//------------------------------// // 10 - Anu Belore Dela'na // Story: Children of the Sunwell // by Dizastrous //------------------------------// Chapter 10 Weaver drummed her fingers on the table as she stared intently at the guild's amulet. She knew something bad had happened because of Dizastrous's news of his arrival at Ponyville. It was only a matter of time before she got an earful on how it all went down. She could feel it in the air that something was wrong. Glancing over to where the princess of the sun sat Weaver quirked an eyebrow as a scroll appeared with a popping sound. As Celestia opened the scroll and began to read it a frown appeared on her face. The princess of the sun finally lifted her eyes from the scroll and her eyes bored straight into Weaver, who froze at this. "Something wrong?" Weaver said in an even tone, hiding her nervousness at what the scroll could have contained. Celestia did not answer immediately, merely glanced back at the scroll once more and hummed to herself as if weighing the response she got out of the warlock. She then glanced down to the amulet in front of Weaver, then back up to the warlock. "It would appear not just one, but both of your friends have showed up again. This time the entire populace of a village saw them however and a mob was formed..." Celestia said in a grave tone. "Oh for the love of the Sunwell what did Dizastrous do this time?!" Weaver exclaimed angrily. Celestia tilted her head in a questioning manner, "So you actually did not know about this then?" "Wait, what?" Weaver said, taken off guard. "It was the other one, Helix who incited the mob, according to my student, it was Dizastrous who stopped the issue from growing too severe." Celestia replied. Weaver scrunched up her face in disbelief and blinked a few times before responding, "No offense princess, but that report sounds like a load of shit to me. Helix is always calm and collected, he is probably the better diplomat of our guild to be honest." "Well it says here he took on the form of a large demon in the middle of the town..." Celestia commented as she glanced back at the section of the letter in question. Weaver's eyes held a pure look of disbelief as she slumped back in her chair. Her mind raced with questions as to what could have compelled Helix to do this. Celestia continued to scan the contents of the letter, eyes widening as she saw a part towards the end that she had missed previously. "Weaver, there is another thing about this letter however..." Celestia said in a cautious voice, as if she was almost wincing at having to tell the next part. Weaver responded by nodding at the princess of the sun as she pinched the bridge of her nose and screwed her eyes shut. "Dizastrous went missing almost immediately after intervening in Ponyville. My student claims he was heading to the north west. But the part that concerns me... She claims that he and a strange mare he was accompanied with may have kidnapped a mare who went missing around the time he left..." Celestia said in a concerned voice. Weaver's right eye twitched slightly, and the air around her began to distort with heat waves. Celestia stood up alert at the sight of this. "Weaver are you alright?" Celestia frowned and took a cautious step forward. Weaver burst into flames, wrapped in fel fire she stood up from the burning chair she previously sat on. Celestia took a step back in surprise as her guest ignited. The guards in the room panicked, though only their eyes showed it. Weaver gritted her teeth at the news, first Helix did something stupid, but then Dizastrous had to trump it with kidnapping? Were they both trying to make the ponies all hostile towards them? 'When I get my hands on him I am going to roast that damned fool alive!' Weaver furiously thought to herself. The door to the throne room opened and Discord strode inside, a smile on in face as he held in his arms a clothes iron, a ball of twine and a rubber ducky. Seeing the flaming form of the odd creature he was briefly introduced to however caused him to stop in his tracks. Celestia turned a worried eye from Weaver to Discord. Discord frowned at the worried look Celestia had on her face and he dropped the items in his arms onto the floor, "I'll come back later, the punchline is already ruined..." "So let me get this straight, You plan on walking right up to the crystal palace and demand that they hand over the crystal heart..." Chrysalis said, once more in her natural form. "I was thinking more of asking to see it, then grabbing it immediately." Dizastrous corrected. "That... Doesn't sound like it will work." Chrysalis said with a frown. "If I can get it in my hands, I can get away with it." Dizastrous said waving a hand dismissively. "How do you figure that? It will be heavily guarded, Shining Armor himself will probably confront you." Chrysalis commented. "Can he beat an ursa major?" Dizastrous asked with a quirked eyebrow. "Well, probably not... But the crystal empire has recently made a truce with the northern dragons, and their emissary will jump to their defense." Chrysalis said in a warning tone. "Hah, a dragon? I have killed many dragons, including the father of all black dragons in my land." Dizastrous boasted. "Alone?" Chrysalis said in a disbelieving tone. "Well, no... There were Twenty Five of us, But I have killed many dragons alone or with just Weaver and Helix." Dizastrous corrected. A twig snapped behind them and Dizastrous immediately whipped around and threw an open palm forward. Magic flashed briefly and then he charged off in the direction of where he cast the spell and grabbed the follower by the throat and lifted them into the air. "What are you doing following us?" Chrysalis hissed in the face of the light gray mare. "She wont be responding for about a minute or two..." Dizastrous commented with a frown. "Why, what did you do?" Chrysalis said, noticing the distant look in the mare's eyes. "I forced her into a state or repentance, the spell forces you to think over everything you have ever regretted in your life. She will be in this dazed state unless any physical harm causes her to break out of it or it times out." Dizastrous explained as he threw the limp mare over his shoulder and continued back down the path he previously strode. "Not going to tie her up or anything?" Chrysalis asked as she hovered in the air next to the mare. "No need, if what Helix said was right this one can't use magic since she is an earth pony. I have no doubt in my mind that she cannot physically overpower me." Dizastrous explained. Chrysalis frowned at this, but with a shrug accepted his reasoning and the two walked in silence for a couple of minutes. The silence was broken as the mare shivered on Dizastrous's shoulder and began to make struggled grunts of protest as she tried to free herself from the armored arm that had her pinned to the elf's shoulder. "Mind telling me why you followed me out of Ponyville?" Dizastrous asked casually as he kept walking. The light gray mare seemed shaken as she frowned slightly at her position and looked into the face of the elf who carried her, "I will only speak if you give me the decency to walk on my own hooves." Dizastrous glanced sideways at the mare on his shoulder and stopped walking. His glowing green eyes boring into light purple ones. "Why should I trust you enough not to attempt to flee or fight back?" Dizastrous asked in a firm tone. "Because a lady should behave accordingly." The mare responded with a pride filled tone. "Very ladylike to follow somepony out of a town." Chrysalis commented. "Yes well, I found myself in the need for this man's company." The mare said as Dizastrous set her down. "I'm flattered, but you are not quite my type." Dizastrous said in a flat tone. "Not like that, I simply have some questions for you..." The mare said in a pleading tone. Dizastrous sighed and ran armored fingers through his silver hair. He did not like the look the mare was giving him, he had seen those eyes before. He did not even need to ask what she wanted, but he nodded for her to continue regardless of his suspicions. "Let me introduce myself first, my name is Octavia and I am a musician. What I want is to know is where you are from..." The mare's last statement seemed cryptic in the way it was spoken. "What you mean to ask is if I am from whatever form of heaven you believe in don't you?" Dizastrous asked. Octavia tensed at her true question being laid out so simply, and in a manner that made the answer quite obvious, "So you are not then?" "No, now go home and forget that you saw me and my companion here headed this way..." Dizastrous said in a warning voice. Octavia looked at the ground with a dejected expression on her face. Chrysalis frowned at the almost lifeless eyes the mare now had. As the mare began to head back towards Ponyville she was overtaken with shivers and collapsed to the ground. Chrysalis gasped and Dizastrous strode over and turned the mare onto her back to get a better look at her. Octavia broke out into a fit of coughs, splattering the Blood Knight's face in crimson liquid. Dizastrous wiped his face with a hand and noticed the blood that was smeared there. "What would you have asked me if I had said yes?" Dizastrous asked as he procured a cloth from his pack and wiped his face off. "I would have asked for help..." Octavia responded. "She has seen too much, not only has she seen my true form, but she knows where we are really going. She will tell the others if you help her." Chrysalis warned. Dizastrous thought over his options for a moment, looking between the mare who was raising herself on wobbly knees, to the changeling queen who's horn was beginning to gather magical energies. Dizastrous frowned as he knelt down in front of the gray mare and lifted her face to look into her eyes. He then moved his armored hand from her chin to her throat where he took a firm grip. "I do not like to slay innocents, but I will do it if you endanger my mission." The Blood Knight's voice dripped with venom. The hand that gripped the mare's throat began to emit a golden aura as his magic seeped into her body. Octavia's eyes went wide as she felt the sickness leaving her body and strength returning to her. After only a second of gripping her however, Dizastrous relinquished his hold on her throat, and Octavia raised her hooves to where a bruise would almost definitely form and gasped for air. "Now go home and don't tell anyone you saw us." Dizastrous warned. "I-I'm cured..." Octavia mumbled as she stared down at her hooves. "You really trust her to not tell anypony?" Chrysalis asked in a disbelieving tone. Before Dizastrous could answer the changeling he was interrupted by the warning of a message from his guild amulet. With a confused look on his face he reached into his pack and retrieved it to receive the message. 'What the fuck did you do?!' An urgent message came in from Weaver. 'I didn't do it I swear! I think at least... What am I being accused of?' Dizastrous sent. 'You kidnapped a pony, and now the princesses have started a man hunt for you. I am under scrutiny and I'm not even sure what kind of trouble Helix could be in now because of you.' Weaver's angry reply came. 'Kidnapped a pony? What in the name of the light are you talking about?' Dizastrous replied. The Blood Knight then glanced down to the gray mare who was giving him an odd look and he froze up. He now knew what Weaver was talking about, but it was all a huge misunderstanding. Dizastrous laughed to himself as he replied. 'Don't worry, the pony merely followed me out of town. I will send her back and this will all be resolved.' Dizastrous sent with a smile. 'They dispatched several units of soldiers since you were reported to have attacked a town earlier as well. They view you as a threat, and if they know where you are headed they will be on to us. If you send her back into town and they put her under questioning they will discover where you are heading.' Weaver explained as if laying it all out for a child. 'Shit, what should I do then?' Dizastrous asked. 'Keep her with you, they think you went to the west, not the east. I will play dumb and act none the wiser to where you are. If you meet any guards on your way there and you are recognized, dispatch of them.' Weaver ordered over the amulet. Dizastrous let out a frustrated sigh as he looked down once more to the gray mare who had hung her head and began to trot away, thinking the being who saved her wanted nothing more from her at all. "Stop, you are going to be unable to leave I'm afraid." Dizastrous said, halting the mare in her tracks. Octavia and Chrysalis both gave the Blood Knight questioning looks, but they were only met with a stern glare from Dizastrous. "Apparently you were reported missing and they think I kidnapped you, if you go back now they will find out I did not travel to the west. I cannot allow that." Dizastrous's tone was grave as he strode up infront of and towered menacingly over the gray mare. "You aren't going to kill me now are you?" Octavia asked in a shaky voice. "No, I was told to just keep you with me. I said I don't want to kill innocents unless I have to, so don't wander off." Dizastrous warned. Octavia sighed in relief but Chrysalis sensed there was something more that the Blood Knight had to say and kept an intent stare on him. Dizastrous turned his gaze then and locked eyes with the changeling queen. "Chrysalis you tell me if you see any guards or soldiers before I do. We need to avoid them at all costs now that I am a known and wanted criminal." Dizastrous said. "And what happens if we get caught?" Chrysalis asked never breaking her eyes away from the Blood Knight's. "I have orders now to slay any that get in my way." Octavia gasped at what Dizastrous said. "Why do you have to kill ponies if they find out where you are going? What is so important about the royal army not finding out where you are headed?" Octavia asked urgently. "I am going to steal the crystal heart so that it may be used as a cure for my people's ailment." Dizastrous explained. "I'm sure the princesses will allow your people to come to the crystal empire to get healed by it though." Octavia implored, not liking what was being planned by the elf. "I came to your world through a portal, and it was by our mercy that the portal was made in secret and its existence kept discreet. There are those from my world that would wish to conquer your land for its resources. I also doubt then that your princesses will lend the artifact to us when we plan to take it across the cosmos to our world." Dizastrous explained in a firm tone. "But..." Octavia began feebly. "No, unfortunately this will not be solved with diplomacy. The addiction my people suffer because of the fel taint that blemishes our souls will be put to an end. If there is even a shadow of an opportunity that the crystal heart can cure us, I will stop at nothing to attain it." Dizastrous clenched his fist and glared up towards the sun. "May the light have mercy on me if any dare stand in my path..." Dizastrous muttered in prayer.