//------------------------------// // Chapter 1: Calm Before the Storm // Story: Revenge of the Storm King // by IronStories //------------------------------// Princess Celestia always looked forward to visiting Mount Aris, even if it was for royal duties. Not only was it a beautiful place, but the hippogriffs always enjoyed her company, especially Queen Novo. The defeat of the dreaded Storm King has strengthened the relationship between the ponies and the hippogriffs, and they were in awestruck by Celestia's beauty and charm. Plus, it also means that she gets to spend time with her old friend. Ever since returning to the surface, the Queen has been very busy trying to not only restore Mount Aris to its former glory, but also maintain Seaquestria on top of that. Having her daughter Princess Skystar around helped some, but it was still a little stressful. But she felt confident in herself and her subjects, especially with the Storm King no longer a threat. As Novo was getting the kingdom ready for Celestia's arrival, she started to reminisce about her husband, the late King Waverider. He would have loved to see the kingdom come back, especially after that faithful day. Before she could think about it even more, a familiar voice filled her feathered ears. "Novo!" Celestia excitedly exclaimed. "Its been a while." "Celestia! It's been too long!" Novo came up to Celestia and gave her a big hug. "I was hoping you would arrive soon. Come, let's head to the meeting quarters." Celestia followed Novo, mesmerized by how much the hippogriffs managed to get done in restoring their kingdom. It was not too long ago that Mount Aris was completely in ruins. Now it looks closer to how it was during its heyday, before the Storm King invaded. "You sure made a lot of progress repairing your kingdom." Celestia remarked. "I am very impressed." "Well, it certainly wasn't easy," Novo sighed. "The east side still needs some work, but one of my subjects insists on leaving it as is, for historical significance, as she puts it. Frankly, I think she just wants to take more pictures of it, and I don't want to be reminded of the past ever again..." "I completely understand where you're coming from." Celestia replied. "However, in my years of ruling, one thing I've learned is that you can never hide from the past. Instead, you learn from what happened to better yourself." Novo seemed reluctant to hear about that. She's felt so much grief, guilt, and anguish over that faithful day, and she wanted to forget it ever happened. Celestia noticed the look on Novo's face, and didn't want to try and open up old wounds. "On the bright side," Celestia added, hastily changing the subject, "you no longer have to worry about the Storm King anyone." "Yes, that is true." Novo replied, seeming much more chipper. "I'm glad he's finally gone, and he was brought down with help from my dear daughter nonetheless! I can sleep so much easier knowing that he can't harm us anymore. Now then, let's start the meeting, shall we?" Celestia nodded, and she and Novo headed to the meeting quarters. Little did they know, however, that their meeting wouldn't be going as expected. When the Storm King was defeated after being turned to stone and shattering into pieces, it was agreed upon by the ponies and the hippogriffs to scatter his remains across Equestria so that they would be difficult for his massive army to locate. But the Storm Guard were fiercely loyal, and were determined to find what remained of their leader and bring him home. For months, the most elite trackers scoured every square inch of Equestria for each stone piece. Some searches turned out successful, but many ended in failure. But at long last, after so many restless months of searching, the last fragment the Storm King has been found. The sentries grab the final piece and made their way back to the Storm Kingdom, a dreary, dreadful place where even the bravest of souls would dare not enter. Within the heavily armed fortress at the center of the kingdom, the Storm Guard gathered with all the fragments of their departed leader, placing them on the makeshift turntable. Soon, the remaining guards arrive with the last piece, adding it in with the others. The massive brutes have managed to reverse-engineer the effects of the deadly Obsidian Spheres from much trial and error. They also were waiting for a particularly big storm to utilize enough lighting energy for their big plan: revive the Storm King. The rumbling of thunder filled the air. The time was right. The Guards raised the turntable onto the roof, which slowly opened to the oncoming path of the storm. Pylons and pistons began to pulsates, and electricity began surging through the room. Bolts of lightning began hitting, causing the entire room to shake, with the Obsidian Sphere antidote working it's way through, and suddenly, the shattered fragments of the Storm King began to come together, fusing where they should be, and then, a massive flash of light, almost as bright as the Sun, illuminates the room. When the light quickly faded, the turntable was slowly lowered. The smoke started to clear, and there he was, almost as if he never shattered or was turned to stone. His hand twitched, and his cold, blue eyes finally opened. "Yes..." he growled. "At long last, the Storm King LIVES AGAIN!!!" He leapt from the turntable, landing on his feet. The Storm King glanced at his troops, smirking. "I commend you all for your hard work and devotion. You have no idea what its like being encased in stone, being in itty-bitty little pieces, scattered by those wretched ponies! I never want to go through that again!" The Storm King made his way to the balcony of his fortress, observing everything that has happened in his absence. Not much has changed, but he wanted to make up for lost time. And he knew exactly what to do. "Normally I would take this time to expand my empire further, but I have some unfinished business to attend to." He left his balcony and headed for his refined airship. "Gather our top officers," he ordered, "I want to pay a visit to some old aquatences" The airship loaded up, with the Guard's highest-ranked generals boarding, and the Storm King quickly joining them, back in the chain of command. He wanted revenge. He wanted to punish the ones responsible for his humiliating defeat. He wanted to show that he was a force to be reckoned with. His destination: Mount Aris.