//------------------------------// // Chapter 3 // Story: BEDLAM II: Heart of Glass // by Gormless Wheaton //------------------------------// Another explosion shook the corridor and a thick cloud of smoke billowed out to greet me as I ran. Working fast, I switched my lenses to mana-sensitive, allowing me to follow the magical currents providing power through the ship through the sight-blocking cloud. And after just a dozen or so feet, I was able to see a sizeable aura of magic just ahead. Clenching my teeth and raising my blasting talisman, I clicked the heels of my boots together, igniting the spells set in the soles of my boots. With a light push, I was launched forward and flew into the cargo bay where I immediately took a shot at the aura I'd seen. "Woah!" Starlight shrieked as she narrowly ducked the blast before teleporting out of sight. Aided by the spells in my boots, I pivoted in the air and safely landed on my feet before flying for cover behind one of the crates she hadn't blown apart in her scuffle with the security drones. Switching my right lens back to normal, I scanned the bay floor to see the wreckage she'd wreaked since breaking into the ship. A frankly obscene number of animunculi lay in smoldering heaps all around. All the while, I carefully studied the area for her aura. "You picked a bad place to hide, Starlight," I called out, still searching. "I don't know how you managed to bust into the main deck, but the cargo bay is reinforced with magically grounded metal plate. You won't be teleporting out of here." I chortled as I spotted her. "And the only exit is right by me." I twisted my arm around my cover and took a shot at her. A warbling crash boomed out, and peeking out revealed the fringes of a shield she'd conjured just as my attack pierced her cover. I smirked. "So, how about you give back the scepter and I'll escort you out myself?" "Hah! And let you figure out how to take control of the dragons? As if!" She yelled back before her aura vanished. "We might not be able to hold back all your golems, but you messed up Eddy." "How so?" I chirped as I searched again. Right as I spotted her she teleported again. "That little message you sent out after conquering Mount Aris!" She replied, warping again. I clenched my teeth and drew a second talisman loaded with a gravity spell. "You mentioned that the dragons eat your machines." "That's because they do." She moved again. "Right! But that got me thinking. If you've got Discord's magic, why not conjure up a machine they can't eat? In fact, with his power, why haven't you just conjured up, I dunno, an instant win button or something?" I began charging the gravity talisman and brought it up to my right side. "You can't begin to fathom the complexities in harnessing raw chaos." "Nopony can! Except Discord. So I hunted him down and asked him. And he confirmed my suspicion. You can't use his magic the same way as him! You have to use it carefully and in rigid structures! You can't just conjure whatever you want!" Where are you? "In fact, if you didn't have Celestia and Luna's magic and talent in the bell to literally steer his power, you wouldn't have gotten this far at all!" My jaw dropped before twisting into a smile. "CLEVER GIRL!" I laughed aloud. There you are. With a grunt, I waved the talisman in her direction. A near-invisible way rolled across the floor, phasing through the crates she was hiding behind and passing her. Once she was inside the area of effect, I swung the talisman down. She squawked in shock and pain as the gravity around her suddenly slammed down, smashing her cover to splinters and pinning her to the ground. I rose and began slowly approaching with the talisman outstretched, causing the field to shrink and concentrate its force on her. I smirked as I spied her struggling form with the ruby scepter tightly gripped in her forelegs. "But that knowledge won't save any of you." "Gh! Maybe not, but the- oo- OTHER thing will!" She grit her teeth into a strained grin. "We can't stop you, but you- er- CAN'T beat the dragons. Not all of them anyway!" "Not without the scepter, very astute," I chortled as I loomed over her. "And on that topic, we have a choice before us. You can release the scepter, or I can crush you." I gently pressed the talisman lower to drive the point home. She squealed and clenched her teeth into a sneer. "How- ah- how about a third option?" I hesitated and tilted my head. "Wh-" With a grunt, she craned her neck and fired a beam towards the exit. I turned just in time to see her spell crash into- "FUCK!" The loading door switch. The cargo bay was suddenly filled with rushing wind as the massive loading ramp began to fall open. The sudden gust knocked me off my feet and after tumbling towards the open air, I narrowly managed to grab hold of one of the supports holding a crate in place. In doing so, I'd dropped my gravity talisman. With it no longer keeping her pinned, Starlight leaped up with a grunt and let the air carry her and the scepter out of the cargo bay. I attempted to take a shot at her with my blasting talisman, but the debris and ruined golems came crashing all around me, spoiling my shot. With a flash of her magic, Starlight vanished once she cleared the threshold of the loading door, which drew a roar of rage out of me. I leaned on the railing of the Abyssinian castle balcony. Down below, the cat-folk were having some sort of festival turned riot. As one of my shiny monitors set up in the city square just before the castle gates was pulled down with hooks and ropes, a squadron of patrolling golems came stomping up and began manhandling cats, sometimes two per hand, and hauling them off. "Well, well, seems like I crashed your party," I declared to King Panthera just behind me. I peered over my shoulder at him, causing him to chuckle nervously and tap his claws together. "Well! I wouldn't say you ruined it, just," he murmured and rolled his paw at me. "Kind of, sort of, reminded them of the Diamond Dog infes-" I frowned and he shivered. "Diamond Dog what?" "Diamond Dog, uh, invitation you extended without public approval! Is all." I smiled and swept back to wrap an arm around him. "And that is the beauty of dictatorship. I don't need public approval to push my policies," I chuckled, and he nervously followed suit before shrugging. "Sure! But, I mean, you know how cats and dogs are!" He rolled his head a few times. "Maybe we could have, I dunno, tried a few smaller control groups before full-on mixing the communities?" I hummed and inspected my nails. He grumbled and winced. "There've been a few scuffles that I've reported. Y'know, bar fights, muggings, uh, demonstrations, and the like?" I raised an eyebrow and he held up his paws. "On both sides, Boss. But that's also kind of my point. Aren't we moving a little fast?" "They'll adapt or be crushed under our weight as we march without them," I smirked and flicked him on the nose. "Simple as." He nervously grinned. "Sure." His eyes darted when I neither released him nor withdrew my gaze and he began to chuckle anxiously. Then my glove jingled quietly and I clicked in a sequence. A projection of Jury-rig popped up in my hand. "He's clear, Bedlam," I smiled and nodded my head at Panthera. "But it looks like he deleted an automated report from one of the golems that got blown up." My smile fell fast and his eyes widened. "Call you back in a sec," I said before cutting the communication, still fixing him with an unamused glare. He stammered and held up his paws. "It wasn't anything serious! Just one of those demonstrations I mentioned!" "That destroyed one of the animunculi I trusted you with." He wilted and swallowed. "Well, these guys might've been a little more organized than usual," he squeaked with a shrug. We held each other's gaze for a minute or two before I released him. "You're lucky I'm preoccupied and in a hurry. I want a full report by tonight," I ordered as I made for the door. He sighed in relief. "And I'm sending the Sisters here to help you with security." His sigh turned into a choking sputter. I scowled through the command deck window at the ocean below us. All around me, the ship crew animunculi continued to operate the ship's functions, completely oblivious to the seething rage I was exuding. One of the doors slid open, and a set of hooves came trotting up behind me. "Bedlam, the drones spotted her making landfall. She must have chain-teleported the whole way," Jury reported. "Where?" She sighed. "South of the Dragon Lands." "Good," I turned to the golem acting as captain. As I pointed at it, it whirred and turned to me. "Set a course for-" "Bedlam!" I flinched and looked at Jury-rig. "We can't go back there! Ember's probably stalking the area! It's pretty obvious they planned this out, at least a little." She fixed me with a frustrated frown. It did nothing to ease the anger bubbling within me. I took a shuddering breath and let it out. "Jury-rig," I slowly knelt to her eye level, causing her to recoil slightly. "Do I need to remind you that this excursion was entirely for the purpose of securing the Dragon Lord's scepter?" She hesitated before tilting her head slightly. "No? But-" "And now," I declared with a quaver. "Starlight Glimmer has stolen it from us." My hand came down and firmly clapped the ground beside her, offering me support as I leaned in almost nose-to-nose with her. "What does that mean, Jury-rig?" She scrunched her muzzle and wilted under my even gaze. Her eyes darted about before she swallowed. "Uhm. We can't, uh, control the dragons?" I winced, took another uneasy breath, and held up my other hand. "It," I grunted. "MEANS." She squeaked as my hand snapped and grabbed her by the scruff of her neck, hoisting her closer. "That this entire trip, including everything I put Tempest through, was for nothing." She whimpered as I stared evenly at her. After a moment, I gently released her and stroked her mane with a quivering hand. "We're going after her. Understand?" "Yessir," she desperately replied.