//------------------------------// // CH 61.1 Blueblood's First Command // Story: Twilight's Nightmare // by Nightsclaw //------------------------------// Blueblood’s jaw almost hit the ground. The soft touch of Platinum’s hoof pushed it back closed. There is no need to gawk, My Prince. As the dust from the latest fusillade of spells settled, two cloaked ponies became visible. In star covered blue, Trixie, as flamboyantly as ever, bowed to the gathered ponies. In Crusader Red, Little Star stood proudly in imitation of her fellow ‘student’. They could have been just performing on a stage if not for the devastation around them and the filly's scorched horn that trailed smoke as it cooled.  Starlight rolled her eyes at the showponyship and continued their lesson. She had chosen to instruct her two apprentices inside the shielded confines of Ponyville’s Grand Arena. With that most recent display of arcane potency, it was a wise choice. With Twilight gone, those three were, by far, the most dangerous mares around. His eyes glanced around. The clear signs of battle and the fire scars were still clearly visible.  In truth, what was left of the town seemed much more like a fortification than the quaint, if chaotic, town he had first visited. Even now, the new palisades were guarded, and a pair of weather ponies circled overhead, ever vigilant.  Four young voices pulled his attention back to ground level. “Alright!” “Your awesome.” “Whoo, whoo.” “Go, Star.”  And other foalish cries of support broke from Little Star's own personal cheering section.  “I'm not sure if I should find this little display comforting or disconcerting”. Rarity's voice spoke from beside him.  He glanced over, seeking to meet her eyes and instead caught her fearful glance at her little sister. The sister bedecked in deadly war gear that seemed to think watching lethal war spells was simple entertainment. Say something supportive. Platinum lightly guided his eyes, so his peripheral vision just caught Little Star's ears focused right in their direction. Twilight's daughter is exceptional in many ways, including her sense of hearing.  He paused for a second as if pondering his answer. “I would find it comforting, I think.” “Truly?” Incredulity and curiosity mixed in Rarity’s enchanting voice. “Little Star has a kind and loyal heart. She is fiercely protective of those she cares for.” Blueblood explained as he caught Little Star straighten with pride in the corner of his eye.  “But, she took my little sister into the Everfree to go monster hunting…” “After ensuring they were protected. It would not surprise me if she was safer there beside Little Star than here during the attack.”  The soft, delicate sigh was a deliberate way to step back from her point. "Your right. I know it's my fear speaking, Darling… I just wish none of this unfortunateness had happened. That all of them could just run around chasing whatever crazy plot they think will be fun this week.” “Besides Canterlot, they are in the safest place in Equestria. Princess Little Star and Chosen Lulumoon simply make it more so." Rarity shifted her attention to the showmare. "You know, I never would have imagined she could have ended up here after our first meeting.”  “Despite her… exuberance, she has proven to be an impressive and dedicated mare.” “And becoming Twilight's Chosen definitely agrees with her. Just look how luxurious her mane is.”  “You sound envious.”  “Of her mane, yes.” Rarity said, tossing her own. “So you don't see yourself following in Lady Dash's hoof steps?”  “No, I love Twilight dearly, but as a friend, and despite the indignities of Starlight's brutish lessons, I'm no warrior and have no wish to be.”  “Oh? Despite that, you have proven surprisingly adept with a blade.”  “Well, it is only precise needlework on a larger scale.”  “Speaking of such work, I must see about the preparations for my relief expedition.” Rarity scraped her hoof across the ground, and her eyes lowered to follow its progress. “Darling,” Rarity began as she raised her eyes to meet his. “Might I accompany you?” Her eyes were clear and bright. There was no doubt, nor desire to do this, just ardent resolve, as hard as the gemstones that marked her refined flanks.   “As always, your company is welcome, Lady Rarity, but are you quite certain? This will be no pleasant little carriage ride.” “This is not the first time I will have faced danger, and I believe it behooves us to do what we can to help those in need.” Rarity’s confident smile held no hesitation, no hint of falseness. “Then, if you insist, shall we see about getting you properly attired?” “Why, of course, Prince Bloodblood, I have the perfect ensemble. I’ll be ready shortly.” With those words, the white beauty just about held her graceful pose as she galloped off.” It was hard to tell if the eye-catching sway of her tail was a deliberate effort for him or just a side effect of its expert styling.  Blueblood shook his head. Dispite how good she proved in the duel and all the times she saved the world, I would have never anticipated her wanting to undertake this journey. Perhaps it is not the journey she seeks, but a teacher she wishes to avoid?  Starlight had a dozen open books in her aura as she scrawled incomprehensible arcane markings on a conjured blackboard.  She is somewhat intense… The scar carved into the land by her magic was more than two pony bodylengths deep in places. Just thinking about the amount of raw magic that must have taken made his horn ache in sympathy. Of course, it is always possible it may not be that she wishes to ‘avoid’ somepony. Was it possible? Was she accompanying him at least partly just to accompany him? He banished the thought, or tried to at least to. He turned his mind to his duty, to the ponies that would starve without food. The food he was charged to deliver. “What is Equestria coming to?” He mumbled to himself as he trotted off to gather his ponies. Only time and the resolve of the strong will determine that, My Prince. As his eyes found the ponies that laboured to attach thick slabs of armour and heavy siege weapons upon the Friendship Express, all he could do was grimly nod.  Next to Blueblood’s guards, the assembled earth ponies looked like they should have come out of a period drama. The archaic styling of the armour Twilight had crafted for the fair spoke of the darker times in Equestria’s history.  Big Mac looked like a walking juggernaut as he led the team of locals that had signed up to help with the food deliveries. They were to assume the burden of hauling the wagons so Blueblood’s trained guards could concentrate on providing security to the convoy.  Blueblood stood up before the gathered ponies, before his ponies, those that had chosen to follow him, to trust him to lead them. He could feel a tightness in his gut even as pride and satisfaction rested in his heart.  “Ponies, we are gathered here today to prove yet again what makes Equestria great is not its monuments or wonders, nor its cities or industries.” With a hoof, he gestured to the still visible devastation surrounding the town. “Mere days after your homes were attacked, and you stand here ready to head out to help others.”  He paused and let his eyes meet the gaze of each and everypony gathered. He let his expression show them the pride and respect he had for them. He stood tall and raised his voice, infusing every word with passion and purpose. “I tell you, what makes Equeistreas great is her ponies and how they come together in times of need to help each other. You and your actions are what make Equestria the nation it is. In a thousand years, when the historians look back at today, they will have no choice but to admit you are the heroes I know you to be.” Blueblood bowed his head. “Thank you.”  Rarity’s approving nod and Platinum’s quiet applause meant far more than the much louder pounding of hooves from the troops and Ponyvillians.  “We have hungry ponies waiting on this food.” And just like that, everypony set about their tasks.  With the addition of Pinkie Pie's musical accompaniment, not one order needed to be given, each of them efficiently slotted into place. It was maddening, and it was insane, yet somehow it just worked.  She is an odd one. The voice inside his head observed in a bemused tone. Blueblood could not help his hoof tapping to the rhythm of the song. Fortunately, it did not ensnare him enough for him to join the singing. Rarity cantered over, humming the obnoxiously infectious tune. Her gem-encrusted mail glinted with each motion as her aura settled an oversized rapier in its sheath. “You know, darling, if anypony told me you would give such a speech a year ago, I would have declared them a liar or a fool.” His lip curled in disgust at just the thought of how he had once comported himself. I'm no longer simply Celestia's tool to discredit the nobility. He smoothed his grievances over that and gave a firm nod. “Much to my shame, a year ago, you would have been right.” She hummed and nodded. “I believe we can all agree the past can stay in the past. It is what we do now that matters the most.” “Will you be joining me on the lead wagon?” “Well, atop the wagons does seem to be where you have stationed the unicorns…” Rarity hesitated and stared at Pinkie Pie.  Somehow, when nopony was looking, she mounted a cannon to an extra wagon. “Well, it would seem we have more company.” Three of the four original fortified wagons had a pair of powerful earth ponies hitched up to them, and the last was left for Big Mac alone. With his casual disregard for its mass, it seemed he might have been able to tow all four without even exerting himself. “You better come back in one piece, you hear?” Applejack slammed her hoof into Big Mac's helm to punctuate her point. The resulting clang just emphasised the incredible strength of both the metal and the farmmare’s hoof.  “E-yep.” The apparently unphased stallion said as if the impact to his head was just a light tap.  “Ah, mean it.” “Ah know.” The oversized stallion said before pulling his sister into a crushing one-legended embrace. Up and down the group of gathered ponies, there were other goodbyes and well wishes. The simple sight stirred something inside Blueblood, something he could not quite place. Platinum’s voice came to him as if she stood beside him.It is called a sense of community, My Prince.  Was it really that simple? His mind considered. The endless attempts to win Celestia’s favour or sneak things past her, the endless sharp horned political manoeuvring that the nobles called socialising. The lasting lessons that hammered duty to family and the importance of maintaining the sanctity of noble privilege. What was here in this not so normal little town was so much simpler and yet almost inconceivably meant so much more. You may wish to narrow your eyes. Why? He looked up in time to feel the surge of power casually assault his senses.  He almost closed his eyes in time. With a flash of magenta light, Little Star popped into existence next to Rarity. A moment later, after his eyes cleared from a second flash, there was a distinct lack of a certain white mare. "Rarity?" He looked around, and there was no sign as to where they might have gone.  He had just taken the first step towards Twilight's castle when a third flash of magic assaulted his now poor abused eyes. A single sheet of paper floated down through the air. He snatched it from the air by hoof. Dear Prince Blueblood,  As per Rarity's request, I write this missive to explain my reasoning for the emergency situation that requires the immediate teleportation of Mummy Twilight's friend / Sweetie Belle's older sister.  Sorry for the interruption. Rarity is too high level for starting gear. Addressing the issue. Will return her to you in less than an hour. He sighed at the delay just as another sheet of paper appeared. PS You will still be in teleport range, so she says, please don't wait on her behalf. PPS Come back safe. Mummy Twilight will be upset if we lose any more ponies. Even you.  PPPS Rarity insists that what I made for her does not fit her even though I know it does fit. I triple checked all the measurements.  So I am afraid she will be a little late as I have to transfer the enchantments from what I made for her to what she is already wearing.    PPPPS Please make sure the pink alicorn in disguise does not eat all the health cookies. They are for the ponies in need and not her.  Thank you.  She is entirely too competent for how little she truly understands. Platinum commented, and Bloodblood could not think of any rational disagreement.  The armoured wagon's large wheels made good time over the unpaved ground. Blueblood kept a keen eye on the surroundings. The earth pony guards moved in a ring around the caravan. Half the pegasi circled above on watch, while the other half perched upon the wagon tops. The few unicorns like himself kept vigil from the wagons, horns ready at a moment's notice. A small part of him revelled in the foalhood fantasy of being a hero riding out to do good. Most of him just settled on the grim tidings that made this necessary. The wind danced through the grass as the tromp of hooves and creak of stressed wood hid the subtler sounds around. If not for the dire situation, one could find the trip relaxing. Perhaps a large scale picnic in force. Somehow, Pinkie managed to keep pace as she pulled her modified welcome-party-wagon with her incomprehensible bouncing. Something about the resolved look in her eyes did not match the rest of her happy-go-lucky demeanour. "Twitchy tail, twitchy tail." The words the pink pony called out caused two reactions in the caravan.  His guards looked to Pinkie Pie while the Ponyville locals immediately looked up or made to take cover. “Darling…” Rarity said as her elegant horn directed his attention upwards.  A chunk of stone, larger than his head, shot by. A little more than a hundred Celestias ahead the unexpected projectile slammed into the ground with a dull thud as it kicked up a small spray of dirt.  It was clearly just an unpowered rock. You didn't have to be Twilight sparkle to work out where it must have come from.  High above the top of the crystal tree Twilight called home, was a small cloud with some sort of balloon atop it. A pulse rippled across his horn. He snapped his head around, following his senses back to the point of impact. Around where the rock had impacted, things were falling upwards into the air. Earth, grass, and small and not so small rocks all rose at the same increasing rate.  "Oh, I know this game." Pinkie Pie called out just as Blueblood's eyes started to make sense of what the other forms in the mass of objects were.  "Blighted!"  The deep-throated boom flattened his ears to his head. His mind took longer than his training to short out what was going on. Both blades floated before him in his own aura as the ponies around him surged into motion. His eyes flicked this way and that, the chaos of battle accompanied only by the sounds of the ringing in his abused ears.  His heart hammered in his chest, great gasps of air made his lungs feel ragged, and it had only been seconds. Anywhere his eyes were not looking, he ‘knew’ a monster would be lurking, ready to lunge.  Allow me, My Prince. Platinum’s confident request was a balm to his panicked mind. Softly, delicately, her aura ensnared his.  She guided him with the tenderest of touches and led him like a much gentler version of his dance instructor. With each step, each motion, the touch of her magic retreated a little more, until it was only the slightest touch that prompted him to do what his reflexes already knew to do next.  His heart calmed, and his breathing returned to normal as the pure panic of his first real battle transformed into a simple performance.