//------------------------------// // Chapter 28. As One Storm Passes... // Story: Resuscitatio Artium Magicarum // by Xomniac //------------------------------// The dungeons of Vitrum, located beneath even the ever-expansive Subarchives, could be described in a single word: imposing. A massive warren of vaulted crystalline caverns, located so deep that they were noticeably warmed by geothermal energy, they were at once unfathomably large and nightmarishly claustrophobic, due to the creeping darkness that pressed in on the barely-lit tunnels. In many more, they could be described as inescapable, terrifying, nightmarish... and monotonous. For all that the atmosphere of the dungeons was horrific, the fact remained that the vast, extensive labyrinth of crystal was perfectly devoid of detail, uniform to a T. From the outside, every corridor looked like the other, every door and cell appeared the same. Even if one were to somehow figure out how to escape their cells, that ‘one’ would be liable to spend eternity (or the vast majority of it) wandering aimlessly. Of course, that assumed said ‘one’ could manage to slip out of their personally-tailored bindings, whether they be chains latched to the ceiling, walls and/or floor, arrays wound around them like an arcane gordian knot, or some unholy yet sickeningly beautiful combination of the two. And that was all without mentioning how the cell’s exits were not apparent, blending into the translucent walls. Unsurprisingly, more than one prisoner had gone mad over the centuries. Few tears had been shed over them. Princess Mi Amore Cadenza was currently being subjected to the full suite of her prison’s capabilities: her wings, limbs, hooves, neck, barrel and horn were all equally ensnared in both a myriad of glyph-engraved mana constructs and enough chains to supply the Manehattan harbor’s needs for the next year and still have plenty left over for a full dozen goths. However, for all that she was restrained, it appeared that none of it was truly necessary. At least, not if her dejected expression and the way she allowed herself to hang limply by the chains was anything to go by. “Cadance.” A voice prompted Cadance to glance upwards slightly, barely registering Scholar, Seath and Chrysalis as they stood arrayed before her, watching her with carefully neutral expressions. “I know that I’m gong to most likely regret this...” Scholar sighed as he hung his head. “But... do you have any last words?” His long-suffering tone plainly begged for a negative answer. Unfortunately for the chief academic, his wish would not be granted as Cadance slowly lifted her head and stared at the Oligarchs with long-dead eyes. “We did what we did... for our people...” she croaked. “It was... and always will be... that simple...” She didn’t make a noise as Chrysalis slammed her hoof into Cadance’s throat, wrenching her head up to a full ninety degrees. Seath and Scholar could only sigh wearily as they observed the exchange. “You murdered billions...” the changeling matriarch snarled, inches away from Cadance’s ear. “Practically enslaved countless others. Crippled our artistic and intellectual expertise to a nigh irreparable degree. Do you really think that that... that worthless excuse of an excuse will absolve you of anything?!” Cadance shivered in by-now-numb horror at Chrysalis’s proximity before slowly shaking her head. “It’s... not an excuse... don’t want to be excused... It’s just... fact...” Cadance sniffed as tears streamed from the corners of her eyes. “We couldn’t take it anymore... so many died... so many died every day... every second... we couldn’t... you didn’t care...” “We couldn’t allow ourselves to care, you stupid, worthless idealist,” Chrysalis hissed. “Time and time again we emphasized it. Time and time again we faced off against fools who never listened! The words that should have been like gospel to you: we. Are not! GODS! We are not omniscient! We are not omnipotent! We have neither the ability, nor the knowledge, nor the right to permanently change our world! What you did was the height of foolishness! Of stupidity! Of hubris!” Cadance sobbed weakly as she attempted to shake her head, not seeming to hear Chrysalis’ rant. “We-We never wanted to hurt them… but they didn’t stop... nobody listened, so few stopped… w-why? We begged them... we tried... we tried... why didn’t they stop…?” Chrysalis faltered slightly. A myriad of emotions swirled within her for a moment before ultimately defaulting to rage. She swung her hoof back- “Enough.” -and froze at Scholar’s tone, his voice more tired, more exhausted than anything else. “Just... just... enough.” The human held his hand up. “She’s going to be punished enough as it is. We’re already taking something irreplaceable from her. We can’t do anything else. Let’s...” Scholar hesitated for a second before letting his hand drop with a defeated sigh. “Let’s just get this over with.” Chrysalis glared over her shoulder at Scholar for a minute before snorting and withdrawing her hoof, allowing Cadance to hang limply from her restraints once again before stepping back. Scholar nodded at her gratefully. “Thank you.” Chrysalis snorted darkly, refusing to look him in the eye. The Rune Keeper glanced up at Seath. “Do it.” The crystalline dragon huffed in agreement, raising his hands and conjuring a wide rune-circle before him. In response to Seath’s ministrations, the cell started to light up with wave after wave after wave of runes and glyphs, the light causing the shadows to dance and writhe across the crystal. Cadance slowly tilted her head back and forth as she took in the arrays, before looking up at Seath. “Will it be painful?” she breathed. Seath rumbled for a moment before dipping his head into a nod. “Excruciatingly so.” A smile of fatalistic bliss wormed its way onto the Alicorn’s lips. “Good.” And with that, the cell was flooded with light. -o- “- and while I personally do not find their music to my tastes, I find myself continually impressed by the creativity of electronica artists.” Octavia glanced furtively back into the small crowd of ponies trailing through the snow behind them, specifically at Vinyl, who was in an animated conversation with Rainbow Dash. “Please don’t tell Vinyl I said that. She and I are roommates, and it would make her absolutely insufferable.” Priscilla absentmindedly nodded in agreement, her mind still mulling over the music Octavia had described. “It is gratifying to know that new forms of art continue to still be created. And your opinions are safe with me, though I doubt I shall have an opportunity to share them anytime soon so long as you reside in Canterlot.” “Oh, well, you know...” Octavia shrugged as the group started to mount another hill of snow. “What with Scholar’s declaration of not intending any harm towards we civilians, I’m certain that I can arrange to return to Vitrum some time soon. I’ll most likely listen to a few operas, share my art, so on and so forth. I’m certain that relations won’t be that bad between our nations.” “I wouldn’t count on that, Miss Philharmonica.” Octavia and Priscilla looked over their shoulders at the voice, the pony wincing in admonishment whereas the homunculus maintained her cool expression. Shining Armor was glaring furiously at Priscilla, marching shoulder to shoulder with his sister through the tundra. “I think,” the captain stated, his tone colder than the surrounding snowfall. “That any interactions between Concordia and Equestria are going to be very tense for the foreseeable future, especially so long as my wife is unlawfully held in captivity!” Priscilla merely rolled her eyes at the very thinly veiled accusation, which prompted a frustrated growl from Twilight. “Will you just answer us already?! What did you do with Cadance?! Where is my sister-in-law!?” Apparently having reached the limits of her patience, the homunculus sharpened her gaze on the unicorns and rotated her scythe just enough so that the sun’s dying light glinted off it menacingly. “I kindly request that you still your tongues, lest I still them myself. Trust me when I inform you that that will not be a pleasurable experience.” Octavia pursed her lips as the two pseudo-royal ponies followed Priscilla’s commands, albeit unwillingly. “That was... rather crude, was it not?” Priscilla shrugged indifferently as she repositioned her weapon on her shoulder. “Mayhaps. But it was also direct. Simplicity was-” She hid a wince. “-is a much sought-after virtue in Concordia.” The earth pony musician considered this for a moment before shrugging in acceptance. “Fair enough. But nonetheless, I reiterate: Equestria is a peaceful nation. Surely some form of compromise can be achieved, no?” Priscilla made to answer, but before she could, she and the group crested a final hill on the tundra and came within sight of the train station. She promptly froze in her steps and stared forwards, taking in the sight before her with a neutral gaze. “I believe that that should serve as an adequate response to your question,” she supplied evenly. Octavia’s very verbose response was to choke on her own spit. Arrayed across the snow and ice were thousands of armored ponies, equipped very differently from the usual spears and golden half-plate of the Royal Guard. Earth ponies were arrayed along the border in a line twelve ponies deep, covered head to tail in mottled brown armor arrayed with somewhat darker runes. Horseshoes with wicked spikes covered their hooves, and a sharp metal horn protruded from their helmets, which left only their eyes and some of their muzzle visible. A glance up to the sky would reveal dozens of squadrons of pegasi. Some were equipped similarly to the earth ponies, in heavy armor liberally equipped with piercing weapons. Others wore a lighter, sky blue armor that left their wings bare but for sharp blades along their front edges. Saddlebags were draped over their backs, bulging with unseen but likely unpleasant cargo. Many of these lighter pegasi could be seen pushing storm clouds into place. And, though not visible behind the solid wall of earth ponies, there likely stood masses of unicorns preparing combat spells. But the army, impressive though it was, was simply window dressing for the two mares at the head of the line. Celestia and Luna stood at the forefront of the army, armor in gold and midnight blue on their bodies and a warhammer and twin sabres clutched under their respective wings, ready to be drawn and used at a moment’s notice. The alicorns, their armor and their weapons alike literally glowed with power; Celestia alone was outright melting the snow around her. “PRISCILLA!” Celestia called out, Royal Canterlot Voice in full effect. “SURRENDER YOURSELF AND YOUR PRISONERS.” Grabbing her hammer with her telekinesis, Celestia lifted it in the air and smashed it, handle first, into the ground, sending a out wave of heat that melted snow for a hundred meters in each direction and raised the ambient temperature by a few dozen degrees. “OR BE DESTROYED.” The party stood stock still as they stared at the display of power in aw. “Uh, Twilight?” Rainbow Dash whispered into her ear. “Have you ever seen Princess Celestia get like this? ‘Cause I’m not gonna lie, this is kinda scary.” “N-No, never!” Twilight hastily stammered out before gaining a contemplative look. “Though... I think she might have done this if Blueblood had been allowed to speak for another five minutes during a budget session a few years ago. Guess I didn’t imagine that smoke coming from her throne after all...” “Oh, this is nothing,” one of the Concordia-age ponies hissed out of the corner of his mouth. “You should have seen what she used to do whenever someone slipped up and used...” He shuddered in horror. “Instant tea powder.” “She wasn’t that bad... was she?” “My hoof to the gods,” the pony deadpanned, holding said limb up and displaying the prosthetic latched over the end. “You lost that to a manticore,” one of his comrades deadpanned. “A drunk manticore!” “You know what I mean!” Meanwhile, the homunculus who had been directly addressed was notably unperturbed. “Hmm...” Priscilla hummed, tapping her chin in thought. “Allow me to ponder my answer for a moment...” Without warning, Priscilla spun her scythe off her shoulder and slammed the tip of its blade into the ground, causing the earth to crack and splinter as it flashfroze, a tide of cold clashing with Celestia’s heatwave and causing the border between to steam and hiss furiously. “Never.” “BRAVE, BUT FOOLISH,” Luna scoffed, sliding her blades from their sheathes and twirling them menacingly. “YOU ARE IMPOSSIBLY OUTNUMBERED AND OUTPOWERED. YOU ARE A FORMIDABLE FOE, PRISCILLA, BUT FAR FROM INSURMOUNTABLE.” Priscilla sniffed haughtily as she wrenched her weapon from the earth and slid her finger down the blade. “I thank thee for the compliment, but the fact is that just as I am outmatched, you and yours are ill-informed. I have three advantages in my favor that serve to balance the odds.” The diarchs stiffened as they processed the statement. “AND THESE WOULD BE?” Luna demanded imperiously, not even her voice’s volume quite capable of masking her trepidation. “Advantage the first...” Priscilla raised her free hand and spread two fingers to indicate a pair of locations before her. “Backup.” A moment later, a pair of what appeared to be sharpened steel tree trunks impaled the areas indicated, the harsh and spiky runes engraved up and down their lengths crackling with restrained electricity. The sisters stumbled back from the spikes in shock, swiftly following their trajectories back to their points of origin. They promptly hissed in frustration when they realized that they came from the sides of two of the surrounding mountains. “Oh fuck,” Luna spat acridly. -o- “Hey sis, I think they noticed us!” “They don’t appear to appreciate our sharpshooting skills, do they?” “No, no they do not! All the more reason to show them off even more, no?” “Yes. Sister, would you mind adjusting our aims so that our next strikes will result in maximum casualties?” “Done and done, Veronica! Any specific requests, Null?” “Hmm... think you can point out their train cars?” “Hoooold oooon... got it!” “You’re the best, Nix!” “And don’t you forget it!” -o- “They have soldiers manning Outposts Kappa and Delta,” Luna hissed out of the side of her mouth at her sister. “No, they have the Twins and Veronica manning Outposts Kappa and Delta,” Celestia corrected morbidly. “The difference between normal soldiers and those three manning the ballistae is the difference between one of our soldiers and a newborn foal.” “Point...” the lunar sister admitted sourly. “Advantage the second,” Priscilla spoke up, waving her free hand in the air and trailing a line of runes. Instantly, the winds blew harsh and fierce over the tundra, howling and snapping furiously at the assembled army. Literally. Ponies in the first line shifted nervously as spectral lupine jaws snapped shut inches from their faces. To their credit, no one bolted. To their deficit, several dozen would later be treated for frostbite on very... private parts of their anatomy. By this point, the massive runes that lit up both through the earth below and in the clouds above were practically overkill. Priscilla tilted her head to the side in a motion that could have been mistaken as innocent in any other situation. “Homefield advantage.” “We are starting to see why our foes always cursed so vehemently whenever we brought the fight here...” Luna murmured with a tinge of nervousness as she contemplated the gargantuan arrays. “Never thought we’d be on the receiving end of this particular innovation. We would have been more lenient while designing it...” Celestia, on the other hand, promptly rallied and held her head high as she glared at the construct. “IMPRESSIVE, BUT STILL FAR FROM ENOUGH TO DETER US. THE BATTLE WILL BE DIFFICULT, BUT WE WILL STILL TAKE YOU!” Priscilla waited for a moment before allowing herself a slight smirk. “Advantage the third.” With a hand, she conjured up a relatively small and simple runic array, one designed simply to shoot a ball of light into the sky, which it proceeded to do without fanfare. For a few moments, the ball simply hung in the clouded sky, before a light gust of wind blew over the tundra. Then another, stronger. Then another. And another. The Equestrians looked up in confusion... and promptly paled in abject horror. “...shit.” Celestia concluded flatly. “Indeed.” Luna swallowed in agreement. “Oooooh boy...” Twilight pressed herself as low to the ground as she could. Fluttershy glanced around quickly to confirm that no one was looking at her before whipping a flask out of her wing and gulping down as much as she could. Priscilla lifted her chin haughtily at the Princesses. “Allies.” A shadow streaked overhead once anew, this one accompanied by a fierce, triumphant roar as a silver-blue dragon soared by at impressive speed, heading straight for Vitrum. The dragon was followed by another in dull bronze, then one in bright magenta, and then another, and another, until there was a steady stream of what must have been hundreds of dragons overhead, their wingbeats sending the snow awhirl and causing the very air to ripple with sound. The stream stretched from horizon to horizon, and as the ponies watched in stunned fear, a dozen draconic shapes broke off from the stream and started heading straight towards the gathering. “Please tell me We're imagining that they look familiar,” Luna squeaked in a distinctly higher-pitched voice. The choked sound that Celestia managed to conjure was answer enough. Before anyone could react, the dragons impacted with the earth like a cluster of meteors, each sending up a spray of snow, ice and dust. When the debris finally cleared, the Equestrian soldiers tensed furiously as they were confronted face-first with the unsurmountable truth that they were well and truly surrounded, the particularly titanic dragons looming menacingly above their ranks. Some clawed at the earth in ill-contained eagerness, snorting smoke as they eyed the soldiers, while others chose to merely glare with frigid hatred, their arms crossed and power seeming to pulse from their beings. Three dragons had landed to surround Priscilla’s captives: a lazy-looking dragon with red scales who had smoke trailing from the corners of his mouth, a sharp and attentive green-scaled dragon, and an ancient, and thus scarred and absolutely massive, pitch-black dragon. Priscilla nodded at the dragons in greeting. “Sorth. Franaxis. Kalurme,” she addressed to each in turn. “It is good to see you are well.” Sorth heaved a massive, jaw-stretching yawn, loosing a small fog of smoke in the process. “Well but tired, Lady Priscilla. The journey here was long and arduous. I would not begrudge a morsel at the moment...” His lazy smile took on a particularly menacing tone as he shifted his mass to loom over the group. “Particularly this familiar one here. Remember me, little pony?” Fluttershy shivered in terror as she stared up at the dragon, wishing she’d had a better proof in her flask. “H-h-hell-HURK!” She hacked and wheezed as the dragon engulfed her in a cloud of smoke. “Do be quiet, little pony,” Sorth snarled, smoke billowing from his everything as he loomed over her, the plume obscuring his form and making him appear more demonic than draconic. “It is taking all of my self-control to keep myself from smoking you alive for ousting me from my roost.” “For once, Sorth, we are in agreement,” Franaxis sneered, his emerald scales glinting as he eyed another member of the party. Spike shivered and shrank under the dragon’s glare. “Ah... h-h-hey big guy. Long time no see... h-how’s your horde doing?” The green drake’s leer grew as he flicked his tail, causing his entire body to become in what appeared to be a suit of scaled armor, a million million spikes and blades covering his body entirely. “Smaller.” “Ah crud...” As for Kalurme, the obsidian dragon merely chuckled menacingly as he spread his arms wide. “Ahhh, Celestia! Luna! My dears, it has been far too long!” he addressed the alicorns in what could almost pass as a jovial tone. “I’ve been waiting for this day for a long, long time.” Luna swallowed heavily as she stared up at the dragon, her swords faltering slightly in her magic. “H-Hello Kalurme. We have... missed you...” Kalurme responded with a harsh, dry laugh. “Ahhh, but nowhere near as much as I have missed you. I have been eagerly awaiting this day for... centuries...” The dragon hissed the word out. In the process, his features started to blur and fade out, his body becoming a silhouette of black. Said silhouette then started to... ‘open up’ for lack of a better word, becoming pockmarked with eyes and fang-filled maws. “The struggle to contain my enthusiasm has been...” The silhouette sucked in a harsh, raspy breath. “Unbearable...” Celestia shivered at the display, but rallied nevertheless, hastily sheathing her hammer as the rest of the dragons started to show their own unique abilities, with Luna following suit moments after. “Alright, Priscilla, you’ve made your point,” she ground out, unable keep a small note of fear from creeping into her voice. “Just... just have them stand down.” Twilight gaped at the display in shock, incapable of processing what she was witnessing. “P-Princess Celestia is... surrendering?” “I don’t think she has much of a choice, Twilight,” Shining Armor stated grimly, eyeing the dragons nervously. “I’ve heard rumors of these things. Elder Dragons. They’re supposed to be as old as time itself...” “A bit prosey, but essentially correct,” one of the soldiers supplied nervously. “Elder Dragons are dragons who are really, really, really old. As in, I recognize a lot of these guys old. And they were still old back then too. An Oligarch can beat one, sure, but a dozen at once?” the soldier shook his head flatly. “It’d be a long, drawn out fight and it’d be tough, but they’d win. Or at least, they’d live. Can’t say the same about us, though...” “I’m glad we can talk like civilized beings, Celestia,” Priscilla replied. “Sorth, Franaxis, could you step back a little, please? I don’t want them to be too nervous.” The dragons snorted in response, but complied nevertheless, backing away from the ponies. “And what about me?” Kalurme rasped as the other two slunk back a few feet. “You may stay. It would not do to be too lenient.” The shadow dragon grinned, displaying every sharp fang in his maw. “Excellent.” Nodding, Priscilla turned back to Celestia. “I came here to deliver a few missives from my father, and also send these ponies-” And with that she swept her hand over the small crowd behind her. “Back to Equestria. As you can see, they are unharmed.” Celestia nodded curtly, acknowledging the point. “What does Seath wish to tell me?” “First. Mi Amore Cadenza has been tried under Concordian law, and been found guilty of Xenocide, Grand Treason against Concordia, and Macro-Environmental Manipulation, along with an assortment of countless other minor crimes.” Predictably, that announcement led to an uproar, both from the Equestrian lines and from the ponies behind her. Soldiers leaned onto their front hooves, ready to charge; dozens of different voices were shouting all at once. And that was provoking the dragons, one of whom was already opening its maw. Even Luna was milliseconds from pulling out her sabers. Celestia and Priscilla were bastions of calm in the chaos. The two stared at each other, each waiting for the other to blink first. Finally, Celestia closed her eyes and took a deep breath. “SILENCE!” Everyone present froze, naturally responding to the natural command in Celestia’s voice. “Continue, Priscilla,” Celestia stated in a tone of icy calm. “Thank you,” the homunculus replied. “She has been sentenced to life imprisonment within the walls of Vitrum. However, due to her honest guilt, and her actions in defending the city and its citizens, she has been granted some degree of liberty.” Priscilla’s eyes narrowed at Celestia. “Liberty that can be rescinded at any moment.” Celestia’s eyes narrowed in turn at the thinly-veiled threat, but did not say anything. “Either way.” Priscilla crossed her arms and held herself up to her full height. “She will remain imprisoned until the end of her days.” Shining Armor ground his teeth furiously as he glared daggers at the homunculus’ back. He wanted to cuss her out, wanted to rant and rage at the sheer injustice of it all... but he knew that that would accomplish nothing. “Second.” Priscilla went on. “All members of the Equestrian military are hereby banned from Vitrum until the end of their days.” Shining Armor’s last strand of self-control promptly snapped like a dry twig. “YOU CAN’T DO THAT!” he roared, lunging at Priscilla with all his might. He was only stopped by Twilight and Rainbow Dash hastily grabbing on to him, holding him back. “We can,” Priscilla corrected politely, as though she hadn’t almost been assaulted. “And we have. Of course, this interdiction extends solely to individuals in military positions. Should you desire to re-enter Vitrum, the solution should be rather self-evident, no?” “Priscilla…” Celestia wearily interjected. “Please don’t try to poach my soldiers.” “Poach?” Priscilla laughed airily at the word. “You give your soldiers far too much credit, Celestia. No, this is simply cold-blooded torture of a deserving enemy. The conflict between heart and duty. I believe that Cadenza employed it more than once, no?” “You sick-!” Shining Armor bit out, but was cut off with a disinterested look. “Not sick, logical. There is a marked difference,” Priscilla shrugged before returning her attention to Celestia. “Moving on. Third is a declaration of status: in the simplest of terms, Concordia and Equestria are not at war.” “Uh, ex-cuse me?!” Rainbow Dash demanded. “Was I hallucinating the big fight we were just in earlier today?!” “That was us simply expunging the invaders who had occupied our city,” Priscilla replied without missing a beat. “We have chosen not to press the issue... for the time being at any rate. As for Cadenza, she is a criminal of Concordia who entered our borders and was thus tried accordingly. Of course,” she eyed the alicorns frigidly. “On account of your own status as criminals, sharing Cadenza’s crimes, any and all attempts at diplomacy between our nations can be considered well and truly nonviable, at any point in the future. But for the moment, we can agree on a truce: you leave us alone and we shall leave you... relatively alone.” Celestia’s nostrils flared as she recognized the threat for what it was, but attempted to remain civil nevertheless. “Priscilla-” “I apologize for interrupting you,” Priscilla interrupted without so much as a hint of apology in her voice. “But I do believe that it is time for you to depart. After all!” she emphasized when Celestia made to say something. “My father will be reactivating Vitrum’s border defenses soon, and will thus purge your railway from our leylines. It would be most... unbecoming for your army to be stranded within our borders. We might even need to...” Priscilla waved her hand airily. “Take action.” Kalurme chuckled out a gargled laugh, licking his mouth... mouthes eagerly. It was a thoroughly disturbing sight. Celestia briefly considered trying to protest, but instead reeled around and flared her wings at her army. “SOLDIERS! BOARD THE TRAIN! FULL RETREAT!” She sighed aggravatedly as she restrained her magic. “We’re going home...” The neat, orderly Equestrian lines collapsed as the soldiers started boarding the train, casting nervous glances over their shoulders at the leering dragons. The survivors of Vitrum followed, too, just as nervous around the dragons as the soldiers. Shining Armor was the last to leave, shooting Priscilla one final glare before trudging on board. “Princess Celestia?” Twilight asked as the two entered the car, her voice very small. “What happens now?” “Now, my little pony?” Celestia gave Twilight a genuine smile. “Now you get to go home and put this behind you. I’m so sorry you had to go through this.” “It’s alright, Princess,” Twilight replied. “I’d like to rest right now, so are there-” “The sleeping cars are three cars ahead,” Celestia replied. “Rest, Twilight. We have all the time to talk.” Twilight didn’t respond as she walked down the car. She barely even noticed as Spike split off from the group, mumbling something about using the restroom. She was tired; between the battle, the party, and the relearning how to use her magic in the span of hours, she was running on fumes. There was no reason not to trust Celestia. After all, omitting something wasn’t lying, right? Not... not technically at any rate. Yeah, yeah, that logic sounded about right to her. Sure, she was almost dead on her feet from exhaustion, but it still sounded about right. The sleep car was fairly basic, this being a military train. Just cots stacked three high with a thin foam pad, a sheet, and a pillow. To Twilight, it might as well have been a soft feather mattress. She plopped down on the cot and was asleep within seconds. Celestia, meanwhile, watched her last soldier board the train just as the car lurched into movement. Walking back to the rear window, she gazed out on the frozen tundra; if she squinted, she could convince herself that she could just see the islands of Vitrum’s Overloft in the distance. As she stared, Celestia found herself thinking back to the point in time when those same islands had not been present. “Come oooon! Look, I realize that it’s a bit of a fixer-upper-!” “A fixer-upper? A fixer-upper!?” ~~~ “A FIXER-UPPER!?” Celestia shrieked as she grabbed Scholar by the collar of his robe. “A fixer-upper is a house that needs new drywall and a fresh coat of paint. Maybe some roofing work! A fixer-upper is a dilapidated wreck of a shack, rotted by time and collapsed in on itself! Hel, a fixer-upper is a cave, dripping with moisture, lined with moss and sentient slime! This is not a fixer-upper!” With a twitch of telekinesis, Celestia swung Scholar around to survey the vast stretch of land before them. “This is a barren! FROZEN! TUNDRA!” The icy tumbleweed that rolled by only served to underscore the Alicorn’s point. Scholar stared forwards for a moment before popping a finger up. “If I might point something out?” “Please do,” Minos ground out, tapping the shaft of his great-axe in his hand menacingly. “We’re so interested in what you have to say.” “Well... Celestia said that this tundra was barren, which means it’s lifeless. However! That statement is inherently in-correct, on account of there actually being life on these plains.” The minotaur and alicorn present glanced over the frozen plain. “I don’t see anything,” Minos deadpanned. “Maybe some lichen on that rock over there. If you squint,” Celestia hissed. “Ah, no no no, you misunderstand!” Scholar held his hands up hastily. “There are plenty of indigenous species in the Great Ice Plains, they’re just not present at the moment. For example, the local subspecies of Windigo, the Boreads! There are also Ice Giants, Frost Spiders, more than a few Long-Haired Trolls, albino wyverns... oh yeah! I even heard tell of a blizzard atronach blowing through down in Black-GRK!” The human was cut off by Minos grabbing him by his collar and lifting him a clear ten feet off the ground so that they were at eye-level. “This. Is. A wasteland,” the minotaur ground out. Scholar choked and gagged for a moment before managing to catch a breath. “It’s also one of the most concentrated leyline convergences on the planet!” Celestia snorted as Minos dropped him onto the permafrost. “You couldn’t have opened with that?” “I told you last week when I informed everyone of the results of the global survey!” Celestia and Minos glanced at one another flatly for a second before glaring at Scholar. “We weren’t there for that meeting,” they chorused in flat unison. Scholar blinked and stared at them for a second before slapping a hand to his forehead. “Ooooh, riiiiight... My bad.” The two glanced at one another once anew... before they proceeded to simultaneously smack Scholar up the back of his head. “OW! Alright, alright! Geeze...” “So... anyways...” Celestia sighed as she rubbed the bridge of her nose tiredly. “We’re really going to build a city out here?” “Ah! Not quite! We’ll actually be building our capital here! Our primary base of worldwide operations!” A moment of silence. Then... “Minos, hit him again.” “GAH! Waitwaitwait!” Scholar hastily squirmed his way out of the minotaur’s grip and staggered away from them. “Look, it can happen! We’ve got more than enough free energy at our fingertips, so the sky’s the limit! Imagine it now!” He turned around and held his hands out wide. “A stronghold, impenetrable, protected both by its environment and arrays stronger than you’ve ever seen! A library, unparalleled in size and scale, containing the sum total of our planet’s knowledge.” “Just make sure it has a nice sparring ring,” Minos interjected, his voice showing he was clearly tired of the conversation. “A sparring ring!?” Scholar scoffed, visibly offended. “My dear Minos, this city will have an arena! Nay, a colosseum! The greatest, grandest center for combat and conflict on the planet! Worthy of housing fights between the gods! Or, lacking, them, us!” That caught Minos’s attention. “And... what about a greenhouse for my tea plants? I refuse to have them transported, it dries them out and ruins the flavor,” Celestia added hastily. Scholar chuckled lightly as he flung an arm around Celestia’s shoulders. “Celestia Celestia Celestia. Your scope is too small. I will show you a greenhouse like your mind couldn’t even begin to conceive! Entire ecosystems, built specifically for sustaining your tea, and only your tea! Cultivating it will be as simple as walking out your front door.” The human then released the mare and started to stride out into the wastes, gesticulating wildly. “I can see it now! Laboratories, lounges, libraries, clubs, shops, salons, restaurants, kitchens, barracks... this place will have it all and more!” He spun around and flung his arms out wide, presenting the world. “This will be our capital! Our home, our seat of power, our piece de resistance! With this, we will make each and every last one of our wildest dreams come true!” Scholar’s grin stretched from ear to ear as he all but burst from excitement. “This will be... our masterpiece!” ~~~ Celestia was jerked out of the memory as the train rumbled over… She glanced out of the window again. A bridge. She sighed as the memories slowly faded. Scholar had certainly delivered on his promise to make a masterpiece. Canterlot was a pale imitation of the grandeur of the crystal city. Not for the first time, Celestia thought back to ways she could have stopped this whole mess. It was a long list; two millennia of regrets will do that. “Princess?” came a voice from behind her. Turning around, she saw a white-coated Royal Guard. “They’re ready for you.” “Thank you. I shall be there shortly.” The time for regrets was long past. Mourning wouldn’t bring back what once was, and she was going to have a rough enough time dealing with what was now and what would soon be. -o- Priscilla sighed morosely as she watched the train pull away. Once it was well and truly gone, she turned on her heel to begin the long walk back to Vitrum. At last, she could finally check the progress of the maintenance work that was being performed on the city’s systems. Yes, she had faith in both the rune-workers and the city’s own automatic processes, but at times micro-managing was simply a necessity. The first few minutes were spent idly flicking through the reports. It wasn’t until somewhere in the middle that something caught her eye. But oh, what a something it was. Priscilla hastily skimmed the rest of the report, and then reread it, just to be sure. It said the same thing the second time, and the third. Eyes wide and mouth open, she let the rune display fade into aether as she quintupled her pace through the snow, tearing back towards Vitrum as swiftly as she could. “Oh, father is not going to be happy about this...” she hissed to herself. -o- “We are gratified that the Bearers are all uninjured,” Luna stated with some relief, flanking Celestia as the two and Shining Armor made their way down the length of the train. “Though, in light of circumstances, We find that the prospect of saying ‘We told you so’ is rather less satisfying than We expected it to be.” “Mmmph...” Celestia grunted noncommittally, her mind obviously elsewhere. “We are curious about one thing though...” Luna mused. “What of the musicians? How did they get all the way out to Vitrum? Last We heard, the two were at Miss Scratch’s club in Canterlot.” “I... think I can explain that one,” Shining Armor offered. “I wasn’t able to get all the details, but I’m fairly certain that I heard something about Pinkie Pie and a remix made by that red golem, Null?” “Say no more,” Luna snapped her hoof up with a sigh. “Knowing the little maniac, ‘tis more than answer enough.” The white unicorn thought about that for a moment before shivering heavily. “Yeah, I can see how that would work...” He then turned his attention up to Celestia. “So, what’s our next move, ma’am?” Celestia blinked as Shining Armor’s voice intruded on her thoughts. “Hm? Ah, yes...” the Alicorn frowned darkly. “As it stands, this detente that Concordia has established is little more than a facade, meant to earn them time with which to build up their forces and prepare to attack us. It will not be tomorrow, and it will not be next week, and there is every chance that it might not even be this year, but they will attack us, of that we can be certain.” Shining Armor narrowed his eyes as he considered the statement. “So what do we do in response?” The solar diarch sighed morosely at the question. “What can we do, Captain? For all that Scholar is crass, he prides himself on his accuracy... whenever he isn’t actively deceiving someone, at any rate. For all that our protracted period of peace has been kind to our people, it has also had the inevitable end result of making us soft. As it stands, we and Concordia are opposites: they do not attack us because of a lack of means, we are unable to defend ourselves because of a lack of will.” “As such,” Celestia came to a halt in front of a door to a cabin. “We take our only option: waiting, planning, and above all, preparing. As such...” Grasping the door’s handle, the Princess slid it open and stepped aside. “Captain, I’d like you to meet my new Military Chiefs of Staff.” “Or rather,” one of the ponies inside rumbled as he stepped forwards and presented himself. “Her old ones, so to speak.” Shining Armor’s jaw dropped open in shock as he registered the voice. “Wha- G- General Pilum!?” The ancient Equestrian grunted and nodded firmly. “In the flesh.” He raised a hoof and contemplated the rune-engraved that metal and stone that composed it. “So to speak...” Indeed, the Earth Pony General was no longer a ‘pony’, by most definitions of the word. Instead of natural flesh and blood, Pilum’s body was a golem, glowing with engravings and giving off an air of solidity. “So... you’re the only one of us who got out alive, hm?” Shining Armor snapped his head around and stared at the second golem in the room, this one built with a more slender frame and with a mana-encased horn protruding from its forehead. “Well...” the unicorn-golem sighed in a female voice. “I suppose that one is better than none.” “Oh lighten up, will you?” Another female voice spoke, drawing attention to a pair of golems with wing-shaped constructs protruding from their backs that were hovering near the roof of the cabin. “After all,” the second pegasus-golem continued in a male voice. “It’s not like we have any room to speak.” Shining Armor gaped in vivid disbelief. “Wh- I don’t-? Gladia? Arcus? Sagitta!? How is this- how are you all-!? I thought they killed you!?” “Reports of our deaths were greatly exaggerated,” Arcus supplied cockily. “Or...” Sagitta sighed and scratched the back of her neck sadly. “Slightly exaggerated, at any rate.” The Captain of the Guard could only work his jaw as he tried to come up with an appropriate answer before a white hoof landing on his shoulder snapped him out of his astonishment. “Everything alright, Captain?” Celestia asked gently. Shining Armor looked up at her in search for an answer. “How are they-? They died!” “You will find...” Luna provided patiently. “That while death was quite prominent in the days of Concordia, so too were means of preventing it in the midst of battle; so long as one were aptly prepared at any rate.” “Our armor had backup systems in them. Revenant Circles, we call them,” Pilum explained stoically. “They’re designed so that, upon death, our souls are preserved and automatically transported back to Canterlot. Once there, our souls are placed in simulacra until new organic bodies are grown for us.” “Thing is, though, we were really lucky to have been killed when we were!” Sagitta nodded sagely. “Yeah! If we bit it when the city’s soul-catching array was still up...” Arcus shivered heavily. “Well, let’s just say that it wouldn’t have been pretty.” “Still,” Gladia cut in with a sobering tone. “As it stands, the process is not perfect. Only half of our soldiers managed to escape, so we only have somewhere around one thousand soldiers from our time fit for duty, us included. The remaining two thousand are being held in stasis for their simulacra to be fashioned.” Shining Armor perked up at the statistics given. “W-was a soldier called Faithful Shield among you?” Gladia looked at Shining in what was most likely surprise. “Corporal Faithful Shield? He was one of my best soldiers, on the fast-track to a promotion. How did you know him?” “He saved my life in the battle, helped me get my head on straight,” Shining Armor explained. “I-is he-?” His heart dropped when the Unicorn general heaved a sigh and shook her head. “I’m... sorry, Captain, but the Revenant Circle isn’t foolproof. It tends towards a 40% failure rate, even on the best days, wherein the soul naturally dissipates into aether, and it doesn’t help that the majority of the enemy soldiers knew about the Circles, and were thus aiming to hit them. So... I’m truly sorry, Captain... but Faithful Shield is gone, and he will be sorely missed.” Shining Armor seemed to practically deflate at the news, his head dropping with a mournful groan. Still, as the soldier that he was, he visibly pulled himself together. “So. When will your new biological bodies be ready?” That question served only to drop the Generals into their own bouts of depressed silence. The biological Unicorn blinked in confusion. “Uh... what’d I say?” “Shining Armor...” Celestia started uncomfortably. “It’s been several thousand years since the Royal Equestrian Army was in the field. While the preservative capabilities of Canterlot’s archives are... extensive, to say the least...” “None of the recovered soldiers have any viable DNA samples from which to grow bodies, and their original forms are no doubt being disposed of as we speak. These ponies will never truly reclaim their own flesh and blood.” “LUNA!” Celestia admonished her younger sibling. “There is a reason that we considered bluntness a virtue, sister,” the Alicorn in question deadpanned. “It’s... alright, your Highness, Captain,” Pilum spoke up, his voice carefully devoid of emotion. “We’ve acknowledged and accepted our fates. But!” He held up a hoof. “We are soldiers of Equestria, so we will continue to fight for our nation for as long as we are able.” He held a hoof out to Shining Armor. “And we’d be honored to do it with the current generation of soldiers. We look forwards to working with you, Captain Shining Armor.” The Unicorn stared at him for a moment before smiling and shaking his hoof firmly. “Same here, General Pilum. There’s no time to waste; let’s start talking strategy.” Celestia nodded and made to speak... when she was interrupted by a knock on the cabin door. Luna rolled her eyes with a sigh before sliding the door open, revealing a somewhat skittish unicorn soldier who shrank back in surprise. “What?” “U-um... Pardon the interruption, your highness, but I was just running inventory on the armory and well...” The soldier lit her horn up and drew an object into view. “Is this yours, Captain?” Shining Armor’s jaw promptly dropped open in shock. “Holy-!” -o- “HELLFIRE! HELLFIRE INFUSED WITH SULPHUR AND BRIMSTONE! IGNEOUS BRIMSTONE!” “Now father...” Priscilla attempted to placate her progenitor. “I realize that this situation is most unfortunate-” “UNFORTUNATE!?” Seath bellowed, crystal fog billowing from his maw uncontrollably as he ranted and raged, pacing back and forth in the conference room he and his comrades were situated in. “BECAUSE OF OUR BLUNDER, HALF OF OUR INVADERS HAVE MANAGED TO ESCAPE JUSTICE! THAT IS WELL BEYOND UNFORTUNATE!” “Maybe so...” Priscilla admitted. “But the other half are still very much dead. As such, the matter is closed, no?” “NO! IT IS NOT CLOSED!” The pale drake snarled at his daughter as he rammed a fist into the nearest wall he could reach. “THIS MATTER WILL NEVER BE CLOSED! NOT SO LONG AS THAT- THAT CURSED WEAPON, THAT STIGMA UPON OUR SPECIES STILL EXISTS!” “It is not your fault that you missed the lance’s honor policy, father!” Priscilla pleaded. “But I did...” Seath fumed, no longer bellowing but still layering his voice with magic. “I overlooked it, I missed it, and now that blood-soaked abomination is in the hooves of our enemies. Of that ARROGANT BLOWHARD!” The dragon punctuated the statement with a blast of crystal. “Trixie demands to be let into the loop!” the blue unicorn interjected, confused frustration marring her voice as she hid beneath the table in an effort to escape the drake’s wrath. “Again!” “And hopefully with less rampage!” Gilda spat as she hugged the room’s ceiling. “I’m not keen on experiencing death by crystalfication! That honor is for the pony dweebs!” “We understand the issue with the soul-field,” Iron Will grunted as he tried to chip a layer of crystal off of his arm. “But what in the name of Hel do you mean by an honor policy!?” Chrysalis snorted as she pulsed the magic in the shield she was holding erect, causing the topmost layer of crystal to slough off. “A foolish enchantment that was occasionally engraved into Concordian weapons. It binds a weapon to its master in such a way that even space and time will fold in order to ensure that the two can never be kept apart. Only very specialized defenses are capable of stopping an honor policy.” “The problem...” Scholar mused as he leaned back in a chair, tilting it back and propping his feet up on a platform of magic. “Is that ownership of said weapon passes from person to person via ‘honorable’ combat. Basically, you defeat the weapon’s owner, said weapon becomes yours. Shiny beat what once was Aristo, so he inherited his dragon-slaying lance. Said lance is no longer awaiting processing in a vault, so we can assume that it’s in Shining Armor’s hooves by now. It’s simple, really.” “AND INFURIATING!” Seath howled, letting loose another blast of magic. “OUR VICTORY! OUR TRIUMPH OVER THOSE TRAITORS, SOURED BY A SLEW OF ROOKIE MISTAKES! I-! I AM-! RAAAAARGH!” The dragon threw his head back and howled, causing the room’s floor to erupt into a forest of crystalline spikes. “EEP!” Trixie squeaked, literally teleporting to land on Iron Will’s head. “Iron Will thought Trixie had not yet managed to master teleportation,” the minotaur noted, crossing his eyes to look up at his passenger while he held the crystals off with his free hand. “Trixie has discovered that terror is a terrific motivator...” the illusionist squeaked fearfully “Father! I must insist that you compose yourself!” Priscilla demanded fretfully. “This conduct is most unbecoming!” “Agreed,” Chrysalis added. “Even with this issue with the lance, the day wasn’t a complete waste.” Smirking, she cast a glance at the far wall of the room, prompting the disheveled pink blur that was somehow being reflected in the crystal without a caster to flinch and hide behind what could have been a mane. Seath fumed as he glared at the blur for a moment before snorting furiously. “You were granted this mercy so that you could continue to watch over ‘your’ ponies, not us. I suggest you get to it,” He let loose a vicious rumble. “Lest your privileges be... rescinded.” The blur flinched again but promptly complied, running along the walls and out of the room. Scholar watched her leave with a cocked eyebrow before turning a neutral stare upon Seath. “Well, you’re more than a little stressed.” To the human’s credit, he didn’t even even flinch as the dragon slammed his claws down on either side of him, craning his neck to loom over him menacingly. “And you are nowhere near stressed enough,” the drake hissed furiously. “I would think that you, a fellow being of science, would understand the necessity of each and every victory, the menace of every defeat. How are you so calm!?” Scholar pursed his lips and thought for a second. He made to respond... and promptly froze without warning. He then proceeded to snap out his Lexicon in a burst of runes, tear it open to a certain page... and grin a massively content grin. “The same way I’m calm most of the time, my good dragon...” he mused. “I know something that you don’t. And what I know is that I have just received confirmation of a massive victory in our favor.” That prompted Seath to hesitate for a beat in shock, his magic sputtering out like a blown candle. “Wh- wait, what? What is it? What have you learned?” Scholar held his hand up placatingly. “Tomorrow, Seath. It’s been a long day and we’re all tired. I’ll brief you once you’ve had some rest and are thinking clearly. Okay?” Seath opened his mouth to speak for a moment before ultimately trailing off with a regretful sigh. “You... make a good point. Very well, I shall retire for the evening. We will continue this discussion in the morning.” Scholar nodded in agreement before turning his attention to the other occupants of the room. “That goes for the rest of you as well. Grab some shuteye. We start work early tomorrow. Dismissed.” The others streamed out of the room, each heading to their own quarters and talking about something or other. Seath was still visibly upset about the day’s losses, but that was to be expected. It wasn’t long before Scholar was alone in the room, Lexicon still open to one specific page. Scholar glanced down at the page and read the scant few words written across it with a victorious smile, his mind drifting back to recall what had guaranteed the appearance of those words in the first place. ~~~ “Enjoy the party,” Scholar shot over his shoulder as he marched out of the room. “I imagine it’ll be the last one that Vitrum will be enjoying for a long, long time.” The human stomped down the corridor, fury and frustration lining his being. He was en route to the closest training ground he could manage with the intent of blasting apart as many targets as he could possibly manage... “WAIT!” When he was brought to a halt by a very familiar voice Scholar briefly entertained the idea of letting his wrath loose on the young dragon again as he ran to catch up to him, but was swift to reign in his temper. “You already gave me your answer, Spike. We have nothing more to discuss.” “No...” Spike panted as he doubled over, fighting to catch his breath. “No... I-I didn’t...” The Rune-Keeper rolled his eyes in exasperation without looking at the drake. “Didn’t what?” Spike shook his head desperately as he sucked in a new breath. “I didn’t give you my answer...” That prompted Scholar to turn around and shoot a look at the young dragon. “You just said you wouldn’t hurt your family,” Scholar stated with a deadly calm. Spike shook his head again as he looked up at Scholar. “I said... that I wouldn’t hurt Twilight...” he clarified in a quiet voice. “I never said anything about Celestia.” Scholar hid his jerk of surprise by drawing himself up to his full height, crossing his arms behind his back. “Name your terms,” he asserted emotionlessly. The young dragon swallowed heavily and hesitated for a moment before answering. “My wings, my fire, my size, my magic, all of it. Also, you do not hurt Twilight, or any of her friends, no matter what.” “If they stand in the way of my plans or of Concordia’s wellbeing and leave me no other choice, they will be dealt with. Non-negotiable,” Scholar shot back without so much as a second thought. “Understood?” Spike ground his teeth in exasperation for a second before nodding tersely. “Understood.” “Then deal.” Scholar rolled his shoulders and neck with a very audible series of pops. “In return, you will provide me with intelligence on the internal affairs of the Kingdom of Equestria. Any information you believe to be pertinent to anything, any information you believe could be beneficial to me you will forward to me via an enchantment I will layer into your fire. Deal?” Spike opened his mouth to say something... then shut it with a snort of green fire. “Deal...” he groused. “Good.” Scholar knelt down and held his hand out to the drake, a small array of runes glowing in the palm. “Put ‘er there.” Spike stared at the runes with trepidation, doubt coursing through his being... “Now or never, kid,” Scholar prompted. Twilight’s number one assistant sucked in a deep breath and grasped Scholar’s hand with his own... and promptly fell to his knees with a choked cry of pain as runes wound up his arm, encircling his neck and chest and flaring up before fading away. Once his hand was released, Spike choked and gagged as he massaged his throat, hiccuping up bursts of neon-purple flame. “And with that, we’re done,” Scholar announced, standing up and dusting his hands off with finality. “Y-you...” Spike wheezed through the foreign fire. “Calm down, that’s the enchantment I mentioned,” Scholar brushed the aborted insult off. “You can use it to send messages to me. Now, listen carefully: when you next see Celestia, there’s a chance she’ll notice this enchantment, even with your consent.” Spike snapped his head up and stared at Scholar in horror. “Oh suck it up!” The human rolled his eyes at the reaction. “Even if she does, you can deny it entirely and you’ll be free of fulfilling your end of the deal. However, if she doesn’t notice, then the first thing you’re going to do is find somewhere private and send me a message. It’s easy, all you need to do is flame me a note that says-” ~~~ “All clear.” Scholar smiled and nodded triumphantly as he reread the message once anew. "First move to me, Celestia,” he whispered to himself. “Here's hoping that this game is a quick and painless one." Without warning, the human hissed as a bolt of pain lanced up his right arm, originating from his hand. “For everyone’s sakes...” he grit out.