“Finally! I didn’t think I could take much more of that,” Twilight exclaimed after a deep breath.
“Oh, goddess. What in the hell did we get ourselves into here?” Goose complained.
“I told everypony I thought we were fucked whenever Sahaquiel came up, and now that we’re here, I still think we’re screwed. Today just proves that we’re fucked,” Rainbow said, splayin’ her forelegs out on the trainin’ room floor. She wasn’t exactly wrong. All afternoon, all evenin’, and we hadn’t so much as even won a fight by anypony’s standards, at least until just now. There were injuries, there were things even Scootaloo might not’ve been able ta fix, but we won.
“Well. W-we did win once, right? I-if we can do it once, we can probably do it again, r-right?” Fluttershy asked. She was one of the few that had actually sat up since we left the simulation, so Ah could see her. She looked just as exhausted as Ah felt, so it was a wonder that she’d even managed that.
“I’m… not so sure about that…” Celestia said.
Talk about a confidence booster. “What do ya mean?” Ah asked.
Celestia scratched at her chin. “I have… concerns. Something about that last fight doesn’t sit right with me. Why is it that in only one instance were you able to overpower Sahaquiel? The poison in the simulation from weeks ago has started to interfere again as well. Something isn’t right about this. I don’t know that the sharing spell can be trusted anymore.”
Rarity sat up. “‘Can’t be trusted?’ How could the spell be tampered with? Ponies under its effects shouldn’t be able to manipulate the caster in any way.”
Twilight nodded. “I’ve been wondering about that since you said it the first time, before we fought Ramiel.” Twilight turned ta Celestia. “What do you mean by ‘poisonous emotions?’ This is Equestrian magic, isn’t it?”
Celestia put her forehooves together. “Well, it would be one thing if I entirely understood what was happening, and it would be another if I knew how to stop it. First, this is, in fact, Equestrian magic. Luna created it well after we conquered Equestria, using ancient unicorn techniques, and not what I knew about Equuin magic. We don’t have records from home, and Luna wanted to learn what I knew. Equuin magic was learned by literally passing spells between each other. It could be done a number of ways, but I wasn’t quite old enough for that before the war broke out.
“What she did was take that theory, apply it to unicorn techniques, and then created this,” she motioned to the floor, “in an effort to try and get Equuin magic from me. It did work as intended, and for the longest time, we used it to pass Equestrian magic to other ponies. The spell itself is very complicated though, so passing it along took an understanding of Equuin magic to begin with, and it eventually fell out of favor because some ponies just couldn’t wrap their heads around it. It was easier for them to just take the time to teach rather than learn a very complex spell that many of them couldn’t even perform.
“Of course, I gave it to Applejack the old way since she knew little of Equestrian magic to get in the way of her understanding here, but I believe that’s where this problem is stemming from.”
Ah raised a hoof. “Ah’d like ta point out that Ah really don’t have any kinda understandin’ of this crap. It just kinda… worked the way Ah thought it was supposed ta.”
Celestia nodded. “Well, that’s the thing; you’re exactly right. You don’t know what you’re doing, you just know how to do it.”
Ah blinked. “Come again?”
“Think about it this way; do you know how transistors are put together?”
“Ah’m not exactly sure what that is.”
Celestia sighed “Right. Sometimes I forget how young ponies are. These things revolutionized electronics. They’re very complicated microscopic devices that require a background in physics to understand, but in a basic sense, they allow translation of electric signals into other things, like sound or data. They’re in every electronic device you own in numbers you can’t imagine. You use them all the time, even though you don’t know they exist. This is like that. You know it works, but you don’t know why that is.
“What you’re doing is a lot like a bug in a program. A bug occurs when data is processed incorrectly, or extra data is passed that wasn’t called for, and it causes something to go wonky and make the system malfunction. In this case, it’s like the spell is taking extra instructions from a place it has no reason to take instructions from, that being you. As with a computer bug, I don’t exactly know why this is happening, but I do know that it’s coming from you based on what it does.”
Rainbow raised a hoof.
“Yes?” Celestia asked.
“So like… how does that work?”
Celestia frowned. “How does what work?”
“Well, you said that they’re tiny things that turn electricity into sound. How does that happen?”
The force in which the princess’s hoof met her forehead was so great that her mane was shifted by the wind it generated on impact. “I do not have the time or the crayons to teach you physics, Ms. Dash. We will get you in school once all of this is over, and then you can learn. For now, I think I need some rest after trying to manage all of that.” Celestia sighed and addressed the whole of us. “You’re all dismissed for the day, everypony but Applejack will report to Luna in the morning in the library. You will see me here. Understood?”
“Yes ma’am,” unenthusiastically came from the group, and only a few of ‘em got up and followed Celestia out. Ah was not one of them.
“What do you think she wants?” Rainbow asked. Ah was a little surprised ta see her still sittin’ around here with everypony else gone. She’s usually inclined ta hang out with Pinkie, Scoots, and Shy.
Ah shrugged. “Hell if Ah know. Is it never possible fer us ta just… have anythin’ go right? We did it once, shouldn’t that be cause fer celebration?”
“Well, not if the results we got and reality don’t match up,” Goose offered.
Ah waved a hoof at him. “Oh, keep yer facts and logic ta yerself. Can’t Ah complain fer complainin’s sake?”
He stood up and offered me a hoof. “Well, not as long as I’m around. Complaining really doesn’t accomplish much, and you tend to relieve stress physically. One of the other girls? Maybe. You though? Not a chance.”
Ah took the offered hoof and slowly, achily, made my way ta standin’. “So much fer all ponies created equally, huh?”
He shook his head. “Not at all. Even if we’re just looking at this from a biological standpoint, everypony starts out the same. One egg, one sperm, one pony. It’s growth that changes us. And besides,” he put a hoof around my neck and brought his lips ta mine. “I could never treat you like anypony else. Nopony is more special to me than you.”
“That was so disgustingly sappy that I don’t know if I should cringe or not,” Rainbow said after gettin’ up herself.
Goose smiled and raised his snout in pride. “Cringy as it might be, this one is mine, and I wouldn’t have it any other way.” He took hold of his pendant and mine and shoved ‘em in Rainbow’s face. “I’ve even got proof of ownership, see? This one says she’s mine, and that one says I’m hers.” Ah attempted ta shrug it off, but even Ah smiled a little at that. Ah’ve got him all ta myself, and that little pendant around his neck tells the rest of the world that.
Rainbow gagged. “Wow. I think I even tasted a little vomit in that one. Whatever, go away. I wanna talk to your wife. Preferably without you.”
He looked at me, Ah looked at him, and after a nonverbal ‘shoo,’ he shrugged and warped away. Ah stretched my back out, now that he was gone, and then let myself slide ta the ground. Celestia has a habit of makin’ things intense in her simulations, but nothin’ has ever been as hard a fight as the ones today were.
“Feels like you fought that guy thousands of times, right?” Rainbow asked.
My brow furrowed. “Ah guess. What makes ya say that?”
Sitting down and crossing her forelegs over her barrel, Rainbow said, “I think I get what she means, when she says you’re ‘poisoning’ the simulation. Maybe even better than she does.”
Now, Ah was interested, so Ah sat up. “Well, why didn’t ya say so in front of everypony else?”
“Alright, look; you’re not gonna like this, and I didn’t wanna start a fight in front of everypony, alright? It’s about him, anyways.”
Ah frowned. “Why would it start a fight? Spit it out Rainbow.”
She sighed. “I notice things, okay? It’s part of my job, it always has been. Being able to look at a dangerous situation and do whatever makes my chances of surviving the best is kinda like… a thing I just got used to doing. I loved the thrill of the fight because it scared me to death, but I could always tell what was dangerous and what wasn’t. That’s what kept me alive all this time. You are what Goose’s concern is. He does anything that makes it so you have the highest chance of survival, and to that end, he’ll often take a hit that ends up killing him and protects you.”
Ah gritted my teeth. Damn it Rainbow! “Ya don’t think Ah know that? That he knows that? We already had this fight once. Ah don’t need it brought up again.”
She shook her head. “That’s not what I’m talking to you for. I get it, he loves you. If anything, it’s really cool that he’s willing to go that far for you. But I came to talk to you because when Goose does something stupid, you do something stupid, and it’s you doing something stupid that causes problems. Do you realize that you lose your shit every. Single. Time, he tries to protect you? Because you do, and that is what ‘poisons the simulation’ or whatever.”
“What do ya mean?”
She rolled her eyes. “What I mean is; when you get crazy, everypony gets crazy. I don’t know what it is about the weird connected headspace, or whatever, but you getting crazy makes me get crazy. I start to feel stronger. I stop fighting like me and I start fighting like you. In whatever this weird berserker mode you’ve got going on is, it starts to take over everypony else, and we all fight like you when it happens.
“Like, you’ve gotta realize that it’s weird, don’t you? You overpowered Sahaquiel. Straight up, bare hoof brawling, and you punched the guy to death. Up until that last fight, you couldn’t do that. But you kept losing it, and with every time you watch him, or sometimes everypony else, die, everypony gets stronger. Ya get me?”
Ah had ta pause. Is… is that right? Ah thought back ta the simulations, and the more Ah looked fer it in the memories, the more Ah realized… she might just be right. Ah scratched at my chin. “Ah… think Ah see what you’re sayin’, but this has happened in real life too, hasn’t it?”
She frowned. “In real life? Like, when?”
“Well, when Ah smashed that freighter ship ta bits was definitely the first time it happened. It was kinda like what Ah feel happens with Trump Card, but this was… much, much more than that. And… after Ah broke my leg in the Israfel fight, it came back stronger than it shoulda been, even by Scootaloo’s standards. It almost feels like any time we get inta a real hard fight where Ah get hurt, Ah come back more powerful the next time, now that Ah think about it.”
Rainbow looked away fer a bit. “Huh. At some point, we should find somepony that can explain powers to us or something like that. If your powers really do cause you to like, stockpile, or something, that could be really useful. But…”
“But…?”
“But, even if that is the case, you’re still a rage monster and you need to cut that shit out. Even if we manage to find a good strategy doing this until the real fight, there’s no way we get away from Sahaquiel without a scratch.”
Ah huffed and crossed my forelegs. “What do ya think is gonna happen, huh, Rainbow?”
She rolled her eyes. “I think we’re probably all gonna die. I’ve said as much. But knowing Sahaquiel, he’ll probably kill us one by one, slowly, just for the fun of it. My concern is that if he does manage to get one of us, you’ll fly off the handle like you always do and get yourself killed doing something stupid. If anypony has a chance to even hold this guy off, it’s gonna be you, so I need you to promise me that you will keep your cool if something happens, alright?”
A deep frown settled on my face. “How can ya say that? Just, how? Are we not yer friends? What would you do if somepony died?”
Rainbow sighed. “And this is exactly what I thought was going to happen. Look, I’ll be upset, provided I don’t go first. But, that won’t change the fact that getting worked up gives him even more opportunities to kill us, and without another pony to help out, it’s not gonna make anything easier, alright? We are fucked in every direction if we slip up, and we are not flawless! I’m trying to be realistic here!”
“And where has bein’ realistic gotten us so far? We shoulda died two weeks ago! Realistically, we didn’t stand a chance against Ramiel! A target we can’t hit with a magic shield that fires light beams the size of houses with enough power ta burn a crater in the face of the earth! Ya think we had much of a chance then?”
Rainbow groaned. “No, but that was because I didn’t understand what I was up against and who I was being helped by. Celestia can only do so much for us, and with a target like Sahaquiel, she can’t do anything to help us! There were countermeasures for Ramiel, there’s nothing against a small, fast, and strong opponent like him. It’s all on us, and we’re not enough!
“Hell, I doubt that we could even do this if we had another you, because he’s just that much above our level. Don’t get me wrong, I don’t wanna die. I have things I want to do and ponies who want me in their futures, but… but, damn it, I have to rely on you, and I need to know that you can do this.”
She took a deep breath, put her hooves on my shoulders, and looked me in the eyes. “I don’t know if you’ve noticed, but this guy scares me shitless. If I really didn’t believe there was a chance, I would’ve taken Scootaloo and fled the country by now. I used to live just to live because I could and didn’t wanna die; and that was it. But there’s… something special about this group, something special about you that makes me think we have a fighting chance. I didn’t believe in anything before, but with every day that passes, the more I think that there’s something out there that wants us to win, despite everything, and they’re using you to make it happen.”
Rainbow shook her head. “I… I know that you can’t guarantee me anything. As somepony who’s lived a life like mine, I just know better by now. But, just… just say that you’ll keep it together for me, please? I can’t be worrying about what happens to you and make sure I don’t die in this fight at the same time, and… and I’m different now. It’s hard to not worry about you guys. I care, and if we do manage to survive this, we aren’t even done yet. He is gonna come after us, and I don’t know what he’s got in store either. I need to know that we can do this, so tell me that you can do this.”
Ah shook my head and sighed. Ah took the little pegasus in my hooves and brought her close. Ah hesitated at first, but the word came out anyways. “Sugarcube, Ah don’t think Ah can do this. But we can do this. Just like the last three fights, and all the simulations between; together, we’ll get through it.” Ah chuckled.
“Ya know, it’s kinda funny. Ah had some kinda vision before we fought Sachiel when all of this started, and Ah was just as afraid then as y’all are now. Ah thought we were screwed, everypony was gonna die, and that there was no chance we’d ever see the end of this. Ah was so panicked that Ah nearly trained everypony ta death and made things worse than they could’ve been. It took some guy Ah picked up off the street ta beat some sense inta me ta make me realize what Ah was doin’ ta everypony else.
“Ah’m not sure that we’re special, Ah’m not sure that there’s anythin’ out there pushin’ us along, but as long as Ah can still fight, Ah will. And Ah expect no less from the rest of my team, y’all included; ya hear me? We’ve already proved that we’re capable of miracles, and if we can do it once, then we can do it again. So, even if ya don’t believe in yerself, believe in us. Because we can do this. Got it?”
Rainbow sniffed hard and nodded her head. We sat there like that fer a while, and it really made me think. Sometimes Ah forget how small she is. How young we are. At most we’ve lived about a quarter of our lives, and here we are, the idiots that volunteered ta save the world and fight the bad guys. Fools on parade, bettin’ our lives on bad odds and hopin’ we get dealt just the right cards. Monday will come, and Ah pray that we’re all still here ta see it.
“So, what’d Rainbow want to talk about?” Goose asked. We’d gotten home, cleaned ourselves, and were getting’ ready fer bed.
“Oh, ya know, she doesn’t think we have a chance, so she was gettin’ cold hooves and needed support.”
Goose gargled some water and spat inta the sink. “And she went to you to talk about it?”
Ah shrugged on the bed, pullin’ out my phone. “Apparently, she has a higher opinion of me than Ah thought.”
“So she does.” Goose got in bed beside me, then stuck his face next ta mine ta see what Ah was doin’. “What’d you say to her?”
Ah put the device down and shrugged. “Ah just told her the truth; Ah don’t have the answers she wants and Ah can’t give her any guarantees, but we’ve gotten through everythin’ together so far, so we’ll get through this together too.”
He put his left foreleg under my back and rested his right hoof on my chest. “Well, maybe there’s hope for you yet. Do you believe that?”
That was the question, wasn’t it? Ah took his right hoof in mine and let out a breath. “Maybe? Ah don’t know. Of all our battles, this is easily the one Ah should be the most concerned about, yet… Ah don’t know, Ah just don’t feel all that concerned about it.
“Ah guess, deep down, Ah really do believe. When have things ever looked good? When have things ever gone the way we thought they would? They haven’t so far, so why would they start now? Things might take a turn fer the worst, but they haven’t yet, so why would that start now? We did it once, and even if the simulation shouldn’t be trusted, Ah think we can do it anyways.”
He frowned. “Hmm. Jaqueline Carcharodon with a positive outlook? How unheard of. Are you sure you’re her?”
Ah rolled my eyes and turned ta face him. “Ah might be. Ah’ve got a pretty good way ta make sure though…” Ah raised my free hoof between us and let that all too familiar fire fill it.
Nervously, Goose grabbed it with his free hoof. “Ha ha, maybe don’t though? I’d prefer to keep the house I grew up in, maybe even let my own kid grow up in it too, ya know?”
Huh. Now that’s a thought. The fire died out and Ah brought my right hoof ta my chin. “Here?” Ah asked.
He frowned. “What do you mean?”
Ah threw a hoof up. “In this house?”
“Well, yeah.”
“Now, hold on. This is fine fer us.”
“But…?”
“This neighborhood is gross. This is actually the south district of Manehattan. Even as poor as we were, Ah never grew up in south Manehattan. We have more money separately, right now, than my Pa did most of his life. Why would we not move ta somewhere nicer? Probably can’t move too far away, but bein’ somewhere at least… Ah don’t know, not here, would be better fer the kids, wouldn’t it?”
He raised a brow. “Hmm… now that word was plural. How many are we talking here?” He rubbed my stomach. “Two? Three? Four? More than that? I’d always figured at least one, but I suppose we could move if there was a need for more space. This neighborhood isn’t that bad, is it?”
Ah scowled. “Goose, Sugarcube, ya ruled a gang of dropouts and misfits fer however many years, and they all came from south Manehattan. Since Ah know ya know, just how many of them came from this neighborhood alone?”
He turned away. “Well. At least twenty of the active eighty. Formerly active, anyways.”
Ah rolled my eyes. “Uh-huh. Ah bet ya know all their names too.”
He threw his hooves up. “So, maybe I do. I see your point. Where would you go? Because, honestly, I really don’t want to be near the Manehattan elite because I hate them. Their bleeding hearts are the reason crime was always so easy to get away with in this city in the first place.”
Ah sighed. “Well, so much fer my dreams of a mansion in Manehattan Heights.”
He rolled his eyes. “Ugh. The worst ponies in the world live in Manehattan Heights! Yeah, maybe the ponies here would mug you in broad daylight, but the ponies there would spit at you with ‘righteous unicorn indignation.’ Besides, you wouldn’t know what to do with yourself in a mansion. Trust me, it’s just not worth it. Houses only need to be big enough to fit the ponies in them, and maybe a guest room. Mansions are… lonely, lonely places.” He rolled back ta me and crossed his forelegs. “Seriously, how many?”
Ah narrowed my eyes. “Ya lived in Manehattan Heights?”
“That is not the question I asked you.”
“Fine! At least three. Maybe more, Ah don’t know. Enough. Is that what ya wanted?”
He pulled his lips ta the side. “‘Enough?’ At least three? You have no idea what you want, do you?”
Ah raised a hoof. “No, no, At least three is a definite answer. My parents had three, and Ah at least want that. Before everythin’ got all fucked up, life was nice.”
He narrowed his eyes. “When was, ‘before everything got all fucked up?’ Last I checked, you didn’t have a childhood to be envied for. At like, any point.”
“That’s… fair, Ah suppose. Uh… before Pa died, Ah guess? Ta be completely honest, Ah hadn’t thought about when we lived on the farm as a family since the first time we tried the sharin’ spell. My other memories of that place are all sour.”
He closed his eyes. “At least three, huh? Hmm…” He rolled over, then crossed his forelegs behind his head. “At least three…” He took a deep breath. “Could you handle three more of me? As much as I don’t like to admit it, I am my dad. If we have boys, they’re gonna end up just like me, ya know that?”
Ah raised my snout as a smile filled my face. “Ohhhhh, ho-ho, Ah see what this is about. You’re afraid that if we have girls…”
He put his hooves over his ears. “Oh Goddess, for the love of the Goddess, please don’t finish that sentence. Not a mare on the planet as hot tempered or as unwilling to acknowledge her own feelings as you are. Three little suicidal basket cases that would rather punch out their problems than talk about them? You can’t want that. I can’t do that. I know I couldn’t handle three more of you.”
Smilin’ even wider, Ah straddled him. “Oh, but Goose, Sugarcube, that ain’t yer choice. It’s up ta a coin flip. Are yer little swimmers gonna be faster or stronger in the end? That’s up ta the Goddess, and we’re gonna see what the result is.”
His mouth went straight. “Oh, and let’s not forget manipulative. They’ll all be just as willing to use ponies however they want to get whatever they want. Good Goddess, what if one of them gets my cutiemark? She’ll have the whole world wrapped around her hooves. Think of the little monsters they’ll be! Oh, and powers! They’ll all have powers too, won’t they? Can’t we just start with one and see how that goes from there? Just imagine the horrors we’d be imposing on the world.”
Ah moved my hind legs ever so carefully and brought my snout ta his. “Ya know, my family has a history of producin’ twins at least a few times a generation. Ya may not be so lucky as ta start with one. Ya don’t feel like you’re all that opposed ta the idea…”
He wrapped his forelegs around my shoulders. “You don’t ever play fair, and you know that.” Quick as a whip, he grabbed me and rolled over.
“What the-!?”
“Fine then. I’ll play your game, Miss ‘I want to be a mother.’ We’ll have a big, loud house filled our own little monsters, all just like us. We’ll never be involved in the underworld, we’ll never be poor, and none of our kids will ever have to suffer through anything we did. We’ll make a better life for them than we could ever dream of when we were their age. How does that sound, Mrs. Carcharodon?”
Ah sat up and wrapped my forelegs around his neck, bringin’ him closer ta me. “That, Mr. Carcharodon, sounds like a dream come true♥”
Ah scratched at my chin as Ah looked at the spread before me. If Ah had ta guess, she’d either been bakin’ all mornin’, or she had somepony else bake all mornin’ and brought it with her when she came from Canterlot Castle. Cakes, cookies, danishes, tarts, pies; most of it was breakfast oriented, but it seemed like she just decided ta bring or make all this food fer no particular reason. Ah suppose Ah could’ve seen why if everypony was here ta eat with us, but they were all with Luna right now. Ah was the only one at the table with Celestia.
“So,” she began, “did you do what I asked?”
Ah narrowed my eyes. Do what she asked? What is she talkin’ about? “Uh…”
She took a sip of her coffee, savored it with her eyes closed, then opened one ta let it bore inta my skull. “I gave you instructions to perform exactly one task for me over the course of the last week. I even gave you the tool to do what I’d asked. I know it’s been a busy week for you, but I expected this done by today.”
Ah swallowed. Oh. Right. The test. “Well, Ah, uh… ya know…”
She let out a sigh and put her cup back on its saucer, which also seemed ta have come from her castle. “Clearly, you don’t. Why have you been putting it off?”
“Uh, general procrastination? Ah don’t know. Haven’t had time between… everythin’, and all that.” Ah found my own coffee cup and took a sip from that.
She rested an elbow on the table and her cheek on her curled hoof. “Come now, I believe we know each other better than this. There has to be a real reason. I know that something like this would weigh on your mind. Why?”
Ah let out a deep breath and set the cup down. “Truth is… Ah don’t wanna know. At least, not yet anyways.”
She raised a brow. “Explain.”
Leaning back in the chair, Ah let my eyes drift upward ta stare at the crystal ceilin’. “What good does it do me ta know now? One more thing ta worry about, one more thing ta fret over, one more thing ta keep on Goose’s mind, one more thing that everypony will keep in the back of their heads. Ah’m the front line. Ah’m the only one capable of takin’ hits because my powers make me the best fer the job. If… if suddenly everypony knows that Ah’m more vulnerable than Ah was before, then there’s no way they aren’t gonna try ta… be shields fer me. And that’s… already a problem.”
She shook her head. “Applejack…” a sigh, “I can see you’ve put a lot of thought into this, so I won’t press the issue. However, what is this… problem of shields?”
“Well, as far as Rainbow says, Ah get crazy when Ah lose ponies, and when Ah get crazy, everypony does. It’s like what happened with the first time when Ah cast the spell myself. They started takin’ on my qualities, whether they wanted ta or not.”
Celestia brought a hoof ta her chin. “Hmm. I didn’t know about that. I’ll have to extract my memories to review this… though, I suppose it isn’t impossible for such raw emotion to ‘infect’ the simulations. It is based on alicorn magic after all. Enough of anything can make it sway one way or another, but that’s also why it can be so powerful when ponies harmonize with it. This… ‘crazy’ of yours, can you tell what exactly is happening when it happens?”
Ah scratched my cheek. “Well… not really? Ah just… get mad. It might be worse than it’s ever been, but Ah wouldn’t know why. It’s almost like, every time somethin’ goes wrong, Ah feel like Ah can push harder, ya know?”
She pursed her lips. “I… don’t think I do. Have I really not been watching closely enough? I know that I can tell something about the simulations is upset. You do tend to fare better in later trials, but it doesn’t seem like you change your tactics as much as it just starts to work after a while. Which, in theory, doesn’t make sense, because I’m not changing any parameters of the simulation. Perhaps…” she looked away.
“They’ve already seen me. No reason not to use tools that are already out in the open, right? But, it has been a very long time since we last used it. Well, purposefully anyways. We did control ourselves, didn’t we? Even at the height of it. We could’ve killed her; as angry as we were, anyways. Surely because we know… yes, yes I do think it is time we try it out.”
Ah looked left, then right, and when she and Ah were still the only ones in the room, Ah asked, “Are ya… are ya talkin’ ta somepony, Princess?”
She giggled and shook her head. “Oh, just my inner demons. I believe Rainbow is on to something. Something about you seems to change depending on what kind of stress you’re put under. There are clearly limits to what your body can handle, like when you shattered your forelegs fighting Israfel, but I believe that your will and your emotions combined can make you stronger. Possibly even more so than your body is capable of handling, almost like hysteric strength.
“However, as you know, the simulations aren’t working because those emotions of yours tamper with it. Between my control and your emotion, the magic favors you, which simply should not happen. But, that’s a question of what should and not what is. Because what is, is what we’re having trouble understanding, I think… we should try to understand ‘what is.’”
My gears were turnin’, and Ah did not like anythin’ about this. “Uh… y’all just used the same words about four times in succession and Ah’m not sure what you’re gettin’ at here…”
She nodded and stood. “Hmm. I don’t believe that. I think you know exactly what I mean. But just for clarity’s sake, let’s head down to the training room. Instead of facing your inner demon, mine will attempt to draw yours out.”
Ah swallowed. “That’s… what Ah was afraid of.”
“So uh… do I just sit here and watch, or…?” Scootaloo asked.
Celestia shook her head. “You’ll want to be close by, but not too close. It’s going to get very hot, and there’s little I can do about that. When you start to feel tired, let me know, because then we’ll have to stop.”
Ah was uncomfortable with this from the outset. Now Ah’m gettin’ flashbacks ta the Sachiel simulations, and Ah am not happy about it. She’s gonna kill me.
“I am not going to kill you. I’ll just… break you until it becomes dangerous, that’s all.”
Ah swallowed and looked ta Scoots fer help, but she just shook her head and offered a prayer. Oh, sweet Goddess.
“Now then, here are the rules,” Celestia announced. She’d been stretchin’ herself out since we got here, and whatever she did ta herself either made her muscles bulge or her skin tighten. Ah always thought depictions of the two sisters always made them look real bulky and figured that was just ‘embellishin’ details’, but, uh… now that didn’t seem the case. As she was now, she nearly put me ta shame, and Ah’m not some string bean myself. She’s showed me her bulk before, but this was just downright intimidatin’. She looked like my brother after he gets home from the gym. Ah didn’t know it was possible fer mares ta be that bulky.
“First, you will try your damnedest to kill me. Foul play is entirely allowed. Do whatever you can, use any tool available, just try to hurt me. I will limit myself to whatever I can, most of my attention will be put to making sure I don’t release enough heat to melt you or anything around us. I’m going to attempt to mimic what we know of Sahaquiel from Rainbow’s memories, but I can’t promise I can be that fast or that weak at the same time. It has been a very long time since I’ve released myself with purpose, so you must forgive me if I’m a little rusty.”
THAT WEAK!?
“Uh…”
“No, no questions. I’m certain Luna will attempt to interrupt us at some point; and when she does, provided I find what I want from you, I may have you fight her, too. She’s always been a little faster than me, but matching Sahaquiel’s power should be trivial enough for her, provided she can restrain her absorption. Wouldn’t do us much good if you froze to death, now would it?”
Ah frowned real hard. “And uh… y’all ain’t dealin’ with the kaiju yerselves because…?”
She rolled her eyes. “Come now, I expect you should know why. Could you imagine what I would do to a city if I walked around unrestrained, and trying to fight off a monster? There wouldn’t be a city left to save. We are the rear guard; the final option. Luna would be the same way, possibly even worse. At least the water lines might still be intact if it were me. If Luna froze everything, it’d be like inviting an ice age to our most populated city.
“What isn’t broken by the sheer cold would be left so brittle that it would be unlikely to last for more than a day after being exposed to nominal heat.” A little smile crept up her lips, “Though, it would finally give the climate alarmists something real to worry about. We are monsters ourselves. There are two horrible nicknames to describe us in the legends of other countries, and I have tried my damnedest to bury them. My ponies don’t need to know what kind of power we have, just rumors of it. You, however, have already seen the truth. So, we might as well take advantage of that and see what kind of monster you are hiding.”
Again, Ah looked ta Scootaloo, who only shrugged in return. Ah shook my head. “Alright, let’s get this over with…” Ah reared up ta my hind legs, popped my joints, made sure my new bracers were workin’ right, then waited.
Celestia mirrored me, then it started. First, she removed all her gold. The crown, the yoke, the shoes, all warped away ta some unknown location. The veins in her muscles started ta bulge and her eyes became darker and darker until it looked like all the white of it turned blood red. The once violet irises turned gold and slit like a cat’s. Her mane started ta wave faster and faster until it flickered once, flickered twice, then went up in flames.
The wave of heat was as intense as it was oppressive. It was like takin’ a step in the Palomino heat on the hottest day of the year with the bleak sun bearin’ down on the land, a breath away from burnin’ everythin’ ta a crisp. Slowly, the heat lessened and lessened, and once it was bearable, Celestia popped her neck to either side.
“Ah, there it is. The delicious ecstasy of unfettered power. I have done my best to tone down my output, but we should not keep this up for very long. Alongside the dangers of simply accessing my power, it takes the strength of my will to overcome the desire to give in to it. Now then…” Easily the blackest smile filled with the darkest intentions Ah’ve ever seen from the mare crossed her face and put her newly sharpened teeth on display. She held her forehoof out ta me and curled it in twice. “Come.”
Ah am gonna regret this, so much. “Ahhhh!” Ah let out the most primal scream Ah could and charged at the mare. Ah shot a cable at her, but she knocked it away like it was a fly. Great, she’s not as fast as Sahaquiel, but can catch a bullet if she wants ta. Goddess damn it. Closin’ the rest of the distance between us on hoof, Ah started ta charge Trump Card when Ah felt a hot wind wash over me. Ah blinked and she was gone.
“Careful. Let go of that power and it may be the last time you get to use it.”
Fear. Unbridled, overwhelmin’ fear. Ah brought my forelegs up ta protect my head, but her knee was about at my snout by the time Ah did it. “Damn it!”
Crack. Bone ta my flesh, the force reverberated through my legs and one of ‘em couldn’t handle it. My back found the wall in the training room quicker than the back of my head did, and somethin’ hot and unbidden came up my throat. Ah flinched tryin’ ta wipe my mouth off, but Ah didn’t have time. She was already here.
“Come now. He wouldn’t give you time to rest. I can’t either.”
She’s gonna kill me! She’s really gonna kill me! Ah didn’t have time ta think much else. She’d already raised her hoof. It was gonna crush my skull and that would be the end of it. This is her demon. Power flooded my hoof again. There was nowhere ta escape, and the heat was singein’ my fur and skin just by bein’ near her. Her hoof shot at my face, and my hoof shot at hers.
Our hooves collided, and fer a second there, they halted each other. Seein’ the opportunity, Ah ducked under her punch, let it slide past me, and rammed my shoulder inta her chest. The fire filled my hind legs, and Ah launched. With what little time Ah had ta feel my skin on hers, it was painful. Just touchin’ her burned me. Like bein’ wreathed in hot steam with no recourse. We crashed inta the opposite wall, and Ah bounced off as quick as Ah could. A second ta breathe and take stock.
Left foreleg, broken. Right hoof, okay... somehow. Coat burned off on most of my right leg and shoulder, and… probably a broken or at least cracked rib. Ah wiped my mouth, finally, and that was blood. Off ta a good start.
Celestia pulled herself outta the wall, popped her neck, and flexed her right hoof. “Ooh, now that was wonderful! You matched the strength of my hoof! You even managed to break a feather.” One of the bigger ones on her back, a primary, if Ah remember from class, had snapped in half. Otherwise, she looked just fine. She ripped it out and then set it on fire. She let the ash float off her hoof, raised her snout at me, and licked her lips.
“I suppose even I can be surprised from time to time. You can still move. Let’s fix that, shall we?” Wings flapped hard, once, and she was off. Dartin’ at me, Ah bounced away in time ta watch her swoop past me. Hoverin’ fer a moment, she paused. “I missed? Did you react because you saw my shoulders move? Hmm… that won’t do. Based on the footage, Sahaquiel moves unnaturally, as if by magic. You wouldn’t get cues like that. A levitation spell should do…” And, of course, without warnin’, she was suddenly on me. Her foreleg bulged, somethin’ inside me sent a sharp pain up my side as my body reacted, and Ah didn’t have time ta avoid again. No! Can’t run, fight back!
The fire was all around me on the outside. She was the sun, there was no doubt about it. Ah needed more power ta deal with Celestia and Ah had one option. If this is my inner demon, then now is the time ta use it! The internal fire filled my nonbroken forehoof, and my hind legs. The punch came, and rather than dodge it, Ah pushed it away with my empowered hoof. Twistin’ my torso, Ah whipped my hind legs up and aimed fer the head. Of course, she was far faster than Ah could even imagine and Celestia backed away about three meters ta dodge me. My legs kept flyin’ and smashed inta the trainin’ room floor. Fractures broke out underneath me until the whole floor fell inward and built up away from where Ah hit it.
Fire died out, pain flooded in, blood welled up in my throat, and that familiar stabbin’ sensation in my chest pulsed with each breath. Oh goddess, Ah can’t keep this up… A wash of heat came over me and Ah turned my head and prepared my workin’ foreleg fer whatever she was about ta do, but… she was just floatin’ there. Starin’ at me, with an… invested look on her face.
“How very intriguing. I did not know Trump Card could be used in such a way. Scootaloo, use recover.”
Used in what way? What… did Ah do?
“Hey, can you like… back up further? I kinda feel like I’m baking alive here, and I’m not even close to Applejack, ya know?”
The burnin’ mare blinked. “Ah, of course.” Rather than do that, her horn lit up, and she put herself in a box of gold light. Suddenly, things were room temperature again, and she came a little closer.
Free of the heat, Scootaloo came over and looked me up and down. “You don’t even get beat up this bad when we do the simulations. I don’t know how you’re not dead.”
Ah vomited what Ah assume was mostly blood based on the color and fell ta my knees. “Ah will be soon… if ya don’t help me out, Sugarcube.”
“Right.” She put her hooves on me, and the cool relief of her powers washed over me like a warm bath. Aches and pains disappeared in quick succession and, after a few seconds, Ah felt fine again. Once she was done, she nearly fell over. “Dude.”
“What?”
She shook her head and stared at me. “How are you not dead? That was… Goddess, broken bones everywhere, burned skin, coat regrowth, at least an organ or two damaged or punctured. You should be dead.” She looked ta Celestia, “Dude, maybe chill? I… I could probably do that again, but I doubt I could do it more than that.”
Celestia popped her neck and crossed her forelegs. “Well now… I suppose we’ll be testing your limits today too, won’t we?”
It felt a little like a lead ball was sinkin’ in my stomach. “Goddess help us.”
“Pretty sure she’s trying to kill you, actually,” Scootaloo remarked.
“Begone, filly. I am no goddess. Today, I am the devil.”
“‘K, bye!” And so, Scootaloo ran. There goes my safety net. Leavin’ me here. Alone. With her.
“Stand, my champion,” Celstia ordered.
Ah let out a deep sigh and followed my orders. The box of light around her shattered and the heat returned. If Ah had ta compare it ta anythin’, it’d probably be like walkin’ inta a sauna on full blast. Unpleasant at best.
“While I am unsure how you’ve done it, you managed to have Trump Card active in three hooves at once. While tracing the magic in your body, however, it was almost as if you had it active everywhere at once. As you know, the spell is meant to enhance the strongest traits in the races in which their magic vessels are most prominent. These vessels are found in all races, but are usually dormant in Earth Ponies and Pegasai. Active magic vessels can cause… something like an electrical surge in the body and, without a way to release it, such as a horn, they can, in turn, harm the muscles of the user.
“Have this happen in the wrong place, and you could potentially overload your heart or sear your brain, or something dangerous like that. One of my biggest concerns about Twilight’s little event the other day was whether or not she’d damaged herself irreparably via magic overload, but it seems as if Scootaloo either repaired that, or it never happened. What is happening here looks to be on a similar level to that, but you’re sustaining that power.
“Somehow, you’ve forced your own magic vessels to an ‘on’ state, and are using that very same dangerous magical discharge within your own body in targeted places to enhance your body. I have seen magic like this before, but never to this degree; and never by an earth pony. You’re either doing something very right, or very wrong, and controlling it at that. I would even say that this is hardly Trump Card anymore.”
Ah blinked. “Uh… can ya run that one by me again?”
Celestia rolled her eyes. “Later. Whatever you did, do it again and come after me. If I were to try and recreate the effect, activate Trump Card in all your hooves, and try to hold it there.”
In all my hooves… and keep it up. Can Ah do that? Ah figure Ah already did that once based on what she’s sayin’. Ah took a deep breath and relaxed as much as Ah could. In the beginning, the fire was hard ta summon. It was painful ta hold, and if Ah didn’t let go of it, it always felt like Ah was gonna break. The more Ah use it though, the easier it’s been ta call and build. In all my hooves… and keep it up…
Front right, the fire filled and Ah waited. It squirmed and writhed within, lookin’ fer anywhere it could go ta get out, but it wasn’t unbearable. If Ah really wanted, Ah could probably hold this fer a while. That outta the way, Ah focused on my front left. Again, the fire filled as easily as it always has, but with it in both forelegs, Ah started ta feel jittery. The minor buzz of pain in the back of my head was louder and more involved. It was uncomfortable, but not impossible ta hold. This, too, Ah could do fer a while.
Back left, the flames rose, and spun, and burned, and now most of my body felt like a coiled spring. The tension needed ta go. The stabbin’ pain in my head was like a dull headache that Ah knew Ah could turn off whenever Ah wanted, but Ah wasn’t done yet. Ah wouldn’t be able ta keep this up long.
Grittin’ my teeth, the flames filled my back left, and suddenly, it was like Ah was covered in ants. Burnin’, squirmin’, wrigglin’, writhin’, electric fire. My whole body tightened, the pain in my head was just about more than Ah could handle, and Ah was shakin’ like Ah was cold or somethin’. “Gah! It hurts!”
“Hold it! Stand it for as long as you can bear, and then stand it longer! Don’t limit yourself to just your magical centers, let the magic fill you!”
Ah tried, but Ah just couldn’t. It was all too much at once. The fire flew out with a breath, and everythin’ exited in the ground underneath me.
Ka-crack
BOOM!
It wasn’t just the floor that shattered like we set off a bomb or something, the fractures crawled up the wall, and the crystal turned inta somethin’ like sand around my hooves. The castle shook, parts of the ceilin’ cracked and fell, and before Ah knew it a wall of gold had formed above us. A golden bubble formed around me, and Ah couldn’t so much as get up ta my hooves. My whole body was exhausted. Ah couldn’t feel much of anything, but it almost felt like my hooves were all bleedin’.
My vision was fadin’, but before Ah did, Ah was brought beside the burnin’ alicorn. “Yet again, you surprise me. We have much to test when next you wake. For now, you may rest. You’ve earned that much.”
“Ah. Sooner than I expected. Afternoon, my dear.”
My eyes slowly started to open. Whatever happened, it felt like Ah was ran over by a couple of trucks, and then slammed inta a wall. My head was spinnin’, but Ah could at least make out the big white mare at my bedside. “Princess?” Ah went ta rub ta my eyes, but the moment Ah moved my hooves, my forelegs throbbed. “Gah, damn it!”
“Don’t move. You’re not in the greatest shape right now. I’ll go get Scootaloo and we’ll have you fixed up in a second. Just hang on a minute, I’ll be right back.”
Ah tried ta blink the crust away, but my eyes just wouldn’t have it. Ah couldn’t so much as move my legs an inch without gettin’ hit with waves and waves of pain, and nothin’ was makin’ my head feel any better at all. Instead of tryin’ ta fight it, my eyes closed again and darkness took me.
“Oh, she’s awake again!” Goose called. Ah blinked a few times, and now Ah felt like Ah could move. At least a little, anyways. My legs were sore, but not unusable. Ah rubbed at my eyes, and before Ah knew it, Goose was helpin’ me sit up.
“What happened?”
He shrugged. “You tell me. The training room caved in on itself.”
Ah blinked. “Huh?”
“Oh, yes, it did. And I had to fix it! How did you even do that!? It was a solid crystalline structure! The fractures in the crystal were like each and every breakpoint had been found, exploited, and found again and smashed with a hammer! This stuff is supposed to be nearly as hard and solid as diamonds! What did you do!?”
Twilight was just about shakin’ me by the end of her rant and Goose had ta push her off. “Hey, hey! Cool it. She just woke up, give her a sec before you chew her out.”
She and Goose didn’t notice her, but before Twilight could respond, her mother took her by the shoulders and forced her inta her lap. “Yes, what did she do indeed.”
“Oh, there you are,” Goose said.
Celestia nodded. “I am here. So, how are you feeling?”
She was lookin’ at me, so Ah assume she was talkin’ ta me. “Uh… tired, Ah guess? A little sore. What happened?”
“You destroyed the training room! That’s what-” Twilight managed before she was muzzled.
Celestia nodded. “After building up a separate instance of Trump Card in all your hooves, you lost control of that energy and released it where you were standing. The training room floor at the epicenter of the… I suppose blast doesn’t really work here. Let’s call it a quake. The epicenter of the quake was shaken into particles, as if it were vibrated into dust. The rest of the destruction also acted much like an earthquake and was shaken and shattered with such force that it spread like broken glass.
“By the time it reached the ceiling, I intervened and started to put up barriers to take the force off the castle, but by that time, it had already broken enough of it to bring the walls down. Luna took notice, and with some quick thinking, Twilight was able to stabilize the castle, but only enough to stop the whole building from coming down. The training room had to be rebuilt, so that’s what the last six hours were spent doing.”
Ah frowned. “Six hours?”
“You shattered your legs,” Goose said.
“I did what I could to put you back together, but most of the toll was on Scootaloo, and she couldn’t get the job done all at once. The first time you woke up, we’d only gotten your hind legs repaired, and that was about four hours ago.”
The memory of the flames came floodin’ back and Ah had ta check my hooves just ta make sure. Ah moved ‘em up and down and checked my wrists. Nothin’ felt broken or off, so Ah guess it was fine. Just fer my own sanity, Ah called fer the fire ta build in my dominant hoof, and when it came, easily and painlessly, Ah sighed. “Seems like everythin’s fine now. How’s Scootaloo?”
“Fine, I suppose,” Celestia mused. “Last I remember, she was playing a game. Like you, she took a nap to recover, but has since been fresh.”
Ah nodded. “Good.” Ah squeezed my hoof again and stamped the fire out. It hurt like hell, but Ah matched her. The Sun herself… If Ah could just… “Princess?”
“No,” Goose immediately protested.
“Yes?” she asked.
“No!” he shouted.
“Ah think-”
“No you don’t!”
“If Ah took another shot at it-”
“No, no, no!”
“I think you’re right!” Celestia added.
“No!!!”
“Alright. And Ah think we should have everypony else watch, too. If what ya said is right…”
She nodded. “Yes, somepony could be standing by to record… a magical view would be very useful to our future endeavors…”
“Why!?” Goose complained.
Finally, Ah acknowledged him. “Look, Sugarcube, this is important. If we can figure this out tonight, then maybe we can get everypony else workin’ on it. If nothin’ else, it’ll at least give me a chance ta practice before Ah end up doin’ it tomorrow anyway.”
Scowling, he turned his head. “I don’t like it when you do things like this to yourself. How many times am I gonna have to wait for you to wake up?”
Ah brought myself up ta his face and kissed his cheek. “As many times as it takes.” Ah got out of bed, stood, and stretched out my back. “Let’s gather everypony. Twi, make a kinda ‘protected viewin’ room’ at the top of the trainin’ room. Now that Ah’ve got an idea of what it feels like, Ah think Ah can direct it a little better this time.”
Celestia raised a brow. “Oh? What makes you say that?”
Ah flexed my hoof again, lettin’ the fire flash in and out as Ah did. It comes so naturally now, Ah don’t even have ta think much about it. And that’s exactly what Ah think Ah need. “Ah think, if Ah can work up ta ya, Ah might be able ta do it. But the problem is how long Ah can sustain it, if at all.”
Celestia smiled, but thankfully not in that scary way she did earlier. “Is that so? Very well then. We shall see if you can back up your bark with your bite. Come along, Twilight, we have work to do.”
Once they’d left, Goose and Ah were alone in the spare room together. “Are you sure?” He asked.
“Sure about what?”
He rolled his eyes and came up beside me. “About… this. I know it’s gotten easier for you, but you destroy yourself every time you do this. What if--”
Ah put a hoof on his snout. “‘What if’… doesn’t matter right now. Ah know you’re worried, Sugarcube. But, if we don’t do what we can… then ‘what ifs’ aren’t somethin’ we’ll ever get ta worry about again.”
His teeth found his lip and he turned away. He clicked his tongue. “Since when are you the sensible one?”
Ah pulled his face over and gave him a light peck on the lips. “As strange as it may sound, that’s usually my job. At least before y’all came along, anyways.”
He smiled and rested his forehead on mine. “Uh-huh, that’s how it goes doesn’t it? I guess I don’t mind picking up the slack if it makes things easier on you.”
A giggle, a kiss, and a hard swat ta the rear later, we left that room. We trained late inta the night, and by the time the Celestia was startin’ ta get inta the fight, Ah figured it out. Finally, somethin’ went right. Finally, somethin’ worked the way Ah thought it would. Because, of course it did. Everythin’ looked good that night. For once, there was a hopeful outlook. And it would be.
Because the next day was gonna be the worst day of my life.