the only pony I will ever love, regardless of what anypony else thinks about us.” “Oh.” Sweet Dagger blinked in surprise. “I…” she hesitated, then spoke again in a trembling voice. “I just want to know… does she make you happy?” “Yes,” Night replied somewhat suspiciously. “Then that is all that matters,” Lethal said, sighing. “At least somepony has been there for you, when we… weren’t,” he added regretfully. “Yes,” Night replied. “Yes, she has. And if you will excuse me, she and our other friends are waiting.” Heading back into the gym to set his towel into one of the hampers intended for that purpose, he re-buckled his sword belt and headed for the exit. “Night,” his father called. “One moment… before you go.” Steeling himself, Night turned to face his parents. “Yes?” “I-” Suddenly, Lethal paused, his eyes widening as he suddenly saw something. “Where did you get that sword?” he breathed. “I had free access to an armoury at one point during our travels,” Night replied dryly. “Fortunately, the individuals to whom it belonged was willing to let me re-arm myself, and this was the best one they had.” “Re-arm, what happened to Determined Point?” “It broke while I was fighting somepony,” Night said tilting in his head forwards. “That was how I got my scar.” “And you did this to protect your friends?” “Er, yes,” “Well then, we could not be more proud of you Night.” Lethal smiled. “Still, where did they get a Masamane blade of all things? I thought they’d all been destroyed!” “We had some help from some… ponies, who had collected a lot of rare and unusual items over the years,” Night replied. “I didn’t ask how they got it, and I don’t think the one who was there when I chose it would have told us if I had asked, given her mood at the time.” “I see.” Lethal looked somewhat troubled. “Well, I suppose we should be on our way… but your mother and I do want to know when we can see you again. And your marefriend, and the rest of your friends too - especially miss… Xvital, I think Crooked said her name was?” He sighed. “I don’t know if any of us would have realized just how badly we messed up in regards to you if she hadn’t pointed certain things out to Crooked like she did.” Night smiled faintly. “I’ll send word when I’m ready,” he said. “But when the time comes, I would advise you to expect the unexpected. My friends and I are, shall we say... anything but normal.” “That’s fine by us,” Sweet said, smiling back. Night nodded, then headed for the door. The skies had cleared somewhat, and as he looked out, he took a deep breath. Then he spread his wings and flew. Lethal Blade Watching his youngest fly off, Lethal sighed. “Well, that didn’t go entirely as expected,” he admitted. “No, it didn’t,” Sweet replied. She looked up wistfully. “To think, our youngest has been in a relationship all this time and we never knew it…” “You’re right,” Lethal agreed. “But more than that… he’s grown up, and we never saw any of it.” He pawed the floor somewhat nervously. Sweet looked somewhat dismayed. “At least he’s willing to actually hear us out now,” she finally said. “And is willing to give us a second chance.” “Yes,” Lethal replied. Then he looked at her. “We should get going,” he said reluctantly. “And I hope that when Night does contact us again, that we do not mess things up as badly as we did before.” Sweet nodded. There was nothing more she could say. Vix-Lei In front of a highly fortified embassy, four minotaurs stood on the steps. "Good to see you again, big sis," Herakles said as he clapped Vix-Lei on the back. "And great party too, up until those batponies turned up and got Night all upset." "Yeah," Vix-Lei sighed. "At least he was in a better mood when he went out." She shrugged. "Well, take care of yourselves, guys." "And you too," Herakles said. "By the way, thanks for coming back here with us. I-" "Hold it," Argus interrupted. "We're about to have company." Maybe ten seconds later, the door to the embassy opened, and a tall minotaur with a graying mane looked down at them. "Boys. Vix-Lei." "Dad!" Vix-Lei exclaimed. "I'm so glad to see you!" Shipmaster Petros smiled faintly. "Under the circumstances, so am I," he said. "Especially given what I've seen in the newspapers and what your brothers told me what you told them about the king." He gave her a look. "I was also informed that your style of humor has improved." Vix-Lei gave the trio a glance, and they backed off, Herakles holding up his hands. "I just repeated what you told us before, about what you'd learned while you were gone," he explained. "Yeah." Vix-Lei let out a sigh. "And believe me, I am sorry for all the trouble my jokes probably caused you over the years." "You're forgiven," Petros replied. "But besides that, it is good to see you alive and healthy." Vix-Lei blushed. "Yeah..." "Although I also see your flying skills are just as wild as always." "Dad..." Vix-Lei groaned. "Is everytaur who saw that article going to comment on my flying?" "Probably," Eusebios remarked. "I know Mom had some choice words when she saw the article... but that was more about your shirt, or lack thereof." Vix-Lei snapped her fingers. "I knew I was forgetting something today..." She glanced at them. "In all seriousness, I am going to update my wardrobe as soon as I can," she said. "Now if only I could find something like that one outfit I had for a while..." "You know, you mentioned that before you went to fight that monster possessing the king," Herakles said. "I'm still waiting to hear that story." "It's... complicated," Vix-Lei said. "Short version, the six of us went through a magic mirror into another dimension that changed our species and gave us all new clothes. Unfortunately, we didn't get to keep the outfits when we came back and returned to our normal forms." "Indeed." Petros raised an eyebrow. "Perhaps you could explain more about this... other dimension, and your new friends, inside." "Normally, I'd say yes," Vix-Lei replied. "But it's late, and I really do need to get back to the hotel, preferably before Night gets back." Petros regarded her. "I can accept that," he said. "Very well then. And we shall see you again soon... all of us." Vix-Lei's eyes widened. "You mean..." "If you don't want to upset your mother, I advise you to pick up your new wardrobe tomorrow and no later." Vix-Lei winced. "Understood, Dad." She turned to her brothers. "It's been good seeing you again, but I need to run." "Take care, sis," the trio chorused. Vix-Lei nodded, then turned and headed off, whistling to herself as she walked back to the hotel, walking past ponies while twirling the umbrella she had. She was half listening to what everytaur was saying, eyes closed when she froze as she recognized one voice out of the crowd of ponies milling around. “Hey, don’t I know you?” Vix-Lei pointed to a mare with a light grey coat with a dark red mane, with all of them turning to face her. There was some quick whispering between them, with the very familiar being barked at by the others before they pushed her forwards. “Yeah yeah, I’ll deal with it,” the mare grumbled, shooting looks past Vix-Lei. “Can’t believe they’re not actually here; Grey Hoof will give them the riot act if I don’t.” “Wait a minute!” Vix-Lei shouted, snapping her fingers. “Now I rememb-” that was as far as she got before the mare grew a horn and a green aura slapped over her mouth. “Do you mind‽” the mare hissed with the other ponies glaring at Vix-Lei and… Metal Shell? Ruby something or other? “I am trying to do my job here.” “Is everything okay, Lieutenant?” a pony from her group asked in a hushed tone, shooting looks at Vix-Lei. “Except for the fact that neither Brown Stone, Roving Wood or Fine Tip are watching over our VIPs at the moment and Bad Driver is attracting unwanted attention to the mission.” “Wait, Bad Drive-” Vix-Lei began before the mare hissed at her and Vix-Lei lowered her voice. “Sorry Mitty or Ruby or whatever your name is, just curious to what’s up and all.” “Look, Vix-” “Lieutenant, is everything okay or will you need to step aside to deal with this matter?” another pony asked, causing half of the crowd to glare at the other half. “Watch your tone,” the mare snapped back. “I am the ranking officer here for this mission. We will begin as soon as I have sent her back to the safehouse where she should be staying put.” “Well Night went ou-” Vix-Lei caught herself before she went on further and got Night in trouble. “Notaur complained when we went out earlier today,” she muttered under her breath. “So, some sort of secret mission with the Royal Guards and yours?” she asked, adding a bit more volume so the mare would hear her as she made what she thought was a reasonable guess. “If it will get you moving along and if you can promise to keep your mouth shut, we are doing a series of synchronized raids,” the mare - Lieutenant whatever-her-name-was - hissed. “Unfortunately, our Captain still hasn’t shown up, and he was supposed to be here by now, especially since he likes going into uncharted places and plunging around for hidden treasure. Which in this case means evidence.” “Evidence of what?” Vix-Lei asked quietly. “Wrongdoing,” the nymph shot back. “Now that my tribe has been pardoned, we’ve been investigating some other organizations for corruption with help of the Royal Guards, and checking to see if that… thing you and the others fought was possibly manipulating their actions too.” She lowered her voice even more. “Like Drunk’s people - there’ve been some suspicions about their treatment for a long time, but until recently, we weren’t allowed to seriously look into it. Which is just one of the reasons we were so suspicious.” “Right.” Vix-Lei nodded, while inwardly cringing at what had to be their codename for Wind Breaker. “With what I’ve heard about them, I don’t blame you. So I’ll let you get to that then.” “What were you doing out here, anyway?” the mare questioned, looking genuinely curious now. “Especially this late at night.” “I was on my way back from walking my brothers over to the embassy,” Vix-Lei said. “It’s been a long time, I wanted to catch up with them some more when I had the chance.” The nymph nodded. “Understandable. But now you need to get back to the safehouse.” Vix-Lei saluted. “Aye-aye, lieutenant… er…” The mare rolled her eyes. “Ruby Shell. Or Mitta. I answer to either.” “Gotcha.” Vix-Lei nodded. “Enjoy your evening, ma’am.” “I’m too young to be a ma’am,” Ruby shot back good-naturedly. “I gotcha.” Vix-Lei tipped her umbrella to the mare, then headed on her way. About ten minutes later, Vix-Lei arrived back at the hotel entrance, and sighed. Then she froze as she saw something swooping down, only to breathe a sigh of relief when she recognized it. "Good evening, Vix-Lei," Night Blade said as he landed and shook his coat out. "What brings you out here at this time of night?" "I just got back here, actually," Vix-Lei replied. "After we finished with the clean-up, my brothers needed to get back to the embassy for the night, and I went with them so we'd have a little more time to chat on the way." She smiled. "Even got to say hi to my Dad for the first time since I left home." Then she blinked for a moment and winced. "Oh... sorry about that." She sighed. "I swear, I'm trying to not be insensitive, but old habits die hard and sometimes it just slips out." "It's not a problem," Night Blade replied. "In fact, I... well, I ran into my parents while I was out, and... we had something of a reconciliation." "Really!" Vix-Lei smiled. "That's great, I hope." "It's... complicated," Night Blade sighed. "For so long, we've been estranged, and now... now they actually seem to care." He looked at her. "I will admit, for a time I felt as if it would be so much easier for me to not care... but Crooked, and Xvital, were right. This might be the only chance I have to... repair our relationship." Vix-Lei nodded. "I can understand that," she said. "Dad did get annoyed at me a lot if I acted up, but we were never as bad as you and your folks. Not even when..." She shuddered. "Well. A story for another time. But even with all the tension between us, we always knew we loved one another." She sighed again. "Of course, eventually I decided I really needed to get away, to give him a break from all the stress I knew I'd caused him. That's part of why I came here the first time, even if I'd convinced myself it was because I needed to get away from 'taurs who didn't get my jokes." Night Blade raised an eyebrow. "I see..." "So!" Vix-Lei clapped her hands together. "We should probably go upstairs now... Page is waiting for all of us - and just the six of us - to be there so she can talk about what happened at the library this morning." Night looked at her curiously. "Yes, I remember her saying something about meeting with the king and the Captain General..." "Yeah." Vix-Lei nodded. "Apparently they showed up separately and were asking her about... different stuff that was somewhat related, but that's all any of us got from her." "Very well then." Night Blade went to the door and opened it, then gestured with one wing. "After you, my lady." "Like I said to Rex earlier, I'm no lady," Vix-Lei snorted good-naturedly. "But thank you." She entered, Night Blade following her. When the two had made their way back to their suite, Page looked up at them in relief, then hurriedly activated the soundproofing wards she and Rex had prepared before. When she was certain they were steady, she turned to Night. "How are you?" she asked him. "Surprisingly better," Night Blade replied. "As I told Vix-Lei when we met outside, I have had something of a reconciliation with my parents..." Page smiled brightly. "That's wonderful!" "Yes," Night said. "And... I... accidentally told them about you." Page gave him a look. "You what?" Her voice was dangerously low. Night ducked his head. "I... er... happened to mention your name, and when they asked me, I said you were my marefriend." Page's face softened. "Oh." "But I did not give any personal details about you, other than that I met you at the library soon after... then." Night looked at her. "And that you make me very happy." Nearby, Xvital winced. “Um…” Night Blade gave her a look. “Yes?” The ahuizotless looked very nervous. “Er… I'm really sorry, but as long as we're getting things out in the open... I accidentally told your brother about her earlier, when we were out. It was pretty much the same as what you told your folks!” she added hurriedly. “I mentioned her name and that she'd told us about the relationship you had with them, and when he asked how she knew, I kind of blurted out that she'd been your marefriend for a long time." She ducked her head. "It wasn't on purpose, I swear, and I really should have told you sooner, but… well, last time we talked, I didn’t even think about it, and I am sorry about that." Night gave her a look, then shook his head and sighed. "I suppose it doesn’t matter now,” he said in a resigned tone. “And even then, if my parents' reaction to the news was anything to go by, he hadn't shared her name or our relationship with them... yet, at least." Page nodded. "They were going to find out eventually," she said with a sigh. “Especially with one piece of news that I have.” "What might that be?" Rex remarked from where he was sitting. Page shifted in her seat. "The main reason I went to the library today," she began, "Was to reconnect with the Head Matron. Hush Tone has been more of a mother to me than my birth mother ever was, and... well, she forgave me for keeping my true identity a secret all these years... but she wants to meet you and your parents for a dinner date at some point." Night Blade looked surprised. "Really?" "I'll confirm that," Wind Breaker said from his own seat. “She was really interested in getting to meet your folks.” "Of course." Night drew in a deep breath, then gazed at her. "And now, I believe you said you had meetings with both the King and the Captain General today?" Page nodded. "King Well Banded believes I know how to reach our Queen." She snorted. "Of course, he has no idea of her name, let alone where to find her... but he claims that he wants to contact her about setting up reeducation centers to help my kind accept the fact that they're not criminals just because of their Tribe and because of what Chrysalis-" she practically spat the name - "did, and to help rebuild their confidence in themselves." Rex sat up straight. "Now that is certainly a worthy goal," he said. "Though I must admit, I question his motives." Page nodded. "I'm a little suspicious too," she said. "On the outside, it certainly sounds like he means well, but..." she shuddered. "He was broadcasting his emotions, and I can't help but think he has an ulterior motive with all of this." "He's a politician," Vix-Lei said with a wave of one hand. "In my experience, they all have ulterior motives of some kind, even if it's just to try and win a little more prestige and voter support for themselves." "With my own experience, I’d say you’re right," Night replied. Page nodded. "The other thing is... when I met with Gentle Step afterward?" She took a deep breath. "She... figured out I was the Queen." Four individuals immediately sat bolt upright in their seats, Vix-Lei noting that only Wind Breaker had remained calm and guessing he must have already known. However, the others were anything but. "She what‽" Night Blade hissed. "She knows who I am," Page said quietly. "And she has promised to keep it a secret. I felt her emotions, I believe she'll keep her promise." Still tense, Night Blade lowered himself somewhat. "How did she figure it out?" he asked. "She... erm." Page looked at Wind Breaker. "She came in asking about Memorizing Gaze and his relationship with the Changeling Queen," Wind Breaker said, and shook his head. "When Page was able to tell her why the Queen had no interest in him that way, she accidentally said I. Gentle Step figured it out from there." Rex frowned. "So now eight of us know the truth," he said. "Plus the rest of the Hive." "Nine," Page corrected him. "I told Matron Hush Tone the truth about me… all the truth." She hung her head. "And it's time you all knew too." "We already know you're a Changeling and the Queen," Vix-Lei said with a shrug. "What more could there be?" "My complete ancestry," Page said softly. "I've told you some of this before, in Fluttershy's cottage while Night was away, and you all may or may not have figured out the rest from what the Nightmare and I were saying during our fight. Wind Breaker knows the whole thing already, since he was there when I told the Matron today, but I need all of you to know it too." Night regarded her. "What is it?" Page drew in a deep breath, then exhaled, trying to calm herself. "As most of you know, I was given the name Page Turner by the Matron when she found me and took me in,” she started. “But when I was born, I was given the name Lamella Armor the Tenth, by my birth mother, the Queen before me… Lamella Armor the Ninth." Rex nodded. "I remember that name," he said. "And I must say, Lamella is rather appropriate… it’s also the name for the blade-like scales like those that cover the wings of a moth or butterfly," he added, glancing around at the others. "That's exactly right," Page said with a nod and a faint smile. "And I'm guessing another few generations back, there was a Lamella Armor the First," Vix-Lei said. She thought for a moment. "And I'm also guessing her parents are the important ones." "You're absolutely right," Page replied. "Lamella Armor the First... her parents..." she curled her lip in disgust. "One of them was an honorable stallion. The other was a horrible, despicable creature, and even with what the Nightmare told me about how it sent those dreams to her, I don't know as I can ever bring myself to forgive her for what she did." Rex's eyes widened, and Vix-Lei knew he'd figured it out. She had a pretty good idea herself, but kept quiet. "My ancestor... my great-great-great-great-great-great-great-great grandmother... was Queen Chrysalis herself," Page said. Four sets of eyes shot wide open, but they calmed down quickly. Rex, Vix-Lei noticed, was the first to do so. She wondered if anything, besides that Manechurian Dragon they'd run into (and with what he’d told them about it while Night was unconscious, she couldn’t blame him), would phase him for more than a moment. "And my other ancestor, the stallion she tricked into bed with her by disguising herself as his fiancee..." Page sighed. "Even on his worst day, my great-great-great-great-great-great-great-great grandfather Shining Armor was a far better pony than she ever was." Hearing the name, Vix-Lei let out a whistle. "Even in the Minos Islands, his use of magical shields is legendary. With a bloodline like that, no wonder you prefer using ‘em in battle," she said. Wind Breaker gave her a look. "You know, that's about what I said when I found out," he told her. “Just goes to show, great minds think alike, buddy.” Vix-Lei gave him a friendly grin, which he returned. Night Blade, meanwhile, was staring somewhat dumbstruck. "So that's it," he finally said. "Descended from a great hero... and from a great villain." "I am," Page replied. "And... there's one more thing." "What is it now?" Xvital asked, leaning in close. "Shining Armor," Page paused. "My grandfather, generations removed, wasn't an only child. He had a younger sister, a unicorn like him. She'd be my many-times great-aunt. And her name... was Twilight Sparkle." That did it. Xvital practically shot out of her seat. "Twilight Sparkle‽" she sputtered. "As in... as in the Magi of Stars‽" Page nodded. Xvital stared at her. "Well, that certainly puts a new wrinkle in things," she muttered. "I wonder if she ever knew you were related to her." Page smiled sadly. "Her friends certainly did," she replied. "They did?" Vix-Lei looked interested. "How do you know?" "Because," Page replied. "When we were... almost all in Elysium together, with five of the Virtues and our friends from Canterlot High, Fluttershy told me something important. Something I’ve kept to myself until now." "What did she say?" Wind Breaker asked. "She said, and I quote, "We don't blame you in the least for what your ancestor did to us. She's paying for her crimes, and you're nothing like her."" Page sighed. "I've always had my doubts about myself, but to hear that from somepony like Fluttershy, one of the heroes I looked up to, one of the ponies who died because of what Chrysalis did? It meant a lot to me." "She was absolutely right," Wind Breaker said quietly. "You are nothing like Chrysalis... and I know Shining Armor and his sister would be proud of you." Page smiled at him. Night Blade regarded her. "Honesty may not be my Element," he said. "But I will agree with Wind Breaker. Shining Armor and Twilight Sparkle would be proud of you." Page blushed. For a moment, nobody said anything. Then Vix-Lei coughed. “Erm. So, I know I’ve got plans for tomorrow, but what are the rest of you doing?” Night Blade raised an eyebrow. “Nothing in particular on my part,” he said. “Why, what are you doing?” “Well…” Vix-Lei winced. “Let’s just say you’re not the only one who’s going to be meeting with both of their parents. When I dropped my brothers off at the embassy earlier tonight, I ran into my Dad… and he told me that Mom and the rest of my brothers are all coming here to Canterlot soon. Which means I need to get some actual clothes before they get here - Mom will freak if I’m not wearing a shirt when she’s here, and I do want to get some actual pants again.” She sighed. “Still wish I could have kept the ones from the other side.” Rex patted her hand. “I’ll come with you,” he said reassuringly. “I briefly spent time with Rarity so I might be of some assistance.” The diamond dog then grinned and tilted his head. “And besides, I am the only one of our friends that actually wears clothes.” Vix-Lei snorted at this, shaking her head. “So what are the rest of your guys plans?” “I’m going to the Cuanmiztl embassy to try and see Tizoc,” Xvital said with a smile on her face. “We need to talk about certain things, like when we’re going to get married and stuff.” She blushed as she said this, rubbing her arm. “Well don’t worry about getting ba-” Page began before Vix-Lei pushed herself upright. “Dibs on maid of honour!” the minotaur shouted with Page give her a stink eye. “I wanted to be her maid of honour,” Page muttered before rolling her eyes. “As I was saying, don’t worry about getting back late. I am heading back to the library as I have…” Page trailed off and seemed nervous. She reached over to grab Night’s hoof for support before she continued. “I need- I have to-” “Page, stop, you’re getting flummoxed,” Night said soothingly, rubbing her back with the changeling taking deep breaths before she started to speak again. “Thank you Night,” she kissed his cheek before she looked at them. “I have to go and perform special spells for my hive. I need to turn the elders into the Sages of the Past which shouldn’t be too much of an issue but the Hivemind,” Page trailed off again, looking even more nervous and even guilty now. “For that… to recreate the Hivemind, I will need to do it to the young. Very young.” Page dipped her head low, her ears flat across her head. “A number of mothers have already promised me several of their newborn children so I can recreate the Hivemind.” Everyone was silent in the room as the full weight of what Page was trying to say began to sink in with everyone sharing looks. Night leaned over and hugged her, with everyone else leaning in to comfort her. “If you want,” Xvital began as she pulled back. “I could always put off seeing Tizoc if you want more supp-” “No!” Page shouted, her fangs snapping at the ahuizotless before the mare shook her head. “I’m sorry, but no Xvital, you should go see him if you can. I’ll have Night and Wind Breaker for support.” “If you are sure,” Rex said while staring into her eyes. “Then we have our plans for tomorrow.” Everyone nodded their heads with Vix-Lei clapping her hands. “Then it’s settled!” Vix-Lei said as she pulled Rex in tight. “We’re going shopping tomorrow!” “I suddenly feel a great sense of dread in my decision,” Rex said in a completely flat voice with everyone laughing.