//------------------------------// // The Coming Storm Clouds // Story: How my Little Brother Became an Alicorn // by WiseFireCracker //------------------------------// She refused. Quite frankly, I hadn’t expected anything else from Twilight. It was rather obvious that it was an embarrassing spot for her to be put into, which really was just calling for me and my more dastardly instincts. Plus, teasing her was just unbelievably fun. There was something about the way she blushed that was just so… No, bad Ventus! No teasing your cute marefriend! Twilight, taking my amused silence as a signal to kick things off, levitated a scroll of paper from her desk. Under my curious gaze, she scribbled something on it with her quill, before turning back to me with eager eyes. “I-I guess we could start our ‘date’ now.” Her feathers fluttered. “I’ve made a schedule.” Of course you did, Twi. I chuckled mentally. “Since I believe the intended purpose of our meeting today was ‘find material to entertain Feather Dust’, it is the first item on today’s list.” Smiling, I followed her into the foals book section, letting her take the lead for this ‘date’. “Now then, where are the adventure novels? It’s one of the only way to get him to sit still, for a certain value of ‘still’ anyway.” Understanding, she made a quick comment about Spike and his comic books. Apparently, it was a big thing for him and many foals around town. Thus, her schedule made us stop in front of a cardboard cutouts of Daring Do and the Power Ponies, whoever those mares were. Here started our epic quest to find appropriate reading material for an overacting colt, and possibly make out in between two choices. I wish, I thought about this second part. Twilight was rather dutiful when it came to books. Every volume she rejected, she placed on the ground next to us, piling them one by one. Slowly but surely, as I pointed at books she immediately glanced at and rejected, her magic built a growing stronghold. A rather juvenile part of me deliberately sought out the military marches of trumpets and horns of Canterlot Castle. With the slightest of smirks, I imagined that this was the love nest we’d make for ourselves in some other world where there was not so much resting on our shoulders. Mighty walls of books made our fortress and nopony alive had the strength to take over our refuge. Not the boiling wrath of the fiery sun or the tranquil fury of the cold moon, nothing. We were completely, free to sit down, just to read some great stories to each other and make out in-between. Gently, I spread a wing over her back and inched her closer to me. It didn’t matter to me that the illusion covering me was broken at the moment. “We’re alone, Twilight.” “V-Ventus…” She gasped. “I just want to stay close to you…” Her resistance melted, the tension leaving all her muscles at once. Without a fuss, she leaned into my embrace. Her scent filled my nostrils, mixed with the fragrance of her shampoo coming off her mane. Strangely though, she sighed after a short moment, resigned, then looked up. “You want to know what the mystery about my ears is about, don’t you?” Well, if you offer… “That’s about accurate.” “No,” she deadpanned, almost making me groan in indignation. “But Twilight, a good coltfriend must know everything there is to know about his mare,” I said with a bemused grin. “It’s a cold hard scientific fact.” “Don’t you dare bring Science into this!” Her tone approached subzero. With a shrug, I rose a hoof in front of me, feeling no need to express my point further. Twilight, however, was thinking otherwise. “Plus, ‘an aura of mystery from you will keep your stallion attached’!” A yellow book appeared out of nowhere and was shoved in my face. A little harshly too. “It says so right in this very serious guide here!” I was about to reply, when my gaze fell onto an interesting line. Slightly pushing the page with my hoof, I managed to put the book at a more readable distance and gave the text a quick skim. Pretending not to see the look of nervosity that flashed on Twilight’s face, I chuckled and wrestled control of the floating object with my own telekinesis. She made a noise when I secured it, something not unlike the sound one would make caught redhoofed. “It really is a fascinating volume. Listen to this: ‘Stallions are your equals, treat them like living beings.’.” It was quite difficult not to grin smugly, while she flushed a deep purple. “It is good to know that you have taken these advices seriously. You have, right? I’m not going to suddenly become your ‘pet’ or something equally undignified, am I?” “Well, maybe that source is slightly dated, but still…” Twilight paused, averting her gaze sheepishly. “Oh, I see,” I said, nodding my head with mock serious. “I’m sorry, I’ll just go sit quietly next to my bowl of treats over there.” Like an obedient pet, I sat down in a corner, and looked back to her 'innocently'. “I’ll put on the muzzle later if you don’t mind.” “I’ll put it on you myself…” She whispered under her breath, deadpan in spite of her blush. Kinky, I kept that thought to myself. Clearly, that one would be going a bit too far. She was still guarded around me. Wisdom said to wait for that kind of joke. Before anything else could be said though, the doorbell rang. “I’m here to return that book on the Pre-Unification era you told me about,” some stallion said after twisting the knob and opening the door. “It was truly fascinating.” In a blink, I was by the other side of the library, trotting around the history books. On the other side of the room, a brown earth pony with an hourglass cutie mark was just making his way inside the library. Briefly, our gazes met, and he gave me a brief nod of acknowledgment. Looks like he remembered me from that visit at the Town Hall then… “Oh, nice dress,” Time Turner exclaimed, impressed. “Is that for a formal occasion?” “Y-yes, I’m testing to see if it’s comfortable to move with.” “It’s always a good idea to test before making the jump.” He nodded in approval. “So, Princess Sparkle, I believe I have managed to get through this essay as I promised you I would. Do you have any suggestion as to what I could be reading next?” “The Art of Dating for Dummies,” I whispered for her sake, snorting when she jumped. Twilight wasted no time to send an inflammatory glare to the offending volume, who was clearly the source of all her problems at this very instant. To be fair, it wasn’t that off of an assertion. Still, not to be undone in her day-to-day job, Twilight glanced around herself frantically. “H-huh… this one! It’s great!” “The Explosive Power of Stars?” He muttered under his breath. His confusion was clearly illustrating that Twilight was sending me a message. With images. I shivered. “Well, if you say so…” Time Turner said, still a little unsure. “I guess I’ll trust your skills as a librarian.” “Oh, I’m sure you’ll appreciate this book. It’s always fascinating to understand what happens when you taunt a star. It turns out it’s not pretty.” Now, that brave citizen was simply lost. “Hum… ‘taunt a star’, Princess?” “As in deliberately messing with its internal chemistry and nuclear reactions,” she deadpanned, probably fighting the urge to glare in my general direction. “Turns out it’s not a good idea.” “Well, I’m sure this book will tell me more about that then.” Time Turner decided not to fight the flow anymore, and simply accepted her suggestion. The message now transmitted, Twilight’s snark died down as she led him to the front of the library to register his choice. After the standard procedure was completed, he was free to go. “Hello Mr. Circle,” he greeted me pleasantly in passing, to which I replied with a soft ‘have a nice day’. A minute later, the sound of the door closing rippled in me. Before it had even reached Twilight, I was back on my hooves, standing next to her. “So then, what were we saying?” I said gently, placing my right wing over her back. For some obscure reason, it seemed to me as if being affectionate, serious and attentive was the way to go. Twilight’s reaction was entirely opposite to anything I could have predicted. Glancing up to me, her eyebrows lowered a little, a ghost of a smile on her lips, she tried to appear worriless. “Something about not keeping secrets from each other.” For a moment, I hesitated. A hint of something different had flashed in her gaze. T-the way she had said it made me wonder, at the very least, why speaking about secrets made her react this way. That moment of hesitation had been key, as she freed herself from under my wing, stepping forward quickly. Confused, I tried to ask her what was wrong, but she had already turned around, a look of pain on her face. “Ventus, I-” A rumble rose from within the depths of the library, almost like a mute growl lacking ferocity, until it reverberated through the whole tree. Quite a few things happened next. A shout of annoyance toward Calx died on my lips, pushed at the back of my mind by the sudden sinister wince the shelves gave. Eyes wide, we looked at them all, observing in the hopes we wouldn’t see. Just as it looked like none would fall, an entire row of book started to fall, right above Twilight. I shouted, which made her jump in surprise, and probably startled her out of her focus. Her instinct then told her to leap away, which, unfortunately, was toward me. And since I was taller than the illusion shown, the result was unpleasant. Unprepared as I was, the impact against my chest was enough to empty it of its air. In a tangle of limbs, we fell, only for another wave of pain spread into my left shoulder and the side of my head. Blinking, face twisted into a grimace, I tried to see past the sudden disorientation, only to freeze in place. Soft fur and fabric brushed against my sides as my marefriend stood up from on top of me, at a speed I would not associate with normalcy. “Twilight, are y-?” I started to ask, turning my head in her direction. And I was treated to a breathtaking sight in return. Twilight was standing over me, a few shallow exhalations coming out of her mouth rapidly, her mane falling alongside her face as if to keep only a window of purple and pink that allowed only gazes toward her beauty and nothing else. My face exploded with heat, as my heart and brain both acted up in a frenzy. Words flew out of my lips before I could stop to think about it. “You’re beautiful,” I said, and meant it entirely. Her breath hitched up, a blush spreading on her face and her neck disappearing underneath the edges of her dress. The muscles of her legs tensed up on each side of me, but only for a split second, and the feeling of unease in my stomach disappeared. Gently, she lowered herself, half-closing her eyes already. We united our lips in another kiss. A kiss unlike the preceding ones, softer, more tender. We relished in a soft embrace, legs enlacing each other softly. It was different. Less forceful, gentler. Less passionate, shy and slightly testing. In many ways, it did not compare to the burning kisses we had shared before, but this one soothed me, appeased the knots of fears and anger hiding beneath the surface. This time, it felt like love. My own lies were already forgotten. My focus was only on the mare I loved, on what I loved about her. It was at that moment that the mischievous part of me acted up, the thought had simply flashed in my mind and remained too powerful to ignore. I simply couldn’t resist. My hoof previously curved against her neck moved up, subtly enough that, lost in our own kiss, she didn’t notice until it was all too late. And I softly rubbed the spot just behind her ear. The reaction was instantaneous. A tremor seemed to shake her, shaking her shoulders briefly, before a sound rose from deep within her chest. Without the capacity to stop herself, she breathed strongly into our kiss, a few times in staccato. Then, she broke away, placing a hoof in front of her mouth to prevent the incriminating sound to echo. But I had already found out what that spot triggered in her. Giggles. A tickle spot? I thought incredulously. You hid a tickle spot from me? Now that’s being genre savvy, Twi. And even more savvy was her decision not to let me capitalize on that discovery. With a crackling noise, she disappeared in a burst of pink light, rematerialized somewhere to the left of that pile of fallen books. Her mouth was twisted in a scowl, one that did not, however, hid her blush perfectly. “I’m sorry, Twilight. I couldn’t resist. My thirst for knowledge was simply overwhelming.” Her deadpan look proved she was definitely not amused by my choice of words. Darn, and here I thought that might make her smile. “You said you would drop it,” she complained, her tone a mixture of disappointment and childish embarrassment. “Yes, forgive me.” I brushed a hoof against the side of her face. “But, by the Elders, that was just adorable.” “What? Adorable?” Her eyes lit up with the realization, but then surprisingly dimmed. “Oh no…” “Wait, why would you be disappointed?” I asked, stepping closer to her, ready to give her a hug if needed. However, it didn’t seem as if the change of plans were making her particularly sad. As she frowned, her horn started to glow. A second later, she teleported, leaving me blinking in utter confusion – and disappointment – at the empty spot she had left behind. What the…? Luckily, another burst of pink magic followed, making me jump back. Twilight, now standing where she had been a few seconds ago, was levitating a scroll toward me. On it, there were two graphs, each of them a color that was labeled helpfully. The first one read ‘smoking’ and the second ‘cuddly’. Amused, I sent her a look expressing exactly how impressed I was. It did not faze her. “It’s an old attraction charter I made with Cadence regarding seduction. Attributes are listed as either ‘sexy’ or ‘cute’. And now I have to work off that trait off the charter to return to my previous level of ‘sexy’.” “Can’t you be both?” I grinned, giving her an approving look. “I find you sexy in part because of your cutesy sides.” “No, no, Science says otherwise.” She shook her head, an unusually strong conviction tainting her voice. “There is no arguing with Science.” “Hu-uh,” I mumbled, not in the least convinced. Still, to humor her – and partially to mess with her composure again –, I spread the scroll on a nearby table, examining it. “And where am I on that list?” Unexpectedly, Twilight turned her head up, rising her nose in the air with a haughty smile on her face. “Well, I’m afraid to say you do not list high on the cuteness side of the chart. It’s all sexiness.” Instantly, pride filled my veins, and the corners of my mouth threatened to turn upward. “Huh. So if I start pouting right here, does that mean I’ll look less sexy in your mind?” “Science has spoken,” Twilight spoke with finality. “Well, that’s not fair…” I whispered with fake sadness, forcing my ears down and my lips to quiver. “No! Stop pouting!” Her horn lit up, and a tingling sensation grabbed my lips. “I’ll have to compile new data!” Bubbles of pure hilarity popped in my brain as I fought to keep pouting against the mystical aura of the Princess of Magic. Never before had I thought I would need to test the strength of my lips versus her magic, but there was apparently a first time for everything. The battle was obviously lost from the very beginning though. The whole situation was making me laugh. A pout was simply too difficult to manage in that position, thus I relented, and Twilight followed suit. “Well, if you insist,” I said, letting a lazy grin show on my freed mouth, “I suppose I can settle for pure sexiness.” “Hum…” Twilight examined me from horn to hooves, her own smile slowly turning daring. Circling around me, she swayed her hips a little forcefully, which, while not the sexiest thing ever, was still rather pleasant on the eye. “I think I can live with that as well…” Bathing in that moment of shared complicity, we closed the distance between each other. At that time, I was ready to give her another kiss, but the same glint as before flashed in Twilight’s gaze again. “You were going to say something…” I whispered, frowning. Her eyes darted to her left and right. “Oh, I… hum…” “TWILIGHT!” Calx suddenly bolted in-between us, with all the subtlety of a manticore. “We need your help!” “Y-yes!” She replied loudly, startled. Though, even in her surprise, I caught a short sigh of relief from her as well… “What is it?” “Spike and I were talking about the Power Ponies, and we were sorta talking about superpowers and we were like wondering if you could teleport into something!” “W-why would you want to know that?!” She flinched back, a shiver of disgust going down her spine, all of which completely failed to register on his radar. “’Cause it would be really cool!” “…No, as a matter of fact, it is impossible to teleport into something else,” she stated, slipping into a more teacher-like behavior, with a mild lecturing tone and some very formal body language. She was only missing the blackboard and the diagrams. “The burst of magic preceding the transportation is in fact a spherical push, moving anything mobile out of the way. As for immobile things, well, that’s where Neighton’s laws on motion come in. The burst would push the teleporting pony away from the wall before the transportation was completed. Or fail if the explosion cannot occur.” Calx looked at her blankly. Twilight’s expression fell. Taking pity on them both, I just sighed loudly. “It wouldn’t work. Sorry, lil’ bro.” “Awww…” He deflated, ears drooping and wings slowly dropping to the ground. “But we already made up a super cool hero that would run around like a real juggernaut, then teleport through those big walls in the villain’s lair so he could bring them all down in one go!” Eh, sounds fun, I thought, wondering what an actual comic with that guy would look like. Twilight, of course, didn’t just let it go. “Actually, teleportation kills the initial momentum through the first burst of magic and-” She stopped when she noticed him pouting, his pupils widening and watering. “I-it’s because of the…” Her resolve was wavering. She moved her gaze away from him, sending me a look of pure distress, to which I only had a shrug as an answer. “The anatheman theorem of fixed dimensional position and-” “What’s that supposed to mean?” This time, she got the hint. “No, it’s not possible!” Pouting, Calx scoffed, earning himself a glare from me. Rolling his eyes, he turned around, making his way back to his friend with the bad news. In the following instants, Twilight’s gaze followed his progression, something akin to incredulity showing on her face. “He can give me an intelligent debate on the benefits of earth pony’s magic versus unicorn magic on plants’ growth, but what I just said confused him?” “He has a rather selective memory,” I said quietly, a few examples of my statement coming to mind. “Hit him where he’s interested or you won’t get much out of him.” “I’ve started to notice. He is acting similarly in our meetings.” The mention of what she had been doing for us gave me a pause. I can’t thank you enough, Twilight. With the way things are, we need something to ground us, to help make things more normal. I just wish it didn’t always fall on your shoulders. Stepping forward, I enlaced her with my wings, uncaring at that moment of anypony that might see us. “Thank you, Twilight. Y-you’re extraordinary. I’m a little sorry we keep barging in on your day like this.” “A-a little?” She asked with mock indignation, even if her voice was clearly shaking. “Well, I’m not sorry I get the chance to spend time with you,” I replied, running a hoof on the side of her face. Instantly, her cheeks colored a darker purple. “O-oh…” She stuttered. “I know things are stressful for you, Twilight,” I continued, now feeling more serious. “And I don’t want to make them worse. You mentioned an important research project this morning. Can we help with that?” “No, d-don’t worry. It’s fine.” She waved it off. “I had this analysis I was planning to do, but I just swapped the schedule around a bit. The six hours long process is working as we speak.” “Hmmmm…” I leaned in closer, stroking her wings. “So we have at least six hours together? I like this plan.” “W-with some interruptions in-between!” She quickly added. “Y-you know… to check up on things.” Getting the hint, I stepped back, and her heart started beating a little slower in response. “Would it be inappropriate to ask for more… about this project then?” My phrasing luckily flew over her head. “Ventus… I went into the Everfree Forest yesterday and I brought back a sample of the magic lingering around Zecora’s hut. That’s the project I’ve been talking about.” “I knew you could do it, Twilight.” A tender smile found its way on my lips, as I leaned forward and gently nuzzled her. “I’m proud of you.” “Thanks,” she whispered, her voice shaking with relief. For a moment, Twilight relished in that simple compliment, soaking it up. Slowly, I felt my expression slip as I noticed the heavier signs of stress plaguing her. My mouth was already opened, when she went on. “I know this will be difficult for you as well, but I wanted to ask you…” She let her words trail off for a few instants, trying but failing to articulate the last few words of her thought. Seeing this, I gently ran a circle in her back with a hoof, silently encouraging to face her fear head on, to let go. After a deep breath, she spoke again. “Could you please accompany my friends and I when we’ll look for her in the Everfree Forest?” I blinked. Briefly, the thought struck me that it would not be quite the same, not with the nexus of a chaotic spell all over me. Then again, maybe not. I was no expert on spellcasting beyond its instinctive uses and its more obvious limitations. Or, in the case of a spell that could warp Reality, the lack thereof. “I will.” Locking my gaze with hers, I nodded gravely, in response to which she let out a sigh of relief. “What is out there… might have been summoned by my brother’s or even my own arrival in Equestria. It is only right that I help you with this, isn't it?” It was one of the conditions for going back to the Astral Planes, right? “I will tell you as soon as I finish cracking down the magical components.” Her expression hardened, conviction shaking her voice. Sparks of magic flickered in the air around her horn as she stomped once. “Then, we’ll organize an attack force good enough to take on what is out there and save our friend.” Silence fell between us. This had taken a turn for the grim and serious rather quickly. The right words to say escaped me at the moment. Luckily, I didn’t need to find them anyway. “Sam! Twilight!” Precisely when you're needed to, little brother. Good job. “You have got to come with us! We need two more players for our game of Conquest!” Glancing at my marefriend with a small smile, I motioned toward the direction the boys had installed their game, a gesture she returned with an amused chuckle. “Sure, show us the way, lil’ brother.” -- A rare grunt of frustration escaped the white mare’s lips as she focused on the problem at hooves. Careful considerations floated in her mind as she searched for the best decision to take at the moment. As they often did, her choices would impact more than just a few of her subjects should she be even the slightest bit off about it. Sometimes, the weight of her kingdom felt heavy on her shoulders. Yet, it was a burden she would not wish on another. Her own worries felt like such little things in comparison to the happiness of her little ponies. Time was hardly wasted when one had eternity in front of themselves. Rather her than a subject of hers with a single life to live. Breathing deeply, she returned to her paperwork, though not for long as the result of her previous orders became obvious. The opening of her door widened, one knob glistening with a smooth dark blue aura, while a similarly colored alicorn stepped inside Celestia’s office. “You asked for me, Sister?” were the younger princess first words. “Yes, if you would just let me complete this…” Celestia’s lips tightened into a crisped line, her quill hovering next to a document spread next to an opened scroll. This latter item managed to get the Princess of the Night’s attention, as it held a rather distinctive seal, even broken, that she knew was associated solely with her sister’s students. Opening her mouth to push this issue further, she paused, noticing the second document’s form as well. Briefly, her eyes widened in surprise, before narrowing in suspicion. “Why are you authorizing a military deployment toward the bearers’ hometown?” Sighing, Celestia stopped in her writing, giving her younger sister a meaningful look. “I have received another update from my faithful student regarding the possible situation in the Everfree Forest, Luna. Her analysis isn’t completed and will not be, according to her, until tomorrow. However, preliminary results suggest that this is not a simple missing pony case.” Standing up, she walked up to her window, setting her gaze upon her capital below and, in the distance, the city her prized pupil and her rambunctious cousins inhabited. A pang of guilt struck her at the thought of placing such responsibilities on Twilight Sparkle’s shoulders once more. “Her instincts spoke to her in the Everfree Forest. She felt incredibly uneasy inside the hut of that zebra shaman, as if she could feel the traces of the one responsible.” Celestia’s expression became a mask of concern. “You know how methodical my student can be, Luna. I fear that if she is listening to her intuition, then it is because the problem is quite severe.” It took little time for the answer to flash in Luna’s mind. “Ah, yes, then the verdict is all but certain. This is the result of an imbalance of Harmony.” Without a word, the eldest sister nodded. “Are our forces ready to face such monstrosity?” Luna wondered, non-maliciously to her credit, while remembering the state of their standing armies. Peace vanquished the strongest warriors where not even the most gruesome wars could. In her own opinion, the modern ponies were too cuddled by her sister. Few would ever survive in the conditions their ancestors did. But then again, the sacrifices of their previous brethren were precisely so that their descendants could live decent happy lives. The thought had struck her just as Celestia had opened her mouth for a firm reassurance. Luna spoke first, guessing the content of her sister’s reply. “No need, Tia. I understand the value of your work over a millennia of rule. I am simply concerned with the fate of the soldiers deployed.” “Would you like to take part in this expedition then?” For a moment, Luna’s jaw hung in the air in shock, her eyes wide. “T-Tia?” “You know as well as I do why your participation had to restrained before. It was more than a test for my student alone.” She seemed to accept the answer graciously. “Then, I shall participate in this upcoming battle.” “As an emergency reinforcement, Luna,” Celestia added. “Excessive use of our powers might render our efforts meaningless in the long run.” The dark princess’ eyebrows lowered in annoyance, but she nodded nonetheless. “Thank you, Luna. I understand that the inaction is difficult.” Her hoof went to her sister’s shoulder, the contact of which seemed to reassured her a little. “Now, if I may ask, there was another issue on which I believe your knowledge necessary.” “Oh?” Luna leaned forward, curious. “Yes. This morning, three different countries have sent accusations of brainwashing our way, claiming that their children woke up feeling inspired to become friends with ponies.” “I see what you mean.” She nodded, looking not in the least surprised. “This is the work of our young cousin, The Whisperer.” Fighting a sudden wave of annoyance rising within her, Celestia disciplined herself to remain calm. “Is that a title you have given him?” “You know as well as I do, Tia, that titles are earned.” The night princess huffed, a hint of satisfaction showing on her features. “I felt that this was an exploit worthy of one.” Her eyebrows raised in incredulity, Celestia managed to carry both annoyance and curiosity as she swept the military papers aside. “Pray tell, my dear sister, how he came to do what is both worthy of a title and an international incident?” “He sang.” Luna felt tempted to stop at that point, if only to enjoy a few seconds longer the expression on her sister’s face. “He sang for the foals of Equestria and those beyond in an attempt to fend off their fears and anxieties. I noticed his presence at the bedside of many, in the middle of the night. His voice was rather soothing, if I may say so myself. Be sure to compliment him on it.” For a few seconds, the thousand year old Alicorn of the Sun, the Queen of Day, the Burning One remained speechless with pride. “He was singing a lullaby for these children, encouraging them to make friends and count on them for hardships.” Luna chuckled softly. “I believe, however, that the lyrics were pony-centric.” “So he did…” she whispered in amazement. “At the very least, you can claim innocence and lack of malice.” “I am certain that it will convince the ambassadors of our good will, Luna,” she deadpanned, unable to put any conviction in her annoyance anymore. With a little laugh, the very mature immortal Princess of the Night left her big sister to deal with a stupid problem, all by herself. If possible, she would find a good seat to witness the whole resolution, without getting involved, of course. Surprisingly, Celestia herself felt only joy at the sight of her younger sister being so lively about Ventus Vinco and Calx Iugum. It makes you quite happy, Luna, to see that our cousin is not the same as his predecessor. Perhaps his shadow will finally fade away from your memories now... Glancing at the clock, then at the door behind which Luna had disappeared, the remaining princess steeled her resolve. Ah, time to explain the finer details of this incident to the ambassadors now, Celestia thought, forcing her own fond smile to fade away for a more appropriate neutral expression. -- “Ah! With this, my tower of magic destroys your ramparts.” Calx grinned, his legs thrown in the air in triumph. “Sounds like somepony’s gonna lose next turn.” Sharing his amusement, Twilight lifted a notepad with a rather simple calculation on it, based on the available resources each player had at their disposition. “I’m afraid this statement is quite accurate. With your walls breached, it’s only a matter of time before you are overwhelmed. The predictions show a 90% chance of annihilation.” Quickly memorizing the dangerous information Twilight had not realized she had just given me, I let out a sinister chuckle. At that moment, a light of uncertainty appeared in their gazes. Time to step up my game then. “Not yet, I still have one card left to play.” A weak breeze stroked my cards, running alongside them all, until it circled over a particular one. Picking it up under the curious gaze of all three other players of our little game, I turned myself toward the key component to my strategy. “Spike, would you be interested in getting a hold of my third set of goldmines?” “Huh…” Green emerald eyes briefly disappeared behind purple eyelids, as Spike did not quite comprehend what was happening. “Yes, I propose an alliance to defend ourselves against the evils of the Earth Congregation of my brother and the Might of Magic faction your sister commands. In exchange, you will get a well-defended mine that would have doubtless fallen in the control of one of your enemies.” The clanking sound of a stool falling over deafened Spike’s first question. As one, we turned, with me being the only one unsurprised. Red in the face, Calx was standing up, nostrils flaring. “What?!” “There is more than one way to attain victory, little brother.” My chin rested up against my hooves, my eyes obscured by my falling mane. As much as possible, I altered my voice into a stern statement of pure power. “One of them is tactics.” “How could you betray me like that?” Twilight placed a hoof over her heart mockingly, this reaction unknowingly tilting the balance for Spike’s decision. After what he had revealed to my little brother, he had obviously been working on unwinding some of his frustration at his lack of friends. And for that, he needed to let go of inhibitions. The path I envisioned was him putting on the ham, aka, the return of the dastardly mustache. It would be fun. Not to mention, it wouldn’t hurt to be appreciated by the younger sibling of my marefriend. Considering who was the older one, it might be a good thing to gather as many allies as possible. Spike’s gaze met my own, a spark lighting in his eyes, and we nodded at each other respectfully. “All’s fair in love and war.” I grinned, hoofing over the deed to one of my mines to my new partner in crime. “And it so happens that both are happening at the same time here.” My evil laughter rang over their protests of ‘unfairness’ and ‘cheating’, where I was soon joined in by my draconic companion in evil conquest, all for the sake of winning evilly. For dramatic effect, he found it appropriate to don on his mustache and his cape again. Perfect. We were obviously going to win now. -- A black marker rested onto the top of his desk. In a nearby wastebasket, two similar items had been thrown away, their ink all used up. A hand had settled inches away, but its owner paid not the slightest bit of attention to the object that had been vitally important minutes earlier. Its purpose had been accomplished. Now, Eric was wrapping up some other aspects of his trip. His room bathed in an almost uninterrupted silence. Every so often, the young man would whisper a few words, always as a question, or use his computer’s mouse to progress in his current goal. In his mind, at least one thing had to be done perfectly, if only as a failsafe… He had browsed through a few websites, despairing at first that he had set himself up for an impossible goal, but it had quickly became clear that there wouldn’t be a need for his plan b. He could do this himself. Finally, his cursor stopped over the confirmation box. For a second, he hesitated, his finger frozen against his mouse. A combination of number was his to recall just behind the box, though he did not intent the purchased content for himself. It’d be too late for him to see them in person by then. His hopes were more that he could get to witness their effect once this whole adventure was over. Over? He thought, with a little snort of derision. It hasn’t even begun for me, and I’m already thinking about the endgame. Yes, the biggest, most difficult part was yet to come. He had made his decision already, but last second fears were erupting in his mind all the same. His conscience’s verdict on the whole thing was somewhere between disgust and relief. How dare he not jump headfirst into what might be the biggest change in his life? Lowering his gaze, he chuckled silently. And here he’d thought so often how nice it would be to experience the same thing those fanfic characters did. To live in a whole new world, get magical powers and become a hero. Childish dreams. Not evil, not bad, just… naïve. Trying to save a friend, that was a sufficiently noble goal, right? His breath hitching, Eric closed his eyes. Trying to save my friend? From who? For who? Without any other ceremony, he lowered his finger and heard a simple clicking noise. Slowly, he waited, keeping calm, until another alert rang to his ears. His eyelids lifted, allowing the image of his screen to return, and he saw that he had completed his last self-imposed task before the jump. “All done…” He had signed off his human life. “Almost,” Eric corrected himself, picking up a certain piece of paper. With a sense of growing excitement, his eyes followed the curves and symbols drawn on it, exactly the same as those below his feet. He made no move to leave his room, no other final words than the ones already spoken. With a little luck, they wouldn’t be final after all. -- Once again, the wind carried my mortal form into the basement of the library. The game was over, the pieces were stored away and the victorious little dragon was done bragging about his awesome victory. The losing alicorn colt, on the other hoof, wasn’t done glaring at me. Eh, he’d live. Hooves suddenly solid against the ground, I staggered to get my balance back. On the instant of my reemergence, I had been assaulted by a small plethora of sounds, previously muffled by the complete isolation of air in that room. Beeping machines, quills scribbling against scrolls, dripping droplets of colored liquids, mute whistling of steam in closed spaces, calm, tempered crackling of a flame. Just the noise I expected from a standard laboratory. A few were absents, if my time in Canterlot could be used for the comparison, but otherwise, the whole place had been put together very professionally. In the middle of the room, my favorite lavender alicorn, princess and marefriend glanced between two glass beakers halfway full. So concentrated on her work she was that my reappearance went unnoticed. Well, I can use that, I grinned. Dampening all sounds surrounding me, I made my way to her, stopping just in her blind spot. Seconds turned into minutes, and she still hadn’t noticed, prompting me to take a slightly drastic measure. Casually, I closed my left wing over her body and gently nudged her toward me. Beyond an initial yelp, she did not fight me. Her muscles instantly relaxed, and her form melted against mine. A gentle heat radiated from the contact, and I closed my eyes, just… happy. Nuzzling her, I whispered a few words. “We’re on our own. I just finished putting the boys to bed.” “How did that go?” She asked, a little distracted. “They surprisingly agreed to it without a fuss, which means that they are just going to pretend to be asleep while they think we’re looking.” And indeed, they are, I thought toward the quiet voices from upstairs. “And it doesn’t bother you?” “Tomorrow’s not a school day.” I gave a non-committing shrug. “I try to give him some freedom when it’s consequence free. He knows to listen when I ask him to.” Usually, I completed my thought silently. “I… have to go back to this, Ventus…” Twilight grimaced, hesitant, until I nodded and pointed to the distillation system about to whistle. Instantly, the scientist in her surged back, full force. Three sets of scrolls started floating around her, inanimate quills acting in concerts at her words. From the corner of the room, a flurry of feathers shot in a straight line over to her, dropping a full inkwell next to her and picking the empty one in its next flying circle. To my surprise, once its task had been accomplished, the owl did not return to its corner, instead setting its course toward me. I recognized the look on its face. “Hello Owlowiscious,” I greeted him – it was a ‘him’, right? – as he perched himself on my stretched out hoof. My words caught the attention of my marefriend and she paused to look at us in fascination “He seems to like you,” she said, blinking at the nocturnal bird. “That’s… well, not odd, because he was never really hostile toward strangers, but you two never met before…” “Well, Twilight, I’d be surprised if I ever met a bird that really dislikes me.” I lifted a wing to brush the side of the owl’s head, a gesture that made him coo appreciatively. Smiling for a short moment, I then corrected my affirmation. “Except maybe Ziz…” “Ziz…?” She repeated, searching her memory for a mention of that name. “Oh, just an old acquaintance of mine…” I shrugged quickly, not willing to spend more time recalling that particular jerk. “It does not think that highly of me.” “So… birds are your friends?” “Maybe. I daresay it’s not stronger than Fluttershy’s calming influence.” That sounds about right, my own memories showed nothing to contradict that idea. “I just suppose my nature means they’re mostly willing to give me a chance.” “That’s actually an interesting theory, Ventus.” Twilight turned, already aiming her horn at a blank sheet of paper and a quill. “We should test it at our earliest convenience!” Seeing this possible development escalating way out of proportions, my mood took a spike for the worse. “Not to put a damper on your scientific enthusiasm, but…” I coughed. “Shouldn’t we focus on the present experiment?” It froze her in her tracks. “Y-yes, of course,” she agreed, lowering her gaze to the ground. “So? What does it look like?” Rapidly, Twilight read her notes silently once more, before she turned to me with a serious look. “I’ll have an answer by tomorrow night.” -- The night in Canterlot had many times been more peaceful than it currently was. Albeit the difference was almost unnoticeable from the lower districts of the Equestrian capital, the upper streets and the general area of the castle was disturbed by some intense activity. In the barracks and the training fields, ponies moved akin to the ants of a colony. Orders rang from every side of the courtyard, echoing well into the darkened sky above. Groups of armored ponies moved through the dusty paths in accordance with each words. With the appearances of Chaos, the military force slowly assembled itself, with not so much as a hint of confusion from the soldiers. A long line of ponies marched in a straight line across the terrain, and disappeared into the city. Within minutes they would move onto a train specifically waiting to take them to Ponyville. Toward the docks, ponies awaited in numerous smaller groups, ready to embark for their flight through the Equestrian sky. Amongst them, two soldiers finished packing their weaponry near the wall of the courtyard. Neither of them seemed particularly pleased. “Can you believe who we were assigned to?” The first one, a green pegasus stallion, said with a groan. His partner, a yellow earth pony, scoffed, shoving the final piece of his armor into his bag roughly. “Hay, why was he even allowed here? It makes me sick in the stomach just thinking that he has a leading position in the guard.” “Him? An officer? His position came with the birth certificate!” “Gentlecolts.” A voice came from behind them, and both guards suddenly felt like they were royally screwed, so to speak. “As tradition would have it, I was required to serve for five years in the military like every other mortal member of the Royal Family. Therefore, I am still your direct superior.” Judging by the pale look on their faces, they were acutely aware of that fact. “Now, act like actual soldiers and get on my ship!” He scowled, pointing at the wooden bridge leading up to his prized airship. Effectively cowed, and they barely believed it themselves, by the unicorn prince, the two soldiers wasted no time in obeying his order. It was only after he had confirmed that both stallions had disappeared behind the railing that Blueblood allowed himself to lose his stern posture and sighed. He wasn’t quite sure if that had been the right way for a commanding officer to act, but their words had pissed him off. Quite frankly, he wasn’t sure himself if he had made the right call by taking part in this operation. Once the news had reached the docks that the Royal Guard would use their ships, somehow, the idea had blazed into his mind that he needed to do this. No, that wasn’t quite right. It had been when, in a hushed whisper, a batpony had excitedly announced that their princess was taking part in the operation. And it was right of him to do this, wasn’t it? Royals needed to put their subjects before them! It was what his auntie would have preached. He told her as much when she looked at him in shock. That had stung a little, something she apologized for, of course, but still… “Baby steps…” The damnable alicorn’s voice kept ringing to his ears! Biting off a groan, Blueblood span on his hooves, trotting slowly toward his squad. Midway, he stopped, feeling a pair of eyes on his form. Seeing nopony fitting his intuition, he resumed his way, climbing up the same bridge he had sent some member of his squad on. Over them all, on a balcony nearby, the tall figure of a blue alicorn stood alone, as imposing as the moon above. Her armor reflected nothing, rather taking in any light until it seemed made of pure darkness. From her pedestal, none but her most loyal batponies could see the sheathed weapon she carried. Princess Luna looked, with a mixture of trepidation and dread, at the troops gathered for the defense of their kingdom. -- A pair of small blue hooves. Beating against the wooden floor. One, two. One, two. One, two. One, two. Darkness. Complete and absolute darkness that no light could penetrate. One, two. One, two. Nothing but the drums of war. It was a beat, one that resonated within my being. It was the one thing I could feel, outside the dark, the empty, the desolated. I had lost every other sense. I fell, into the sky. A blast of color surrounded me, exploded from me, spreading so suddenly it absorbed all darkness. And spit it back. A little sphere of black, thrown out, rejected by the colors, flew. It passed over me, underneath, but I turned, disoriented, and understood not the reality of this. When I tried to speak up, nothing came out, no sound could be projected outside my form, not after this sphere, shuddering with the evil within. A ghastly equine flashed on its surface, for the shortest moment, but its image remained burnt in my memories. I didn’t have the time to react. Already, I had been transported elsewhere. They yelled. They yelled over the cries of mercy of the soldiers. They yelled as one single beast that arose from the burning battlefield. Blood thirst was their god, their every breath was a prayer to the idea of war. Their gospel was a chant of death sung by the mouths of thousand. And I was one lone stallion hiding from the jaws that threatened to swallow me whole. One of my hoof sunk into the ground, as if it had suddenly became liquid. My heart accelerating with horror, I spread my wings clumsily. Panic rose in my chest, making my movement more frantic. But my terror was all in vain, and only about to worsen. A blinding light flashed through the entire landscape and the impression of a searing pain struck into my eyes, in the split moment before my eyelids had blocked the aggression. Somehow, my actions shielded me not from a sight proper to freeze me into place. Hovering above the armies and the hellish plains was a great fire, of blue light and heat; strange, like a scorching gaze, restless in its quest for a single thing. It twisted, growing in size almost grotesquely. It seemed a giant, a second sun of the harshest flame, an eye seeking one particular sight. From the bottom of my heart, I believed that thing alien, incomprehensible in its entirety for me. I knew of it. I knew that I had prior knowledge of it. The eye opened, splitting in its center, the darkest side of it, previously a pupil, becoming a chiasm, a gaping maw that hungered for a single thing. From the bottom of my heart, I understood that I was the one it hungered for. With that realization, my thoughts degenerated into a frenzied mess. Everything became a blur; the warring ponies disappeared, their screams faded away into whispers, and their forms were nothing more than dots in the sky. I was alone with my executioner. Suddenly, my hooves left the ground, all four of them at once. Numbness spread in the muscles of my left wing, near the base, where the pull from the blast had been the greatest. I never hit the ground, it simply didn’t happen, but I was now lying on my sides. My mind clung at words of denial, grasping desperately, for a nothing I didn’t understand. Movement became impossible, an invisible weight cluing me to the ground, with only the ringing noise of my own deafness for sole proof that I was still alive. I was still alive, but it started to dawn on me that I had forgotten somepony far more important. Tom! Where was he?! “Tom!” My scream echoed into the vast wasteland, deafened by the monstrous roar of the searching flames behind me. I did not turn back. Scrapping at the ground, I tried to feel the connection to the Earth, to him, that I always carried within me, but I felt nothing in echo. Dirt stuck to my hooves, hard rock resisted against my angry stomps, but there was NOTHING! “Tom!” I yelled, springing upward, eyes wide open and wings extended. For a brief moment, I was disoriented at the lack of blood, at the smell of burning flesh, at the screams, gone so abruptly. Then, what my senses were telling me registered. My rump rested upon a soft surface as were half my hooves, the weight on my lower half was light, the thing I was staring at was nothing more than a bookshelf. It hit me. A dream. I was in bed. Relief flooding my veins, all tension in my muscles faded away and I fell backward onto the mattress. At least, this particular problem was already dealt with. I only needed to sink my head back into my fluffy pillow and forget about it. It sounded like a great plan, but now that I wasn’t on high alert anymore, I noticed a few other details. Like the velvet bed sheet, the wider frame or even the bedside table on the other side of the room. This wasn’t my bed. This was Twilight’s. The place next to me was empty, the covers wrinkled, half turned over in the spot she had occupied. Not even my reaction had sufficed in disturbing the masses of covers. Her scent lingered, as hints of lavender and ink. Instinctively, I ran a hoof against her pillow, remembering her face, her expression under the epic blush adorning her cheeks. She’d been so flustered, so close to a complete freak out, even if we did nothing more than share a bed and cuddle in our sleep. Twilight wasn’t ready for more yet. …And parts of me weren’t either. I-it would be… a final thing, perhaps, to accept our lives here this much. In doing so, I would cross a line of sort. I would rather not think about it at the moment. There were other preoccupations at the front of my mind. Such as the possible thing that had likely taken residence in the Everfree Forest. More disturbingly was the immediate lack of noise coming off those chaotic woods. For quite a distance, nothing could be heard in that direction. Without Twilight’s experiment, it would be difficult to find out more. Speaking of which, she was downstairs, her breathe coming off steady but silent. Her voice, however, was much more audible. “Now, if I just combine this sample I extracted with the first reactive, I’ll be able to-” Her rambles devolved into rather technical terms after that, none I had a true understanding of. On the principle of the matter, I probably could figure out some things given context, but I would still rather leave her to it. Every time she performed some experiments, Twilight’s voice jumped, subtly shook with excitement. She wasn’t the only one. Calx and Spike were both discussing last night’s game with only the investment foals could put into that stuff. The mare passing by the library spoke to herself about the delicious meal she would cook her sweet little filly today. The stallion flying a little beyond that was happily flirting with his coworker on the way to their first client, an attention she wasn’t unresponsive to. Through Ponyville and beyond, I heard many ponies, their days either starting or well underway, going about their things with enthusiasm. A certain sense of hope floated in the air, and I allowed myself to feel it as well. With any luck, today wouldn’t be too bad.