Gray walked along the line of Solar recruits, eyes roaming critically over their uniforms, Dean on the other side of the room doing the same with the Lunar recruits. After a month they expected them to be perfect, especially will all the extra ironing lessons. They met up at the end of the line and nodded to each other, then Gray waved to the door. Blueblood stepped forward with a pleased smirk, Flash Sentry just behind him. “You have done well the past two weeks. I have hardly seen ponies of your tenacity come through here, even those that fell upon hard times.”
A few of the recruits’ muzzles dropped a little, having had some trouble with their training, but the four instructors gave up their evenings and weekends to help them. The unicorn stallion lit his horn and raised them back up with magic, walking down the line as he continued to speak. “Your course is here at the perfect time. You may be wondering why you are dressed in your best, and why we asked for an update on your home addresses. You are all about to find out.” He gave a nod to Dean, who walked up and stood in the middle of the room, facing the doorway.
“Recruits, left turn! By the centre, quick march!” The two lines began to move, heading further inside the castle instead of outside, marching through the corridors. They left the recruit training station and entered into one of the long hallways near the main entrance. “Squad… halt!” The two lines stopped in position, and Gray motioned for the Solar recruits to follow. They used one of the service tunnels to get to the other side of the entrance hall, and their eyes went wide as they saw Celestia waiting for them.
Gray walked up to her and bowed his head, then the recruits’ mouths dropped open in shock as she openly kissed him. The man blinked a couple of times when she pulled away, then glared over at the recruits. “Form two lines behind us, and start walking when we do.” The order was quickly followed, and they looked across the hall to see Dean stood next to Luna. The two men offered their arms to the princesses, even though the blue alicorn was a little hesitant.
The sound of fanfare echoed from the throne room, and the two separate groups began to walk, forming four lines of fourteen ponies, even if two weren’t actually ponies. It was then the recruits noticed the other ponies in the castle, all wearing formal attire, and the sound of slow classical music hit their ears as they started to walked up the grand staircase.
The red carpet was clear for them as they entered the throne room, which was a bustling hive of activity. “Parade… halt!” They stopped moving, waiting as Blueblood marched his way to the head of the group, and bowed to the princesses, and the music stopped. “Your majesties, permission to dismiss the recruits.” The two alicorns gave him a nod and stepped away, leaving him looking over the ponies. “Phoenix and Barghest squads, you are hereby invited to join in with the celebrations of the Grand Galloping Gala. You may stay or leave with your family for the weekend, it is up to you, but we ask that you stay for some time. Dismissed!”
They quickly fell out and moved towards the crowds, where they found their families and loved ones waiting. Luna and Celestia moved up to their thrones and sat down. With a nod from the elder alicorn, the music sounded once more. The crowded ponies then spread out, mingling and chatting with each other. Gray smirked as he saw Princess Sparkle with her five friends. There were also a few stallions paying attention to Rarity in particular.
Blueblood also noticed and walked over, tapping one on the shoulder and speaking to them. The group ignored him, so the he pushed his way through and offered his hand to the unicorn mare. She favoured her audience with a soft smile, then took the offered appendage, letting him guide her away and to the drinks table. Twilight walked away and met up with Flash Sentry, shyly placing her hand in his, glancing across the room.
The man followed her gaze and spotted Nightlight and Twilight Velvet chatting with a group of ponies, the stallion not noticing where his daughter was. Gray turned to his side as he heard Dean chuckle, and the other man made his way offer to the throne room doors, where he offered the mare who was stood there nervously his arm.
Joy took it with a smile and they headed off into the crowd, heading towards the group of friends still stood near the refreshments. “So you’re this human thing, huh? You and the other guy?” Gray turned to his side to find a yellow furred pegasus mare stood next to him. “We’ll catch up later. Right now, I’ve got somepony to talk to.” She walked away, her blue blouse and skirt hugging her figure well. With every step she took her skirt rode up a little, and he could see the tops of her stockings, her legs elongated by the heels on her feet.
“Forget it dude, she doesn’t swing our way.” Another pegasus, a blue stallion this time, had taken her place, wearing almost the same outfit but with pants instead. Then the man noticed the markings on his shoulders. “That’s Spitfire, captain of the Wonderbolts. I’m Soarin.” The pony offered him his hand, which the man took with a smile.
“Gray, Gray Heartbelle.”
“Well, like she said, we’ll talk later. We’ve all got ponies to see here.” The pegasus gave him a wink, then headed towards the same place as the mare. He felt a hand on his shoulder and found Celestia smiling at him, her flowing white dress hugging her figure nicely. She slipped her arms around his neck and pulled him close, whispering into his ear.
“Remember our bet?”
“Yes, and I think I’ve just won it.” Celestia turned around and met Luna’s gaze, and the younger sister quickly turned, slipping behind one of the tapestries with just the pair noticing. “Do you think we should…”
“No, she will want to be alone. All I asked of her was to enter with the recruits, and to stay as long as possible. I truly thought she would make it all night. I will speak with her in the morning.” She gave a gasp as Gray pulled her close, a hand placed on the small of her back. “Gray, what are you doing?”
“Can’t you hear it?” The music finally hit her ears, and she looked around, seeing other couples taking to the floor as well. She favoured him with a smile and nodded, allowing him to lead the dance. As they moved around the floor, the man noticed a brightly blushing Fluttershy pressed close against Soarin’s chest, whilst Dash was staring shocked as Spitfire had chosen her for a partner.
There was a purple flash from the side as Twilight and Flash Sentry quickly disappeared, but a brighter blue one brought them back. The shocked couple found themselves standing in front of the scowling Nightlight, whilst Twilight Velvet lay her head on his shoulder and smiled at them. The last thing he noticed was Pinkie Pie and Applejack still surrounded, by both mares and stallions.
From what he could tell, they were flirting with the other ponies, and Pinkie gave the stallion next to her a wink as she pulled one of the mares into a passionate kiss.
By the time the last few guests had left, Gray was exhausted. All of the recruits had gone home, Blueblood had left halfway through with Rarity, and Flash Sentry was more than likely receiving an intense interrogation within the walls of the Sparkle household.
The man chuckled when he felt arms wrap around his chest from behind as he entered his room, taking one of Celestia’s hands and lifting it to his lips. She walked in front of him and moved her arms behind his neck, whilst his hands dropped down and rested on her hips. “So, how did you enjoy your first Gala?”
“Is Pinkie always that crazy? Other than that, it was pretty good. Could do with some more chairs in there though.” The mare just giggled at him and pulled his head down into a passionate kiss, humming into his mouth. She pulled away with a soft gasp, then frowned at the man’s grin. “I think it’s time for you to pay up.”
“And what do I have to do?” She caught movement to the side, where Fair Heart had just placed something on a chair. Gray guided her up over, where her eyes went wide upon seeing what it was. “You have got to be joking!”
“Nope. Twilight’s in charge on the weekends, right?” The mare gave him a slow nod. “Then it’s not a problem. You are going to put that on… and then clean up my room. Without magic. The forfeit if you give up… you have to wear that for the whole weekend, and can not cover it up if you leave the castle.”
“I shall honour our bet, and let you have this one.” She unashamedly removed her white dress and slipped into her new garment, the man zipping it up at the back. Then he slipped a white apron around her waist, tying it off tight. The new dress was just short enough to show the top of her stockings and the bottom of her suspenders, unless she bent over and revealed more. A small headdress took the place of her crown, and she took the feather duster from the side, purposely starting with the small coffee table.
Gray sat back into his chair and smirked at the view he was given, Celestia’s tight black panties framing her flanks perfectly.
None of the guards on the walls of the castle saw him as he watched from the shadows. He was lucky to get into Canterlot itself, let alone this close to the castle. There was still a security checkpoint at each entrance, which meant that he would be caught if he tried to fly over the walls. He let out a echoey chuckle as his quarry walked into the streets, conversing with the guards for a moment and then resuming his journey.
It was too crowded on the streets at the moment, so he would have to follow until they were alone. He moved quickly across the rooftops, his black chitin camouflaging him against the slate. In his tunnel vision, he didn’t sense another following him until he stopped, the target below entering a shop. He then felt the subtle magic of his kind, realising that he would not have been sent alone.
Even if he did have help, the kill was his mission. He let another chuckle go as the feeling he got from the other was female, thinking he could have some fun when his task was done. The one below returned to the street with a few bags, waving to the pony as he left. A good hard look revealed he was not armed, making the task much easier.
It was still crowded here, so the assassin continued to stalk his prey. The other kept pace, but he ignored her, eager for some revenge and to get out of this hayhole full of ponies. Things got complicated as three fillies ran at the man, who bent down and hugged them all. Several mares appeared, and they all walked on as a group.
He growled a little, determined to do this even more now, and glad that he would have the opportunity to have witnesses. No creature had ever crossed his race and lived… twice. The group walked into one of the city’s large open parks, taking an open part and laying a blanket down. He recognised the signs of a picnic, and looked at his options, his current position having no way to get near without being seen.
He eyed the tree line, then quickly moved along the rooftops towards it, jumping across a small stream into the first tree, hiding amongst the leaves. He slipped to the floor and started to dart between the trees. He got pretty close, sensing the other near, but couldn’t work out where she was. A quick glance revealed just a single pegasus mare with her back to him, dropping some bread to a gathering of ducks.
He took his chance and sprinted to the group, aiming for his target as he jumped through the air. His arms snapped shut, but a high pitched scream revealed he had caught the wrong one. His arms tightened as he stood back up, turning to show the shocked group the unicorn filly in his grasp. “Easy now… let her go, and you can still walk away.” He just hissed as the human started to step forward with his palms showing, whilst the mares and other fillies watched on in shock. “Come on, you don’t really want her, do you?”
“No, I am here for you! Remove any weapons and kneel on the ground!” The man did as ordered, removing a knife from his waist and throwing it to the side, then dropped down. The changeling let his horn glow a sickly green, a thin beam of light aimed at the man’s chest.
“Gray?”
“Just… relax, Sweetie Belle. Everything’s going to be okay.” All he was doing was reassuring the filly, who had tears falling down her cheeks, not knowing if he could save her. “You’ll be eating lunch again in a minute.”
“Aw, so precious! Now, hold sti..” The drone started to cough violently and dropped the filly, Gray immediately pulling her to safety. The man turned back to the drone to see a pegasus mare stood behind him. She pulled a knife from his back, walking in front of the drone.
His eyes went wide as the feeling from the other was really strong now, and a green flash revealed a changeling mare from her disguise. “M-major?”
“The name is Breezy Mint.” With that she plunged the knife into his throat, twisting it around. She stepped away with a snort as the drone fell backwards, the body twitching. She turned around and took a deep breath, gasping when she opened her eyes and saw her audience. “Uh…” A white blur suddenly shot forward, Sweetie Belle wrapping her arms tightly around the changeling’s waist. “How do you get them off?”
Gray just chuckled and motioned for her to join them, Sweetie Belle sitting at what could be considered an uncomfortably close distance. The elder mares kept their distance however, slightly worried about what had just happened and what she was going to do next. There were several flashes of light as several guards teleported in, aiming their spell rifles at the group.
The man waved to them and then pointed to the body, and they relaxed, a few of them still eyeing Breezy warily. The group gathered the dead changeling up and returned to the castle, leaving the picnic to continue. Gray suddenly picked his knife back up as he saw another changeling, but this one quickly turned and fled.
It was gone too fast to do anything about it, so he just made a mental note to report it up the chain when he returned. That, and see how well Celestia had cleaned his room.
The drone spat out some blood, then pushed himself from the floor. Almost immediately a fist collided with his muzzle once more, sending searing pain through his head. Metamorphosis was well past angry, he was downright furious. “You should have finished the job yourself!”
“But.. your majesty! There is more news!” The drone started choking as the king wrapped his hands around his throat, squeezing hard and leaning close with a low growl. “Major… Mirage was there! She… stopped him!” Metamorphosis dropped him with a snarl, then started pacing around the throne room. The drone coughed a few times and rubbed at his throat, then stood up once again. “I could not fight them both, she is far too strong for me.”
“Hmm… what of him? Was he there?”
“Nay, he has been sent to the mines for some reason. I did not see him the entire time I was there.”
“Then you may live yet. You were there that day, I remember what form you took. Can you still do it?” Metamorphosis closed his eyes as he felt transformation magic in the room, the drone being pushed to his limits as he had to do it from memory. The aura dissipated, and the king’s ears twitched as a new voice joined the conversation.
“Excuse me, can you help me find my daddy?” He turned around and found himself looking at a sandy brown pegasus filly with a flowing magenta mane and tail, then walked around her once. “Is this acceptable, your majesty?” He chuckled at that, the drone’s voice coming from her mouth.
“Perhaps you should add a few years.” She nodded back at him, a green glow surrounding her, and she started to grow a little. “There, that will do. We don’t want him to suspect something. Now, return to your true form and leave me, before I regret letting you live!” The drone did as instructed, keeping his head bowed as he backed out of the room.
Metamorphosis looked up at the liquid filled pods in the roof and summoned a random one, letting the pony free. The mare gasped for breath as she stood there, her wrists bound tightly behind her back by thick, sickly green goo. “Please… let me go.” He just hummed as he walked behind her, slyly flicking his tongue over her ear, making her shudder. “Please… I have a family.”
“Meta, what this?” The changeling looked over to the door, where Dido was now standing, a suspicious look upon her face. The mare started to sob as he placed a sharp knife against her neck, locking his gaze with the diamond dog bitch, and he licked his lips.
“The ponies took one of my kind from me.”
“No, please, no!”
“So, I will take one of theirs.” He dragged the knife across her neck, slicing deep into her skin, blood flowing freely from the open wound as the body fell limply to the floor. He stepped over her prone form and guided the bitch from the room, a small growl accompanying his voice as he spoke. “Now you see what happens when my subjects fail me, make sure that you never do.” She just nodded in submission, and the nearest drone snapped to attention as the king looked at him. “Clean that filth up.”