//------------------------------//
// Chapter 70: Negotiations 
// Story: Secrets of the Everfree 
// by PaisleyPerson 
//------------------------------//


Chapter 70
Negotiations


As promised, Water Mark renewed his spell every eight minutes or so to be safe, and additionally adjusted their ear pressure as needed. The trip was completed in silence. Though Water Mark’s spell would allow them to breathe underwater, it did not enable speech. Time Turner learned this the hard way. 
Charcoal soon realized that the hippocampi didn’t need to speak to be able to communicate. They had worked out an entire secondary communication system through body language. What he first mistook to be an elegant flick of a tail or a graceful spin actually turned out to be a conversation between the five remaining mares. To say he was fascinated by this unique sign language would have been an understatement.
They all took turns towing the passengers to speed things up, and often changed up who was towing who just for the fun of it. Each had their own style of travel, too. Kelpie tended to take her passenger slowly, pointing out the most scenic areas, while Jet Stream had more fun spinning with her partner or showing them some other trick along the way. Whoever traveled with Whirl Pool always ended up in the lead, as she preferred to travel quickly and efficiently. High Tide’s partner tended to travel closer to the surface, and whenever possible, the waves were used to their advantage and add momentum. Cascade preferred to use the currents not only to do the work for her, but also to make her fins flutter and shimmer as she not-so-subtly showed off.
The first portion of the trip was enjoyable, considering the only additional traffic consisted of a couple schools of fish, a pair of manta rays and once a passing dolphin pod. But as they neared their destination, however, the train began to encounter more and more hippocampi. To say they were shocked would be an understatement. Charcoal did learn, however, that the frantic waving of their head fins typically indicated fear. The nervous twitching of their flukes also seemed to indicate urgency. A few even darted off back the way they came, perhaps to warn the rest of the pod or the king himself. The grim, fearful expressions of their guides informed Charcoal that this was a very real possibility.
They were deep underwater by now, farther out in the ocean than Charcoal would be able to travel back on his own. The land ponies were now completely dependent on the hippocampi to deliver them back home. On the bright side, the farther out they traveled, the more ponies they encountered. Charcoal hoped this meant they would find King Trident’s palace soon.
Charcoal had only read about the abrupt oceanic drop-off’s where the reef suddenly gave way to deep water. Yet it was in one such recess that the city appeared to be located. Charcoal did wonder if it had been artificially constructed, however, because while the recess was nearly the size of Canterlot, it still formed a near-perfect circle.
Instead of dark and murky water, luminescent anemones lined every inch of the shelf not occupied by barnacle-coated houses. Round, hollow, bulbous structures absolutely covered the walls, each pod housing small hippocampus families. Charcoal thought they looked like the bulbs a giant coral plant, and if Trident’s power over the sea was as absolute as he had heard, they very well could have been. 
However, the natural coral residences were only located on the sides of the crater-like abyss. Even this great number of homes were not enough to accommodate all of King Trident’s subjects. Immense pillars of rock that could have only been hoof-made reached up from the sea floor, more modular homes embedded in the sides. Additional lighting also grew along these columns, and a few, much smaller poles consisted of nothing but luminescent plants. All together, the anemones provided enough illumination to simulate daylight. What really stood out, though, was the castle.
The walls were entirely coated in a thin layer of phosphorus algae, causing the magnificent architecture to shine like a beacon. Spires curled and twisted upward like tentacles grasping for prey, completely covered in coral, or perhaps created from the material. The palace itself was a giant dome, The roof plated in gold or some similarly colored substance. Fine gems, though mostly pearls, were embedded in the finely crafted moldings, and every inch of the wall had been embossed with intricate carvings or tile. Though concealed beneath the ocean waves, the castle was no less extravagant than any of the other royal princesses’.
Somepony had most definitely alerted the King of their arrival, for while wide-eyed civilians peered out from the safety of their entryways, a train of royal guardsponies now flooded from the castle to greet the intruders, spears pointed. Upon being surrounded from every angle with the pointy sticks, the five hippocampus mares stopped, raised their hooves in surrender and lowered their eyes, probably a sign of submission. Time Turner kicked out at his fellow land ponies to do the same. The motion must have satisfied the royal guards, because the spears were put away, and each of the nine traitors were led off by their own pair of escorts. No one put up a fight, mainly because they were still headed directly where they wanted to go anyway. The guards were leading them directly to the castle.
A pair of sentries closed the heavy, pearl-studded doors after them, and Charcoal’s eyes needed a moment to adjust to the darkness. Unlike the outside of the castle, which was almost blinding to look at, the interior was dimly lit. A few select pillars had been coated in the glowing algae to provide minimal light, and a couple deliberately placed anemones served as torches. The guards led them straight back through the dark hallway. There seemed to be additional passageways beyond the glowing pillars, but when Charcoal tried to look back, he could make out only blackness. The amount of light did increase, however, as they approached another set of extravagant doors. Charcoal assumed they could only lead to King Trident’s throne room.
Another pair of sentries opened the doors for the parade to pass through. Light gushed from the crack in the doors, and it took Charcoal a moment to make out anything in the room. It was enormous, at least considering how little it held. The walls were ringed with balconies, however, stacking three rows of seats like a stadium. Unlike uncomfortable bleachers, however, only a select few seats were posted on each level, and each were magnificently crafted. Only a few were currently occupied with hippocampi that could only be nobles or perhaps even royals. But it was evident who was in charge. The most extravagantly adorned hippocampus sat in a luxurious throne directly across from the door on the top tier. He glared down at his prisoners with the intensity only a leader could muster.
The stallion had a bright teal coat, and a very square, pronounced jawline. His mane was not as closely trimmed as most land stallions would cut their hair, and rows upon rows of golden fins ran down his neck. His cutie mark must have set the royal emblem, for the same trident marked on his flank had also been plastered on the guards’ armor. He had a high forehead, though this trait was almost disguised by the golden band and coral crown around it. In fact, he was almost covered in the expensive jewelry, thick golden bracelets clasped around his forehooves and tail. His three pointed head fins barely twitched, which only added to his cold appearance. His fluke was also triple-pointed and gold-tipped, as though trying to imitate the giant trident clasped in his left hoof. The extravagant pitchfork was formed of fine gold, glowing with the golden magical aura a unicorn might possess. The handle was made of stone, though this did not mean it was a simple work of art. The handle was built up in layers, rings of stone set atop each other, each band marked with ancient-looking runes or simply studded with yet more pearls and fine gemstones.
Charcoal’s breath caught in his throat, and Water Mark renewed his spell to be safe. But it wasn’t lack of oxygen that spooked Charcoal so much as the figure he made out seated on the floor by Trident’s throne. Current had beat them here!
Trident’s gaze forcefully flicked to the guards  holding the prisoners, and in an iron grip, they were forced flat to the floor. The land ponies hastily renewed their supply of oxygen as the wind was quite literally knocked out of them. Charcoal thought that this might be Trident’s way of taking out his hatred of land ponies until the sea king lifted his massive pitchfork. The golden trident glowed brightly, and began emanating pulses of energy. The sea retreated from the object’s power, and Charcoal scrambled for a hold on the ground as the water was sucked up from around him. Now he understood the guards’ grip: if they didn’t hold him down, he’d surely be carried away!
The king used his trident to clear all the water from the room, forcing it back out the doors that had never been closed, forming an eerie wall of water just outside the room. Then Trident’s gaze fell upon the guards on his side of the door, and without any water in the room, it took the sentries a little more effort to force them shut. 
Meanwhile, the land ponies gasped for fresh air, grateful to have solid ground under their hooves once more. King Trident lowered his enchanted scepter, cuing the guards to release their prisoners and slither to the sidelines. The hippocampi girls all clustered together, seeking comfort and some degree of protection. Ditzy also kept close to Time Turner, and by ‘kept close’, she really clung to him for dear life, nearly strangling the brown earth pony. Water Mark eyed Current, who coldly glared back at him from beside his majesty. He decided it would best to keep his head down and mouth shut. This left Charcoal to do the speaking, as he had intended to do all along. Yet, finally placed before the mighty sea king, his mind drew a blank for words. King Trident appeared to wish to begin the conversation anyway.
“You have come a very long way, boy,” he spat, piercing the thestral with his cold gaze. “You have been warned of both my hatred for your kind and my power,” he raised the trident as a reminder, “but still you came, and for that you have my attention. Current has more reason than any to hate land ponies, but she seems to trust you, so I have allowed you into my presence. But you have ten minutes, and you’re on the clock.” He nodded to a timekeeper in the corner, who obediently flipped over a massive hourglass. Trident leaned back on his throne. “Starting now.”
“Okay,” Charcoal crawled forward, rather surprised that Current had been so successful. He had expected things to be much harder than that. “Your majesty, I’ve come to warn you of a threat on the surface. It endangers both sea and land ponies alike.”
“Hmph!” Trident sneered. “Current has already explained the situation to me. These ‘changeling’ creatures are a threat only to you land folk. Convince me of why I should help you.”
“Convince you, your majesty?” Charcoal gulped. Trident slowly leaned forwards, eyes narrowed to slits.
“Convince me, boy. That was the deal, after all.”
“Deal, your majesty?” Trident shrugged.
“It’s your own time you’re wasting, so why not explain? You see, Current came ahead of you in an attempt to arrange a meeting. I was enraged, of course. One of my favorite, most reliable subjects not only developed a tolerance for land ponies, but even a fondness! Again! I’d have thought she’d learned her lesson the first time with that Buoy Mark character. And further, I find she’s gone behind my back for over fifteen years to keep in contact with a couple of petty thestrals such as yourself! Is my law not greater than they?” Any shred of kindness of sympathy he had shown before had burned away in his hot temper. Again, he took a moment to calm himself. “Yet, she was insistent. So we came to an agreement. If you are able to convince me to help you, then so be it. But if not...” a wicked, cold smile twitched at the corners of his mouth. “Then you all will rot in the coral keeps. Do we understand each other?”
“Coral keeps?” Jet and Kelpie trembled violently, tears even forming in the green one’s eyes.
“What’s the coral keeps?” Time Turner whispered to the shaken form of Whirl Pool.
“A dungeon made entirely out of coral, guarded by ghost sharks and electric eels in the darkest part of the ocean,” she dazedly replied.
“No one ever escapes the coral keeps,” Jet squeaked.
“At least not alive.”
“Hold on! Nopony ever said anything about prisons or deals!” Charcoal burst.
“Half-time, your majesty,” the timekeeper indifferently reported. Trident nodded.
“Five minutes.”
Charcoal sputtered a moment. He was only prepared to negotiate with the sea king. Now the lives of nine ponies depended on the outcome of this conversation! Charcoal helplessly looked to Time Turner. He said he was good at this, so why wasn’t he helping?
“Your highness,” the brown stallion finally stepped forward. Charcoal heaved a sigh of relief as the responsibility was lifted from his shoulders.
“Who is this?” the king demanded. “I agreed to speak to the boy.”
“Who am I? Isn’t that the question?” Time Turner casually mused. “You know when people- ponies- say someone’s not who they seems to be? Well, I’m the very definition of that phrase.”
“Phrases don’t have definitions, Doctor.”
“Shut up,” he barked to Ditzy. The gray mare just chuckled to herself and allowed him to continue. “Back to the question, ‘who am I?’. Well, I’ll tell you. I’m a Time Lord from the planet Gallifrey. I’m over 1,000 years old. I’m called the Oncoming Storm, the Destroyer of Worlds. The Lonely God. The Predator. I am fire and ice and rage. I am ancient and forever. I live at the center of time and I travel the universe. I’m feared by Dalek armadas and wanted dead or alive by the cyberman hive mind. But that doesn’t really matter. They’re just titles. Names. Useless words. My friends call me the Doctor, or around here, sometimes Time Turner,” he clapped a friendly hoof over Charcoal’s shoulder. “But I’m about to give you the real reason you should listen to me right now, so pay attention.” Time Turner paused, allowing for dramatic effect. The eerie silence worked more due to the fact that Time Turner had just gone from casually happy to cold and hateful in a matter of seconds. Trident appeared unimpressed by his boasting, or even the abrupt mood swing, but lifted an eyebrow in anticipation. “I’m you worst nightmare.”
“Oooookay, Doctor, Time Turner, whoever you are,” Charcoal dashed up to clap a hoof over his mouth. “We’re supposed to be befriending his majesty, not threatening him,” he cast a sheepish, embarrassed smile up to the unamused king, who flicked his tail in annoyance.
“Oh, believe me, Charcoal Stormwood,” Time Turner removed his hoof. “I’ve dealt with people like him. There’s no reasoning with a mind so set in their own ways that they won’t consider anything anyone else has to tell them. He promised to hear you out, but that’s just for show. Just look at him! He had no intention of listening to anything you have to say. He’s just biding his time, waiting for that hourglass to empty. Isn’t that right, ‘your majesty’?” The sea king chuckled.
“Clever boy.” 
“Please, your majesty, you have to help us!” Charcoal pressed his face to the soggy sea floor and begged on his knees.
“He won’t help us, Charcoal,” Time Turner said again, pulling the sonic screwdriver from beneath the collar of his tie where he had stashed it. “But, we don’t necessarily need him to agree.” Time Turner pointed the device at the king’s trident, and pressed the button. Charcoal’s heart pounded as the trident buzzed, and lost its magical glow. His majesty tensed. Time Turner looked rather proud of himself.
“What did you DO?” the king demanded, turning the scepter over and over in his hooves and shaking it a few times, apparently failing to exert its power.
“I rerouted the trident’s power to this sonic screwdriver,” Time Turner shrugged.
“What are you doing?” Charcoal worriedly hissed, wide eyed and heart pounding. They couldn’t afford to get on the king’s bad side. They had come fore his help, not his wrath. Time Turner shot him a cocky wink and returned his attention to furious Trident.
“You know, I’d be more than happy to route it back if you’d just lend us a hand- er, hoof? fin?- up on the surface with those changelings. What do you say, big fella? Oy!” Time Turner hadn’t expected the hippocampi soldiers to be so nimble. One of them leapt at him from behind, swiped the sonic screwdriver, and just as quickly scrambled back to the fuming King Trident. 
“My leige,” the soldier humbly presented Time Turner’s device, which the king angrily swiped. Realizing he wasn’t going to get any direction from the theif, he tried pressing the same button Time Turner had used to remove the trident’s abilities. The trident buzzed again, shimmering with the power it once held.
“Hmph,” Trident huffed satisfaction before tossing the screwdriver over the balcony. As it hovered in open air, the king raised his pitchfork, and fired. Everyone ducked as the shot whizzed through the air, meeting metal. The sonic screwdriver exploded into a hundred shards and obliterated parts.
“Aw! My sonic screwdriver! I loved that sonic screwdriver,” Time Turner moped. King Trident glared down at the insubordinate and selected a new target, considering frying him just like the screwdriver. Evidently, he decided against it, as he lowered the weapon again. Instead, he then looked to the waiting guardsponies. 
“Take them to the coral keep.”
“No!” Cascade wailed, burying her face into Whirl Pool’s coat. Current sagged where she sat by the king’s throne, and did not protest when his body guards arrested her.
“WAIT!” Charcoal cried as the guard’s hooves clamped around his arms. “I still have a minute left! Look at the hourglass!”
“He is correct, your majesty,” the timekeeper cautiously reported.
“You wanted me to tell you why you should help us. Well, here it is.” He briefly met Current’s gaze, who hopefully nodded encouragement from above. “The changelings can take on the form of anypony they meet. They can even create their own, original bodies. They know you exist. They know where you are. They can take on hippocampus form, and come down here. Rest assured that they won’t stop until they’ve seized your entire kingdom, overturned your rule, and converted every one of your subjects into mindless changeling drones. With legs. You’ll become the very thing you hate so much: land ponies.” Gasps of horror resonated through the throne room from the other nobles and royalty present. 
“We can still defeat them- Chrysalis and her armies, Kindling Pyre, all of them. But we need your help. We’ll have to work together.” Trident seemed to genuinely consider this statement for a moment, and the world stood still. Everything but the hourglass, that is. As the last sand follicles trickled into the bottom, the king’s gaze flicked to the timekeeper. 
“Time’s up.”
Charcoal’s world slipped into blurry slow-motion as the guards returned to lead them off. He had failed again, this time condemning his friends to a life in prison and his friends back on the surface to the changelings. Perhaps they would figure something out, and with luck, they might last a few weeks. But his whole plan had pivoted around recruiting the hippocampi, and they had refused. 
Chrysalis had won.