The nagging pain in his chest told him he was still breathing. Unfortunately, that was his greatest achievement of the day. The taste of the quill did nothing to improve his mood, but at least gnawing at it did a little to distract from the persistent pain. Why does everything have to take so long? He shouted in the privacy of his mind. His slightly raised hoof was not the titanic force that would splinter his desk or batter aside the Tartarus damned foal sitters Celestia had saddled him with.
His hoof settled back to the desk with a soft tap. Now was not the time to get emotional. Now was not the time to take risks or do anything to draw attention to himself. With a quick flick of the quill, he mindlessly moved on to the next oh-so-important document that demanded his attention.
Breathe in, breath out, what should be such a simple thing was an effort of will. His tormented body wanted to give up, but he denied it that choice. He had things he needed to do, things he was meant to be doing right this moment.
He sighed. The sound was tired and laboured. He had a plan, he had his next intended victim all lined up, but she was not here. Instead, thanks to too many ponies gawking at Luna's display the other night, she was now playing catch up. He looked back at the report on his desk. Six broken bones due to inattentive cargo handlers, ten were late for work due to romantic incidents and countless smaller things that all added up to more and more delays.
A shiver danced down his spine. The movement was like someone was ripping his skin off. His hoof slammed into the table as he strangled the scream down to the quietest of whimpers. Compared to the pain, what had caused it was far more important. It was a chill that loomed, the feeling, the certainty, that he was being watched. Who are you? He thought. It was not Celestia Luna? He considered as he critically examined what he felt. It was liquid ice combined with the tingle of overcharged magic, all wrapped up with deliberate and focused intent.
Slowly, as if he was just checking the time, he looked up from his desk. His eyes did not even get to the clock before they found the source of that ominous feeling.
"So, you noticed us?" Luminous magenta eyes peered out from the shadows, and the slightly sensual tone made it hard to place the voice.
How? Even through the fog of pain, his mind raced through everything he had done. How did you find me? What did I miss? It was no effort to keep his turmoil off his face and keep to his role. His mind shifted from how Twilight was here. His leg lifted slightly, but he placed his hoof back down on the desk. It was far too late to free his magic, and cutting the stones from his chest would not exactly be subtle.
There was a chance, admittedly only a small chance, that she was not here because she knew who he really was. So with nothing better to do, he played the only viable move he had left. In a tired but still respectful voice, he greeted her. "Princess Twilight."
A hint of a giggle preceded said mare before she slipped out of the shadow. The darkness clung to her coat like raindrops before slipping back into the shadows as she advanced. "Well, it would seem it is my lucky day… Unfortunately, it does not look so good for you, 'Professor'.
Professor, it was just a word, a mere title, but it was one Noble Guide had never earned. He opened his mouth, but before even his first word was out, Twilight's eyes narrowed to slits, inequine slits that looked, baring their colour, borrowed straight from Nightmare Moon herself.
"Games won't save you now, Moonlit Scroll… I believe you got to know me quite … intimately last time, so… tis only fair if we return the favour, no?" There was a sharp knock on the door. "Oh, please do come in, Noble Guide." Twilight continued as if she had been expecting this.
What are you planning? He thought as the door opened, despite the magical wards and locks on it, and for a moment, it was like looking into a mirror if one's reflection was permitted to be better groomed.
"I'm so glad you could make it," Twilight said with a too-wide smile. A smile that said this was all just a game to her, a game that in her mind, she had already won.
The newcomer's bow was an example of motion perfected. "Of course, Princess. It is my pleasure to be of service." As he cleared the door, it revealed the two solar paladins frozen in some sort of crystal statue spell.
A distinctive green aura closed the door. Its click was far too loud and ominous. He was outnumbered, and one of his foes was an Alicorn. This is less than ideal. He enforced the calm in his mind. Options?
There was one petrified pony in the storeroom. With his earth magic, he could animate it to cause a distraction, but then what? Even apparently helpless, Twilight's magic had been enough to not only defend herself but to turn back both spells and physical attacks with contemptuous ease, and now there was this new pony. I'm trapped. His gut twisted. Every time before, he had an exit strategy, disposable ponies that he could shunt harm to. Now, now he was alone and almost helpless before an Alicorn that was also a master blood mage.
His eyes found the drawer with the secret compartment. His potions and some spell crystals. If I can get it into her blood… but she's an Alicorn… His pain relief potion would cause shock and possibly even outright kill even the strongest earthpony if it got straight into the bloodstream, but time and time again, he had learned an Alicorn is anything but a normal pony.
There was always using blood magic to sacrifice himself for a chance to strike back, but that would be admitting defeat. All I can do is wait. It was a bitter pill to swallow, but what other choice was there?
As if she somehow sensed his thoughts, Twilight flicked her eyes to him for a moment before turning all her attention to the newcomer. "You are going to have a lot of work checking over what this impostor has been up to. Are you sure you're up for this after everything you've been through?"
The other pony in the room, pretending to be Noble Guide, nodded. "It will be a nice change of pace." The voice was perfect and rich with smooth charm and confidence.
Twilight finally fixed her eyes on Moonlit Scroll. "Now…" Her horn lit, and the magenta radiance shot through with streaks of silver. Instead of illuminating the room, it was a brilliant light that made the rest of the room darker as the shadows began to swell, pooling like viscous ink. "We would love to know how you are concealing your magic signature and how you got past Tia's vigilance."
The magic in the air was so thick it felt like he could not breathe. It pressed down like it was going to crush him. He knew most of it was an illusion, a product of sensory overload, but that did not change how it felt. Despite that, Moonlit Scroll sat up to his full height. "I am no colt to be cowed by such displays, Princess."
"Oh, you poor, uneducated fool, this is no display. This is merely us relaxing." Twilight waved her hoof as she, as elegant as a dancer, slipped into the seat opposite him. "Do you know how uncomfortable it is to restrain one's magic? To forcefully conceal it?" She tapped her hooves together and took a deliberate inhalation. "Hmm, you know we could have you arrested, locked up and the key thrown away just for the illicit concoction that is currently in your system. Elder Root, Shadebloom and Hornbane, really?" A malicious glee sparkled behind her eyes. "You must be in so much pain," she purred as she lent closer, so close he could feel her scorching breath brush his coat.
Every instinct in his body screamed at him to run, to cower before her, but he refused. Instead, he calmly met her gaze. "It seems you have me at a disadvantage, Princess."
Twilight nodded her head. "Now, this would be the part where I offer you a chance at redemption, where I extend the hoof of friendship to you, but I think we both know that won't be happening this time."
The likely changeling stood stock still and as far away from Twilight as possible while remaining respectful. Even past the formal mask on its face, its eyes kept slipping to the possible exits. That does not bode well.
"Then what shall we be doing? Would you like me to call my assistant for tea and biscuits?"
"Tempting, but I'm afraid I will have to defer that till later. I'm not sure such tame flavours will match the headier scents that will be in the air soon."
The world pressed in around him, the weight of mountains crushed in from all sides, and somehow he did not explode. Slowly, inevitably he floated up from his chair, and everything from his desk rose past him before being neatly filed away.
"Now, what did you say to us?" Twilight tapped her chin. "Ah yes, now I remember." She cleared her throat and, in a poor imitation of his true voice, proclaimed. "You are nothing but the rarest of spell components to me, Princess." She smiled pleased at herself as she levitated him down atop his now empty desk. "Now, the only thing rare about you is the alchemicals in your system… but they are just annoying to try to reclaim." She rested her hoof on his barrel. The touch was soft, gentle and completely at odds with the way her tongue licked her growing fangs. "So, regretfully, that makes you merely common meat. Which might be a useful trade item with the current food problems caused by the blight."
The crushing grip of her somehow invisible aura lessened and receded to just holding his hooves.
"You are just as bad as Celestia." He spat and regretted the laps immediately.
Twilight's eyes narrowed, and she leaned closer, so close they shared breaths. "We are what she and you made us." Runic patterns circled around her horn with such fluid speed he could not catch it all, but it was clearly some sort of analysis spell. A wave of magic rippled through him time and time again. "Well, playing hard to get, are you?" She formed another spell and yet another, and with each failure, both her frustration and joy seemed to rise equally. Some of the spells tingled, others felt like frozen spiders dancing along his insides, and one even made everything seem to invert in colour for a few seconds.
Everything ached, and with each passing moment, his body yearned for another healing tonic or a pain-suppressing potion. Lying on one's back, restrained by the mad Alicorn, was starting to become tedious. From a purely academic point of view, her mastery of magic was superb. How she wove modern, classical and pre-Discordian magic together was astounding, but she was the Alicorn of magic, so how much of it really was her skill, and how much of it was her nature simplifying it for her?
She stopped her spellcraft and hummed thoughtfully. "Well, we can see why nopony found anything." She sat back and smiled warmly. "Now, I know you and most other unicorns are trapped in a paradigm that spellcraft is the be-all and end-all. That nothing can not be solved with the right spells or ritual." She waved her hoof as if throwing away a point. "Now, I know I often fall into that trap, but I make sure to learn about many other discoveries and methods of doing things that don't require magic." The smile shifted to something fond. "You remember my foal sitter? Of course you do. Who could forget the best foal sitter ever, who just happened to be the Princess of Love? She invented a spell. I know, I know, this is not something anypony would have expected an ex-featherbrained school filly to have been able to do, but she did. It was a wonderful little spell that relied on her mastery of a subject in mundane ways to even be possible. That was an eye-opening experience and one I have been taking advantage of and extending the lesson beyond it."
Twilight waved her hooves, her wings flapping a bit in excitement as she delved into magical theory as if she was presenting her final discussion to a review board.
After a few minutes, his replacement gave a polite cough. "Princess?"
"Hmm?"
"We are on a time limit, your Highness."
"Ah yes… Well, we will have time to continue the lesson later." Her horn lit with alien spell forms and strange notations that it took a moment to realise were mathematical formulas. "Now, if magic is not an option and you want to look inside of somepony, well, the easiest option is just to crack them open and have a look… but that can get messy, so instead you can use something non-magical that can penetrate the medium you wish to look through. In this case, sound." She looked distracted for a moment. "I really need to write a thank you letter to that library." She shook her head. "Yes, so if you have the right type of sound and the right sensor, you can use a purely mundane non-magical natural phenomenon to resolve an image of the inside of a pony."
The magic swirled around her horn and winked out, half the runes reappearing in a complex dance around her left forehoof. "Now, please bear with me. This is my first time." She climbed up onto the desktop and straddled his prone form. Her silken coat pushed against him, and if not for the manic gleam in her eyes, one could have been forgiven for thinking this was a prelude to something pleasant.
Her enchanted hoof caressed his horn, sending shudders down his body as she moved on to his face, the neck. The motion was slow, delicate and at a constant measured pace. Her keen, bright eyes seemed to be focusing a few hoofs deep inside him.
He tried to buck, to shift, to throw her off him, but the difference in strength was such that she did not even seem to notice his efforts. "Get off me, mare."
"Well, that's not very nice. I know many ponies that would die for the chance to be where you are right now…" Again, that polite cough interrupted her. "Right, right." She continued her search. Her hoof swept over one place and then returned. The smile as she taped his chest twice was the final nail in the coffin. "So, this is where you're hiding them…"
She shifted, sitting up taller on him, her wings spread as the most sadistic lear he could even conceive plastered itself on her face. Her horn flashed, and a dozen layers of sound cancellation and scrying wards sealed the room.
A force gripped his heart, then his lungs, moving through his flesh. It did not take a surgeon to know she was locating her major organs one by one.
"Turnabout is fair play," she whispered as pain erupted in his chest.
His barrel lifted up, three small points of force inside pulling insistently up. He knew exactly what she was going to do. Her hoof trailed along his side almost as if he was her lover before it slammed him back into the desk.
Without the stones, he would be vulnerable. Without the artificial mentality in the gem, she would know everything, all his plans, his ascension ruined all because of this Tartarus damned Alicorn.
He growled, and that growl became a scream as his flesh started to yield. It hurt, it hurt so very much, but it was still nothing compared to that time when he could not get to his potions in time.
He thrashed, he screamed, he let himself give her everything she wanted, let the sadistic monster see everything she wanted. All that mattered was this small part of his mind, this small contingency he never thought he would need.
The sounds of his cries, the wet tearing of his flesh and her magic combined into an unholy cacophony, and then, floating there, dripping blood, were three stones. He no longer cared what they were, who she was, who he was. All that mattered is he had to act.
As his newly restored magic raced through his body, it found the path of least resistance. It danced through the prepared spellwork. Your move. Was his last thought before his own magic stampeded through his mind.
Where am I? Was the first thought formed in his mind from the void that had been endless agony. Past the mental haze, images started to form in his mind. Everything had been going to plan, and then Twilight had escaped, and then in a blink, he had found himself sitting in an office with Twilight riding high on a power trip. What happened?
Once you have been in pain long enough, its lack is both a source of relief and confusion. Even so, he should have worked it all out sooner. He was somehow still alive. But that begged the question, why?
The chain of events did not add up, which left only one possibility. My mind has been compromised… Before he could run down that logic any more, he noticed something. He did not so much open his eyes as merely become aware of the information they provided. The colour of the crystal walls told him exactly where he was, but that was not what caught his attention.
He was seeing something. Just he had no idea what it was. Hours passed or seconds. He had no frame of reference before the sickening realisation came, and what he saw started to make sense. Until he saw it, he would have said it was impossible, but doing the supposedly impossible was a speciality of Alicorns.
So regretfully, he accepted the large object before him was a physical mirror. The runes around its frame were the simplest ever cleaning enchantments. Barring it being moved or covered, nothing would prevent the polished surface from doing its job.
The mirror told the truth. No matter how much he wanted or wished otherwise. In its cruel reflection, he could see what she had done, what she had inflicted upon him. It was a marvel of magic and something he could never even have conceived of. This still did not change his one wish of being able to close his eyes. Of course, you needed eyelids to be able to do that. He could not even look away, for he now no longer even had the muscles needed to control his eyes or head.
The image in the mirror was no longer a pony. It could barely even be called a living creature anymore. If it was on paper, done by an artist's horn, it would have been one of the most detailed works on biology ever. Instead, strands of magenta magic held his dismantled form aloft for all to see. Small threads of blood and other fluids twined between the suspended organs and kept him alive.
His heart skipped a beat as it all started to sink in. The mirror was there to show him he was dead, or should be. Only spellcraft of the highest order sustained him. He would live or die by her wim. All Twilight needed to do was end her spell, and he would be nothing but a pile of discarded flesh.
Glowing magenta eyes opened in the mirror behind him. His suspended mussels twitched and shuddered. Honed reflexes demanded action but achieved nothing. All he achieved was an excellent view of his increased heart rate and a few coloured lights from the runes carved into his horn.
Under Twilight's eyes, her white teeth appeared, showing a smile as the rest of her form faded into view. She trotted around in front of him, and her gaze lingered, one part hungry, one part as if a Canterlot noble in an art gallery.
With a pop of magic, a crate appeared, and she started to dig through it. Her horn had not even lit. There was not a single sign of her spell. Yet more benefits of being an Alicorn.
Twilight smiled as she set up her camera. "I would say smile at the camera, but… I don't think you can."
The flash seared his eyes. He tried to flush, to look away, but all that happened was some of the disconnected muscles twitched and contracted.
Twilight hid a giggle behind a bloodstained hoof. "Now, don't be like that. You are helping progress medical knowledge. You are going to help me save so many ponies." She floated over his recently vacated skull and carefully dissected the bones from the weave of magic. "Now, should I polish this or plate it in some sort of metal?" She waited for an answer she knew he could not give. "No opinions? Well, I'm sure I will think of something for your new home."
She teleported out of the room with the causal destain for the laws of physics all powerful spell casters displayed.
I'm still alive… That fact was nowhere near as comforting as he wanted it to be. I'm not in pain… That one was a little better, but odd, given how unpleasant it had been to be vivisected and butchered into his current state.
You did not get to where you are by doubting yourself.
He could not close his eyes, so he did the next best thing. He just ignored what he saw. He could not do anything to change things, so it did not matter.
So, how did I get in the office? Clearly, some time had passed. Also, his coat colour was different. Even the shape of his muzzle and the sound of his voice was not his own. No matter how it was achieved, that sort of transformation could not be done overnight, and a desk full of paperwork implied he had been entrenched in his position for a long time.
That left only three options.
Option one. A backlash could have damaged his mind, a reflected spell, or even just disrupted if he was casting one of his nastier ones.
Option two. One of the Alicorns tore the memories from him. That left the question of why they left everything else.
Option three. I purged my own memories. It made the most sense. He had left himself enough to be aware of Twilight's unexpected combat potential and was still entirely himself.
His parts shook with the laugh that wanted to escape. Who would have guessed Twilight Sparkle, the Princess of Friendship, could ever be so sadistic? I doubt any of my agents can put me back together again.
Time passed, counting his heart beets had gotten boring. The light level never changed, and there was no hunger or thirst. As strange as it sounded, he was getting bored.
The sound of the door opening brought him back into the moment, and a pair of ponies walked in. A pair of ponies anypony would have recognised. What do you want? Even as just a thought, it was not a very witty comment, and he knew it.
Celestia's eyes widened. It was only for a moment before her perfect mask was back in place.
Good, at least something can still shock you.
"You could have been so much more." Celestia's sad eyes were the only thing more patronising than her voice.
Luna tilted her head one way and then the next as she inspected him. "So you won't be adding this to your private collection?"
"I am disappointed you allowed Twilight to go this far."
Luna shrugged. "She needed this, and one mote of her stratification is worth more than any suffering he might endure… that being said, do not be too harsh, my sister. He was just a tool I used."
I am nopony's tool, least of all yours.
Celestia sighed and met his eyes for just a moment before turning her attention back to her sister. "I know well your methods. If not this, he would have taken another dark path. Either way, his fate is sealed. It is just a matter of when Twilight tires of playing with him."
"Again, you underestimate your creation, my Sister."
Celestia tilted her head towards Luna.
"She is not playing. She may be relishing his suffering, his fear…" Luna met his eyes with a hungry gaze for an instant before she poked her sister with a wingtip. "Everything she does, she does to further her knowledge on how to heal and offer succour to her little ponies."
"None of this display is unnecessary?"
Luna nodded. "She even made a list, and with detailed write-ups of what she was going to do and the benefits of each experiment."
"She should have been better than this."
Luna's clad hoof cracked the crystal floor, her level tone almost lost in the echo of the impact. "Then you should not have made a mess of her trial!"
Celestia flared her wings, her own voice as cold as ice, her eyes blazed like the sun. "I did everything perfectly."
"Then why does she enjoy dining on fear instead of basking in adoration?"
The heat in Celestia's eyes dimmed as her wings half lowered. "Recent…"
"No, Sister." Luna levelled her hoof like a pike. "It started with her trial. You set her on the path of being a monster… just like me."
Celestia recoiled. The last three words hit as if they were physical. Her huge white wings slumped almost to the ground. "Luna…"
Luna stepped in and nuzzled her sister. She put a hoof to the side of her face. "The past is the past… we can not change it. All we may do is decide what we do now."
In a sickening display that was more suited to lovers than sisters, they held each other's gazes. Several long seconds passed before Celestia answered, her voice almost catching in her throat. "Will she forgive me?"
"She doesn't even know there is anything to forgive."
"Will you tell her?"
Luna shook her head. "She has judged you for that act already, and you two have moved past it. It would only open old wounds to no purpose. She would learn of the different trials in time, and she will work it out on her own."
"Would it not be best to tell her?"
"No… she is at peace with who she is."
"Will you forgive me?"
Luna's eyes hardened, and she stepped away from her sister. With a wide wing sweep, she gestured to him. "All this would have been avoided if thy had not hobbled us. All of Twilight's suffering would not even had been a dream in this wretch's mind."
"Thou knowest it was needful," Celestia answered.
"We know they believe so… mayhaps thou are right, mayhaps not, the last few moons… have conjured doubts in us, dearest sister." Before her sister could respond, she slashed a wing through the air. "Be that as it may, I bear some of the guilt for his success and the magnitude of his achievements."
"It's not thine fault, sister," Celestia said, wrapping a large white wing over her sister.
"Thouest know the old laws."
"Banish them from thine mind, there will be a wedding, and there will be needed somepony to paint your feathers."
"Thee would, for me?"
"Yes, sister."
The impact was sudden and brutal, and Celestia had to shift her hooves to remain standing. The attack resolved into a full-body embrace and a laughing Celestia.
Luna nuzzled her sister.
"I would not celebrate yet… there have been many years since we even saw finished work."
"The implied support is more than enough… even if mine wings end up looking like a foal has mealy thrown paint at us."
Celestia hid a laugh behind a hoof. "I think I can do at least a little better than that."
Luna nodded, a kind smile on her muzzle. "Now, the reason for this visit." She nodded towards him.
Celestia sighed. "Yes, you're right, of course."
Celestia moved closer, her eyes bore into him, pushing aside even the concept of resistance. A single tone and a too-bright light built and built until it was the entirety of existence.
One by one, his thoughts reassembled, and his senses returned. Both Alicorns were in the room, both still looked at him, but he had no idea how long had passed.
"Did you find anything?" Luna's voice pushed through his confusion and let his sorry state reassert itself.
"He has done a thorough job. There is nothing I can recover."
"Tis a shame… then there is yet work to be done. Is there time to dine together?"
Celestia nodded, and both Alicorns walked out. Leaving him alone, with only his horrific reflection for company.
It was clear the Alicorns were not getting to let him live. Why else would they talk so freely around him? Yet with all that, he had hope. Hope founded in faith in himself. All through his life, he had achieved his goals, gained power and recovered from any setback.
I wonder what surprise I left from myself… He did not let himself muse on that too much in case they scoured his mind again. No, instead, he imagined more and more creative and terrible acts. After all, his current state required appropriate retribution.