//------------------------------// // Chapter 30: Dare // Story: Alpha and Omega // by Revel Montaro //------------------------------// Sunset Shimmer was good at many things. She was an artist, a musician, and an avid gamer. Many would point out her finer qualities such as her beauty, her intelligence, her ability to command the attention of a room simply by walking into it. In addition, she also held the esteemed titles of being a princess, a wife, a mother, a college graduate with two master’s degrees. It was also safe to say Sunset Shimmer was a good friend to many. Willing to sacrifice her body and soul for those she loved. One thing Sunset was not good at was always thinking things through in high stress situations. While she was capable of making a plan, improvisation and “rolling with it” often faired better for the fiery, alicorn mare. The moment Sunset Shimmer found herself outside the main entrance to the Hall of Unity she paused and glanced about, trying to decide what the next best course of action would be. While she stood scanning about making faces at the grassy landscaping and moored ships, another alicorn snickered childishly behind her. “You have no idea how we are going to get back to Equestria quickly, do you?” Sunset glanced back at Flurry Heart and groaned under her breath while trying to mentally pinch the large, light pink mare with fingers she did not have. The stout princess was not being rude, per se, Flurry Heart was just stating the obvious. “Fine, yes. I’m making this up as I go.” “Speaking of which, how did you really know where to look for the prince when he ducked out before?” “I could sense something was wrong, hear the mental conflict, like an instrument that is out of tune. It’s… complicated to explain. That's why I just say I get a gut feeling.” Flurry Heart arched a brow suspiciously. “Sense? As in mind reading? Isn’t that dark magic arts and illegal and stuff?” Sunset sighed and turned to her companion. “Okay, I can tell this is going to bother you if I leave it hanging so let me try to sum it up because I know mind magic freaks you out and for good reason and you won’t let this go otherwise... "Many years ago, I was given a magical geode by... I guess it was Harmony or at least an extension of her will, that allowed me to see the thoughts of others. I could go deeper, violate their minds if I wanted to. If I pushed. But like you said that is some seriously dark, illegal ground to tread and not my style... anymore. However, a single touch and I could harmlessly skim what was on the surface of their mind as easy as flipping through a magazine. You know, get an idea what they were thinking if not the whole story. “Early on, when I didn’t have a grip on the power, I discovered I could hear peoples’ mental projections even when I didn’t touch them. The stronger the projection the harder it was to keep them out. Sometines it was better to just not wear the geode so I could make it all be quiet. "When I ascended, that magical geode fused into me and I now have what you might call permanent empath abilities. I can dive into minds with activated touch like before, but if somepony or another is projecting strong enough emotions or thoughts I can hear them or get a vibe, good or bad, just by being nearby.” “Sooooo, what am I thinking?” Sunset was about to snark at her niece-in-law, but instead, she flashed a cocksure smirk. “You are thinking, ‘wow, I bet if we work together and time it right we could do a massive tandem teleport all the way to Fillydelphia and the coast.’” “T-T-That’s way too far!” “It probably is. So, we better get flying to make it a shorter jump. C’mon.” Flurry Heart grumbled, saying under her breath, “That was not what I was thinking.” Sunset did not bother to acknowledge it. The two alicorns spread their wings and soared off into the afternoon sky. It had been easy enough to find the grand vizier. As Sunset had said, both Saddle Arabian airships had broken from their mooring lines and were now smashed together. The grand vizier was shouting frantically at the crews to get the rigging untangled and repair the decking and hull, but Tempest could see that the air bladders were also damaged. The commander also took note of the number of wounded lying on the ground and the distinct smell of burnt… everything. Amazingly, none of the wounds or damage were severe or beyond repair. “I will probably never say this to Sunset’s face, but your wife scares the crap out of me sometimes. And that is even after having dealt with Princess Flurry Heart and her destructive tendencies my whole career.” Twilight sighed, rolled her eyes, and finally nodded. She stepped forward and cleared her throat, “Grand Vizier Muhasib. I do not believe we have concluded our talks yet. Would you please come down?” The grand vizier yelled at several members of the crew in his native tongue, a language Twilight was fluent in, but he may not have known that or seemed to even care. The stark contrast of his behavior in comparison to what it had been before was still setting alarm bells off in Twilight’s head that he was under the influence of someone or something. What was also a possibility and yet equally as scary was that the grand vizier was just a die hard, true believer and would do anything for his sultan without question or hesitation. Even war. Twilight was always a Princess of Friendship at heart and tried to be understanding of the ways of others, but if there was one thing she abhorred was a creature that refused to think for themself. Twilight decided to take one from her wife's playbook. She cleared her throat louder and more obnoxiously. “Grand Vizier Muhasib, if I did not make myself clear, I need you to come down here and talk to me like the representative you are. Do not make me ask again. You will not like what happens then.” “Insolent ponies!” hissed the Saddle Arabian. “You invite us to this sacred neutral ground only to destroy our property and spit on our national sovereignty! Now you pretend to be cordial while simultaneously threatening more violent action against us!” Twilight glance to Isabella and then to Tempest. “Would you both please give the grand vizier a brief summary of where we stand at this point politically and a tactical assessment?” Isabella pretended to dust off her suit jacket before taking a poised, speech-giver posture. “Up until only an hour ago you had us in quite the compromising position, grand vizier. We needed to negotiate terms of settlement in regards to the death of Prince Khayaliun under our protective care and still address the ultimatum that had been issued along with this alleged courtship document signed by Celestia. But it has now come to the attention of all that you brought far more than the recommended number of soldiers to a peace summit and more so than that, attempted to flee after accusations of an invasion force on our lands were voiced before the multinational representatives. The other issues pale in comparison.” “There’s no point trying to run back to Saddle Arabia or meet up with that invasion force,” added Tempest. “Your ships are badly damaged, your crews are in complete disarray, and your soldier look like they went ten rounds with yeti shock troopers in ferronite armor, or, one angry Princess Sunset Shimmer. So, get your big plot down here and talk your way out of this. Otherwise, the only way you are leaving this island plateau is in chains following your own trial. We already have a jury of your peers waiting back in the hall. In case you forgot, Your Grace.” A large, black horse limped his way over to stand before Twilight and her friends. His armor was dented and scored and his left eye was painfully swollen from where he had been struck, most likely by a hoof. He attempted to puff out his chest to stand strong and proud only to bend over from a coughing fit. Twilight started to instinctively reach out to help. “Raqm. I must… protect my advisor. I am sworn…” Tempest arched a brow and took a step forward. She would not have relished a fight with the massive horse in his prime, but considering the shaking in his legs the stallion was in no condition to fight. He could barely stand. “Stand down, Sabaj. You need not give your life today.” The grand vizier slowly made his way down the gang plank back to the ground. With eyes downcast and a sullen expression, he held up his forelegs before Twilight Sparkle. “I am your prisoner then.” “I don’t want a prisoner, Your Grace. I want to understand what is going on and why. That is all I or Sunset ever wanted from this summit.” Twilight gently pushed down his legs back to the round. “Please, start at the beginning and explain it to me. To all of us.” “I… think it is best told over a pot of tea.” Twilight nodded. “Raven, please tell the staff to bring tea and snacks to the large group presentation auditorium. More than one pot. I have a feeling this is going to take a while.” With nothing else to add, they all began to walk slowly back to the Hall of Unity. Naturally, they were all met with a flurry of questions and concerns from the other representatives and a few of the retainers. With some effort, and a need to calm the yaks and their stained honor, all the creatures were ushered back into the auditorium where Chaz and Belldandy were still mulling about after their important briefing had been partially derailed. Unsure where else to go or what to do, they remained. A table was brought to the center stage and two chairs. Twilight took her seat and Muhasib his. All the other creatures and advisors took seats in the audience while the guards remained near the edge of the stage. Raven and Isabella stood attentively flanking Twilight. Isabella took the tray of tea from the servant who had prepared it and served it herself, after a customary taste just to be safe. If the grand vizier had been insulted by the implication of needing a poison taster he said nothing. Other refreshments were then presented to the audience. “Where would you like me to begin, Princess Twilight Sparkle?” Twilight took a sip of her tea before smiling as disarmingly as she could. She may not have had the ability to read minds, but more than a hundred years in Equestrian politics had taught the Solar Diarch how to read faces and body language better than any book could have. What was needed right now was what Twilight did best. Listen and offer the hoof of friendship. With kind authority and an air of regality, just as Celestia had taught her, Twilight said, “From the beginning, or as close as you think is relevant, would be nice.” ---------- “Okay, so, run it by me one more time just to be sure. I have a hard time picturing equations like you do,” said Flurry Heart as she glided alongside Sunset Shimmer. The goldenrod alicorn rolled her teal eyes but acquiesced. “We have been flying for two hours now, give or take. At the rate we are going it will take us at least another two hours to reach the Equestrian coast. By that time we will be sorely aching and exhausted. Not to mention Captain Gauge and C Company will be in Fillydelphia or moving north. We need to be there. So, we are going to do a tandem teleport.” “Yeah, I get the idea of it, but…” “But?” Flurry Heart squirmed a bit. “Aunt Twilight always said that teleporting is dangerous. Especially over long distance. Every book she made me read on the subject said pretty much the same or in great, big bold letters: DO NOT ATTEMPT.” “Flurry Heart, from what I have been told you have been teleporting since you were a foal. Even earlier than me and I was considered a prodigy being able to do a successful ‘port at four years old. Cadence told me once you teleported around Twilight’s kitchen and accidentally created some kind of pudding monster.” “Hehehe, yeeeeeah. I barely remember that, but from what others told me it sounded like it was pretty awesome.” Sunset rolled her eyes again but smiled, swooping over to give her fellow alicorn a hip bump. “My point is, you are still incredibly talented and powerful. Yes, exercise caution, I mean DUH! But don’t be afraid to push yourself. It’s only when you find yourself at your limit do you realize how far that limit can be.” “That sounds like something Celestia would say.” Sunset bit her lip and was thankful any additional wetness to her eyes could be attributed to the wind rushing by. After a few seconds of melancholy, Sunset smiled and said, “She did.” “Oh, damn. I’m sorry.” Sunset shook her head. “It’s fine. Mom’s gone, but that is how we honor her. By remembering what she taught us. Now, let's get started. I want you to concentrate on a location. One you can firmly grasp in your mind.” “In Fillydelphia? Okay… how about… OH! You ever been to the bazaar market there?” “Yeah, it’s awesome, but also crowded. We don’t want to accidentally land on top of somepony or cause some feedback concussion. How about near the memorial square? The Rocky Quartz statue?” Flurry Heart nodded. “Okay, yeah. I can picture it.” “Okay. Think of it perfectly clear, that open space before it from the south.” Sunset glided closer to her companion. The mathematical calculations for most teleports were difficult enough when one was going across a room or dodging in a fight. Room to room was more difficult being that there could be elevation changes or unknown obstructions. Over long distances there were exponential energy requirements in addition to elevation concerns, planetary curvature, and the ever worrisome, accidentally teleporting yourself into solid matter. Those kinds of injures would be bad even for an alicorn. In the textbooks it was called “splicing” but any way you defined it, it was called a bad day. Sunset would be handling the majority of the calculations, but she also had a secret weapon no one else had for being able to sync up such a dangerous tandem jump. She could see the image in Flurry’s mind and match it to her own. Sunset Shimmer took Flurry Heart’s hoof in her own and then touched their horns. Once the image in Flurry’s mind appeared she triggered her teleport spell. Normal teleports always left you feeling a little disoriented. The farther to go the more power they consumed the more drained one felt afterwards. When Sunset and Flurry appeared in the middle of the park in a loud pop of displaced air and static discharge they both immediately fell to the ground and rolled over groaning. The closest analogy Sunset could come up with was waking up after finishing off a bottle of tequila that had no label and had likely been mixed with gasoline and then being asked to recite an entire novel word for word. Sunset had to blink the spots from her eyes and every sound was like they were at the end of a long hallway. Her head was throbbing and the very thought of standing up seemed like a sick joke. Ponies and other creatures were trying to say things to her but it was all a jumbled mess of fuzzy noise. Finally, after what felt like too long, Sunset got back to her hooves and checked on Flurry Heart. She had not thrown up. That was a miracle. Much to her relief, Flurry was also recovering from the teleport. She, however, stared to grow pale, then, green around the cheeks. A moment later, the large alicorn stumbled to a trash can and vomited. Naturally, there were as many camera flashes as there were bystanders asking if the princess was okay. “Never… again,” said Flurry, wiping her mouth with the back of her foreleg. “I have done some long jumps before, but that… holy cannoli. I feel like I went through a blender. Glad I hadn’t eaten anything recently or that would have been even worse!” “Yeah, that was a first for me too. You okay?” “Yeah, yeah. Not the first time I've lost my lunch. Let’s just… let’s get going.” Sunset said thank you and waved off many of the worried park goers who had come to check on them. Thankfully the pictures stopped after a few minutes. Most had been more concerned with their hard landing. Sunset then spotted a street vendor standing back curiously, but remained with his cart. Her mouth began to water immediately. “Before we go, we need to recharge.” “Huh?” Sunset smirked and waggled her brow playfully. The expression caught Flurry a bit off guard. “You ever had San Palomino Elote before?” “Uhhhh, maybe?” “Trust me, it’s going to put your Crystal Empire corn to shame.” On that declaration Flurry Heart’s eyes lit up, ears twitching rapidly. The acidic taste of bile no longer bothering her. “Ohhhh, you are so on.” Sunset trotted over to the cart and dropped a bag of bits on the tray while smiling brightly. “Hi! I’ll take all the ones you have ready right now.” The old stallion nodded and began wrapping the cobs in wax paper. “No need for that, sir. We are really hungry.” Sunset passed one of the grilled corn cobs on a stick to Flurry Heart who did not bother with a test taste and just began to devour the food floating in front of her. After polishing off the first one she nodded her head enthusiastically. “Okay, yeah that’s pretty good. Probably would have been better if my tongue was not icky. Why have I never had these before?” “Because you have not lived yet, my friend. You have not lived.” All the cobs were gone in a matter of minutes. The trash was quickly discarded and with full bellies, the two took flight once more. Flurry waved at the vendor who gladly waved back. “How much time did we save with that crazy stunt of yours?” “A few hours at least. We’ve got a little over two hours of daylight before Twilight has to lower the sun. If we are lucky we can catch up to C Company by then.” “And how are we supposed to find C Company?” Sunset glanced to Flurry, arching a brow. “What? It’s a legitimate question.” “You don’t honestly think Twilight and Raven let me run around amok without giving me a SunLight crystal, do you? Wait until I figure out how to put GPS on one of these things and they can track me everywhere I go.” Just to emphasize her point, Sunset pulled said small glowing crystal from her armor pouch that was sometimes used to hold Raven when her MAU is offline. Sunset then used her kinetic touch to dial a number she knew quite well. The line connected after a few rings. “My princess?” “Am I getting that predictable? How’d you know it was me?” “Call it a gut feeling,” Captain Gauge replied with a slight chuckle. “Where are you?” “We left Fillydelphia an hour ago. We managed to recruit a few local militia who wished to tag along and warned the mayor and deputy mayor. They will commit the remaining local authorities to preparing for either defense or evacuation. Should it be necessary. I then ordered two scouts forward while the rest of us move at a more cautious pace.” “Keep it slow and steady. You don’t want to accidentally stumble into their beach head camp. Flurry and I will be there soon.” “...So quickly?” Sunset chuckled. “You didn’t think I was going to order your sexy rump to battle without backing you up, did you?” "Sexy rump?" Flurry whispered while snickering. "I'm soooo telling on you." “That, actually, is what you are SUPPOSED to do, my princess. But then I have never known you to be… traditional, in regards to your role and station.” “Well, too bad. If leading from the front makes me a bad princess then I call me the baddest mother fucking princess there is.” There was no immediate response from the thestral as he listened to a hushed conversation from one of his subordinates. “Apologies, my princess, just addressing a concern. One in which I share as well.” “Which is?” “Do you have a plan of action? Once we confirm the hostiles, that is.” Sunset laughed, earning a curious and concerned look from Flurry Heart. “Believe it or not, I actually do have a plan. I’ll give you the details when we meet up with you soon. Hopefully before I have to raise the moon. Stay safe, we’ll see you soon.” “You still have no idea what you are doing, do you?” said Flurry after Sunset returned her crystal to the carry pouch. Sunset Shimmer sighed and waved her hoof back and forth. “I have an idea-ish kinda, sorta, tentative plan that is subject to change if need be, but I’m hoping to hear from Twilight soon to confirm a suspicion her and I have. Now, beyond that, I’m mostly banking on appealing to the prince and a sense of reason. I have a gut feeling he’s the key to this.” “I think your guts do too much thinking. Why do you say that, anyhow? He’s just a spoiled brat that will do whatever daddy tells him to do. That was the impression I got from him when we met.” Sunset shook her head. “He may have been that way when you first met years ago, but I didn’t get that vibe from him like I did from his brother. I think he suspects there is something wrong with this whole situation. That’s why he didn’t come to Equestria with his brother last time and why he attended the peace talks to begin with. I’d be willing to bet a shiny bit that it was his idea to have that port set up so as to reach his father more quickly.” “Did you get that by reading his mind?” “Nope. Just a gut feeling, like I said. So, if I’m wrong just be ready to help me get our ponies out of there alive.” “I’m beginning to better understand why you drive so many ponies mad.” And hour and a half later Flurry caught sight of part of the company moving along the coast. The rest had been moving through the tree line in order to conceal their numbers from possible scouts. Once Sunset and Flurry landed they regrouped with the rest of the guards. Their arrival brought a sense of relief and bolstered the company morale. Even for seasoned veterans, the sight of two magical powerhouses joining their ranks brought a sense of comfort and resolve. When a pony or other creature joined the guard, it was an all-inclusive force after all, they were given three things upon graduation of basic training. The rank of private, their assignment of unit rotation, and company assignment for emergency military action. The guard was primarily a defense force that guarded the princesses and other high priority dignitaries where ever they happened to be at the time, usually Canterlot. However, the guard did have outpost and other rotation stations throughout Equestria. Every guard eventually spent some time on long range patrol or at an outpost just to give them the experience of life on the edge of civilization. When the call to mobilize went out from one of the princesses the guard was reorganized into multiple military companies that all guards already had preassigned. C company, according to what Sunset had been told by Luna some time ago, was better suited to quick deployment because it was an even mix of solar and lunar guards. Now that Sunset was getting a better look at them she could also see that many of them were young with new, out of the crate armor. In addition to ponies and bat ponies, there were two griffons and a kirin in solar guard armor. It all made her stomach turn uncomfortably as her mind betrayed her and conjured images of blood and war. Turning the sand and rocky beach red with gore. Sunset shook her head and hid her emotions behind her best ‘Celestia’ fake smile and waved to those that turned to her. Thankfully, Captain Gauge saved her from the building discomfort by stepping forth and quickly ushering both alicorns to the safety of the trees before formally bowing to them. “I’m told there is a small clearing several more meters to the west of here. I suggest we fortify there with the bulk of our force. We can send a few bat ponies out to continue scouting under the cover of night, but the entire company has been on the move since the call went out hours ago. It would go poorly for us to engage a hostile force without adequate food and rest.” “You would know your guards best. I defer to your judgement,” Sunset replied with a nod. “They are actually YOUR guards, my princess. Unless you wish to be called general, given the situation.” Sunset quickly shook her head. “Noooo, nopenopenope. I’m not a military commander. I don’t care if that was how Luna ran things. I don’t know the first thing about running an army outside of some video games.” “Then maybe now would be a good time to let us in on this ‘plan’ of yours,” said Flurry Heart in a voice that was trying to be a whisper but failed miserably. “Let me check in with Twilight and tell her we made it, then we’ll get into that.” Gauge and a solar guard lieutenant that had been standing by both bowed. Flurry rolled her eyes and moved off to check on the other guards and find if they needed any help with anything. Sunset smiled once more before trotting back to the forest edge that looked over the beach and ocean in the distance. Once she was sure she was mostly alone she called Twilight’s crystal knowing that her wife was waiting for an update. Unsurprising, it connected after only two rings. “Sunset?” Hey, babe. We’re safe, currently between Fillydelphia and Manehatten and hooked up with C Company. We haven’t run into any problems, but the forward scouts have not check back in yet so… we’ll see.” “I’m so glad to hear you are both safe.” “You ready to lower the sun?” “In a moment,” Twilight stated simply, implying she had something more important to say. “The grand vizier surrendered to inquiry without incident. Well, he did try to run, but you broke... well, nothing that couldn't be fixed. Anyhow, he had a great deal to say once he calmed down.” “Anything useful that will help with all this because just between you and me, Twily, I don’t have much of a game plan despite the confident smile I've been flashing at others.” Twilight sighed. “I figured as much. But, I have your back, well, Flurry has your actual back, I have information that may be useful just the same.” Sunset giggled. “Always the mare with the plan.” Twilight giggled as well. “Always the mare with the thick skull.” “Improvise would be my middle name if I had one.” Twilight giggled again and then cleared her throat. “The grand vizier said that the sultan’s behavior changed rather suddenly and became more aggressive to see one or both of his sons married to an equestrian princess about the same time Flurry Heart rejected Prince Alsame’s courting proposal. At the time, he believed it to be a direct result to the insult. So, I told Muhasib about my theory of Cosmos's involvement. He was reluctant to agree until I retold the story of what happened. I asked if the sultan had received any suspicious jewelry that may have resembled a star or diamond around the same time of his behavior shift or if there were any he refuses to take off even when sleeping. Unfortunately, the royal family receiving such gifts is common and hard to keep track of them all and there are several pieces he wears all the time.” “So much for the easy answer. That leaves us with major aggressive behavior change, yes, suspicious timing, yes, but we can’t confirm if it’s just a coincidence and him getting old and cranky or if corrupted magic is involve. Correct?” “Yes, but the useful information for you is we have narrowed it down to possibly four suspicious pieces of jewelry. A broach, one of two small ear stud piercings, and a diamond or ruby on a bracelet.” Sunset nodded. “Four is good. How do I get close enough to run a scan or sense corruption if we get into a skirmish tomorrow?” Twilight sighed. She tapped her hoof on the table a few times before speaking again. “Sunny, what exactly was your plan you were going to tell everypony?” “Um… I was going to talk to the prince. I think he’s suspicious there is something wrong with his father and may be willing to listen to reason.” “Okay, that’s not bad, but how would you get close to him without getting caught in same said fight?” “Okay, so before, you get mad, hear me out.” Twilight groaned and Sunset could picture her wife facehoofing. “I was going to sneak into their camp tonight and, you know, bring him back here so we could talk.” “......... You were going to foalnap the prince.” “Well, when you say it out loud it sou-” “It’s FOALNAPPING! Abduction! Of course it sounds bad out loud!” Sunset had to hold the crystal back and fold her ears down and she was still able to hear Twilight perfectly clear. “Well, it’s not set in stone. I still have to raise the moon and wait for midnight or whatnot so I have time to, you know, improvise.” “The moon.” “Well yeah, cover of night. Would need it. Saddle Arabian mages, if they are smart enough to make a port they are smart enough to lay trigger spells for invisibility spells or other wards.” “No, Sunny, you are not following me,” Twilight said. Sunset knew that tone of voice, it was the ‘gears are turning and she is speaking thoughts out loud,’ voice. “Saddle Arabians are fairly superstitious, culturally speaking. Well, a lot of ponies are too, but I digress. Anyhow. I have an idea I want you to try tomorrow morning. It will throw… well actually it will cause complete and total chaos and disarray, but the favorable kind and it will definitely get the Saddle Arabians’ attention and allow you to speak directly with the sultan and maybe to prince, even if only briefly.” “Okay, good. What do I need to do?” “Cause an eclipse.” Sunset blinked, an instinctive chill running down her spine causing her whole body to shiver and her wings to flap a few times. “Seriously?” “Eclipses are considered terrible omens in many cultures. There have only been a few on record. Most of them were just brief mess ups by Celestia getting the celestial bodies confused and moving them incorrectly, but others were, of course, Nightmare Moon and Discord's doing. If you do this and walk out and demand to speak to the sultan under a banner of peace negotiation they will have to hear you out or risk the wrath of the keeper of the moon and the eclipse staying in place. It's passive aggressive for sure, but that will give you a chance. After that it will be up to you to confirm if Cosmos is behind this. Or, if we leave right now, we can probably get to you by morning.” “No, you and the others stay there. You still need to start coming up with a plan to get the other nations on board with how to deal with the omega beast. I can handle this.” “Sunny, you don’t have to do this alone.” Sunset smiled, turning her eyes to the red sky and purple clouds, the beautiful sunset she was named after. It would soon give way for twilight to set in. As was how it should be. “I’m not alone, babe. I’ve got Flurry and Gauge and a whole company behind me. More than that, I have Twilight Sparkle saving my glorious rump again with a solid plan. All is as right with the world as it can be.” They both paused, listening to the other breathe. Sunset imagined they were together, comfortably, quietly, lying in bed just relaxing and cuddling and preparing for the simple problems of the next day instead of wars and world ending monsters. A pretty fiction. Something for the storybooks that some would write many years later for sure. Until then, they had the crushing weight of reality to deal with. Sunset felt the shift in cosmic balance and looked up and over her back to the west as the sun slipped below the horizon somewhere beyond what she could see. “I love you, Sunny.” Sunset lit her own horn and the moon began to rise over the water to the east. Plunging the world into early twilight as the first stars began to twinkle upon the dark canvas above. “I love you so much, Twily. You give me strength when I can't find it in myself. I’ll talk to you tomorrow when I have this settled and wrapped up.” “I believe in you, Sunset Shimmer.” Sunset felt a few tears stain her fur, but she smiled through it. “Thank you.” Sunset hung up and just stared over the water, listening to the crashing waves and various creatures croaking and squawking about. The beaches were not the best here, lots of rocky outcrops and loose boulders and too little enjoyable sand. Still, the view was nice and the water crashing sounded relaxing. She sighed and eventually turned her head to glance into the dark underbrush. “How much did you hear?” “Most of it. I think the Saddle Arabians may have heard the ‘foalnapping’ part, however.” Sunset groaned, shaking her head. “It was a work in progress, okay?” Captain Gauge smirked, his fangs reflecting in the pale moon light. “You need not talk your way out of this, my princess. As you may recall, I have participated in more than one of your improvised plans and will do so again, at your command.” Sunset nodded, returning to her captain, gazing into his yellow eyes that had a back, reflective glow in the low light. They were absolutely mesmerizing and easily one of his best features... among many. “Fog, I don’t know if this is going to work, but I need you to promise me that you will see to the withdraw and get everypony back down to Fillydelphia for defense if it comes to that.” “I have sergeants who can handle that. That is their job and I trust them to do it well. My job is to protect you. A job I have not been doing well enough, in my personal opinion.” Sunset sighed and brushed her hoof along the thestral’s strong cheek. He leaned into the touch ever so slightly. “If we go with Twilight’s plan it means I will have to approach the sultan and hopefully the prince as well while the rest of the company holds back.” “That would be unwise and tactically foolish. You would be surrounded long before we could reach you. They will have mage hunter weapons, knives and spears heads and possibly other means of subduing even a powerful alicorn such as yourself.” Sunset nodded soberly. “They may let Flurry close, being a princess as well, but no guarantees. This will be delicate. What I’m trying to say is I may have to let myself be captured or taken prisoner if that is what it takes to get close. I know it will be hard for you to see that, but I need you to let me do this and not throw your life away charging in no matter how it goes.” The bat pony flapped his wings in agitation and flared his nostrils as he sucked in a deep breath. He leaned in closer, close enough to smell the food she had not long ago. Close enough to smell her various scents. Her mane, her body. He loved all of them. They were powerful, intoxicating aromas that he wished to indulge in despite intensity of the conversation. “Sunset, I do not know if I can do that. You are too important to Equestria, too important to me. What you ask goes against what I swore and against my own... desires.” “I will make it an order if I have to, but I’d rather you just trust me. If I can get through to the prince I think I can end this without bloodshed. Remember, they want chaos. The bad guys want us at each other's throats so that we are not preparing for the omega beast. We don’t want to play rheir game.” “You are willing to gamble your life on that?” Sunset lightly touched her nose to Gauge’s tasting his exhaled breath. He always smelled like armor oil and a bit of citrus with just a hint of leather, Sunset noted. It was her second favorite smell to Twilight's natural scent. Yellow eyes never left teal as they stared down one another, neither wanting to blink first. Sunset could feel his rising anxiety even without having to use her magic. She knew how he felt. She knew how he felt about her and how she felt about him. It was hard to let someone you care about go out on a limb, take a dangerous risk. Sometimes life was unkind in that necessity. Even in the magical world of Equestria. After a few seconds of stare down, though it felt longer, Sunset finally smirked and turned to walk past Gauge, intentionally smacking the stallion with her tail, wafting one more delightful scent into his face. “C’mon. Let’s get this camp fortified and explain what is going to happen in the morning so no pony freaks out on our side.” Gauge's eyes dilate briefly as he watched her hips sashay, fighting down the urge to growl and flash his fangs again. He kept his lustful thoughts to himself and focused on the mission, falling into pace behind his princess. "As you command."