//------------------------------// // Chapter 14 // Story: Looking Glass, P.I: Coins and Crowns // by Kavonde //------------------------------// Nightingale charged past me. She slammed into Crown Jewel, knocking over the couch and flipping them both over it to the floor. I dove to the side as Blackguard's spear stabbed towards my chest, but couldn't avoid a follow-up punch that staggered me. Shaking my head to clear it, I noticed the spear circling around behind me. I ducked, again narrowly avoiding its tip, then pounced on it. The big unicorn growled in annoyance as he tried to levitate the weapon free, my weight making it too heavy for him to lift. I didn't have long to celebrate. He lowered his head and charged, razor-sharp horn leading the way. I rolled away, but not fast enough to avoid one of his heavy hooves coming down on my rear leg. I came up unsteadily, the injured limb not wanting to cooperate, still clutching the spear between my hooves. “That all you got?” I snarled. His nostrils flared and he charged again, but he was smarter than I'd hoped. I set my weapon to meet him, but he nimbly juked to the side and kicked me in the back as he passed. I was knocked forward, tripping over the damned spear and falling flat on my face. I scrambled away just before his front hooves smashed into the spot where my head had been, pulling myself into a three-legged gallop. I obviously wasn't going to beat this pony hoof-to-hoof; I needed a way to cheat. I ran for the giant bear. I heard the unicorn's hooves thundering across the floor as he closed the distance. I aimed for the opening between the creature's legs and dove through. Blackguard's size would work against him; he'd have to slow down to squeeze through. The unicorn's spear suddenly thudded into the ground in front of me, shaft quivering. I stopped short, which gave Blackguard time to circle around the bear and resume his charge. “Dammit!” I growled. This was really getting unfair. I ran for the bed next. The thing was huge enough for ten ponies–suggesting some very interesting parties here–and so thick with mattresses and blankets that there were stepladders on either side. I clambered up one side, trying not to put too much weight on my injured leg, and rolled onto the bed. Blackguard just jumped, landing beside me. He reared back, preparing to stomp me again. I grabbed as many sheets as I could in my teeth and pulled. The unicorn's eyes went wide as he tumbled backwards off the bed, hitting the floor with a thud and a rattle of armor. I rolled to the other side and dropped to the ground, looking for another advantage. I heard a snort of frustration, and then the whole freaking bed was shoved aside as Blackguard shouldered into it. One of the oaken bedposts clipped my bad leg, sending me spinning. I gained my bearings again just in time to see Blackguard pawing the ground to charge. I looked around; there was nothing nearby I could use as cover. With the weakness in my leg, I didn't think I'd be able to jump aside fast enough to avoid his horn again. Chances were, this was going to be it. Suddenly, a purple blur smashed into the unicorn, knocking him to the side. I heard a solid thunk as Blackguard's skull made contact with the corner post, and he reeled from the impact. This gave Nightingale enough time to leap onto his back, pull his head sharply to the left, and drive a horseshoe-clad hoof into the right side of his jaw. I heard a crack, and the massive stallion whinnied in pain and surprise. I almost cheered. I was cut short by a sword plunging out of the sky, narrowly missing my ear. I looked over to see Crown Jewel, spectacles broken and one eye swollen, glaring at me with murderous intent. His horn was glowing gold, and another sword was hovering in the air behind him. I gulped and rolled away as best I could, but wasn't fast enough to avoid a long, shallow gash down my flank. “This annoyance will cost you dearly,” the unicorn snarled. “I will kill you. I will kill Miss Nightingale. I will kill your little whore. I will kill everyone who has ever called you a friend. I will purge Equestria of the very memory of you!” Something dangerous and wild glittered in his yellow eyes. However unassuming and accountantly he might look, this pony was off his freaking nut. That might come in handy. “You're insane,” I told him conversationally. Another sword levitated towards him. “Many genuises are mistaken as such.” “No, seriously,” I said, edging towards a dresser. “You're crazy. Who talks like that? 'I will kill everyone, mwa ha ha.' You sound like a Daring Do villain.” “Silence!” he howled, hurling another blade at me. I dove behind the dresser, and looked up to see the tip of the blade poking through just above my head. I kept talking as I edged around, trying to keep out of the unicorn's line of sight. “I mean, I'm almost afraid to ask what your 'big idea' is. You know, the one you told Hot Air about? The one you killed Gold Coin for not supporting? The one Silver betrayed you over?” The entire freaking dresser suddenly glowed and shot upwards. I let out a manly little shriek and bolted forward before it came crashing down. I managed to get to the white worm thing before another pair of swords sank into the ground around me. Our attention was suddenly pulled away by a crash. One of the thick, reinforced windows had just shattered outwards, and I had just enough time to see Nightingale and Blackguard, tangled together in a frenzied ball of violence, fall through it. Well. Looked like I was on my own. “I know what you're doing,” Crown Jewel's voice came, suddenly far calmer and in control. “You are trying to enrage me, to make me slip up. I'm afraid your taunts will not work.” “Hey, I'm seriously curious,” I called. “You're already the head of the largest bank in Equestria, and the most powerful organization in Fillydelphia. You're ridiculously rich, your house is a frickin' citadel, what more could you possibly want?” “Autonomy, Mr. Glass,” the unicorn replied. I could hear more weapons sliding free of their mounts on the walls. I really didn't want to poke my head out. “You see, I've realized something. No matter how much wealth, power, or prestige I earn, I will never be truly autonomous. I will never be able to claim that no pony is my master. That no pony stands taller than I.” My eyes widened as I realized what he was saying. “You want to overthrow Celestia.” “And Luna,” he said. “And the rest of the royalty in Canterlot. I will create a new order, a republic, guided by those with ambition, intelligence, and the will to lead.” I couldn't help it. I laughed. “You really are insane, aren't you?” “Don't you see?” he hissed. There was a hint of earnestness in his voice, like he was honestly trying to convince me he was right. “I was moved to this plan by desperation. I used to have the autonomy I wished. Celestia had to devote much of her energy to raising both the sun and moon, and rarely interfered in my affairs. I was free to build, to expand my influence, to turn Fillydelphia into the utopia I imagined!” I snorted. “Utopia? Seriously? Have you been outside, like, ever? This place is a cesspit. Everypony in this city is either living in poverty or in the pocket of criminal bastards like you. You high hooves lord it up from your mansions by the shore, but everypony else is just doing what they can to scrape by!” “An unfortunate and temporary state of affairs. I am creating a new society, Mr. Glass. One must break eggs to have an omelet.” I ventured a peek around the worm, and immediately wished I hadn't. The unicorn was standing amidst a ring of weapons, all floating overhead and prepared to launch. “My new order will reward ingenuity, not tradition. Hard work, not idle fancy. Ambition, not mere heredity. And those that rise to the top will, in turn, raise others up behind them. It may be a slow, painful process, but in the end, everypony will benefit.” I looked around desperately. I was pinned here, between the wall and the worm. If I was careful, though, I might be able to crawl over the thing's legs and get to the other side without exposing myself to fire. Then maybe I could sneak around and hit the unicorn when he wasn't looking. “Sounds great and all,” I said as I started my climb, “but why do you need to get rid of Celestia? She's usually all for making ponies' lives better.” He laughed derisively. “Oh, I spoke to her. I tried to convince her to help me. But she refused. She said that my ideas would only lead to corruption and tyranny. That greed would lead those who rose to the top to prevent others from rising to replace them. That in the end, all I would create is another form of royalty, one beholden only to money and not the ponies they serve.” “Yeah, far-fetched.” He didn't seem to pick up on the sarcasm. “I assured her that I could make the system work. I told her that I was using Fillydelphia as a model for my ideas, and that within a decade, I would be able to show her the results of my labor.” His voice darkened. “She said that I was too radical, too impatient, that such a system would have to be introduced gradually if at all. She said she would begin watching Fillydelphia more closely. And ever since, she and her advisers have been second-guessing my every move, keeping me from forging ahead with my plans.” “So your boss was looking over your shoulder,” I said. Almost there, just a few more legs. “And that made you throw a little tantrum. Poor baby.” “Silence!” he howled. “It made me understand that I would never be able to realize my dreams for Fillydelphia. Not while an immortal goddess stayed my hoof. But if I removed her, removed her whole court, I could expand my experiment. I could test it on all of Equestria!” I dropped back to the floor as quietly as I could. From here, I should be able to make it to the kitchen area, and from there, maybe I could get to the door and get the hell out of here. Of course, there was a maze in the way. And there were probably guards coming, thanks to Nightingale and Blackguard's dramatic exit. But at least I wouldn’t have a crazy pony with an arsenal of medieval weaponry trying to kill me. “And how exactly were you planning to take out two goddesses and the entire royal guard?” I asked, readying myself for a gallop. “Plans within plans, Mr. Glass,” he said. “There are many in the world who would welcome a regime change in Equestria. Many who are willing to lend support to my ambitions.” “So, what? You're going to team up with the griffons?” “Among others.” I snorted. “Yeah, that'll end well. I'm sure letting armies of monsters roam free in Equestria will help you build your utopia. I'm sure everypony will just flock to your banner.” “Ah, but they will. Once Canterlot falls, I will set myself up as a hero, using my wealth and resources to drive our foes out of our borders.” “That's what you needed Silver for, isn't it?” I asked, surprising myself with the insight. “And Gold before that. You're not the kind of pony to sit on a throne. You like to rule from the shadows. So you had two chances to recruit somepony likeable, somepony with charisma, and you blew it both times.” “Unfortunate setbacks, but a strategist must be able to adapt his plans.” I peeked around the worm's side. Crown Jewel was still looking at where I'd been, all the swords and axes and spears still hovering around him. Okay. This was my chance. I crept out as quietly as I could, trying not to draw his eye. I'd almost made it to the kitchen when he spotted me. “Aha! Well played, Mr. Glass,” he called. “But I'm afraid this game is finished.” I dove behind the refrigerator. Metal shrieked as medieval weapons punctured the steel casing. Wood and marble shattered as they struck the counters. A toaster landed in front of me, an axe embedded halfway through it. More and more weapons flew at me, but the only thing that hit me was the fridge, finally knocked over by what sounded like a warhammer. I tried to scurry away, but my good leg was pinned, and other was too weak to kick free. I was still pulling when Crown Jewel appeared over me, a single, simple dagger hovering over his shoulder. “Goodbye, Mr. Glass.” “See ya,” I said, swinging my loose hoofcuff at his head. The blow connected solidly, and the unicorn reeled back, the knife clattering harmlessly to the ground. I managed to use my forelegs to push the fridge away, and limped to my hooves just in time to see him recover his balance. I let out what I hope was a masculine roar and tackled him. We went down into a pile of weapons. Each of us gasped in pain as our hides were sliced in numerous places. Jewel managed to pull free of me, picked up a knife with his teeth, and threw it at me. It slashed a long groove over my eye, which immediately began to fill with blood. I swung at him again, but he managed to take it on a front leg. His rear hooves came up and propelled me away, where I landed in yet more sharp-edged wreckage. He staggered up, but fueled by adrenaline, I managed to get to my hooves first. I tackled him again, this time launching us clear of the ruined kitchen and back to the fireplace. I hit him across the face with my hoofcuff again. It dazed him, but he managed to levitate an end table into the side of my head and knock me away. I growled and lunged at his legs, tripping him as he tried to stand. He somehow got me into a chokehold. I bit his foreleg, breaking the hold, and kicked him hard in the stomach. He headbutted me, knocking me away again and stunning me long enough for him get to his hooves. I shook my head clear and prepared to charge again, but stopped short when I noticed his horn glowing. I looked around for an incoming weapon, and instead found Calla, still bound and gagged in her chair, staring in wide-eyed terror at the knife pressed against her throat. “Desist, Mr. Glass,” Crown said emphatically, “or I will kill her.” I looked between him and Calla. I couldn't read anything in her expression but fear. She wasn't going to ask me to leave her, to take this bastard down no matter the price. She wasn't that kind of brave. That just made it worse. “You'll kill her anyway,” I growled. “You'll kill us both. We know too much.” He grinned humorlessly. “Indeed. But you won't let her die, Mr. Glass. We both know that.” I saw something out of the corner of my eye. I'd almost forgotten about it in the fight. But now, it was the last chance I was going to get. “She's Gold Coin's daughter, you know.” Crown Jewel quirked his head at me in mild surprise. “I didn't, no.” I nodded. “She met Silver about six months ago. Once they realized their relation, he bought out her contract. She knows everything Silver did about you. She knows all about your plans.” “You're hardly giving me a compelling reason not to kill her.” “She knew Gold, too. He used to visit her sometimes. He’d dote on her, make sure she was doing okay. She thought he was just an uncle, but she loved him.” “Yes, yes, very heartwarming,” the unicorn said impatiently. I glanced past him, then stared into his eyes. “Tell me, Mr. Jewel. What actually happened to Silver Coin?” He sneered. “I killed him, of course. Just as I did his father.” “I thought so.” Crown suddenly jerked and went rigid. The bloody tip of a spear emerged from his chest. The light around his horn dimmed and then died out, and the knife dropped to the ground. He turned his head as far as he could, straining to see his murderer. “That was for Gold,” said Hot Air, still bound and leaning heavily on the spear. “And for Silver. And for me.”