It was hard for Selina to adequately express how she felt about her boss at the moment. His family had been threatened by some other worldly monster and his only plan to get them out rested in the hooves of a Unicorn who, from what she understood, barely knew any magic.
She was impressed and yet, at the same time, somewhat abhorred by the fact that he could walk on stage with a smile on his face like nothing was wrong. Had it been her in this situation she would have found herself spiraling into the realms of madness.
For someone who claimed to be terrible at gambling, Jon had one hell of a poker face that night. To everyone watching, including his staff members, he looked as eager now as he did when he first took over the show from Craig Kilborn all those years ago. He may have had everyone fooled into thinking he was alright but deep down he was a whirlwind of emotions. Scared, angry, hopeful, anxious, he was all of these things and more. To him if even the slightest thing went wrong everything would fall apart, so he knew he had to keep a straight face throughout the show, lest Chrysalis were to suspect something.
His years of training made it so he would do just that as he walked across the stage and waved to the occasional audience members. The cameras were on but not filming so anything done now didn't get broadcasted, which Jon liked because it meant he could have some brief quality time with the live audience on the set before starting the show.
The walk to his desk seemed longer today than it usually did and at least once or twice Jon caught himself looking at the area of the backdrop where Trixie would most likely be. Everyone present could see that Jon looked to be fine, all but Trixie of course since she was out of sight. He trusted her with his life but the fact that he couldn't see her meant he was going in blind. For all he knew, she could have gotten scared and ran off by now, but even though he couldn't see her, he knew she was there, just as ready as he was.
He waved one last time and took his seat, ready to begin. He started to address the audience by thanking them for their patience...but they heard nothing. He did speak but his voice didn't carry over, possibly due to some audio malfunction. Such a thing may seem very inconsequential since the show hadn't even started yet, but that's not how Jon felt.
With heavy breathing and eyes which looked like they were watching a high pace tennis match Jon tried to ascertain what went wrong. He shifted in his seat and wondered what was happening and if this was only the beginning of many blunders to come.
Before he could go into a frenzy, he felt someone gently grab his shoulder and when he looked over to see who it was, he saw Selina standing behind him. Reaching over he grabbed his microphone piece which had fallen to the ground. She leaned forward and, like a fussy mother getting her kids ready for school, she attached it back onto his lapel.
Before leaving she gave him a wink and a pat on the shoulder which not only caused the audience to laugh but also gave Jon a little boost of confidence. Again, his mouth opened and he began to address the audience, taking individual questions and answering them the best he could. This went on till a stagehand gave both him and the audience the signal to stop talking. They did so and as a result lights began to turn on and the little red light which indicated what camera was broadcasting began to shine bright. The show had officially begun.
The audience waited with anticipation as the show's announcer spoke overhead. In just a few seconds they would be allowed to speak again.
"From Comedy Central Headquarters in New York," the announcer said. "This is the Daily Show with Jon Stewart!” As opening tittle theme, Bob Mould’s "Dog On Fire,” began to play, a camera made a sweep from a downward angle while the audience cheered with all their might. Eventually the camera closest to Jon zoomed in on him.
Jon took one last final deep breath as did Trixie who was now pointing her horn at the hexagon.
"Hello everyone welcome to the Daily Show! My name is Jon Stewart, oh BOY do we have a show for you tonight!" He said over the audience. "Uh, our guest tonight...the newest edition to our ongoing 'Equestrian Interviews,' Lyra Heartstrings will be on the show with us tonight!"
Most if not all of the audiences present were under the impression that tonight's episode was a normal one so for them to have lucked out like this meant that their cheering came back bigger and louder than ever. Jon however had other plans in mind.
"Fun fact about Lyra...It's actually a small constellation out of 48 listed by the 2nd century astronomer...Ptolemy...and uh, and is one of the 88 constellations recognized by the International Astronomical Union...It's, it's almost as if we just looked at that up on Wikipedia right before the show" Jon said getting a quick laugh in return. "Aaah yeah so, she'll be on the show later tonight, but right now I want to talk about gun control. For the past several days now..."
From there on out the rest of the show went remarkably well. Like before no one but a select few knew that Jon was actually setting up an elaborate trap; to those watching at home, nothing seemed wrong.
Jon wasn't the only one who was working it onstage. A few feet behind him behind a thick backdrop Trixie had already began the process in getting the magical transferring hexagon operational. She did so in increments throughout the show in conjunction with each of Jon's segments.
The first part of the show was spent by Jon talking about gun control and how the issue needs to be discussed while at the same Trixie used her magic to activate the hexagon. She used her magic to turn it from a just drawing done by the interns into a working entity.
This spell, though not considered to be too particularly advanced, took Trixie most of the first segment of the show to activate. By the time Jon told the audience that he would be right back from the first commercial she had barely just finished getting it up and ready.
The second segment of the show involved Jon talking about the United States’ debt crisis and how the government still hadn't properly dealt with it. Again while this was happening, Trixie wasted no time in getting the ready with the second phase of her spell. She worked while Jon made fun of politicians she had never heard of by using terminologies and insults she didn't understand.
For Trixie, this next step was a lot easier than the last. All she had to do was infuse within the circles a spell that hadn't been charged with magic. Which was like moving a large briefcase without any content. Even though it was easier than expected, this was two spells being combines together, which meant that it still took Trixie a little while before she complete it.
To her surprise, she actually managed to conjure the trap sooner than expected, which meant that the circle was now activated and was infused with her desired spell. The time between her momentary completion and the third and final segment was spent by Trixie having a quick breather and doing her best to not tire out early. She was tired but she still had a little more ways to go.
Meanwhile back on stage Jon was getting ready for the most important and most anticipated portion of the show. The last break of the evening was almost over and he was still sitting in his seat getting ready to the introduction of his guest. Sometimes during breaks, he liked to stand up and stretch but in this case he was sure if he tried to stand up his legs would give out.
He tried not to turn around and look towards the backdrop because he knew that behind that wall, Trixie was hard at work. So instead, he turned to his other side at where that same backdrop ended at a wall and hoped to god that everything was set up properly.
He was understandably nervous since the only thing going through his head was that of his family waiting for him back home. Once or twice, a worst case scenario tried to invade his mind again, but he quickly pushed it aside. He needed to have a clear mind right now more than ever.
To do this he sat back in his seat and rubbed his head. He needed to calm himself down so he began to imagine Celestia's throne room where all of this started all those months ago. He thought about how it felt to have the cold ground beneath his feet. He remembered how different their world smelled and how the air tasted strangely different yet similar. He could perfectly see in his mind her magnificent stained glass windows and tasteful decorations.
Jon regretted that he was going to send such a foul creature within such beautiful walls, but if anyone could stop her, it was Princess Celestia. Thinking about Canterlot castle made Jon smile. It was after all the place where he first met Celestia, sparking a chain of events that led him to discover the wonderful world known as Equestria.
Since then, he'd experienced new things he thought weren’t possible and met new friends, one of whom was right behind him. It was a pleasant thought which did not go unnoticed. Backstage, Trixie was focusing on her breathing to keep herself calm when the circle began to glow in power. Trixie knew what this meant...it now had its destination.
Like a kid finding out they’re late for school she quickly jumped from her seat and ran up to the circle on the floor, staring at it for a few seconds to be sure it was indeed ready. At the time the circle was active with a teleportation spell properly infused, but without enough magic for it to fully function it was nothing more than a gun without ammo. Knowing this she tilted her head back and began to concentrate on circulating what magic she had left to the tip of her horn. She needed a massive amount of magic for the spell to actually activate so from here she ignored all sounds and just tried to stabilize as much of her power as she could.
Everything was now riding on Jon and Trixie to fulfill their ends of the plan. If Trixie was telling the truth, the spell to get rid of Chrysalis would be activated in no less than three minutes into the interview which was more than enough for Jon to handle the Changeling Queen.
Jon knew that, at this point, the spell underneath him now had its destination leaving any further input on his end unnecessary. He was still deep in thought but he had now moved on to thinking about the people he loved. Both back at home and here in the studio. He vowed that he would see them again no matter what. He vowed he would win.
The sound of the last commercial break ending shattered Jon's reflective state of mind. All the pieces were now in play. Jon was sitting at the helm of the stage, Trixie was ready backstage, and Jon's support was nearby. All that was left was for the last piece of the puzzle. Chrysalis herself.
The crowd cheered at the sight of the Daily Show logo appearing. It meant that now the main event was about to start. They cheered and yelled wildly while the camera zoomed in on Jon slapping his desk like they were bongos. He looked like he was trying to dance while at the same time making pretend he was playing an instrument. He didn't speak right away which made the crowd to slowly calm down.
"Hey everyone welcome back my guest tonight!" He said as he twirled his pen. "She is a Unicorn resident of Ponyville and a proclaimed researcher of humans. Please welcome to the show, Lyra Heartstrings."
Like he would for any other guest Jon got up from his seat to eventually greet his guest though in this instance he only did so to now draw suspicion. No sooner did he make his introduction did Chrysalis make her way onto the stage where she was immediately greeted by cheers and yelling. Jon applauded too, but deep down, he felt nothing but contempt.
Jon watched as Chrysalis disguised as Lyra slowly made her way to the desk. She looked exactly like Lyra in every way shape and form but Jon could tell who she really was. Jon hated everything about her at that moment. The way she walked, the way she smiled, even the way she waved at the audience, all of it just fueled Jon's desire to walk up to her and punch her right in the face.
She walked almost coquettishly in nature and she had a look on her face like she was really happy to be present. Normally this would indicate to Jon that he picked a good person to interview, but all he wanted was to get her out of his life as soon as possible.
Eventually she did make it to Jon's desk and, with an evil grin, offered her hoof for him to shake. It was almost too much for Jon to bare. All his anger for her was curled up inside him like a rattlesnake poised to attack, but for the sake of the plan, he swallowed his pride and shook her hoof.
The hand to hoof shake lasted longer than usual with each party staring down the other. Jon gave him an overly firm grip to show that he didn't like her. Chrysalis did a similar action by using her magic to very delicately put pressure on his neck as if to say: "If I wanted to, I could."
Without saying anything, Jon went back to his desk. He was about to sit down when his guest called out to him.
"Aren't you going to offer me a seat?" She said.
It was loud on the set but Jon heard her request quite clearly. He took a deep breath and clenched his fist so tight his nails digged into his skin. It took all the restraint he had to not turn around and attack her though he greatly wanted to.
"Of course." He said with smile which neatly masked his anger. He offered her a seat which she gladly took. The crowd was just about done with their cheering when Jon sat down and faced to his opponent.
"I can do this." Jon thought with his hands folded in front him like he was praying. "...I can do this."
He took one last deep breath and with it he remembered everything that was at stake. His family, his friends, the fate of both his world and Equestria’s.
He then exhaled, expelling the same breath and any sense of doubt along with it. He was ready.
"Hello Lyra and welcome to the show!" Jon said with a smile. "Thanks for joining us here tonight."
"I'm just glad I could make it." She said back with a smile that matched his own. "I've always wanted to visit the human world...I'm also a big fan of the show so I'm really happy I could attend."
"You're not the only one." He said. "The audience didn't-- we didn’t advertise that tonight's interview would be an Equestrian...so yeah, as you might've guessed, they're pretty happy too."
Jon was right but never before did he wish he hadn't been. Yes the audience was elated to see Chrysalis which of course meant that her plan to absorb their love was going as scheduled.
According to Trixie, the process by which a Changeling consumes someone's love is slow moving at first, but as time goes on it gets stronger and faster. From what he understood, a Changeling's body takes in love hesitantly at first in order to determine what kind of love it is, but like a glutton, the host will want more and more and the longer the exposure, the more they take.
At this point even though Chrysalis wasn't getting that much power right away she immediately started to feel better since they was getting a tiny amount of magic from so many locations. Jon could stand to stall for time but if he didn't do something to transfer that love somewhere else soon then by the end of the show she would be hundreds of times more powerful than she'd ever been.
"So Lyra...it's really good to see you again after all this time." He said. "What most people don't realize is that...before--prior to some of these...t-these Equestrian Interviews I actually go...and meet up with the pony I want to invite on the show. In some cases I meet some other pony in the process...and of course that's how we met...remember that day?"
For the audience and those watching at home this was an interesting tidbit followed by an innocent question, but in actuality it was Jon giving Chrysalis a pop quiz. If she wanted to look like Lyra, talk like Lyra, and indeed think like Lyra, then she would get questions that only Lyra would know. Jon was somewhat scared that his line of questioning might enrage her since this was basically him trying to get her to break character.
Rather than being annoyed with Jon's underhanded scheme she smiled at him and answered as if she knew that he was going to ask that.
"Oh well yeah sure I do! If I recall you were walking in the streets...aaand I tackled you!" She answered, accepting Jon's challenge. "I think I apologized for that but if I didn't...yeah my bad."
"You made me-- I almost choked to death because of you! Then you nearly broke my spine." Jon said, purposely leaving out the details.
"Hey now, you make it sound like I attacked you! If you'll recall you were choking on your food and I rescued you...also, folks at home don't believe him, I didn't break his back...what happened was I accidentally made him throw out his back...but I fixed that too." She said. The crowd laughed at Jon's misfortune while she gave the host a smile. Rather than Jon annoying Chrysalis about her lack of knowledge, the exact opposite happened. Her proficient knowledge of Lyra was getting on Jon's nerves. "Anyways again I am sorry that we got off on the wrong hoof...I was just really excited to finally meet you!"
"Why?" Jon asked. The way he said it so bluntly made the audience laugh, something which Chrysalis didn't like. It may have been his show but to her she was main attraction, not him.
"Well I'm just really interested in human mythology." She answered. "In fact I--"
"Mythology?" Jon interrupted. "...I'm right here!" Again the audience laughed at Jon's brand of humor forcing Chrysalis to wait for them to quiet down before speaking again. Before she could explain herself though Jon sprung in to take control of the interview once again.
"Now like I said before a lot of people watching are surprised to uh...uh to, to, see you here." Jon continued. "Since of course you weren't originally scheduled to come on and I had to call to get you on the show last minute...but what I'm surprised to see...or uh rather uh, not see...is your companion...the mare I saw with you when we first met Ms...uh what was her name again?"
Like before, Jon's questions were actually him covertly trying to get Chrysalis to fumble with her performance on live television and, like before, Chrysalis was well prepared.
"Oh you must be thinking of my girlfriend...Bon Bon." She answered having clearly done her homework. "Yes I do realize we're usually always spotted together and well…what I can I say? We very much love each other’s company. As for why she's not here...I asked if she wanted to come with me but she declined...she said she was too busy but really she's just camera shy. That’s why, when Celestia asked, I told her I’d be coming alone. "
Not only did she correctly answer Jon's question but she managed to accurately hold her own without faltering. At first, Jon thought his little stunt was risky, but he soon found that Chrysalis had somehow researched her part beforehand.
The reason for this was she actually had her Changeling subjects spy on Lyra for just this reason. She thought she would make the perfect patsy. At this rate, Jon wasn't getting anywhere and already a full minute had passed. If he wanted to get rid of her now was the time. No amount of preparation could prepare her for what was about to happen.
Even with Jon not liking to have to put his friends in harm’s way never did he hesitate to call on the help of those he's trusted most. The first friend he asked was of course Trixie who was still in the back trying to accumulate as much magic as possible. She was helpful but by no means the only person who agreed to assist Jon. In fact there was another, someone who at that very moment was waiting for his signal to enter.
"We can-- Maybe in the future we can maybe get her to come on the show time." Jon said as he scratched the back of his ear. "I mean it would be nice to talk to her about--"
"JON STEWART!"
Without warning the sound of someone yelling out Jon's name ripped through the set. Whoever said it, did so through a voice amplification device so it was impossible to pinpoint where exactly it came from but it was loud enough that everyone heard it. Numerous wandering eyes looked in all direction to see who it was; even Trixie who was still focusing on stabilizing her magic got distracted for a second.
"What!?" Jon said in overly dramatic fashion. "Who said that!?"
"It was me Jon!" The voice boomed. From behind him a panel opened from the side of the stage revealing a hidden door. It slid open and out from its dark enclosure a lone figure stepped out. Jon still had his back to the person so he technically couldn't see him but he knew who he was...and so did everyone watching the show.
Within a second of his arrival, everyone present in the audience identified the figure and, with faces like they'd just seen Jesus' second coming, stood up to cheer and shout. In preparation for this Selina, as well as the older staff members, covered their ears, leaving the newer interns to learn firsthand just how loud an audience can get.
Their shouting was so boisterous everyone working backstage and in the building's main office could hear them. Trixie tried to ignore them but she soon found it impossible. She couldn't see what was going on but even she knew who it was. There was only one person who was left in the dark.
Looking back on this, there were two things that Queen Chrysalis wished she had known that, at the time, she did not. The first being who exactly was this human that had arrived without warning. And two: why, upon his arrival, did the flow of love that she had previously been accumulating had suddenly stopped. Not slowed down, or momentary stopped...but had been completely cut off from circulation. The reason for this was because it was now being redirected to a new source.
Had she done more research, she would have known the human who had emerged from backstage was more than just some stranger complete with a dark black suit and perfectly parted hair. But was in fact one of Jon's oldest friends, and former correspondent...the one, the only, Stephen Colbert.