The Final Fall of the Saurian Empire
Trixie slowly kneaded her forehead with a hoof, while shooting a venomous glare at the stone disk that had started all of this. It was magically active again, pulsing in her arcane sight. Cheerilee and Carrot Top were working the Confectionarium, giving her time to study the item more.
Lyra and Bon Bon had been gone for a day already. But at least they had made contact yesterday. And while she was sure that Princess Luna would do everything she could to keep her friend safe, Trixie really wished she was by Lyra’s side.
But if it was active again.
She sighed.
Bon Bon said they were okay. And Luna is with them. Just trust them. Everything should be okay.
She glanced at the disk again.
If I don’t hear something by tomorrow, we’re going after them.
- - - -
Lyra awoke to an empty bed.
She didn’t believe it at first, her foreleg instinctively reaching for the familiar form of Bon Bon next to her. But all she felt was a soft mattress. Blinking, she rolled over, confirming that she was alone. With a grunt, she kicked the covers aside and rolled out of bed.
Landing on her hooves, she looked up to see Grayback pushing another cart of breakfast into the room. The quantities on the plate were obviously intended for one pony, rather than two. She sighed. Bon Bon had moved to another room last night, after their fight. Shaking her head, she pushed the thought from her mind and decided to focus on something else.
“So, Grayback. Is this what you normally do? Taking care of guests?”
“Among other things.” He nodded, “I also teach the younger generation, and act as The Watcher’s voice beyond the pyramid.”
“His voice?” Lyra blinked, “Can’t he speak for himself?”
Grayback carefully grabbed the handle of a pitcher in his teeth, and poured a full glass of some kind of juice before answering that question.
“The Watcher can only take physical form within this building. He can only interact with the world beyond through intermediaries such as myself.”
“Why?”
“That is a story for him to tell, if he wishes.” He answered with a bow of his head. He hesitated for a moment, but then spoke again “But, I would like to apologize.”
“What for?” Lyra asked, casually plucking one of the warm biscuits off the tray, and wolfing it down. They had been delicious the other day, and they were still delicious today.
“Causing distress to your friend with my puppet show. I did not mean to trigger bad memories.”
“That was you?”
“Yes. As I said, I teach the younger generations. And I do like puppets.” He smiled.
“Well, you didn’t know about Bon Bon.” Lyra shrugged, “How could you?”
“Can I ask…” Grayback began, slowly, almost nervously, “What happened? The legends of Celestia. They speak of a being with boundless compassion and an even head. Slow to anger, and full of wisdom.”
“Well, I don’t know all the details.” Lyra admitted, “But our own legends have always said that she grew greedy, and that she wanted to control the day, the night and everything in between. But,” She took another quick bite of biscuit, “I think that it’s more that she’s...manicly obsessed with protecting her ponies, and lost it.”
“Best intentions, turned sour.” Grayback frowned, “Sad.”
“Yeah. Anyway...have you seen Bon Bon yet?”
“I took her her breakfast already.” Grayback answered as he began to take his leave, “She’s the next room down.”
Nodding, Lyra quickly inhaled the rest of her breakfast and cantered for Bon Bon’s room.
“Bon Bon?” She called, peeking past the curtain that served as a door, frowning when there was no sign of her marefriend, “Great.”
She started at the empty chamber in silence for a few moments, the fight from yesterday playing through her mind again. Something that The Watcher said nagged at the back of her thoughts, something she just couldn’t shake.
Sighing again, she headed for the main throne room, which was also currently empty, at least on first view. Trotting over to the pillar that The Watcher liked to hide in, she hammered her hoof against its side.
It wasn’t long before the saurian stirred, flowing and condensing into being.
“Good morning Lyra. Did you need something?”
“Watcher...can we speak in private?” She frowned, pointing a hoof back towards her room, “I need to ask you about something you said yesterday.”
“Of course.” The Watcher nodded.
He followed without complaint, standing just inside the door as Lyra stalked over to the bed. She took a deep breath and turned to face the ancient saurian.
“You said that you had killed a lot more ponies than Corona ever did.” She nervously licked her lips, “What did you mean by that?”
The Watcher’s expression grew distant, almost dead as he stared right past Lyra. “That story, is not pretty. Are you absolutely sure you want to know?”
“It feels like a relationship with a mare I love is falling apart, and its because of the presence of Corona.” She sighed, “If I’m going to help you, try to help her, and deal with this doctor...I want to know the kind of creature I’m dealing with.”
“Understandable and wise. But I need to set a few ground rul- Don’t give me that look!”
If he wasn’t a ghostly creature to begin with, Lyra’s glare probably should have blasted him right into that state.
“You have to understand something, Lyra. I can’t tell you everything, because I don’t remember everything. When you’re as old as I, Luna or Celestia are, sometimes, you forget things. Just the way it is.” He flashed a friendly smile, “You can’t remember your own birth, I bet.”
“You have a point there.” Lyra admitted. She paused for a moment, raising an eyebrow, “Did you have a name other than The Watcher?”
“Can’t remember it, honestly. I think it started with an X?” He tapped his chin, “Anyway, as I said before the saurians first emerged about the same time as the dragons and alicorns. We ar- were a very old race.”
“They didn’t all look like you though, right? I’ve seen some of the carvings.”
“Correct.” He nodded, “We were made up of three sub groups, not unlike ponies today. First was the swiftclaws, who looked like smaller versions of myself, and who tended towards scholarly or administrative roles. Then there were the sharpbeaks, who tended to be the farmers and crafts creatures, and were those four legged ones. And finally, were the leatherwings, the fliers and weather crafters, much like your pegasai.”
“And it was a just and peaceful kingdom?” Lyra smirked. The ancient stories tended to follow a pattern of just kingdoms, undermined by a corrupt chancellor, bickering nobles or backstabbing princes.
The Watcher opened his mouth, but then paused, his toe claws tapping out a disjointed rhythm upon the stone while he thought. “Perhaps, there is a more direct way to tell the tale.” He nodded, lowering himself into a sitting position. He motioned to the spot in front of him with a claw, “Please. Sit.”
Intent on finding out the past of her host, Lyra obliged, settling onto her barrel across from the saurian. “What are you going to do?”
“I,” He responded, extending a hand so that it hovered just above Lyra’s horn, “Am going to show you my memories.” He paused, the hand pulling back a barest inch, “Last chance to back out. I was not a nice creature.”
“Do it.”
Nodding, The Watcher began to glow, the familiar tingle of magic engulfing Lyra. For the unicorn, the world suddenly began to spin, her consciousness being pulled towards and focused upon the castor and- with a final twist of the room- Lyra found herself someplace else.
- - - -
They were familiar surroundings, the place she found herself in, at least on the surface. The layout, the structure of the buildings, it was all familiar from her and Bon Bon’s exploration of the hidden city since their arrival. But the splendor, was not.
Wherein the city that the uintatherium inhabited was clean and uniform, the large scale art on the buildings reflecting their very down to earth nature, this metropolis of the memory was the exact opposite.
The buildings, either through plaster or the stone used to build them, were a brilliant white color, capped with gold and silver, rather than the dull gray or tan they were now. The murals were larger, and fuller, almost overflowing with their bombastic declarations of saurian superiority. Always the lizard creatures standing dominate over primitive looking mammals.
Lyra and The Watcher were standing on the corner of a bustling marketplace, suarians of all three tribes engaging in the hustle and bustle of commerce that, despite their own rather alien appearance, wouldn’t have looked out of place in Ponyville. Though there was distinctly more meat for sale, presumably to satiate the appetites of the swiftclaws.
“Watcher…” Lyra blinked, glancing about as she watched families of saurians go about their daily lives, “It’s...normal. I was expecting more...horror, I guess?”
“Oh, that comes later.” The Watcher sighed, pointing a hooked claw down one of the wide avenues, “Observe.”
Lyra turned, watching the saurians in the street begin to cheer as a large group of armed soldiers came marching along, heads held high. They strode forth with all the swagger of conquering heroes. But, as they passed where Lyra and The Watcher stood, they could see a group of uintatherium, locked in chains, being dragged along behind them.
“We were conquerors. The empire was built around seven great cities, each ruled by a local lord, who in turn answered to me.” The Watcher explained to Lyra’s horror, “Any creature that wasn’t us, was to be subdued and brought to claw.”
“Why?”
“It was how I viewed things back then.” The Watcher shrugged, watching the rows of soldiers marching by. “See, we saurians could all cast like unicorns can. Every sub group.”
Lyra stared at the Watcher, the gears in her head grinding away at that statement.
“How? That’s like saying your whole race was like alicorns.”
“Not exactly. It wasn’t holding the ability of all three groups in one more…” He paused for a moment, searching for the correct analogy. “Its more like everycreature was a unicorn, who could then do one other thing.”
“That’s still pretty impressive.”
“Which is the main reason that, at the time, I was convinced that saurians were the superior form of life on the planet. I was wrong. Very, very wrong. But it doesn’t change the fact that’s what I thought. Which got us in trouble when we first came in contact with the alicorns.”
Turning, he guided Lyra right through a wall, the stone almost swirling into mist to allow their passage. Lyra found herself in a great banquet hall, the smell of roasted bird and fresh fruit assaulting her nose in a clashing wave. The table that dominated the middle of the room was crammed almost to bursting with saurians, all helping themselves to food.
The Watcher sat at its head, tearing into the flesh of some manner of roasted bird with gusto. Bereft of his ghostly form, The Watcher was a reddish-orange color, with mottled brown patterns resting over that base hue. It was somewhat of a shock to Lyra, that the saurian at her side and the one eating were the same creature.
The Watcher that had been their host since arriving radiated a certain warmth. Always with a smile, and an offer of hospitality. The one at the table, however...Lyra shuddered. Having met Celestia-slash-Corona face to face, she was well familiar with the mad look that tended to play across that mare’s eyes. The Watcher however, was the exact opposite.
They were cold, calculating. Ready and willing to sacrifice any creature within the room. A chill ran down the mare’s spine.
Sitting next to him, was one of the quadrupedal sharp beaks, who seemed to be trying to outdo The Watcher in terms of ostentatiousness. The bony crest characteristic to his tribe seemed to have been replaced by one made of solid gold and studded with a collection of flawless gems. The rest of his body was covered in jewelry to the point that Lyra was quite sure she’d be blinded if she shined a bright light upon him; she could barely make out his off green hide.
“Who’s that?” She asked, pointing to the saurian.
“That’s Lord Kerzog. Zhalast-Zin was technically his city. Though, as Emperor, I was his superior in all matters.”
The sound of hooves on stone alerted Lyra to the arrival of the alicorn, before she saw her. Her coat, much like Corona’s, was a pure white color, but that was where the similarities ended. Her mane and tail were a golden yellow color, the former short, falling only part of the way down her neck. Her cutie-mark was a coil of rainbow, arranged in a loose heart shape.
“Wes hal?” She asked, the picture of serenity, her voice containing an almost musical quality to it.
Lyra blinked as the alicorn continued to speak in a dialect so old that she couldn’t understand any of it. The ancient Watcher said something back, equally as unintelligible, but much more angry sounding. The alicorn visibly recoiled, her expression turning incensed.
“What did you say to her?”
“Oh, I demanded the complete surrender of all alicorns to my state.”
Another bout of angry words, this time coming from the alicorn, tore through the chamber.
“And right there is where she told me to, in the modern vernacular, ‘Go soak my head’.”
“...It sounded a bit worse than that.”
“I was paraphrasing.” The Watcher shruggled, swirling a claw to change the scene, “But let us say that the diplomatic process broke down. And, little did I know at the time, I set in motion the events that would lead to the doom of my people.”
The world snapped back into place with the crack of a thunder and the pelt of rain. They were standing on a hill, saurians and their war golems stomping and rushing about in the chaotic mess of battle. The Watcher of the past paced back and forth, screaming, shouting, desperately searching for something.
Faster than Lyra’s eyes could track, something impacted into The Watcher at supersonic speeds, her ears instinctively flicking flat from the boom that rumbled its way to her core. The saurian was sent snout over tail, his body tearing a great furrow into the ground as he was punted over the edge of the hill.
Lyra gasped at the alicorn hovering where the The Watcher had been a moment before. Her mane waved as if tousled by an invisible breeze, pink, blue and turquoise a stark contrast to the crackling mane of flames she was used to seeing on the mare. Her magenta eyes were resolved, but not full of hate.
Another boom of sound echoed across the battlefield, the saurian ruler nothing more than a streak of color as he rushed back into view. Transitioning into a leap, a bone chilling screech escaped his mouth, the killing talons on hands and feet aimed at Celestia’s throat. But then wispy coils of blue magic snaked past the him in mid air, the form of Luna solidifying, blades of pure moonlight aimed for the Watcher’s back.
Just as the three beings were about to collide, another crack-boom tore through the air, another shape blurring through the dark, rain soaked sky, lightning bolts raining down on the war golems. The Watcher- the current one- raised a claw and the scene froze.
“As you can see, as powerful as I was, it didn’t matter. They were too powerful for my armies and there were too many for me to handle. Slowly, but surely, we were pushed back. Morale began to drop like a stone. So I decided to try grand display to show that we still had power.”
“And that,” He sighed sadly, as the scene changed, “Was the end.”
They were back in the city from before, but unlike before, it was the depths of night. The sky was full of glittering stars, arranged in shapes and patterns completely unfamiliar to Lyra. Looking around, she could see that they were standing on the highest tier of one of the distinctive pyramid shaped buildings that dominated the city’s skyline.
A flickering torch stood at each corner of the tier, casting a dancing orange glow across the stones, and the figure of The Watcher. Dressed in flowing white robes, and bedecked in glittering gold jewelry, he truly cut the figure of an Emperor. His eyes were closed, head tilted back and arms spread wide as a blue glow danced about his claws.
The rumble of drums banging out a primal tune drifted up from the streets below. They were clogged with the land based saurians, while the flyers were perched on the buildings like a flock of giant bats.
And they chanted.
“Vos! Vos! Vos!” Came the primal cry in their reptilian tongue.
“They’re waiting for something.” Lyra blinked.
“Yes.” The Watcher nodded, crouching next to her. Pointing a ghostly claw towards the sky, he traced it to the right, “From what was the North Star at the time, we follow that line to right...there.”
The star looked very normal at first, but as Lyra’s eyes locked on it, it began to move. Slowly at first, but then faster, curving in a lazy arc across the sky and across the city.
“We called it Vos, the Wanderer.” The Watcher explained, as a tail of brilliant, multicolored light began to flow from the star. “It was a comet that passed by on a regular basis and was important to our festivals. And I was making it bow to my whim.”
“It is beautiful.” Lyra smiled. The multiple hues of the comet’s tail were spreading wider now, painting a full rainbow across a glittering black canvas. “Must have been hard to take that from Luna’s control.”
“Well….” The old saurian considered, tapping a claw to his chin, “Truth be told, I’m not sure if Luna was in charge of the night sky yet. Never thought to ask her.”
“What do you mean?” Lyra blinked, “Luna’s always controlled the night sky.”
An impish smile crossed The Watcher’s snout. “As far as you know.” He waggled a claw, “But these were the early days, when the world was wild, fresh and new. When beings of legend walked the earth and every creature was still trying to figure things out. It was,” He spread his arms as wide as he could, “the age of possibility.”
A panicked gasp rose from the saurian inhabitants of the memory. The upbeat expression on The Watcher’s face vanished as quickly as it had came, his arms dropping to his sides in a gesture of defeat.
“I just wish I had realized that at the time.”
The comet had made a sharp turn, suddenly rushing towards the ground, its multicolored brilliance giving way to an angry red glow. The Watcher of the past whirled about, raising his claws skyward, the glow of his magic blazing brighter as he tried to arrest the comet’s plunge.
But he might as well have been trying to stop time itself. The angry red light grew larger and larger in the sky, screams of panic rising from the streets, the flying saurians beginning to take wing in an attempt to escape.
As the comet drew ever closer Lyra could begin to hear the roar of it ripping its way through the air. She could even begin to make out the spiky shards of black stone that made up the bulk of the comet’s form as it passed overhead and then over the horizon.
The impact sent a fireball rising into the sky, night becoming day again for a brief moment, a shockwave of sound slamming into them a matter of seconds later, knocking The Watcher of the past off his feet. A split second later, a gigantic cloud of ash rolled over the horizon, bearing down on the city like an out of control freight train.
Before Lyra could yelp in shock, the cloud swept across the city, the heat washing over her mane and coat, the blast of the impact ringing in her ears.
And then she was back in the guest room, the city and the ash vanishing in a swirl of smoke.
“My next memory was waking up, bound to that pillar.” The Watcher sighed, rubbing his forehead, “My people never recovered. Those who survived Cometfall and who were actually able to find this city.” He paused for a moment before continuing, “Well, they begged me, demanded me to take up the fight again. To get...revenge.”
“Revenge?” Lyra blinked, “No offense, but wasn’t that bit with the comet your fault?”
“Of course it was my fault!” The Watcher emphatically agreed, nodding his head. “But for a very long time I had pushed the idea that I was the flawless immortal emperor. That I knew everything and could do no wrong. The lessons took too well, it seemed. Save for this time.”
He sighed deeply again.
“I kept saying that we needed to focus on survival. Aside from the damage done by Cometfall itself, the world was already beginning to change, becoming wholly unfit for us.”
Lyra frowned, already sensing where this part of the story was going. “They didn’t listen, did they?”
“Some thought I was damaged. Others thought I was a false replacement.” He frowned. “They were angry. They wanted to lash out at something. But, eventually...they just stopped coming.” The Watcher smiled sadly, “No one wanted to listen to the crazy old ghost of the past. And, in the end, the saurians just,” He waved a claw through the air, almost as if he was reaching for something, “faded away. And no matter how hard I searched for survivors, I couldn’t find anymore. I was alone. I couldn’t even talk to the new civilizations rising up, being a ghost on the wind outside this building.”
“Until Luna and Celestia showed up.”
“Right.” He nodded, “Though our first meeting could have gone better. Luna wanted to destroy me. Celestia was actually the one who offered me a second chance.”
“Okay.” Lyra interrupted, frowning deeply, “This has been bugging me. You talk about this sight thing you have, and how you knew Corona back when she was Celestia. Even if you couldn’t exist outside the pyramid, couldn’t one of your uintatherium sent a message? Warned Luna? Talked Celestia out of her downward spiral?”
“The bitter irony of sight beyond sight, is that the wisdom to properly utilize it doesn’t automatically come with.” He shrugged. “Besides, no one saw Celestia’s fall coming. Not really.”
“Really?”
“Really.” The Watcher nodded, very firmly, “Lyra...she was willing to give me another chance. Me. The idiot who killed his own race with his hubris. I guarantee you, that if I was to transport you back to Canterlot, before Celestia’s fall, everypony would react to the news that she would become a tyrant by looking at you like you were insane.”
“But...there had to be some signs.”
“I can’t read minds Lyra.” He sighed, “Yes, sometimes she would yell and shout behind closed doors. But who hasn’t? I just thought that she was venting. Besides….”
He began to pace, slowly walking a line before Lyra as he spoke.
“I’ve been The Watcher for over a thousand years. I’ve seen conflict, sickness, death and the crushing oppression of tyrants. And through all that time, one inescapable conclusion has been laid before me. That the world is better off without saurian influence in it.”
He stopped his pacing, blinking at Lyra’s glower.
“I can see that you disagree.”
“You better believe I do! You have these powers, you see everything...you could help more!”
“Okay then, how would I do that Lyra?”
The question sounded more like a challenge of some kind to the musician, which made her bristle all the more as she stomped angrily towards him.
“You could tell us what’s coming! If we had known that Corona was going to escape-”
“Let me stop you right there.” The Watcher interrupted with a raised claw, “First, I don’t actually see the future. I see the here and now. I get...feelings about creatures or events that might be important. That is the extent of my prophetic abilities. Secondly,” He began to approach Lyra, drawing very close as he asked a question. “What if I had been able to warn Luna ahead of time? What do you think would have actually changed?”
“I-” Lyra sputtered, suddenly on the back hoof, “She could have been prepared to fight her.”
“Oh, don’t be so obtuse! Lyra, you were there when she arrived! You saw how easily Celestia overpowered her sister. With the Elements still stone, what would some extra preparation time done?”
“She could have lead us to the Elements, maybe?”
Even as those words left Lyra’s mouth, she realized how hollow they were. The initial bonds between the group that had grown into their friendship had been planted during that trek in the Everfree. Without it….
“It is very easy.” The Watcher frowned, interrupting her train of thought. “To look back upon events and say ‘I could have.’ or ‘I should have.’ It is not so easy to know what to do when the spectre of your previous failures keeps echoing in your head.”
He paused for a moment, looking past Lyra, as if he were watching some kind of distant event unfold. Then he shook his head and sighed.
“Go to your marefriend, Lyra. She’s on the far side of the market. That young zebra mare from the expedition will be bumping into her soon, assuming she doesn’t change course at all. I would still appreciate your assistance with my plans, but I do understand if you’d rather not.”
He strode from the room, sweeping past the musician without a backwards glance.
“I will be in the pillar.”
- - - -
Bon Bon idly poked at yet another pile of fabric, the cloud of misery that clung about her refusing to leave. She didn’t like to fight with Lyra. In fact, she hated it with every fiber of her being. But, on the other hoof, she still couldn’t wrap her head around her sudden change of tune over Corona. The sudden sensation of somepony bumping into her, however, did manage to drag her from her funk.
“Oh, I’m sorry!”
Blinking, Bon Bon turned to face whoever had run into her. She recognized the zebra mare that had arrived with the rest of her expedition. A few of her books had spilled from her saddlebags from the impact, but she seemed more embarrassed than anything else.
“I’m so, so sorry!” She babbled in Equestrian, scooping up books as she rushed about, “I was just so focused on this place! It’s so amazing!”
“I suppose so.” Bon Bon nodded, bending down to help the zebra collect her tomes, “If you’re an explorer I guess.”
“Which, I am.” She grinned, flipping the last book back into her saddlebags, “I’m Asyana.”
The candy maker couldn’t help but smile, just a little, at the zebra’s enthusiasm. The fact that she was kind of cute with her long black and white mane didn’t hurt either.
“Bon Bon.” She introduced herself, tilting her head slightly, “You speak Equestrian really well. You’ve spent time in Equestria?”
“Quite a bit, in fact.” She nodded, “I just had to see it.”
Bon Bon blinked again.
“Really?”
“Well, with all the stories I heard growing up, of the mysterious kingdom ruled by the moon across the sea, how could I miss the chance?”
Bon Bon blinked for the third time. Equestria, the mysterious and legendary kingdom? It seemed so...strange. Asyana chuckled at her shocked expression, her dark eyes shining with mirth.
“You seem so surprised.”
“I’m sorry.” Bon Bon shook her head, “I just live in Ponyville, which is generally a quiet and peaceful place, so-”
“Ponyville!” Asyana interrupted, suddenly springing forward, her grin all the wider, “You live in the same town as the Elements of Harmony?”
“Well...yes.”
Asyana let loose a high pitched squee of joy, almost bouncing in place at the news.
“That’s so amazing! I’ve always wanted to know more about the Element Bearers. You need to tell me all about them!”
Before Bon Bon could object, the zebra explorer was already behind her, pushing her towards another building with her head, jabbering on just as excitedly as before.
“Let’s talk over drinks! I have so many questions! What are they like? Are they nice? Was there any apprehension over their new roles?”
Bon Bon sighed as she let herself be lead away. She was already trapped.
- - - -
Sitting just outside the entrance to The Watcher’s pyramid, Luna frowned as she shuffled through the collected sketches that Black Tusk had dropped off, before passing half of the stack to her sister.
“Those,” She motioned to the collection of pages with a wing, “Are the zebra that were out exploring the city last night. And these were the ones who left today.”
Corona took the other pages, looking between the two stacks.
“They’re different. Completely.”
“Which does lead to the question of ‘Why?’, if Ritter is hiding half his zebra down there.”
“Searching for something, I would imagine.” Corona proposed, “Who knows what magic survived the downfall of the saurians.”
Luna’s frown deepened. She couldn’t fault her sister’s logic, as she was quite sure that most ponies would love to get their hooves on some of the ancient trinkets that could have lasted. But it had disturbing implications, as it implied that Ritter and his zebra had some knowledge about this place.
Unless they really are just stumbling around in the dark, which could almost be more dangerous.
“We must confront them.” Corona continued, firmly stomping a hoof against the the stone floor, “They must not be permitted to complete their nefarious plans.”
“Very well.” Luna agreed, “Let’s go talk to the good doctor.”
Within moments, the two alicorns were touching down outside Ritter’s building, the earth pony striding out with a large mug of coffee balanced in one hoof. He flashed a smile that passed for charming, nodding to each sister.
“Good morning my dears.” He raised the mug, “Can I offer you any coffee?”
Corona smacked the mug away with a flick of her magic, the coffee splashing across Ritter’s hooves. The explorer spared it a quick, half disappointed glance before looking back at Corona.
“...Now, that was a waste.”
“Do not play ignorant, doctor.” She frowned, “We know that you are up to something.”
“Yes. I am up to something.” He frowned back, “And that is exploration. Both above and below ground. Or did your host never tell you about the undercity?”
Luna highly suspected that The Watcher had just forgotten about its existence, those memories lost in the mists of immortality.
“Your presence here is problematic.” Luna added, “So, Ritter-”
“Doctor Ritter!”
“Doctor Ritter. If you are really here for simple exploration purposes, you need to show us something that proves that. Otherwise, my sister and I will remove you.”
“With great pleasure.” Corona added.
“Of course.” He smiled, slightly strained, “I could use an alicorn’s insight anyway. This way, if you please.”
- - - -
“As you can see, this was spell lab belonged to some creature back in the day.” Ritter explained with a wave of his hoof, “I found it while poking about. Anything you care to add?”
Luna hadn’t taken her eyes off the rows of the rusty cage-slash-cells. Considering the character of the ancient saurian empire, she was quite sure that those prisons had been the source of a great deal of misery.
And the webs.
In the waning days of the empire, the saurians had grown more and more desperate in their attempts to stop the alicorn counter-attack. The war golems grew larger and more experimental, and they had began to experiment with the darkest depths of the various schools of magic.
She dearly hoped that whatever had made these were long dead and gone.
Her eyes flicked to her sister, who was poking at some of the channeling crystals and arcane foci with a very sour expression on her muzzle. It was easy to see that similar thoughts were playing through her head as well.
The sound of a stone clicking on the floor cut through the silence, Luna and Corona whipping about to see what caused it. A small stone, plucked somewhere from the tunnel, had been dropped on one of the many tiles that made up the floor. And Ritter was nowhere in sight.
Now glowing with a sickly green light, both alicorns could sense the rising tide of magical power, a thick stone door dropping from the ceiling, blocking the way out. Spells began to fire off in rapid succession, starting with a rippling pulse that washed across the whole room.
Dimensional Lock. Luna blinked, recognizing the spell and its ability to seal off transportation magic.
The next moment, the room filled with energy. Electricity, flame, acid, ice and a booming sonic pulse in one horrendous maelstrom of power. It slashed and tore at both of the alicorns, sending lances of pain through both their bodies.
They recovered quickly, as their alicorn nature was want to allow, another spell flickering to life. One of the creatures that the sisters recognized as a member of the sharpbeak tribe of saurians appeared. His head crest, not made of flesh and bone like most of his kind, was made out of solid gold and set with precious gems in circular patterns.
“Greetings, thieves. I am Lord Kerzog. If any of you filthy vultures survived my traps, then allow me to congratulate you.” He spat, in a croaking old voice that seethed with bitterness and rage, “You are officially stronger than I gave you filthy, mammal thieves credit for!”
Luna and Celestia were already charging their magic as the illusion continued to speak, the sounds of scuttling limbs beginning to shift through the darkness of the vaulted ceiling high above their heads.
“You may have come here, searching for the riches of an empire long dead. Well, I hope you choke on them!”
He smiled as pony sized black shapes picked their way down the thick cable like webbing.
“But, I’d rather some of my creations choke on you!”
And as the scuttling horde of blackness leapt at the sisters, they responded with blasts of sun and moonlight, their shouts of battle mixing with the shrieks of their attackers.
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Nothing says sisterly bonding like fighting your way out of a tomb.
For better or worse, ever since the Chrono Trigger comparison on was first made over on the forums, I can only picture The Watcher as a floating "genie" reptite.
And I'm now dubbing this primordial war between the saurians and the alicorns as the Sauromachy, to compare/contrast with the Titanomachy (war against the Titans) and Gigantomachy (war against the giants) of Greek myth.
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Quite! Especially tombs that are full of...creatures.
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Dang...now that you bring it up I can't stop seeing it either. In sprite form none the less.
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That. Is. Awesome!
Seriously, it just sounds awesome. Excellent thought RDD.
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Personally, I’m waiting until we learn about the Discomachy, which is, as we all know, the ancient war against disco.
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Staying alive...STAYING ALIVE...HA HA HA HA.
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WHY ARE YOU AWAKE?
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I have no idea why I was awake. I managed to go to sleep not long after and get about 6 hours, though. That's good.
Pride goeth before the fall, and that's some pride they had. I don't think the world is better off without the Saurians, myself. But that's just me.
Please tell me Ritter's burnt to within a millimeter of his life?
That's a little odd, how does Trixie know that Corona is there? I just went back and double checked, and Bon Bon never mentions her presence when she reported back to the library in chapter two.
Wow, so the Watcher basically colony dropped his entire civilization off the map, except with a comet and not a colony? Oops.
I suppose it should have been obvious that the trip into the undercity was a trap, but at least now the gloves can come off once Corona and Luna break free.
was a
that belonged
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