A Different Kind of Monster

by AzelTheMantis

Chapter 6

Trixie and I still had our doubts about the old and seemingly fragile centaur. He appeared to be far too weak and a tad too slow to be accepted as the Lord we believed he was but his knowledge about the history of Equestria and the princesses said otherwise.

"So...are you really the same centaur Celestia and Luna defeated more than one thousand years ago?" Trixie asked again for the eighth time.

Tirek gave a sigh of boredom. He simply had enough of the inquisitive unicorn's annoying questions. Even a blind pony would've been able to see that he was ready to shut her up in any moment.

"I would recommend shutting your mouth, mare" I whispered to Trixie.

"Why should Trixie? She still has a lot of questions" she countered.

Just as I anticipated, a magical string of pure dark energy wrapped itself around Trixie's snout, effectively preventing her jaw from opening. I watched as the mare tried in vain to remove it while she attempted to summon some random spell to dispell the bond around her mouth.

"I guess that temporarily clears our doubts about you, centaur" I chuckled.

"I take it you desire to see Celestia and her son laying powerless in front of you and at your mercy?" Tirek asked bluntly with a glint of sadism in his dark eyes.

"I wouldn't mind seeing the lot of them all dead at my hooves for all I care" I replied.

"Hmm...for a mere pony, you do show some uncharacteristic tolerance for and affinity towards high levels of violence" he said, "And yet you still believe Prince Christopher is the only monster around here".

That remark really struck a nerve. Ever since I left The Hive, I wanted nothing to do with those monsters as I was one of them for the past two decades. I could've lived an honest life and become a lawyer or something but somehow, all I could be was the monster ponies tell their foals about.

I hated the mere idea of being labelled an unwanted beast for the rest of my life. Everything seemed so unfair. It appeared as though I was destined to be chained to the fact that I was never going to get the chance to be that individual I wanted to be.

And then, this asshole just had to bring it up.

"Know your place, centaur" I growled, showing off rows of teeth, "Don't make me fancy ripping your head off".

I half-expected him to at least show some regret for his comment but no, he merely grinned as if he enjoyed that threat.

"My dear colt, don't tell me you expected me to shudder at that pathetic threat hahaha" he laughed. Apparently, he could read thoughts too.

"I will have you know that I intend to rip you apart if you even think of calling me a monster again" I scoffed at his reply.

"Heheh A bit too feisty for an insect, are you not?" he continued his jeering.

"Don't associate me with those liars. I've had enough of them"

"I can see that you do and I also see that your hatred for the Canterlot Royal Family stemmed from your changeling instincts" he replied in a serious tone, "Are you still going to deny the fact that you'll always be a criminal no matter what you do?" he asked.

"I am aware, centaur" I answered, "And that gives me all the more reason not to fear any kind of repercussions when I eliminate that damn mare".

"Excellent..." Tirek let out a growl of approval.

The look on the old timer's face really unnerved me. Almost like he wanted to hear every single detail about every kind of malicious torture I would inflict on the Princesses. The Hoof-bar, Germane Suplex right onto a pile of shattered glasses, a whizzing magical bullet penetrating the skulls of my victims. Ah...the pleasures of sadistic imagination....

"And what does your companion desire? What is her reason for joining you?" Tirek asked as he turned his attention to Trixie who was yet to spout any words of displeasure after Tirek forcefully kept her mouth shut tight.

"I don't know" I shrugged, "I haven't asked her about it yet".

It really was weird that I had still let Trixie join me even after I had knowledge about the Elements of Harmony.

"Well, do you mind telling me why you are sticking with this murderer?" he asked Trixie while pointing a finger at me.

"Gfft mffs moff mmfffee!!" was Trixie's reply.

"I suppose we could let her speak now" I said, observing Trixie's futile attempts to make Tirek's spell disappear.

"Very well" Tirek let out a chuckle before he snapped his fingers.

The next moment, his restraining spell disappeared in a flash. Trixie exhaled like she had been underwater for a few minutes before she breathed heavily.

Her gaze shifted almost immediately to Tirek as she glared at him with her piercing, purple eyes. To be honest, it looked like she was ready to unleash another blue beam of death at the aged centaur...not that i was complaining though.

"Do that again and Trixie will destroy you" she warned him, keeping her eyes fixed at his.

"And I do hope you'll remember not to be an annoyance to us, mare" I quickly shot back.

Fortunately, she got the hint as she recalled me pulling the coup de grace on the manticore we had encountered earlier and she hesitated a bit.

"So, why the hell are you still following me, mare?" I inquired, "I don't think you have any further business with us".

"W-Well....um..." she stammered as she pulled a complete 180, "You promised to fix Trixie's home!" she yelled although in a nervous tone.

"Not good enough" Tirek commented before I could, "There's another reason. I know there is".

"Yeah...I think there is" I agreed, "Tell me, mare" I demanded to know.

"T-There's nothing"

"Don't lie to me. I've been lied to too many times now!!" I shouted, "Has it got to do with somepony?"

"...yes..." she replied lowly.

"Twilight Sparkle?" I asked the first name that popped in my mind.

She merely replied with a slow nod. It was quite obvious that she still had unfinished business with the new princess.

What puzzled me was that she had claimed to have been reformed after her incident with the alicorn amulet but then again, I would've also held a grudge against the pony who had humiliated me in front of everypony. It was hard to let go of feuds like that.

"Let me guess" Tirek spoke up, scratching his beard, "You want to kill this...Twilight Sparkle?" he asked.

"No!! I mean...yes...I mean..." she gave a nervous reply, "Trixie means....she just wants to humiliate Twilight in front of a crowd".

"Lame" I scoffed after knowing her intentions.

"Now think hard, pony" Tirek got right in Trixie's face, "You have two choices. One, you walk away from us without your magic but you get to leave with your conscience intact. And two, you assist us in getting rid of the princesses at the cost of being labelled a traitor but you will have more power than you'll ever have".

"Wha-at!?! That's not fair!!" Trixie voiced her disagreement.

"Either you're with us or you're against us" Tirek simplified.

"And life ain't fair, at least not to me it isn't" I told her, "It's your choice, mare".

"But...Trixie doesn't want to kill anypony" Trixie shook her head vigorously.

"Well then, it's settled" Tirek sighed while charging magic between his horns, "Your magic it is then", he added, cracking his knuckles.

"You want Trixie to give her magic up!? NEVER!!!" Trixie yelled, a look of disgust on her face.

"Then you better be ready" I smirked.

"For what?" she asked, raising her eyebrow in puzzlement.

"We can't let you just go away after you've heard what we said" Tirek calmly replied, "You've got no choice but to join us".

"And as I was saying" I continued, "You better be ready for your first murder, mare. I'll leave Twilight to you and you can hang her carcass in front of the masses. Ultimate humiliation I must say so".

"What!?" she cringed at the mere thought.

"Think about it" I said to her, patting her in the back, "Like Tirek said, you can have all the power in the world. All you have to do is aid us".

I could see that she was in a state of mental conflict. On one hoof, she was gonna join in on the most brutal attack on the Canterlot Royal Family in exchange for power and on the other hoof, she would become nothing more than a powerless victim if she declined.

"I...I..." the blue unicorn struggled to find the right words.

"Well, speak up, mare" I pressed her on.

"Trixie accepts" she reluctantly gave her answer, "On two conditions" she added lowly.

"Which are?" Tirek asked.

"You hand over Twilight to Trixie" Trixie replied.

"That's not too bad" I smiled.

"And Trixie wants you to give her the best carriage ever!" she announced loudly.
"Say what?" I arched my eyebrow.

"Deal" Tirek smirked, shaking the mare's hoof.

"Bloody hell! I'm not a worker dammit!!" I threw my hooves up in disapproval.

"Now you're against Trixie joining you?" Trixie asked accusingly.

"What? I don't even..." I mumbled before a gray hand pulled me away from the mare.

"She has tremendous potential, Bālor" Tirek whispered into my ear, "She will be instrumental in handing us our victory".

His words made me recall Trixie's powerful alicorn-like blast of blue unicorn magic which managed to stun the huge manticore...for approximately, the fifth time. She was indeed a unicorn with massive potential, one that could prove to be a valuable asset in the long run. Scratch dumping her.

"I...alright! I'll fix her bloody carriage!" I gave in.

"Remember, the best carriage ever" Trixie corrected me.

"Whatever" I mumbled before I turned to Tirek, "So, what're gonna go over there?", I asked, pointing at the large city in the distance.

After almost three hours of trotting and taking fifteen shortcuts through acres of slimy swamps, thick undergrowth and bushy trails, we finally managed to reach Manehattan.

One thing that bugged me though, no pun intended, was that Tirek had dragged us all the way over here where there weren't that much notably powerful ponies to speak off. If he had wanted to steal somepony's magic, he could have suggested starting in Trottingham or even Ponyville for darn's sake.

"Uh...what are we doing here again, centaur?" I asked.

"I need to find an old apprentice. I have something I need to obtain" he replied with a sinister smirk.

Trixie and I merely exchanged puzzled glances as we watched Tirek hobble towards the city. What kind of artifact or energy was he so keen on acquiring? We just shook our heads before we followed the centaur.

And then, our plans for the end of Celestia's reign was set in stone.

---

Meanwhile

Two black figures observed the three beings cautiously under the disguise of a rabbit and a small bird. They scratched their heads in confusion before they reverted to their normal form.

" What are they doing? " one of the changelings asked the other.

"I've no idea but we have to keep following them. It's the Queen's command" his companion replied.

The next moment, they turned into ponies before they resumed following the trio stealthily.

Comments

[CyberDragon89ponies]

Didn't story used to have images of Chris In it?