//------------------------------// // Puppies in a Dungeon // Story: DisQord Continuum 2: Friendship is Futile // by ZoidbergIsBestPony //------------------------------// Puppies in a Dungeon “It is good to see you again, Captain,” Princess Celestia said, welcoming Captain Picard as he entered the throne room. “Though, I wish it were under better circumstances.” Two dozen guards were at full alert encapsulating the walls around the room. Princess Celestia was seated at her throne and Future Princess Twilight stood next to her. She had entered first to explain the situation, while the Captain, crew, Discord, and multiple sets of ponies waited outside. “For me as well, your majesty,” Picard replied bowing slightly. “I trust you have been filled in on the situation?” “Indeed I have. From what this Princess Twilight has explained to me, we have much to prepare for. I have taken the liberty of unsealing the vaults that contain the weapons of our ancestors. The guards have begun distributing them, though I’m afraid there is little time for training.” “No use, your royal magnificence! No use I tell you!” Discord sung as he barged into the room behind Picard. Dozens of spears immediately pointed straight at Discord’s throat by every single guard in the room. “Fellas, I thought we were past spears and locking people away in statues?” he asked, looking at the shine of one of the more sharp spears aimed at him. “That was before learning of our current predicament and the part you have played in it,” the princess replied coldly. “If you wish to regain my trust, Discord, you will have to earn it… It will not be easy.” “Your majesty, I have every intention of helping you in every way I possibly can. After all, if the universe ends, then I would end along with it. Now we can’t have that!” Celestia stared into his eyes warily. It was hard to see just how serious he was. His motives may indeed be exactly as he explained. However, a “God of Chaos” will always have an ulterior intention being worked behind the scenes. “Very well,” she said, nodding to the guards. They lowered their spears and returned to their posts around the room. “If you are truly here to help us, then explain to me exactly why our weapons will be of no use, and how then shall I prepare to defend against the Windigos.” “Highness, the Windigos have been extinct for almost two thousand years; not long after you defeated that one ship, actually. They initially created the beings that have now become the race known as the Borg Collective. Their entire race was assimilated into it. As a distinct species, they are no more.” “Then how exactly should I defend against these ‘Borg’?” “Well you see, the most important thing is to prevent the Borg from gaining access to any material involving Monoceros Particle knowledge. So any magical weapons will only help them and hurt us. We must not use them.” Celestia leaned over to one of her guards. She whispered into his ear, before he sauntered off out of the throne room. “I have instructed him to stop the distribution of the Silent Storm rifles and recollect them. I hope you have an alternative in mind.” “Indeed I have, Princess, with the help of the Enterprise, and my vast knowledge of the universe, I think we can cook up a few surprises for our future guests, but it will take time.” Princess Celestia looked over at Picard. “Captain, I will entrust Discord to your care, but I advise the utmost caution with him.” “You and I are in complete agreement, your majesty,” said Picard. “Where’s the love?” Discord asked jovially. “I’m only trying to help!” “Then what else can be done to prepare for the coming storm?” the princess asked. “Well, with no exceptions, we must immediately round up every last Unicorn and remove them from society.” “I beg your pardon!?” “We just need to keep them hidden someplace beyond their scanners,” Discord corrected, realizing the misunderstanding. “We need to remove them from every city, town, farm, and dwelling on the planet.” “That is absurd!” the princess screamed. “Why exactly do we need to hide all Unicorns?” “They contain the highest particle concentrations and therefore are the biggest threat if they fall victim to assimilation. They must all be segregated from society immediately!” “Now you listen here, Discord.” The princess’s voice was deep and angry. “This world has not been segregated since its founding! I have stood watch over my people for two thousand years. We have put aside the prejudices of the past. I will NEVER allow such a thing to happen again! ARE WE CLEAR!?” Discord was momentarily taken aback by her tone. He quickly recovered and said, “If we can not segregate every last Unicorn, then we must evacuate everypony from every major city and town and concentrate our defense efforts here in Canterlot. Ponies should be evacuated to far remote regions of the land with as few clusters of ponies as possible. The more ponies want to ‘Stay Together’, the faster they will be assimilated by the Borg. Every pony assimilated is another soldier for the enemy. You must remember that well, Celestia.” Celestia motioned for another guard and whispered in his ear. The second guard bowed in acknowledgement before retreating from the room. “I have sent the order, Discord. This will not be an easy task.” “Which is why I said just get rid of the Unicorns…” he muttered under his breath. “Did you say something?” the princess asked. “I was saying, the Elements of Harmony must remain out of enemy hands. Thanks to the time loop, we now have two sets to utilize. But are there any other superior magical items or persons we should be aware of? Anything that could cause the tide to turn horribly against us? Or possibly something we can use against them?” The princess had to think. “There is the Reflecting Pool of Eternal Darkness… but that’s been sealed since the first fall of Nightmare Moon.” “Can it be un-sealed by the Borg?” Discord demanded. “Shouldn’t you already know that, Q?” said Picard. “I have already told you, Captain. My powers are concentrated on holding this universe together in one piece. If you’d like me to let it break apart while I take the time to look up the information, just let me know!” Picard straightened his uniform, but said nothing. “As I was saying, before I was so rudely interrupted!” Discord continued. Picard rolled his eyes in reply. “Can it be unsealed?” “Not without the Elements of Harmony,” Celestia answered. “Is there anything else?” “Well…” the princess hesitated to mention her thoughts. “Well what?” Discord asked. “There is another powerful magical object in the castle; something which may pose a risk and may be beyond my control.” “And that would be…?” Princess Celestia swallowed hard, before rising from the throne. “Follow me.” She led the way out of the throne room, guards in the front and rear. The rest of the humans and ponies were waiting for them just outside the room. “So what’s the plan?” Future-Applejack was the first to reply. “We gonna get ready for the fight?” “Preparations are underway,” the princess answered. “For the moment I would prefer if the rest of you remain here. I will explain more in a few minutes.” “What about me, Princess?” Present-Twilight asked. Celestia looked down at her former pupil. “You will be filled in very shortly, Twilight. For now it’s important there be only one Twilight where we’re going.” “But your –“ “No buts, I’m afraid. Please wait here for me.” Present-Twilight was a little irked by Celestia choosing the future Twilight over her, but she did understand it. She bowed and remained behind with the others. Princess Celestia, Future-Twilight, Discord, and Captain Picard, along with several guards protecting them, headed toward the opposite end of the castle. When the finally reached the end, they found themselves at the top of a narrow stone spiral staircase leading down. Leading up to the staircase, many guards stood watch at regular intervals. The stairwell itself was bathed in darkness. On a wall near the top an unlit torch was hanging. Celestia used her magic to levitate the torch and light it. The light from the flames flickered down the walls of the staircase. Picard was reminded of the ancient castles of his homeland in France: with secret chambers and dungeons. He used to have fake sword fights with his brother near the ruins of one. They often searched for hidden secrets within those castles, but never succeeded in finding anything more than broken bricks and overgrown moss. Anything of value had long been plundered by thieves or recovered by archeologists over the centuries. But that didn’t stop them from trying. As they descended the stairs, a strange high pitched noise echoed across them. “What was that sound?” Picard asked, curiously. “You’ll see,” was all the princess was willing to say. The noise repeated, like a high-pitched yip. And then another. And another. Eventually the yipping was overlapping. Picard could finally recognize the sound. “Are those puppies?” “Yes, Captain,” Celestia said. “Why are there puppies in a dungeon?” “You will see,” she repeated. Upon reaching the bottom of the stairwell, two more guards had the path blocked by crossed spears. Upon seeing the princess, the spears rescinded, allowing them entrance into the dungeon. The last time Picard was in Equestria, he found the world to be an almost utopia, except for the chaos caused by Q of course. Everyone seemed happy, life was simple, and all the ponies helped one another constantly. But now as he entered a real working dungeon, his vision had been shattered thoroughly. The air in the room was stuffy and hard to breathe. The temperature was very cold, and if he weren’t wearing his uniform, he would probably have been shivering. The smell was horrendous. The ground was covered with old hay feed. The cells were small and dark. This was definitely not the criminal rehabilitation centers Picard was used to. All of the cells were empty, save for one. That was the one where all of the barking was coming from. As they approached some of the puppies noticed and climbed off the black rock they were bouncing on to greet them. One of them squeezed through the bars and jumped up on the captain’s foot all excited. “That’s mine!” a cold deep voice echoed from the cell. “I want it back.” Picard tried to get his eyes to adjust to the room, but there appeared to be nothing but the puppies on a rock. A sharp crooked point slowly protruded from the rock with a head attached to it. Dark eyes opened with green flames emanating around them. “I want it back, now!” the creature demanded. “Captain Picard, Discord, meet Former Queen Chrysalis,” Celestia introduced. “The Draconequus?” Chrysalis commented, speaking more clearly. “I’m a big fan of your work. But what is a Picard?” “I’m a human,” he replied. “Very well, human. Give me my puppy back!” Picard lifted the puppy still hugging his leg and was about to hand it back to her, when he was stopped by the Princess. “No. First we need to talk. If we like what we hear, you may have possibly even more than a single puppy back?” “My freedom?” she asked, sullenly. “Possibly.” Chrysalis sat up straight. A few puppies rolled off her as she did. They seemed to enjoy it. “What do you want?” Ignoring her, the princess turned toward Discord and said, “This creature is a changeling who feeds off love, hence the puppies.” “Did you say changeling?” Picard asked nervously. “I did. Why?” “This is a very serious threat.” He turned to the changeling. “How long have you been on this planet? Are you in communication with the Dominion?” Chrysalis looked beyond bewildered. “I have no idea what you’re referring to. Dominion? Planets?” Picard eased up a bit, but was ever more cautious. “Could you change for me? I want to witness your transformation,” “Captain, what is this about?” the princess asked also confused. “I’ll explain in a minute. Now please, change!” Chrysalis shrugged. In a flash of green light, she became the spitting image of Picard. After a few moments, she reverted. Picard relaxed. “I apologize, but you are not the first changeling I’ve encountered.” “Oh? You have met some of my loyal subjects?” “No. There is a race of changelings from a world far away. They are a very serious threat to the alpha–to this region of space. But from your transformation, I can say you are not of the same species as them.” “Uh..okay…” said Chrysalis, still confused. “Apologies, your majesty,” Picard said. “Please continue.” Discord chimed in, “Yes indeed, a changeling of any variety would be a serious threat for us if it’s assimilated. We should eliminate it now.” “What?” Chrysalis cried in shock. “You can’t! You wouldn’t!” The princess shook her head. “No. I would not. But as he said, you are threat that needs to be dealt with. I am offering you a chance. Work for us and earn your freedom. What say you?” Chrysalis salivated at the thought of freedom, but had to ask, “What would I need to do?” After the situation was explained to her, she seemed to understand the threat of the situation, but not her role in it. “So if these ‘Borg’ can ‘assimilate’ everypony, how can I help to stop that?” “We shall see, but do you swear to me, that you will help us defeat this foe, and when you have earned your freedom, you will never try to infiltrate this kingdom again?” Chrysalis had to pause. She thought of her subjects. “How can I feed my people, Celestia..err..Princess? They must feed to survive.” The princess seemed to be holding back a key piece of information. After a pause she spilled it. “Your kingdom no longer exists.” “What!?” “Your people were starving. We offered them a solution and they took it.” “What did you do to them?” she cried nervously. “We allowed them to become members of our society. They chose forms of random ponies of the past and now regularly adopt and exchange pets with local ponies to feed on their love. They can live happily, without making everypony else miserable.” Chrysalis wasn’t sure how to respond. Her people were safe, but her kingdom was gone. She contemplated in silence her current situation. “I am offering you the same,” said the princess. “Help us, and I will help you integrate with pony society. Do we have a deal?” Chrysalis could see no other option, and this did mean her freedom. To help her decision, one of the puppies stretched out on her leg. It looked up at her and barked lovingly. “Agreed,” she said, nodding. “I will help you.”