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Four long Years.3,545 words
Sooner or Later.3,398 words
The Calm Before The Storm. (Part one)9,214 words
The Calm Before The Storm. (Part two)4,833 words

The Calm Before The Storm. (Part two)

All five girls were up near simultaneously at five am. It was not that they didn't want to sleep in for a change, far from it. It was more vigorous formality and life style structure drilled into them through years of incarceration. At exactly five am the mares were lined against a section of their cell wall, blurred eyed and sleep deprived, well except for the element of laughter who even years into the torturous affair had the energy of somepony on fifteen cups of coffee in one sitting.

It had actually taken them around five minutes before they realised what they were doing, mostly because the demeaning insults and splashing of ice cold water was not being thrown their way, as part of their ‘daily bath’ as it was cruelly nicknamed.

"…What a minute..." Rainbow said out loud, eyeing the room twice to make sure she wasn’t sleep walking, she smacked her hoof against her face for being so stupid and brought herself back toward the comfort of the enormous bed, with the sleeping Draconequus still slumped half on half off the bedding, snoring obnoxiously, (four years of routines meant very little to a chaotic god, whose entire being fought the very concept).

"Rainbow!” her yellow cellmate whispered out desperately, “what are you doing your going to get in trouble." Fluttershy finished taking a step, hesitantly, towards her comrade.

"Darling get back her quickly!" Rarity harshly whispered in agreement, rubbing more of the sleep from her eyes.

Rainbow smugly grinning to herself slumped further into the covers "Why, who's going to make us?"

"Girl have ya’ lost your dang marbles, if ya’ don't get back the guards are gonna’ tan our... wait a cotton picking minute..." Applejack stopped herself as the penny dropped realising that her state of incarceration was now transitory.

"Exactly" Rainbow retorted with no small hint of joy escaping her voice as she rolled around tangling herself in the fluffy blanket like a enormous silk caterpillar.

“I don't follow, what’s stopping the guards from reprimanding... oh oh of course, oh how silly of me." Rarity huffed remembering exactly where she was and moving back into bed along with Rainbow and now Applejack.

Fluttershy took a step forward again, but stopped herself. She couldn't bring herself to take the risk, she couldn’t fight the ambivalence culminating in her psych, somehow even knowing that the chances of her causing trouble was now (according to Ordinis) less than zero, she just couldn't do it. It literally went against her nature to be a trouble maker even following tyrannical prison rules.

"Darling come on, nothing's going to happen that’s all behind us now." the element of generosity cooed softly noticing the lack of her light hearted Pegasus friend.

Fluttershy looked around eyeing the walls as if they were watching her every move. "I don't know girls."

Rairty simply rolled her eyes at her beloved friend, it was simply far too early for her to spend the early twilight hours coxing her friend back to the comfort of the bed. It might have been harsh but a mare needed her (four years standing) beauty sleep.

Lighting her horn, Rarity, somewhat shakily activated a simple levitation spell, it was an alien feeling to her now like stretching a ligament she had not used in many years she found more demanding than before having been out of practice in the ways of magic. The Pegasus was engulfed in the aura of magic from the fashionistas horn as the diffident yellow pony was picked up with a squeal as she was being drawn back to bed.

“EEP!”

Slightly shivering Fluttershy was laid stiffly on the bed before the alabaster hooves of the fashionista curled around her in a platonically loving hug showing no means of escape from its warm fluffy restraints.

"There darling, not to worry, this is far better than waiting all cold and tired against the wall. Am I right?"

Still shivering and eyeing the room corner to corner as if something would materialise from them, the Pegasus finally nodded.

"Great everyone's back in bed, can we just get some sleep now." Rainbow moaned pulling the pillow over her head.

Applejack lifted her head doing the math. "Wait what about--

"I WON!" an enormously over enthusiastic voice screamed before she had time to finish.

All of the mares on the bed flew up in shock, looking over to the wall. Rainbow having been wrapped in the covers tried to escape but only succeeded in falling flat onto the floor with a loud thud. The sound also throwing Discord completely out of his slumber and off the bed. Like Rainbow he was flapping his wings and darting in the best direction to escape the possible threat, however having the upper body half off the bed and pointed towards the floor, that of course meant the floor.

“Ye-ouch!” Discord cried out, curling up into a ball on the floor both antler and horn bent comically out and curled like boar tusks as the collided onto the cold unforgiving ground.

Sitting and massaging his head he growled in annoyance. "I'm up, I'm up you blasted vindictive stallion tyrant." Discord grumpily moaned at the non-existent guard as he reached up and straightened out his horns marching and stumbled towards the wall.

"Silly Dissy, I'm a mare, that's why we have different toilets." Pinkie smiled innocently at him.

"Pinkamena Diane Pie! You mind tellin’ me why you where hollering like a drunk in cider season who just lost his dang house keys!?" Applejack roared putting more anger into her voice than she wanted.

Pinkies smile dropped somewhat "Sorry A.J."

"Wait, why are you against a wall, Wait, why am I in fact?" Discord muttered inquisitively disassociating himself from both the wall and the mare.

"I thought we were playing who can stay by the wall the longest, I never win these things it’s always Fluttershy so I was just so happy I won this time." She stated with feverish passion, hopping up and down ironically in place.

"You mean you knew that we didn't have to stay against the wall for that stupid guard all this time and you still didn't tell us." Rainbow asked exacerbated.

"Hee hee of course Dashie they’re like a gazillion miles away. How are they gonna’ throw smelly water on us?" Pinkie asks eliciting a groan from all in the room as she bounced back into the bottom of the bed.

“Uh Pinkie Pie please don’t bring up the hygiene of that water again, You know how hard it was for me to rationalise that no pony no matter how cruel or morally bankrupt would throw stagnant water on a pristine groomed coat!”

“Shucks it worn’t that bad, though, come to think of it, it was strange that even the fly’s didn’t go near us when--
"Can we please just get some sleep now, jeez!" Rainbow groaned.

Based on the gods surrounding the pony's as they slept it seemed like the god of irony was the one to answer Rainbow request as the quite sounds of the chamber was suddenly defiled by the loud sounds of rapping on the chamber door.

The handle opened revelling a grinning Ordinis. "Rise and shine girl's, it's five thirty in the mourning and you know what that mean, time to organise what we’re going to do today, who wants to start up the Excel Spread sheets?"

Ordinis's only response was about six of the seven pillows being flung at an astonishingly fast velocity curtsy of a tired and cranky servant of disorder. The pillows sending Ordinis flying across the hallway with a resounding crash, and the shattering of furniture.

"Thanks." Rainbow mumbled turning over on her side.

"Anytime." Discord answered eyes still shut as he snapped his fingers to shut the door before placing enough locks in the door to make a bank vault blush.

A few hours later the mares where finally awoken more naturally by the three suns of this strange land as their combined warming light invaded the darkness of the room.

It had still taken them an extra few hours to fully be up and ready. To be fair, it was a combined Rainbow dash and Discord lethargic duo where notorious loungers coupled with Rarity finding the multi-planetary stocked cosmetic cupboard that might as well have been her preverbal candy store.

After an amazingly pleasant mourning routine that being a hot shower or bath, a luxury in its own right among the five mares, they couldn’t wait for another chance to attack the home cooking of this mysterious ‘Mother’ of the three gods. If her idea of a quickly prepared meal was anything like what they had last night Breakfast was going to be something of world wonder to the mares.

Walking somewhat hesitantly through the seemingly ever turning lavishly yet tastefully adorned corridors, many containing paintings and photos of things the girls could scarcely understand, one a picture of pod of whales swimming in space between planets, another even more amazing a moving almost alive picture of a bright purple subterranean Jungle swaying in the breeze, and perhaps (for what it was) even more bizarrely a painting of a single metal can with the words Campbell’s soup printed on it. More and more questions piled into the girls minds collectively. But their rumbling bellies and morning addled minds quelled the idea of asking them; at least for now as the trotted towards what Ordinis somewhat conservatively called the ‘big room’.

"Okay girls." Ordinis announced Turing back to his guests as they approached an impossibly enormous door.

"Now just a few reminder here, do not be frightened by mother, she is a loving caring uh call her mare I guess if it helps you acclimate easier. She doesn't want you to be scared to speak your mind, she knows you all pretty much better than you know yourselves so there’s no point keeping any thought to yourself, Oh and you might feel a slight pressure like squeezing a balloon or diving when she comes in, allot of magical touched creatures such as your self are a bit sensitive to her aura but it passes shortly."

The girls looked at one another nervously with their peripheral vision, they gathered the concept that she was powerful if that word was even enough to describe whatever this thing was but to have its very presence palpably tighten the very air… Even Applejack and Rainbow dash had a hard time keeping the ill ease from their faces.

"How does she know us, so well if she's never even been in our presence?" Rarity finally asked talking the initiative.

"Well… how to I explain this, she did have a hand, sorry hoof in making you, all of you, so I'm pretty sure she has a good idea."

"Come again?" Applejack stated unbelievingly.

"But she's not my mom, I pretty sure I know daddy would never cheat on my mommy and in filly-sex-ed it said that to make a baby you need a mommy and a daddy to love each other very much and then the mare would present--" Pinkie was interrupted by a well-timed hoof covering her muzzle by Rainbow Dash.

"Thanks" Ordinis nodded. "Well long story short she made us all, you can ask her the full details when you meet her, to be honest the time it would take to explain it, you should just settle for ‘its Godly magic’ but as I mentioned before mother can usually explain it better than I. So in a few minutes for now just let her say what she has to say and then I’m sure she will let you ask her as much as possible, is that fair?"

"Ah guess it'll have ta’ do." Applejack hesitantly agreed for the whole group to the strange god.

"Excellent" Ordinis declared clapping his hands together in a humorous display of unrelenting joy before turning around and placing a single hand against the door.

Almost immediately the door relented creaking open automatically, groaning under the behemoth weight of their own enormity they slid open revelling the 'big room'

To call it an understatement would be to laughably wrong to the mares it would almost be anathema; as they looked at the impossible space in front of them it. It would do little to exaggerate the fact that if windows had been let open in this colossus of a hall they would be in danger of letting in the very clouds from the sky. Something, the mares would have thought impossible had they not visited or lived in a city of clouds themselves on occasion. Though thinking about it Cloudsdale could probably even fit into the room if they laid it straight out.

Marble columns the size of small houses in width held up the room the underside of the buttresses were as adorned with engravings, guilds and markings as the outside perhaps even more so. The room had the odd effect of being both oppressive and perversely homely at the same time, the opulence was there but it wasn’t overdone, the size was obviously too much but its atmosphere its aura was one of chilling peace, of the freezing breeze on a moutain top, a whisper in your ear as if the very air had softly cooed welcome home into ones ears, even if the mares had no knowledge of this place. The colours where white and blue, the tapestry’s were long and immaculately stitched and contained signs and symbols which none of the girls had even an inclination as to what they could mean but still, it felt just a little like-

“This feels like Canterlot.” Fluttershy whispered aloud to herself, putting her thoughts into words as the other mares nodded in unison. Though the castle itself paled in comparison to the opulence of this temple to the very gods, it was the closest the mares could equate in there minds.

All around the room the sides were held up with the same behemoth alabaster marble that littered the outside of the temple like structure, squinting the mares could see untold numbers of painting dotted between each pillar. Each even from this distant where immaculately painted and incredibly decorated.

"Ehem" the god of order lightly spoke following a coughed bringing the mares out of their collective stupor. "I know it’s a lot to take in but trust me the view is far better inside the room." Ordinis smirked as he walked towards a "modestly" sized table centred perfectly in the middle of the pseudo- stadium.

Discord had already strolled over to the table bored of the room, and uncaring of its perfectly “normal” non-spinning or bouncing walls. His mismatched feet now up on the table as he leaned back against the grandiose chair folding his arms behind his head.

"Need material, must create, so much beauty." The alabaster fashionista whimpered out as a single tear of joy escaped her eye as she let the magnificence overwhelm her creative side.

"It’s gonna take me a looooooot longer to decorate this place for a party than the princesses castle." Pinkies stated in a tone similar to Rarity’s.

The other mares found themselves tripping over their own hooves as they walked towards the enormous table.

Eventually they found there seats at the table, subsequently seated as they kept their gaze any and everywhere around them. Flanked on both sides by the Ying and Yang’ed siding deity’s.

“Oh sorry how rude of me, you all need breakfast don’t you?”

“’Iffin’ you don’t mind.” Applejack answered with a silly smile of anticipation, her stomach choosing the perfect time to grumble at the moment she finished the sentence causing a blush to form and giggles to be reverberated around the room.

“I’m so hungry I could eat a horse.” Pinkie pie yelled out in her usual chipper way.

“I didn’t think they had horses on Equestria?” Ordinis asked with a raised brow.

“Psst Rares, what’s a horse?” Rainbow puzzled towards Rarity who simply lifted her hooves in an ‘I have no idea’ fashion.

Ordinis shook his head, pulled out a scroll from his purple flamboyant jacket, folding it out gently he wrote down a few things mumbling to himself before putting it back in his pocket. A click of his finger and the table was instantly bustling with myriad of different foods a banquet fit truly and in this case literally for the gods.

Applejack Pinkie and Rainbow launched in head first, like they had silently challenged each other to a food eating contest; not like they need to word something for such things to occur among the three. Immediately grabbing whatever was in front of them not caring for what it was, the banquet last night was even half as good as this everything on the table was amazing without discriminating with personal tastes.

Fluttershy and Rarity took smaller portions trying to keep a more reserved manor however again with the food this good and the gruel they were used to so bad, even Rarity was taking what her former self would call most un-lady-like levels of portions, Fluttershy was little different.
Conversation was replaced with the sounds of chewing, slurping and humming of appreciation as the food tickled all manner of taste buds, as each still mostly famished looking ponies gorged themselves silly. The only sound came from the fidgeting of hooves, the careful scratching of quill on paper from Ordinis as he dipped his quill into the ink pot on the table and back onto the papyrus scroll and the bored fluttering of a cards as Discord flicked all fifty two cards from one mismatched hand to the other occasionally making them dance and flicker in the air, before landing in his palm, whilst he wrestled and pondered with the deep and troubling feelings he thought he was over.

Perhaps the most interesting thing Fluttershy had kept her gaze on as she subconsciously sat next to the bored, somewhat downtrodden Discord was the most decorated frame of all. The only one that was left without any other paintings around it.

The light scribbles cofounded the mare so much so that despite herself she couldn't help but fly over lightly to it the curiosity overtaking her own shyness. A picture made of crayon somewhat stained by some sort of chocolate on the corner of the paper was a drawing of stick figure that could only have been a picture of Discord helpfully labelled so on the paper, a picture of something, Fluttershy could not make out mostly because of the crudeness of the childlike drawing. The only indication to what it was was the words ‘mommy’.

She tilted her head at the drawing, but smiled as she realised she had caught a rare artefact, an insight into the young draconequus past. And the fact that it had its place prominently amongst the rare and numerous master pieces that littering the halls like band posters in some rock club. Fluttershy sighed happily suddenly feeling like a piece of her mountainous apprehension of meeting this ‘mother’ slide away like an avalanche.

As Discord turned his head towards where the mare had gone, he watched her blushing immensely as he realised what she was drawn to. However, before he had any chance to comment the sounds of the impossibly large doors began to open again, drawing his gaze elsewhere.
The monolith of metal slid open, revelling a creature as dry and stiff as the doors themselves, entering the large room.

Marching forward like a man on a mission the acrimonious Minotaur made his way around the left hand side of the table, seating himself on the opposite side of the temples guests and his brothers. A good twelve seats away for good measure.

Fluttershy, seeing the intimidating figure fell back among her friends, landing in a dainty fashion in her seat. She smiled at Rarity next to her who offer her a golden jug full of soda with her magic. Nodding Fluttershy filled her cup with some soda water. It wasn’t exactly breakfast material but she wanted to try as much as she could from her old comfort foods, she never knew if it would be her last chance. Sucking though the straw she took in a bit too much and lifted herself up producing a loud and embarrassing burp that shook everyone away from their food.

“Eep… sorry everypony.” She stated with her cheeks growing redder in embarrassment.

“Filthy mortals.” Statera snorted with contempt folding his gigantically muscular arms, before turning away from the group.

Fluttershy looked down in shame scrunching her eyes in fear waiting to be further reprimanded by the creature, when all of a sudden a larger and even more prominent burp came from the side of the table, blowing her mane to the side with its intensity.

“Woops, my apologies, chocolate milk always made me a bit gassy” Discord stated with a villainous, mocking smirk towards the girls but with the full intention of it being used for his stick in the mud brother.

He knew it worked as soon as he heard the growl coming from his side.

“Oooh ooooh me next, me next, I can beat that one!” Pinkie bellowed extremely giddy to take up the challenge she grabbed an entire jug of soda and emptying it in one impressive gulp, the girls around her braced themselves when Pinkies cheeks and even her whole body swelled up and she let out a burp so powerful it throw her off her chair.

The action caused both Rainbow and Applejack to fall also off the chairs, out of laughter instead as they clutched their sides and rolled off.
“ENOUGH!” Statera screamed slamming his mighty blue hands onto the table, sending all of the plates up into the air and then down with a resulting smashing sounds and metal clanging. Ordinis pot of ink flipped up landing on his garish purple suit causing him to jump up with a flamboyant gasp as he tried to brush it off, the rest of the room was silent as the night.

“You beasts, how dare you show nothing but the upmost piety when you’re in mothers house. You fools are fit to be no more than to be Jesters!”

“Statera for the love of mother calm yourself, look what you did to my new suit, this was Hugo Boss, they aren’t cheap you know!?” Ordinis yelled wiping the black ink as best as he could from the suit doing little more than smudging it further.

“Shut your intrepid mouth Ordinis, for a deity of Order, you act more like our improvident brother. How dare you defend these, these things! They should be treated like virus’s and dealt the same, the very fact that they’re here to fix that world is beyond comprehension. And as for you going around like some sort of preforming monkey, have you no honor, no respect for the gift you have!” Statera continued to scream snorting venomously at his brother his chest pulsating violently from his angry breath like he was being deflated and inflated in rapid strokes.
Picking up a napkin and whipping his suit Ordinis turned to his brother with a sickening pout. “You sound a bit jealous Baby brother?”

“Of course I am it should be me you myopic fool!” Statera screamed snorting his rage through his nostrils, as he eyed his brother staring into those calculating small blue eyes, perversely annoyed that his anger did little more than annoy his eldest sibling.

“Funny” Stated Discord lifting his other leg and placing it over the other. “All this talk of fools, animals, and childish antics and you’re the only one that seems to be ranting and raving like some wild baby chimp. Perhaps we should get you a little leash, so you won’t make such a mess on the table, or at the very least a bib.” Discord chuckled nefariously as he clicked his mismatched paw summoning a baby bib over his brother’s neck with the words, ‘I ate all by myself today’

If Statera was mad then he was in a blinding furry as he looked down at the mockery. Especially as he heard his eldest brother snort a chuckle behind his hand.

Looking like he was ready to charge Discord flared his wings, when all of a sudden something in the air changed a light but noticeable weight had been added to the room something palpable and ethereal all at the same time.

“Honestly boys, I can’t leave you alone for two minutes.” The wondrous and impossibly soothing voice called out all around the room, like the omnipresent being it was.

A light, brighter than all the suns of the Milky Way floated down from the sealing. All eyes turned to it and then the mortal ones turned away, unable to stand the radiant, Incandescent ethereal light in front of them.

Whatever emotions Statera was feeling left his body. Almost falling back he spun on the spot and feel to one knee. Discord himself also turned however instead of a bow he simply seated himself back on the seat looking down at the floor and folding his arms with a somewhat childish hurt pout.

Ordinis simply smiled, a nostalgic smile, a proud smile, a joyous smile. A smile of a son who had been reunited with his mother for the first time in a very long time.

Applejack was the first to recover from the flash bang of light, her sight more used to light with the glaring and eye burning sun of Equestria invading her retinas on a hot summer day at the farm she saw more than any of the other girls.

The ‘whatever’ it was began to morph taking shape inside the light, or was it that the light was morphing into it she couldn’t tell, however once the light began to decline the figure in front of Applejack made her think that perhaps it had blinded her more than she thought.

The entity moved its four hooves towards the table dwarfing it easily its Ashen fur covered all its body except for its brown mane and tail, her white wings spanning almost the width of two ponies and its horn like a spear wielded by the old Celestia guards white and glowing with shapeless multi coloured power. And her eyes, gods her eyes were like the universe themselves Applejack couldn’t see a colour in them it was like when she looked at them she saw everything every constellation, every red dwarf, every shooting star.

Sensory overload shoot through the mare she felt fine and at the same time like she was going to faint. It was too much.

“Y-you’re…”

Her eyes lined with Applejacks saying everything in a single glaze. “Not quite, my little Applejack, not quite.”

What’s happening, who’s talking I can’t see for crabapples” Rainbow groaned rubbing her eyes.

Applejack couldn’t breathe, this almost, but not quite, Alicorn looked like something from a book very close to pony history, they had all seen the image very many times, in stainless glass, in books thought mostly fiction and one that at least in earth pony culture more so revered than any especially in Applejacks case nailed to granny-smiths wall atop her bed.

“I’ve been waiting for a long time to meet you all, it pleases me greatly to finally see all your faces once more. A great many things are about to happen my little children and I'm sure you all have a vast myriad of questions for me. But first...” She added with a nod of approval and a smile only Celestia could ever pull off towards a slumped down sulking Draconequus .

There could be no way it was her there was just no way…

And yet here she stood.

“Dissy stop you’re pouting and come give your mommy a hug.” She finished with a giggle that despite Discord sullen mood made him smile, but only for a moment, okay maybe a few seconds.

Author's Note:

Not much progression happening in this chapter. However I've decided to start making much shorter chapters than I usually do(in other stories I mean) in order to 1) Learn that skill. and 2) So that i can pump these chapters out more frequently so progression will fluctuate.
Hope you enjoyed my long long time coming return to the story.
Shit will be going in a downwards motion very shortly.

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