//------------------------------// // Chapter Eighteen // Story: Freedom Through Harmony // by Electricut //------------------------------// Chapter Eighteen Town Two weeks later Repairs of the town were coming along nicely, keeping us all busy. The beast had managed to cause quite a bit of damage in its short rampage, so there was plenty to be fixed. I mainly found myself working with other Children of Air on the rooftops. The weather was beginning to cool down, but the sun was still powerful enough to make work difficult. I slid down to another ledge, and took a draft from my canteen. While doing so, my view drifted to the entrance to town, and I nearly choked. Heading straight for town was a decent sized brigade of troops, all in full royal uniform. The majority of the group appeared to be archer infantry, though a few swordsmen could be seen dotted throughout the ranks as well. Three figures walked at the front, a spearsman in gleaming silver armor, flanked by two more archers. What’s happening? Why would such a sizable group of soldiers all come in at once like this? And... Is that the Prince at it’s head? This can’t be good... I could see out of the corner of my eye Twilight making her way quickly to the gates to greet them. “Hey, cover for me for a minute, will you? I need to go check something.” I said to the worker behind me, who reluctantly agreed. I slipped off the building to the streets below, and made my own way to the front of town, just after Twilight. She had come in from another path, and neither she nor the royal troops had spotted me yet. I took the opportunity to identify the most important looking of the newcomers. As I had thought, the leader of the group was indeed the Prince Belenth, descendant of Celestia. Her apparent immortality was a mystery to all, and another reason some wanted to see her fall- one person ruling for five hundred years was obviously too much power for anyone to have. None of the rest of the royal family had been given this power, save for Luna, and the rest of the family went on throughout the ages. At this stage the Belenth was probably nine or ten generations ahead of those two. Blonde hair flowed freely without a helmet, matching the silver of his armor with gold. He stood to the side, arms folded, eyes scanning the proceedings calmly, not joining the conversation himself. Engaged in the actual conversation were the two women also at the head, both probably in their early twenties- one with a fancy but normal sized bow, the other with a powerful looking crossbow. The prior was the image of respectable, proper authority. She wore a darker variant of the normal grey royal uniform, though went without overt amounts of armor. Long, dark hair flowed neatly behind her, nearly concealing the bow and quiver across her back, and she stood tall as she spoke. The other was about as far flung from her as possible- She wore a leather jacket and black pants, and her short, shaggy, almost mint-green hair looked like she had only just gotten out of bed. The crossbow and a short sword hung at her belt. She was a part of the conversation, but slouched slightly, hands in the pockets of her jacket. Her bronze colored eyes were constantly vigilant, but otherwise, from a distance, she appeared disinterested. She stood just to the side of her companion, both addressing Twilight. “Prince Belenth! Brigadier Commander Octavia!” Twilight greeted them. “What brings you here?” Octavia answered. “The Queen was alerted of the Ursa Major attack in this town recently, and decided upon immediate action. She requested another brigade to transfer here and back up the one already here to raise defenses in the event of another attack. This being Lyra and I’s hometown, we naturally volunteered at once. The Silver Arrows are at your service.” “I’ve come just to get a first-person perspective.” Belenth stated. “Things have been happening in this town lately, and I’ve never been one to stay on the sidelines and hear reports. I intend to see the rest for myself. Should anything else attack, they’ll have my lance to face.” They concluded their greetings, and Twilight proceeded to lead the people who were unfamiliar with the town on a basic tour. A few remained, Octavia and Lyra among them, and I stepped forward and approached them. Lyra took notice immediately, turning slightly to face me. Octavia and another archer- a boy roughly my age with dark brown hair and wings, normal grade archer armor, and a longbow slightly taller than he was- noticed her movement and turned as well. “Any chance I could get a minute?” I said cheerfully. After the previous conversation, I had a few questions nagging at my mind. “You are?” Lyra asked first, somewhat suspiciously. “Remember the Elements of Harmony, whose chosen wielders ‘defeated’ Luna around a month ago? I’m one of ‘em. Rainbow Dash.” Octavia nodded slightly, and for a split second I thought I caught a look of increased alertness. I continued. “If you’re not doing anything else, would one of you mind entertaining some questions? Somewhere in the shade, it’s... a little hot out today.” I could tell they got the message- I didn’t need anyone overhearing us. “I’ll do it.” Lyra said, stalking over to me. “Lead the way, flyboy.” I decided once again to go to the sandwich place, because lunch hour had already passed, and it would likely be close to deserted. Plus, I knew the owner was pretty tight lipped about gossip, even though he was bound to have heard a lot. “Hungry?” I asked as she sat. “I don’t have all day, kid.” She said. “I’d like to get back to the others as soon as possible, so just ask away and let me get on with my business.” “Right.” I sat across from her. I could tell she was a lot like myself, avoiding getting close to anyone, staying inconspicuous- but she had agreed to answering questions away from capital ears. “I’ll be frank- why are you really here? If Celestia actually wanted to buff our defenses, she would have done it right after the Luna incident. It’s obvious she just wants extra eyes and ears here- but why now?” She smiled slightly, possibly out of impressment. “You’re perceptive, aren’t you? I’m guessing you’re not fond of her, then? Still, I’m going to need proof. I can’t just spill royal information to anyone who asks.” I pulled my ace. “One month short of seven years ago. Town square here. Celestia herself attended. Ringing any bells?” Her eyes soon widened, then again. “Oh. Oh... Yeah, I think that will work. Well, let’s say this- the attack two weeks ago was in fact the reason, but for the wrong side. Celestia could handle an Ursa without too much trouble any day- the problem is what killed it.” “The Weapon...” “Exactly. That blade is unlike anything she’s ever imagined, and... I’ll be honest, she’s scared. Nothing she can do to him she knows of can change the fact that the master of that Weapon is a legitimate threat. She took some time to decide on action, but ultimately thought that tracking his actions would be the best way to go.” “So you’re here to spy on him? Good luck finding it, I happen to know he keeps it locked up tight.” “Don’t worry. Remember the other conversation- don’t try and argue, I know you were listening in on the whole thing- Octavia and I volunteered, because we’re from here? That’s just it- we’re loyal to the town, and swiped up the job before anyone else could- we’ll feed her nice steady reports from here on out.” She had thought of everything, it seemed. “So, I take it you’re not exactly ‘with’ her, either.” “...The event you referred to had an effect on us, too. We were your age when it happened, and couldn’t abide by this madness any longer. But we knew we couldn’t just jump in and end it- we’d need to bide our time. Octavia and I both decided to enlist in the Royal Army, to gain some power and search for weakness discreetly. Plus... When a revolution starts, it’s always good to have an inside source.” She had become more animated in her speech- I could tell she really felt strongly about this. I hadn’t even asked and she had agreed to be an informant. I knew there were several others, in town at least, that felt the same way. AJ, Mac, Trixie- if it came to it, I knew any and every one of them would join in an instant. But was there anything to join? “Between you and me... How close do you think we are to actually getting a revolution going?” I said in a low voice. “To starting one, or it’s success? Honestly... I think we could win before year five hundred rolls around. If we’re lucky, that is. We’ll need a miracle to take down Celestia, though. No one knows how she’s immortal, and no one knows if there are any loopholes. We need someone who can figure that out, before anything else. Any ideas?” I shook my head. “Wait, wait... Did this stop being hypothetical at some point? Are we... are we actually talking about starting a rebellion?” “Sure. Kid, you don’t realize- Celestia’s been in power for nearly five hundred years. People only aren’t voicing their dissent because they don’t know others are with them. There are way more people who would be willing to join than you think. But it would still be pointless, because like I said, we need someone to find a weak spot.” I thought, my mind turning circles on me. Someone would have to be ridiculously good at stealth and digging for secrets for that. As it was, the only person who came close was too loyal to the queen to even suggest. “You’ll be the first to know if I find someone.” “Likewise. We have to get organized, you know. Keep track of anyone you know who would be willing to cast in. I won’t be hosting anything, to be sure, but I’ll be there if you have a rally of some sort. I don’t suppose you’d want to lead it?” “Nah. I’m not that great a leader. But...” I thought of Trixie- iconic in figure, powerful in her own regard, and ready to jump into the action herself. “I may know someone who could. I won’t use names, but I’ll ask her sometime.” “Sounds good. And we only need individual leaders for each pocket, who will eventually join up. See...” She leaned in close. “We’ve already got a general for our army. Someone who has every claim to the throne afterwards. He’s a little arrogant, and ambitious in the extreme, but I think he’ll make a great leader.” The pieces lined up. “Belenth... He’s one of the most high-ranking generals in the Army. Not to mention tied by blood to the throne to begin with, and enigmatic enough already. I’ve heard he’s even a great fighter. You’re saying he’s on board?” “We got lucky, what can I say? Only thing better would have been Luna- but it’s impossible to contact her. Celestia’s keeping her under tight guard. But Belenth is certainly the next best thing. He wanted to come along to get more well known, maybe slay a few monsters and become a hero in the people’s eyes, before asking them to follow him into battle, knowing he’s going to take the throne. He cares about his own reputation, to be sure, but as long as he’s on our side, I could care less.” Wheels were turning in my mind. An actual resistance. We might be on the verge of jumpstarting and actual resistance! “Know that I’m in, Lyra. I’ll do anything I can. Let’s keep in touch, make sure we’re both on the same page.” “Sure. See you later, kid.” She stood, but I stopped her for one other question that had occurred to me. “Wait. You’re unit is all archers, right?” “Mostly archers. Why?” “Any chance you could spare someone to train a friend of mine? I don’t know any other archers, and after one day she already learned everything I could teach.” “I can bring it up with Octavia. What’s her name?” I told her. “Yeah, I’ll see what I can do. Later.” She made her way back to the entrance, leaving me sitting with my thoughts. This thing is further along than I thought... It doesn’t have a leader yet, and isn’t organized much, but there are more people opposing her than I thought... I have to get ahold of Trixie. This thing might just be on the verge of happening. If we work for it... We could truly resist. But who’s going to find out how to kill Celestia?... I wonder...