Chapter Four: Sound and Fury and Storm
~BlackRoseRaven
Twilight's conversation with Princess Celestia didn't really go anywhere: while Spike was left in his quarters – locked, really, in the beautiful room, with all the food and entertainment he could ask for – she was escorted up to Princess Celestia's quarters to give a quick report to the Princess of the Sun. But before she could voice too many of her concerns, she was shown out, and escorted back to her room.
Princess Celestia had been encouraging, excited, happy... and too busy for her, again explaining that the less Twilight knew right now, the less danger she would be in.
Twilight Sparkle loved her mentor like a mother, and believed in her with every fiber of her being.
But oh, how she hated to be kept in the dark.
The next day, Twilight decided to take the morning to do more research and calculations. She pored over every bit of information available to her, studying all the measurements and results of the multitude of tests they had run after Spike had accidentally figured out-
'Accidentally' figured out. That was some turn of phrase. It wasn't like you ever figured out much on purpose, after all.
Twilight shook her head with a sigh as she rubbed tiredly at her face. Flash had been nice enough to take Spike out for the morning, at least, to bring him down to the little shop on the other side of Canterlot Castle. It was a kitschy little gift shop, but it at least had some of those comic books he liked. Or that Flash liked and Spike went along with, she wasn't sure sometimes.
She hoped that he was enjoying the time out. She hoped that this would all be over soon, and that they would find the solution, and Lord Black would just... go away.
Hopes, fragile, and simple, and shattered by the terrible explosions that ripped through the castle, shaking the unicorn out of her chair and a scatter of dust from the ceiling, before she screamed and shoved herself away on reflex as something massive tore through the wall, hammering through the floor nearby with enough force to knock her rolling sideways.
The whole castle shook as Twilight gasped and stumbled, looking wildly back and forth before she felt strong hooves grab her and steady her, Ritz Blitz helping her up to her hooves as he shouted: “Come on, we gotta get you out of here!”
“What's happening? What's going on?” Twilight shouted in panic, but her mind was already going a thousand miles a minute, running through every possible probability as she stumbled after the Royal Guard, feeling him tethering their bodies together with magic: she locked the tether with her own, letting them steady each other with magic even at a distance, helping their stumbling canter down the shaking halls. “Black?”
“I don't know, ma'am, we just need to get you out of here!” Blitz replied sharply as they staggered around a corner, hooves crunching through the broken glass of the windows that littered the hallway. Ritz turned, looked back at her, opened his mouth-
His face dissolved in bright light.
Sound and fury, and weightlessness.
She was flying.
She was falling.
Twilight hit the ground, and the pain snapped her back to reality as she screamed and bucked helplessly on her back, kicking uselessly at the air before she rolled onto her side, gasping hard. The magic that had protected her sparked out of existence around her body as she panted on the ground for a moment before she shrieked as stone and brick crashed down in a hail around her head, scrambling backwards and shoving herself up to her hooves, then backing away as her eyes widened in horror, watching as part of the castle crumbled, dust and fire and shrapnel belching out of the castle-
“No! Blitz!” Twilight screamed, but it was useless, as embers and broken stone tumbled down in an avalanche, crashing to the ground only feet away from her.
She trembled, then looked sharply to the side as she heard something massive boom through the air. And her jaw dropped at the sight of the immense airship she saw, hovering over Canterlot like a great, impossible predator, a massive hoof of floating death.
She saw flashes, and heard shattering glass and stone as massive cannons strafed back and forth over the front of Canterlot Castle, tearing apart the ancient architecture like it was nothing but a paper mache model. Twilight cried out, stumbling around the side of the castle, staggering haphazardly to the front, where a gaping, gawking crowd had already gathered.
She heard shouting. Screaming. But no one was listening at this point, Twilight barely aware of the ponies shoving back and forth around her before her eyes widened ,and she spun around, staring sightlessly at the battered face of Canterlot Castle for a moment before she leapt into a charge, bolting straight for the main gates.
She darted and shoved past guards and fleeing ponies alike, leaping into the main hall of the castle, screaming a name: “Spike!”
He was at the gift shop. Far wing of the castle.
A soldier tried to approach her through the crowd surging around her, and she leapt away from him and bolted to the nearest staircase, leaping up the steps and taking a side passage, swearing as explosions rocked the structure. She stumbled and narrowly caught herself, then rushed down the hall before she flinched backwards in shock as something enormous slammed through the wall in front of her, blockading the entire corridor.
She had a moment to realize it was some kind of metal pod before a hidden door slid open with a gush of air, and something that had four hooves and a black coat and a white mane and a ragged, jagged horn leapt out. Something that was equine, but not at all pony, dressed in combat armor, immediately stepping towards her and raising some kind of weapon-
The stock of the rifle slammed into Twilight's neck, and she crumpled with a gasp before she tried to scream when a hoof stomped down on her, electricity surging violently through her body. She lost control of her muscles and her bladder, shuddering violently before she went limp, trembling helplessly in the rubble of the hallway as the soldier said coldly: “Ingress successful. Executing mission.”
“Good.” said a cold voice, speaking through the visor-thing the... the creature was wearing. Twilight couldn't move, and her whole body hurt, but she could hear perfectly well as a calm, crisp voice ordered: “You have your orders. Retrieve the artifact, then extract immediately.”
“Yes, sir. Move out!” barked the creature, and Twilight trembled as she fought to pick herself up, to say, to do something, anything...
But they were already gone: they were not ponies, no, Twilight was correct about that, but rather they were Kirin. They were all strikingly similar, with rubbery black coats and thick white manes, a genericness further exacerbated by the extremely similar armor they all wore, and the equipment they carried: heavy assault rifles that floated at their sides as they sprinted in single file down the hallway, following their commander, who in turn followed the readings on the visor that covered his eyes.
Several shocked Royal Guard stumbled into their path, but the Kirin plowed into them like a train: one soldier was knocked unconscious immediately as his head was almost put through the wall, and the remaining were both driven to the ground and electrified into submission.
The Kirin continued on, pushing through the rubble-strewn hallway and ignoring the civilians that fled and ducked away from them until they reached the vault where the core had been secured. Two stepped forwards as the remaining three stationed themselves in guard positions.
The two Kirin in front of the door produced chemicals and strange, hoof-held instruments from their equipment satchels, one applying what looked like some kind of chemical to the hinges, while the other activated a tiny but deadly blowtorch, the visor over his eyes tinting almost black as he leaned in and began to cut slowly through the locking mechanism. They worked fearlessly and efficiently, even when one of the Kirin shouted: “Detecting hostiles! Six!”
“Stay cold! Neutralize!” ordered the commander as he joined the other soldier: as Royal Guard rounded the corner ahead, both he and the other soldier opened fire with their assault rifles, and the Royal Guard howled in agony as charged metal bearings pummeled their bodies, sending up great flashes of electricity.
Several of the Royal Guard collapsed: two of them returned fire with magic, but the commander barely grimaced even as bolt of arcane energy bounced off his armor, which gleamed eerily for a moment.
“Boomer.” ordered the commander, and the other Kirin nodded curtly as he ducked back behind the cover of one of the supports that lined the wall, producing a cylinder from one of his equipment packs that he loaded into the launcher attached to the bottom of the rifle. Then he quickly swiveled out and fired straight down the middle of the hall.
The projectile exploded in a concussive bass-wave of sound: the one soldier that wasn't knocked in a stunned heap from the blast staggered backwards, then vomited helplessly before he fell sideways, gasping helplessly as he dragged himself away. The Kirin kept their guns up, waiting and watching, as behind them the two working at the door both slammed magnetic anchors against the armored door, then quickly drew back, the metal wire attached to the anchors gleaming brightly as they pulled taut.
“Clear!” shouted one of the Kirin, and then both doorbusters pulled hard on the wire, the heavy vault door screaming in protest as it was yanked forwards, grinding against its frame before it tottered out of its frame and crashed down with a tremendous bang.
The commander pointed, and the two armed and ready soldiers ran forwards as the doorbusters quickly rearmed themselves. By the time their rifles were reloaded, the two Kirin who had been deployed were already carrying the massive block of crystal out of the vault, suspended inside a floating energy field generated by hovering discs on either end of the core.
“We've retrieved the artifact. Sending confirmation scans now.” the commander said crisply, his visor flashing as he focused on the crystal.
There was a moment of silence before Lord Black's voice asked, with the faintest hint of irritation: “Was that all?”
The officer looked quickly at the other Kirin, and they both nodded. He grimaced, but before he could report, the voice over the comlink instructed briskly: “Very well. I've marked a safe extraction point for you ahead. A Nighthawk will be deployed to retrieve you. You have ten minutes.”
“Sir!” answered the commander, and then he gestured sharply at his squadron as he turned down the hallway, barking as new instructions pinged across his visor: “Move it!”
His soldiers fell in behind him, following quickly past the stunned, disoriented Royal Guard, the core eerily floating along near the center of the group. Canterlot shook as another volley of shots tore across the front of the castle, but the Kirin didn't so much as stumble as they navigated the complex, crumbled corridors from point-to-point thanks to the guidance of the visor.
A warning flashed on the commander's visor as they approached a broken set of double doors, and he growled: “Hostiles detected. Five. Engage.”
The moment he spoke the last word, he slammed his shoulder into the doors, hammering through them and immediately firing a burst at the nearest soldier. The Royal Guard went down with a shocked howl, hitting the ground hard on his side as the remaining soldiers leapt to either side of the hallway, one cursing and hiding behind a fallen pillar, the others knocking over tables and ducking behind whatever cover was available.
The Kirin commander laid down a sharp tattoo of suppressing fire against one of the knocked-over tables, making the Royal Guard behind it curse before one of them shouted as the other Kirin advanced with short, controlled bursts: “Fall back! Retreat!”
Rounds peppered the positions where the guards had hidden themselves, the commander leading the movement forward before he made an error, taking his eyes off the fallen pillar where the single rookie had hidden himself, the trembling unicorn raising his sword before he leapt suddenly out of cover with a scream, stabbing his weapon down into the commander's neck with a howl.
The Kirin commander gargled in shock as he was knocked in a sprawl, the soldier on top of him shouting furiously: “What do you think about this, asshole? Yeah, come on, we can-”
“Go hot.” ordered one of the Kirin as he deftly traded magazines on his rifle, and the Royal Guard didn't even have enough time to register what was happening before his entire head was blown away in a splatter of crimson gore.
The Kirin moved forwards, ignoring their own commander's body as they moved in a merciless wave, the click of magazines being ejected and new clips inserted in their place the loudest sound in the room for a moment, before it was replaced by the harsh roar of gunfire. Bullets tore apart wood and stone, and metal and flesh, the Kirin advancing quickly through the room and into the corridor beyond without looking back.
They pushed mercilessly forwards as the Kirin in the lead took over the role of acting commander soundlessly and without objection, his visor guiding the path as he moved forwards decisively. They blazed through both civilian and Royal Guard alike with their weapons, the Kirin neither questioning their new commander, nor showing mercy to any of the victims they gunned down.
The Kirin in front rammed through the last door into an open garden: only a moment later, a large, black vehicle winged down from the skies, its boosters revolving so it could hover a short distance above their heads.
A door opened in the side, a Kirin above flinging a rope down, and the Kirin below immediately secured this to one of the hoverdiscs carrying the drone. The Kirin above began to haul the core up, the carriers whirring as they floated steadily higher and higher until the heavy crystal vanished into the ship.
Voices shouted at them from the interior of the castle, and one of the Kirin dropped into position, retaliating with a quick burst of fire as his companions leapt upward, one after the other, into the transport ship. Once they had cleared, he turned and immediately followed them up, and the vehicle floated higher into the air, then turned and blasted away from the ruins of the castle, streaking through the sky and back towards the massive, floating fortress looming above Canterlot.
It docked in moments, and offloaded the Kirin and their precious cargo: without a word, the soldier who had taken command left the hangar, heading quickly through the complicated halls of the ship all the way to the bridge.
The head of this flying fortress was shaped like a wide, stretched amphitheater, with rounded wings circling to either side. Kirin and ponies with mechanical implants across their bodies sat at tables and holographic monitors, all of them focusing on their own tasks, constant chatter filling the air as they communicated with the countless workers who kept this great vessel mobile.
The Kirin approached the figure in the center of the room, the stallion who was coldly facing the snarling hologram of a mare projected from the crystalline dome at the heart of the bridge. He stopped to wait quietly, studying the windows in the distance that looked out over helpless Canterlot below, ignoring the conversation even as the mare growled: “-act of war! There will be consequences for this-”
“As there will be consequences for what you have done. This is your last chance to turn over the other pieces of the stone. Do not force my hoof or I will level all of Canterlot.” Lord Black replied coolly, not so much as blinking.
Princess Celestia grimaced, then gave a disgusted little smile as she answered: “You're too late. I already had the remaining pieces of the stone moved, right out from under you. By the time you figure out where they are, we'll have more than enough power to sink that battleship of yours, and you along with it!”
The stallion studied her, gauging the truth of her words, and then he snorted before he said shortly: “Then our negotiations have failed, Celestia. Remember that this was your choice.”
He cut the transmission, then turned briskly towards the Kirin, asking coldly: “What happened?”
“Commander 4-4-5 was terminated, sir, and I took command.” The Kirin saluted crisply. “Following protocol, I ordered-”
“This was not the procedure that was discussed. Report to the technical facility for an update to your programming. Dismissed.” The stallion waved the Kirin away, and the soldier bowed and left, the faintest flush of humiliation and anger flashing across his face.
Lord Black turned his eyes back forwards, glancing across readouts that spilled across his vision before he ordered: “Take readings from Canterlot. I want a damage assessment and effectiveness readings. Then ascend above cloud level, then divert power from our shields to cloaking and withdraw. I want penetrating scans prepared, and hunter teams ready for deployment in three hours' time.”
There were a few affirmations from around the room, but the stallion didn't pay any attention to them as he instead turned his eye ahead, looking callously out at the crumbled stone facade of Canterlot past the flashing readouts and numbers that scrawled constantly past in neon blue.
If Celestia wanted a fight, then fine.
He would be more than happy to show her just what the Clockwork Empire was capable of.
Twilight woke up with a gasp, looking fearfully back and forth before she blinked slowly. She was in a bedroom... just a plain empty bedroom, one of the guest rooms in the castle, she thought. Everything looked completely normal, like nothing had happened, and for a moment she wondered if it had all been some wild dream.
Then she rubbed at her head, and felt the scritch-scratch of bandages rubbing together, and she knew it hadn't all just been some terrible dream.
She trembled as she lowered her hooves in front of her face: her forelegs were bandaged. Why were her forelegs bandaged? When had she cut them open?
So was her head. But that made more sense. She'd had a terrible fall.
Spike. Where was Spike?
The mare shifted, then moaned in pain as she felt something inside her quake and tremble. She gave herself a moment, then more gingerly shifted out of bed, gasping quietly as she pushed herself to her hooves. She swayed a little, moaning quietly again as her head swam before she took a slow breath, and then she stumbled blearily towards the bedroom door.
She opened it, and winced in surprise at the painful assault of light before she heard murmurs and gasps, then felt a hoof gently catch her when she nearly toppled, a voice soothing: “Miss Twilight, please, you need to go back to bed.”
“Spike.” Twilight whispered.
She felt hesitation, and she trembled before she grabbed the stallion in front of her, the Royal Guard wincing in surprise at the strength of her hooves as she asked: “What happened?”
“I don't-”
“Where is Spike?” Twilight shouted.
“That's enough, Twilight.” soothed a familiar voice, and Twilight looked up with trembling, teary eyes to see Princess Celestia coming towards her, the ivory mare giving a faint smile before she reassured quietly: “He's alive. Now please. You need to rest. It's very important. Your injuries were very severe.”
Twilight allowed herself to be gently taken under the princess' wing and guided back into the bedroom. She groaned as she was pushed carefully back into bed: half out of pain, half out of frustration.
Princess Celestia sat on the floor beside her, and started: “You've been in and out of consciousness for twenty hours now, Twilight Sparkle. I don't know what they did to you, but I'm glad you're still alive. Many of the Royal Guard... they weren't so lucky.”
Twilight swallowed thickly at this. She wanted to feel sad. She knew she should feel... what, fortunate? Solemn? But no, all she could think about was... “Please... what happened to Spike? He was... I know he was...”
“Flash Sentry is recovering...” Princess Celestia started. But when Twilight looked at her with those wet, pleading eyes, tears spilling down her cheeks, the Princess of the Sun sighed quietly before she murmured: “Spike is... alive. We are doing everything we can for him. He was badly injured, and he hasn't woken up yet, however-”
“I want to see him.” Twilight muttered, trying to sit up, but Celestia gently pushed her back down with one hoof.
“Not yet. Let the doctors work. Your assistant-”
“My assistant?”Twilight blurted out, flabbergasted, and she trembled before she glared up with more defiance than she had ever imagined she could muster, shouting: “He is not just my 'assistant!' He's my... my...”
Her best friend. Her brother. Her son. He was all those things and more. And here Celestia was treating him like he was an assistant, like he was a... a pet being taken care of at the vet, and oh, he might live or he might die, but it wasn't like he was a real person-
Twilight wrenched herself away from Celestia when the Princess of the Sun tried to touch her, and Celestia leaned back slightly, biting her lip,surprised and strangely hurt. And for a moment, the mighty Princess of Equestria wavered, and then she cleared her throat and looked down, saying quietly: “I apologize. Your... your friend, Spike. We have the very best helping him, Twilight. But I need-”
“I need him.” Twilight murmured. Celestia wasn't even sure that the mare had realized she had spoken.
“Yes. But I need you, Twilight, here and now. You need to help me.” Celestia said, and when Twilight looked at her, glared at her through trembling tears, Celestia urged: “You want to stop Lord Black, don't you? He's the one who attacked Canterlot. And who will hurt more ponies, more people you care about, unless we figure out a way to stop him.”
This caught the purple unicorn's attention, and she bit her lip as her brow furrowed. She hesitated, and Celestia lowered her head, holding Twilight's gaze as she reached her hooves forwards to silently grasp the smaller mare's forelegs, her head almost touching the bed as the Princess looked up at her pupil to plead: “Please, Twilight. We have to stop this, while we still have a chance. Otherwise everyone and everything you love will be in danger. Equestria will lose its one, perhaps its only chance at resolving our growing power needs, and the country will be plunged into darkness.”
Twilight shivered, shaking her head as she whispered: “I just... I don't know. I just need-”
“This is bigger than you or me, Twilight Sparkle. You need to make this decision now. I need your help.” Celestia straightened, not just imploring, but almost ordering it, and Twilight flinched and laid her ears back, her eyes going wide, her teeth baring... but then the Princess embraced her, and Twilight trembled before she dropped her head against the mare's shoulder, and her whimpers broke into full-throated sobs.
Celestia just held her for a little while, giving her a chance to cry, until the mare slowly drew back, taking slow, shuddering breaths before she nodded a little, not looking up even as she murmured: “I... I want to stop him. I do. I just can't process...”
“I know, Twilight. I know how terribly hard it is, to keep going, when someone you care about is hurt.” Celestia silently stroked back Twilight's mane, keeping in contact, looking across her with maternal love and unhidden sorrow. “But we have to mourn for what we've lost later. Many ponies were hurt in this attack, and it is our duty to them to not only carry on, but to defend everything that Equestria stood for, to ensure this does not happen again.”
“But how do we stop him? Did you save the power source?” asked Twilight, and Celestia gave a brief smile.
“In a manner of speaking.” Celestia answered, and Twilight frowned uneasily. She felt a shiver roll down her spine, even as Celestia held her close, tight in her warmth, as if she never wanted to let go. “When we found the power source, it was a much larger slab. We were able to cut it into four pieces, each containing massive amounts of power.”
Twilight's eyes widened in surprise at this, the mare straightening before she blurted: “There's... there's three more?”
“Yes. And Lord Black will be searching for them, relentlessly, until he finds them.” Celestia said quietly. “Two of these pieces have already been sent to safe havens, outside of Equestria's borders. The final piece I need you to take and hide.”
“What?” Twilight asked, alarmed.
“Until the New Power Initiative is ready, we can't defend against Lord Black's attacks. His weaponry is too powerful, even more powerful than I thought.” Celestia shook her head slowly. “I don't know if even a team of unicorns all using your brother's barrier spell would be able to hold that machine back for long.”
“But you said he was already looking for them, and-”
“Yes.” Celestia interrupted gently, pressing a hoof to Twilight's lips. “Yes. The hardest part of being a leader, Twilight, is planning for the worst. Because inevitably, at some point in your career, the worst, the impossible, will happen, and you have to be ready for it.
“We created several false cores using small fragments from the larger stones. I just pray this is enough to keep Lord Black busy while you move the final piece, in secret, to where you think it will be safest.” Princess Celestia instructed. “Not even I should know where you take it, Twilight.”
“I... but what-”
Celestia squeezed the mare close in an embrace, silencing her as she whispered: “I'm sorry. If I could trust any other pony with this, I would. But I can only trust you, Twilight. You are the only pony I can trust to perform this task.”
Twilight trembled, before she whispered: “But if the pieces are scattered, then how...”
“It's better that you don't know, Twilight. Please. Lord Black will stop at nothing to achieve his goal and if he thought you were aware of something...” Celestia shuddered, closing her eyes for a moment before she took a slow breath and slowly slipped back.
Her hooves slid down Twilight's forelegs to gently take her own, the two looking at one-another before Celestia said quietly: “I will be publicly distancing myself from you. I am sorry, but I have to do everything I can from now on to ensure that Lord Black doesn't see you as a target. If you lash out in response, I'll understand, even if I pretend not to. And when all this is over, Twilight, I want to make everything up to you. I want to apologize. And I'll understand if you can't accept, at the end of all this.”
“What? But, Princess Celestia...” But Twilight's protests were cut short as the princess leaned in and silently kissed her forehead.
“I love you, Twilight Sparkle, like my daughter. From now on, we can only communicate through secure messages. I don't know if you know Eldraatic code, but I'm sure you'll learn it quickly. Expect your first message tonight. Keep your replies short, and terse.” Celestia gently stroked Twilight's mane back, looking into her eyes, and Twilight saw tears in the Princess' for a moment before Celestia blinked them away, her face becoming beautiful stone as she straightened and said calmly: “Goodbye, Twilight Sparkle.”
And then Princess Celestia left, leaving Twilight Sparkle trembling in bed, confused and alone and terribly afraid.