Child of Misery
By Nebula Star
Chapter 6: The Attack
***
“I just can't believe Twilight's gone...” Apple Bloom said softly to the other crusaders. It had been nearly three hours since they'd arrived and Celestia had told them all she knew. Each had taken the news in their own way. Rainbow, Pinkie, and Fluttershy where off to one side, talking quietly. It was clear the other two were trying to comfort their shy friend but at the same time, Pinkie's mane and tail had gone mostly strait. Applejack on the other hoof, was keeping herself busy by exploring the chamber and examining those parts that weren't part of the natural cave, while Rarity was working with Celestia trying to break the containment spell. So far they'd made little progress.
As for the crusaders themselves, they were sitting together near the entrance of the chamber.
Sweetie Belle didn't even look up at Apple Bloom's comment. It was the first any of them had spoken in some time. She just sniffed softly staring down at her hooves. She'd known all along of course; she'd seen what Achlys had done herself after all. Even if Twilight had just been an artificial soul that Achlys created, she was still her own pony, and for Achlys to simply destroy her like that...
They had to make her pay! She glanced over at where Rarity was trying to describe what she could sense of the spell to Celestia in order to make sense of it. Sweetie wished she could help, but now that they'd found Celestia, there really wasn't much left that the three crusaders could do. She sighed heavily looking down at her hooves again. At least she'd gotten to help this much, even if it wasn't much at all.
A slight shift in air pressure and a soft click made her glance over her shoulder toward the entrance.
“AAAAAAAAAHHHH!!!”
Standing in the entrance that was barely large enough for him was a dragon. A dragon with black scales and dark green spines. A dragon Sweetie Belle had seen the day before.
Sweetie Belle's scream got everypony's attention instantly, but before anypony could do anything, the dragon reached out toward her with deadly looking claws.
And gently pat her head.
“It's alright, Sweetie Belle,” he said softly in a soothing tone. Surprised, Sweetie pushed his claw aside so she could look up at him.
“Spike?”
He shook his head sadly. “Not anymore,” he said then stepped past her toward Celestia.
Celestia's eyes narrowed on him as he approached while the others weren't sure how to react. “Have you come to finish me off, Deimos?” She demanded.
He didn't answer. Instead he raised his fore-claw toward her heart, and as he did it began to glow with fire-like light.
“No, don't!” Rarity cried, realizing what was happening. Before she could interfere however, the air around the dragon and Celestia shimmered as if with intense heat and bits of flame appeared circling around them. It was magic of course, but unlike any that any of them had ever seen. And it was forming a barrier preventing anypony from stopping the dragon as he continued to reach toward Celestia's heart.
“Don't do it!” Sweetie cried as she saw fear in the princess's eyes for the first time in her memory. Though the defiance there certainly outweighed the fear.
The glow around the dragon's claw intensified as it came in contact with the spell trapping Celestia. There was nothing anypony could do to stop him.
There was a sound like glass shattering and a bright flash forced them all to shield their eyes. When the light faded, they all looked up fearing the worst.
Celestia was no longer trapped in the containment spell, she had fallen into a heap on the floor. But even as they looked up so did she, a surprised expression on her face. She looked up at the dragon realizing what he'd done.
“Why?”
Deimos slowly withdrew his claw and sadly lowered his eyes to the floor. “For Twilight,” he said softly.
The cave was silent following that statement. Nopony knew what to say; they could all hear the sorrow that filled his voice.
Finally he looked around at all of them. “Please, just go. Get out while you still can, save yourselves... Equestria is lost.”
Celestia looked up at him with understanding in her eyes, but shook her head. “I can't just abandon my little ponies.”
Deimos's eyes turned angry in an instant. “You can't win against her!” He shouted, certainty ringing in his voice. “Don't be fools! If you go against her, you're just throwing your lives away!”
“We know the odds are against us...” Rainbow started.
“YOU HAVEN'T GOT A CLUE WHO YOU'RE UP AGAINST!” He roared making them all step back while the three crusaders huddled together in fear. “Don't you understand, Celestia!? When we attacked Canterlot, we were at a fraction of our full strength. The imprisonment spell had left us both weakened, and still it took you and three hundred of your finest guards to even come close to victory! Now she's stronger than ever!”
“We have to try...”
Deimos stomped one claw hard enough that the entire chamber shook. “Can't you see it's hopeless!? You're nothing to her! Why can't you understand that? Even the weakest members of the council were far more powerful than you! Thinking you have a chance against her is madness!
“Achlys wasn't just a member of the Imperium high council; she was the one they all feared.” He spoke with such calm certainty that they knew he was speaking the truth. “The entire high council, the entire Imperium, feared Achlys. Because they knew, that if she ever tried to take over, if she decided she wanted to rule, that there was nothing they could do to stop her.
“And it wasn't because she was the most powerful of them.” He shook his head. “No, there were alicorns with more magic power than her. They feared her because of what she could do. She is the original alicorn of magic. And even before we were imprisoned she had had more than seven millennia to study magic. She knows more than you can imagine, and can do things that you can't even dream of!
“The only reason that Achlys does not rule this world, is because she doesn't want to. Achlys doesn't want to rule, she never has. Political power is worthless to her. She had slaves in the past for convenience, but that was as far as she ever cared to go.”
“Then why is she taking over Equestria?” Celestia demanded.
He snorted. “She has no interest in Equestria. All she wants, all she's ever done, is whatever she damn well pleases. And the only time she ever goes out of her way to do anything, is when she wants to punish someone who was stupid enough to get in her way.
“When we first attacked Canterlot, we weren't trying to take over. Achlys just wanted something you had stored in the vaults of the castle. But you stopped us, then you went so far as to hunt us down.”
He looked down at Celestia. “Achlys doesn't forget, and she doesn't forgive. The only reason Achlys is going after Equestria is to hurt you. She has no interest in running a country; she's calling herself queen, but she's already turned control over to Nightmare Moon.”
“What has she done to Luna!?” Celestia demanded.
He glared at her a moment before answering. “Luna is Nightmare Moon again, complete with bad attitude,” he told her darkly.
Celestia shook her head not wanting to believe it. “No... no, Luna wouldn't... Achlys must be controlling her somehow...”
Deimos shrugged. “She might be. It would have to be something subtle though, because she seems to be acting on her own. But even if she is being manipulated by Achlys, don't get your hopes up: There's no way you'll ever break her spell.”
Celestia glared up at him. “I have to at least try!”
“Dammit, Celestia, what will it take for you to understand!? As far as alicorn's go, you are weak! Even I'm far more powerful than you! You can't win; going against Achlys is suicide!” Deimos roared then went on his voice becoming almost desperate. “Please, just run, escape while you still can. Don't throw your lives away!”
“We can't do that.” Rainbow told him, moving to the princess's side.
He glared at her, then looked around at all the others, saw that they all agreed with Rainbow and Celestia. “Fine. I've done all I can,” he said in a cold growl that seethed with barely contained rage. “Do not expect me to help you again!”
Turning away, he stormed out of the chamber, each step sending tremors through the cave.
“Spike!?” Apple Bloom called after him but he didn't even acknowledge her. The cave was silent for a few moments after the dragon's departure.
“Well I recon you're a mite hungry and thirsty, princess, after bein' locked up all day and night.” Applejack said finally. “We brought some food an' water with us, so let's get you taken care of. We can worry about plannin' our next move once you've eaten.”
Celestia nodded. “Yes, some food would definitely do me some good, thank you.”
Sweetie Belle hardly paid attention as they all got out the food they'd brought for Princess Celestia. She was staring toward the entrance, her mind fixed on what Spike... Deimos, had said. Celestia was weak? But if that was true then, did they have any chance at all against Achlys? The alicorn that all other alicorns feared?
She looked over at the others, her eyes seeking out her sister. She knew Rarity would go with them to fight, Rainbow was right, they wouldn't, couldn't, abandon Equestria. But could they win? What could they do to improve their chances. Rarity and the others already had the necklaces...
Sweetie Belle looked down at the necklace around her own neck. It was too big for her, but then it had been made large enough for an adult. Even with it however, there was no way the others would ever let her come with them to fight, and she knew that she wouldn't be able to do much anyway.
There was one thing she could still do to help though.
Getting to her hooves she walked over to where Princess Celestia was resting while she ate some of the food they'd brought for her.
“Princess Celestia?” She said softly getting the princess's attention. She then took off the amplifier necklace and held it up to her. “Here. It... it might help.”
Celestia smiled understandingly and took the necklace in her magic. “Thank you, Sweetie Belle,” she said and put it on. “I'll put it to good use.”
She nodded. “Make her pay... for Twilight...”
Celestia was a little taken back by the anger behind the filly's words, but she nodded all the same. “I will do my best.”
~~~
It was a known fact that the castle of the royal sisters in Canterlot was protected against teleportation as well as every known form of scrying. Perhaps a little less known was that the princesses were the only exception to those wards and could use such magic freely within the castle. What was not known to but a very few was that there was, in fact, one room in the far corner of the guard barracks that was excluded from the wards against teleportation. In addition, this room was shielded against any form of magic detection so that teleportation arrivals would not be noticed by anypony outside the royal guard and its secret would remain intact. It was rarely used and when it was, usually the arrival was planned in advance. Even so, it was constantly guarded.
Therefore it didn't go unnoticed when light flared from beneath the door a few hours past midnight. The guards on duty looked at each other in surprise then one turned to the door. Built like a prison cell, the teleportation room door had a small shuttered window at eye level so that the guard could see who was arriving before letting them into the barracks proper.
The guard opened the shutter and peered inside. His eyes widened and he quickly gestured for his partner to unlock the door. As soon as he did, he saw why.
“Princess! Thank the stars you're alright!” He exclaimed as both he and his partner bowed deeply.
The Princess wasn't alone, five mares were with her; five mares that every member of the royal guard knew on sight by now. All of them, including the princess, were wearing golden necklaces with a large simple cut diamond in the center.
Celestia gestured for them to rise. “Sergeant, what is the status of the guard?”
“Standing by, your majesty. It was unclear what action we should take considering Princess Luna appears to be on the Achlys's side. Command believed it best to wait and gather more information before formulating a plan of attack. Some effort was made toward locating you, but we had no indication of where to start looking.”
Celestia nodded understandingly. “Of course, luckily a filly in Ponyville happened to overhear Achlys mention where she had me imprisoned. For now, gather what officers are currently within the barracks and find Captain Iron Sentinel.”
“Captain Iron Sentinel is dead, your majesty. Achlys murdered him when she first arrived.” The sergeant told her regretfully.
Celestia winced, letting her own pain at that news show. “Have there been any other casualties?” She asked softly.
“No, only the captain.”
“Then gather the remaining officers. I have orders for the guard. And retrieve my armor!”
~~~
As the castle was currently occupied by two hostile alicorns, the guard didn't have to be told to keep Celestia's presence quiet. Within a few minutes time, all the officers within the barracks had been alerted and gathered in the mess hall. Celestia stood at the head table, wearing her full battle armor that had been stored in the barracks armory for times of war.
Similar to the armor of the royal guard, it covered almost all of her body and most of her legs. Golden in color, the heavy armor flowed over her body like tendrils of frozen flame. Wearing it she looked like the sun's wrath made flesh. Her shield and spear she would summon when the time came to fight.
“I've already been informed of Captain Iron Sentinel's death at Achlys's hooves.” Celestia began once they had all arrived. “He will be remembered.” A respectful silence fell over the room for a few moments before she went on. “You of course recognize the former bearers of the elements of harmony.” She gestured to the five friends, a couple of which looked a little embarrassed to be recognized. “They have come, regardless of the danger to face Achlys by my side in the defense of Equestria.”
“The guard is with you as well!” The ranking officer said with confidence, and the rest nodded in agreement.
“No.”
The officers looked at her in shock as if unable to believe what they'd heard. “But, princess...!”
“The first time I fought this Alicorn I had three hundred of the royal guard's best with me. Not one came back alive. I will not sacrifice more of my soldiers to her,” Celestia told them firmly. “Your orders are to stay out of this fight. If the bearers and myself cannot defeat Achlys, then there is no hope for victory.
“Should we fail, you are to do all you can to protect the ponies of this land, but you are not to try to avenge me. Achlys is cold and heartless, but she is also selfish. She knows that the sun is needed for crops to grow; I'm confident she will return day and night to normal eventually so that she won't have to go without. You will survive, even if it is under the reign of a tyrant. If the worst comes about, you keep in line and follow orders unless they are in direct violation of your vows to protect this land and its ponies. You are not to try and remove Achlys yourselves, is that clear?”
The guardponies looked like they wanted to object but reluctantly they all acknowledged her orders. “As you command...” The ranking officer said sounding dejected. “I must ask, however. Why are you taking the bearers with you but not the guard? The elements of harmony were returned to the tree, were they not?” He eyed the necklaces they were all wearing.
“The six of us are equipped with amplifiers of Princess Twilight's design that enhance our natural abilities far beyond those of normal ponies. Hopefully it will be enough; but make no mistake, the situation is dire. Achlys may very well be the most powerful foe I have ever faced, with nearly ten millenia of experience to draw from.” She looked down. “Honestly, there is not much hope for victory. Which is why I'm ordering you to stay out of this fight. Should we fail, the ponies of this land will need you.”
“Very well, princess. May harmony's blessings be upon you all.”
Celestia nodded in thanks then took a deep breath, knowing what lay ahead. “Where is Achlys now?”
“Last report we had, she was heading toward the throne room; we are not certain why at this hour...”
“Yeah, why the heck would she go to the throne room in the middle of the night?” Rainbow Dash asked, sounding confused.
“We don't know, but that was the last report we had. The guards on duty would have told us had she gone elsewhere.”
“It doesn't matter,” Celestia said softly. “In fact it's better this way; the throne room will give us space to spread out and take better advantage of our numbers. What about Luna?”
“We're not sure,” the lieutenant admitted. “She is difficult to keep track of. All the more so at night.”
Celestia nodded. She'd expected as much. “Hopefully she is away and won't be able to interfere.” She sighed heavily, It was probably too much to hope for. With her orders given to the guard, there was just one thing left to do. She turned back to the former bearers. “Come, it is time we ended this, one way or another.”
The five friends nodded and followed Celestia out of the mess hall, very aware of the looks of longing and worry that the guard's gave them as their princess left them behind.
~~~
“Are you sure you don't want the guard backin' us up?” Applejack asked softly as they made their way through the castle. The five of them had not been aware of that part of Celestia's plan, though they'd been a part of the planning. In truth there wasn't much to their plan. They would confront Achlys and hope that the power granted to them by the amplifiers would be enough to catch her off-guard. Celestia knew that if they delayed it would only give Achlys more time to discover Celestia's escape and prepare to face them.
“I meant what I said; if we six can't find a way to defeat her, then there truly is no hope for victory. The guard will make no difference against her and I will not sacrifice more of my soldiers to fight my battles,” Celestia told her just as softly. “In truth I would rather the five of you weren't involved either; but after what she did to Twilight, I know you'd never agree to stay behind.”
“Darn right!” Rainbow said with a nod.
“Truth be told, I don't think we can win,” Celestia admitted.
“Of course we can,” Fluttershy spoke up. “There's always hope, princess.”
She smiled sadly. “Yes... there's always hope...” Celestia agreed, though her voice lacked confidence.
~~~
There were no royal guards on the throne room doors, most the patrols were still making their rounds, but they weren't about to guard the usurper. Pausing for only a moment, Celestia slammed the doors open with her magic.
“Celestia! It's about time!” Achlys's voice rang out as soon as they stepped across the threshold.
She was there, sitting on Celestia's throne smiling down at them wearing nothing but a jagged emerald crown. A tall staff floated by her side that appeared to be made out of dark glass. There wasn't even a hint of surprise in her eyes. Deimos was there as well, lying behind the throne; and he didn't look very happy to see them.
“I was beginning to wonder if you would escape that little spell of mine. I honestly didn't think it would take you this long. But at last, here you are, and you brought the girls with you! By the way, your wards against scrying and spell detection over in the barracks are full of holes.” Her smile became a smirk. “I'd show you how to cast proper wards, but I'm afraid it would be a waste of time since you'll never get a chance to use them.”
Celestia's eyes narrowed. Was Achlys bluffing to frighten them? Or did she actually expect, even intend for Celestia to escape her trap. “I told you I'd find a way,” Celestia said trying to sound confident.
Achlys laughed. “Yes, but it wasn't you who broke the spell now was it?”
Celestia glared at her, remaining silent.
Achlys took her silence as confirmation. “I didn't think you'd be able to. That's why I allowed dear Sweetie Belle to overhear where I sent you.”
“What?” Rarity gasped as they all stared at Achlys in shock. Even Deimos seemed surprised by the revelation.
“You didn't think I'd noticed her, did you? I sensed little Sweetie Belle from the moment she arrived at the library door. I allowed her to watch through the window. I allowed her to see what I did, and I let her overhear where I'd sent Celestia to be imprisoned.” She smirked at their stunned expressions. “They were able to find you and free you because I wanted them to. You're all here now, because I meant for you to be here. And now that you've finally arrived, your true punishment can at last, begin.”
“Yeah, like we'll let that happen!” Rainbow said stepping to Celestia's side.
“We didn't just come to watch you know.” Rarity added as she and the others joined Rainbow alongside the princess.
“Oh I know, darling.” Achlys replied, her tone a condescending mimicry of Rarity. “You've deluded yourselves into thinking you're some kind of heroes because of your past successes, but what are you all really?” She looked over them all. “A farmer that doesn't know enough about anything to be useful anywhere else, an athlete who's so full of herself she doesn't even realize her ego is what's holding her back, an animal lover who can barely function in society, a psychopath with an eating disorder, and a ladder climbing fashion designer that is so obsessed with appearances that she faints at the thought of dirt in her coat.” She laughed as they all glared at her. “To think that the Element's of Harmony chose the five of you to represent them.”
“If you think the element's chose poorly, then allow me to show you just how generous I can be.” Rarity said stepping forward, her horn lighting up. Without hesitation she cast the most powerful spell she had sending a wave of kinetic energy tearing across the throne room.
Achlys brought her staff forward at the last moment, levitating it in front of her. Rarity's spell had almost reached it when a dark aura erupted around the staff, sucking in and absorbing the spell as if it were nothing, then a tendril of energy flowed from the staff to Achlys, surrounding her with a radiant glow.
Rarity stared, her eyes wide. That spell had been the best she could manage and not only did it have no affect; Achlys hadn't even used her own magic to block it.
“Surprised?” Achlys asked smiling smugly. “Behold, the Darklight Staff,” she said holding the staff in front of her. “My own invention. When wielded properly, it allows the wielder to absorb the energy of any loose magic that comes within range and then adds the energy to their own power. In other words, dear Rarity, the only thing you accomplished just now was to make me stronger.”
She smirked at Rarity's dismay at that revelation. “Truth be told, if your precious princess had ever bothered to study this staff instead of simply labeling it as dark magic and locking it away, she would have found that, in addition to there being nothing 'dark' about it aside from color, it is the perfect defense against any form of magical attack. In fact, had she learned to use this staff, even I wouldn't have stood a chance against her. But alas, it was easier to label it an artifact of dark magic and lock it away... A foolish mistake.
“Not that I need it, mind you. Fact is none of you would be a threat to me even with dear Twilight's Amity Arcanum Amplifiers.” She shook her head. “Such a silly name...”
“How do you know about the amplifiers?” Rarity breathed.
She rolled her eyes. “I was Twilight. I know everything that she knew and oh so much more. I know exactly how much the amplifier is boosting your power and I can tell you now, you could never even touch me.”
Rainbow had heard enough. “Well if magic won't work, then I guess we'll just have to beat the living Tartarus out of you the old fashioned way!” she shouted and leaped at Achlys, using her wings to propel her across the throne room.
Achlys opened one wing and brought it forward in an almost lazy gesture, creating a whirlwind between her and Rainbow in an instant. Unable to change directions to avoid it, Rainbow cried out as the mini twister spun her around several times before sending her skidding across the floor toward the far corner of the room.
Celestia stared stunned, realizing just what Achlys had done. There had been no unicorn, no alicorn, no magic from her horn at all, in that attack.
“Did you think that in all the many centuries I've lived; in the millennia that I've sought ever greater power, that I would never have studied my pegasus magic? That I wouldn't have trained my body in order to make the greatest use of it?” She asked as Rainbow slowly climbed back to her hooves. She looked up just in time to see Achlys open her wings. The next instant the alicorn vanished and Rainbow was hit by a blast of wind even as she saw the green and grey streak running past her.
“I'm faster than you,” Achlys's voice whispered tauntingly in her ear.
Rainbow spun, bringing her forehoof around, trying to punch Achlys in the face. She merely caught Rainbow's hoof with her own.
“Stronger than you,” She said as she stopped Rainbow's punch effortlessly. Then she pulled her forward, throwing Rainbow off-balance and rotating as she did. Rainbow felt Achlys's wing wrap around her as she stumbled, picking her up and tossing her into the air. She tried to gain control of her sudden flight but then Achlys was there again, beside her, spinning with her wings tucked in.
“More agile than you!” She opened up from her spin, bringing one fore-hoof down toward Rainbow with all the momentum of her spin behind it.
Rainbow saw it but barely managed to bring her own fore-hooves up to block. And even then, the impact drove the air from her lungs and sent her plummeting toward the throne room floor. She hit hard, bouncing a couple feet back into the air. She barely registered the second impact or the others crying her name. She just laid there, unable to breath for several seconds as the shock ran through her body. Finally she gasped, drawing air desperately into her starved lungs.
“You're lucky that amplifier is enhancing your pegasi resilience. If it weren't for that, that impact would have shattered every vertebrae in your spine.” Achlys said coldly from where she had landed near the throne.
Angrily, Rainbow forced herself to roll over and pushed herself up into a sitting position, glaring at the alicorn despite the pain coursing through her body..
“You mortals never learn. To actually believe that you could ever be a match for an alicorn, in any way... It never ceases to amuse me.” Ahclys said as she turned and trotted back to the throne. “'Best flier in all of Equestria.'” She snorted. “Even Celestia could probably outfly you if she thought your ego could take it."
Startled by the idea Rainbow glanced at Celestia, afraid that Achlys was right, but Celestia shook her head.
“No?” Achlys said sounding surprised, then smirked. “That's right, you spend most your days sitting on your plot listening to pathetic mortals whine about one thing or another. You truly are a disgrace of an alicorn,” she said with a sigh and sat once more in the throne. “But that's enough frivolity for now...”
“You can never get enough friv...” Achlys grabbed Pinkie in her magic as soon as she appeared from behind the throne and tossed her across the throne room to land roughly where the rest of them stood.
“Pinkie!” they all cried as several of them rushed to her side. She laid there, dazed for a few moments.
“I said that's enough,” Achlys repeated firmly. “It is time we got down to business. I am a high councilor of the Alicorn Imperium, and Celestia must be punished for interfering in my affairs.”
“The Imperium is dead!” Rainbow growled joining the others. “And you will be too when I get my hooves on you!”
“Oh, I'm terrified.” Achlys smirked. “But you are right; the Imperium is dead. In truth there has only ever been one real power in this world... and that is power. So in the end, the world is mine, and my authority supersedes all.
“I will punish whomever I wish, whenever I wish.” She smiled wickedly. “And the best part about your punishment, Celestia, is that I won't even have to lift a hoof myself. After all, there is another here who very much wishes to see you punished.”
As she said the last, shadows began to flow from the corners of the room converging on the steps in front of the throne and becoming a dark cloud with hints of starlight shining through the darkness. From its midst stepped a figure Celestia had hoped not to see. Dressed for battle, with segmented armor covering most of her back and sides and curling around her hind legs circling her crescent moon cutie mark; Nightmare Moon glared down at Celestia.