She couldn't stand it. Centuries of deception and conquest, of being feared by all who knew her, and she had been reduced to such depths. Taking orders from him at the siege of Stalliongrad was one thing, but afterward, when Uriah was doting on her changelings up and down, praising them for following his plan perfectly, tending to the recovery of the frozen and injured, truly made her sick. They were meant to be strong and take what they needed. If they wanted praise, that had to earn it from her, their queen. Then there was the matter of feeding them. He was quite clear they were not to steal love from anypony while in his service, but that he'd find a way to sate their hunger all the same.
What really irritated Chrysalis, as she tossed and turned under the covers, was that Uriah actually figured out how to do it. She sneered as she curled up, his hoofs wrapping around her torso, his chest on her back, and his wings caressing her side. "I hate you."
"I know." The pale alicorn whispered in her ear before kissing the nape of her neck. He shot her a teasing grin as she shivered. "Oh, enough with the grimace, you know this is helping."
Chrysalis looked away. "Shut up." When he nuzzled her, she couldn't help herself and just moved into it in response. The warmth she felt filled every fiber of her being. It was love, very particular, but love all the same. Transferred through Eros, with physical affection aplenty, but the source clearly Agape. Uriah had a genuine desire to help and nourish her when she needed it, even though he knew full well she couldn't be depended on the same way. Chrysalis held out a hoof and, to her chagrin, she noticed there were a few less holes than there were when she started these sessions with him. "I really hate you."
"I could stop." He pulled away, ever so slightly. "If you're really that uncomfortable with it."
She quickly reached for him and got back in close. "No!" She flushed. The last thing she wanted was to yelp like that. "Oh...darn it!" She kissed him. She despised that it was happening but it was sweeter than the finest nectar and she felt strong enough to take on an army. Uriah held her in kind, his every touch energizing her further. The two collapsed, face to face, on the pillows. He smiled at her and brushed a bit of her wispy mane out of her eyes. She swatted at his hoof. "Just so we're clear on the boundaries..."
"Trust me, it's mutual." He said flatly. "I've only ever been that intimate with one mare in my entire life, and if that ever changes, it certainly won't be with you."
She rolled her eyes. "Charming." She nestled her head into the pillow and, in a flash of green, took the form of a familiar blue mare. "So, Trixie, then?"
Uriah smirked. "Nice guess, but no. She's strictly a friend. Some casual flirting and snuggles, but that's it." He puzzled for a moment. "You know, it's weird. You kind of sound alike. Like your actual voice sounds like Trixie."
The faux unicorn shrugged. "I kind of heard it outside of Stalliongrad," Chrysalis returned to her true form. "There's only so many voices in the world, some of them are bound to be similar." She inched closer to him and gave him a teasing look. "So who then? There must be some pony that meets the king's fancy."
Uriah half smiled, but felt an odd pressure on his back that made his face fall. It was familiar and came with a faded sound in his ear, but he chose to ignore it. "Why, so you can use it against me later?"
Chrysalis gave him a wicked smile. "Of course."
"Nice try." He booped her nose and she snapped at his hoof. Uriah chuckled and pulled her in close. She scrunched up her muzzle, but still snuggled into his chest. "Aw, cool, I just saw one of your horn holes fill-in." She smacked him with a pillow as he laughed at her blushing.
It was a quite town, just north of Ponyville. It was a farming community that kept to themselves, not making much noise. Except, of course, for one incident where a swarm of parasprites rolled in down the road one day. It was the first disaster in over three decades and, ever since, the town's ponies knew better than to turn their backs on Ponyville. In pursuit of that caution, they started doing night patrols.
Mill drew the short straw that week. As a unicorn he was one of the town odd-balls. It was him, a pegasus, and a bat-pony in a town of earth ponies. He didn't mind. It made him feel special, being able to lift weight off of his friends shoulders when time came to load up the grain. Night patrol wasn't bad either, especially since, paranoia aside, nothing ever actually happened. The only real drawback was that, frankly, the town got really creepy at night.
Mill trotted up and down the street for the third time, on the last round before he could turn-in. It was unusually quiet. There was at least a water-wheel turning that usually provided white-noise, but even that seemed to be silent. That eerie quiet was interrupted by a loud crack and thud that made Mill jump. He fumbled trying to keep his lantern up and panicked trying to catch his breath. That's when the voice came. "Help." It was incredibly feint, he almost thought he imagined it. "Help me please."
He followed the weak calls toward the center of town. There was an old tree ponies liked to sit under, a sort of personal landmark for the town. Mill shined his lantern over it and noticed one of the branches had broken off. He moved the light down toward the base and his eyes widened. "Ah, crud!" There, at the roots, was the large broken branch and beneath it, a set of hooves sticking out from a black cloak. Mill set his lantern down and rushed over. "Hang on, buddy, I'm here."
The figure coughed. "I...I was catching my breath. Then the branch fell...my hips no good, I could move out of the way."
Mill examined the branch and tried to pull it up. "Don't worry, out-timer, I'll get you out. Boy, this things stuck good."
The old figure shook timidly and looked over his back. "Oh, I...I don't think I'm pinned...but I hurt my back, I can't move." The front most hooves reached out to Mill. "Please...pull me out."
Mill didn't hesitate. He reached for the strangers hooves with his own. However, to his shock, something else reached out of the cloak to grab his forelegs when he got close. A cold, clammy, pair of red hands grabbed Mills hooves tight, holding him as he tried to pull away. "What in they hay?"
The cloaked figure let out a slow, raspy, laugh and a pair of yellow eyes glow under the shade of the cloak. "You poor...foolish ponies. Too...nice for your own good." The creature made a terrible sound and an odd sensation came over Mill. It was like some pony was pulling on his horn. He looked up and saw his horn was glowing, but the magic seemed to be drifting away, drawn to the mouth of the cloaked creature. The color drained from his eyes, he became limp, and his cutie mark vanished. The creature pulled himself out from under the branch, just as his body started to glow. There was an unpleasant twitching and a popping as he suddenly grew in stature, but not by much. "Not...enough. Still too weak." He coughed a little, then walked away from his victim and into the night.
Uriah jolted awake, in a cold sweat. His eyes darted around the room as his mind raced, trying to comprehend what he'd just seen. He swallowed a lump in his throat and tried to regulate his breathing. He glanced over and Chrysalis was still sound a sleep, curled up next to him. He started petting her and let out a sigh of relief as reality set in. It had been a long time since it happened, but he recognized the signs of a prophetic dream. That feeling, so cold, like malevolence itself dug at his muscles.
The alicorn, still composing himself, leaned over the changeling queen and gave her a kiss on the cheek. The transfer of love was an immediate relief for the intense dread that was corrupting his energies. She stirred slightly, but he just pulled the covers over her. "Shh, shh, it's alright. Just keep dreaming about all the ways you can betray me."
Chrysalis smiled in her sleep and nuzzled into the bedding. "Mmmm, cobras...whicker basket."
Uriah couldn't help but admire her as he gently got out of bed. "She's so cute when she's plotting." The pale alicorn silently glided across the room and exited the door softly, as to not disturb his frenemy's sleep. Once he was out of earshot, he quickened his pace, searching the halls for his goblins. He found two grunts playing cards on the floor in the throne room. "You two."
They immediately shot to attention. They saluted and tried to hide their game, even though he clearly noticed. "Yes, sir, Goblin King, sir!"
Uriah's eyes were narrowed in determination and worry. "Boys, we have a problem. I've just had a premonition."
"I'll get the ointment." One of them proclaimed before trying to rush to the infirmary.
The pale alicorn went dead-pan and held the goblin so he was running in place off the floor. "No. A premonition is like a dream that tries to tell you something important."
The goblins tilted their heads. As Uriah set the one back down, the other spoke. "Oh, you mean like that time I dreamt I was at a campfire, but it turned out I just left a kettle on and the kitchen caught fire."
"That was you?!" Uriah caught himself before he raised his voice. He had to put out that fire without knowing how the extinguisher worked. He covered his face with a wing. "I'm going to choose to ignore that. Listen. I just had a vision of something very evil and very dangerous stalking my little ponies in secret. I think I know who it is, but he drains magic and it could prove very dangerous for everyone if I confront him directly. If I give you what you need to find him, can I trust you two to deal with it?"
They straightened back up and put on determined looks. "You can count on us, your majesty! So you want us to..." He dragged a thumb across his throat.
Uriah shook his head. "No, nothing so ghoulish. Just club him into unconsciousness, stick some black-iron shackles on him ,then drag him back in a bag, but be quiet about it. I don't want anypony knowing what we're up to." He focused his magic and a small black sun appeared before them. "Here, this should guide you right to him. He's too weak to track, but I've imprinted my memory of the vision into this spell. The black sun will be drawn to the creature with the matching image. It will also act as bait, since he won't be able to resist alicorn magic."
One of the grunts grinned with confidence. "Right, follow the ball, beat up the creepy guy that tries to eat it, bring him back here."
Their king nodded. "Right, but to be clear, you're looking for a centaur. He'll have walk on four hooves like a pony, but he'll have arms like you guys. Understand?" They nodded. "Then go forth, my goblins, and make your king proud." Like the starting horn at a relay race, their kings words set them off at great speed. Uriah had full confidence in them, but there was still an air of uncertainty. If this really was who he thought it was, then there would need to be planning done in the event they actually did come back with him. It was still late, and the throne room was mostly empty, save for a fixer who was napping on the left arm of the throne itself. Uriah gave an anxious grunt, then did as he had taken to do in moments like this. He seated himself on his kingly chair and had himself a long think.
Twilight was sure she should be sleeping more, but she was in heaven. Her strength had just about fully recovered, and after a nice massage at the day spa, the last of her aches had melted away. It was a full-day of recovery, with some organizing with Spike to help her get back in her routine. That concluded with the decision to do some more reading into Uriah's book. She had been reading for several hours, she was in bed, wrapped up in a blanket cocoon, and her eyes were still glued to the page.
On the subject of petrification, one must first and foremost be aware of the three existing creatures that are capable of such potent and potentially deadly magic. The cockatrice, which has developed the magic solely as a passive defense mechanism, is easily the most harmless. While aggressive when confronted and very territorial, a cockatrice will keep to itself and its own kind. Essentially if you've ever given anypony a "look" that tells them you don't want to be bothered, that's what a cockatrice does. The only difference is their glare is much more effective. The easiest and surest way to protect oneself from the petrification is to simply not look. If you see a cockatrice in the wild, simply close your eyes, turn, and walk away until you are sure you are out of danger. You might bump into a tree or bush along the way, but just take it slow and keep your eyes shut and you'll be fine.
The Basilisks, however, are a whole different kind of nightmare.
Twilight hushed a gasp, as to not wake Spike. She'd been wondering when she'd find a segment on the creatures at the source of Uriah's pain. She sat herself up and refocused with a new respect for the knowledge she was about to learn.
Be warned, these are not some wild animal instinctively stalking the night. These are malevolent, cunning, and absolutely dangerous monsters that are every bit as intelligent and sociable as we are. Yet they choose to hunt us for food and sport. The "look that kills" is an active ability, rather than passive. Where a cockatrice will do it automatically on eye-contact, a basilisk is in full control. This makes the ability all the more dangerous because you won't be able to prepare for it. A basilisk will not hesitate to look you in the eye, taunt you, pretend to negotiate with you, but never forget for a second that your life is fully within their claws until they break eye contact. Now, unfortunately, their is no option of escape other than to fight for your life. A unicorn is the only type of pony that could survive one alone and only if they are willing to make use of lethal spell-craft. Approximately two pegasai are required to subdue a single one and four for earth ponies. Basilisks are not known for leaving survivors. If there are remains at the scene of an attack, chances are, it will be shattered stone. They think its funny and there's a real chance they will use the moment of grief this causes as an ambush. I find myself rambling now, there will be more on the basilisks in my notes of "beasts of the world."
Back on to the subject of petrification and possibly the most worrisome user of this affliction. Ourselves.
Twilight raised an eyebrow.
In my studies, I have never encountered more frightening applications for a curse than what pony kind has devised. It is often reserved for the worst offenders. Monsters, magicians, mad ponies, if it poses are great enough threat, the petrification spell is applied. We tell the public that this is a collaborative effort, that it takes a united harmony of magic users in service to the kingdom, but this is not the case. Even in my discussions with Star Swirl, he is convinced that it is impossible for one pony to transmute the physical state of another. I evenly his naiveté sometimes. If you've read my commentary on spell-craft, you'll know how I feel about the word impossible.
Petrification, since it is not a naturally occurring phenomenon, can only be temporary when cast by a pony. The length of time depends on the willpowers of both the target and the caster, as well as the amount of strength one puts into the spell. This makes it an incredible gamble to cast in a combat situation. You can convince yourself the target is stuck like that, but they could just as easily unfreeze as soon as your back is turned. However, casting it at the right time, while the target is mid-air for example, can lead to more permanent results. An insane griffon, trying to trigger a magical doomsday weapon, could very easily find themselves very fragile, careening toward a stone wall rather than their big red rune.
Twilight shivered at the thought. "I think I'll pick up the rest tomorrow. "
"The rest of what?" The question was followed by the tap of claws on wood as a sleepy dragon wandered into the room. "You still up Twi?"
She smiled as her beloved assistant rubbed his tired eyes. "Sorry to wake you, Spike. I just can't help myself."
Spike curious eyed the black book drifting in her magic back to the night stand. "Still learning Uriah's secrets? Any idea when he's coming back? I got his prototype Oubliettes and Ogres stuff integrated with my current set and me and Big Mac have been having a blast. It'd be great to have a third for guys night."
Twilight smiled and shook her head. "No direct sign of him since he took off after helping me with the vines. However, from what I hear, Pinkie got a letter. It was vague, but positive. She asked me if I knew a spell that could help her send a reply, but then I found that and just wanted to read more." She fell back onto her pillow. "I think I just needed to decompress. We just finished cleaning up after the vines, Mayor Mare wanted me to put a royal stamp of approval on some things that really don't have anything to do with me, and then there's the disappearance of Appleloosa."
Spike's expression fell. "How's Applejack holding up?"
Twilight hugged her pillow. "She's been so quiet. She knows there's nothing we can do until we find a solid lead, but I can just tell its eating at her. I think that's the worst part, being stronger than I've ever been, but still being helpless when my friend needs me."
Spike sat next to her and gently brushed her mane. "Hey, if you could bring them back you would. You're still an amazing friend and princess. More to it, you're Twilight Sparkle! You'll figure this out and save the day like you always do. I know, your friends know it, your girlfriend knows it, and I'm fairly certain Uriah knows it and he's only met you like three times."
She reached over and gave the little dragon a big hug. "What would I do without you?"
His smile faltered and he rubbed the back of his head. "Um, about that..." He looked up at Twilight, who's caring eyes looked into his with confusion. "It's just...I know you said you were just gonna be back in Canterlot for a little bit while you got used to your royal duties and then you came back, but...now you and Luna are together and you'll probably wanna go back to be with her...for good this time." He sniffled a bit, but forced a supportive smile. "I'm happy for you, really, you two deserve to live happily ever after. I'll just stay here and take care of the library..."
Twilight immediately pulled him in close. "Not another word." The little dragon hugged her tight and buried his face in her chest. "Luna and I are still figuring things out, but I know one thing for sure. There's nothing in all of Equestria that would ever make me leave you behind." She hugged him tighter. "We're family Spike, don't you ever doubt that for a second."
They held each other for a moment, then Spike dried his eyes and gave Twilight a grateful smile. "Thanks, Twilight."
"Happy to help." She hopped out of bed and lifted him onto her back. "Come on, I'm feeling like a midnight snack and there's still plenty of get-well cookies to enjoy."
He gave a little salute "Yes, ma'am."
With a shared laugh, the two made their way downstairs. However, the thoughts still lingered in the young alicorn's mind. So much had changed in her life in such a short amount of time and she hadn't even considered a lot of the impact. Would she move back to canter lot for good? Would Luna move there? Would they find a third option all their own? These are all questions Twilight would have been asking a hundred different ways. For whatever reason, she just felt distracted. She gave one last worried thought to the black book on her nightstand.
Braeburn was not a complex pony. He got up in the early morning, tended to whatever chores needing tended to, and offered a helping hoof to anypony who might need it as he wandered about town. It was a plain routine, but as long as there were plenty of friendly neighbors, it was always interesting. However, he couldn't ignore exactly how much more interesting things were since the relocation. He trotted through the ever expanding Goblin Town, still under construction. The goblins were all over the place, building more houses, installing water towers and pumps, hoisting up the blades of a new windmill, and other general odds and ends that they thought would make it more hospitable. The putt-putt course was a nice thought, but the driving range ended up being awkwardly positioned perpendicular to the pottery house.
Braeburn had to abruptly stop as a changeling buzzed by in front of him. "Pardon me."
The stallion tipped his hat. "Sorry 'bout that, pard." He quickened his pace as he continued to search for Uriah. The king hadn't been at his throne and Braeburn had a few pressing matters to discuss on behalf of the towns ponies. It took a little while of looking through tunnels and asking goblins for help, but he eventually found Uriah at a tunnel under construction. A team of grunts lined up with their motorized drills, sparks flying, as they tried to cut through a stubborn ore deposit. The pale alicorn observed with a tired grimace, scrawling on a clip board he held in his magic. Braeburn mustered his confidence and approached the goblin king. "Excuse me, King Uriah."
The alicorn remained focused on his clip-board. "Ok, so if this takes about five hours, I can move on to setting up a laundry pool on the east side. From there, I can check in with the scout reports and detail the new infiltration teams now that I've built up a rapport..."
Braeburn wiped a bit of sweat off his brow as he nervously tapped the king on the shoulder. "Um...Uriah."
The king quickly came to attention, like snapping out of a trance. "Hmm? Oh, Braeburn, good morning. Just taking care of a few royal duties. I thought it might be nice to get the towns ponies some new clothes, so I'm trying to set up a tunnel route to this huge fashion emporium Trixie told me about. Hitting a bit of a delay though, but the goblins have it covered." He looked up and called to the team. "You're doing great, boys!" The replied with a quick thumbs up. "I'm told that's a positive gesture. Anyway, what's up?"
Braeburn rubbed his shoulder. "Well...If you're busy I certainly don't want to bother you..."
Uriah tucked his clip-board under his wing. "No, go on. I'm here to help."
With a reluctant sigh, Braeburn straightened himself up. "Well, me and the other ponies from Appleloosa have been talkin' and, we have some concerns."
The pale alicorn tilted his head. "Such as?"
"Well, we setting up for the usual buffalo stampede, chief sends his thanks for helping set that up by the way." The king gave a respective nod. "So we've got our station all set up, things were going smoothly, but we had to slow it down. We don't have a lot of space for them to just keep running, so they have to form a line to pick up their pies. Buffalos don't mind, they're still getting their pie and stampeding. We got a nice rhythm going, but then as the line's moving through, we get a changeling."
Uriah raised an eyebrow. "What did you do?"
Braeburn's ears drooped. "Well, we didn't want to start nothing, so we just gave him a pie and kept the line moving. Then about four more of them show up mixed into the line and after all the buffalo passed through, there was a whole bunch of them lined up."
The king gave a befuddled look. "It sounds like they just saw the line and wanted some pie. I don't really see the problem."
Braeburn furrowed his brow. "We only had enough ready for the buffalo, we had to dig into our personal food supply to make up the difference."
Uriah rubbed his temple. "Right, right, sorry. I'll have more supplies brought in through Wallowmire. Milk, flour, eggs, sugar, and I can help you set up more stations so they don't mix with the stampede again."
The earth pony shook his head. "Thanks, but that's not the problem. It's the changelings."
The alicorn pulled his hoof away from his face and gave Braeburn a curious look. "What about them? From what I've seen, their integration has been going smoothly."
Braeburn's eyes darted around the room, like he was looking for something. "That's just it. The way they just slipped into the residents is a bit unsettling. I mean these are changelings for crying' out loud! They take the form of the ponies you love and feed on that love. We all know who happened at the royal wedding, Canterlot was overrun. How are we supposed to trust them?"
Uriah placed his free wing on Braeburn's shoulder. "Walk with me, Braeburn." The two headed back back toward town square. "Look, I understand that there's bound to be some reservations, but we've all got to be willing to put our best hoof forward if we're going to make this all work. Now, the changelings have promised they're not gonna try to replace anypony or forcibly steal any love, and the goblins and I are going to hold them to that, but you guys need to help out with that. Now, did every pony get that pamphlet I got circulating when the changelings moved in?"
Braeburn nodded, but looked a little uneasy. "Yeah, we've read it, but...I gotta ask, are you sure about..."
Uriah cut him off with an aggravated sigh. "Braeburn, I'm trying to be patient, but I barely got any sleep last night, so I'll be blunt. I know what I'm doing. Just heap on the neighborly affection and that'll keep them satisfied and happy. Share some baked goods baked with love, give them an appreciative pat on the back, strike up a friendly conversation," As the entered the common area, Uriah spotted a changeling. "You, come over here." The drone was a bit startled by the sudden summons, but obliged. Uriah picked him up and presented it to Braeburn. "Here, hug this."
The earth pony's eyes widened. '"Beg pardon?"
The alicorn rolled his eyes. "It's fine, Braeburn, they're not gonna bite you." He looked to the changeling. "You're not gonna bite, right?" They shook their head. "Good, so hug them." Braeburn looked uneasy, but the changeling just blinked and eyed him curiously. The earth pony took a gulp of air, then cautiously put his hooves around the insect. The changeling leaned into it, then Braeburn started to relax and hug them normally. Uriah smiled. "See? Doesn't that feel nice?"
Braeburn was still nervous, but couldn't ignore what he was feeling. "I guess...feels kinda warm and tingly."
The changeling shrugged. "I can't complain."
Uriah nodded and gestured that they could separate. "Just like I said, a little good faith goes a long way."
"That's another thing..." Braeburn paused. The next part would require a more delicate approach. "We saw the new ponies you brought in...from Stalliongrad."
Uriah rubbed his temple again. "Oh boy, here it comes."
Braeburn took a solid stance. "None of them looked like they were coming quietly. Some of them looked hurt. Now we hear the goblins talking about a dungeon?"
The king held up a hoof to quiet him. "The ponies of Stalliongrad are proving difficult. They're not as willing to accept the situations you and the Appleloosans. I've tried talking to their leader, but the good baron literally spits in my eye every time I try to talk to him. They've made it clear they're going to keep fighting us, I'm reacting accordingly, but I can assure you they are being well taken care of. Now, if that is all..."
"Boss! Boss!" a frantic yell came from the upper tunnels. A team of four grunts came clamoring down, carrying a large, writhing, bag.
Uriah stood up and dropped his clip-board. "Good lord, they're back already. I'm afraid we'll have to cut our conversation short, Braeburn. This demands my immediate attention." He gestured for him to leave with a wave of his wings and the earth pony obliged. The goblins fought with the bag as they presented it to their king. "I distinctly remember only sending two of you, what happened?"
The frontmost grunt stepped forward and bowed while struggling to hold their prize. "It was only two of us. He tried to make a break for it up at the front porch. Guards on watch jumped in to help."
Uriah shrugged. "Meh, results are results. You did get the right guy, right?
The grunt nodded. "Yeah, centaur, just like you said. Spooky bloke, red and black, gaining at the magic like a river after he hadn't seen water in days."
The king smirked. "That'd be him. Take him to the throne room and round up some more boys. The court of the Goblin King is about to come to order." He turned and proudly led them through the square. They waved their fellow goblins to follow, summing an excited crowd. Uriah shepherded the crowd into the halls of the waiting throne room, where they immediately made themselves comfortable. Just as when Uriah was brought before the throne, they cackled and clamored from every direction, their red eyes fixed on the prisoner in the bag. Uriah took his seat on the throne, summoned his staff to his side, and used it to gesture to the handlers. With a swift yank, they removed the bag from over the prisoner. Uriah couldn't hide the satisfied grin or the glare of contempt. "Lord Tirek...it is, indeed, an unparalleled delight to have you brought before me today.
The decrepit being trembled, enraged at his state of frailty. The pale red skin, the greying-black coat and white beard, and the bags under his black eyes betrayed any attempt to intimidate. The goblins had him shackled in black iron around every limb, with a collar just to be sure. The old centaur scanned the room with a sneer, showing no fear to his abductors. When his eyes fell on their leader, a look of stunned confusion washed over him. "Prince Uriah?"
There was a click in the back of the alicorn's mind. A sort of guilty happiness that he wasn't about to share with his guest. "It's King Uriah nowadays."
One of the goblins called through the murmurs of the crowd. "You know this wretch m'lord?"
"Never friends, but there was an understanding." Uriah kept his eyes locked on Tirek, who returned the stare with a mirroring grimace. "I'd make a visit to Tartarus just to make sure he was still in his cell. I mean an immortal, magic-stealing, warrior warlock, isn't something you just sweep under the rug."
Tirek raised an eyebrow. "I always wondered why you stopped coming. I sat there waiting for you, you never came, and then it was like your magic just...disappeared." He half-smiled. "I never realized how much I enjoyed our little talks until the five hundred years alone set in. What happened?"
Uriah rolled his eyes. "You remember the basilisks? I killed the lot of them."
Tirek gave an approving smile. "All of them? Good for you. You always did hate those savages."
The alicorn king remained stoic. He remembered Tirek was always a cunning talker. "After that, my mother crippled my magic and banished me to a comet. To add insult to injury, she cast a spell that erased me from the collective memory of everyone everywhere."
"I didn't know she had it in her." He mused over his shackles. "Of course, Tartarus is shielded inside and out, I would have been protected."
Uriah's eyes widened slightly at the realization. "Which explains why mother never sent anypony else down to check on you. You were the only one left who could ask "where's Uriah" and break her spell." Uriah covered his face with his wing. "Tell me. By what nonsense were you, decrepit and powerless as you are, able to get yourself free?"
Tirek sneered at the insults, but answered plainly. "A while back, Cerberus broke away from his post for about half-an-hour. I just walked right out the front door."
"My mother is an idiot." Uriah let out a heavy sigh.
"And what of you?" The old centaur put a faux-sympathetic lilt to his voice. "Celestia clearly didn't expect you to come back with the extra effort she put into your banishment. How did you do it?"
One of the goblins rang out. "He brought that comet crashing down to Equestria with the sheer force of his righteous wrath and rode it all the way to freedom!" The room erupted into cheering.
"Thank you. Thank you." The goblin king waved to his court. "Of course, I could have easily missed the opportunity and just drifted for another half-a-millennia or the return could have gone south and I'd have been vaporized on re-entry." He struck the ground with his staff and the resulting ring silenced the room. "On to the task at hoof. Part of the reason I was cautious with you is because I respected your intellect. That being said, do you understand the position you currently find yourself in?"
Tirek pulled at his chains, causing an affirmative rattle. "I'm surrounded, bound in black-iron so that I can't drain magic and what little I have is useless, and I am in front of a being who's easily able to turn me into a smear on the wall at a moments thought and who's people I was at war with long ago." He stood up. "Yet I am still in one piece and you've brought me here instead of Tartarus. I have to assume there's something more to be being here than just catching up."
Uriah got up from his throne and started toward Tirek with an accusatory glare. The goblins chittered with anticipation. "True. To be perfectly frank, I had always thought I should have just destroyed you long ago. Presently, given that the first thing you did when you got your freedom back was go stalking my people and start draining of them of their essences just to satiate your power-lust makes me want to swing you around by your nose-ring before stamping your life out with my bare hooves...However," Tirek didn't react to the expected threats, but the shift in tone caught his attention. "Recent mercies and resulting alliances have proven most beneficial. So, I'm thinking..." He raised his scepter so the hook hovered just under Tirek's chin. "Why don't you join up with me?"
Tirek narrowed his eyes and nudged the hook away. "You mean work for you?"
The alicorn shrugged. "Meh, you say potato. I mean, what do you want Tirek?"
The centaur grinned and clenched his fist. "Power." Uriah responded with a raspberry. "What?"
"To what end?" Uriah shot a few feet off the ground and started pacing in the air. "Say you did attain all the magical power in Equestria and even beyond. Say you became the most powerful being in the universe. What are you really going to accomplish?"
Tirek mulled it over for a few seconds. "I'd have respect."
"You'd have acknowledgement." Uriah corrected. "People acknowledge power for what it is, but only in the sense they acknowledge a hurricane or an earthquake. If you want to be respected, you have to do something with it. So what would you do? If I gave you a considerable amount of power, Enough to stand on level with Celestia, surpass her even, what would you want to do with it?"
The centaur's first instinct was to say "take more," but then, as his thoughts began to run, his face fell. He stroked his beard in a moment of contemplation. "I'd want to go back to my homeland, claim my rightful place as ruler to prove my father wrong, and exact revenge for my brother's betrayal." He let out a sigh. "Although I'm sure they're long dead by now. My dark magics grant me my immortality, but, even if those same secrets were available to them through my mentor Sendak's notes, I doubt they'd ever make use of it. Scorpan certainly refused when I offered it to him. There's really not much point, is there?"
"It still might be nice to get out of the shadow." Uriah set a hoof on Tirek's shoulder, drawing a suspicious eye from the centaur. "It's easy to disprove a ghost because they seldom try to stop you. I'm not so lucky. I had to come back to find the one who betrayed me on a pedestal as high and radiant as the sun, but oh what a joy it will be to knock it down." He looked his guest in the eye and smiled. "You despise my mother, yes?"
Tirek grinned and gave him an incredulous look. "The hypocrite harpy that my father lived in fear of, who conspired with my brother to imprison me in the darkest bit? Absolutely."
"Common ground!" Uriah declared with a cheer as he flew back to his throne. "Now we're getting somewhere." The alicorn took a deep breath and his magic began to spark. Wisps of flame and furious bolts of crimson red projected from his horn and focused into a spot in the air before him. As the energies converged and became more intense, a black sun formed. Uriah grunted, sweat dripping from his brow, and his eyes glowed solid red from the magic. The goblins cringed and whimpered as their king howled in agony. The torches extinguished and the flickering red blanketed the room. Even Tirek took a step back from the raw power being displayed. When the yelling stopped, Uriah went limp in his chair. The spell was complete. "Wellll...welly well well. That hurt a lot more than I thought it would."
The goblins gradually relit the torched and returned the light to normal. All in attendance, but especially Tirek, couldn't take their eyes from the site of the black sun. The centaur unconsciously reached up for it. "What...what is this?"
"Power." Uriah said, exhausted. He leaned on his staff, it's stored energy gradually restoring his strength. He looked to his goblins. "Remove his bonds." This surprised even Tirek.
Then goblins chattered as a pair of grunts approached the prisoner. "Are you sure, my lord? In your state..."
"Trust me." Uriah interrupted. "I'll be fine. Just release him."
Tirek held his arms out and the goblins cautiously followed their king's command. From his arms, to his legs, to his collar, each bond hit the stone floor with a resounding clang. When the collar was removed, Tirek's eyes flashed as his magic was finally unsealed. "Thank you. Now..." He approached the black sun, marveling at it like a sacred treasure. "How does this impressive thing work? I could feel it half-way across the room."
Uriah smirked. "It's a spell. Drain it like you would any source of magic. If I did it right, it should make you approximately as powerful as both Celestia and Luna combined."
"You're bluffing." Tirek shot him an incredulous look, but immediately found himself enraptured once more by the raw energy before him.
Uriah stretched out his muscles as he continued to recover. "I did have to guesstimate a bit. I know the height of Celestia's power as easily as I know my own, but I was only recently able to gauge Aunt Luna's during an...intense therapy session. Either way, this should serve to scratch that itch."
Tirek was practically drooling. He opened his mouth and a haunting rasping of a noise filled the room. The black sun's magic started to spark and began to drain into the centaurs mouth in a dark haze. Tirek's eyes began to glow like Uriah's, his posture gradually began to straighten, and his bones started to pop and reset as his body grew as his body. The goblins got on their guard and their king sat in mild amusement at the sight. Tirek's musculature increased and his horns started to lengthen, while the color returned to his skin and fur. By the time the last drop of magic was drained, the once frail and feeble wretch had become a hulking monster that easily towered over even the brutes. The centaur's face was aglow with sinister delight as he marveled at his newly returned stature. He even kissed his bicep. "Uriah, I can't begin to thank you enough for this wonderful gift." He glared at the alicorn. "When I'm done destroying Equestria, I'll be sure to remember you fondly."
With a sound of thunder as he pushed off, Tirek changed toward Uriah. Several brutes defended onto his path, but he knocked them away like twigs in the path of a speeding train. Uriah just sat and smirked at the raging beast. When Tirek was just a few feet away, Uriah's eyes flashed red and the centaur froze in his tracks. Tirek was completely motionless, save for his eyes darting around in shock. Uriah got up, gently flew up to his guest and patted him on the head. "Hmm, either you really thought I was that stupid or you really were that desperate for the power." A quick spark on Uriah's horn and Tirek was moving once more, but involuntarily. Uriah's magic arced across his body like an electric storm, putting him on his knees with his arms behind his back. "I should have mentioned this boon comes with a few provisos. First and foremost, no biting the hoof that feeds you. Anything that constitutes a genuine attack on me will result in an immediate halt of all motion, followed by a series of electric shocks to get you to submit by any means necessary short of killing you."
"How very kind." Tirek growled through gritted teeth.
"Furthermore this also extends to all attempts to steal magic from any other pony. I've already given you all that you need, don't get greedy. The obvious exception being Celestia, who I encourage you to drain every last drop from as soon as you get the chance. This failsafe can also be activated manually if I feel you might be going too far astray or try to sniff out any loopholes." He stopped to look Tirek in the eye, then released him from the hold. "Of course, I'm not so cruel as to force this on you like some kind of attack animal. So, I'm going to give you a choice. You keep the power, follow its rules, help me take Equestria from my mother, and I can promise I'll march alongside you right into your homeland so might take it and we can both stand as the kings we were always meant to be. Or, I take the power back, you walk out of here free as a bird. Of course, if I was able to find you, it's only a matter of time before Clestia and Luna do. Fair warning, there's two more alicorns to worry about besides them. Plus they've reawakened the Elements of Harmony and managed to befriend Discord." Tirek's eyes widened. "I know. I have to knock on wood to make sure he's not still spying on me." He started knocking his staff against the ground. "You hear that you jigsaw puzzle looking son of a...but I digress."
He was about to continue his ultimatum when the doors to the throne room burst open with a silencing boom. A panicked grunt ran in shouting. "Sire! Sire! Emergency!"
"I'm in the middle of something." Uriah kept his eyes on Tirek.
The grunt scurried up and tugged at one of the kings forelegs. "Sire, it's two of the ponies from Stalliongrad! They're trying to escape!"
Uriah landed and addressed the goblin with a clear annoyance. "Can't you handle it?"
The grunt's face was pale with worry. "Well, we got the one, but the other one...she's...just please hurry!"
The grunt rushed back out of the room, waving for Uriah to follow. The alicorn stamped his hoof and begrudgingly followed, holding on to the knowledge he could keep Tirek as long as he needed. The scene in the town square was utter disarray. A large circle had formed, Goblins surrounding the scene, keeping the disturbance in and the crowd of Appleloosan ponies back. Uriah flew over the crowd and landed at the edge of the action. To his right he saw goblins holding down a unicorn, affixing shackles to his legs as he thrashed in vein. To his left, he saw what the grunt was trying to warn him about. It was a pegasus mare, a clearly pregnant pegasus mare. A pair of brutes tried subdue her, but they were afraid to get close, worried for her condition and what she might do to resist. Pegasai weren't meant to fly that far along, but she tried anyway. Her wings picked her up off the ground, but Uriah could see how tired she was. She was so high up and they just gave up on her. Uriah's heart stopped. "No!" He ran as fast as he could and slid to catch her just in time. He cradled her in his magic and set her down gently, but she quickly scrambled to back away from him. "Woah woah woah, easy. Just stay calm."
Her eyes were wide open in fear. "Stay away from me!"
Uriah stayed where he was, keeping his eyes on hers and gesturing her to calm down. "It's okay. It's okay. Let's all just take a deep breath." He waved his wings and the brutes backed away. "I just need you to relax. Let's talk. What's your name, sweetie?"
Her eyes darted between him and the goblins around her. "Sunrise Bouquet." She was panting heavily.
It did not sit well in his gut that she was panting like that. "Hi, Sunrise, I'm Uriah."
"Traitor!" The unicorn shouted from across the perimeter. "You lead these monsters. You turned on your people!"
Uriah didn't react, he just kept his face calm, his eyes on Sunrise, and pointed to the unicorn with his wing. "He with you?"
She nodded. "My husband." She was starting to cry.
Uriah's face fell in sympathy. "It's okay, he's okay. Nopony's in trouble. Nopony's gonna get hurt." He cautiously took a step forward. "Sunrise, I'm gonna need you to breath. I know you're scared..."
Sunrise stamped her hooves. "I can't be here! I need to be in Ponyville with my parents when the baby comes!"
Uriah locked eyes with her, trying to project as much care as he could. "Okay, I here you, but you must calm down. It's not good for the baby."
Her husband shouted again. "Stalliongrad forever!"
"Not helping." Uriah quickly barked, but turned back and relaxed his tone. "It must have been real scary, huh?"
Sunrise lowered her wings. "The changelings...they broke down the door to the baron's office and dragged me away. I was screaming..."
"And we're all very sorry to have put you through that. Aren't we, everyone?" He looked to his army, particularly the changelings. The scolding glare drew numerous apologies and sorrowful looks. "I know we haven't been great at showing it, but you're surrounded by people who really do care about you a whole lot."
She was starting to calm down, but then her husband started up again. "Just surrounded! Fight him Sunrise! No matter what. Nothing is more important than Stalliongrad!"
Uriah's wings flared. "What did you say?"
The unicorn glared at the goblin king. "I said nothing is more important than Stall..." He was cut short when, in a a pale blur, Uriah flew across the perimeter and pulled him up by the collar.
"Name." The alicorn growled.
"Permafrost." The unicorn spat.
Uriah tilted his head, and Permafrost suddenly snapped to attention, before Uriah's magic planted him face first into the ground. "I want you to understand something you brainwashed little toad. That is your wife and unborn child. Stressing her out and making her exert herself is not healthy for the baby. You should be thinking of them and not some useless pile of rubble of a city!" He turned Permafrost over and stepped on his chest. "Do you have even the slightest idea how precious what you have is? I would give anything to have what you have and you have the gall to suggest some unhinged patriotism is more important..."
"Stop it!" The scream rang out through the tunnels. Sunrise wept and looked to Uriah pleadingly. "Stop it! I can't! I can't be here, I can't! Please! Please!"
Uriah snapped out of his rage and became crestfallen. He left Permafrost in the dirt and drifted over to Sunrise like a ghost, taking her in his hooves. She was frightened, but, as his eyes locked with hers, she began o relax. "Sunrise, I want you to look deep into my eyes." She murmured something inaudible, but did as he told. "Let your mind go back to yesterday. What were you doing?"
Sunrise's wings went limp as she relaxed into his hold, her eyes still fixed on his red eyes. She thought "no pony has red eyes." "We were filing paperwork. We going to move to Ponyville to be with my parents...for the baby."
He held her gently, wrapping his wings around her. "Ponyville...such a nice place...you'll be so happy there."
She smiled, her eyelids growing heavy. "So...happy..."
Uriah leaned in closer. "Keep looking into my eyes. When I count to three, you will sleep. When you wake again, you will be in Ponyville, you will have no memory of the attack on Stalliongrad, you will only remember that you went to seek approval to leave, you got it, but your husband had to stay behind for two more rotations of the guard before he could join you." There was a yelp of protest from Permafrost, but it was quickly silenced when a brute held his mouth shut. Uriah continued. "Remember these things as I have told you and nothing else. You will forget this place, you will forget me, and all that you've seen here. One...two...three." Her eyes shut, she went limp, and Uriah hugged her tight. The two brutes stepped forward. "Take her to Ponyville. Be careful with her and let no one see you. Leave her at the train station." They nodded, and one took her gently. She slept soundly in his giant hands as they carried her down the tunnels.
Permafrost was seething. He pulled away from his jailers and roared at Uriah. "What did you do?! What did you do to my wife?!"
Uriah was calm. "She wanted to leave...I arranged for her to do so."
The unicorn shook his head as the goblins brought him to his feet. "But she won't remember I'm here. She won't remember what happened to Stalliongrad. She won't know where I am, she might think..."
"You died?" Uriah finished coldly. "The pony you love having to live her life without you, not knowing your fate. Now you have a taste of my pain, except, you got off lucky. She still knows who you are and you'll get to see her again eventually. So be grateful, as you rot in your cell, dreaming of her touch again."
The king fell silent as the unicorn screamed. The goblins dragged Permafrost back to his cell and dispersed the crowd. Uriah's head hung low as the passersby looked at him with a mix of fear resentment. Some faces were a bit more understanding, Braeburn and Trixie seemed more sympathetic to the sullen alicorn, while Chrysalis and her changelings looked almost proud. Uriah, face to the floor, lurched from where he stood and tried to get back to his throne room. Trixie intercepted. The blue unicorn held his shoulders. "Uriah?"
The pale alicorn slowly lifted a wing and rested it on her. "Trixie...I...I can't breath." He started hyperventilating before collapsing onto her. "What...Trixie, what did I do?! Oh stars!"
Trixie held her friend tight. "You did what you needed to do. She's calmed down, her and her baby will be safe and sound because of you."
"It was certainly impressive." The changeling queen added with an inappropriate joy. "A healthy bit of hypnotism to keep the peons compliant. Making the husband watch?" She ended with a chef's kiss.
Uriah glared hard at her. "Shut! Up!" He is rage quickly extinguished and he went back to holding Trixie. "I just robbed that stallion of his whole world. I did exactly what my mother did to me!" He broke away to gesture to the square "And every pony saw! I'll never be able to get them to trust me again. Discord was right, I'm trying to have it both ways and failing!"
Braeburn bit his lower lip, but decided to step in. "It's not all bad. I saw what you did to help that mare. I can talk to the towns ponies, get them to understand."
"I appreciate it." He started to compose himself, but still looked miserable. "I just don't know what I'm going to do going forward if something like this happens again."
"Like the blue one said, you'll do what you need to do." A shadow fell over them, and a towering figure approached. Tirek emerged from the the throne room tunnel and cross his arms as he locked eyes with Uriah.
Chrysalis almost felt her jaw hit the floor "Lord Tirek?"
Trixie hid behind Uriah. "And he is?"
"On board." The centaur smiled at the surprise in the alicorn's eyes. "Getting me to fall for your trap was impressive in itself, but what you just did there was the clincher. It takes great strength of character to do whatever it takes to achieve one's goals, even if it means utilizing the very thing that causes your suffering." He reached out a hand to Uriah. "I think working together might just be worthwhile after all."
"Great! I'm probably gonna need therapy after today, but I'll take the win." Uriah shook Tirek's hand with gusto. "I think this is the start of an excellent friendship."
"Alliance." Both Tirek and Chrysalis corrected.
Uriah rolled his eyes. "Whatever." He then started up an evil laugh and got himself between them "Laugh with me!" The centaur and the changeling queen happily joined in. Trixie and Braeburn exchanged a nervous glance and slowly started to back away. Uriah noticed and waved them off. "Spoil sports." He started down the opposite hallway and his wicked allies followed. "Now, to the war room. We've got some plotting to do."