//------------------------------// // Reconstruction // Story: Reformation... It's a Pony Thing // by Lets Do This //------------------------------// They all returned to the Phoenix and waited tensely on the foredeck as Boyle and Mullet carefully lugged the crystal up from below. "There must have been one of these on each ship," Tempest said. "Hidden below decks in some hold or other where I never went. That explains how the soldiers were able to accompany Grubber and me when... well, when we went ashore." "And why those guys never wanted to get too far from the ship," Grubber agreed. "You know, there were times I'd tell one of them to go do something, and he'd just refuse, for no reason I could see..." "Probably because if they got too far from the ship they would have simply vanished," Twilight said. "I bet the Storm King ordered them to avoid that." "That fits his style," Tempest agreed. "And also explains why Grubber and I never discovered they were an illusion..." She shook her head, annoyed yet again at her own willful blindness under her former overlord. The pirates gently set the crystal down on a cushion of empty sacking they'd spread out, and Twilight examined it closely, from both a magic and a geologic point of view. "Well...," she finally said, "Rarity would be the expert here, but it's clearly not naturally formed. The internal geometry is too irregular, the facets too precisely aligned. It's made this shape to serve its purpose. And there don't seem to be any obvious control mechanisms. I think all we need to do is power it up, and then whatever spell or enchantment it embodies will be active again." "Like, just hit it with a blast of magic?" Rainbow asked. "You can do that, right, Twilight?" Twilight paused. Then she looked at Tempest. "Maybe you should try. My magic is too focused. We need quantity, not precision. You're also familiar with how these soldiers behave, so you'll be able to tell if we've got it right." "I don't know, Princess," Tempest warned. "My magic's pretty unstable. I might just shatter the crystal... and we don't have a spare." "Start small, then. We'll learn as we go." Tempest nodded. She motioned with a forehoof, then waited until the others had stood well back. Then she faced the crystal, powered up her horn, and gently sent a flicker of power at it. The ink-black mineral simply absorbed it. Twilight approached, examined it closely. "Good. It's designed to store up magical energy, like a battery. Try again, a little more this time." Tempest did. And now a soft, flickering tawny glow began to form within the crystal. Gritting her teeth, Tempest unleashed a stronger blast of power into it. The crystal ate it up hungrily, as much as she fed into it. And then, like a magic trick, there was suddenly a furred, masked soldier standing beside the crystal, carrying a spear. But instead of the off-white fur of the Storm King's soldiers, this one's fur was barred with alternating bands of maroon and berry-red. The soldier looked at all of them, then focused on Tempest. And came to alert attention. Tempest didn't hesitate. "The Storm King is no longer in charge. I command the army. You will take your orders from me." The soldier saluted smartly, and stood waiting. Tempest thought quickly. "We're going to need a fairly large force, say a hundred to start with. Armed with hammers and chisels. Believe it or not, we're going to be doing some repair work!" The soldier looked at the spear in his paw. In a swift flicker of magic, it became a hammer, and in his other paw was a chisel. "Wonderful." Tempest said drily. She glared at him. "Now where are all the rest of you?" The soldier bowed meekly, and gestured towards the crystal. Rainbow laughed. "Never been very good with Strawberry Yeti, but I think he needs us to top up his tank first!" "I think I can manage that," Tempest said, with a smirk. Then she stared at the crystal, as it sunk in. "Wait... I can manage that, easily! Even with my damaged horn, my out-of-control magic, I could power an army like this... indefinitely!" She shook her head, amazed. "Now there's the real irony... if the Storm King had only trusted me, he wouldn't have had to rush. I could have powered his army for as long as he liked. And I would have done it willingly!" She looked uncomfortably at Twilight. "And then he'd still be in charge of Equestria. Maybe it's a good thing he was such a self-centered jerk, huh?" Twilight nodded. "I'm just glad you learned about Friendship before you found that out." "Don't worry, Princess," Tempest said. "I'm not getting any ideas here. If we're creating a magic army here, it'll serve the cause of Friendship this time. How about it, Your Highness? Ever thought about having a standing Friendship Army stationed at your castle?" "Somehow... it's never come up," Twilight said, uneasily. "Let's focus on one thing at a time. Like, how do we even fit a hundred of these guys on the deck of this ship?" "Oh, don't worry 'bout that!" Grubber said. "We just tell them where to show up and they do. I always wondered how they managed to get to places ahead of us." He came to attention. "Hey, if you want, Tempest, I can take the lift down to the docks, and organize them as you magic 'em up." "All right, Grubber. But just remember who's in charge here." "Loud and clear, boss! Hey, Spike," he added, "you wanna come help me wrangle some mooks?" "Sure!" "I can help, too," Applejack said. "Be just like herding cattle back home. Uh... no offense!" she added to the soldier standing before them. "The cows back home are quite talkative, really!" The soldier blinked, and then simply shrugged. No fur off my hide, the gesture seemed to say. "All right," Tempest said, her horn crackling. "Let's get this army started!" She fired a blast of energy straight into the heart of the crystal. - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - In the Forum Square, feline heads jerked up at the sound of approaching tramping feet. Worried, they drew back towards the palace steps... and then recalled how that had been the Storm King's main target the last time. They quickly redirected their retreat to other buildings around the Square, and then peered out from the doors and windows in fearful curiosity. As they watched, the strangest invasion they'd ever seen took place: a force of hundreds of scarlet-furred soldiers, marching in formation, carrying hammers, chisels, lengths of rope, boards, buckets, and dozens of other construction items. Soldiers without tools or building materials simply acquired them as they went, gathering up the disorganized detritus of the inhabitants' own fitful attempts at repair. As they marched up the main street, the soldiers began peeling off rank by rank, stationing themselves at ruined houses and burnt out storefronts, or fanning out along the cross-streets to position themselves in intersections and major thoroughfares, forming natural supply lines. Overhead, the Rainbow Phoenix hove into view, positioning itself so it had a good vantage point over the entire ruined capitol. And on its prow, the double-bolt emblem blazed a bright berry red. As the last of the army entered the square itself, their numbers parted to reveal Tempest Shadow in full battle armor, complete with a mask-like helmet that had a slot at the top and back for her plume-like mane. She was accompanied by Princess Twilight, wearing her crown, and Capper -- or rather, Prince Cappadocio -- dressed in the finest finery they'd been able to scare up from the Phoenix's restocked treasure chests. Accompanying them were Spike and Grubber, dressed in a couple of Grubber's old tunics with the double-bolt emblem on them. Twilight's party crossed the Square, then mounted the steps to the doors of the palace. And this time, they had something approaching a proper welcome: the Queen and King themselves peered out through the ruined main doorway, blinking owlishly at them. Tempest completely ignored the monarchs as she came about smartly, facing the Square and the remaining soldiers, who smoothly formed up in squads before her. But Twilight and Capper motioned to the timid monarchs with encouraging smiles. As the imperial couple diffidently stepped foward to stand beside them, Tempest glanced at Twilight, and then spoke... with Twilight's remote-projected Royal Voice amplifying her words so they blanketed the city: "CITIZENS OF PANTHERA! OF THE SOVEREIGN NATION-STATE OF ABYSSINIA! CAN I HAVE YOUR ATTENTION, PLEASE?" All around them, worried faces peered out at her, and at the waiting soldiers. "DO NOT BE ALARMED," she went on. "THE FORMER ARMY OF THE STORM KING... IS UNDER NEW MANAGEMENT." Grubber grinned. "What'd I tell ya, Spike? An artist!" "WE'RE HERE AS REPRESENTATIVES OF A LAND KNOWN AS EQUESTRIA. PERHAPS YOU'VE HEARD OF IT? IT'S A LAND OF PONIES. AND WE DO THINGS A LITTLE DIFFERENTLY THERE... WE DON'T SEEK LAND OR TREASURE... WE SEEK NEW NEIGHBORS... WE DON'T MAKE ENEMIES... WE CREATE LASTING FRIENDSHIPS... WE DON'T IMPRISON... WE REFORM... AND WE DON'T OCCUPY... WE REBUILD! Making sure all eyes in the square were on her, Tempest made a show of bowing before Twilight. "BY YOUR LEAVE, PRINCESS TWILIGHT SPARKLE?" Twilight nodded graciously. "THOU HAS OUR LEAVE TO COMMENCE, COMMANDER TEMPEST." Standing, Tempest turned back to the assembled squads before her. And then she felt Grubber nudging her foreleg. "Oooh, oooh! Can I do this bit, boss? Pleeeease?" Tempest glanced down at him, eyebrow raised. "All right, Grubber. Just remember -- as our former taskmaster might have said -- stay on message!" "Gotcha, boss!" He glanced at Twilight, who nodded indulgently. Then Grubber stepped forward, sucked in a tremendous gulp of air, and shouted: "SOLDIERS OF EQUESTRIA!" He punched the air, exhiliratedly. "LET'S RAISE THIS CITY!" And the furred soldiers immediately fanned out and set to work, clearing, repairing, and rebuilding. The sound of a thousand hammers filled the air, a busy hum of industry. The citizens of Panthera watched in amazement as the damage to their city began to swiftly disappear before the furious onslaught of reconstruction. Tempest and Twilight strode down from the stairs and began touring the various work sites. Tempest occasionally snapped out an order to her soldiers, but always with a glance at Twilight for tacit permission. Accompanying them were the Queen and King, padding along silently beside Twilight, and glancing about. After a while, they began to relax a little. Soon they were striding along, tall and regal, nodding indulgently to their subjects... and trying desperately to look as if the entire thing had been their idea all along. After a while, when it was clear the tide of popular opinion had swung firmly in their direction, Twilight gently cleared her throat and drew the Queen aside for a private chat. "Now, your Majesty..." she said, hopefully, "about that small matter of Equestria's missing citizens? Hmmm?"