(???, 4:08 AM)
"I SAID DON'T MOVE!" Shining Armor shouted again, as Isaac started to squirm from underneath the pile he had been stuck at the bottom of.
"Don't get your armor in a twist, Shiny." the angel replied, not obeying as he still tried to get his arms free.
The white alicorn grit his teeth in rage, "You are not allowed to call me that!"
"Oh?" he began, finally getting his arms free, "Why not?" he asked, with an infuriating smile on his face.
"You kidnapped my fiance and turned her into a miniature earth pony!"
Isaac shook his head, "For shame, Captain. I never took you for a racist."
"That is not what I meant!" Shining barked.
"True, but I just like to mess with you ponies." the ancient evil replied, pulling a leg free.
"STOP MOVING!"
"Make me."
"RRAAAAAGH!" the Captain of the Royal Guard roared in outrage, shooting a beam of magic at the pile of criminals.
Adagio's eyes widened, "MOVE YOU IDIO-"
*FWOOM!*
In a flash of golden flames, they disappeared. Well, most of them did. A wide-eye Sunset Shimmer was left behind to fall on the ground, but thankfully the attack passed over her head.
Shining smirked, "Princess Celestia was right. He fell for it."
(Canterlot Caves, 4:09 AM)
Isaac, Adagio, Sonata, Aria, and Sonata's suitcase reappeared in the chamber where one of Isaac's other bodies, posing as Princess Cadence still under capture by the changelings.
"What was that?! I thought you said the mirror was in a basement!" Adagio demanded.
"I don't know. Either Trixie got caught with Cadence or..." he was silent for a moment, "She betrayed me."
The lead siren sneered at him, "This is why I told you trusting a mortal was a stupid idea. Now turn us into something that can run!"
"Shut up. I was trying to expand my circle of friends." he replied. The angel squirmed out from under the pile of sirens, fused with his other body, and re-assumed his true form. He took a deep breath, and exhaled golden flames on the three sisters.
*FWOOM*
When the flames died down, they were human again. They quickly unscrambled themselves.
"Why did you turn us back into humans?" Aria growled, looking down at herself in distaste.
"If I turned you into ponies you'd need time to adjust to walking on four legs. We don't have time for that. Sonata, ditch the suitcase!" he ordered.
"WHAT?!" the blue-haired siren shouted, holding the suitcase close to her.
"It'll only slow us down. It's either tacos or they catch us, and you can't eat tacos if you're PETRIFIED."
She sighed, and dropped the suitcase.
Isaac nodded, "Now get ready to run as fast as you can!"
He raised a hand, and blasted one of the walls down with magic.
*CRASH*
The four of them jumped through the newly created hole, and started sprinting through the caves at top speed. Isaac ignited his hand with fire magic, using it as a torch to light their way.
"What's the rush anyway?" Aria asked.
"Don't you get it? Regardless of whether or not Trixie betrayed me they know about the invasion. They've probably dealt with the changelings already and are looking down here for stragglers!"
"THERE THEY ARE!" a voice called out.
They turned back to see a Royal Guard pointing at them with his spear. He started chasing after them.
Adagio snarled, "Damn it all! We've been spotted!"
"HALT!"
"This way!" Isaac called out before turning left, the sirens following suit.
"This wouldn't have happened if you hadn't picked up that pony in the first place!" the lead siren complained.
"Not the time, Adagio!" he barked back.
"Oh I think it is the time! What was the point of recruiting her anyway? From what you told me, it's not like she was actually USEFUL or anythning!"
"I don't have to tell you shit!"
"Oh yes you do! I am not someone you can get away with telling only half-truths to!"
"I will ditch you right now!"
"You wouldn't dare!"
"CAN WE FOCUS ON ESCAPING PLEASE?!" Sonata screamed.
They both went silent as they ran. Isaac nodded, "Right, sorry."
"Why are we running? Can't you just teleport us somewhere they won't look for us?" Aria asked.
"I can't. The South Pole is too far away. Ponyville is a no-go if Trixie ratted me out. We can't go topside either now that the guards have seen us. Celestia and the Element Bearers are probably up there too. They'll be expecting me to teleport into the city."
"So we're sitting ducks down here?!" Adagio demanded, glaring at him.
"Not exactly. I have a plan!"
"What is it?"
"You'll have to trust me!"
"WHAT DID I JUST SAY?!"
"IT WON'T WORK IF YOU KNOW WHAT'S GOING TO HAPPEN!"
"SHUT UP! BOTH OF YOU!" Aria and Sonata shouted, silencing their 'leaders'.
Isaac and Adagio grumbled, trying not to look at each other as they ran side by side. It was like that for the next few minutes, with only the occasional encounter with a guard, whom they quickly dispatched. Non-lethally of course. There was no reason. Eventually, they turned into a large dark chamber.
"If I remember correctly, there should be an exit to the surface coming up soon. We'll come out into a park where children play. It's still dark out so we'll be able to blend in with the shadows."
"That won't be necessary." a familiar voice called out.
The chamber lit up, revealing that it was filled with Royal Guards who proceeded to enclose upon them.
Leading them was none other than Princess Celestia, and she did not look happy. Her horn was glowing, a spell at the ready.
The quartet's eyes widened.
"That was unexpected." Isaac commented.
Adagio turned to glare at him, "You lead us into a trap. Perfect."
"End of the road, Isaac. You will not trouble my subjects any longer." the Solar Diarch said, glaring at them as she stalked forward.
The angel sighed, "Well played, Celestia. I have to ask though, did Trixie rat me out?"
"Cadence helped her realize that you make empty promises and came forward."
"Darn. I had such high hopes for her too. The Element Bearers?"
"That's none of your business."
"Fair enough. What happens now?"
"This."
*BLAST!*
She fired her spell at them. Isaac didn't even bother to dodge. The sirens weren't fast enough to avoid it.
That's when everything went dark again.
(Canterlot Castle, The Dungeons, 11:43 AM)
*SPLASH!*
Isaac was awakened by water to the face, sputtering and coughing as it dripped down his body. He was kneeling. He noticed that his hands and feet were chained behind him, as were his wings. The floor was a dull grey, as were the walls and bars. He was in a cell. There was also the matter of the magic-suppressing collar around his neck.
He looked up to see Celestia looking down on him with a grave expression, a bucket of water in her telekinetic grasp.
The angel smiled, "Interrogating me yourself. Smart choice."
"You'd just infuriate anypony else who tried." she scoffed. Shining Armor had offered of course, but she had refused him instantly. He was too angry at Isaac for what he'd done to Cadence. The angel would capitalize on that and enrage him further.
"True."
They just stared at each other for a moment, the silence telling of their relationship.
Celestia's eyes narrowed as she broke the pause,"Why did you let me catch you?" He could have dodged her paralysis spell, and she was prepared to fight him.
He perked up, "Ah, you noticed that? Well, I must admit I didn't realize what you were trying to do until I felt your magic in the caves."
"Informative, but that doesn't answer my question."
"Sorry. Once I realized that you've dealt with the changelings already, there was no reason to run from you anymore. Speaking of which, did you capture Chrysalis?"
She nodded, "Of course. Why did you leave Sunset Shimmer behind when you teleported away from the guards after you came out of the mirror?" It didn't make sense. If her old enemy had indeed recruited her old student, then surely he wouldn't leave her behind? Sunset was a great asset to have, due to her magical skill and potential. But if he didn't recruit her, then why take her with him through the portal?
Isaac shrugged as well as he could through the chains, "She doesn't want to work for me if that's what you want to know. I didn't even offer. She actually wanted me to drop her off in Zebrica so she could live the rest of her life as a hermit. How is she anyway?"
"Isaac hasn't corrupted her to his side. That's good news. Why does she want to be a hermit though?" Celestia wondered. Then she scowled, "She won't talk to me."
"That's not surprising. She's such a hard-headed mare isn't she?"
"What did you do to her?" she demanded. She was happy to have her former student back in her home dimension, and she knew that Sunset's parent's would be as well. However, Sunset hadn't said a word to either of them. Some ponies wouldn't find that really surprising considering how they parted ways, but Celestia knew her old student better than that. She expected Sunset to start accusing her of things or insulting her. Nothing of the sort happened. The unicorn just glared at her silently.
The angel grinned, "Why, I only shattered her self-confidence!"
"Damn him!" she thought. That would explain the hermit thing. The white alicorn growled, "Give me one good reason why I shouldn't petrify you again."
His grin widened, "Celestia, we both know that if you really wanted to turn me back into stone you would have had the Element Bearers standing at ready in front of mirror instead of that Goon Squad you call the Royal Guards. That way they could have blasted me the moment I came out of the mirror while I was still disoriented." It was quite obvious when you think about it carefully.
Her glare grew more intense, "Cute. The Sirens? Why did you bring them back to this world?"
"They're friends of mine. I read in Starswirl's biography that he banished three sirens to the dimension on the other side of the Crystal Mirror. Just after you and Luna turned me to stone. I didn't expect them to be the sirens that I knew, but I was pleasantly surprised when they were."
"You're being unusually forthcoming with information." she noted. It was... strange. Isaac only usually let others know what he wanted them to know, whether it was true or not.
"What is he planning?" she thought. He could be lying, but then why lie if he wanted to get caught?
"Of course. The more I tell you, the better off I'll be when you release me."
Her eyes narrowed, "What makes you think I'm going to do that?"
"You need me to change the Element Bearers, Shining Armor, and your niece back to normal. I can't do that if I'm cooped up in here."
"What makes you think I want you to change them back?" Of course she did, but she couldn't let him know that.
"Celestia, you're very paranoid as to who you trust with power. Rightfully so. Some peo-er... ponies, just can't be trusted with it." He thought of Discord, Sombra, Trixie, Sunset Shimmer, Chrysalis, and even himself!
The Sun Princess swore mentally, "He saw right through me!"
"I could have Twilight and her friends petrify you the moment after you change them back." she countered. It was a futile effort to scare him, and they both knew that.
"You could, but then the Polar Griffons would start rioting pretty hard when they learned that the guy who saved them from Nightmare Moon was in stone."
"I doubt they'll mind once I tell them your history."
That would change their tune pretty quickly. Add on the fact that he fused Nightmare Moon and Luna back together instead of killing or re-imprisoning the literal ball of hatred... He winced at the thought of their outrage, "True. My friends? What have you done with them?"
"They've been put in their own cells, awaiting trial."
Isaac frowned, "Why? They actually haven't done anything bad since they've returned. They're not even Equestrian citizens! They've done their time."
The white alicorn smiled, "Being accomplices to a wanted criminal counts." It was cruel of her to say that, and she knew it. But this was an interrogation after all. Besides, it was no less than he deserved.
He sighed, "Touche. What else do you want to know?"
"How much do you know about our future, and why do you know this? The unicorn formerly under your employ said that you told her that you know the future of this world as it would have been had you never come to it."
The angel scowled, "I was hoping she wouldn't do that. Why did she betray me anyway? I actually was planning on fulfilling my side of our agreement."
She shook her head, "Answer my question first."
"I only know events as they relate to your student since her arrival in Ponyville, and that knowledge is limited. Mostly worthless now considering the changes I've made. As to why.... Do you really want to know?"
Celestia frowned, "Miss Lulamoon also said that you gave her a hint as to how you have this knowledge. 'Daring Do is both real and fiction'. What does that mean?"
"What does a popular book series have to do with this?" she pondered inside her own mind.
"It means exactly what it says. From a certain perspective Daring Do is real and fictional at the same time."
The Sun Princess shook her head, "That doesn't answer my question."
Isaac cringed, "I really shouldn't tell you. I will tell you this though. I'm not in this world of my own free will. If I could leave, I would have left a long time ago. I don't even know for sure what type of force is keeping me here."
Her glare intensified, "That's not good enough."
He shook his head, "It's a bad idea." he refused to say anymore on the subject. It's not that he believed that she would react badly to the information, moreso what this information would do to him. It would color his past actions in an incredibly unfavorable light if she jumped to the worst conclusion. While it was true that in the past he had treated her and her subjects like playthings, but he hadn't always thought like that.
Celestia sighed, "I see...."
She turned around and left the cell.
*CLANK!*
The doors locked, leaving Isaac alone.