//------------------------------// // Chapter 17 - Making headway // Story: Headless, not Heartless // by Thadius0 //------------------------------// Canterlot. The center of Equine Dominance over the land. Seat of the two sisters, who moved the sun and moon. Home to more unicorns than anywhere else. Built on a frikin' mountain. And also, impossible to sneak into during the day. They'd learned from Chryssy, astonishingly, and upped security in and around the city. But when you have access to a psynergy that hides you when you're in the shadows and an emotivore for a sneaking partner, sneaking into a city at night is amazingly easy. Step one, apply Cloak. Step two, walk into the city. Step three, listen when your partner says a patrol is coming, because invisible does not mean inaudible. Step four, get onto castle grounds. Step five, get into the Solar Court when nobody is around. None of those were interesting at all, really. Not up until step six, the reveal. Celestia had just taken her throne, followed by the nobles taking their seats, and announced that court was open for the day. That was when Chryssy and I sprung our little plan for this, and she cast a spell to send the room into darkness. I was, somehow, still under the effects of Cloak. Which would up the spooky factor of the next bit by ten. Ponies once forgot me. Chained me up and cast me aside. For so long, I languished in the dark. I stepped a few times through the room, sending the echoes of metal moving on metal throughout the room. None of them could pinpoint me. Which was exactly what I wanted. And then my old friend the Lord of Chaos released me. And for some time now, I have been doing what I do best. Avenging the wronged. More steps, but this time I made sure to brush up against a noble, who screamed like a filly. It was delicious. I hear their cries on the wind. Their righteous fury fans the flames of my own. Their salty tears impact the earth and lead me to where I am needed. Quick steps this time, leading up to Celly's throne, that suddenly stopped and vanished. You sit here in your gilded seats and think yourselves above the law. That is where you are wrong. You see the rules and laws of society as bars to protect the innocent from monsters, and you think you can fill that role, and so step out beyond them. And now I stood in the middle of the court and flared my presence in my armor, drawing my sword at the same time. But when you step out, I STEP IN. I am the shadow, the darkness, the elemental wraith. I am Dullahan! You who have done no wrong have nothing to fear, whereas you who have wronged your fellows may take solace in only one fact. That I do no physical harm to ponies. The darkness lifted from the room, and Chrysalis stepped out from behind Celestia's throne and joined me in the middle of the court. Let the record show that Dullahan has brought forth the matter of Chrysalis, Changeling Queen, to ALL the royals of Equestria! Silence gripped the room for five seconds before the nobles screamed and started stampeding for the exit. I turned to Celestia and would have given her my biggest grin. Hey, that's YOUR schedule clear for a while! Can you help us now? And amazingly, she sighed and facehooved. ----- It hadn't taken long for Cadenza and Luna to show up. Apparently when I said that I was bringing Chrysalis to all the royals, Celestia agreed with my sentiment, and sent a letter to her niece, telling her to drop everything and teleport home. To be fair, I'm not sure if it was a boon or not that they had come. While Cadenza apparently was glad to get out of paperwork, she wasn't pleased to have to deal with the one who'd ruined and nearly stolen her wedding day. And husband. Meanwhile, attempting to interrupt the sleep cycle of the lunar mare was proving to be- "WHO DARES TO WAKE US UP BEFORE FIVE IN THE EVENING?!" A bad idea. A very bad idea. Christ, I felt that one, and she was across the castle from me. You'd think all this stone would insulate me somewhat, but nope! No mortal force may resist the Royal Canterlot Caps Lock! Eventually, the three royals were seated on one side of a very long table. Chrysalis was seated on the other. And I was seated technically between them, but I had deliberately moved myself a foot closer to Chryssy when talks had started. This unnerved the other three just a smidge. Which would have caused me to smile. So, let's get the big reveal out of the way. Chrysalis' hive is the warden of Mercury's Light. Cadenza looked at Chrysalis, then upwards, probably in thought, while nodding slowly. The sisters merely blinked at me a few times. "And that means what to us and them, Dullahan?" Well, the first thing it means is that in time, the changelings will probably become wielders of Mercury's might. It is half meant for curing physical ills and half meant for inventive Adepts to use water and ice against their opponents. Just think of how beloved one who can heal away ills would be. At this, Chrysalis smiled. I could almost hear the gears turning in her head, so I pointed myself at her. Y'know, if you put yours in positions where they naturally did things that other ponies loved, I'm preeeeetty sure you'd have found an invasion to be unnecessary. At this, she had the sense of mind to hang her head and sigh, while I turned to Cadenza. Those of Venus tend to find a target and hit it, hard. The earth's might is nothing to be sneezed at. While they have less aptitude for healing, they are the ONLY ones who can return unjustly taken life. At this, the jaws of everyone in the room dropped. Cadenza got her voice back first. "So the crystal ponies..." I filled in the blanks of her question and answered it. In time, Venus Adepts may be born in the empire amongst the populace there. And with training, LOTS of training, if someone died via means other than natural causes, then yes, they could return that life. As the sisters mulled it over, I reached into a pouch tied to my belt and pulled out a vial of water. A vial of water from the oasis. Of course, there is another reason we are here. Because the changelings are the wardens of Mercury's Light, they are the wardens of something else as well. Something they can definitely use to sue for co-existance. The trio eyed the vial in my hand, and the eldest spoke up. "What is in that vial, Dullahan?" Water from their new oasis. Also known as the Water of Hermes, that which, like they might one day be able to, can cure all physical ills. I walked over to Chrysalis and raised a hand and held it for a second, my posture all but screaming, 'may I?' She considered for a moment, and then nodded. I brought my hand down on her carapace hard enough for a sharp crack to echo through the chamber as a break formed, and poured the water from the vial onto the wound before the royals could interject. The wound hissed, steamed, and vanished before their very eyes, leaving their jaws, once again, wide open. You'll catch flies like that, I told them. They worked their jaws for a few moments, and this time, it was Moonbutt who spoke up. "If that water can do this, then imagine the applications in the kingdom, sister. We should-" I held up a hand then to stop her from continuing that line of thought for the time being. That is between you three and the changeling queen. I have brought her here and demonstrated what she has to offer you. Make her a deal she cannot refuse, for I can refuse all of yours. And with that, I stalked out. ----- I had barely arrived in town before Silver Cross ambushed me. "M'lord, should we not be goin' now? Sooner started, sooner finished, aye?" I sighed and made to massage my temples that I no longer had. Administrative duties, Silver. I despise them, but they must be done. He nodded and stood near the gate. "I'll wait for ye, then. Unless ye think it'll take longer than a day." I shook in the negative. It'll hopefully be fast today, we should be on our way by nightfall. I disliked doing the reams of paperwork, but they had to be done. I wanted the town to flourish without me, to be able to make its own decisions. Currently I was its pillar of strength, but I was slowly giving that role over. It had started with the establishment of normal businesses, like one would see in any other pony town. A general store, a hardware store. A lumberjack, a smithy. It rapidly progressed when we found the most adept amongst us could infuse gemstones with psynergies. Aboyami managed to make a Growth stone once a week that promoted good, healthy harvests in the gardens they lay in. And just the other day, Common Grounds had come to me with a proposal for electing mayors for the town. I was proud of them already. I held the measure up, then lowered it and looked at him. So you've finally realized that I'm just an overpowered spirit in a suit of armor, am thus not infallible, realize I have Things that I like to go Do, most notably my enthusiastic walks, and are asking my permission to form your own leadership slash government system. Common couldn't decide if he should shake or nod, but I decided for him by putting the measure back in front of him. Honestly, why did it take you this long? You don't need MY permission to do anything. While I could stop you, I don't want to. And this Meritocracy you're proposing sounds wonderful. You don't need my blessing at all. Go and be wonderful, Common. He blinked a few times before he realized I'd given my consent for him to do this, and then he processed the words more finely. He nodded a few times as he left the Sanctum, and I got off my behind to look at the few treasures I kept hidden in a hallow behind my makeshift throne. A card from the Lady, a soapstone from the Knight, and a clasp from the Twins. I sighed and ran a finger over all of them, feeling my connection to each of their masters. I sent the same thought across the three connections, hoping they would hear me. I'm sorry, but it's too dangerous now. I can't risk the world being open anymore, for a threat from Beyond is coming. Goodbye, my erstwhile allies. I do not think I shall be meeting you all again after all. As I left to go to the front gates of town and collect Silver, a song played through my head. If I touch a burning candle, I shall feel no pain... A memory flashed through my mind, of one of my first dances with the sisters, when they tried to oust me by destroying the armor. Pro tip: When Celestia looks like she's about to fire her laser, get out of the damn way! Damn thing's made of sunfire! Cut me with a knife, it's still the same... This time, the memory was one of Luna goring my hand during our last dance. True it didn't hurt, but it still felt like it should when I lost all feeling in my hand that suddenly. And my heart is aching...though it doesn't beat, it's breaking... Older memories, of my life from before, ran through my mind. My parents, my little sister. My friend. My world. Even if I'm dead, it seems I still have some tears to shed... And right then, I would have. Because in that moment, I realized what had changed so much about me from when I had been freed. Cadenza's power was love, it had come up once. And that shield around Canterlot at the end of the wedding and the one around the Crystal Empire were fueled by the damn stuff. Spending so much time around her had awoken my heart again. I thought it had died a while ago, but apparently not. It'd been reanimated, after a sense, and I was remembering all that I once loved. The problem was, I had lost it, and likely wasn't going to get it back. I would have wiped a tear away from my face then. Heh. Who says Venus isn't quite as good as healing physical ailments as Mercury is? Being around it had certainly restored that beating engine of mine. If only it could be healed all the way. Silver seemed to notice the change in demeanor as I neared. "Sir, are ye alright?" I nodded once and cleared my throat. Never better. C'mon, we got a volcano to get you to.