Avatar: Legend of Diamond Tiara. Book 4: Immortals

by Jeweled Pen


Chapter 1: A forgotten home

Secretary lightly hummed while she worked, slowly stirring the pot while eyeing the delicious smelling soup within. Made of a mix of seaweed, potatoes and a few other odds and ends they’d managed to scrounge together, she was quite proud of her concoction.

Of course, she wasn’t the only pony working in the kitchen. Behind her, working on the other stoves were a unicorn and a pegasus, preparing the food for the majority of their forces. On the one hoof, she was a bit sad that they had to make such a small amount of food. On the other hoof, she supposed it was for the best. If they’d managed to gather too large a force, then their rations would have quickly been depleted.

Besides. Quality over quantity, she supposed. She sipped the soup and gave a nod. “Perfect.” She quickly poured some into a bowl, before turning to leave the kitchen.

“Hey, St--”

“Please, call me Secretary,” she interrupted, glancing towards the pegasus.

“Right. You know, you don’t have to make his meals for him. You have a lot more important things to--”

“I have been preparing Dr. Alicity’s meals as far back as I can remember,” she said firmly. “And, the world falling apart or not, it is STILL of the utmost importance. I will not allow such a trifle to come between me and my duty.” With those words, she started towards the door again, only pausing a moment before walking out. “This should be sufficient for him. If you so desire, you may do with the rest as you please.”

The pegasus nodded with a chuckle, glancing to the unicorn once the mare disappeared around the corner. “Buck. I wish half of the Shadowbolts had her kind of work ethic.”

The unicorn snorted but shook her head. “If half the moon raisers in training had it, we wouldn’t have to be so careful about losing any of them.”

Secretary sighed, shaking her head at their words while she continued down the cold, icy halls of the hideout. The walls themselves were crafted of ice, though so dark they almost seemed black. Candle holders had been recently embedded deep in the walls, all lit with enchanted candles.

It did little to lessen the cold, icy feeling of isolation. She did have to give it to the Water Nation of old. When they created an outpost of despair, they didn’t hold back. The cold chill that always seemed to linger in the air was terrible. But ever worse was the darkness that seemed to close in on them from all sides. It wasn’t magic, of course. They’d checked many, many times.

No, the former home of the Shadowbolts, once the Water Nations most dangerous and impenetrable prison, had a dark magic all its own. Deep under the ice of the South Pole, light couldn’t penetrate these icy halls. Giving it the impression of a frozen, impregnatable tomb. No matter how many lights they put up, there was nothing they could do to brighten the place.

Even after years of being abandoned, the prison stood almost empty. Animals seemed unwilling to seek shelter within its dark, cold walls. Not that it would have been easy for them. But even so, she could see the effect such a place was having on the ponies here. Tower watch had become the most requested duty amongst all of their soldiers, even the Shadowbolts of Harmony seemed to despise being in the home of their ancestors.

She couldn’t blame them though. The light reflections in the ice and the darkness always gave her the odd impression she was being watched. That there were eyes out there in the darkness, waiting for her to turn her back. She knew it was preposterous. They had defenses setup. There were ponies EVERYWHERE, many of them water benders who had made sure that there was NOTHING else here with them. They did multiple checks throughout the day to ensure that EVERYPONY was accounted for. Passwords and extra passwords to ensure that there were no changelings that could sneak in, either.

They were safe. Protected.

But, despite all that, she couldn’t feel secure… except in one place. One place where, despite all of the darkness and gloom, light seemed to shine without being stifled. Already she could hear the gentle buzzing sound. She trotted a little faster, a small smile flickering onto her lips. She pushed open the door…

And entered somewhere new entirely. What had once been one of the many rooms for the Shadowbolts had been converted into a workshop for Alicity. The earth pony was wearing his lab coat, a pair of goggles over his head. He seemed completely lost in thought, tapping away at some strange… cube. It seemed to be buzzing, though she didn’t worry. Years as his assistant had taught her the difference between ‘According to plans’ buzzing and ‘Time to erect a barrier NOW!’ buzzing.

She paused when the buzzing shifted. Her horn glowed with a greater light and the stallion was enveloped in a small, magical shield. Sparks shot from the cube, bouncing off of the shield to land harmlessly on the ground. She gave a sigh and rolled her eyes. “Doctor? Your food is ready. Please be careful, you don’t wish to lose your eyebrows again.”

“Huh? Is it dinner already?” he asked, glancing back at her.

“Breakfast, sir.” She couldn’t keep the smile from her lips. The world could fall apart entirely, no, it WAS falling apart entirely. And yet, he still refused to be anything but himself. To be that same, warm glow she had grown so accustomed to over the years. Even knowing what his daughter was doing seemed to do little to stifle his energy. Though he had seemed just a little more serious of late.

“But didn’t we just have lunch? I remember these delicious cauliflower bites.”

“That was yesterday, sir,” she said, walking over to him. “Remember? You fell asleep at your desk again.”

“I did? Oh, right, yes,” he said, before glancing back towards his cube. Idly, she trotted besides him and her magic pulled him back.

“Sir, it’s time for a break.”

“But I think I have it. If I can just re-calibrate the--”

“Eat, and I’ll take notes,” she said firmly. “Now.”

He sighed and gave a nod. “Very well, I need to re-calibrate the gorgenal adixtes,” he said, speaking through the soup.

Secretary nodded, pulling out her notepad and pen and beginning to write. She’d spent years learning all of his little quirks, deciphering what he said while he ate was easy for her. She listened along, quickly jotting down all of his notes. However, after a few minutes she frowned. “Sir? Are you sure you want to use a double five-point array, there? Considering the output, wouldn’t a triple array using topaz be more stable?”

“No, no, it--” He stopped, staring at her. “SECRETARY! You are a GENIUS! I don’t know WHY I didn’t think of that! Secretary, get the thing,” he said with a wave of his hoof, his eyes glimmering with excitement. “I know how to--”

“Notes are taken, but you have a meeting.”

“But--”

“I will drag you, if I have to,” she said firmly, glaring at him.

He gave a soft sigh, before nodding. “Fine. Let’s go take care of things,” he mumbled softly, turning around. Secretary eyed the half-eaten bowl of soup and picked it up in her magic, moving it in front of him.

“Eat, first. THEN the meeting.”

The doctor gave another sigh, before relenting.

------

“As you can see,” Colgate said, slowly moving a hoof along the map of the four nations. A dozen small pins had been pushed throughout it. The blue unicorn tapped on the city of Harmony. “Her forces are growing ever stronger. While… her Water Immortal was damaged in the attack on Canterlot, the other three are still out there. As dangerous as ever.”

Colgate’s eyes wandered to the southern pins. Her Water Nation. She still couldn’t believe that it had fallen. How close SHE had been to falling with it. If it hadn’t been for Luna and Celestia, she would have met a fate similar to so many of her soldiers. “The resistance is gaining new members every day. However...”

She motioned a hoof to the Earth Kingdom. She placed a hoof down, against the pins that made up the majority of the ones in the Earth Kingdom. “Metal Orchard is under siege. Vinyl has sent a message that they will be trying to get as many ponies out as they can, but...” She gave a soft, gentle sigh. “There is no reason to expect their resistance will do any better than the others. For time being, they’ll be delaying as long as they can.” She glanced over at the three other ponies in the room.

Copper Shield, the red-coated leader of the metal benders. She found it almost humorously funny that SHE was the only military leader of the Harmony forces to have escaped, considering the metal benders who had escaped had been moved to Metal Orchard, leaving their gathered forces as only the Moon Raisers and Shadowbolts. No, she supposed only Stratios had fallen of the three leaders. Tittering had turned out to be a traitor.

She felt a small burst of anger at that thought. She had KNOWN Tittering. She trusted her. The mare had always been so chipper and full of… well, terrible humor. But this? Turning on Harmony? No, not just on Harmony, but the Water Nation entirely? The world? Joining DISCORD of all ponies? Had somepony told her a year ago that the once happy, chipper water bender was capable of such a deed, she’d have politely snorted at the audacity of such a comment.

Yet, there was no denying what had happened. That it had been Tittering leading the forces against Canterlot. That it had been a pony she had once trusted as one of her soldiers directing the powerful spirit to steal the cutie marks of her soldiers, of HER.

She stared at the map, willing her tears to not form. How did her mother do this? How could Rarity rule over her nation through times like these? How could she stay strong even as everything fell apart around them? She felt overwhelmed. She felt like everything was going to come crashing down. No, that everything was crashing down. She was just trying to pick up the pieces and hold things together, to stop as many things from breaking as possible. She wasn’t the Water Lord, not yet. But now she was forced to bear that title and it was far, far heavier than she had ever imagined.

“They might wound it,” Copper finally said, shaking her from her thoughts.

“Huh?” Colgate asked, glancing to the other mare. “The Earth Immortal?”

“Possible.”

“Unlikely, however,” Alicity said, eyeing the map. “Possible, but highly unlikely. It’s not just that spirit that they have to contend with. There’s an army of changelings, as well as the defectors. Not to mention Stony. He’s been to the Metal Orchard and trained under Big Mac,” the stallion said, motioning back to the city. “The wounds that were inflicted on the Water Immortal were earlier, as well. Near the beginning of this campaign. With every attack, with every stolen mark, they grow stronger and stronger. On top of it, well...”

“Their forces grow as well,” Colgate said, keeping her voice calm and even. Not allowing the despair she felt, the hopelessness, to enter her voice. She was the ruler of the Water Nation, deposed or not. Without her mother to lead them, she was the only pony her people had to turn to. “The chances of them being able to isolate the spirit, like we did back in Canterlot, are very slim.”

“At least during a siege,” Alicity said with a shake of his head. “For now, we just have to hope they can sneak ponies out through their lines. However… They have three of the greatest benders the world knows in that city. It won’t be a quick fight. And if anypony could get ponies out, it’s those three. But...”

“Hope for the best, prepare for the worst,” Copper offered, her eyes on the map. Colgate eyed the other mare’s neutral face. She had to admire the earth pony’s resolve. Of all of them, the Metal Orchard falling had to be the roughest. Yet, as always, she seemed as calm and peaceful as could be. Truly she lived up to her parent’s legacy.

“Exactly,” Alicity mumbled. “This attack is quite brilliant,” he mumbled. “Forcing so many of the resistance to pull back to the Metal Orchard, then close the trap down on it. Their leadership is quite impressive. Silver truly is learning, she must have excellent advisers. Or maybe it’s one of her generals. Either way, it’s quite impressive. Turning the impenetrable fortress into an inescapable cage.”

Colgate glanced to the stallion. “You sound almost proud, Alicity.”

“Of course I’m proud,” he said with a laugh.

That managed to snap the unicorn’s calm facade, making her stare at him with a mixture of fury and annoyance. “What?! Our world is falling apart and you are PROUD?”

“Why, yes,” he said with a smile. “To imagine, my little girl eventually trying for world domination. And succeeding! Well, for the most part. What parent wouldn’t be proud?” he asked.

Colgate started to step forward, but Secretary quickly interposed herself between the two, her eyes narrowed on the ruler. She idly wondered if she could take the assistant. Logically, she knew the mare wasn’t a bender and would have been easy to defeat. After all, Colgate WAS the ruler of the Water Nation and one of the most powerful water benders in the world, now that her mother and aunt were missing. But, for some reason she didn’t feel confident about going against the mare when she was guarding the doctor.

“Of course she’s wrong,” Alicity said with another laugh, shaking his head. “Who would want to rule the world? So much work,” he said with a wave of his hoof. “Bad enough running a company. But even a city would just be so… heh. Silly! But yes, of course I’m proud of her. When she’s trying so hard, how can I NOT be proud of her?” He then idly tapped on the pins of the city again. “But that doesn’t mean I won’t try to stop her, if that’s what you’re worried about. She is my daughter, after all. It’s my responsibility. After all, is it not a father’s duty to guide their child? Especially when they’re being unruly.”

“Unruly?” Colgate asked, letting out a low growl, her eyes narrowed to slits. “My nation is collapsing and you dare to… to be proud of her? To call this merely ‘unruly’? To support this… this madness?”

“She’s my daughter. I’ll always support her. Otherwise, who will?” he asked. “In this case, though, support means stopping her before she goes too far.”

“GOES TOO FAR?!” Colgate asked, her front hooves leaping onto the table, making the pins quiver. “My ponies are losing their marks, being ENSLAVED by a SPIRIT OF CHAOS, and you dare to NOT call this too far?!” she screamed.

Alicity sighed. “Yes, I do. She’s making mistake after mistake. Children often do. But--”

“She’s not a child! She’s a DEMON! No. Worse. She’s DISCORD!” the water bender yelled, her fury raising. She didn’t know if she could get through Secretary to him, but she was quickly beginning to be willing to take the risk.

“Nonsense. Foalish mistake or not, she’s still Silver,” he said with a small shake of his head. “She’ll come to her senses eventually. Now, is there any more news from the rebellions?”

Colgate slowly pulled herself back, slowly adapting her calm, careful mask. She had to give Copper credit. The mare had kept herself as calm as ever. She envied that ability. The earth pony hadn’t even offered a word, one way or the other. “Of course. Other than the siege, there haven’t been any new updates. Luna and Celestia have been trying to make headway against the forces of Tittering’s, but… it hasn’t proved to be easy.”

“I see… oh. That reminds me! Button is with them, correct? What has he been up to?”

Colgate blinked a few times. She glanced off to the side, a small blush on her cheeks. How could he even ask such a thing? “They are… Luna and Button are… They are fine.”

“Oh, that’s good. If anything were to happen to Button or Acrylic, Silver would never forgive me,” he said with a light laugh.

Colgate lunged across the table.