//------------------------------// // Minion Rescue // Story: Worlds Apart: The Chosen of the Prognosticus // by GMBlackjack //------------------------------// Nastasia awoke in one of the many cubic rooms nestled deep within Castle Bleck. Rarity and Pinkie were standing in front of her, no doubt chosen because they were completely immune to her hypnosis—a clever tactic, if a bit obvious. Examining her surroundings, Nastasia found that she was tied up in a chair with some kind of metallic wire. Not all that unexpected, all things considered. “Ah, you’re awake!” Rarity forced a smile. “Glad to see you’re still with us.” “Um, I’d think you of all people would feel the opposite.” Rarity generated her blade, holding it to Nastasia’s neck. “Let’s just say I’m a happy mare no matter how this encounter ends.” Pinkie gently put her hoof on Rarity’s horn, patting it until Rarity dissipated the blade. “Friend can’t handle your methods, hmm?” Nastasia asked. Rarity lifted her head up high. “She’s an endless bubble of positivity, a stabilizing influence all of us drastically need right now.” Pinkie saluted. “Yep! I’m the party pony!” “Now…” Rarity sat down on the floor, fixing Nastasia with a coy smile. “How do we stop the Void?” “Real simple. Use the eight Pure Hearts on the Count in unison to end the Chaos Heart’s curse, kill him, and shatter the Chaos Heart afterward. But you already knew this.” “True. But, seeing as that is not in my power to do and seeing as I’m stuck here, any alternative solutions?” “End the Chaos Heart’s curse and find a suitable replacement chosen for the Chaos Heart. I believe you’ll find that anyone the Chaos Heart deems as ‘chosen’ will seek destruction.” Rarity twitched. “I’m getting there…” Nastasia felt the need to adjust her suit, but her arms were tied down so that was utterly impossible. “I believe you’ll find that the rest of my information is equally unhelpful, ‘K?” “I’ll be the judge of that.” “I can give you troop movements and the arrangement of every room in the Castle. I could direct you to the room with the map of the multiverse. I can tell you the deepest secret of every minion in this castle. None of it will assist you in stopping the Count.” “You have the power to leave.” “And I will never open a portal to somewhere you want. Plus, you’re blocking my ability to do so.” “Already tried to escape?” Rarity smirked. “I am curious how you managed that.” “In the team sent to the Castle, there was one boy called Aang, the Avatar of Diqiu.” “Yes, I am aware of his lineage. The chosen protectors of Diqiu. Master of all four elements.” “All five.” Rarity tapped Nastasia’s chest with her hoof. “Including spirit. You aren’t being blocked Nastasia, you simply have no more connection to the Void to speak of. It’s been removed.” “Gotcha,” Nastasia nodded slowly. “Any other tricks you’ve gained I’d like to know about?” “Oh, dear me, you seem to have become mistaken about this situation!” Rarity let out a bitter laugh. “You’re the captured one!” Pinkie said, grinning. “We ask the questions!” “Ask away,” Nastasia said. Rarity tapped her chin. “How about… the Count himself. How about you explain why he’s doing this?” “To destroy all worlds and create perfect new ones.” “Not good enough. Why would he do such a thing? Surely there has to be some reason. What set him on this warpath? Who is he?” Nastasia remained silent. “...Answer.” “Um, I don’t have to answer all your questions, ‘K?” “It would be in your best interests…” Nastasia, for the first time, smiled. “It doesn’t matter to me, Rarity. I live to serve the Count. That is all I am.” “Surely…” Rarity frowned. “No, no you’re being completely honest.” “Wait, really?” Pinkie blinked. “She really doesn’t care what happens to her. How… devoted. What has he done to earn this level of absolute loyalty?” Nastasia gave her nothing. “Fine then. Luigi?” “Hypnotized and currently on standby as far as I know.” “Rainbow and Applejack?” “Imprisoned, directly above the central chamber.” “Gilgamesh?” “I have no idea. I take it he doesn’t exactly declare his position to you, either?” “I was asking more about what you knew about him.” “He is an unknown. I was not aware of his existence until the Void opened, ‘K?” “Mmm…” Rarity sighed. “Well, Pinkie?” Pinkie nodded. “My left eye is watering and I feel like I have a rash on my back. Pretty sure he’s almost here.” Nastasia stared at Pinkie. “Hmm. How do you know?” “Pinkie Sense!” “It makes about as much sense as it sounds,” Rarity offered. She summoned her blade and held it to Nastasia’s neck, careful not to actually break the skin. “Now, be a good secretary and watch closely.” Pinkie tapped her hoof on the ground a few times before throwing the doors open herself. On the other side was a long, dark hallway, at the end of which Count Bleck currently was, slowly striding toward them. “Hello, darling!” Rarity called with a wave. “I knew you couldn’t resist making an extravagant entrance, so I’ve given you an impressive hallway!” “Bleh heheheheheheh…” the Count tipped up his hat. “You know me so well.” Cautiously, Rarity levitated Nastasia out of the room and into the hall, keeping the blade continually pressed to her neck. She walked out of the room herself, Pinkie bounding along behind her. “Now… Count, I believe now we get to talk.” “This seems familiar,” the Count said, stroking his chin. “Weren’t we already here today, Bleck?” “There’s a slight difference,” Rarity said. “I can get away at any time. I don’t have an entire troop of visitors to worry about, and I’m not shell-shocked by what’s going on. I’ve also had a long time to think about everything you’ve done to my ponies while we’ve been here…” The Count held his hands wide and let out a laugh. “Well, here I am! Come to save my little Nastasia!” “Don’t listen to her,” Nastasia said. “Let her do what she wants with me, ‘K?” “Nastasia, Bleck will not abandon you if he has any choice.” “You sure took your sweet time getting here,” Rarity pointed out. “Bleck knew you would not end her so quickly, not without using her as a bargaining chip. And Bleck had to go make a visit… to a certain world of colorful ponies.” Rarity felt her knees lock up. “What did you do?” “Only what fate awaits all worlds!” Count Bleck slammed the base of his scepter into the ground. “Equis was the first world to fall. It is no more.” Rarity’s heart caught in her chest. “It… it’s gone?” “All of it! Your cities, your towns, your countries, your planet… and most of your ponies.” He snapped his fingers. “Like flecks of dust, gone in the wind of the Void.” “Don’t believe him, Rarity,” Pinkie said. “They’re not gone.” The Count whirled to Pinkie. “I speak the truth!” “Oh, psh, I didn’t say you were lying. You’re just mistaken!” For a moment, the psychotic smile plastered on Bleck’s face faltered, replaced with a look of confusion, concern, and something Rarity couldn’t identify. However, he quickly regained his composure, reestablishing the grin. Wait a moment… Rarity narrowed her eyes. Something’s up here. Her desire to shout at him in a blind rage died down as an idea formed in her head. “...Why are you hiding?” Rarity asked. “Bleck! Count Bleck hides nothing! All worlds are to be de—” “You’re hiding behind that mask,” Rarity interrupted. “I see it. All this laughter, the nonsensical speech, the hammy speaking… Every now and then, it breaks through. It happened just now, and it happened back at the battle. What you show me… it isn’t you.” “Bleh heh heh heh heh! You are foolish. Count Bleck is the only Count Bleck and there is no one else!” “Then how did ‘Count Bleck’ and Nastasia meet?” Count Bleck rolled his eyes. “A pointlessly sentimental question.” “Then how come she wouldn’t answer questions like this either? It’s like she knows you wouldn’t want me to know. Which means it isn’t pointless.” She took a few steps forward, not taking her eyes off him. “There’s something else in you, Count. Something that has to be driving the wheel behind this unhinged madman on a murderous rampage—it’s just a persona. What I’m looking at right now is a shallow invention. And something tells me that whatever’s behind that persona is the secret to ending all of this.” “Chasing after a secret that doesn’t exist!” Bleck laughed. “It is amazing you’ve lived this long! ...said Count Bleck.” The way that last verbal tic was added almost as an afterthought pushed Rarity over the edge. “Tell me who you really are right now.” “There is nothing t—” Rarity pressed the sword into Nastasia’s neck, drawing blood. “R-Rarity!” Pinkie stammered. “Don’t test me,” Rarity breathed. “Either of you. What’s it going to be, Count? A true devotion to this persona of yours wouldn’t care about what happens to Nastasia. But that isn’t you. You actually care about her, and care very deeply. A madman with a monocle does not earn undying loyalty.” Count Bleck dropped the smile, giving her a grimace. “You are too clever for your own good.” He snapped his fingers. Everything within five meters of Bleck lost all color—and the magic in Rarity’s horn went out in an instant. Nastasia gasped, letting out all the stress she had been building up for the entire conversation. “This… was all just a game to you,” Rarity realized. “A chance to show off your persona.” Bleck ignored her, beginning to untie Nastasia. “Why?” Rarity asked. “Why do you go to such lengths to make us hate you? What do you gain?” “I gain death,” the Count said, standing Nastasia up and patting the dust off of her. “The man you seek, the man ‘driving’ behind the mask… that man needs to die. That man knows nothing but pain. That man does not exist.” “I think he does,” Rarity said. “And I think he wants out.” “Your words will not sway me, Rarity. If you succeed, you replace a mad murderer with a tearful crusader. You want a man you can kill without remorse. You want a mad Count that relishes in destruction because it’s fun. But you demand truth. And truth, like love, is a wicked monster.” He draped his cloak around Nastasia and turned to walk away. “Aren’t… aren’t you going to capture us?” Pinkie asked. “No need,” the Count said. “There is nothing you can do to stop this.” “That’s not going to stop us from trying!” Rarity shouted. “By all means. Try. Count Bleck will find it delightfully amusing. A fitting battle to end all worlds.” He let out a sigh, stepping into a Void portal, leaving Rarity and Pinkie behind. Rarity clenched her jaw. “...Sassafras. Peeving sassafrasn’ ponyfeathers of Tartarus.” “R-Rarity!” Pinkie blurted, aghast. “Wh—” “He’s not a monster. He’s a broken man.” A tear fell down her face. “And he’s right. I would have preferred a monster.”