You want to tell me what the hell is going on?
...You think I know? None of this was me! You've been part of everything I've done!
So you're telling me that Sombra's found another one that'll cooperate with him?
I don't think it's another one... I think this one is full-blooded.
...But why? What's it after?
I don't know! We're all after different things.
Well, this sure works out well for Sombra. He's now bypassed the Crystal Heart and eliminated the Elements of Harmony as factors.
It works out well for us, too. We needed those things to happen as much as he did.
You needed them to happen. You're the one who wants Equestria destroyed, not me.
True.
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"How did he slip past you?"
"I don't know, sir."
"Why didn't you sense him, or notice the door opening?"
"I don't know, sir."
"Why weren't you paying closer attention?!"
"I don't know, sir."
"How the hell did two ponies die on my security team's watch?!"
"I don't know, sir."
"Who can tell me ANYTHING?! Who isn't so completely fu--"
He felt a hoof on his shoulder, and stopped talking immediately. Only then did he notice the dark forces stirring up in his anger. He breathed deeply in and out, pushing it back down.
Ventus was livid. Never had anypony under his team's guard been killed before. And now, not only was one of the ponies they'd been guarding dead, but so was a member of his team. Nopony knew how Forest Shade had slipped past the two guards protecting Rarity and Applejack, or why he had done it. Celestia had her hoof on Ventus' shoulder, stopping him from losing control in front of his guard. She addressed them next.
"I'm sure none of you are at fault," she said. Some of them, most notably, the one who had been guarding Applejack and Rarity's room, looked surprised.
"Now, if you'll excuse me, I need to have a word with my security chief."
They spread, conversing in low voices.
"If you want to keep their trust," Celestia said to Ventus, "I suggest NOT yelling at them like that."
"...I know," Ventus said, looking downcast. Then, he looked back at her. "You don't think any of them are at fault?"
"No," Celestia replied. "I don't think anything could've been done, not even if you or I had been there, looking right at him."
"This IS identical to the Summerlight case," Ventus admitted. "Do we know how this happened?"
"Whatever did this was being a little less careful this time," Celestia said. "There's a witness."
"You mean the Element of Generosity?" Ventus asked. "I thought she wouldn't answer questions."
"I think somepony can persuade her to talk," Celestia said, half-glancing at him. He raised his eyebrows.
"Me?" He asked. "She doesn't even know me. Why would she tell things to me if she wouldn't tell them to you?"
"I'm not a mind-reader," she replied.
"Well, neither am I," Ventus reminded her.
"Well, no," Celestia admitted. "But you have an uncanny ability to know exactly how people are feeling."
"I'm not any better at it than you are," he said. She looked at him blankly.
"I know how you're feeling because I practically raised you," she said. "I'm no better than most ponies with anypony else. No, you're the pony for the job. No more buts. You're going in there. Now."
"But--" Ventus began to object, but next moment, Celestia was dragging him across the crime scene to the hallway. She opened the door, and dragged him over to where Rarity was sitting, surrounded by her remaining friends. Ventus quit fighting once they were all in sight. Celestia ceased dragging him, turned tail, and disappeared back through the door. Ventus approached the circle of six, who were all, some more silently than others, grieving. He noticed Twilight, with red, puffy eyes, but didn't approach her. He walked up to Rarity, who had her head buried in the shoulder of Spike.
"I need a word with her," Ventus told Spike. Spike narrowed his eyes in slight distrust, but then quietly coerced the traumatized mare into showing her face.
"Your name is Rarity, isn't it?" Ventus asked, gently. She nodded.
"I need a word with you," he said. "Alone."
"...Who are you?" she asked croakily; she had lost her voice when she shrieked.
"I'll tell you, but we need to be alone first," he said, gesturing around.
Taking the hint, Spike unwrapped himself from her clutches, gathered up the rest of them, and had them all retreat from the pair.
"My name is Ventus," he said, as soon as the others were out of earshot. "I'm Twilight's friend and Chief of Celestia's security force."
"...Celestia's security force?" Rarity asked.
"That's right," Ventus replied. "Now, I've been completely honest with you. Time for you to be completely honest with me."
Rarity looked slightly taken aback, as Ventus took a seat beside her. "About what?" she asked.
"I need details," Ventus said, "about what happened tonight."
Rarity didn't say anything. Ventus did some quick thinking.
"Think about Applejack," he said, pulling the name from his subconsciousness. "Think about how she would've answered me if you'd been the one killed."
That did the trick. Thinking about her late friend, the Element of Honesty, Rarity appeared ready for questions.
"What exactly happened?"
She recounted her nightmare, her bath, and her discovery of the bodies.
"Did you feel anything... strange tonight? Did something feel out of place?"
She hesitated. "I don't think so..." but Ventus could tell she was unsure. She was thinking about something, debating.
"Are you sure?" he prompted. "You didn't, say... feel like you were being watched? You didn't feel anything at all?"
"...There was this one thing," she said. "Right before I opened the bathroom door..."
"Yes?" Ventus asked, his heart beating fast.
"...I got scared," she admitted, looking at him wide, tear-streaked eyes. "I knew I was about to see something horrible. My heart was pounding, I opened the door, and then... and then...."
He knew he had asked enough questions for the time being, but that last answer was the golden ticket. It was exactly what Ventus had been fearing.
"That's all I need to know for now," he said, getting to his hooves. "I might be back if I think of anything else. Thank you."
Unsure of how she had helped anything, Rarity nodded. Ventus walked away, watching out of the corner of his eye as everyone slowly came back over to her. He approached Celestia.
"Well?" Celestia asked.
"It was definitely some kind of dark magic," he said. "She could sense it."
"See if you can pick up any echoes," she said. "You're more sensitive to it than I am."
"Funny how that is, seeing as you're the princess of light," Ventus said. But he lit his horn still the same.
Putting more focus into it than he had ever put into any scan, Ventus scanned the magical energies in the room. When he passed over the bodies of Applejack and Forest Shade, he got a sense of the dark aura. Whatever had done this, it was nasty. He felt as though he were dipping his horn into foal's blood every time he passed over them. What was even scarier was that it almost felt...
He couldn't allow that disturbing thought to finish forming. Disgusted with himself, he tried to pick up any traces of anything else, but he was sure he wasn't finding anything more.
He emerged from his magical senses back into reality, panting from the strain he had been putting into his horn.
"I've never sensed anything like this," he said. "I don't think the culprit... is even Equine."
As he said it, something somepony said to him recently came flooding back.
Iron Hooves’ eyes had widened, but he understood perfectly. Before he turned to leave, his eyes filled with malice, and he spat one word at Ventus.
"Demon."
"Princess?" Ventus said, realizing he had never asked her before, "what's a Demon?"
"A what?" Celestia asked, puzzled.
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The funeral for Applejack was held as soon as the police had determined they would gather no further evidence from the crime scene. Her family came up from Ponyville a few hours after the murder. Applebloom didn't stop crying. The grief of the other two, however, was beyond that. Tears were unable to express the level of grief they were feeling. Speeches were given, tears were shed. Applejack was buried.
Immediately after the funeral, Celestia brought the remaining Elements of Harmony into yet another war council. This one was notably more subdued than the last, as the events of the previous night were still fresh in their minds.
"Well," Celestia began, face blank, "our previous plans are now obsolete. Only five Elements of Harmony will do nothing, and the new bearer of Honesty will not be chosen for at least a month."
"So why are we still here, Princess?" Twilight asked. Her eyes were still puffy and red from the tears. She had lost Cadence, Shining Armor, and Applejack, three of the ponies she was closest to, in one day.
"Because I have new tasks in mind for you five," she replied. "And with that, let us begin."
The spherical device in the center of the room glowed blue for a moment, then glowed blindingly white as a beam of light shot towards the ceiling. It then spread, creating a perfect circle of light about eight feet in diameter. The device's function became immediately apparent, as an image of Equestria appeared in the circle.
"The military is large, but right now, our troops aren't split into enough squadrons. We don't know what Sombra's next move is, so we need to be prepared for anything. I want to move at least one squadron into each outlying city of Equestria. That we can do right now, but it leaves a significantly smaller number of ponies here, meaning we're less flexible than before since we can't easily send greater numbers of ponies to other areas."
It seemed to go on and on for Twilight and her friends. Celestia didn't make their roles clear for a long time. But finally, one of their names cropped up.
"We need more Commanders, both to train new recruits, and to lead new squadrons. Fluttershy, you will be training a new squadron, which we shall call squad A for the time being. You will then lead them into combat as I see fit."
Everypony stared at Fluttershy in shock, as her mouth fell open.
"M--Me?" she asked.
"Yes, you, Fluttershy," Celestia replied, smiling at her. "Pegasi have a militaristic background. It's in your blood, whether you realize it or not. Somewhere, deep inside you, is a brilliant leader and strategist."
Fluttershy nodded, but she still had serious reservations.
"Anypony with further concerns can come talk to me after the meeting," Celestia continued, then moved back to the listing.
"Rarity," she said, causing said mare to look up in surprise.
"We can't afford to lose any of the remaining Elements of Harmony, as we'll need them once the new bearer of Honesty is chosen in a month. I want you, as well as a team of armor experts from Manehattan, to create specialized armor for each of you. You'll be given the strongest materials available."
"Me? Creating armor?" Rarity repeated, taking it in. Then, she stood strong. "I'll create the finest armor Equestria has ever seen!"
"I hope so," Celestia replied, smiling warmly before continuing.
"Rainbow Dash, you'll be commanding a squadron consisted of both veterans and newcomers. You will escort Rarity to Manehattan, where you will remain until given further instruction."
Rainbow Dash nodded, showing her understanding.
"Twilight, you will remain here in Canterlot to coordinate troop movements."
"Princess?" Twilight said, interrupting her. "With all due respect, I'd like to go to the front lines."
"No."
Celestia's wasn't the only voice that spoke. To Twilight's surprise, Ventus had also narrowed his eyes at her.
"It's not a good idea," he affirmed.
"How do you figure?" She asked.
"Hmm, I dunno... Maybe because you tried to run back to Sombra in the empire, expecting to take both him and his army all alone?"
"So you think I'll be reckless?" Twilight asked, growing angrier. "You think my judgement will be impaired just because I'm angry at him?!"
"Yes, I do," he replied, firmly.
"How do you know?" She snarled. "You just met me! You don't actually know how I feel! You don't--"
"Enough."
It wasn't the royal voice, but it was pretty close. A slight breeze passed through the room from the force of Celestia's tone. Twilight stopped talking immediately.
"I'm sorry, Twilight, but I have to agree with Ventus on this one," she said. "Your best place right now is here, with me."
Twilight nodded, still glaring at Ventus across the room. After a few moments of silence, Celestia continued down the list.
"Pinkamena Pie, you'll also remain here with us. Your... unnatural sense of situations will be useful in our coordination efforts. You will also be trained in combat, and be part of the force protecting the city."
It didn't take much brainpower to figure out that Celestia was referring to her Pinkie Sense, but Pinkie didn't seem to be paying attention. She looked even worse than when Sombra had destroyed the Crystal Empire. Lost and alone, her hair hung straight down over her face.
"General Iron Hooves, you will also help with the troop movements."
"Wait, General?" Iron Hooves asked. Celestia smiled at him.
"Yes. Congratulations, Chief. You've been promoted. As have you, Ventus."
"Me?" Ventus asked. "General? Um, can't I just keep my security force?"
"Your security force is part of the military now," she informed him. "I'm sorry, but we need all hands on deck, and your ponies are already trained up for the job."
Both Ventus and Iron Hooves' mouthes opened in shock.
"That sums up this war council," Celestia said, deactivating the holographic projector with magic. "You will each have further orders in the morning. Go get some rest."
Everypony present stood. Each member of Twilight's group, aside from Twilight herself, still looked surprised as they walked towards the exit.
"Me? A military commander?" said Rainbow Dash. "Awesome! I can't wait to whoop Sombra's flank!"
"I need to start drawing up the armor!" Rarity said.
As they were leaving the room, Ventus just heard Rainbow Dash ask "Which sounds more awesome, Commander Rainbow or Commander Dash?" before the door shut. He moved over to Celestia.
"Why didn't you tell me?" he asked, slightly resentfully.
"It's easier this way," she said. "If you had known, you would've given them some kind of final speech."
"But the last thing I did as their leader was scream at them!" he said.
"Not all of them are gone," she said. "Some will still be under your command, as your squadron will be in charge of the southern half of the city."
It made him feel slightly better, but he then asked the question that he had been waiting to ask all day.
"Did you find anything last night?"
Her face fell, if that was even possible when you weren't looking happy.
"Nothing," she said. "The restricted archives had nothing on the word 'Demon.'"
"Figures," he grumbled.
"I know I've heard that word before..." she said. "I just can't remember where..."
She remained in thought for a few moments before continuing.
"We'll just have to go back to the source," she said. "Find the pony who called you that."
"That part's easy," Ventus said, turning to the group of ponies who remained. "Iron Hooves!"
"Yes sir?" he asked, even though Ventus was no longer his superior.
"When does your grandfather come home?"
"My grandfather?" he asked, looking puzzled. "He should be getting home tonight. Why?"
"Because I need to have a little chat with him," Ventus said.
"I'll let you know when he returns," Iron Hooves said, before turning and exiting as well.
"Well, we'll just have to wait until then," Celestia said, before smiling. "In the meantime, you've got work to do."
"Work?" Ventus asked. His security force was no longer in action, and militarily, he had no assignments until tomorrow. "What work?"
"Twilight seemed pretty mad," Celestia replied. "It might just be another way for her to show her grief, but believe me, that girl can hold a grudge. You've got a lot of work to do if you want to be on speaking terms with her again."
"I don't -- she's -- I don't need to be on speaking terms with her," he lied. Celestia raised an eyebrow.
"Apparently, you still haven't learned that I'm the one pony you cannot lie to," she said, smiling wider. Ventus' face turned slightly red.
"...I'm still trying to figure out why she's so mad," he said. "Girls are weird sometimes..."
"Well, get going then," Celestia said, before once again practically dragging him out of the room and throwing him into the hallway.
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