Twilight fumed at the iron grey stallion in front of her. His name was Colonel Stone, and Twilight thought he was certainly living up to the intelligence of his namesake. He had steadfastly been refusing to acknowledge that Axion could present even the smallest threat all morning, even when presented with the evidence of her power.

"So she's got a fancy little stone! We've got a few thousand of the finest soldiers in all the lands! We have nothing to fear! I'd like to see this Ack-see-awn cast a spell with a blade through her throat."

"I'm afraid you're either severely underestimating Axion, or overestimating your troops."

"You troops are excellent, no doubt. However, a blade is no good if you can't see what to hit. Axion isn't stupid, she's not about to let herself get surrounded by soldiers and not have a way out. Besides, even if she did get surrounded, she could massacre dozens of your soldiers without breaking a sweat. You have no idea what you're up against!"

"I have a damn good idea! If you remember, my force is the direct derivative of the soldiers that fought against Nightmare Moon when she attempted to take power a thousand years ago! We have combative information exclusive to us!"

"I don't think I need to remind you that the force against Nightmare Moon LOST. I'm sure that information was good then, but that was a long time ago. Our knowledge of magical techniques has advanced greatly since then."

"Bah! A lot of things can change in a thousand years, but one thing is still the same: The Royal Guard is still the best! Princess Celestia, please. Do you trust us to protect you and Canterlot thoroughly?"

Celestia looked up from the cup of tea she had been regarding with an expression of serious nonchalance.

"Of course. Axion may be powerful, but she cannot be as powerful as the Royal Guard's one thousand highly trained unicorns, much less the full five thousand warriors, and even if she defeats them, she still has me to contend with. I underestimated her once, and it shall not happen again. Twilight, please, sit."

Twilight only hesitated a moment before sitting back in her chair. Across from her, Colonel Stone sat as well, an insufferably smug look on his face. Celestia took another sip of tea before speaking again.

"We have nothing to fear from Axion. All she can do is scare ponies to cause chaos, and that is easily averted. Stone, I want you to organize a military parade. A show of force will certainly reassure the public that there is nothing to be afraid of.

"Good. Now, I believe that our business here is concluded, unless anyone else has something to say?"

"I have placed twenty of the Black Berets under Twilight Sparkle's authority. They were originally going to assist in the Diamond Dog and griffon debacle, but after recent developments, we were planning on deploying them to find and subdue Axion and recover the Amaranth. I was wondering if you would like to supplement our force, in personnel, intelligence, or resources."

"Not only will I not supplement, dear sister, but I object to the whole enterprise, for several reasons. First off, Twilight Sparkle has no practical military experience or general fighting knowledge. Second, why should we deploy on a wild goose chase against Axion when she has clearly stated her intent to come right back to us? And lastly, the Black Berets are a strong and effective force, but I think that only twenty of them would hardly stand a chance against Axion. She killed a half dozen of the Royal Guards without hardly trying. I would hate to see the Black Berets massacred pointlessly. No, you should not deploy."

"I respectfully disagree with your points, and the first is being fixed as fast as she can learn. Also, seeing as we have equal authority, and that the Black Berets are a organization under me, I retain the right to do as I see fit."

Celestia said nothing for a long and tense moment, staring at Luna with darkened eyes.

The half dozen ponies around the table rose and began to leave the apothecary. Twilight stood but glanced at Luna before leaving, who said nothing but nodded. Twilight left the room with the rest of the ponies. As soon as the door closed behind her, she felt a buzzing against her mind, a communication spell asking her permission to answer. As soon as she granted the permission, she immediately identified Luna.

Go to the Black Berets and get them prepared to leave. We need to get them out of the city before Celestia decides to lock them in their rooms to prevent their deployment. I shall join you shortly.

The communication spell ended without waiting for Twilight to respond. Only a little confused, the violet unicorn set off downstairs. As reached the bottom of the final flight of stairs, she could vaguely hear singing coming from the Black Beret's barracks room, just like the first time she had met them. As she walked closer to the room, she identified the song as the same one as then, as well.

"But the crew stayed at their post
and the captain at his wheel!
We all endured the wrath of fate
we thought our fate was sealed!
A chain's as weak as it's weakest leak
and rust had cut us through!
But strength in hooves and hearts and heads
held, 'cause our course was true!"

Twilight reached the door and quietly nudged it open to find the whole squad standing in a circle, each of them holding a mug, occasionally drinking. They were all swaying, some more than others, in time with a lute being played by a stallion Twilight remembered was called Red. His signature red mane was disheveled as he leaned over the instrument, picking for all he was worth. In the pause after the chorus, every pony raised their mugs and drank before launching into the next verse with gusto.

"The ocean hit like walls of stone,
the creak of timbers like banshee's moan.
But through the resolve of the Captain’s crew,
waves broke bow and then withdrew."

Twilight smiled as she watched the congregation. She knew that she needed them to be prepared to leave at a moments notice, but they seemed so happy, Twilight figured she would let them enjoy themselves for another few seconds. At that moment, a single voice interrupted Twilight's thoughts, a beautiful soprano, and continued solo, with even Red pausing for a moment to listen.

"The mast was charred but still so strong
so sails we did raise.
The windows gone above waterline
the water quenched the blaze.
With lightning bolts quite far aloft,
and gentle wind below,
the Captain’s crew and battered ship
sailed into sunset’s glow!"

Amazed at the quality of the singing, Twilight took a few steps into the room and saw it was Winter Mist who had sung the verse. Although she had planned on listening to the song for another few moments, Twilight's plans were rudely interrupted when the auto-closing spell on the door pulled it shut with a resounding thud. The lute gave an off-note twang, and the ponies all turned. When Wildfire noticed it was Twilight who had entered, he reacted immediately, barking the appropriate command, which she countered with her own.

Twilight smiled as the warriors relaxed in place, but remained respectfully silent.

"I hate to interrupt what seemed like a truly entertaining spectacle, but we have orders. Luna sent me here to tell you to prepare to depart, immediately."

The Black Berets began to run about the room, seemingly in a random and desultory pattern, but as she watched Twilight saw armor get strapped in, bags filled, and weapons gathered at a speed she had to see to believe. Before she could completely make sense of the spectacle in front of her, it was over, and twenty armed and armored soldiers were in front of her, each with a rucksack beside them. Out of the group, Wildfire approached, adjusting his last piece of armor over his head.

"That bodes ill for us all if even Princess Luna is guessing. She is always planning ahead, always one step before the rest. Did something happen at the meeting?"

Twilight hesitated for a few moments before speaking, but thankfully those few moments were enough, as the moment she opened her mouth a voice came from behind her.

"Yes, something happened. My sister has lost her damn mind. Black Berets, prepare for teleport!"

"Not now. We need to get out of the city. Black Berets, on me! Twilight, cast your teleportation spell, but target me. I will provide the guidance. I know of a place."

Twilight did as she was asked, as did the Black Berets. Luna let loose a flash of blue from her horn, and the scenery changed from the stone walled room to a lush, green forest. Twilight stumbled for a moment, then straightened to look around at her scenery.

Twilight gawped at Luna for a moment, her mouth moving just a bit slower than her mind as she struggled to comprehend what Luna had said.

To teleport a hundred yards alone is a feat, but Luna just teleported a group of ponies twenty miles!

"Yes, but I fear it is not far enough. We must jump again. Black Berets, on me!"

Once more they group sent their magic to Luna, who once more teleported them. Opening her eyes, Twilight saw what appeared to be a similar landscape around them. The green trees still stretched in every direction, as far as she could see.

"Roughly forty miles west of Canterlot, in the northern reaches of the Everfree forest. Come, this way. It is not far."

Twilight moved to follow Luna, but as she walked past the Black Berets to do so, she noticed that Wildfire was sniffing the air, turning his head back and forth as if searching for something.

"I don't think so, ma'am. I just smelled something odd. Not sure though, might just be my imagination. Either way, stay near the Princess. Berets, move out. Tank, Winter, take rear guard."

Twilight walked behind Luna as the procession walked through the woods. Several miles passed, and still they progressed in silence. Twilight's hooves were starting to ache, and hunger clawed at her belly. Several brambles had tangled in her mane, and she was growing weary of the travelling. Moving alongside of Luna, Twilight was about to ask how much further when the Princess abruptly stopped, looking left and right.

Twilight looked about in confusion. The small clearing they were in looked identical to dozens of others they had passed through in the past few hours. The only feature was a small rocky mound directly in front of them, about five feet tall. Twilight saw no opening, nor any other clue towards what made this clearing special, but Luna walked straight to the rocks, then around the other side. Twilight was about ask why they were there, and again her words were quelled when Luna walked around the mound, then ducked and simply disappeared. Running around the mound, Twilight saw that there was a crevasse in the bottom of the mound, opening into an underground passage just large enough for a pony to walk through. Luna was just inside, horn glowing.

Twilight stepped into the opening, and immediately felt cool air on her face, refreshing after the hike. Hearing the Black Berets behind her, Twilight moved deeper into the cave, which eventually opened up into a large room, easily large enough for a hundred ponies to comfortably move about.

"We should be safe here. It is hidden, not just in location but with a few spells."

Twilight moved to the middle of the room, still looking around, but her attention was drawn to the floor when her hoof contacted something other than stone. Looking down, Twilight saw what appeared to be the remains of a fire, now just bits of charred wood and ash.

"Yes. I used to come here more often, long ago. I happened upon it while wandering around the forest, and immediately decided to make it onto a secret hideout, more of a private clubhouse, as you will. I haven't been here in centuries, but after certain recent developments, I came back several days ago and refreshed the place, and recast some of the spells around it. I thought it would make a nice place for us to hide while we formulate a plan."

Twilight looked around the cave, where the Black Berets had already set their bags down and had unrolled their sleeping bags.

As soon as Twilight asked the question, she noticed a decrease in the rustling coming from behind her. turning, she saw that the Black Berets had overheard and stopped their unpacking. They approached as a group, and Wildfire was the first to speak.

"Basically, Celestia said that I was unfit to have my own military force, that Twilight was unfit to lead them, and that using that Black Berets to find Axion, even though she had forbid it, was tantamount to dereliction of the common good of Canterlot. She seems to think she has become a Queen, and I am her subordinate. After I regained to Moon Stone, we argued, and I got her to admit that I was still her equal, but it seems she had been trying to pacify me to simply shut me up. This has gone on since I was freed from Nightmare Moon, and frankly, I am sick of being in her shadow and doing little to nothing for the dear ponies of Equestria I so care about. My dear sister has changed a lot in my thousand years of absence."

Twilight thought she could see tears forming in Luna's eyes, and tried to think of a way to comfort the distressed Princess. However, before she could do anything, the tears had disappeared, replaced with strength and courage that were reflected in her words.

"These are dark times. We face a threat greater than we have faced in many years, possibly equal to Discord and Nightmare Moon, made greater by the fact Celestia refuses to accept the possibility of real danger. As we stand, we here in this cave seem to be the only ones who fully comprehend the threat. I ask you now, Black Berets, are you prepared to stand against a mighty and grand foe, and accept the possibility of injury or death?"

The Black Berets all snapped to attention as one, shouting their response loud enough to shake the dust from the walls.

"I don't know why I even had to ask. Now, go about your business. We might be here a while, so you might as well get comfortable. When you finish, gather some wood for a fire and light it on the remains of the old fire. Don't worry about smoke, there's a small hole in the ceiling that lets it out."

The Black Berets saluted, right hoof across their chest, and then scattered about the room, digging around in bags or polishing bits of armor or weapons. Twilight watched them, and suddenly realized she hadn't brought any provisions of her own, and looked to Luna to say so. However, as her violet eyes met Luna's the alicorn winked and nodded her head in the direction of the cave entrance, indicating for Twilight to follow her, and began walking through the tunnel to the entrance. Before long, they were back outside, blinking in the brightness of the sun after the darkness of the cave. Twilight came alongside Luna, who was looking around at the woods, as if anticipating something.

"Luna, I just realized I didn't bring any food or bedding or anything. How long are we going to be here?"

"It's perfectly fine, the Black Berets are always prepared. They will have extra food and bedding available, and we won't be here too long anyways."

"I think it will be a good place to start. This whole debacle has a whiff of a conspiracy about it, and I'd bet my wings Axion is involved in whatever is going on."

"Other than a few coincidences, I'd agree, but I long since stopped believing in coincidences. There are no coincidences, merely overlooked connections."

"Several things happened. First off, I went deeply in debt to you, a debt I don't know if I can ever repay."

"Have it your way, I feel as I do. But what I think you want to know, what happened between Celestia and I?"

"Yes. I expected open hostility or something, but afterwards she seemed kind of..... Well, normal. No pony seeing you interact would ever guess something like that had happened."

"Yes, it seemed odd to me the first day afterwards, but I think I know what she was thinking. Equestria is seen as the jewel of a peaceful and functioning country, and we must remain such, at least in appearance, or risk being seen as weak and divided, something we wish to avoid. There is no telling who or what would try to take advantage of such a perceived weakness."

Luna sighed and sat, laying her wing over Twilight's back as she did. The dark blue feathers tickled peculiarly as they rubbed against the scars where Twilight's wings used to be.

"There was much more. We talked for hours. Well, I talked, she yelled for a bit, then talked some, then yelled some more. I do not wish to regale the entire conversation, but I can summarize it. To say that she was furious about you sneaking into the treasure room is an understatement, much less to steal the Moon Stone, especially to give it back to me. The first thing she demanded was for me to return it to her, which I politely refused. She was so mad, I thought she was going to attack me and take it by force, but luckily she remembers that I am better trained in combat, and that she would lose easily. After that, she questioned me as to why I wanted it back, and why I didn't simply come to her and ask for it back. I told her that I thought she needed to be reminded that we were equals, and that I didn't have to ask her permission to do anything. That seemed to rile her something awful, and she went on this long speech about how she still appreciated me as a Princess and her equal, blah blah blah. A forced and practiced speech, I could tell. Well, after that I told her that I didn't feel like an equal, that she had done some very clever political maneuvering that had basically cut me out of the equation. She said that she figured that after a thousand years away, I might want a decade or so to get back into the swing of things before trying to help rule a country I didn't fully understand anymore. After that, I simply lost interest. I could tell that she was simply trying to placate me. After some more posturing and empty words, I made my excuses and left. All in all, it barely felt like she cared about the fact I got the Moon Stone back by stealing it. She seemed more concerned in trying to reassure me she thought me an equal, even though we both knew she doesn't think so. Also, rather oddly, she seemed preoccupied about me, and forgot that you were included in all this as well. I don't know what she's thinking, Twilight, and it concerns me, My sister and I always used to have a bond like lodestones, but now we're just two rocks in a stream."

Twilight nuzzled at Luna's neck as the words tumbled out. She could feel her lovers pain, and wanted nothing less than to alleviate the suffering.

Luna smiled and kissed Twilight on the tip of her horn, making the former librarian giggle and wiggle with delight.

Intension

by MadMan

Ensconce