//------------------------------// // Catharsis // Story: Scorpan the Betrayer // by Captain Hurricane //------------------------------// “Please forgive me, Twilight.” Tears streamed down Scorpan’s face, sobbing softly as the wave of emotion he had repressed for generations crashed over him. His paws covered his eyes in a futile attempt to hide his shame from his alicorn guest. Rising from her chair, Twilight wasted no time before embracing the chimera, and her legs wrapped around his musclebound chest. Silence permeated the room; it felt like an eternity before either of them spoke. It was Twilight who spoke first, slowly loosening her grip around the king as she did so. “There’s no need to apologize for your brother’s actions. How could you have known he could let the anger and ambition in his heart become twisted by this artifact you spoke of?” Scorpan slowly shook his head. His sobbing had stopped, but he continued to dab at his eyes with a dingy cloth napkin from the table. He cleared his throat before letting out a powerful sigh. “It’s not easy to confront the memories I’ve worked so very hard to hide. The minotaurs here thrive on stoicism. Weakness, however perceived, is an unacceptable quality in their leaders. You caught me at a rare moment indeed, Twilight. It’s been hundreds of years since any other being has…. seen me cry. It’s….what’s the word when something sad feels good?” “Cathartic?” Twilight’s eyebrow raised slightly, and slowly. “That’s exactly it. It’s cathartic.” Silence blanketed the room again. The faint sounds of the rushing river below sounded louder than before, slightly more insidious and unnatural. Twilight’s voice cut through the quiet cacophony, clear and sweet as a Hearth’s Warming Eve bell. “We don’t have to continue.” “It’s…It’s fine. I’m reminded of all that I’ve gained…all that I’ve lost. But history is rarely the truth, and historians do a better job at making things happier and glossing over the atrocities of the past.” He glanced down at the box in his lap, its lid removed and set off to the side. Twilight caught a glimpse of the decorated lid, and marveled at the rich mahogany with silver inlay. Mentally calculating the cost of such craftsmanship, Twilight came to a figure roughly equal to half of Pinkie Pie’s yearly salary from Sugarcube Corner; she silently wondered what exactly Scorpan had in this box that was so interesting. It looked so small in Scorpan’s massive paws; whatever was in there must have held a high value, sentimental or otherwise. *** “Not long after Tirek started using that infernal purple bag, he sent me to gather information on Equestria, convinced that the princesses were planning on invading. In short, I was a spy, sent to learn as many details about the inhabitants of Equestria as possible, and find their plans for the assault on Minova. I couldn’t risk detection; the princesses Celestia and Luna had met me at my father’s funeral, and knew my presence could only serve as the tidings of war. So I hid. "Under the cover of darkness, I snuck into the castle grounds, listening near windows for the comings and goings of nobles visiting from afar. The only time I exposed myself was during the comforting blanket of midnight, when I prayed to a statue of the god Discord I discovered in the castle’s gardens. It amused me to no end that the royal alicorn sisters paid homage to the patron god of Minova. “One thing I can say about unicorn nobility…they don’t know when to keep their mouths closed. I learned so much in little time due to the gift of gab bestowed upon Duke Blueblood the Third, a cousin or some such to the princesses. Oh, did I learn of their plans, troop movements, even the exact time when both sisters shared a room. It was delicious information, knowledge that would serve my brother and our kingdom well. "But it wasn’t enough. I wanted something substantial…something tangible…something that I could bring back to my brother that would make him proud of my hard work, my dedication to Minova. I waited weeks for my godsend, the saving grace, a glean of knowledge greater than everything I learned in half a dozen moons. "The piece de resistance came when a unicorn soothsayer and his protégé visited the castle, asking for permission to study a tree of pure magic in the Everfree Forest. At the time I imagined that Discord must have heard my prayers, and found me worthy of his beneficence. It's kind of funny to think that, even now, I was praying to the real, honest to goodness Discord. I thought he'd be a little taller." Scorpan cleared his throat, glancing around furtively. Twilight chuckled a little at Discord's expense. She was sure Fluttershy wouldn't find it quite as amusing as she did. "Yes...well...AHEM. At first, I found it near impossible to believe what I overheard. Imagine…magic growing on trees. But the Everfree, where I called home for months, was full of surprises....and magical trees were not one of them. "I patiently waited for the soothsayer and his companion to leave the Sister’s Castle, silently skulking outside an open window while listening all the while to their conversation. I learned their names, and their destination, but in time, I would learn so much more about them, and the pegasus who accompanied them as a "security" escort. "The two unicorns were Starswirl the Bearded and Clover the Clever. You may have heard of them.” *** Twilight’s eyes grew wide at Scorpan’s casual mention of two of Equestria’s most famous unicorns. From the flippant manner in which he referenced the historical figures, he must have known more about the both of them than what the princesses disclosed. On the inside, Twilight was jumping with glee. “Play it cool, Twilight Sparkle,” the adult voice inside of her remarked. She suddenly felt grateful for the training Zecora put her through during her brief exile from Ponyville, courtesy of one humble and apologetic Trixie. “Clover the Clever and Starswirl are important historical figures.” She let herself smile slightly, a small concession to the gleeful filly bouncing around in her head shouting yesyesyesyesyesyesyesyesyes. “I find it fascinating that you were personally acquainted with them…it’s like l’m living Equestrian history vicariously through you.” An unexpected pallor of gloom and sadness descended upon Scorpan’s face, a floodgate of tears held back by a razor thin emotional dam. “I’ve had minotaurs faint after I shook their hands and shared stories of the exploits of their grandsire’s grandsire in battle. I imagine one who has basked in the presence of Celestia, Luna, and Discord wouldn’t be all that impressed by a mere mortal such as I. In the grand scheme of things, I guess I'm really not all that important.” Suddenly realizing her faux pas, Twilight shook her hooves defensively, knocking over a small bottle of ink as she did so. “I’m sorry! I’m really sorry! I am excited, really, I mean, you’ve met Starswirl, and your story is coming, you know, straight from the horse’s mouth. I….I....” A mischievous glint sparkled in Scorpan’s eye while he leaned forward, as though ready to whisper some profound truth to a captive audience. Unable to contain himself any longer, peals of laughter erupted from Scorpan. He doubled over, one paw holding on to the box on his lap while the other clutched his chest as it rose up and down with every hearty guffaw. “Your face…your face….priceless!” The laughter continued on, though it took Twilight a few hair-splitting seconds to realize what just happened. The chimera king regained his composure long enough to say the one word she was all too familiar with, the hallmark of someone who has spent entirely too much time around a certain alabaster alicorn. “Gotcha.”