//------------------------------// // Gathering Storm // Story: Diamond's Dusk // by The Dragon Warlock //------------------------------// The sound of crickets chirping in the park and ponies chatting echoed throughout the streets of Canterlot. The air was filled with excitement as the majestic city’s streets were filled to the brim with ponies enjoying an outdoor dinner at one of its many restaurants; ponies walking through the park, and a couple of social gatherings. Amidst the commotion though, three gray-hooded ponies trotted away from the jubilant crowds and towards the castle, the various sounds gradually fading away until it was nothing but a faint buzzing sound. The three ponies made their way down the streets, passing by various buildings until they came across a tall, white-stoned wall that went on in both directions for miles. The group looked around to make sure nopony was around before going right. They kept trotting down the street until they came across a black marble statue of Starswirl the Bearded, whom was looking up with a triumphant expression with his horn squirting out water into a nearby pool of around the statue. One of the ponies looked around and asked in a stallion’s Trottingham accent; “Are you quite sure this is where he wants us to meet?” “Unless you either misread the letter, or there’s another Starswirl statue around here, I think we’ve got the right one,”  a mare said in a condescendingly sarcastic Canterlot accent. “I’m going to pretend I didn’t hear that. I’m more concerned with what his excellency could want from us. It’s strange how he doesn’t want us to meet under normal circumstances.” The mare nodded. “I have to agree with you there. Maybe he wants to talk about the Grand Galloping Gala.” “That makes no sense at all,”  argued the Trottingham pony. “We’ve already gotten our invitations, and we already talked about it last week. What more could he want?” “Well maybe–” “Cut the chatter you two,” barked another stallion in a gravelly southern tone. “Let’s try not to draw too much attention to ourselves now.” “Well, three ponies dressed in robes doesn’t exactly seem inconspicuous now, does it?”  asked the Trottingham pony, sarcastically. “His highness told us to come here, making sure nopony saw us,”  said the mare. “Nopony was paying attention to us even when we walked through the crowd. That, and nopony gave us a second look when we made our way here.” The other pony was about to argue, but a tan hoof was placed over his mouth. “Quiet!”  ordered the southern pony. “Can’t y’all hear what’s coming?” Everypony stopped bickering and listened closely. The sound of hooves clopping on the stone street echoed, making the group a bit nervous. “Any ideas?”  asked the mare. “Hold on,”  warned the southern stallion. “Let’s see who it is first.” As the hoofsteps got closer, the group turned to the direction of where it was coming from. One of the street lamps showed a pony silhouetted against the darkness, but none of the others could make out who they were. One of the hooded ponies stepped back, shaking a bit. Everypony remained motionless until, out of the shadows, another pony in a gray robe appeared. The pony removed his hood, slowly, to reveal Prince Blueblood. The group let out a sigh of relief. The mare spoke up “Well, you certainly know how to intimidate a mare, your highness.” The prince smiled and said; “My apologies to all of you. I got a little caught up with... something else, I was attending to.” “It’s quite alright, your excellency,”  said the Trottingham pony. Prince Blueblood quickly looked around the dark streets, asking; “You made sure nopony followed you?” The group nodded and the southern stallion said, “Nopony even batted an eye at us, even with this ridiculous getup. With how we were dressed, I’m surprised nopony looked twice at us. Then again, many of the citizens here have their noses too high in the air and are more concerned about money and frivolity than to pay attention to their surroundings.” “Not all of them are like that,”  said the mare, coldly. “I think that oblivious attitude is one of the reasons Canterlot nearly fell to the Changelings. Those soldiers on duty at the time lacked enough discipline and awareness to their surroundings.” “That’s enough, both of you!”  ordered Prince Blueblood. “Arguing isn’t going to help us.” “Forgive us, your highness,”  said the Trottingham pony. “We’re also a little confused as to what’s going on. Why did we need to go through all this trouble to meet you?” Blueblood scowled and looked around cautiously. “Not here,”  he warned. “What I’ll tell is that this information will only be known to the five of us.” “Five?”  the mare asked. She looked around as well. “Aside from you, I only see four of us. Who’s this fifth pony?” “He’s currently on assignment,”  said the prince. “He’ll be joining us soon enough, at least I hope so. For now though, we better get to my conference room. The night may be young, but time is something we have little of.” The hooded ponies nodded and followed Prince Blueblood back down the street. Prince Blueblood, along with the three hooded ponies, trotted down the dimly lit hallways of the castle. The large, white marble halls were entirely deserted. The only company—aside from themselves—was the moon shining its light through the large windows, lighting the hallway. Every once in a while, the group stopped when they heard hoofsteps approaching, but it only turned out to be one of Blueblood’s guards, who were wearing royal blue armor, and gave the prince a salute before trotting off again. Soon enough though, they all reached a large set of red double doors, with two guards carrying a spear standing on each side. The guards gave a salute as Blueblood approached them. He returned the salute and said, “I’m not to be disturbed for the next hour. If anypony is looking for me, then tell them I’m busy with other duties. Should Aunt Luna, for some reason, come looking for me, notify me right away and I’ll go see her. I don’t want her or anyone else barging in on what I’m doing in there.” “Yes, your highness,”  said both guards. Blueblood smirked as his guards opened the doors and trotted in. The others followed him, but the spears quickly blocked the doorway. The three ponies backed away, slowly. The prince, hearing the clanging of the spears together, turned to his guards and said, “They’re with me.”  The guards nodded and raised their spears back up. “Come, timing is key tonight,”  ordered Blueblood. The three ponies nodded and entered, the doors slamming shut after they entered. The room itself was small and circular, brightly lit by a row of torches hanging on a set of grayish marble columns. In the middle of the room was a large, round cherry wood table, with four elegant cherry wood chairs with white cushions surrounding it. In the middle of the chairs was a fifth seat, but it was far more elegant, had a large silvery cushion seat, and made out of silver thread. It even had Prince Blueblood’s Compass Rose cutie mark imprinted on the inside back, making it look like a throne. The three ponies took their chairs, leaving the one on the right of Blueblood’s chair empty. Blueblood removed his cloak and tossed it aside before going to sit at his throne. After adjusting himself, he looked around at his colleagues, still wearing their disguises. “You may remove your hoods now,”  he ordered. “In here, we are away from the prying eyes of the public.” The three ponies complied and removed their hoods, revealing their faces. The Earth stallion on the far left of Blueblood had a dark brown coat, green eyes, gray handlebar mustache, and short hair, with a part straight down the middle. The pony right to the prince’s left was a unicorn mare with a golden yellow coat, blue eyes, and a slightly darker yellow mane that was tied into a tight bun. Finally, the stallion on the far right had a dark brown coat, a black mane that had a military buzzcut, yellow eyes, and a small scar on his left cheek. His robe flexed out, showing he had pegasus wings and was stretching them. Prince Blueblood smiled and looked at all three of them from left to right. “Bit Bags, Golden Rule, Heavy Duty, I bid you welcome to my humble abode,”  he said. Golden Rule bowed her head and smiled. “Always a pleasure, your highness.” The prince waved his hoof. “Please, call me Blueblood. No need for formalities amongst friends, right, your honor?”  He teased. Golden Rule laughed. “Oh, please. I get called that enough around the courts, I don’t need you to start calling me that now.” “Excuse me,”  a southern voice drawled. Everypony turned their attention towards Heavy Duty, who was unimpressed with what he saw. “No offense, Blueblood, but didn’t ya’ say something about time being short? If I wanted to make small talk, I’d chat with the Sarge in the barracks. Now what’s this all about?” Blueblood flushed a little in embarrassment, but hid it from his friends. He cleared his throat and said, “You’re right, Heavy Duty. I must forgive you all that I didn’t call you all here to have a chat.” “So what is the point of this then?”  wondered Golden. Blueblood let out a sigh and looked around the room, seeing the curious expressions of those around him. “I know this may seem pointless, but I need from all of you a vow that you won’t say anything about this.” The group looked at one another, each raising an eyebrow, then Bit Bags said, “You know you can trust us, my Lord. My family has never been one to turn away royalty, especially when they need assistance.” “Agreed,”  said Golden Rule. “I can never thank you enough for your assistance in forwarding my career.” “I may be getting up there in age, but you recognized my heroism in the military, and I thank you for that,”  said Heavy Duty. The Prince smiled softly and said, “Well, you all have my thanks. I sometimes forget that even with everything going wrong for me, I can count on all of you. Now, about our little discussion.” “What’s it about?”  inquired Golden. “It’s about Rarity,”  said Blueblood. Everypony let out an irritated groan and shook their heads. “Her, again?”  demanded Heavy. “You called us up here just so you could complain to us about how much you hate her?” Blueblood seethed, taken aback by the statement. “This is different though.” “You said that last time,”  moaned Golden. “Can’t you just get over her now? It’s been three years now and we’ve heard enough.” “You’re not listening!”  the prince barked. The sound of a chair pushing away caught Blueblood’s attention, and saw Bit was getting up. “If this is what you called us for, your highness, then I want no part of it. Good night to you.” Blueblood looked around and saw Golden and Heavy were following suit and heading for the door. In a desperate rage, he slammed his hoof on the table and boomed out, “HOLD IT!” The fury of Blueblood’s voice made everypony stop in their tracks and turn around, hesitantly, to see an infuriated expression on his face. “Sit back down!”  he barked. The group quickly obeyed the Prince and ran back to their chairs, each shaking in intimidation. Blueblood took a deep breath and let out a long sigh. He looked around the room, noticing the concerned, and rather frightful, looks of his colleagues. “I must apologize for my outburst,”  he said. “I know I should’ve handled that better, but this is important. I know I’ve talked to you about. . . ‘her’ a lot, but this is far different this time around.” The three ponies looked at each other with puzzled looks. Heavy broke the silence and said, “How is it different?” “It seems to involve Ponyville and my aunts,”  said Blueblood. Once more, everypony looked at each other with confused expressions. “What are you talking about?”  inquired Golden. “This does sound a bit strange, but surely nothing out of the ordinary. She is a very close acquaintance of Princess Celestia.” “Well this is certainly nothing to brush off,”  warned Blueblood. “It seems like something has happened to Rarity, something that both my aunts don’t want getting out.” “Surely, you jest,”  said Bit Bags, sounding a bit shocked. “What could possibly cause both princesses to act this way?” “That’s what I’m trying to figure out,”  said the prince. “Before I met you all at the statue, I was observing my aunts from a safe distance. Normally, Aunt Celestia would retire to her chambers after lowering the sun, but I saw her take off to a balcony near the throne room and fly off. Where she went, I have no clue.” The sound of muttering started to fill the room as the three ponies whispered amongst each other. “Now just stop right there.” The whispering stopped as everypony turned to Heavy, who still had a stoic look on his face. “Blueblood, what does it matter what the princesses do?”  he wondered. “So Princess Celestia didn’t go to her chambers. What if she was needed to do something else?” “It is strange because she would’ve said something to Aunt Luna and me,”  argued Blueblood. “As I said, I saw Celestia leave the castle and fly off. From what I could see, even in the darkness, it looked like she was headed for the Everfree Forest. You can’t tell me that doesn’t warrant concern.” “That castle is under renovations and you know it,”  Heavy shot back. “She could’ve been overseeing some of the construction or inspecting the castle itself for any mishaps.” “He does have a point,”  said Golden. “This doesn’t strike anything suspicious.” Blueblood could feel the confidence in him dying out as the others turned on him. “But . . . but . . . what about Rarity? My aunts were talking about her! They didn’t want me to know about her!” “Maybe Rarity’s birthday is coming up and the princesses are allowing her to celebrate it in the castle,”  said Bit. “Remember, Twilight also had her birthday in the castle as well.” “That, and they probably thought that you’d ruin it because of the bad history between you two,”  said Heavy. The prince’s heart sank further. “I . . . but . . .”  he muttered. “You’re probably over thinking things, again, your highness,”  said Golden. “Whatever you heard was probably nothing more than some surprise the princesses have in store for her. It could be for a birthday party like Bit said.” “Now hold on here!”  ordered Blueblood. “I think not,”  said Heavy. He got up from his chair again. “I think we’ve heard enough crazy theories from you. Now if you’ll excuse me, I need to get back to Outpost Solar Flare and prepare my men for the hunt tomorrow.” “And I need to meet with my business partners,”  said Bit Bags. “You don’t become the head of a bank by blabbering about some unicorn constantly.” “And I got cases to deal with in the morning,”  stated Golden Rule. “Though most, if not all, will be over in mere minutes when I ‘talk’ to the prosecutor and police to see things the way I see them,”  she smirked deviously to herself. Both Golden and Bit got up and began following Heavy to the door. “Please wait!”  cried out Blueblood. “I’m still waiting for him to return! He must have something to say to all of you!” The group ignored him and continued trotting over to the door. The prince tried to find some counterargument, but words failed him. He sat there, on his throne, as the three ponies were about to reach the door. Golden reached her hoof out to grab the knob. Blueblood looked down in defeat as everything fell apart around him. “Stop right there!”  a muffled voice barked. “You can’t go in there!” Everypony stopped in their tracks and looked at the door. Blueblood’s ears twitched as he heard the voice. He raised his head and leaned forward a bit. “I need to get in there!”  a stern voice said. “I got information important to his highness!” The prince’s eyes shot wide open. “Is. . . is that who I think it is?”  he whispered. “Prince Blueblood has given strict orders to not allow anypony into this room,”  said another voice in a commanding tone. “Whatever business you need to address him with, you’ll have to wait until he’s done with his meeting.” “Meeting? That’s what I’m here for,”  argued the pony. “He sent me away for a mission and I need to speak to him.” “Come back later and then you can talk to him,”  ordered the commanding voice. “But I have to speak to him!” “This is your final warning. If you don’t leave now, we’ll be forced to take you down.” “You can’t do this!”   The sound of spears clanging and grunting could be heard from the inside. Golden gasped and stepped back a little, along with Bit Bags. Heavy Duty, however, was undeterred, but he approached the door a bit more cautiously. Blueblood, having heard enough, quickly got out of his throne and trotted towards the door, trying to hide the smirk on his face. It’s about time you showed up, he said to himself. The prince opened the door, revealing three ponies in a pile, two of them being Blueblood’s own guards. They were holding down a gray unicorn with green eyes and a combed back black mane. He was also carrying a black saddlebag, but it was being crushed. The three ponies stopped struggling as they felt the cold gaze of the prince upon them. They looked at him, feeling a bit intimidated. Finally, one of the guards spoke up. “Forgive us for disturbing you, your highness,”  he said. “We were trying to explain to this stallion that you weren’t to be disturbed.” Quick Note grunted and said, “I told you already, I’m here to see Prince Blueblood.” The other guard pushed Quick back down to the floor. “Stop it!”  he demanded. “You violated the law. Now you’re going to–” “I think you should stop, guard,”  threatened Blueblood. “Unless you and your friend here want to be sent ‘elsewhere’ in Equestria.” The guards looked at each other, confused. “But . . . but we were following your orders,”  argued one of the ponies. “You told us not to allow anypony in or disturb you.” “Yet you two disturbed me with your actions,”  stated Blueblood. “Not only that, but you assaulted my personal assistant.” “But sir. . .” “That’s enough out of you, soldier. Release Quick Note at once, and maybe I’ll be a little more lenient on your punishment.” The two guards quickly got off of Quick and helped him back to his hooves. They looked at Blueblood, each giving a forced smile. He narrowed his eyes and ushered Quick to enter, which he did. He then looked at the guards. “I’ll deal with you two later,”  he deadpanned. “Now, keep a low profile. I don’t know want Luna to come down and ask questions. Understand?” “Yes, your highness,”  said the two guards, sounding a bit guilty. Blueblood slammed the door on the guards, with one of them yelping about their nose being hurt. He shook his head in frustration and turned around. He gazed at the four ponies in the room, who were all looking confused and a bit intimidated. In the case of Quick Note, he took off the saddlebag and rubbed his head from the beating he got. The prince forced a smile and said, “My apologies to all of you. I don’t appreciate guards who can’t follow the simplest of orders. Wouldn’t you agree, Heavy?” The grizzled stallion let out a grunt and said, “Yeah . . . I got to agree.”  He looked over at Quick Note, who seemed a bit scared by the stallion’s gaze. “What was your deal with those guards?” “My. . . deal?”  he asked, with a blank expression. “I too, would like to know what had you so riled up,”  stated Blueblood. “I think you said something about important information for me about your assignment?” “Assignment?”  wondered Golden. “Yes,”  confirmed Blueblood. “I sent him elsewhere to gather info. Now what have you brought me?” Quick looked around, seeing the anticipated looks of everypony around him. He nodded and said, “It’s about Rarity.” “Her again?”  asked Bit Bags, groaning. “Don’t tell me you’re getting obsessed with Rarity too, Quick.” The unicorn shook his head. “I assure you, I am not,”  he said. “I’m afraid it’s far worse than his highness, or any of us, could imagine.” “Which is what?”  wondered Blueblood. “Out with it! Now!” Quick looked a little unsure and stared down at the floor. “I’m not sure how to say it though,”  he said, a bit scared. “I doubt any of you would even believe what I have to say.” Blueblood opened his mouth to yell, but he bit his tongue and held his words back. He let out a sigh and said, with a forced smile, “Quick. . . don’t worry about that. I’m sure whatever information you got will be helpful to m. . . um, us, I mean.” Quick Note looked away, but after a few seconds, nodded. “It’s . . . it’s . . .”  he trailed off. “It’s what?”  asked Blueblood, sounding annoyed. “She’s possessed by the spirit of Nightmare Moon. . .”  he said. The room fell deathly silent for what seemed to be an eternity. Everypony looked at themselves, with expressions ranging from shock, to confusion. Golden Rule’s knees were shaking and looked like she was about to faint. Bit Bags stood there, paralyzed and shocked. Blueblood had a mixture of anger and shock on his face. Nopony knew what to say, nor how to react to the sudden news. The tension in the room was so thick, the sound of the castle settling made Bit jump in fear. “. . . Heh . . .”  a voice chuckled. The sudden noise broke everypony out of their paralyzed states. They looked over to see Heavy Duty shaking his head. “Ha! Ha!”  he guaffed. “That’s a good joke if I ever heard one. Nightmare Moon returning and taking over Rarity. How long did it take you to come up with that joke, Blueblood?” Quick felt embarrassed. “It’s the truth!”  he yelled, sounding irritated. “Nightmare Moon has returned, taken over Rarity’s body, and all of Ponyville was throwing a celebration for her! I wouldn’t make this kind of stuff up!” “Look, Quick, I mean no offense, but that’s extremely far fetched,”  argued Heavy. “Even with all the crazy things that happen across Equestria, this is unbelievable.” “But I’m telling the truth!”  Quick shot back. “I . . . gotta agree with Heavy here,”  said Golden, sounding a bit nervous. “Even if what you said was true, how could Nightmare Moon return? From what I understand, the Elements of Harmony destroyed all traces of that wicked spirit forever.” The gray unicorn stepped back. “I . . .” “Another thing. Why didn’t the bearers of the Elements inform Princess Celestia of this?”  pondered Golden. “How could she stay hidden from plain sight? Why hasn’t she tried to attack and take over the castle? Also, where is this ‘eternal night’ she wanted to bring? I’m pretty sure that a few hours ago, the sun was out and that Princess Celestia was still around.” Quick Note looked down and rubbed his hoof around the ground. “It’s true though,”  he whispered. “Enough!”  ordered Blueblood. “Golden, while I know you have plenty of questions, I don’t think Quick could gather that kind of intel so quickly. He’s an advisor, not a fully trained spy.” Golden crossed her hooves and asked, in an annoyed tone, “Do you at least have any evidence to show this?” Quick bit his lip and looked away. “. . . No . . .”  he muttered. “Then what good is this argument?”  demanded Heavy. “This is sounding more and more like a prank.” “But it’s true!”  yelled Quick. “Right, and I’m the Queen of the Changelings,”  mocked Golden. “Give me a break already.” Quick looked over at Blueblood and pleaded in a desperate tone, “Your highness, you have to believe me.” Blueblood rubbed his chin and looked deep in thought. “Sir?”  wondered Quick. The prince nodded. “I won’t be so quick to dismiss your claims,”  he said. “Why don’t you tell us what you saw?” The gray unicorn beamed. “I’ll be happy to,”  he said proudly. Heavy shook his head and said, “Well, I think this joke has gone on long enough. It was funny the first time around, but now adding in a story to drag it out really takes the fun out of it. This was all fun while it lasted. If there’s nothing else, I think I’ll be on my way then.” “Agreed,”  said Golden. “I think my time has been wasted long enough.” Bit Bags trotted over the anguished looking Quick and put his hoof on his head. “Dreadfully sorry, but they do have a point,”  he stated. “You had us going for a while, but without proof, this sounds like a wild goose chase.” Bit turned his attention to the door out of the room and began trotting to it. He only made a few steps before he suddenly felt something pulling him back. He turned his head to see Quick Note staring at him, with a determined expression on his face. “I’ll show you all then!”  he proclaimed. “I need to show all of you the truth!” The suggestion caused Blueblood to raise his head, albeit looking puzzled. “Show us? How? You have no photographic evidence.” Quick straightened himself up. “We need to go to Ponyville,”  he stated. “I can teleport us to the town and show you all the truth.” Heavy frowned and said, “That is absolutely–” “Ridiculous, I know,”  interrupted Quick. “I know this sounds farfetched, but this isn’t. If you give me one chance, I promise you’ll see the truth. I know what I saw and I want to show it to you all. All I ask is that you trust me.” Everypony looked at each other with uncertain expressions on them. They then looked at Quick, who maintained the determined expression on him, but saw him gulp a little. Bit looked over at Prince Blueblood. “What do you think, your highness?”  he wondered. The prince grimaced and closed his eyes in contemplation. Quick held his breath in anticipation and could feel his heart racing. The other three ponies leaned in with anticipation for an answer. After what seemed to be an eternity, Blueblood opened his eyes and let out a sigh. “. . . If what Quick is saying is true, we should give him the benefit of the doubt,”  he said. The gray unicorn let out a sigh of relief and felt a huge weight lift off his shoulders. “However, he only has one chance to prove this,”  proclaimed the prince. “If there’s no evidence of this, then this matter will be dropped. Do I make myself clear, Quick Note?” He gave a salute and said, “I fully understand, your highness. I promise you that you all won’t be disappointed.” “For your sake, I hope so,”  said Heavy, sounding a bit annoyed. “Now, how are we going to get there so quickly?” “We’ll use my own mode of transportation,”  stated Quick. Golden quirked an eyebrow. “Your own mode?”  she inquired. Quick nodded. “Yeah, all I ask is for you all to hang on and not make any sudden moves.” Bit stepped forward. “Why would you say that?” The unicorn smirked. “You’ll see.” As Bit opened his mouth to object, a sudden flash of light blinded him and everypony around him, and in a flash, they were all gone. A flash of light went out and Blueblood and his group emerged from it. Four of them, including the prince, looked dazed and disoriented, while Quick seemed unfazed. Quick looked around and saw the small cottage like buildings, cobblestone roads, and a statue of Princess Celestia nearby. “We’re here now,”  he said, proudly. Blueblood groaned and steadied himself. “Quick . . . may I give you some advice?”  he wondered, sounding quiet. “Of course, sir,”  he answered. Blueblood trotted up to his advisor and put his hoof around his neck, squeezing it. “The next time you do something like that, you better warn me,”  he threatened in an icy tone. “Otherwise, the only place you’ll be teleported to is a holding cell. Understand?” Quick nodded hastily and muttered, “Yes, your highness.” Blueblood released his hold on Quick and pushed him away. He looked around his surroundings and grimaced. “I take it we’re in Ponyville?”  he inquired. Quick panted a little and rubbed his neck, but nodded. “Yes, sir,”  he stated. Golden, who had regained her bearings, looked around the town and sniffed, frowning to herself. “Ugh! The stench around this town is revolting! No wonder you complain so much about this town, Blueblood. This town does seem fitting for hicks.” “Glad to know you share my same views on this place,”  said Blueblood. He turned to Quick and asked, “So now what?” “If I remember this location correctly, we should be close to where Rarity is,”  he said. “I don’t know how we’re going to do this, especially with how many ponies are around her.” “Well, if I knew we were going to be doing a covert operation, I would’ve gotten some binoculars and disguises for each of us,”  said an irritated Heavy. “How are we going to do this now?” “We might as well try to find her and wait for her to show herself,”  suggested Bit Bags. Blueblood nodded. “That might work,”  he said. “Where is she anyway, Quick?” “Over at some big oak tree that serves as a library,”  said the advisor. “We should get over there and check to see if she’s still–” “Please, darling, I’m quite alright,”  said a rather haughty mare’s voice. Blueblood’s ears perked up and a sinister smile formed. “It’s her!”  he exclaimed. “Quickly, we need to hide!” Golden looked around frantically. “Where?”  she wondered. Heavy scanned the area, quickly, and saw something that caught his eye. “There!”  he proclaimed, pointing a hoof at a set of bushes circling a tree. “Tell me you’re joking,”  said Golden. “Wish I was,”  said Heavy. “Come on!” As Heavy ran towards the bushes, everypony else looked at each other, shrugged, and followed him. They all ran into the bushes and laid down to avoid being seen. “Ugh! I can’t believe you suggested this, Heavy,”  whined Blueblood. “All these twigs, leaves, dirt, and bugs is going to ruin my perfectly groomed coat.” “If you don’t stop complaining, you’ll have even bigger things to worry about,”  warned Heavy. “Now keep it down, I think we got more than just one pony coming.” The group, slowly, cleared away the leaves and branches, allowing each of them to have a small, but rather clear look over the town square. “Over there!”  whispered Golden, pointing to the left. Heavy slapped her hoof down and said, “Stay low! You want the whole town to know what we’re doing?!” Golden opened her mouth, but Blueblood covered it and whispered, “Silence, somepony is coming.” They all turned their attention to the left, where they saw a large group of ponies and one small dragon walking through. “I can’t see them,”  complained Bit Bags. “It’s too dark, even with Princess Luna’s moon in full.” “Shut up and wait,”  ordered Blueblood. “They’re coming into the clearing now.” The group turned their attention to the opening and saw what the prince said was correct. The large group of ponies, and one dragon, stepped out into the moonlight, allowing the prying eyes of the ponies in the bushes to get a better look at them. Although they saw the large group of ponies laughing and smiling, something else caught their eye, something that made everypony’s hearts freeze up and their eyes bulge out. Right in the middle of the group was a tall, black unicorn, with teal catlike irises, and a flowing purple and white striped mane. Bit Bags fainted, but nopony tried to catch him. Golden Rule stood there with her mouth agasp, failing to notice the fly that flew into her mouth. Quick Note looked unfazed, but smiled proudly knowing he was right. Heavy tried to keep a straight face, but beads of sweat rolled down his face and his teeth chattered a little. As the group of ponies came closer, they could hear them talking with one another. “You sure you’re alright, Rarity?”  asked Spike. “You were out for a while there.” She nodded. “I’m quite alright, Spikey Wikey. I’m just in shock with this turn of events.” “Do you think you’ll be ready in time?”  wondered Applejack. “I mean, you got a pretty full plate already, but this is a bit risky, even for you.” “I’ll be fine, darling,”  assured Rarity. “I won’t lie when I say this will be difficult, but with hard work and my exquisite ideas, I will march in proudly and awe everypony.” Twilight chuckled a little. “Well don’t overwork yourself now,”  she warned. “The doctor did say for you to take it easy for a while.” “Oh, I know, Twilight. In fact, if you could please have Spike come over tomorrow to help me, I can start planning and preparing.” The dragon gave a salute. “You got it!”  he triumphantly stated. Rarity smiled and said, “Just come by at nine tomorrow morning and we’ll get going.”  She let out a yawn. “For now, I need to rest.” “I hear that,”  said Rainbow. “Well, good night to all of you,”  said Rarity. “Good night,”  the others said in unison. They all waved goodbye and went their separate ways home. Blueblood, like Quick, looked neither afraid or amazed, but instead had a sinister grin on his face. So, this is what you’ve been hiding from me, Aunt Celestia,  he thought to himself. Judging from what I just heard, it seems she’s just incriminated herself. I don’t know how this happened to Rarity, but my window of opportunity has just gotten a lot bigger. But what to do now? He looked over at the other four ponies with him for a few seconds. An idea suddenly clicked inside his head and his smile became wider. That’s it. . . “Your highness!”  whispered Golden Rule. Blueblood broke out of his thoughts and quickly changed his expression to one of concern before looking at Golden. “What is it?”  he asked. “The group’s leaving,”  she said. “We need to take this chance to get out of here before they come back, or worse.” The prince nodded and turned to Quick Note. “Hurry up and use your magic to get us back.” He looked down at Bit Bags and inquired, “What about him? He’s fainted from what he saw.” Blueblood scoffed and sternly said, “Then grab him and we’ll wake him up at the castle. Now stop wasting time.” Quick bowed. “Yes, my Lord.”  He grabbed Bit Bags and asked, “Everypony, ready?” The group nodded. “Then let’s go.” With a flash of light, the group vanished, leaving behind nothing but smoke. Blueblood and his colleagues reappeared back in the conference room, but everypony was still paralyzed with shock from what they just saw. The room was deathly silent, with nopony knowing what to say, or how to break the ice. Golden’s hind legs gave out and she plopped right to the ground, still looking shocked. Heavy placed a hoof on his forehead and rubbed it, trying to remain calm, but was shaking a little. Quick was holding onto Bit, who was still unconscious from the shock. Blueblood paced back and forth, maintaining a stoic look on his face. This is an interesting turn of events,  he thought. It’s like as if the Creator herself has given me a chance to redeem myself in the eyes of Equestria. The return of Nightmare Moon, an opportunity to be seen as a hero, and rid myself of the very pony who ruined my image? It’s like taking candy from a foal. “Ugh. . .”  groaned Bit Bags as his eyes opened slowly. Everypony broke out of their trance and went over to the stallion. Blueblood, however, remained where he was and looked apathetic towards his colleague. “Is he okay?”  he asked, casually. Bit Bags rubbed his head. “I’m alright, Blueblood,”  he responded. “I just had the weirdest dream that Nightmare Moon returned.” He looked around the room and saw everypony looked rather grim. “What?”  he wondered. “It ain’t no joke,”  said Heavy, sounding a bit angry. “We all know what we saw there, and what we just heard.” Golden nodded and said, “Ideas, marching, and preparing, what could this mean? An invasion?” Heavy raised an eyebrow. “Ridiculous,”  he said. “If she were Nightmare Moon, why didn’t she try to attack immediately then?” Bit Bags, who got on all fours, said, “That does raise a good point. I’m no dictator, but even I would’ve attacked Canterlot by now and try to usurp the throne.” “There’s one other thing I noticed,”  said Quick Note. “What was it?”  asked Heavy. “Rarity didn’t sound . . . evil, if you get what I mean,”  he said. Everypony looked at one another, each looking confused. “I’m assuming not,”  said Quick. “What I mean is that she didn’t sound like she was some malevolent dark being who wants to bring eternal night. If anything, she sounds quite similar to how Prince Blueblood mocks her.” “Mocks her?”  asked Golden. Quick sighed and said, “Yeah. . . I had to put up with that, a lot. Getting back on topic though, she doesn’t exactly sound like she’s possessed by Nightmare Moon at all.” “Maybe it’s a spell gone wrong?”  wondered Bit Bags. “Then that must’ve been one hell of a spell,”  said Heavy. “Or it could all be a ruse,”  warned Blueblood. The group turned their attention to the prince. “What do you mean?”  inquired Bit Bags. “Do you really think that this is some kind of spell?”  asked Blueblood. “Think about it for a moment. What kind of spell allows somepony to turn into one of the most notorious ponies to ever walk Equestria?” “An experimental one?”  pondered Golden. “Pfft! That’s a laugh,”  said Blueblood. “Let’s take into consideration everything that’s been discussed tonight. I saw Aunt Celestia fly off towards the Everfree Forest earlier tonight, with no given reason.” “I did say it was under renovations,”  stated Heavy. “What if it isn’t?”  asked Blueblood. “What if she went there for a . . . different reason? That is where Nightmare Moon was born and where she died, so there must be a connection there.” Everypony looked at each other with concerned expressions. Blueblood ignored the looks and went on. “Then, Quick and I heard a conversation between my aunts, that they didn’t want me to know what became of Rarity. In fact, they didn’t want any word of this getting out to anypony else across Equestria. Oddly enough, only Ponyville was aware of what happened to Rarity.” “Where are you going with this?”  inquired Heavy. “What I’m getting at is that what if the reason only Ponyville knows about Rarity’s new look is because she ‘persuaded’ them to accept her?” A chill fell upon the room that made everypony shiver a bit. “What do you mean?”  asked Bit. Blueblood smirked. “Easy. What if Rarity somehow used her new powers as Nightmare Moon reincarnate to control the whole town? Even a town full of dumb hicks would not take her returning so lightly. What’s to say that Rarity hasn’t brainwashed the town into obeying her? For that matter, what’s to say my aunts weren’t affected too?” Everypony let out a gasp, but Heavy stepped forward. “Now hold on here,”  he said. “The princesses’ will can’t be that easy to bend, and they’d rather die before bowing to Nightmare Moon. It’s virtually impossible to anyway, especially with all the new measures added after the Changeling invasion two years ago.” The prince rolled his eyes and said, “I figured you would say that. Let me ask you something then, Heavy. If these new ideas to prevent mind control are being put into place, why hasn’t the process gotten started yet? Perhaps it’s because it’s run into some complications, per say.” Heavy flinched a little and seethed, “How do you know?” Blueblood chuckled coldly. “Please, I may not be very active in politics anymore, or be given any real royal duties, but I stay up to date on current events. I know the new means of training soldiers to resist mind control isn’t going according to plan, correct?” Heavy looked down and grinded his teeth in frustration, but nodded. “Yeah. . . the methods that are trying to be used are still causing side effects for soldiers ranging from amnesia, to severe migraines, and even some cases of insanity. The psychologist team working on the project has said they have another method they’re ready to use, but it needs to be tested. The princesses have expressed that they won’t undergo the training until they are convinced the anti-mind control training works perfectly.” The prince smiled wickedly. “Then what’s to say that the princesses haven’t fallen under Nightmare Moon’s control? Why, Aunt Celestia could be at the castle to help plan Nightmare’s attempts at taking over Canterlot and the rest of Equestria.” The room fell deathly silent, with everypony looking fearful. “Put the pieces together and you’ll see what’s in front of you. A town that welcomes the new Nightmare Moon, with even the bearers of the Elements of Harmony under her command. Rarity saying she’s preparing to ‘march’ somewhere. The princesses trying to keep this a secret. What other possible outcome could there be to all of this? The answer, an insurrection against Equestria, with Nightmare Moon vying for absolute power.” Bit Bags gulped and muttered, “I . . . I don’t want to believe this.” “Well believe it,”  warned Blueblood. “We are the only ones who know of the awful truth before us. My aunts are currently useless to us and are probably beginning to conspire with Nightmare. The Elements of Harmony have fallen and can’t be used. All of Ponyville seems to obey Nightmare’s orders and are probably training as we speak to begin their invasion. Now we heard Rarity is going to ‘march’ somewhere and is preparing for something.” The room filled with tension as everypony looked at each other, with fear in their eyes. “I propose this then,”  said the prince. “Since we’re the only ones aware of the truth, we must come together and use our own resources and skills to finish off Nightmare Moon. With our combined might, we shall kill Nightmare Moon and save Equestria. I. . . um, we, shall be seen as heroes across the land, even better than Rarity’s so called friends and their Elements of Harmony.” “But. . . to do this could possibly be treason,”  warned Bit Bags. “What if we’re wrong about this and the princesses imprisons us?” Blueblood scoffed. “Such risks need to be taken. What if I’m right about this? We could save thousands of lives and stop a revolution before it even begins. Besides, it’s not like any of you haven’t brushed with the other side of the law.” The three ponies winced and looked away, each pony looking a bit flustered. “But I assure you all that not only will I assure you all that your past crimes won’t be revealed, but that what you all are doing is for the greater good,”  said Blueblood. “What other options do we have anyway? If we wait, it could be too late. In the end though, your crimes will be the last thing to worry about if Nightmare’s scheme goes through with no opposition.”  He looked over and asked, “Bit Bags, what say you? You may be very wealthy, but money won’t help you with Nightmare Moon.” Bit Bags bit his lip and frantically looked around the room. His eyes first fell upon the other three ponies, who seemed anxious, but also a bit fearful. He then looked at Blueblood, who was grinning with anticipation. His eyes darted back and forth until he eventually hanged his head and stayed silent for a few minutes. “Well?”  wondered Blueblood, sounding a bit impatient. “What’s your answer?” Bit raised his head, looking a bit angry with himself, and nodded slowly. “Very well, I’ll agree to this. If it means risking treason, then I shall gladly do so.” Blueblood did his best to contain his sinister smile, but gave a small one. He then looked over at Golden Rule. “What about you, your honor? You’ve always been one to find ways to bend the law to your own gain, but here’s your chance to deliver real justice by stopping a tyrant.” Golden rubbed her chin. “Well, it’s been years since I was a lawyer and I’ve always been one wanting to see evidence to use to back up my claims, but from what I saw and heard, I don’t doubt this anymore. I shall stand with you, your highness.” He looked at Heavy. “How about you, Major? You can stop wasting your time sending your own troops on ‘routine patrols’ and instead use them to help hunt down a much more ‘unique’ species? One that could earn you enough bits to let you retire for several lifetimes?” Heavy closed his eyes and let out a sigh. “Your highness, I still have some reservations about this thing and it could expose me if things don’t go according to plan.”  Blueblood opened his mouth to protest, but Heavy held up a hoof. “However, in light of these events, I believe action must be taken. I shall lend my services to you for the greater good of Equestria.” Blueblood smirked and said, “Good, we’re all on the same page then.”  He looked over at his advisor. “Isn’t that right, Quick?” Quick jumped and looked at the prince. “Me?”  he asked, surprisingly. “Of course you,”  said Blueblood. “You are with us, correct? I would expect my loyal advisor to assist in these troubled times.” Quick gulped a little, but nodded. “You know I’ve been serving with you for years, my lord, but this is a rather risky thing to do.” “So you’re against us?”  he asked, threateningly. “Of course not,”  said Quick, sounding a bit nervous. “I just fear what will happen if things go south for us.” Blueblood smiled and said, “You worry too much. With my ingenious brain and all of you with me, I . . . we will defeat Nightmare Moon.” “So what do we do now?”  asked Bit. “We must use our resources to aid in this effort.”  Blueblood looked over at Bit. “I’m going to need you to take a ‘loan’ from you. I will, of course, reimburse you for the funds needed.” Bit looked a little unsure. “That’s going to be very tough,”  he stated. “Some of my investors have been questioning where some of the funds are going and it would be very hard for me to persuade them that there are minor errors and calculations on the part of accountants. I think you should use the royal treasury.” Blueblood frowned. “My access to the treasury has been restricted due to some of my recent spending binges,”  he said. “If these investors ask questions, just claim somepony has been robbing your bank and you’re trying to find out who it is.” “But how?”  wondered Bit. “That’s where you come in, Golden,”  said the prince. “Do you still have your connections in the police departments?” The mare smiled deviously. “I certainly do and they’ll do anything to help me. Some are still a bit wary they may be caught, but I can persuade them to do things my way.” “Good, we will need those connections to make sure no evidence or trail is left leading to us,”  said Blueblood. “Just be careful that you aren’t caught yourself.” “Aren’t I always?”  she asked. Blueblood looked at Heavy. “Major, you said a team of psychologists had a new method of anti-mind control training?” Heavy nodded. “That’s correct, but they need test subjects.” “Then my men and the men under your command will be the test subjects. What better cover to distract the others than by generously volunteering to use this new method?” “Very well,”  he said. “What if the training suffers the same results?” “Then those who succumbed to insanity shall be disposed of,”  he said, coldly. “You’ll also have to wait on your hunt for that rare two-headed dragon. You’ll have to train your men more vigorously than before. Don’t worry, I know you’ve trained and bred your troops to hunt exotic creatures, but this one is a once in a lifetime opportunity. You’ll have a trophy that will leave a magnificent legacy for the future.” Heavy grinned wickedly. “I would love that.” “And you, Quick,”  said Blueblood as he pointed to his advisor. “You shall continue to be my spy and relay me any information about Rarity’s movements.” Quick bowed and said, “I shall, my lord.” Blueblood smirked. “Then it’s settled. You all have your orders and what to do. The only last bit of advice I can tell you all is to remain in close contact with each other and, above all else, do not mention any of this to anypony else. I don’t want to risk a panic and let my aunts here about this, or else they’ll come and do who knows what to us. Until I get more information though, just go about your daily business and remain vigilant. Clear?” The group nodded in unison. “Good.”  Blueblood turned to the door. “Guards!”  he barked. The door opened revealing two white unicorns in royal blue armor. They both saluted the prince. “Escort these three ponies out of the castle and keep them out of sight of Princess Luna,”  he said. “Take them to the eastern entrance of the castle and let them go there.” “Yes, your highness,”  both guards said. Bit, Golden, and Heavy waved goodbye and trotted out of the room with the two royal guards. The door slammed shut, leaving Blueblood and Quick alone. The prince began to pace back and forth. “So . . . now that I got those three to help me out, I need to find out how we can lure Rarity into a trap and take care of her. I just need a lead now as to where she is going to.” Quick felt something click in his head from that last statement. “Your highness, I forgot to–” “Not now, Quick,”  interrupted Blueblood. “I’m busy thinking how to track Rarity’s movements. She’ll probably be keeping this information very close to her and nopony else probably knows this.” “Sir,”  said Quick, but his words fell on deaf ears. “I need to quickly figure out what Rarity is up to if I’m to begin my attempts to finally bring her down,”  said the prince. “Now where to begin?” “Sir!”  barked Quick.  The prince turned around, looking a bit shocked and angry. Quick bowed his head, feeling a bit embarrassed. “Forgive me, my lord, but I needed to get your attention.” “For what reason?”  asked the prince in an intimidating tone. “I know where Rarity is going.” Blueblood’s scowl quickly changed into a devious smile. “You do?”  he asked “Well let’s hear it.” Quick looked and found the saddlebag he was wearing earlier. He opened it and pulled out a piece of paper. “This should have all the information you need.” Blueblood snatched the paper from Quick’s hoof and began reading it. As he did, his smile grew wider and his head was buzzing with ideas. He put the paper down and looked over at Quick. “So she’s headed to Manehatten, huh? I’m impressed you got this information, Quick. However, I do have one question for you.” “Yes, your highness?” The prince trotted over slowly and put his hoof around Quick’s neck. He then squeezed the neck and pulled his advisor in, allowing him to see the furious expression on his face. “Why didn’t you say anything about this earlier!?”  he demanded. “This information would’ve helped further plan out my strategy!” Quick desperately gasped for air. “I. . . it slipped my mind,”  he wheezed. “I . . . was trying . . . to tell you my findings.” Blueblood huffed and released his grip on Quick, allowing him to gasp and catch his breath. “Well, at least you were smart enough to bring me this information. Now that we know she’s going to Manehatten, we need to think of a plan to catch her.” Quick rubbed his throat and cleared it. “Well the letter does say she’s going to some fashion show,”  he said. “Maybe this whole marching thing is about her going to that event and showing her new dresses. She is a dress designer after all.” Blueblood looked at his advisor for a moment and then let out a cold laugh. “That’s a good one,”  he said. “Why would somepony who allowed herself to become Nightmare Moon go to some fashion show then? And even if that is the case, Rarity is still a danger to us all. No matter what her reasons are, I will have Rarity in my grasp and I’ll finally be rid of the one who ruined my image.” “Where would we begin anyway, my lord?”  inquired Quick. “Well she is going to a fashion show in Manehatten, so . . . we . . . must . . .”  Blueblood’s words trailed off and he stared off in the distance. Quick quirked an eyebrow and raised his hoof over the prince’s eyes, waving it. “Hello?”  he asked. “Your highness, is something wrong?” Blueblood slapped the hoof away and looked at Quick with an ecstatic expression on him. “Quick, I think I got a solution to this problem. Quickly, we must go to my room and pull the Manehatten File out of my file cabinet.” “The Manehatten File?”  the advisor wondered. “What does that have to do with anything?” “It’ll have the answer to our problem,”  said the prince. “Now come on!” Blueblood marched out of the room. Quick shrugged to himself and quickly followed him. A door creaked open and Prince Blueblood and Quick Note ran in, shutting the door in the process. The room itself was very orderly and seemed to fit Blueblood’s own image. The whole room had royal blue wallpaper and golden chandeliers hanging from the ceiling. There was a large fireplace that was lit, with two pillows nearby and a large portrait of Blueblood grinning smugly about it. There was a large cherrywood desk with a large window nearby, covered by blue drapes. The canopy bed was red, but the only other thing standing out about it was the large quilt that had Blueblood’s face on it. “Quick, stop looking around and help me find the file!”  ordered Blueblood. He looked over and saw the prince was at large metal file cabinet near his bed. “Yes, your highness,”  he said as he ran over. The two of them frantically searched the files. Blueblood hastily looked through each file and carelessly threw the wrong ones out. Quick slowly looked through each file tab, going from the D Files to eventually the M Files. Suddenly, Quick came across a file reading “Manehatten Incident” and pulled it out. “Your highness, I found it,”  he stated. Blueblood stopped digging through the cabinet and looked over at Quick, who extended his hoof with the file out. He snatched it out of his hooves and opened it, searching its contents until he came across something that got his eye. He pulled out a tattered old newspaper and Quick tried to see what it said. He only got a small glimpse of a photo of a distraught pony and a headline in bold red lettering above it reading “DISGRACED”. As the prince’s eyes darted back and forth, he chuckled sinisterly to himself. Quick gulped a little and hesitantly asked, “Your highness, did you find anything?” Blueblood placed the paper down and looked at Quick with a wicked grin. “Did I find anything?”  he asked in a mocking tone. “Why I found another potential ally in my cause. According to what I read in this article, this pony had a run in with Rarity as well and suffered a fate that cost her everything. If I were to recruit this pony, I could have another valuable assistant to capturing Rarity.” Quick looked at the article and gasped at the picture. “But sir, I thought this whole thing was to be kept between us and your three associates. Even if we looked for this pony, we don’t know where to begin.” Blueblood waved a hoof. “Ah, you worry too much, Quick. What this pony suffered through is enough to drive anypony to seek revenge. I know I can make convince our soon to be new friend to see things my way.” Quick bit his lip and nodded. “As for where to begin, we just need to go ask around,”  said the prince. “In fact, clear my schedule for the rest of the week.” “Uh . . . your schedule is cleared already,”  said Quick. “You didn’t have a single thing scheduled to due this week by the princesses, again.” Blueblood’s left eye twitched a little, but he shook his head. “Good to know then. Now, we’ve got to get ready to leave for Manehatten first thing in the morning.” “Sir, finding one pony in a city like Manehatten is going to be the equivalent of trying to find a needle in the world’s largest haystack,”  stated Quick. “I could care less,”  said the prince. “We need to hurry and find our target before the fashion show. If we ask around enough and look hard enough, maybe we can find who I’m looking for.” Blueblood pulled out of the file a picture of Rarity, who was beaming as she held a trophy and was surrounded by her friends. He smirked to himself. “Then, with my intelligence, I shall finally have Rarity right where I want her. I’ll have her begging for mercy once I’m through with her.” Blueblood let out a cold laugh as he threw the photo into the fireplace and watched it burn to pieces.