Even In Other Worlds

by Rytex

Aftermath

Even In Other Worlds

Chapter 13 - Aftermath

It had been only three days since Nova had sat in his parents’ house and learned that he’d had a sister. And they had been the longest, most torturous three days of his life to that point.

Word had spread, apparently, that Nova had gotten into a fight with one of the policemen and had killed him in self-defense. As such, none of the university teachers ever told him off for looking like he wasn’t paying attention. On the contrary, his professors seemed to pity him. Not once in the three days since had any homework or study been assigned, and even an exam that had been supposed to take place had been pushed back.

Even though Nova needed very little study to ace those exams regardless.

With regard to the students, there were two types. The first were the ones who offered him little sympathies. A kind word here, or a pat on the back there, and Nova appreciated how they were all willing to show him some kindness. But the second group, which was comprised of all six of the former Bearers of Harmony, Alex, those of the Council of Gentlemen that attended school, and surprisingly even Trisha, were going out of their way to help.

Trisha had even started backing off on the bitchy attitude around him....

“DON’T TOUCH THOSE PROPS, YOU PLEBIAN! THE GREAT AND POWERFUL TRISHA WILL-- Oh. Sorry, Nathan, didn’t see it was you.”

...most of the time.

He hadn’t quite the heart to resume any training or anything like that, so he just spent his time helping out. It didn’t matter where or when, he just did things, as long as he kept his mind off of what had happened. And at the present moment, he was in Trisha’s magic and party supplies shop, helping her to reshelve everything, along with Alex and Tracy.

“It’s fine, Trisha, really,” said Nova, smiling humorlessly. “You don’t have to treat me like glass. I won’t break just because you’re shouting at me, or anything.”

“Oh please, Nathan,” Trisha rolled her eyes. “Ever since… it happened, you pretty much have been. Even Stevie Wonder would be able to see it.”

Nova snorted. Every bit as blunt as Trixie, she was. Both a welcome and yet unwelcome sign. Welcome, that some ponies were so much like the selves they covered up that it made befriending them easier. Disheartening, because there were still some ponies that were completely masked. Twilight, for instance. While she remained studious and innocent, she had yet to show any inclination to seek out friends other than him, unlike her pony self.

But then again, after five had been awakened, a spark would cause the sixth to appear, after all. Perhaps it was for the best that she stayed under. He didn’t know what would happen if the Elements were reawakened out of order. If that were even possible.

It was almost a moot point, in any case. There was only one left to be awakened before he could put forth his efforts to reawaken the Element of Magic, and he hadn’t interacted any meaningful length of time with Regina since he had broken out.

He was reshelving several party crackers when all of a sudden, Nova felt a very familiar nexus of energy appear just outside of Trisha’s magic shop, and it was heading right for them. The nexus was unmistakably changeling in origin. Unlike Killik’s, Molossus’, Brutus’ or even Scheherazade’s, this one had quite a bit of extra power behind it, making its source unmistakable.

Queen Chrysalis was briskly marching down the street, right for the shop, and she looked none too happy.

“The fuck does she want?” he heard Trisha mutter angrily.

“Probably to talk about the incident,” answered Nova, already starting to walk out into the aisle.

“A couple of dirty cops attacked you and you defended yourself,” Trisha said, holding him back. “Is there anything more to it?”

“More than you would believe,” he replied as the queen pushed the door inward and stepped inside.

At once, he yanked his arm out of Trisha’s grasp and stepped out into the main aisle, where her green eyes locked onto his. Nova had seen such animosity in those eyes only once, and it was the day he had been dragged before her at the wedding.

“Chief,” he said, inclining his head.

“You and I need to talk,” she said, a dangerous sort of calm behind her voice. And Nova was startled to hear that the multiple tones weren’t behind her voice.

“Figured as much,” he said, nodding and stepping forward, but a hand caught his arm and held him back again.

“Why should he go with you?” he heard Trisha behind him. “You sent those cops after him, and all he did was defend himself. What, do you want to finish the job yourself?”

“Trisha,” barked Nova, giving her a warning look. “I’ll be fine.”

Trisha didn’t seem convinced, but she reluctantly let go of his arm regardless. As soon as his arm was free, he resumed his walking toward the queen. As soon as he was within about ten feet of her, she turned, opened the door for him, and followed him out into the chilly day.

“So, where exactly am I supposed to be walking?” he asked. “City hall? Prison?”

“Wherever,” answered the queen as she caught up and walked alongside him. “But you and I will talk. I have heard nothing of the incident save for a brief summary from Discord. None of the changelings seem to know why Molossus was in that alley. So, to get to the bottom of this, I am forced to confront you about it.”

“Why save me for last?”

“Because I know you ponies well, and I know you. Over the last three days, I have personally kept an eye on you to make sure it didn’t happen again, and I could, and still can, just feel the sorrow and pain you’re emitting. For a regular pony, you hide it better than most, but you can hide no emotions from me.”

Nova smiled wanly, and reached over to give her hand a soft squeeze of appreciation. He knew it had been noticed even before he touched her. The small bit of affection he had shown her had alerted her even before the physical contact.

“Nice to know you care for me, Chryssie,” he said sincerely.

A gentle smile, almost a motherly one, graced the Queen’s features. It was so different from the haughty sort of smug grin she always carried, Nova almost couldn’t recognize her.

“Why wouldn’t I?” she asked. “You saved me all those years ago, after all.”

“Define ‘saved,’” Nova spat. “It only delayed the inevitable. Ponykind and Changelings went to war a few short centuries later, you attempted an invasion of my nation only a couple of years ago, you almost stole the magic away from my special somepony not all that long ago, and apparently I’m now responsible for you being trapped in your position as much as we’re trapped in this world.”

“Do you really think so little of your doings?” she asked. “What of the good you brought about? You preserved Ponykind and the changelings, thwarted Sombra’s plans of an invasion, and are currently keeping the shadow at bay. And Nova, if we get out of this world, you have my word that we will attempt diplomatic negotiations as soon as everything has settled.”

Nova just sighed.

“If we get out,” Nova corrected her.

“What has happened to you?” Chrysalis asked. “Not even that many nights ago, you were so assured that you would succeed! Now? Now you seem to think everything has gone to hell and nothing will ever go right again.”

Nova, who had been staring at the ground as they walked, only hung his head even further.

“Where are we even going?” he asked glumly.

“I am following you,” she replied. “You seem to be wandering. Now then, describe everything that happened to me to the best of your ability.”

“Shouldn’t you already know?” Nova asked, scowling at her. “Wouldn’t you know from the hive mind? Do you think I want to talk about this?”

The queen shook her head. “It doesn’t matter whether you want to or not, for if you wish to prevent another incident, you must. Killik and Molossus disconnected themselves from the hive mind before they left. They didn’t say why, but none of the changelings thought any better or worse, as it is still a common practice when we cannot be distracted.”

They passed a fallen soda can on the ground which Nova kicked viciously.

“They confronted me in that alley, and Killik told Molossus to kill me under any circumstances.”

“There must be more to it than that,” Chrysalis replied. “Killik is one of my best tacticians. Surely he didn’t think that with so simple a ploy he could take down one of the cleverest and most powerful spellcasters in Equestria.”

“Wasn’t Molossus a specialist in battling unicorns?”

“He was our best,” admitted Chrysalis. “It makes more sense. I investigated the area and found barrier residue in the air, meaning he must have trapped you in. But why? Why go after you?”

“He said I was interfering with ‘their victory,’” Nova spat. “I figured you don’t exactly enjoy being here, so I have to wonder what the hell they’re talking about.”

“It’s quite simple,” Chrysalis said, a touch of distaste entering her speech. “She came and promised us dominion over the ponies. She did not say how, only that it would be.”

“And you accepted it blindly?” Nova asked.

“Of course not!” replied Chrysalis, scowling at him. “I was very against the notion the moment that harlot suggested it. But my children were dissatisfied at my answer. They shouted that I had already done enough. I had led them to defeat at Canterlot, and I had led them a second defeat under the light of the Secretariat Comet.”

“Are you not a monarchy?” Nova asked. “Can you not simply lay down your word as law?”

Chrysalis sighed.

“Unfortunately, I cannot,” she said softly. “My father saw to that. After my grandfather, King Insectus, incited a war against the Northern Kingdom and forced every changeling to accompany him into battle, my father betrayed him, took the throne for himself, and arrested Insectus, whom he presented to King Crystalis as a prisoner and a warmonger.

“To ensure nothing like it would happen again, he used his power over the hive mind to burn the command within every changeling’s subconscious that the king’s word is not law if most of the changelings dissent. And so, my children cried out against my refusal, and I was forced to go along with this foolishness.”

She gave a humorless smile as they rounded a corner.

“But there is far more to it than that, Nova. And this is what has caused you grief.”

“So changeling politics are the reason I... “ he trailed off. He just couldn’t finish without feeling a wave of guilt and shame.

A gentle hand touched his shoulder, and he started, surprised at the sudden feeling. The queen had an expression of gentle concern on her face. One Nova never thought he would see.

“There have been things set in motion that none of us could have predicted or acted against,” Chrysalis explained. “Up until the Invasion of Canterlot, I held near-unanimous support among the changelings. But our stocks of love energy began to wane, and we needed a permanent solution. Scheherazade recommended sending an envoy to Equestria to seek a diplomatic solution.”

“So what happened to it?” Nova asked.

“My advice was overcome through backstabbing,” came the voice of an elder from somewhere to Nova’s left. He looked over and found Scheherazade leaning against a wall, with the figure of Brutus standing further down the road, acting as a lookout.

The moment they locked eyes, Scheherazade stood up and offered his hand, which Nova hesitantly took.

“I understand what you are going through right now, Nova,” he said.

“Really,” Nova growled. “Why does everyone seem to understand what it’s like to cut--”

He choked on the words before he could complete his statement. And again, he felt the Queen’s comforting touch on his shoulder.

“I cannot speak for anyone else,” Scheherazade preempted, “but I am sure you will determine for yourself whether or not I am only saying it to comfort you or I actually speak the truth. I had much the same reaction as you did when I took my first life.”

“Just how I wanted to spend the day,” Nova commented. “Talking about how we’ve all killed others.”

Scheherazade chose to ignore Nova’s comment and simply continued. “It was right after the war had ended. I hadn’t gone with my King to battle. I was one of the few that was alive to remember the kindness the Rescuer had shown us, how he had saved our princess so that this war wouldn’t be fought.”

“Yeah, fat lot of good I did, huh?”

“How dare you belittle your own actions?” Chrysalis reprimanded him. “Need I remind you that you are the very reason Sombra does not rule over both Equestria and the Changelings this minute?”

Nova had no response, leaving Scheherazade to continue.

“A few ponies who had known where the hive was came looking to attack us while we were recovering. They struck at night, killing our sentries and attempting to poison the eggs in the Gestation Chamber. Our guards attacked them, and fight broke out. I happened to be nearby, and entered the fray.”

What was the most unnerving about his account was just how flat his voice was.

“One of them attacked me. I defended myself, but I tried to simply disarm and capture him. But during the fighting, he stumbled into my spear, and it sliced open his neck. The moment it did, I instantly felt the shock, the pain, and then the terror that coursed through him.”

Scheherazade shook his head.

“He was afraid of death. And as I held him, and attempted to ease his passing, he got worse and worse. In the end, I did what I felt was necessary, and I administered the Void.”

Nova felt his insides grow cold.

“I don’t like the sound of that,” he said.

The queen’s hand twitched for only a moment before it came off of his shoulder. Nova looked to see what she was doing, and saw that she had taken up the same position, except alongside Scheherazade.

“The Void is one of the worst things a Changeling can do to a pony,” Chrysalis explained. Nova noted her voice had gone just as flat as Scheherazade’s had. “It is our ultimate penalty for those who attempted to kill Changelings. Simply put, we remove the emotions from a pony completely.”

“Remove emotions completely?”

“Think about the ramifications. Imagine if you couldn’t feel sadness or anger again, or terror. While those seem to be benefits, neither can you feel joy, or amusement.”

The consequences began to dawn on Nova as the queen explained. What would such an existence be like? To have nothing that could bring you pleasure or happiness?

“I did it because I knew it would ease his passing,” Scheherazade said, and Nova noticed that, for just a flicker of an instant, Scheherazade’s voice shook. “But to watch as his face just lost all expression and became blank, shortly before his eyes closed completely…”

He took a long, deep breath to steady himself, and let it out through his nose slowly.

“You and I both know that nothing anyone else says will be of any help. Perhaps they might attempt to help shoulder the burden, but it won’t do much. However, perhaps it might help if you knew of the good that had been done through this action.”

“Is this the part where you tell me how Killik is a naughty changeling who’s getting coal for Hearth’s Warming?”

Chrysalis snorted, and Scheherazade cracked a smile.

“Even in your times of darkness, you still keep your dry wit. Definitely something I admire about you, Nova Shine.”

Nova’s thoughts, however, drifted back to his experiences on Nightfall. Of when he and Comet were attempting to take hold of the Elements they would be representing.

Being the element of laughter is more than simply being happy all of the time. Laughter is being able to see the good in a situation, even in the midst of a dark time. There will never be a pony who was never sad, Comet. There will always be sorrow. What makes you the Bearer of Laughter is that you will find a way through the situation by seeing the good in it.

Celestia’s wisdom seemed to speak right to him, even though it had obviously been intended for Comet. The thought that even when speaking to others Celestia was teaching him things just made him crack a small smile himself.

Plus, he’d be doing Pinkie Pie wrong if he didn’t find a reason to smile even once in a day.

“To answer your question, though, yes, this is the part where we tell you all about how Killik was a bad, bad changeling who deserved many spankings.”

Now it was Nova’s turn to snort.

“Good Celestia, where have you been all my life?” he asked Scheherazade.

“Perhaps for the good of everyone, I was in the Changeling Empire,” Scheherazade answered. “I must say, though, this whole exchange is surprisingly relevant to the conversation.”

“How so?”

“Well, changelings are very impressionable creatures,” Chrysalis explained. “We consume emotion and have our individuality, however changelings often decide for themselves how they wish their personality to be based on their experiences, because we can easily choose when and when not to take pleasure.”

“It sounds very strange,” Nova observed.

“It is even stranger for us to explain,” Chrysalis admitted. “After all, us describing this is like you describing how you learned to use magic. Everyone remembers that they did, but we don’t necessarily know how we did it.”

“Sounds reasonable enough,” Nova shrugged. “I suppose maybe Celestia can explain it better when we all return to Equestria.”

“Perhaps,” the queen nodded. “However, this being said, changelings often decide subconsciously the ponies they wish to emulate and why. Scheherazade here, if you recall, was very young the day you brought me back to the Empire. And he was there to witness the exchanges between you and my father before you withdrew to someplace more private.”

“It was in that moment that I felt we all could co-exist,” Scheherazade piped in. “You had saved our princess and defeated a plot by Sombra to enslave us all, and the Grey Monarch himself named you Friend to the Changelings. Suffice it to say, your standing among Changelingkind skyrocketed.”

“But…”

“But it was the young who strove more to be like you. The elderly, who had lived through the wars with Sombra’s Northern Empire were stubborn in their desire to remain prepared for battle and avoid diplomatic ties. Our politics are not like your principality. The monarch can only do what the majority of the children ask. They outnumbered our desire, and we remained closed off.”

“So what does this have to do with Killik?”

“Everything,” said Scheherazade simply. “Chrysalis’ standing among the changelings has been fast losing ground, the result of her failure to achieve victory at the wedding, and her failure to defeat Twilight Sparkle under the Secretariat Comet.”

“Perhaps we should start earlier,” advised Chrysalis. Scheherazade paused, but nodded. At this, Chrysalis addressed Nova. “From the day he hatched, Killik displayed an inordinate desire to please me. I thought this was a welcome sign of his loyalty for years to come, but it belied the ambition behind it. However, now that we are truly investigating all of this, we can say with certainty that what caused Killik to become the way he is was his first foray into Equestrian culture.”

“As I said,” said Scheherazade, “changelings are very impressionable creatures. We often take our young ones out to teach them how to slip in and out of Equestrian culture undetected after they have developed a personality. Killik was brought out too early without anyone noticing. This being said, his eagerness to please the Queen, coupled with his ambition, led to him reaching as high as he could. He replaced a Canterlotian noble for three days.”

Nova could already see where this was going.

“In those three days,” continued Scheherazade, “he learned for himself what self-service had to offer, how to get it, and even worse, how the use of tactics, be it in a political or a military sense, could benefit for years to come. That day, Killik returned to the hive a different changeling. We thought he had changed for the better, but we had no idea what had happened.”

“Killik displayed a brilliant tactical mind,” Chrysalis picked up, “and he quickly rose through the ranks to become one of the hive’s top tacticians. He would often send changelings on scouting missions, but in hindsight, they were little more than missions that would enable the younger changelings to taste the natural love of Equestria, all to a particular end.”

“He’s the one that suggested the wedding invasion!” Nova realized aloud.

“Exactly,” continued the Queen. “He suggested it, and the desires of the children to go through with it overrode any desires I had to refrain from it.”

“He set you up to fail,” Nova realized again. “He said it himself, he desires to lead the hive himself.”

“That was my theory,” Scheherazade said. “He set up the queen to fail at the invasion. He then advised the Queen to drain Twilight Sparkle’s magic, which she attempted to do, and it, too, failed. Her standing among our kind has been rocky ever since, and all of this, we believe, would eventually lead to him having enough support to administer a coup, so as to take the Queen’s power for himself.

“So when we say that you have done the changelings a service in slaying Molossus, we mean it sincerely,” Scheherazade gave him a sincere look. “Molossus was one of Killik’s favorite game pieces. Often used as a brute to attempt to remove unwanted pieces from the field, as you had the misfortune to discover. By killing Molossus, you have essentially removed his queen from the chessboard. As such, he will not underestimate you again, and you will likely not have to worry about him until it becomes clear you are very close to the realization of your goal.”

“Good to know,” Nova said. “One less distraction.”

“We fear he may be more than a simple distraction,” Scheherazade said. Nova felt a humorless smile touch his lips. Of course.

“Is he in cahoots with Envy, then?” Nova asked. “After all, Envy would hardly put all her eggs in one basket, even one as powerful as Nightmare Moon.”

“We believe that is the case, but we have no substantial leads to investigate such a theory.”

“Great,” groaned Nova. “So he’s working blatantly for someone else, but you have no way to prove it.”

“That sums it up,” Scheherazade replied, grimacing. “Not an ideal situation, but still a manageable one.”

He shook his head.

“With that thought in mind, I do believe we have covered everything I wished to bring you up to speed on,” Scheherazade said. “Do not close yourself off in light of recent events, Nova. Let your friends help you bear the burden, and you will heal.”

With that, he called to Brutus, and the two of them walked off, presumably back to their patrolling duty, leaving him and Chrysalis there alone.

“I worry about you, you know,” she said.

“I’m flattered, Chryssie,” replied Nova. “Really, I am. Times like this really make me grateful for all of my friends.”

“You… consider me a friend?” she asked, sounding surprised. “Even after aiding Envy in this enterprise? Even after the wedding?”

“Of course,” said Nova, looking directly into her eyes. “Now that I understand everything surrounding the wedding, how can I blame you?”

“Well, the second time around, I was motivated by vengeance,” the queen explained, shifting her gaze away. “Killik only suggested the idea, but I was too eager to comply.”

“Chryssie,” he said, laying a hand on her shoulder, “I forgive you. I still count you as a friend. Just promise me one thing, would you?”

“What would that be?”

“When all of this is over, at least try to push for diplomacy? Despite recent happenings, I feel like we would welcome you with open arms, just as we did for the Crystal Empire.”

Chrysalis stared at him, but after a moment, she smiled. “I will try. Success may not be on the cards, but at least I will try.”

“Don’t forget, you have the pony who successfully defused decades of tension between the Three Tribes there to help,” he boasted. “You know, not to brag, or anything.”

“Yes, I will take that into consideration,” the queen said, smiling in spite of herself. “I must be off. There is still work to be done, and with Killik’s latest plan backfiring, we can deal with some of the cleanup to set him back even further. If you need anything, you need not hesitate to ask.”

“I will remember that,” promised Nova.

The queen nodded, drew herself up, and marched off.

“Mind if I call you when I need you to open a jar of pickles for me?” he called.

She said nothing, but only gave the most sarcastic of waves as she continued on her way.

{E} {I} {O} {W}

Nova raised his hand to the dorm room door and knocked four times. Truth be told, be told, part of him really didn’t want to be here. But as he said, staring unheedingly at the board in Hoffman’s astronomy class, Rachel had taken the opportunity to slip a note into his pocket.

Hoffman seemed to have just let it go, considering he had been quite understanding over the last few days.

Out of class, as Rachel had gone off to her football practice, Nova read the note on the way back to his apartment.

Nathan,

I want to talk with you after football practice is over. Concerning that date you owe me. Can I meet you at my dorm when practice is over? Gretchen should let you in, since there’s no track today.

Thanks,

Rachel

As soon as Nova had read that second run-on sentence, he felt a little miffed for multiple reasons.

She used a run-on sentence! And she’s a grown-ass mare! Who the hell does that!?

Frankly, regarding the actual meaning of said run-on sentence, he was a bit relieved. He could finally get at least one of his two dates out of the way. And this one was, in his analysis, the most problematic of the two. The co-date with him, Rachel, and Ashleigh was probably going to be more of a fun night out than an actual date, given that Rachel probably wouldn’t try to make moves with Ashleigh hanging around.

And on the bright side, with those past, he could openly pursue Tracy.

But… there was something about that concept that bugged him.

Am I pursuing Tracy, or am I attempting to pursue Twilight through Tracy?

He cast that thought aside fairly quickly. Regardless of if he was pursuing Tracy, she and Twilight shared personalities. And in the end, Tracy would be cast away after Twilight remembered her true self. So what was he fretting about?

The door to Rachel’s dorm opened, revealing a girl a bit older than Dash, probably around his age now. Nova had to admit, the two years he gained from time travel were making things confusing. The girl was tall and lean, a bit taller than him even, with white hair ending in purple tips, golden eyes with purple eyeliner, lips painted with golden lipstick, nothing more than a brown athletic bra covering her bust and a pair of short track shorts on her lower half, and a very unfriendly scowl at the sight of him.

Despite her being a runner, Nova couldn’t help but notice she had a fair bit of muscle, particularly evident in her abs.

“So, you’re Rachel’s boyfriend,” she said, crossing her arms. Nova was not pleased to note that her nails seemed sharpened compared to normal nails.

“Uhh, it’s complicated,” he replied. I should trademark that phrase by this point, he thought with some amusement.

“Whatever,” the girl said, stepping aside and allowing Nova in. “I’m Gretchen. Rach just texted me. Said she’d be here in about five minutes, or so, since practice just ended.”

She smirked.

“I hope you don’t mind dealing with two girls in their athletic underwear.”

“I think I can handle it,” Nova said, shrugging. “It’s not like I haven’t seen Dash’s bust before.”

“Oh,” Gretchen said, before her smirk deepened. “Have you two--”

“No, it was an accident,” Nova refuted flatly. “She was twisting to try and get a view of that red lightning bolt on her back, and she had forgotten she was holding up her bra.”

“That’s no fun,” she said. “Are you coming in, or what?”

“I’m coming, I’m coming, keep your shirt on,” Nova groaned.

“You’d like it if I didn’t, wouldn’t you?”

“Oh boy, here we go,” he rolled his eyes. Gretchen just smirked even wider.

“Don’t tell me you don’t want any of this,” she gestured to herself, even going so far as to puff out her chest and spread her legs just enough to draw Nova’s gaze downward.

“I don’t,” was the deadpan response, his eyes not budging from staring at her’s.

Gretchen made a strange “snrk”ing noise, before chuckling. “Oh lighten up, dude. I’m just teasing you. ‘Sides, I got a clingy boyfriend, and I don’t think he’d like the idea of a cute guy fuckin’ my brains out.”

“Except him, you mean,” Nova corrected.

“Nah, I said a cute guy,” countered Gretchen. “And he’s dumb as a rock, too. Come to think of it,” she started stroking her chin, “I don’t even know why I keep him around to begin with.”

“Free food and moral support, perhaps?” Nova suggested.

Gretchen shrugged. “Like I said, I dunno.”

Nova plopped himself on the clothes-ridden floor, just as the door opened to reveal a very tired-looking Rachel Dillon, her white practice kit stained with grass marks and dirt, as well as a lot of sweat.

“‘Sup, Rach?” asked Gretchen, briefly holding up a hand.

“‘Sup Gretch?” replied Rachel, giving her a tired wave. “Hey Nathan.”

“You alright?” Nathan asked.

“I will be, after a nice, long, cold shower,” she said, her voice trailing off more toward a whisper by the end of the statement, before she walked on into her half of the dorm room to grab a towel. A few seconds later, Nova heard the sound of a door shut, and then he heard the sounds of a shower beginning to run.

“You sure you don’t want to tap that?” Gretchen asked, arching an eyebrow. “I can think of a couple of guys who’d take it in an instant, if offered.”

Nova just shook his head, but gave a small smile.

“I can’t. I’m kinda engaged.”

“Really?” Gretchen’s eyebrow rose even further. “I don’t see a ring.”

“Right here,” Nova pointed to his earring. Gretchen’s eyes found it, and widened ever so slightly.

“And she doesn’t know?” asked Gretchen, suddenly glowering at him. “You leading her on?”

“I’m pretty sure Rachel knows exactly who I’m after,” Nova shrugged. “Such a pity my fiancee doesn’t remember anything, though. Or Rachel. She knows I’m engaged, though it might be a while before she remembers.”

“Yeah, you’ve got that right,” muttered Gretchen.

“What was that?” asked Nova, “What do you mean, I’ve got that right?”

Nova saw the color drain from Gretchen’s already pale face.

“W-what are you talking about?” Gretchen asked. Nova, however, understood. In just one moment, the reason why Gretchen had muttered that, and her reaction when confronted. And immediately, he shook his head.

“Great, you remember who you are, don’t you?”

“Wait, you-- you’re not--” she stammered, looking confused. Nova’s response was to just hold up a glowing blue hand to confirm that he, indeed, remembered who he was. “You remember you’re a pony?” she asked.

“I was the first one out,” Nova shrugged. “Been working to reawaken the Spirits of Harmony, so we can all go back home.”

“What’s your name? I’m Gilda, a griffon from Griffonstone,” she extended a hand.

“Nova Shine, unicorn, Ponyville,” he said, shaking her offered hand.

“You’re from Ponyville?” Gilda asked. “I don’t remember seeing you with the rest of the dweebs in the town.”

“I moved there about two years after you visited,” he replied. “Moved in with my now-fiancee.”

“How’d you know I visited?” Gilda asked.

“You made Fluttershy cry. Let’s just say that makes a hell of an impression.”

Her head drooped. “Sorry about that,” she said in a low voice. “I’m… not the same griffon I was three years ago.”

“Nor am I the same pony,” said Nova sagely. “We’ve all got some spots in our past we’d rather not talk about. Just gotta move forward.”

He smiled a little, before returning to a serious look.

“Besides, I’m not the pony you need to apologize to,” he said, before rolling his eyes and smiling sheepishly, “though I think you might have to wait a bit before you can.”

“Duly noted,” Gilda said.

The water shut off, and Nova heard the sound of Rachel’s feet hitting the floor. Looks like it’s time to wrap up the memory chat.

Gilda seemed to agree, because she seemed to immediately regain her “swag,” but not before giving one last meaningful look at Nova, who nodded.

“Keep it to yourself,” he said in a low voice. “The changelings who want to keep us here came after me when they found out. That’s why--”

“That’s why the news about you and that… that dead cop started going around,” she said, with a dawning look of shock and horror. “They would kill you just to keep us here?”

“Seems like it,” Nova said, shaking his head. “They’re so desperate for their ‘victory,’ they’re willing to risk the wrath of Celestia should it fail.”

Nova sighed.

“Be careful, Gilda. It feel like the inevitable day where everything will happen isn’t that far off. Be prepared for it, but be careful. You don’t want them to find out and end up in my situation.”

Gilda nodded, then slouched off to her room while Nova was left waiting for Rachel. He wasn’t waiting for very long, as Rachel slouched on out into the first room a couple of minutes later. Nova noticed her outfit was much more common with what she usually wore versus what she had been wearing at the club and around him over the last few weeks. Nothing more than a simple blue top, black athletic pants, and her running shoes. Nothing terribly tight or skimpy.

And to top it off, he smelt no trace of perfume.

“So, about our date,” she said, crossing her arms and leaning against the frame of the door to her room.

“What about it?” asked Nova.

“We’re going on it tonight,” she stated.

“Are we?” Nova asked.

“We are,” she affirmed. “And you, mister,” she jabbed a finger at him, “are going to enjoy yourself. We’re going to have fun. I’ll cover everything, my parents lent me a few hundred dollars on top of my scholarship money.”

“And where is it I’m supposed to have fun at?” Nova asked.

{E} {I} {O} {W}

Nova had never been to the carnival as far as he could remember. He’d heard stories about Manehattan’s Poney Island, and had even watched it from afar during his time living there, but he had never gotten the chance to go.

And yet here he was, being dragged into an empty lot of grass, where several carnival stands had been set up, and the carnies were hawking their wares, including what appeared to be two twins with red hair, discernable by their voices and the fact that one had a moustache.

To his slight annoyance, Rachel had insisted on taking his arm, though to her credit, she held it rather loosely,.and she seemed a lot less of a flirt than she usually was.

“Ever been to a carnival, Nathan?” she asked, popping open her wallet and counting the cash inside with a few flicks of her fingers.

“Can’t say I have,” he replied, taking in the sites. A giant ferris wheel was the most obvious attraction, but there was also a wooden roller coaster, a sort of turning horizontal ferris wheel that he didn’t know the name of (but apparently went by the name “Zipper”), a few high-speed merry-go-rounds, and a carousel, complete with plastic horses on poles.

And that wasn’t even mentioning all of the carnies and their little rigged games. Oh, Nova knew it was going to be a fun night.

“Wow! You’re actually smiling again!” Rachel exclaimed, her own grin appearing.

“Uhh, ‘again?’” Nova asked, sounding a bit bemused.

“You haven’t smiled since the… well, incident,” Rachel said nervously, tapping her fingers together, before hastily adding, “not around me and the girls, or even Tracy, at least.”

“What’s there been to smile about?” asked Nova, the memory of Molossus’ head entering his mind and causing his grin to vanish instantly.

“Nathan!” Rachel said sharply, removing her arm from hooking around his and instead taking his hand in both of hers. The bold action drew Nova’s eyes right to her’s, which she stared into with a certain level of confidence that was almost inspiring. “Look, the reason I brought you out here tonight is for you to have fun. We both know there’s no changing what’s happened, and all we can do is keep going forward, right?”

“Yes,” Nova replied hesitantly.

“So, I’m willing to sacrifice a romantic date with you to bring you someplace to cheer you up,” she said. “Please, Nathan, just try and enjoy yourself tonight, won’t you?”

“I’ll do my best,” he said honestly, giving her an earnest smile. “But, if you want me to, you need to try not to bring up… you know.”

“Don’t talk about it, got it,” she said, grinning. “Now come on, we have to get ourselves stuffed with pretzels and soda, and then go on the Zipper!”

“WHOA! SLOW DOWN!” Nova shouted as Rachel yanked him further into the carnival, stopping only to purchase the little wristbands that gave them unlimited access to rides.

Over the course of the next five minutes, Nova learned what your everyday carnival goer learned when it came to stuffing one’s face and going on a powerful ride. He stumbled his way off of the Zipper, green-faced and very disoriented, while Rachel was in stitches next to him.

“Y-you should see the look on your face right now!” she squealed, doubling over as Nova found his way to a trash can and emptied the contents of his stomach into it.

“Have you… had your fun yet?” Nova wheezed, before spitting out excess sick from his mouth. “Can we go on something less… spinny now?”

“Just for you, Nathan,” Rachel said, grabbing his arm and leading him over to the spinning tea cups.

And five minutes later, Nova was reacquainted with the trash can.

“Okay, okay, no more spinning rides for now,” Rachel promised, on the ground and kicking her legs in her fits of schadenfreude.

“Seriously,” he croaked. “I don’t feel good at all.”

“You’ll be fine. We’ll just let it settle before we do something exciting.”

Though the sickness was a but unwanted, to say the least, Nova was actually having fun. They went on the carousel after he managed to step away from the trash can for the second time, and to Nova’s slight astonishment, the plastic horses that made up the carousel were, strangely enough, the Elements of Harmony, himself, the other three princesses, and for whatever reason, Big Macintosh as an alicorn.

Was this Envy’s idea of a joke? Because it was actually hilarious.

But it left him with a huge bout of indecision. Ride his own horse, or Twilight’s? No, wait, Luna’s looked comfortable…

“Just climb on this one,” Rachel said, directing him over to Rarity’s, which just happened to be right behind her own horse, upon which she was sitting.

The carousel wasn’t nearly as entertaining, but thank Celestia it wasn’t nearly as nauseating. Going one for three on “Rides Nova has stumbled away from without being sick,” they made their way over to some of the game stands, where one of the redheaded twins from earlier, this one without the moustache, was standing next to a pile of stacked white milk bottles on a stool. A bunch of extravagant stuffed animals were hung around it, one of which Nova immediately seemed to hone into.

He had to win the pink stuffed dragon. He had a feeling Rachel wouldn’t want it, leading to him giving it to Tracy as a gift, and he had a feeling Tracy would love it.

“Steeeeep riiiiiight up and test your aim against our pyramid of bottles!” hawked the man, juggling a couple of human baseballs in an attempt to get attention. “How about it, sir? Two dollars for three throws, knock them all down in one throw, you receive one of the big gifts, two throws a medium one, and three throws a small one.”

“I’m game,” Nova said, stepping up and holding a hand behind him. Rachel slapped a couple of dollars into his hand, which he promptly handed to gentleman with the baseballs, who tossed them into the air for Nova to catch, which he did with no problem.

“Hang on,” Nova said, feigning suspicion. “What’s on the bottom of the milk bottles?”

The man without the moustache still smiled his rather charming, slightly-oily smile. “Why, nothing, my good man! See?”

He reached an arm out and knocked down all of the bottles with no problem. But Nova could distinctly hear one of them fall heavier than the others. It was a very faint sound, one that only those who were definitely looking for it would find, but it was definitely there, and on hearing it, he hid a smile.

“Nothing but unaltered milk bottles,” the carnie said, though the telltale flare of his energy told Nova otherwise. Still, Nova already knew the con in question.

As the carnie set the bottles back up, Nova paid attention to which ones were on the bottom, and which one was placed in the exact center of the stool. There was clearly a magnet in the wood of the stool, and it was definitely holding down the weighted bottle.

But what if the weighted bottle were actually the one on top?

As the carnie stepped aside, flourishing his hands at the pile of milk bottles and smiling confidently, Nova twiddled his fingers by his side. Instantly, he felt the slight shift as the metal block in the bottom middle was teleported to the one at the top.

It wasn’t a completely rigged game, but it was still altered. Now, however, the odds were more in his favor. He just had to hit one of the bottom ones, and it would all come crashing down.

And with that thought in mind, and channeling a bit of magic into the baseball itself, he tossed it forward, letting the ball fly directly between the left and center bottom bottles, sending the entire pile crashing off of the stool.

Nova could see the slight twitch in the eye of the carnie, but the forced smile still came.

“Congratulations, good sir,” he said, before gesturing to the large plushies above the stool, one of which was the pink stuffed dragon. Nova pointed right at it, and the carnie reached his cane up and unhooked it, for it to fall right into his waiting arms.

“Thank-you for playing, sir! To the rest of you he can do it, which means you can do it! Anyone can! Step right up and give your throwing arm a try!”

“That was awesome!” Rachel crowed as they walked away while some unfortunate sod believed what the carnie said about anyone being able to do it and took the bait. “How’d you do it? The game was rigged, right?”

“Yep,” Nova said, hugging the stuffed dragon all the tighter. “Had to convince him the con job was still on. Made him demonstrate that nothing was sticking the milk bottles to the stool, make him think he was lulling me into a false sense of security. But one of the bottles had a block of metal in it, and the stool was magnetized.”

“Really?” asked Rachel, her eyebrows shooting up.

“Yep,” Nova said again, before puffing out his chest. “But when he knocked them over, I could hear it. So with a little know-how, I was able to hit it just so that they all would fall off.”

“He thought that by making you figure your way out of the first con, he could nab you with the second,” Rachel said, sounding quite surprised.

“I think it’s called the Kansas City Shuffle,” Nova said, stroking his chin briefly while he considered it. He didn’t know if the ponies had a rough equivalent. The Las Pegasus Shuffle, perhaps?

“Did you pick the pink dragon specifically because you didn’t think I’d like it?” Rachel asked, a gleam of amusement in her eye.

“Pretty much.,” he replied. “I happen to like dragons. And the color pink.”

“Riiiiiiight,” retorted Rachel, rolling her eyes and bumping him with her shoulder.

But something caught Nova’s eye as she bumped him. He caught sight of a girl with red hair standing not that far away. Her light-blue eyes met his, leading him to freeze. It was Natalie, glaring at him and Rachel with a sour expression on her face. As soon as they made eye contact, her sour expression deepened into an outright snarl. Before Nova could do anything else, she turned right around and stomped her way off.

What the hell is she doing here? he thought. Is she following me?

“Hey, let’s go on the ferris wheel!” he heard, before he felt Rachel grab his hand and yank him toward the giant circle of steel and plastic.

In short order, Nova found himself and Rachel sitting in a ferris wheel gondola as it slowly made its way up and around. The view of the city from this height was incredibly beautiful. He could see the elevated interstate, illuminated by its yellow-orange lights, the skyscrapers of downtown, he could even see the lights on the dome of the university’s observatory in the far distance.

“See, this is why you should go to carnivals more often,” Rachel said from the plastic bench, interlacing her fingers behind her head and leaning back against the wall of the gondola. “You get to see cool things like this.”

Unfortunately, the moment didn’t last terribly long. Almost right after she had said that, there was a noticeable shift in the speed of the ferris wheel, and it came to a halt with them stuck on the way down from the top of the wheel.

Of course, Nova thought.

“You didn’t have anything to do with this, did you?” Nova asked, cocking an eyebrow as he glanced suspiciously at Rachel.

“W-what? What makes you think I had anything to do with it?” she asked, and Nova could hear the feigned offendedness.

“That’s not a no,” he pointed out.

“Well, fine, yeah, I asked the ride operator for it,” Rachel admitted, shrugging. “Me and her go way back.”

“Rachel…” Nova began, but she cut him off.

“Nathan, I don’t want to hear it,” she snapped irritably. “I told you I was taking you on this date so you could have fun and open up. That hasn’t changed. I’m not here to flirt, and I’m not here to try and win you from Tracy. I sacrificed this whole opportunity for that just so I could try to get you back to your normal old self!”

Nova was quite taken aback by this. His mouth parted, but before he could reply, she continued.

“As much as I like you, it hurts me to see you like that, you know!? Just hopeless and stuck in your depression!”

“Rachel,” Nova began again, before sighing and reconsidering what he had to say. “I’m… I’m touched that I mean that much to you.”

Her anger was replaced by slight look of empathy. “Nathan, when I saw what had happened to you and when I saw how you were handling it over the last few days, it just clicked. I’ve been sitting here, getting into this stupid little fight with Tracy over you, and then when that happened, it opened my eyes, I guess.”

“Are you saying…”

“Am I saying that I’m giving up on you?” Rachel asked, before nodding. “I am.”

“Rachel…” Nova said again.

“Save it, Nathan,” she said, but she smiled regardless. “It’s pretty obvious you were never really interested in me. I guess I just sort of chose not to see that, and kind of insisted I could win you over just by being repetitive with my advances. And then when I saw you that night, just looking completely broken, it just kinda hit me,” she shrugged. “I had been really being selfish about it, and after all of that, the last thing you needed was us continuing our petty little squabble.”

Nova almost couldn’t believe what he was hearing. But the fact that Rachel’s aura hadn’t flared in the slighted when she’d said any of that left no room for denial. This whole romantic entanglement he had been concerned about was going to end peacefully.

“But, what about your’s and Ashleigh’s little date?”

“Oh that?” Rachel asked, before grinning slyly. “Three guesses.”

“You’re seriously not going to give it to Tracy, are you?”

“Well, who else would I give it to?” she asked, thoroughly bemused. “It’s obvious you’ve got a thing for her, and she’s got one for you. And now we’re not fighting over you, why not?”

Nova didn’t know what to say. Was this really happening? Was everything working out in his favor, just like that?

“You have no idea how long I’ve waited to hear this,” he admitted. “How much it scared me to know I was gonna have to break your heart. You’re a good friend, Rainbow, and I would hate to see that change for the worse because of all of this.”

“Hey! You used that nickname again!” Rachel said, brightening. “I don’t know why you stopped for a while. I never said I hated it.”

“I’ll try not to forget to use it,” promised Nova.

“But really, I think I do know how long you’ve waited. Like I said, though, I guess I chose not to see it.”

They let silence fall between them for a moment. A couple of seconds in, there was a clunk, and the ferris wheel began to move again. Nova glanced down and noticed a few people at the bottom, waiting in line.

“Thank-you, Rachel,” Nova said. “I really mean it. Thank-you for all of this.”

“No problem at all, Nathan,” Rachel replied. “Just one thing.”

“And that is?” asked Nova.

“You’d better treat Tracy right. If I hear you’ve been skimping out on her, I’m gonna kick your ass from here to next Tuesday, ya got that?”

“Got it,” Nova responded, as their gondola came to a stop on the ground, and the orange-haired operator opened the door to let them out.

“Well, I think we’ve said everything we need to,” Rachel said, reaching her arms behind her back and stretching. “What do you say we head back on home?”

“I’m fine with that,” said Nova, hefting the pink dragon onto his shoulder. “Again, thanks for all of this.”

“Hey, what are friends for?” she asked, bumping him with her shoulder again.

It’s all coming together, he thought happily as they walked, Rachel going on and on about some of her better goals in practice that day. Everything looks like it’s actually going to end well.

With that happy thought, they left the carnival behind them, walking off into the night.

Author's Note:

About damn time, eh?

I'm glad I got through this chapter. I wager there's going to be just a few more chapters before we enter Act III.

Anywho, lemme know how you think I'm doing in the comments below.

Rytex out. Have a good day!

Comments

[Samellan]

Things are coming together, soon they will finally be able to act!
Can't wait to see how it will come through.

[Snowdrifter]

“Mind if I call you when I need you to open a jar of pickles for me?” he called.

But that's the Mayor's job, Calling powerful people purely for pickle procurement probably portends precipitous problems!

[Snowdrifter]

Though the sickness was a but unwanted, to say the least, Nova was actually having fun. They went on the carousel after he managed to step away from the trash can for the second time, and to Nova’s slight astonishment, the plastic horses that made up the carousel were, strangely enough, the Elements of Harmony, himself, the other three princesses, and for whatever reason, Big Macintosh as an alicorn.

Princess Big Mac!

[Snowdrifter]

It’s all coming together, he thought happily as they walked, Rachel going on and on about some of her better goals in practice that day. Everything looks like it’s actually going to end well.

Nova, you FOOL! You've killed us all!