Stargate - Rise of the Sun God

by Arvaus

8 - Disease

Two years after first contact.

Celestia opened her eyes slowly, as a persistent ringing filled her ears; her alarm was going off. She swung a hoof out in its direction to silence it, knocking it – along with half of the contents of her bedside table – on the floor, then pulled herself out of bed and wiped the sleep from her eyes. She trudged out onto the balcony out of habit, and stood for a long while, starting out at the bright orange horizon where the sun was already rising.

Waking up just wasn't the same any more. Sure, she still had her duties to attend to during the day, but really any pony could handle those with the right training. The sun had been the one thing that was hers, and only hers, and without it calling out to her each morning as it waited to rise, waking up had become nothing more than another chore.

She went back inside and walked over to bathroom. Running a wash-basin full of cold water, she plunged her head under, waiting for the biting cold to kick-start her senses, before pulling it out again. She shook the water out of her fur and stared at herself in the mirror through bloodshot eyes.

"How did this happen?" she said.

As she got dressed she could hear sounds drifting up from the city below though the open windows. It was some consolation to her that her subjects were so happy, but no matter what happened she never felt able to share their joy. Ever since his arrival Ra's popularity had grown steadily, every single thing he did winning more and more hearts. But despite everything he had done, she could never trust him as long as he was looking at her through Starburst's eyes. He had done his best to try to persuade her, but she never felt convinced that Starburst had ever had any choice in what had happened.

Once she was ready, she left her chambers and headed down towards the dining hall for breakfast. Luna was waiting for her at the stairs.

"Good morning sister," she said, turning and following Celestia. "Did you sleep well?" Celestia gave her a withering look, so she moved on quickly.

"I have some good news for you, at least," she said.

"Oh, thank goodness!" Celestia sighed. "Did parliament finally reach a decision?"

"Yes, sister," Luna said, "and they decided that they do still officially support us, although the vote was close this time."

Celestia nodded. Canterlot's parliament had been in session for nearly three days debating whether or not to officially recognise Ra's authority in Equestria, but decisions like that were feeling more and more like formalities with no real weight as his support grew stronger. The population respected him so much that the idea of going against his will was almost unthinkable. For all practical purposes his word was law now.

"How close was it?" she asked.

"One hundred and eighty three to three hundred and fifty seven," Luna replied, "just short of the two-thirds majority they required to authorise the new law. The majority of our support came from non-pony members, as it happens, but–"

"Thank you," Celestia said, cutting her sister off as they entered the dining hall. Politics could wait until she had a full stomach. A waiter appeared carrying their usual breakfasts, but on seeing the look on Celestia's face he hurriedly put them down on the table and ran back into the kitchens. Celestia sat down and stared at her cereal.

"I don't know anymore, sister," she said. "Should I be worried?"

Luna sat down opposite her. "For my part," she said, "I can't say I blame them. The technology he has given us has advanced our science and medicine by centuries at least. Not to mention that he is charismatic, perceptive, attractive…"

Celestia glared at her sister. "Only because of the body he stole!" she shouted. "They'd see him differently if he was still that scaled monstrosity we pulled out of his ship two years ago!"

Luna waited a moment, letting her sister calm down before responding. "I know," she said. "In fact, I agree with you. I do not believe he has been honest with us about his plans and motives. What I am trying to say is that it is very difficult to fight against such a popular figure when all we have is supposition and gut feeling. Perhaps we need to give him the benefit of the doubt, at least for a while, even if just to get close enough that we can more fully understand him."

Celestia didn't respond. Luna rested her forelegs on the table and leaned forward. "I have to admit," she said, "that I sometimes worry we may not be giving him a fair chance. Are we taking this too personally?"

"You think I'm letting the fact that he stole the sun from me cloud my judgement?" Celestia said.

"I have lost something too," Luna replied. "And we still do not fully understand what happened."

Celestia didn't respond. She had thought about this herself countless times already, but still she couldn't think of any good response. Most of Equestria believed that Ra had genuinely fallen from the sky in their hour of need to save them from a natural disaster. The idea of trusting him seemed unthinkable to her, and yet countless citizens now did. What if she was letting her own personal feelings block her better judgement? Did she have the right to declare that the whole nation was wrong?

She took some consolation in the fact that there were still some aspects of this world which Ra had not yet taken control of. There was much more to Equestria's magic than just the sun and moon, and as long as the deeper powers remained hidden from Ra, she could still feel like there was something left that was theirs.

She was starting to have enough of this conversation now, so decided to let it drop. They could discuss what to do at some other time. She picked up a sandwich from the plate in front of her and took a bite out of it.

"This tastes different from usual," she said.

"Yes," Luna said, scratching the back of her neck awkwardly. "This may not be the best time to bring it up, but our old chef resigned. He… received a better offer."

Celestia's forehead fell to the table with a thud. "Of course he did. Do you have any more good news for me?"

"Just one more thing," Luna said. "Ra wishes to speak with us. He has requested that we meet with him, as there is something he wishes to show us."

"Wonderful," Celestia replied. "Perhaps he'll explain to us his dastardly scheme for world domination."

"Sister, you need coffee," Luna said. "Once you are ready, we can go over together and see what it is that he wants. We just need to remember to be civil."

Celestia took a deep breath. "Okay, I can do that," she said. She returned to her breakfast, thinking wistfully back to the days when she had enjoyed mornings.

---

An hour later the two of them made their way through town, walking back to the old hospital – the site of Ra's first public appearance. The location had turned out to be prescient; one of his first acts after arriving was to introduce a number of significant medical advances using his apparently extensive technological knowledge. Since then he had spent so much of his time at the hospital, healing and treating patients using his strange devices, that the doctors eventually just accepted that he'd moved in.

When they arrived, the street outside the hospital was remarkably quiet. It was often that way these days, given how many severe illnesses Ra's advances had essentially rendered harmless. There were a few curious loiterers though, probably having around hoping to meet their enigmatic saviour.

As they climbed the stairs to the entrance, Celestia noticed a number of bouquets of flowers laid on the pedestal from which he had given his first speech.

Inside, the hospital was almost empty. It was a while since she had last visited, and Celestia began to wonder if this was the norm as well, but as they made their way through the deserted corridors, she realised that something wasn't right. She tried to avoid jumping to conclusions, though, remembering her sister's advice.

Eventually, as she was starting to wonder if they knew where they were going, a young earth pony appeared round the corner ahead of them, cantered excitedly up to them and gave a bow.

"Your Highnesses," he said. "You're just in time! Follow me, he's expecting you."

He turned and headed back along the corridor. The two sisters looked at each other, then followed on behind him.

"Pardon me," Luna asked him, "but do you know what this is about?"

"I only know what my master has told me," he replied, smiling. "But I know that today will be a great day for Equestria."

"I take it you are happy working for him?"

"Oh yes," he said. "He's doing so many great things for our world, and I feel honoured to be playing even a small part."

He slowed down, looking around at the empty hospital as they walked through it. "My grandmother was here two years ago," he said. "She'd got a bad case of pneumonia, and the doctors weren't expecting her to survive long. Then Ra came, and she was up and laughing again in days! Every morning when he raises the sun for us, she makes sure to thank him for the fact that she's alive to see another say because of him."

Celestia glanced at her sister, who returned an awkward look. She had to admit that, no matter how much she felt the need to distrust Ra, it was very hard to justify it when so many of her subjects loved him that much. Perhaps she would have to admit that she was wrong eventually. She thought about it, looking at the warm smile on their guide's face, and for a moment could imagine that she may one day be able to be at peace with that.

They reached one of the wards, and their guide pushed the door open and held it as they walked through, before turning and heading back the way they had come. As she looked around the room, Celestia's brief feeling of cautious optimism evaporated.

The beds and equipment had all been cleared out, leaving the room feeling unnervingly bare, and the lights had been left off, the ward illuminated only by the sunlight streaming through the windows. Ra was sitting at the far end on a large, ornate chaise-longue, wearing a long black-and-gold robe, and a number of his followers stood to attention along the wall on either side; to Celestia's surprise all of them were wearing metal plate armour and carrying strange staffs that looked unnervingly like weapons. None of the weapons were aimed at them, and the guards actually looked happy to see them, but their being there at all was enough to unnerve her.

"Good morning, Princesses," Ra said, standing up and walking forward to meet them. "It has been far too long since we last spoke."

Celestia winced at the sound of the strange voice coming out of Starburst's mouth, but Luna's advice was still echoing in her mind, so she decided to try the friendly approach. She especially didn't want to do anything that might provoke the armed guards.

"Hello, Ra," she said. "I see you've made yourself at home here."

"Yes indeed," he replied, looking round. "It was a shame to have to turn away patients today, but what I need the space for is much more important even than that. I apologise for having to arm my aides in your presence," he added, turning and walking back to his seat. "I assure you that you are in no danger, though. In fact, they are here to ensure that."

"So what is to happen here?" Luna asked, following him to the other end of the room. Celestia held back for a moment, looking at the dozen guards and realising she recognised a few former royal guards in their ranks. Ra's influence really was spreading far.

Ra sat down again and took a moment to adjust his robe. "Very well, we can move straight to business if that's what you want. I asked you here today because I wish you to witness the beginning of the rebirth of your world. As I said when I first arrived, Equestria's magic is dying; it is losing purpose, being polluted by dark, unruly forces, and what happened two years ago was only the first sign of this."

The princesses exchanged a confused glance. They hadn't noticed anything worrying for two years now; as far as they could tell, Equestria was completely healthy at the moment. Could Ra, the newcomer, really know something they didn't? She could think of numerous secrets of Equestria that he didn't have knowledge of yet; there was no way he could have the knowledge he claimed.

"I have been able to hold back the end well enough until now," he continued, "but the decay is slow and relentless, and there will come a day when even I will be unable to control it. If this world and its inhabitants are to have a future, then it is time for the parasites which have been slowly destroying it to be removed. Then I will be able to take full control of the power of this world and lift it back to greatness."

"What parasites?" Celestia asked. "What do you mean?"

Ra smiled. "I don't blame you for any of this, of course," he said. "I doubt you ever knew what damage they were causing. You protected your nation admirably from the direct threats, but their effects were much more insidious than just outward aggression. They have no place here, so—"

There were loud noises out in the hallway suddenly: the sounds of fighting and shouting, and the clanking of heavy chains. Celestia backed away from the door as the noises got steadily louder and louder.

"Ah, just in time," Ra said. "Princesses, allow me to introduce our first guest."

The doors burst open and a squad of armoured guards came in, dragging a tall, struggling figure behind them, bound up in chains. While Celestia and the new arrival had never met, she immediately knew that it was the current queen of the Changelings.

"Let me go this instant!" she shouted as she struggled against the chains binding her wings and legs. "You'll pay for this! My hive will find me, and they'll—"

She froze when she spotted Celestia watching her, and their eyes met.

"You," she said, glaring at the princess. "Did you do this? Are you going to try to kill me too, like when you attacked my great grandmother?"

Celestia couldn't think of anything to say. Last time she had met a Changeling queen it had been in the middle of an all-out invasion, and she had been more than willing to do what was necessary to protect her nation then. But now that she saw this creature standing there, bound and helpless, she didn't know what to think.

Ra stood up from his throne and walked over toward them. "Hello, Queen… Nympha, was it?" he said. "I'm so glad I got to meet you today. Your race truly is a remarkable one, albeit a dangerous one."

"You did this?" Nympha screamed, straining against her chains to pull her head up close to his. "You attacked a peaceful hive without provocation? You slaughtered hundreds of innocent drones just to capture me? You will pay for what you did today!"

Ra didn't even blink as she drew in close to her. "Please don't try to do anything you'll regret," he said. "Your magic won't work in here, in any case."

Celestia looked across at her sister, who returned the surprised glance. She suddenly became aware of a faint tingling sensation in her horn, and when she made a cautious attempt to cast a spell, nothing happened. He'd actually managed to find a way to block their magic. No doubt this was meant for their 'protection' as well, but she was feeling more and more like she had walked into a trap.

"You shouldn't take this so personally," Ra went on, walking away from the queen again. "I am after all the Changelings, not just you. It is the only way to protect this world."

Celestia watched the queen, trying to find something to say, but her mind had frozen. The thought of the armed guards surrounding the room was still weighing down on her, and although she wanted to believe that they wouldn't attack her or her sister, she was afraid to assume anything of Ra right now.

The queen had gone silent as well, and Celestia could see the fear in her eyes, not just for her own life, but for that of her entire race. She could imagine Nympha's mind racing to try and think of something she could do to save her subjects. While Celestia had never managed to find common ground with the Changelings before, at that moment all she could feel for the queen was sympathy.

Ra was speaking again. "Anyway, I shouldn't delay too long," he said, pacing back and forth, "but I couldn't let this end without meeting you first. I truly think you are an incredible species; I'm not sure I have ever seen anything like you."

A sudden noise stopped Ra in his tracks. It took Celestia a moment to realise what it was as well, but eventually she realised that the queen had laughed.

"Have you not?" she said. Ra turned to face her again, and Celestia was surprised to see the queen appearing to fill up with confidence, standing to her full height and staring Ra down.

"I can tell what you are," she said. "There's something more to you, hidden under the surface. You and I are not so different, are we, both so loving to see through the eyes of another? Both loving to manipulate and control. But don't think yourself so powerful."

She pulled herself forward, approaching Ra and leaning down until she was nose to nose with him. She took a deep breath, then, as she stared at him in deep concentration, the scales covering her body began to change colour, a wave of crimson washing across her body from her head to her hooves.

"You can slow us down, but you cannot hope to control us," she said, grinning at him. "Our magic is more powerful than you know. My subjects will not go down without a fight, and nor will I, but if it is power you want, you could learn more than you realise from us. You would be much better off working with us, not against us."

Ra raised his eyebrows, considering her silently for a moment. "Remarkable," he said. "So there is a biological aspect to the transformations, as well as a magical one. I must say, I had wondered. That was a very enlightening performance."

The queen shrunk back, her bluff called. Ra gave her another appraising look, then said, "kill her."

"Wait!" Celestia and Luna called in unison, but the words were barely out of their mouths when bright orange bursts of energy flew in from all sides, bombarding the queen and knocking her off her hooves. Mere seconds later, she hit the ground hard, her eyes staring blankly into the distance, and the room fell completely silent.

Celestia stared at the motionless body, watching as the red pigment began to drain away again.

"Thank you," Ra said. He then addressed one of the guards who had brought her in.

"Please clear this up. We need to make space in here. How goes the rest of the extermination?"

"Perfectly, master," the guard replied, bowing. "The armour and weapons have helped considerably, thank you. We might even be done by the end of the day."

Ra nodded and the guard turned to leave, but then stopped.

"Oh," he said, "I also wanted to say, thank you for helping us finally do this. The thought of these… things always gave me the creeps. It'll be a relief to finally be rid of them."

"You are very welcome," Ra replied, smiling. "Your hard work and dedication will be richly rewarded, I promise."

The guard bowed again, then he and his colleagues dragged the dead queen back out into the hall. The two sisters listened in silence as the sound of the chains slowly died away.

"This was not necessary," Luna said, tears welling up in her eyes. "They weren't a threat—"

"I assure you," Ra said, walking back to his seat again and reclining back as if nothing had happened. "Not only was it necessary, it was inevitable. It was only a question of waiting until I was able."

Celestia stared blankly at the door, hardly able to believe this was happening. She felt like the room was shrinking in towards her.

"This was your great plan?" she said quietly. "The killing of an entire race who wasn't doing anything to harm us? The Changelings haven't attacked us in two centuries."

"You still don't comprehend the full extent of my design," Ra said. "This goes far beyond any one species. This is about nothing less than the restoration of the natural order of the entire world!"

"You keep saying that," Celestia shouted, spinning round, "but restoration from what? And at what cost? Who's going to be next to die for your plan? What's the point of saving Equestria if you only destroy it in the process?"

Celestia stared hard into Ra's eyes, searching to try and see any sign of compassion in him. But his expression remained unchanged. The Changeling queen had been more right than she'd realised; behind the friendly, benevolent exterior he had constructed, Celestia was starting to see his true nature. She really wished she had been wrong about him.

Ra sighed, then turned and sat down again. "I asked you here out of kindness," he said. "This has been your world to protect for so long, and I thought it would be only fair to let you have a part in building the new Equestria as well."

"If these are your ways," Luna said, "then we will never help you."

Ra nodded, "It is your loss," he said, "but the truth is that I never actually needed your help. There is already more happening than you can comprehend, so if your choice is not to stand with me, I must ask you not to stand against me. You will not achieve anything, and you may end up harming others."

Celestia seethed. Anger welled up inside her, but she felt paralysed. She wondered what would happen if she tried to do something then and there, but she could only picture him giving a single order and the guards around the room that had once looked up to her shooting her down as they had the Changeling queen. They seemed ready to do anything for Ra, and that thought alone terrified her.

"But enough distractions," Ra went on. "As I have said, there is much to do. And I believe our next guest is arriving now."

"Celestia," said a familiar voice. She froze, wishing that she hadn't just heard what she thought she had, but when finally she turned to face the new arrival, her heart sank. Six guard ponies were entering, carrying between them a tall metal cage. Inside it, hanging limply from manacles chained to the bars, was Discord.

"Long time no see," he said.

The guards dropped the cage onto the ground, and the two princesses ran over to him.

"We haven't seen you for decades!" Luna said. "Where have you been?"

"I was on holiday," he said, giving a weak laugh. "Just needed to get some personal space, you know?" He looked up at the chains holding him. "I guess I needed more than I thought."

"But how did they find you?" Celestia said.

"It wasn't that difficult," Ra said, walking up to them. "A magical disturbance as powerful as him shines like a beacon to one who can sense such things."

Discord looked up at his captor, raising an eyebrow. "You must be Ra, the little whiz-kid newcomer everypony's going goo-goo over. I almost considered coming back early just to meet you."

"So you have heard of me, then," Ra said.

"Yes," Discord replied, "a little birdie told me about you." He held up a hand, looking at it as if he expected something to appear in it, but nothing happened.

"Right, yes, I keep forgetting," he said. "You'll have to show me how you do that."

Ra shook his head dismissively and turned to walk away. "I'm afraid there won't be time for—"

"Wait." Celestia grabbed his shoulder and pulled him round to look him in the eye. "Stop this," she said. "Stop this now. You don't need to do this. He is a friend of Equestria."

"You really care about him enough to protect him?" Ra said, raising an eyebrow.

Celestia looked back at Discord, who met her gaze and tried to smile at her. She could of course remember all the bad things he'd done in the past, but that was all centuries behind them now. He'd learned so much since. He was a testament to how somepony could change for the better.

"Yes, I do," she said.

"I see," Ra said. He brushed her hoof off his shoulder and made his way back to his seat again. "Well as it happens, there is still something I need, so perhaps I will show him some mercy, if you can answer one question for me."

"If he asks you to marry him, say no," Discord said. "I saw you first."

"Please, Discord," Celestia said, closing her eyes and trying to keep her voice steady.

"Sorry," he replied. "I can't help it when I get nervous."

"Anyway," Ra said, "I have learned a great deal about the magic of your world since my arrival, but there is something remaining which I cannot place. This world has an immensely powerful magical field – much stronger than a planet this size should have. There has to be something sustaining it, but I have so far been unable to find the source. If I could find it and understand it there is so much I could learn, but it has completely eluded me so far."

He turned and looked Celestia in the eye.

"Do you know of what I speak?" he said. "If you do, and you tell me how to find it, I will spare your friend."

Celestia couldn't believe it. This was the closest thing to good news she had heard since her arrival. Ra didn't know about the Tree of Harmony yet. If it was still safe, then it might give them a chance at stopping him before he completely ruined Equestria.

But the excitement was short-lived. If they were to have a chance of using the Elements, they needed to remain hidden from Ra. If he learned where the Tree was, then before long it would be under his control, or worse. But was the secret worth the cost? Was it worth abandoning Discord?

There was a grunt behind her.

"Go on," Discord said. "Don't bother with me. I'm not important enough to save."

"Don't say that," Celestia said, turning and looking at him, tears welling up in the corner of her eye. "I'm not going to abandon you."

Discord shook his head. "No you're not," he said forcefully, "but you're not going to do something stupid to try and protect me either. You can't tell him something you don't know after all."

The two of them stared at each other, and a chill ran down her spine. During their interactions over the years she had become very familiar with Discord's strange ways, and knew to take anything he said with a pinch of salt, but something about the way he was looking at her told her that, perhaps for the first time in his life, he was being completely serious. He had finally learned to respect the value of the Elements of Harmony, and now it was going to kill him.

"I can't do this," she said. "This isn't right."

"Don't worry about me," he replied, smiling at her. "I've had some fun in my time, and that's what matters. Now you go, and be good."

Luna put a hoof on her shoulder. She looked up into her sister's eyes, but couldn't think of anything to say to her. They both knew that there was only one way this could go.

"I'm sorry," she whispered to Discord. Then, bowing her head and raising her voice, she said, "I don't know what you mean, Ra."

"Very well," he replied.

Unable to watch, Celestia closed her eyes and turned away. Moments later the room was filled one more with the sound of weapon blasts. It lasted longer than the first time, dragging out for an eternity as she fought to hold back her tears, but then it stopped. She didn't dare to look round, waiting until the sound of the cage being carried away disappeared before she opened her eyes. She didn't want to be able to remember the look on his face.

"Thank you princesses, you may go," Ra said. "I am glad you were able to provide me with this information."

Celestia looked in surprise, looking up at him as he looked down from his seat with a satisfied grin.

"Wait," Luna said. "What do you—"

Suddenly Ra roared with laughter. "There are hundreds of books in your library on the Tree of Harmony!" he said. "Why did you think I wouldn't be able to find it?"

Celestia couldn't believe her ears. "Then… then why…"

"Because," Ra said, "you haven't trusted me since the moment I arrived. You never were able to see past what happened with Starburst. I didn't know how far the distrust went, though. The Tree is buried in a hidden cave in the grounds of your former home, and it is one of the most powerful objects on the planet. If you were going to resist me anywhere, that is where it would have been. Before I began, I needed to know how safe you thought it was."

He picked up a small silver orb from by his seat and, looking into it, said, "We are ready. You may proceed."

He then looked up at the stunned princesses. "Very soon the Tree will be no more," he said. "My guards have been waiting for my order since before you arrived. With it gone, I will finally have full control of this world's magic, and I will be able to begin guiding it into a new era and toward its true destiny. Maybe you will one day understand the value of all this when you see what I can do, or maybe not. But either way know that your world has become a better place because of me.

"Now please leave," he said, fixing them with a forceful stare. "You are no longer welcome here."

---

The two princesses stepped out into open air minutes later, emerging onto a street filled with crowds of ponies who were trotting along in blissful ignorance of everything that had just happened.

"What do we do?" Celestia said. "Nopony will believe us."

Luna shook her head. "I know," she said. "I can barely believe it myself. But he will tell them himself eventually, and there must be some who will see him as we do when he does. We must find them, and we will fight."

"How?" Celestia said. "He's got everything now."

"We will find a way," Luna relied.

Comments

[ShadowShrike]

Ahh yes. More reasons to hate Ra. First, he's willing to commit genocide. Then he goes and kills my favorite character. For someone who is a major fan of the show, this is really portraying Goa'uld very well. CONTINUE.

[Ocean Waves]

An update?
And there was much rejoicing.
Followed by much lamentations.

[MrAskAPirate]

Man, John DeLancie is 0 for 2 against the Goa'uld,

[Black--Soul]

If they can block magic, than everything makes sense.
The sun and now what makes everyone unique.

Yep, Ra and his ilk kill ever other race. The strength in variation is to hard to control apperently...
Damn, kinda hoped they make Jaffa out of Ponies while Goa'uld are Changeling Queens/Kings.