//------------------------------// // Double vision and then some // Story: Prank War! // by Ashfur //------------------------------// "Morning, Celestia. Morning, Luna." "Good morning, Nick!" Replied the two alicorns. Nick continued onward to the dining hall. "Uhg... they better have some strong coffee this morning. I barely feel alive... morning, Celestia. Morning, Luna." "Good morning, Nick!" The two alicorns replied. Nick approached the counter. "Morning Nick, what'll it be?" "Oh. Morning, Celestia. Strong coffee. Really strong. Please..." "Here you go, Nick. A special enchanted blend to wake you up quick." Nick took the cup and chugged it, leaving the mug on the counter and walking off to find somewhere to sit. He nodded to the ponies in line as the magic coffee woke him up. "Morning, Celestia. Morning, Luna. Morning, other Celestia... wait, WHAT?!" Over a dozen Celestias and Lunas scattered throughout the dining hall perked up and chimed a hello from all directions. One pair approached him. "Greetings, Nicholas! We have decided to play a game with thee. So we have more than doubled the fun, we have...er... multiplied it by twelve! And it is thy goal to figure out who is the real one. But don't bother trying to smudge any makeup, for we have called in our changeling allies for this trick!" Nick facepalmed. "Ugh. It's too early for this. I'm going back to bed." "A thousand bits if you guess right, Nick," one of the Celestias chimed in. "Suddenly it's not so early! And if I guess wrong?" "Then it will fall to you to convince Blueblood to not raise taxes on the poor for the third time this month. He never gets his way, but he makes far too many attempts." Nick grimaced, but nodded. It seemed like a fair deal. 'Celestia' continued with her explanation. "You may request one thing from each of us to determine who the fakes are. Either have us perform an action, or ask us a question you feel only the real Celestia or Luna would know. If you leave the room, you forfeit, but you can take as long as you want to choose. You may even wait until you have investigated all of us." "Deal." Nick first approached the Celestia closest to him. "Alright Celly, what's your biggest fear?" "Losing my sister again. Nightmare moon was more than enough." "Hmph. Fair enough. 'Luna', hug me. I think I'd know the difference." "Of course, Nicholas." She enveloped him in a loving hug, which Nick returned. He couldn't tell the difference. "Dang. Either you're real or changelings are that good. Fine. Next!" After several failed questionings, Nick was down to his last chance: one Luna. He had already had all the Celeatias answer questions or perform minor tasks, and he had to admit they performed flawlessly. Staring down the final Luna, he unleashed his final question. "Alright Luna. I've got one question for you that will for sure reveal the real Luna. Get ready." "We are prepared for anything thou has to throw at us, Nicholas. Have at thee!" "Alright then. Did you know I never legally changed your name back?" Luna tilted her head to the side. "We...we are afraid we do not follow thy line of reasoning, Nicholas. Elaborate, please." Nick grinned sadistically. "Alright. Since I never changed it back, your name is still, and I quote, 'Princess Zibble-Wibble, Oops! In my Kibble, Walla-Walla-Walla-Walla, the Third!'" An awkward silence filled the room for a moment. Then everypony in the room began laughing hysterically, all the princess copies included. Only one was differemt: a single guardsmare standing guard at the door bore a sudden expression of shock and fury. Her scream shook the castle. "YOU DID WHAT?!" Nick spun on his heels and pointed his finger at the guard. "J'accuse, Princess Luna! And you should know better than to fall for a lie like that." "Wait... what?" As the implications hit her, Luna dropped her disguise, her face cherry red in embarrassment. "Oh..." That got another round of laughs, and she teleported out in shame. "Oof. Looks like she wasn't too happy about that. At least I found her. Hey Celestia, you aren't hiding as a ficus or something, are you?" Illusions were dropped until only the true solar princess remained. "No, I am right here. I do believe I am going to have to speak with Luna about cheating. So, how about we revise the rules a bit. Leave the room for an hour while I talk with Luna, then come back and I'll set up for you to try and find me. Okay?" An hour later, twelve Celestias lined up in the dining hall. "You may come in now, Nick. But you will lose," one announced. The doors opened, and Nick walked in, pushing a magnificent cake, from the local bakery that Celestia loved. Surprisingly, every Celestia but one recoiled from it. "Found ya. I win." "How?" "Laced the cake with some bottled rage. Changelings hate it, remeber?" "Well played, Nick. I suppose I owe you some bits, then." "Nah, your reaction should be worth more than enough." "My reaction to what?" "Oops." With a kick, Nick sent the pristine, triple decker cake and its rolling cart on a path straight to the stairs. "Clumsy me." "MY CAKE!"