Luna paced around the throne room, her sister sorting through a stack of requests and matters that needed her attention. It had been a day, and the army of Solars hadn't returned. It was beginning to spread like wildfire that they'd sent an army to the Griffon Empire, and the media was quick to assume this meant war. Hundreds of ponies were in a panic, some barging into the castle in crowds demanding answers. Celestia was quick to ease their fears with the scroll that contained the griffon emperor's signature and consent for the army to move through his country.
Now, only Luna remained concerned, and seeing her sister act so calm made her furious. She stamped up the steps and swatted the stack away, sending parchment everywhere. "How can you be so indifferent?!" she nearly shouted. "Your Guard is out there, when they should have returned by the previous night!"
Her sister looked up at her, and Luna gasped softly. Her mask of serenity and calm faded, revealing her weary expression. "I haven't slept all night, Luna," she softly retorted, her magic gathering the discarded papers into a pile. "I know what was expected, and I'm anxious just thinking of the possibilities. All I can do is wait. We'll find out, but we cannot let our fears influence our actions."
The lunar princess lowered her head, then looked off to the side. "I... am sorry," she whispered, sitting on her own throne. "I only wish I could have been present-"
The doors swung open, and a Solar ran in. "Princess!" he called. Both shot out of their seats and waited with eager ears. "General Iron has returned. He wishes to speak to you at once! He's at the southern gate."
Celestia noticed the rakes and rusted splotches on the guard's armor, which brought a new anxiety to her mind. She hurriedly flew into the hall, her sister trailing behind. They maneuvered sloppily through the castle until they reached the southern entrance. The doors opened before they reached them, and the alicorns gasped quietly. Dozens upon dozens of guards stumbled and limped inside, bearing some sort of painful injury. Some were missing a limb, or even part of one, and those who weren't... were in black bags.
"Princess," a hoarse voice called. Celestia looked over to the stairs, just as her top general came limping up. He adjusted his crutch under his arm, then nodded for the two guards helping him to go on ahead. "What a clusterf-"
"General," Celestia cut in, her voice raspy, "what happened?"
He exhaled slowly and leaned against the wall, scratching his grey beard. "Shining Armor led the charge, half an hour later I get a Corporal screaming for us to run in, and then... those things started wiping us out." He gripped his side gently, which was covered in bandages. "Half a division was gone, rest of us barely secured anypony from that place."
Luna stepped forward. "What things?" she questioned.
The general nodded towards the makeshift crate being hauled in, which was flanked by a dozen guards. There were shouts and growls coming from inside, and with every yell the prison rocked atop the small carriage. Another came in afterwards, this one unmoving and silent. The princesses glanced to Iron, who just gestured for them to follow. They walked through the halls until they reached a set of stairs, then descended into the depths of Canterlot Castle's dungeon.
It was now a prison for very dangerous criminals, but it hadn't been used in years. Iron had the princesses wait an hour before he was certain there wouldn't be any danger. When they went down into the old cavern, they waited with Iron as he motioned for the guards to move the crates towards the prisons. They started with the rumbling one. They moved it into the entrance, then two unicorns pulled the front of it off.
A mare leaped out of her prison, and as she turned to run the guards moved the crate out and stepped back as a squad of earth ponies shoved a wall of crystal into the front of it. She bashed at the crystal wall, yelling and screaming as she assaulted her prison. Celestia and Luna watched in horror, neither knowing what to say about what they were looking at.
The mare was a pegasus, but her wings weren't made of the fragile vertebrae that she was born with. Instead, metal replaced most of the structure, the ends of her wings sharpened to a point. Blood ran down her arms from the base of blades that stuck out from her forearms. Diamond-cut talons jutted out from her toes, which she used to scrape at the crystal and floor. Her eyes mindlessly jumped between everypony on the other side of the opaque barrier, and she'd grunt and shout randomly at whoever she looked at.
"There were dozens of others like her," Iron sighed, lowering his head. "Unicorns, earth ponies... fillies... and colts..." He wiped his hand over his face and rubbed his temple. "They wiped out most of the cultists, half our platoon... even each other. It's like... they weren't ponies anymore."
Celestia moved closer to the mare, who focused her gaze on her and started bashing against it. She stared at her subject as she tried attacking her without remorse, and her general silently gasped as he heard a droplet hit the cold ground.
"How could somepony... do this?" she whispered, putting her hand on the crystal. "They don't deserve this... why..."
Luna looked away from them, then to the other crate as it started to creak. Iron heard the noise as well and moved over to it. "Is there another one like her in here?" Luna questioned, fearful of what else they'd made.
"Stallions, in position," he called, moving away from it as the guards moved it towards a second prison.
Instead of just letting it loose into the prison, several earth guards moved slabs of mana-draining crystal into the room, pushing it against the walls and cementing it into the ceiling. The floor was done next, and the final piece rested beside the entrance. Iron nodded to the earth ponies on either side, and they stabbed their spears into the openings to break the front off. Once the wooden grate fell off, the stallions tilted it into the cell, and a form tumbled into the cell. They quickly moved the cart away and pushed the crystal into place.
Luna watched the prone form groggily get its hands under itself. She stared intently on its body, since it lacked any sort of vibrant color or fur. It's mane was much shorter than anypony she'd seen, and it was missing any modifications that the mare had. It was still drenched in blood, but didn't seem to notice. It stood on its feet after stumbling, then slowly turned to look at them. She quietly gasped when its face came into view. Unlike other ponies, its head was compressed and without a snout. She couldn't see any more, since its face was covered by an iron mask that concealed anything above its mouth.
"Sister..." Luna slowly said. Celestia noticed the baffled tone of her sister's voice, and came over to see. Her reaction was similar to Luna's, although she showed much more curiosity.
The creature scanned the two mares, neither able to make out who it was looking at. However, when it noticed movement behind the alabaster unicorn, it focused its eyes on her. Its sudden interest in her put Celestia off, especially since it bared sharpened teeth to her. Her wings shifted anxiously, the malice in its eyes skyrocketing into a fiery hatred. It let loose a bellow as a row of metal claws pushed out from under the skin on its forearm, and small pikes jutted out from its elbows. Without warning, it charged at the crystal. Iron pulled the princess back as it slammed into the crystal, shaking the cavern on impact. Guards formed up on the prison while others pushed against the crystal wall.
"It hates anypony with wings," Iron said. "I thought it was just pegasi, but I guess alicorns are a part of the list."
They jumped as a small crack ripped into the crystal, the creature focusing its attacks on the single spot. Before it could get worse, they pushed the crystal to the side and stuck a hose into the opening. Cold water pressurized before jetting into the creature and sending it tumbling backwards. It yelled and sputtered wildly, slipping on every attempt to stand back up. The guards quickly repaired the crystal by adding mana to it. A new layer formed on its surface, filling in the crack and hardening.
"Alright, cut it off!" Iron shouted. The water slowly lessened to a trickle, and the crystal slammed into place. "I don't know what it's capable of. Before it was blasting us with boulders of mana, but now it-"
"Iron," Celestia interrupted, warily watching the creature stagger to its feet, "how could it use mana without a horn?"
"What are you talking about? It's right..." Iron stared at its forehead, which was matted down with its damp hair. "...Princess, I promise you there was a horn there when we captured it."
Luna glanced back to it, its glare returned with an icy set of teal eyes. "What sort of creature is it?" she murmured.
It started banging on the glass again, slipping every so often and body slamming the crystal. "Did it show any sentience?" Celestia questioned, glancing back to the equally violent mare.
"No... just growls and animal sounds," Iron sighed, moving towards the staircase. "Princess... there's a third survivor. He's like them."
Luna stiffened slightly before stepping forward. "And why isn't it with these two?" she demanded to know.
With another gesture to a guard, several stallions left the dungeon while one helped him up the stairs. "Is it wise to leave it here?" Luna whispered to her sister.
They heard its bellow as it banged on its prison, which prompted Celestia to glance back. "We won't be gone for long. Hopefully it calms down by then," she sighed, cringing at the sound of another smash. "But... just to be safe."
Her horn ignited in a golden hue, and she recited old enchantments in her head. The creature looked to her, then stopped its thrashing and waited carefully. "Princess, no!"
Without warning, Iron's hand grabbed the celestial princess's horn, snuffing out the hue. The creature snorted angrily before banging on the wall and shouting. Celestia looked to her general with confusion, and he let out a sigh of relief.
"That thing... whatever they did to it makes it immune to magic," he told her, peering over to it. "It'll absorb any unicorn mana that comes near it... and use it."
He moved his hand away from her horn, then gestured for them to follow. "Is there anything else you'd like to tell us, General?" Luna asked, her tone less than pleased.
Iron thought quietly, then looked over his shoulder to the younger alicorn. "Don't piss him off. And if you do… be ready to deal with the consequences."
The lunar princess was ready to retort, but her sister placed a hand on her shoulder to stop her. There was rarely any emotion she would see from Iron Clad. He was one of her oldest generals, also cold and easily angered. But she heard something in his voice she'd heard from him as a recruit and no time between then. For him to actually speak as he did meant he was bothered deeply. He'd been through much and didn't flinch, but now something was wrong.
They followed him into the guest halls and through the bedrooms. He limped over to a set of guards blocking a particular room, and they parted at the sight of their superiors. Iron's hand rested on the door, and he hesitated to open the door.
"They did this to them... to him... to that thing and the mare," he seethed. "How long did they do this... and why?" He fell to his knee, a guard rushing to help but backing away when he violently pulled his arm away. "What were those sick bastards thinking when they turned ponies into killing machines?! What demented bastard sees killing as sport?!"
He pulled his helmet off and viciously gripped his greying mane. Celestia walked over to him, kneeling and draping her wing over him. "Leave this to us," she told him gently. "Go rest, Iron. At your age you'll need it."
He shook his head with a bitter chuckle and stood back up. "Don't know if that's supposed to make me feel better or not..." He turned and walked past the princesses, stopping just a few feet away. "Remember what I said. Be ready to do whatever you have to."
She watched him limp down the hall before turning to the door. After a quick glance to her sister, who nodded for her to continue, Celestia opened the doors. The guest room was a comfortable size, with enough room for the queen sized bed and nightstands. Their regalia was muffled on the beige carpet as they stepped inside and closed the door. They scanned the room for anypony, but it seemed like the room was empty. Until, a small colt moved out from inside the closet to the right of the door.
Now the princesses understood Iron's agitation. Freshly dried blood covered his arms in streaks, while some stuck to the side of his head. His arms and legs were littered with scars, and his horn had small rods poking into his forehead around the base. He looked up at them with a dead expression, instead of the foalish wonder colts and fillies held when they looked to their princesses.
"Celestia... Luna," he said, pointing to them respectively.
The elder sibling smiled warmly at him and went closer, then crouched down to be eye level. "What's your name?" she asked, stealing glances at the scar on his bare shoulder.
"Why you want know?" he replied, looking at her ethereal mane. "You have pretty hair."
She smiled softly and kneeled, removing her pristine white gloves and extending her hand. "Thank you," she smiled, noticing his surprise at her gesture. "But your name is important, my little pony. To me, my sister, and to ponies who might be looking for you." She scooted closer and put a hand beside her mouth to pretend as though Luna wouldn't hear. "I can tell you silly names if you tell me yours."
The colt giggled and sat down, then reached into his ragged cloth pants. He pulled out an old piece of paper and looked over it. "Gold... Gli-mm-errr." He gave her the paper and crossed his legs as she read it. "Nete made lady write. She not like us."
Luna sat down a bit more formally than her sister and touched his hand. "What do you mean 'not like us'?" she asked softly, smiling with a bit of strain.
The boy lowered his head, playing with Luna's hand and messing with her nails. She felt awkward with him doing it so... suddenly. Celestia urged her sister to let him as he took a deep breath. "I taken there... mommy and daddy no see me... and I make it through forest," he said, rubbing Luna's hand on his cheek. "Friends... no make it... and Nete make sure I know how fight. He like me when he get to pit... that why he take care of us. We all grow up in pit. Then sun men come fight."
The Solar Guards. "And what happened to the others? Your friends and Nete?" Celestia asked.
The colt let go of Luna's hand, then looked at his blood stained arm. "They scared when sun men come... try running... but other master's fighters there. Sun men fight both, we fight both... Nete tried get all my friends away... but only I safe."
He stared at the ground for a minute, tears falling from his eyes as he silently thought. The princesses gasped as a small click resonated from his chest, and beneath the skin over his heart a cork turned and stopped the clicking. His crying quickly changed into sobs, and he slowly held himself as he did. Celestia wrapped her wings around him and pulled him close, muffling him into her shoulder. Luna looked to be on the verge of tears, while her sister had already let them fall.
"I want my mommy... and daddy," he whimpered, shutting his eyes. "I want this out of me!"
Celestia stroked his mane soothingly, wiping his tears before she spoke. "We'll find them, and we'll make sure you don't stay like this," she told him, nuzzling his head. "I promise."
The creature had spent all night and day attacking its prison. The mare had already calmed down, and now she only laid in her cell while it continued to pound on the crystal. Luna watched it throw itself wildly, screaming at her every so often before using the claws on its arms to scrape the crystal. It bashed its head repeatedly on the crystal, the iron not bending in the slightest. She waited for her sister to finish her duties for the day before they addressed their situation again.
To Luna, they couldn't reason with the animal she was watching. It was a waste of time to keep it inside, since it showed no sign of stopping its rampage. When it came to patience, she had little. If anything, the guards had just taken another creature from the sight and took it here.
"Luna." She turned as her sister walked down the steps and stood at her side, watching the creature continue to struggle. "I thought it would tire by the morning. We should give it some more time. It can't do that forever."
"I would be willing to place a wager on that, sister," Luna sighed, annoyed with the constant banging. "The mare is quiet now. Should we... release her?"
"Glimmer was calm after... that sound," she murmured, shivering at the memory of it. "She's been this way for a while, hasn't she?" Luna nodded. "We should try. No guards."
Celestia walked towards the mare's cell, gesturing to the guards to move the crystal wall. They lifted it out of the way, and Celestia slowly approached her. Luna raised a hand as the Solar guards tried to go with her sister, but kept herself wary as she watched. The solar princess crouched beside the magenta mare, then softly shook her arm. There wasn't a reaction at first, and she gradually shook harder. On her fourth try, the lady gasped and threw herself away from her.
"It's okay! It's okay," Celestia gently said, holding her hands up and stepping back. "You're fine now." The mare panted as she looked up to the alicorn, then cringed as she heard the creature bash on its prison. "Don't worry, he can't hurt anypony."
The mare looked no older than twenty, and even that was pushing it. "P... Princess Celestia?" she hoarsely managed to croak. "This... is Canterlot?"
Celestia smiled and nodded her head. "You weren't in your right mind, but now you're fine," she assured her, gesturing to the exit. "We should leave. Somepony must be worried about you."
For a moment, her eyes were blank, then she nodded and gritted her teeth. The talons jutting out from her feet clacked on the floor as she slowly moved towards the princess, wincing with each step. She snapped to attention when she felt a hand on her arm, which turned out to be Celestia. Together they walked out of the cell, then started on their way out. As they passed the only other occupied cell, the pounding stopped abruptly. The mare looked through the crystal wall, and her eyes widened at the sight of it. Luna waited for some sign or communication, and the creature finally stepped back as the mare started to run.
A number of guards gave chase, but golden and blue auras kept any stallion still. "Wait!" Celestia called to her. "It can't hurt you!"
"She's frantic," Luna said, flying up the steps. "We cannot scare her even more."
Reluctantly, Celestia slowed down, matching her sister's pace as they spotted her running down the hall. She stumbled not too far from the dungeon entrance, then collapsed onto her knees as they approached. Her whimpers and sobs reached them, and it became audible as they stood beside her.
"You're safe... you don't have to worry, anymore," Celestia smiled. "I don't think we've met."
Luna felt it was a poor way to break the ice, but it seemed to work. "L... Long St-Stride," she forced herself to reply.
It took her time to become coherent enough to talk, but the princesses were willing to wait. She was their only hope of finding out what had been happening, aside from the kidnappings and cult extremists. But both alicorns knew it wouldn't be a simple game of twenty questions. It all depended on whether or not she could compose herself enough to tell them.
After her weeping died down to sniffles, Stride wiped her eyes and looked to the princesses. "I-Is... there somewhere we could go?" she quietly asked.
Luna's horn ignited, and within seconds they were in one of the guest chambers. Stride shuddered at the sensation, then limped to the bed with Celestia's help. She pushed her lifeless mane out of her eyes and sniffled, tenderly pulling her feet onto the bed.
"We can have somepony take care of them," Luna said, hoping to comfort her. "And... remove what doesn't belong."
Stride nodded softly, grimacing in pain as a talon realigned itself with the others. The pain vanished as a soft gold aura lit up her foot, some of the skin healing as wounds closed. "It's all I can do, but we'll get professional help soon," Celestia smiled, sitting beside her. "I know this may be hard... but there are dozens of families that need answers... and your family will get one as well."
Stride took in the words, making no gesture or movement whatsoever. "I... I'll try." A blanket nestled itself around her body, and she pulled it close as she waited.
"What happened to you? How did they... change you?" The question was what they would have to go on for future reference, and Iron wanted to know.
She turned her head to the side and stared at the curtains. "I... I didn't have a family... I was in the orphanage in Manehatten," she explained, taking a shaky breath. "I was sixteen... almost allowed to leave for good... but some ponies stopped me on my way home from school."
Faces rushed through her vision, pulling her into the past and spitting her back to the present. "Did they take you somewhere?" Luna asked, a bit more stern than her sister. "Somewhere discreet?"
"No... they just... gave me to some stallions," she sniffled, wiping her eyes again. "They're the ones that... blindfolded me and... took me somewhere dark." Her body trembled and her eyes snapped shut. "That's... that's where they take you to do... this." She gestured to her taloned feet, then buried her face in her hands. "There wasn't any light... but I could everypony screaming... crying... begging."
Her tears had started up again, and she took deep breaths to keep focused. "How many were with you?" Celestia asked. "There must have been other ponies after."
She shook her head violently. "They were all quiet... only two colts and I left." Her hand ran along her arms soothingly, as if massaging pains that weren't actually there. "Then they put is in there... in the pit."
"Is that what you called the arena?" Luna questioned, her tone less cold than before. Stride nodded, shifting her eyes up to her. "And was the creature in the cell with you?"
Almost instantly, Stride seized up and broke. "He's the only reason I was alive until now," she told them, letting her eyes pour as she spoke. "He kept us all alive... but they wouldn't stop sending us out to fight... he taught me how to do it and now I can't get it out of my head!" she screamed, gasping for breaths with each hysterical sob. "I'm sorry... I'm sorry! They killed so many... and I didn't want to be next!"
This was it. The end of the line. One of Celestia's wings draped over her, and she looked to her sister with knowing eyes. Luna wanted to ignore it, but there wasn't any chance of that anymore. The creature had protected her, Glimmer, and whatever other ponies with them, presumably. It was intelligent. It had to speak Equestrian. But how would they coax it - no, him - into speaking to them?
Luna had no idea, and neither did her sister. "What is his name?" The mare glanced up at her, waiting for her to repeat herself. "Does he have a name?"
Stride nodded, and for the briefest of seconds,, her messy and broken state was replaced by a hard and proud mask. "His name... is Nex."