//------------------------------// // After The Sandstorm Part 2 Of 3 (Edited By BS) // Story: The Humble Prince // by Lighting Ace //------------------------------// Exiting the saloon, the prince was left speechless once his eyes saw Sonata and Nefi, both showing their tiny new changes. Keeping the gift he gave her, the Abyssinian could still run as fast as lightning and now sported black lines all over her body that resembled lightning bolts that glowed yellow when her powers were activated. They gave her an exotic appearance and made her look like a liger, not that she seemed to mind much as Nefy was currently racing Rainbow Dash around Sonata as the two laughed. The Siren herself had the most noticeable change of the two as she seemed to have reverted to her siren form, but it wasn't quite the same as the one described in the history books and stories Blueblood remembered her by. She still had the equine head and fins, but rather than an equine-like torso, said Siren resembled the humanoid version of her previous form, with gills running down her ribs leading to a toned stomach, fins acting as her ears, mane and feathering along her arms and hands, all that combined with her towering height, standing eleven or even twelve feet tall and using a seashell as a bikini that thankfully was big enough to cover her new assets. Like Nefi, she didn't seem to mind her change as she laughed, trying to keep track of the two racers running circles around her enlarged frame. Before Blueblood could say anything, Nefi appeared in front of him with a big grin on her face and still discharging occasionally. "Ta-Da! Go ahead, Bluey, drink it in. We are quite the pieces of eye candy now, aren't we?" "Nefi? Sonata? What? The elements! Oh god! I did this to you?" "Yes, and we couldn't thank you enough!" Nefi replied immediately as she hugged him and brought him closer to Sonata so she could pick them both up into a group hug. Dash flew close by with a smirk. "Blueblood! I'm so happy you are awake; there's so much I need to tell you." Sonata said in her usual cheerful tone. "But first of all, check it out. Do you like it? I'm finally in my own skin!" For his part, the prince just stayed quiet as he was sandwiched by the two of them. "Why do you feel wet?" He finally asked, looking at Sonata. "Sirens are naturally moist; does it bother you?" She asked with concern. "Not really, it feels kind of nice, like being hugged and moisturized simultaneously." He admitted pleasantly before shaking his head. "No, wait, that is not what I needed to say. I mean, girls, look at you! You spent less than two days with me, and I turned you..." "...Awesome?" Dash finished for him with a smile. "Yeah, I agree there. I have to hand it to you, Blue; when you work with the elements, you know how to make things cool. I could've made it even cooler, of course, but you are a close second." Dash remarked with a smirk. "So you two are okay being like this? Nefi, you have stripes now!" Blueblood remembered those, and he looked at the Abyssian in shock. "Hey! First, they only appear on command, see? Stripes, no stripes." She demonstrated hiding and then revealing said features several times. "Second, my grandpa was a white tiger, which is where my vibrant white fur comes from, so for all we know, you only unlock some dormant family trait, and finally, don't lie Bluey! We both know I can rock this look." she said as Sonata put them down and immediately started posing for him with the stripes. "Okay, I admit you look nice as a liger, and wow, your grandpa was a tiger? Cool, I wouldn't have, though... no, wait! We are getting off-topic," The prince admitted in defeat, not having a counter for that, before shaking his head, trying to get the conversation back on track, though Nefi was certainly not helping by winking and blowing a kiss at him. "The important thing is, you are okay with the change, correct?" "You would not get any arguments from me." Nefi reply as Sonata only nods in agreement "Good, I didn't even know what your family is gonna say; oh, that will be an awkward chat." He then turned to Sonata. "And what about you, Sonata? Aren't you even a little bit mad at me? Your upper body I...there are...you now have..." The prince fought to find the right words without being perverse and avert his eyes from her chest. "...Human arms?" She finished with a raised eyebrow as the prince nodded silently, feeling ashamed for mutating her. "Yeah, it was quite scary at first, not to mention I'm sure I'm taller now." She raised one arm and wiggled her fingers before looking at him again. "But hey, after spending years in the other Equestria, you kind of get used to them; they're practical, and I can still do pretty much all the same things as I did before, so it's kind of an upgrade in my book, no hard feelings here." "So...you are not mad at me for accidentally transforming your body?" "Of course not! Blue, we are friends; I consider it a gift," She assured him, causing the prince to sigh in relief. Sonata smiled calmly and leaned down, extending her hand. "Plus, this means I can hold tacos more easily! We all win here!" The prince chuckled momentarily before sighing in relief and defeat at her cheerful demeanor. "It would also help with bigger tacos, too." "I know, right?!" Pinkie exclaimed, appearing on top of Sonata's head, "Imagine the size of the taco she could hold now; it would easily be the size of me!" She demonstrated by landing in Sonata's hand; this was quickly followed by the giant Sirin letting her go due to how big she was. Pinkie fell flat before the prince while giggling and then looked up at Blueblood. "See Bluey? We are all happy, so there is no need to be all frowny face, mister. It's time for a party!" "Once we put things back in order," Dash reminded her friend before she could try anything. "Right, right, but it's a party right after." Pinkie agreed to the compromise, pointing at Blueblood and Rainbow Dash, who smiled and rolled her eyes at the party mares' antics. "Yeah, Pinkie, we can have a party once we sort this whole mess." "Speaking of which," Nefi spoke up. "We should move things along and fill him in on everything that has happened while he was out." The others agreed. "Princess Luna also wants to see you." Tempo reminded the group. "So why don't we tell you everything while we see her? She is at the stadium organizing the troops while everyone settles down." The prince nodded, and soon, the group started heading to the stadium. Dash tried to save time by explaining while flying next to the prince. "First things first. I know you are going to ask, so let me stop you. The girls and I are all fine; we woke up soon after we kicked Dream's flank for good and got to work on cleaning up the mess as fast as we could." She said confidently before looking away in sorrow. "Listen, dude, what happened back then in the dream I..." "It's okay, Dash, seriously. You and Pinkie were under the influence of Dream. I don't blame you; letting go of a cozy dream is difficult." "Even so, I need to say sorry, dude, for what we did. Almost turning you into a lawn ornament is so not cool." She insisted, flying ahead of him in pity. "Would you forgive...?" "...apology accepted, you and Pinkie are forgiven." He didn't let her finish and accepted their apology. The party planner sighed in relief before sweeping away some imaginary sweat on her forehead. "Thanks, Celestia, thank you, Bluey, you are the best." Pinkie whispered, nuzzling his side, making him chuckle. "don't mention it." "Wait? Seriously? That fast?" Dash asked in disbelief, causing the prince to smirk. "Huh, who would have thought? Equestria's fastest speedster and daredevil tells me I'm going too fast. Now, that is something you don't hear every day." Blueblood and the rest of the group laugh at the light joke and the mood improved further as Dash soon joins in. "Okay, you got me there, but I'm still going to make it up to you, dude. You saved all of our flanks and deserve at least a medal for that." "We will discuss that later,” Tempo said with a big grin. “Right now, the important thing is that all the mane six are okay and helping out as much as possible." "Yeah, Applejack, Twilight, and Rarity went to the Crystal Empire to help Fluttershy once everyone settled in Las Pegasus. Pinkie and I are heading there soon, too; we just wanted to ensure you were okay first." "Fluttershy is in trouble?!" He questioned in a sudden panic, almost tripping over his hooves until Tempo and Dash stopped and calmed him down. "We don't know, relax, and she is probably okay, but yeah." She rubbed her head in concern. There is the issue of her appearing in the Dream. She might have gotten caught, but then again, neither Cadence nor Penny appeared, and you saved us, so she is probably okay. However, ever since your return, we haven't heard anything from the Crystal Empire, and the weed is still present, but at least it stopped growing, meaning they are doing something up there, but we need to go and assist and do so quickly." "Us and our new friends." Pinkie added, looking at Nefi. "All of us, right Nefi?" "What?" Blueblood looked at Nefi, who smirked and nodded. "Exactly, the royal's heirs aren't done helping." "It is still surprising you made a club and decided to lend a hoof, too. The Society of Heirs or something, was it?" Dash remarked while tapping her hoof, trying to recall their name, before smirking. "You just couldn't help yourself and copy us, right, Blue?" Before he could reply, Nefi laughed, "I don't know, considering we saved you from a monster as strong as Discord for our first mission. I'd say we might be getting better than you." "Ha! You wish! We had already dealt with at least five threats ourselves, and you needed help on your first one. That was cool, but they still are pretty much rookies." Dash countered. "Let's see how long that lasts when we have to bail you out again." Nefi ribbed back confidently as Blueblood had to get between the two to stop things from escalating. "Okay, can someone explain to me what is going on?" He turned to the princess, "Nefi, what about your family's kingdom? What of everyone's kingdoms? They must be worried sick by now." "Way ahead of you, Blue," Nefi confidently responded. "We already sent letters to our parents explaining everything, including our plans and reasonings; no idea how everyone else went, but I can tell you this: The alliance is holding strong, and we are all going to help the Crystal Empire. Additionally, in my case, Dad nearly had a conniption and demanded that I return immediately before I explained how this is a global issue. Our treaty with the Crystal Empire compels me to help since I signed into an alliance with all of you. Which is why they sent reinforcements to babysit me and will tag along on our little trip to the Crystal Empire with the rest." Nefi explained while gesturing at the extra guards. She then snickers at the memory. "Of course, Daddy wasn't exactly happy about the idea of her precious pawn taking a more proactive stance, and I'll be so grounded once this is over, but to heck with it. It was worth it if it meant twisting his arm and teaching him that he can't control any of us." She exclaimed in confidence before putting her paw on the prince's back. "So yeah, I'm going, once I am done filling you in and ensuring you will be safe. But don't worry, I still plan on giving you a proper goodbye later." She ended, poking his nose as they continued on. "And it's not like we are leaving you alone either, Blue; Tempo and I will keep you company until you recover fully." Sonata decided to resume the conversation. "As you may imagine, all of Equss is a bit startled about what happened, and the rulers are doing everything they can to keep everyone calm as we get past the worst part...including the part of you kinda, sort of, almost did an act of treason." She mumbled out the last part. "I'm sorry, what was the last part?" "Not important!" Dash quickly flew in front of him with a nervous chuckle, "The important thing is that you are okay, recovering, being filled in, and hey, my mare got hold of the rest of the team, so you can be sure the Wonderbolts would keep everyone safe too." "O...k? So what am I supposed to be doing then? I'm supposed to help all the rulers get their kingdom under control for the time being?" Blueblood ask perplexed "Nope, you've done more than enough and proven yourself, snowflake," Tempo answered immediately. "But you also have proven yourself to be stubborn and ignored your own well-being, so until you are given a clean bill of health again, you are officially prohibited from doing anything other than resting and healing." She said with finality, stomping the floor to mark her point. The prince wanted to protest, but he paused as he glanced at everyone, causing him to reevaluate things and ultimately sigh in defeat. "I understand," He finally replied. "Wait? you are not going to complain or anything?" Dash asked, blinking a couple of times. "Don't get me wrong. Nothing would make me happier than to go with you and to help, but, well. It is hard to argue with a crystal floating over my head, and I can barely even stand up without help. You are right. I would be death weight right now." He then pointed at Dash with a severe expression. "But don't start thinking I'm out of the game, though. Once I'm fully healed, I will be returning, so you save my cousin Pink and tell her that Blue says hi." That improved the mood as the mares chuckled; Pinkie lightly hit his free shoulder. "Of course, we will be waiting for you, Bluey; I don't want to miss the moment when your horn pierces the heavens." She smirked, causing Blueblood to blush and the mares to laugh again momentarily before their laugh died down a little. "Bluey, if you promise not to do anything, and you understand why we are doing this, there is something else you should know," Nefi mentioned with a sorrowful tune. "It's about your aunt Celestia." Everyone suddenly got quiet and looked down, scaring the prince. "What? What happened? What happened to Aunt Celly?" He asked, not noticing they had arrived at the stadium entrance. "She is missing," A new voice answered, and looking ahead, the prince was met by none other than Princess Luna, who slowly marched toward him with a neutral expression. "Aunt Luna?" Blueblood barely speaks. "W-what do you mean she is missing? She was at the spa with Aunt Tempo, right? She was trapped there, too; I saw her with you in the crystal; she has to be there. Where else could she possibly...?" The prince kept asking questions as Luna kept advancing until she surprised him by using her magic, levitating, and bringing Blueblood towards her. Before he could react, the prince was silenced as Luna enveloped him in a firm hug, using her wings to surround him and nuzzling his side. "Don’t misunderstand my actions nephew, there is one huge earful coming your way still, but for now, just let me hold you; there will be time for that later; for now, I don't want to sour the mood, so let me embrace you, my sweet, brave nephew." Blueblood relaxed and then returned the gesture while closing his eyes. "I missed you too, Auntie. And I'm glad to see you are okay." Once they had their moment, Luna let him go and helped him the rest of the way inside the stadium, where he got a dreadful shock when he discovered his swords cracked and chipped, lying crossed on the table. "Hengroen! Llamrei!" Blueblood called out as he extended a free hoof to them. Luna, however, prevented him from advancing and closed her eyes in sorrow momentarily before looking at Blueblood. "I'm so sorry, nephew; I know how much those swords made for you, but carrying the full force of the elements, my night, and your magic." She paused as the prince stopped and looked at her. "There is only so much you can ask from your tools before they reach their breaking point; for what it's worth, the fact they endured for so long and with so much power is worth commending; whoever made them could easily be the greatest blacksmith in all of Equss." She smiled calmly and put her wing over his back. "And even if they will never be quite the same again, I will give them to the best black and bladesmiths Equestria can offer to restore some of their glory." "I...thanks, auntie, that means a lot to me." Blueblood nodded in understanding and sighed in sorrow. "God, Discord is gonna kill me." He mumbled to himself and shook his head as he carefully let go of Luna and slowly approached the swords with trembling hooves. Supporting himself on the table and then passed the frog of his right hoof on the surface of their metal with his eyes closed; even when damaged, he could still feel the low humming sound and warm feeling of security whenever he held them. You helped me overcome some of my most complex trials. For that, I couldn't thank you enough. Now rest; we both need time to heal. "Before we discuss the most pressing matters at hoof, you should see one last item, nephew." Luna called, and opening his eyes, Blueblood saw his aunts and the other girls entering the room, all of them looking at him remorsefully. Even Pinkie said nothing other than to approach and hug him, knowing how sad he was about his weapons being damaged. Slightly startled, he felt a hand on his back, and looking to his right, he saw Sonata extending her arm to console him while waiting outside the stadium. Starting to feel better, he cleaned his eyes and looked at Luna. "What is it, Auntie?" With a nod, she called for one of the guards, who nodded and opened a concealed door. Inside, an intense red glow came from a crystal box, making the guard squint his eyes as he levitated it with his magic and then passed it to Luna, who took it on her own and walked toward him. "When we found you and your friends on a dune, this unusual red crystal was close to your body. At first, we didn't think much of it, but when one of my soldiers tried to hold it with her hoof, they were assaulted with terrible waking nightmares, which is why we needed to... STOP!" Luna called in alarm as the prince, mesmerized by the crystal, whose glow had dimmed somewhat in the prince's presence, absently approached and reached out to touch it. Sonata and Pinkie tried to stop him, but the light got more powerful and focused, making it hard for them to see. Before they could do anything more, he had already touched the box, and everyone found themselves standing on a grassy, starlit field. The gem had now turned into the demonic human Sunset as she held Blueblood's hoof with curiosity while everyone looked around in shock and confusion. "It's you," Blueblood whispered as the spirit seemed lost and scared, making Blueblood smile excitedly. "I can't believe it. You made the jump too, but it was different in your case, like it..." He stops to look back at her more calmly. "I see; you didn't expect this to happen either; that is why you got startled and started scaring everyone that touched you; you need something familiar to calm down; you needed to see me again, am I right?" Sunset only nodded a couple of times in shame and lowered her head. "Oh, Sunny, scaring others was wrong; they could have helped you, but that's okay, I understand; you are safe now." She lifts her head and nods again, starting to approach the prince. Nobody dared to do anything, but Luna, Tempo, and Dash were getting ready to strike if the spirit tried anything. "You will have to apologize to those you scared later, but for now, let's help you out, starting with giving you a little improvement." Blueblood moved some of her hair with a knowing smile, placing his hoof on her face. "Close your eyes." She does as instructed, and he uses some magic to make his hoof glow. Moments later, he puts his hoof away from her. "You can open them now." she did, and soon the monster discovered that she no longer had teeth for eyes. She looked at her hands in surprise and then happiness before hugging Blueblood. He laughed and returned the hug. "You're welcome; listen, I won't force you to stay here if you don't want to, but if you do, you can consider this little realm of mine your new home; sound good?" He offered, and Luna was startled slightly when a Nightmare Moon copy landed beside her, smiling lightly at her. The demon nodded once before ending the illusion as Blueblood was now hugging the red gem that only glowed lightly. Feeling refreshed, Blueblood looks at everyone with a serene smile. "Don't worry, everyone; everything is okay now." "Blueblood, what did you...what just happened?" Luna asked, still perplexed about what she saw "One thing at a time. I'm still processing it myself, but I think I have an idea, and I will explain afterward, I promise." Before he looked at her somberly. "For now, please. Tell me, what happened to Aunt Celly?"