//------------------------------// // Beyond Midday // Story: Midnight Station - Part 01: Twilight faces the Dark Martial March // by Khampostel //------------------------------// Addressed to all the inhabitants of Cunabula, Through this public declaration, we accuse Equestria and its allied nations of being complicit in a plot to deliver the world to the Dark Lord Kal-Arth. This action is taken for the benefit of their own nations and at the expense of the peace and order of the other realms that inhabit it. The Knights of the Order, in their brave mission to preserve peace and stability in our own land, face an extremely difficult task: to stop this conspiracy that threatens all races in our world. This accusation is made public in order to highlight the seriousness of the situation and the need for immediate action to counter this threat. The stability and peaceful coexistence among the races of our world are at stake. --------------------------------------- Balor finished reading a scroll that had arrived in her mailbox in Cunabula. "It's a solid accusation," exclaimed Mannah with pride. "Is it necessary to deceive the people with this?" added Ceridwen, visibly upset. "There is evidence and there are doubts. It is an accusation that can be substantiated," Morrigan replied eloquently, shrugging her shoulders. "It's not a deception; it's a narrative that must be verified. And it will be verified," Mannah retorted with a stern look directed at her companion. "In any case, the arguments to justify the actions that will be taken during the second phase of the plan are already on the table. If the leaders of the other nations refuse to be intervened, and they will, then they have a free pass to act in defense of peace and order," Balor responded. After hearing Balor's response, Ceridwen seemed to be chewing on a bitter worm. In the absence of further protests, Mannah decided to continue. "Well... all that's left is to send the report on what happened in the battle against the princess. I trust your contact will keep it hidden until our return," Mannah said, casting a wary glance at Balor. "I have full confidence in him. He has already received my orders. If we don't return to Cunabula by midnight tonight, he will deliver everything directly to your brother. The council will take it from there," Balor replied confidently. "Um, Sub-Leader Mannah, may I ask a question?" Taranis suddenly asked, catching the group's attention. Balor and Mannah exchanged glances, but Balor looked away quickly. Mannah was able to respond, "What's the matter, Taranis?" The ophiotauru swallowed hard and continued, "How do you plan to explain Badwhiz's involvement at the end of the battle against the princess and her allies?" Taranis had such a serious expression on his face that it surprised the rest of his comrades. A silence hung over the hilltop where they were. "It's a good question, Taranis," Balor thought to herself as she reflected on the situation. After declaring the operation as completed, a vote was held at Balor's request to determine who was willing to continue with the next phase of their plan. Everyone agreed except for Balor. That's why she no longer felt the need to argue with Mannah about what had happened in the battle and the results they had obtained. She would simply complete the remaining administrative steps. "Badwhiz..." was the name on everyone's mind. It was a delicate subject. Operation "Midnight Station" was intended to reaffirm the power of the Knights of the Order. It involved imprisoning the princess and forcing her to fight against various minions under the knights' control. Wave after wave of enemies, the princess would gradually lose strength until she finally surrendered. Then, the Knights of the Order would emerge from hiding and force her to admit guilt for activating the Harmony Trees and the terrible consequences of these actions. Her magic would then be confiscated and she would be taken prisoner to Cunabula, where she would be tried for her crimes and locked away forever. Of course, this plan was overly optimistic, a daydream. Balor knew it and disagreed. However, given the princess's track record of avoiding combat, her comrades trusted that this scenario was possible. In the worst case, they had the Blazon of Unity as the last insurmountable barrier the princess would never overcome. But in the end, the situation spiraled completely out of control. The princess's response to her imprisonment had been disproportionate. Despite having placed the fearsome Cockatrice Titanicus as the guardian of her base of operations within the kidnapped train, the princess easily defeated the two most important henchmen they had within the prepared scenario. Faced with the grave threat this situation posed to the mission, they decided to use the Sealing Crystal Cube and the Direct Possession Crystal on the undercover agent Badwhiz. Badwhiz was meant to be an undercover wildcard on the battlefield, merely observing and taking samples of any changes that occurred. In other words, he was just another tool in the plan. In the end, Badwhiz ended up taking an active part in the conflict and sacrificing himself for Cunabula, despite being a foreigner. There was no trace left of him or the princess, although some of her friends were inside the Sealing Crystal Cube. None of them held enough weight for a trial. Balor thought to herself, "Too many mistakes were made. What do you have to say about this, Grand Sub-Leader Mannah?" Mannah had remained silent for a long while, staring at the horizon, until she finally turned to look at her comrades. "He's a hero. A full member of the Knights of the Order. With his own life, he has proven his loyalty to our cause and to Cunabula," Mannah solemnly replied. "He's a foreigner!" Ceridwen exclaimed indignantly. Balor, who knew Ceridwen's aversion to ponies well, immediately thought, "And a pony..." "He's the first in a long time. Recent changes in our nation compel us to consider other options to ensure the peace of our kingdom. I trust that in the future, there will be more individuals like Knight Badwhiz willing to sacrifice themselves for our homeland," Mannah explained. "The Knights of the Order will not accept it!" Ceridwen retorted. Behind her, Taranis watched her with a furrowed brow. "We're getting off topic... Does the boy's participation really strengthen our 'victory'?" inquired Morrigan inquisitively. "It didn't turn out the way we wanted. I'm aware of that. However, this battle was not only about the fight of our weapons but also about our ideals. Knight Badwhiz, being of the same race as the Princess of Friendship, abandoned the weak tenets of his people and fervently embraced ours. He sacrificed himself just as any of us would have done to achieve victory. It is an undeniable proof of heroism that demonstrates the superiority of Cunabula's principles over the other nations," Mannah declared passionately, waving her tentacles. Balor restrained herself from laughing, although she would have liked to. She had seen the recordings, and it was quite obvious that Badwhiz had accidentally overloaded his gem. This wasn't a heroic act but rather collateral sacrifice. Looking at the rest of her comrades, she noticed mixed expressions on their faces. "I don't need to read minds to know what they're thinking... 'politicians,'" Balor thought to herself. Finally, Balor decided to speak up. "Subleader Mannah, given your clear opinion on what happened, can I trust that you will include these thoughts in the statement I will send to Cunabula?" Balor asked, showing him a memory crystal. Mannah briefly darkened his skin at that moment, although he quickly concealed it. "A memory crystal is not necessary. A letter addressed to the council will suffice," Mannah replied, conjuring a parchment. After a few minutes of writing the letter, he handed it to Balor without further delay, and it was sealed. "A memory crystal holds more weight in a trial than a written letter, which could be forged. How convenient..." Balor muttered to himself. --------------------------------------- Balor had just teleported away, leaving her comrades behind on top of the hill as the Grand Barrier began to unravel. Before departing, Balor had sent an enchanted chest to Cunabula in front of her companions. The chest contained her comrades' memory crystals about what had happened in the battle, as well as detailed information on the course of the combat, spells used, counterattacks, and more. It also included the Sealing Crystal and the Unity Blazon Crystals used. Indeed, the captured friends of the princess were now prisoners in Cunabula. Mannah reflected on this as she watched the slow collapse of the Grand Barrier before her eyes. Hours had passed inside that place, but outside, only milliseconds had elapsed. The temporal dilation created by Balor had given the sensation that time had passed quickly. Outside the Grand Barrier, the passengers of the train that were still retreating watched in astonishment as the new landscape appeared where they had been before. The Wonderbolts, who had scared away the Gallodragons pursuing the passengers just moments before, also looked confused at what was happening. The soldiers of the Royal Guard and the Wonderbolts, without waiting for orders, quickly headed inside the fading Grand Barrier. The Knights of the Order watched them arrive. However, Mannah was no longer concerned about those weak creatures. She knew that no one could stop them now. Each of the Knights of the Order wore golden gems that adorned them, and within each of those gems was an overwhelming power. These were the Elements of Patriotism, copies created by Balor with the magic captured inside the Sealing Crystal Cube. The magic of harmony from Twilight and her friends had fueled these copies. Although they had limited duration and could only be used by themselves, they had enough power to fulfill Mannah and her entourage's wishes. Mannah and her companions had only one wish. "REVENGE! REVENGE! REVENGE! REVENGE! REVENGE! REVEEEEEEEENGE!" Mannah and her companions cried out in unison. A golden light enveloped each of them. Igniting in burning rage, they rose from the ground and shot up into the sky in columns of pure light. Piercing through the clouds, the meteor-like lights reached the highest point and abruptly changed direction. With the trajectory of four deadly arrows, they sped at full throttle toward the capital of Equestria, Canterlot. Left behind were the Wonderbolts, flapping their wings in a futile effort to catch up. The revenge of the Knights of the Order had only just begun. --------------------------------------- Inside a rabbit hole that appeared strangely sophisticated, the youngest of the family had brought something he found outside. His parents, still confused about why their home had changed so much in a few seconds, curiously observed their 24th child's discovery. It was a severely damaged book with engravings of plants and flowers. There was a mysterious purple light emanating from its closed pages. --------------------------------------- Balor, back in Tartarus, deactivated the holographic projections she had found in Twilight and her friends' crystal rosary. "Just memories..." Balor murmured disappointedly as she chewed on gum in her dimly lit room. Using her magic, she picked up the crystal rosary and tossed it into a special chest. The princess and her allies had proven to be formidable adversaries to whom they should never have given a single opportunity. That had been the greatest weakness of the entire operation. However, acting without mercy was not in line with the title she held. Balor didn't have a problem with that, at least until now. Having been so close to total destruction during the battle, all because she had trusted a child to represent them... "Impulsive child, what did you think you could achieve?" she muttered in annoyance, finally accepting that she was responsible for that loss. Now there was too much at stake. Balor swallowed bitterly. For things like this, her master had never approved of her, though she didn't understand why. She thought, "I do it in the name of Cunabula! Any method is acceptable!" "If I am condemned, another will take my place... there are many like me," Balor justified herself to her master at the magic school. But she only said that because she had no bond or connection with her comrades... carrying out orders was simply part of her duty. Plus, Cunabula would always be safe. There was nothing to worry about. Then her master lost his life sacrificing himself in battle. A new bearer of the Element of Magic was chosen. She was chosen by the Temple of Harmony to carry the title of her predecessor. She felt so unworthy, out of place; it was as if fate were mocking her. Filled with anger, her rage led her to challenge the Grand Patriarch, and then... Tears began to well up in Balor's eyes as she remembered that dark day. She suddenly shook her head, trying to clear her thoughts, and then summoned a towel to wipe her face. "There's no point in dwelling on the past. There's much ahead..." Balor told herself in the midst of the darkness. Once again, Balor's great mind focused on the mission. Her comrades were on their way to a suicide mission. She truly doubted that Mannah and the others were capable of carrying out the second phase of the plan. They had enough anger, but did they have the determination to endure the tribulation they would cause? "Would Mannah really follow the plan, or did she have another agenda?" Balor thought. She could no longer control them. They had chosen their path, and she had chosen hers. To be honest with herself, she worried about what might happen to them, except for Mannah. She wanted all the others to return to Cunabula together. Even Danu, her former leader, deserved a second chance. "Only Dana could get through to him... that or endure the judgment of the Grand Patriarch," Balor muttered as she grabbed a bottle of cider and poured its contents directly into her mouth. Overwhelming exhaustion overcame her body and mind. She reclined in her extra plush chair and began to reflect on the looming threat in the future. The war against the darkness would be long and painful. She didn't care what happened to the other bearers of the Elements of Harmony or their realms. She only had a heart for her countrymen and, from now on, for those who followed the banner of Cunabula. She would never allow her beloved country to become a nation dominated by superstition, populism, or mediocre ruling elites. That could be the fate of Equestria and other realms, at best. At worst, complete destruction. But it would not be the fate of Cunabula. Cunabula would prevail and shine as the only beacon of hope and knowledge in a world consumed by darkness. That was the manifest destiny of her people. Only they could stand faces the dark martial march that was approaching.