//------------------------------// // Into the Keep // Story: Crisis of Infinite Twilights // by defender2222 //------------------------------// "Are you sure we shouldn't be singing a traveling song?" Luna asked, glancing over at Baby Twilight. The foal was snuggly secured in a baby-carrier/saddle bag that was slug over the moon princess' back, her little eyes shut as she happily slumbered. It had been quickly decided that since Luna was the only one that Baby Twilight remained calm for (other than Discord, but he tended to calm her down by ending up as the butt of her pranks) that she should remain with the princess until she was returned to her home. Of course Night Light hadn't been counting on Luna volunteering to join Tydal in escorting Scootaloo and Spike on the next leg of their Twilight Hunt. "Positive," Spike said, hoping that the princess wouldn't begin crooning all over the place. Scootaloo focused on following the steady buzz she was feeling in her little form. Twilight Velvet had received via some intelligence sent by spies in Ponpan information on a potential Twilight spotting and Tydal and Luna had volunteered to take Scootaloo and Spike across the ocean and bring them, and the new Twilight, back safely. "I'm just saying it feels like we should be singing a traveling song." Luna opened her mouth and belted out, "On the road again! I just can't-" "Ba!" Baby Twilight exclaimed, suddenly waking up. She clicked her hooves together and Luna let out a gasp of delight as several moon pies appeared before her. The night princess began to happily gobble up the treats, forgetting all about her singing. "I'm beginning to like this Twilight," Spike said, holding up his fist. "Bro hoof." "Spikey!" Baby Twilight gurgled, kicking his fist and squealing happily. "Scoots! Scoots!" Scootaloo let out a yelp as she was lifted up into the air by Baby Twilight's dark magic, the foal cooing as she hugged the filly that resembled her beloved plushie toy. "Ok, ok, enough hugs!" Scootaloo said, her voice cheery even if her words weren't. "Twilight, why don't you try and kill this?" Tydal said calmly, snatching a cockatrice that was trying to sneak up on them and tossing it to the foal. Baby Twilight giggled and began to shake the poor snake-rooster like it was a rattle, giggling in delight. "Better?" Tydal asked the pegasus filly. "Thanks." "Still getting the buzz?" Tydal asked. "Yeah... there is a Twilight this way." She glanced over at the capricorn. "You said your Keep was nearby, right?" "In the same direction as we are headed... and that disturbs me." CHOMP! Scootaloo glanced over her shoulder, watching Baby Twilight's cheeks puff out as she slowly slurped the cockatrice’s tail into her mouth. The foal waited a moment once she was done, then let out a belch that had several feathers shooting from her mouth. "And considering what we have already dealt with..." the filly muttered. ~MC~MC~MC~ Tydal's Keep marked the end of Equestria and the beginning of the realm of the capricorns. Situated just off the coast, in the middle of Bridle Bay, the above-surface capital of the Mareatine served as both a beacon and a warning to the ponies that dwelled in Equestria. For some, the Keep represented the strongest defense Equestria had against invading forces; an advancing army seeking to claim Equestria would have to make it through capricorn territory... and none sailed the seas without permission of the capricorns. But the Keep was a double-edge sword. For while the capricorns would act as a buffer most ponies knew that it wasn't out of love for Equestria. Though Princess Celestia and Princess Luna had been raised by Lord Tydal and much of their style of rule came from the old goat, there was little friendship among the two countries. Ponies saw the capricorns as war-like barbarians who lusted for blood and slaughter. They, in private of course, mocked the king, seeing Lord Tydal not as royalty but as a general with delusions of grandeur. In turn, the capricorns looked upon many of the ponies of Equestria and scoffed, seeing them as soft and cowardly, unwilling to fight their own battles and creating a system of corruption and greed that only served to destroy harmony. "We do believe in harmony," Tydal told Scootaloo and Spike as they trotted along the beach. "Perhaps we believe it even more than Equestria. Tell me, what do the richest and most powerful of ponies do when they need a job done?" Scootlaoo frowned, thinking the question odd. "They would hire other ponies to do the labor." "Would they join these laborers in completing the task?" Scootaloo thought of Diamond Tiara and shook her head. "They'd rather sit back and mock the hard-working ponies getting the job done." "Exactly," Tydal said gruffly. "The Mareatine does not do things this way. What is my job, little one?" "You are the king of the capricorns," Scootaloo said. "And what does my day involve?" "I don't know... sitting in court, making some laws?" Tydal laughed and was quickly joined by Luna and Baby Twilight (who was laughing mostly because she liked laughing). "I am sorry, Scootaloo," Luna said with a chuckle. "Just the thought of my father sitting on a throne..." Luna began laughing again. Spike, who had been with Twilight when they had first met the capricorns, decided to fill Scootaloo in. "Lord Tydal doesn't like sitting in his grand hall... and his 'throne' is a simple stone chair." "I'd have taken something less grand than that but my subjects demanded I accept that gift," he grumbled. Tydal began to turn, following the curve of the beach. Up ahead Scootaloo could see the Keep rising up from the water, looking like a sandcastle created by a skilled sculptor. "The capricorns believe that those with power and wealth owe more to our society than those less off and thus are expected to work the hardest. My wife and daughters are immortal and divine, same as I, but they work just like the youngest and lowest in your kingdom. My daughters Coral and Misty are the captains of my royal guard and share the duties of running my army while I am away; they are also an event planner and a world-class chef, respectively. My wife and Queen, Merida, is in charge of all educational standards among my subjects and is also the kindergarten teacher for the littlest of capricorns." "And what about you?" Scootaloo asked, fascinated by Tydal's society. "I am the commander of my armies, one of combat trainers for new recruits, a 'good will ambassador' according to Celestia, part of the hunting parties that bring in fresh shark for our meals, and I also make many of the pots and storage containers used in my Keep and many of the cities under the Mareatine's surface. Oh, and sometimes I play Skee-Ball." "Busy guy," Spike stated. "Indeed, Spike, indeed." The god of the sea led the group up the long curving ramp towards the great stone doors of his Keep. Two sentries stood on guard, dressed in their simple armor made up of a helm designed to protect the sides of their heads from attack, short shoes that barely covered their hooves, and a thin breastplate adorned with the mark of Tydal's house: a tidal wave just beginning to crest. "Not very armored up, are they?" Scootaloo said. "Do your Wonderbolts wear heavy armor before putting on one of their shows?" Tydal asked. At Scootaloo's confused look Luna explained, "Capricorns aren't very fast on land... you could probably outrun my father. But in the water they are as fast as any Wonderbolt. Armor would weigh them down." The doors to the Keep opened and the group stepped inside. "Capricorns are also designed for battle. Their fan blades are razor sharp and the muscles in their tails are as strong as an earth pony's back legs. Their scales are also as strong as steel... the only weak points they have are the sides of their faces and their chests. They only wear enough armor to protect themselves while not limiting their speed under the waves." "Princess Luna!" several capricorns called out, swarming the princess. The co-ruler of Equestria happily greeted the approaching capricorn soldiers, exchanging well wishes with each of them. Due to the entire nation being turned to stone after the battle with Discord none of them had been around when Luna had become Nightmare Moon and thus did not hold the same fears Luna's own subjects did. Capricorns had always delighted in the night, for their days were not measured by the sun and the moon but by the waves and thus for them some 'days' were spent entirely under the starry skies. Scootaloo and Spike quickly ducked and weaved through the stomping legs, trying to avoid being trampled by the capricorns that were gathering to great their king and the princess. As the crowd grew bigger the two little ones soon found themselves forced to duck down a hallway and then further still. The distance between them and the others quickly grew until Scootaloo and Spike found themselves deep within Tydal's Keep with no way of knowing where they were or how to get back to Tydal and Luna. "So, this is really bad," Spike whispered. "I know." "We are lost in a castle that can sink under the water." "I know," Scootaloo ground out. "A castle full of trained soldiers that at best tolerate ponies." "I know!" Scootaloo snapped. "...a castle full of trained soldiers that also sinks under the water and can-" "SPIKE!" Scootaloo shouted. "I KNOW!" The drake blushed. "Heehee... sorry about that." He wanted several moments, the sound of his footfalls and Scootaloo's hooves clicking against the stone tiles filling the quiet of the hall. "So... we are totally-" "Spike, shhh!" Scootaloo said, cocking her head to the side. "I am trying to find a way out." "How can you find the way out?" Spike complained. "You've never been here before! I was here for a week a year ago and I still don't remember how to get around this place." "I can find the way because of Baby Twilight." Scootaloo now trotting rather quickly as she made a hard right down a new hall. The drake stared at the filly, wondering if she'd lost her mind. "How the hay does Baby Twilight help you find your way out?!? She isn't even here!" "Exactly," Scootaloo said, her pace increasing as she rushing down another hallway, Spike huffing and puffing to keep up. "I can sense Twilights, remember? Well, I am getting a bead on one right now and it must be Baby Twilight. Princess Luna wouldn't let her out of her sight. I follow the buzzing, we find Baby Twilight, we find Princess Luna." "...that might actually work!" Spike said with a grin. That smile faded when his stomach let out a whine of protest. "Ugh, shouldn't have eaten all those diamonds for breakfast!" "Don't worry!" Scootaloo called out, now in a full gallop as she raced towards a large door. They could hear the cheers and cries of a large group of capricorns and knew that it must be the welcoming party that had sought out Tydal and Luna at the door. "We are almost-" The two bolted through the door, only for their eyes to go wide in shock. Instead of finding themselves in the main entry hall of the Keep they were standing in a wide open area whose floor was made of wet sand. All around them capricorns were cheering and stomping their hooves in delight for the main entertainment... entertainment that Scootaloo and Spike were only a few feet away from. "By Celestia," Spike whispered in dread, "we're in the Arena!" They watched as a cloaked capricorn warrior squared off with a large timber wolf. The beast must have been at least 20 feet long from snout to rump and his blood red eyes glowed with a sinister light as it stared down its prey. The great wolf took a step forward, saliva dripping from its maw as it sniffed the capricorn, growling as it began to circle him. For her part, the capricorn merely continued on, her green tail swaying back and forth. Scootaloo got the distinct impression that the capricorn female was toying with the timber wolf, wanting it to make the first move. She lightly dragged her hoof along the sand, sending bits of it scattering about the Arena floor. The attack came without warning. The timber wolf lunged forward, jaws opened wide as it made to swallow the warrioress whole. The female merely leapt into the air, letting the wolf soar past her and crash into the Arena wall with a boom so heavy it made the ground shake. Capricorns were slow on land by they were very agile, able to keep their balance on the smallest of spaces and could leap about like frogs. The beast rose back up, only for the capricorn to leap onto its back, her tail blade slicing off the wolf's left ear. The wooden monster howled in pain and tried to spin around to dislodge her and, hopefully, snatch her, but the fighter merely used the wolf's own speed against it, swinging her tail and letting the timberwolf cut off its own head as it twisted. The beast fell to the ground, body spasming. Scootaloo and Spike watched with wide eyes as the capricorn mare threw off her cloak and turned her attention to the crowd. "Is this enough for you?" she bellowed. "Do you now believe the words I say? I do not know what bewitchment has befallen you, my brothers and sisters, but see for yourself that I am who I claim to be. Only the great Lord Tydal could do better than I have done! Do you not accept that I am Princess Seafoam Tremor, captain of the eastern guard and student of Tydal Coldwater?” "Twilight?" Spike whispered, staring at the capricorn's purple coat and familiar bob-cut