//------------------------------// // Waking Up Evil // Story: Twilight Sparkle: History's Greatest Monster // by PotatoJoe //------------------------------// Twilight Sparkle: History’s Greatest Monster A Fanfiction by Potato Joe Waking up was one of Twilight Sparkle’s favorite things. It was the part of the day with the most potential, the most promise. Anything could happen after you woke up - you just had to get up and do it. So she grunted, let out a yawn, and sat up, wondering why her mouth tasted like mint. Opening her eyes, she found herself in a Canterlot palace room. Spotting the bathroom she hopped out of bed and trotted inside, commencing with her morning business. It was odd, since she didn’t remember going back to Canterlot, but sometimes her memory wasn’t the best in the morning. Her right eye felt odd and the vision seemed a little fuzzy, but she might have slept on that side of her face funny. After a shower, brushing her teeth, and a solid mane combing - it was in a bizarre shape, like something Rarity would have suggested for a ball or gala - she trotted back into the bedroom. She still felt a little sleepy - and noticed the sun just starting to come up over the mountains. She went to the window and stared for a short while, enjoying the sight. Canterlot had the best view in Equestria and the setting and rising sun just didn’t look as splendid in Ponyville. She was about to turn away and check her day planner when she noticed a small yellow speck flying among the orange sky. Then she stumbled back as she heard anti-air cannonry begin firing, the loud percussion of thunder spells shaking the castle as lightning arced into the air. The little yellow dot bobbed and weaved, avoiding the onslaught of deadly magic with stunning skill, growing larger. Soon, Guardpony fliers had taken to the air to confront the dot, which seemed to be a yellow pegasus, but as they neared they were thrown away with single kicks and stomps. Whatever was heading for the castle was an unstoppable force of destruction. And Twilight was too agog to do anything but watch as it slowly became evident that the force of destruction was Fluttershy. Albeit, Fluttershy outfitted with armor bearing the symbol of Princess Celestia and combat horseshoes. With a crash the pegasus burst through one of the windows, bellowing a warcry as a flood of earth pony guards burst through Twilight’s door. Unicorn Special Oponyrations Magicians began to phase through the floor and ceiling and more pegasi entered through the shattered windows. “Lord Librarian!” called a familiar voice. Twilight didn’t turn to look at the source, too mesmerized by Fluttershy’s ability to suplex members of three different species of ponies with a single move. “Lord Librarian, we need to get you to safety!” Twilight realized there was a hoof on her shoulder. Turning, she found Trixie, that strange illusionist that had come by Ponyville once, standing at her side. Rather than a mage's hat and robe, she was wearing the vestments of the Royal Courtier of Canterlot - albeit with a wand tucked into her sash. “Uh, what?” Twilight asked, not having payed attention to the earlier statements, too enraptured by the melee. “Twilight Sparkle! Your reign of twisted evil is at an end!” bellowed Fluttershy, her voice a petite scream of berserker rage. She charged, tossing several soldiers out of the way as she smashed towards Twilight. “Lord Librarian, get behind me!” declared Trixie, leaping in front of Fluttershy and putting up a magical barrier - only to have it crushed and have herself be knocked to the side. As Trixie was laid out with a buck that Applejack would have been proud of, Twilight noticed that the warshoes that Fluttershy were wearing were enchanted to allow her to break magic. Then, Fluttershy looked up at Twilight, affixed her with the Stare, and charged. Twilight couldn’t move. One of her best friends seemed intent on attacking her. She didn’t know what to do - and with the Stare freezing her, she had few options. So she teleported across the room, behind a wall of stout looking earth pony knights. Fluttershy let out an adorable little gasp of shock as she smashed face first into an armoire. Moments later, she was tackled by a platoon of rowdy soldiers who immediacy subdued and manacled her, removing her shoes and armor in seconds. One struck the struggling Fluttershy with a kick to the face, drawing a snarl and several decidedly uncute swear words from the trapped pegasus before a bit was fitted to her so that she couldn’t speak. “D-don’t hurt her!” blurted Twilight. The knights stumbled away from her in shock as Trixie struggled to stand. “You heard the Lord Librarian!” barked Trixie as she wiped tears from a bruised eye. “She wants the little rebel for herself!” Twilight was already lost, but when the soldiers let out evil chuckles and stood aside, panic and fear crossed Fluttershy’s face. Prompted by everyones attention, she found herself walking towards where Fluttershy lay struggling with her bonds. Twilight paused a few steps from where her friend lay, glancing around the room. She had to think, figure out what was going on, and stop it. So, details she could observe. The Guardponies were not in normal Equestrian armor - in fact, the only set of normal armor was the stuff they’d taken off of Fluttershy. They all seemed to be outfitted in some sort of Legion of Doom type armor - their faces were masked, the metal was dark and scary, and there were pointless cosmetic spikes. And where Celestia’s crest should have been was Twilight’s. Next: this bedroom seemed to be Celestia’s, only refitted for Twilight. There were several portraits of Twilight in military uniforms covered with medals - oh, and all the portraits wore a monocle. The walls had swords on them and one of the bookshelves had such lovely titles as “Torture Made Uneasy”, “Taxation and Tyranny - A How To Guide”, and “Coping With The Urge To Monologue”. Finally: outside, Twilight could see the grounds of Canterlot seemed to have turned into a stereotypical supervillain fortress, albeit with more of Twilight’s favorite plants. And, for a Fortress of Evil, the sparsity of gallows and tasteful lava moat arrangement was rather fetching. Deduction - Twilight had either taken over the world in her sleep, been transported into a dimension where she had taken over the world, or had ate some of that pepper and onion casserole that always gave her weird dreams. Given that she knew it would take at least three days to get a lava pit the size of the one outside of her window built - not to mention a week for all the floral arrangements - she knew she hadn’t conquered the world while asleep. So, either a dimension shift or a casserole. “Neigh, let her suffer in the dungeon first,” she said, trying to sound aloof. Fluttershy relaxed. “In fact, make her comfortable in the dungeons - bring her something to eat, a soft bed, and some soothing strawberry and daffodil tea. I want her to be at her best.” Everypony looked confused. “L-lord Librarian, why would you treat this... Celestian scum... like some sort of honored guest?” asked Trixie, trotting forwards. “Because, I want her at her best so I can crush her more fully, you foal!” Twilight roared, banking on this epic bluff working. Trixie stumbled back, caught off guard. “Only when she is relaxed and secure can I truly destroy her! Now, she is merely a prisoner, helpless and terrified of me! But, with a proper battery of massage, flavorful and nutritious meals, and perhaps a hooficure, she will be a normal pony again - and it has been too long since I took the time to crush a mere commoner!” The Guards were shaking while Trixie’s face lit up in delight. “Lord Librarian, I am sorry for not understanding!” she declared, rushing over and kissing Twilights forehooves. “I should dream of one day behind half as mad and evil as you! Guards! You heard the Lord Librarian! Take this wretch to the dungeon and then fetch her whatever is necessary to give her the time of her life!” “Oh, and see to it she has that bruise on her nose looked at,” Twilight added. Trixie blinked, looking to her. “So I can give her a new one?” sighed Twilight with exasperation. Trixie let out a cackle at this and raced from the room, leading the Guards and the captives away. “Your sick game won’t work, you monster!” Fluttershy called, slipping the bit from her mouth so she could speak. Twilight’s ears pinned back in shock at her friend’s tone. “I won’t enjoy a bit of it! Sic Seffer Tyrannus-” “Sic Semper, I think,” corrected Twilight. “Oh,” said Fluttershy, blinking. She then returned to her shouting. “Sic Semper Tyrannus! The rebellion won’t rest until you’ve been turned to stone and the Sisters freed!” And then the doors slammed shut and the guards dissipated, leaving Twilight alone for the panic attack that struck a moment later. “Wait, what?” gasped Pinkie Pie, watching as the view from the crystal ball faded. “She can teleport now?” “Great,” grumbled Rarity, wincing as the glow around her horn and the crystal ball faded. She’d overtaxed herself so that she and Pinkie could watch Fluttershy’s infiltration, only to find out the situation had worsened. “We can hardly go ahead with the plan as scheduled, then - I imagine that she could simply teleport from the torture chambers after we spring our ambush.” “Yeah, this is bad news,” sighed Pinkie, giving a little shiver. “Ooh! Pinkie Sense!” “What, are the Guards nearing our hideout?” asked Rarity in alarm. “No, no, just... a weird one,” said Pinkie, looking confused. “I’ve never felt like this before. Nose twitch, funny spine, liver contractions?” “... liver contractions,” said Rarity, giving Pinkie a look of disgust. “Yeah, I don’t know either,” replied Pinkie with a shrug. “Maybe it has something to do with teleportation? It’d be useful if it did, I could maybe figure out the when and where of her poofing or something!” “Before we go down that road, we need to inform the rest of the Celestians of this latest occurrence - and start on a new plan to rescue Fluttershy,” said Rarity, cutting Pinkie off. The white-coated unicorn stood, shaking slightly and jostling her immaculate armor. “I’m sure Applejack would like to know that her brother can stop digging the tunnel, at the very least.” “Yeah, not much use in having to tunnel in if we aren’t using the whole ‘tunnel in and capture the bad girl’ plan,” agreed Pinkie. She turned and followed her friend outside into the small camp in the Everfree forest where the other Celestian rebels hid. “What’s up?” asked Applejack, looking up from the stewing applesauce she was cooking. Nearby, Rainbow Dash sharpened a sword on a whetstone in silence and Zecora trained several of the new recruits on where the weak points were in a Special Oponyrations Magician’s armor. “Bad news, everypony! The Evil Egghead can teleport now!” Pinkie blurted out. “Aw, fiddlesticks,” grumbled Applejack, tossing her ladle into the applesauce with a huff of anger. “Is there anythin’ that witch can’t do?” “Get a date?” chuckled Rainbow Dash, testing out a sword by slashing a falling leaf out of midair. “Might as well have Big Mac stop on the tunnel,” sighed Applejack, trotting off. Rarity and Pinkie Pie sat down around the campfire. “So, we need a new plan,” said Rarity, glancing around the meager camp. There were few enough ponies here as it was, and to Rarity’s eternal shame even fewer unicorns, but the night hid their numbers and made it feel like they were alone. Of course, even with what allies and soldiers they had, their chances were just about the same. The self proclaimed Lord Librarian had nearly conquered all of Equestria now, and as rumors of the tyrant’s pet dragon and mad experiments spread, fewer and fewer ponies were willing to try and fight back. The good old days of the Sisters’ rule seemed so far away, and yet, it had only been a few years. “Then listen up, because I’ve got a doozy of one,” said Rainbow Dash, trotting over and sticking a knife in their map of Canterlot. “All we need is about three good thunderheads...” TO BE CONTINUED.