//------------------------------//
// Chapter 3 - Interruption 
// Story: Shattered Harmony Part 1 - The Call 
// by Phazon_Corrupted_Unicorn 
//------------------------------//

Amant made his way back to the hotel after making sure everyling was comfortable. They had a busy day tomorrow and he wanted his company rested. He closed the door to his room and pulled out the small device, resting it on the table. He activated it and smiled as he saw the familiar faces of the sixteen Changeling rulers sitting at the council table.

<Good evening, Council. I trust that all is well in the Empire?> he inquired.

<Indeed they are,> Chrysalis stated, <how goes the work outside the Empire?>

Amant sat down on the bed and laid back. <Busy,> he said, <the supplies will help speed up the progress.> A knock came at the door, but Amant ignored it as he continued, <we had a bit of a rough start. It seems like the construction crew we had selected was in it more for the bits than for any fulfillment they might have gotten from helping me.> A knock came again and Amant frowned at the interruption, still remaining on the bed. <The dozen crewlings sent will also help. I found a new foremare that appears to be quite adequate for the job. She’s a member of the Apple family, on who’s land I will have my residence, and she can start tomorrow.> The knock came again, more insistent this time. Amant growled out loud, his anger rising.

<Wonderful,> one of the kings stated, nodding in approval, <it’s nice to see things are happening. Long have we waited for this moment. Now that it is here, we can’t afford any interruptions.>

Whoever it was at the door didn’t get the hint and banged on it. Amant’s anger rose to a boiling point as he hopped off the bed and stomped over to the door, flinging it open. “What do you want!?” he shouted. A bright pink pony stood outside with a basket in her mouth. She set it down at his feet as he vaguely recognized her as the pony that bowled him over when he’d first got into town.

“Hi, my name’s Pinkie Pie and I was going to throw you a party, but when you didn’t show up I figured that you might not have known where the party was, though I guess that might make sense as I was trying to make it a surprise party and if you knew where the party would be, then it wouldn’t be much of a surprise party now would it?”

Amant rubbed his temples. Pinkie Pie was rambling faster than he thought possible and it didn’t look like she was going to stop anytime soon.

“So I decided to pack you a basket of all sorts of sweets and goodies and bring it to you. But then I realized that I didn’t know where you were staying until I heard Applejack, who’s a really good friend of mine, I hope I can introduce you to her, well I heard Applejack talking about how a new pony had just bought a small part of her farm for a large amount of silver bits. Then I asked her when they were staying and she said that she had pointed them to the Lonely Wanderer. I knew where that was, heck I know where every building in Ponyville is, though not in Canterlot even though I’ve been there several times it’s just a large city that I don’t think even I could—”

Pinkie would have gone on longer if not for Amant shoving a hoof in her mouth. He sighed and smiled at the silence. “Thanks, but I don’t need any help right now. I don’t need to be bothered, so just take your basket and leave.” He backed up and started to close the door when a pink hoof shot out and stopped him.

“Are you really sure? They’re the best treats that you could have. I mean I do try and make the best treats for all my friends and even though we just met you could be my friend. I would really really really love it if you considered me your friend because I already consider you my friend. I want to hang out and talk with each other about all the cool things we’ve done. Or we could go pranking, Rainbow Dash and I love to go pranking. Rainbow Dash is another friend of mine that I could introduce you to…”

With each word, Amant’s anger rose. Finally he lit his horn, grabbing hold of Pinkie’s hoof and throwing it off the door and her away from his doorstep. “No, I don’t need friends. I don’t need your sweets. I don’t like them and I don’t like nosy ponies getting into my business. Leave me alone and let me play my game!” With that, he slammed the door shut and bolted it.

“Well, that wasn’t very nice,” Pinkie said, then trotted over and picked up the basket in her mouth. She turned and bounced away, already planning on how to make this new friend like her.

Amant watched her bounce away and sighed. The fate of this world didn’t rely on him making friends, only the manipulation of all the players. In order to do that, he needed to be focused, and he couldn’t do that if some crazy pony was trying to make friends with him. He heard a chuckle from behind him and he turned his attention to the council. Queen Chrysalis was chuckling and looked like she was having a hard time stopping herself from bursting out in laughter.

<I see you have met Pinkie Pie,> she said and Amant glared at her. She waved the glare away, <she’s a hoofful. Always wanting to plan parties and have fun. It was a pain to listen to her at the wedding. I don’t envy you one bit.>

<Yeah well, the sooner we get this over with, the sooner I can return to the Empire,> Amant retorted, <it was so much quieter there. Nopony trying to find out what you’re doing or trying to make friends. It’s annoying, really. Why does everypony have to be so happy? Can’t they realize what is going to happen? What is happening?>

<It’s their nature,> a queen stated, <my collectors report an overabundance of positive feelings when they’re around ponies. They’re dangerously optimistic. That’s all there is to it.>

<Anyways, let’s get back to the real reason I am calling,> Amant said, clearing his mind, <what do the Element Bearers look like?> The council looked at each other, then finally Chrysalis spoke up.

<I’ll send you what I remember,> she said, <it’s not much as it has been over five years since the invasion, and I was preoccupied with directing my soldiers to really pay much attention. But the ponies I remember being most predominant bore these outlines.> A screen popped up in front of Amant and he could see the outlines of six ponies, all mares, form on it. He stared at it, trying to remember if he’d seen anypony like them around town during the past day. His eyes flashed open when he recognized three of them. He raised a hoof and gestured to the three.

<These three,> he said, pointing at the three top outlines, <I remember seeing ponies similar to them. Their names are Apple Bloom, Sweetie Belle, and Scootaloo. Three mares, friends all of them.>

Chrysalis nodded. <My memory is not good enough, nor did I deem it important enough to remember their names. But as long as you’ve discovered three of them, we can begin our game.>

Amant nodded. <I’ll contact you tomorrow when I have more. Hopefully things will go better.> He ended the communication and tucked the device back into his bags, then slumped onto the bed and let sleep overtake him.