From The Gates

by Dirty Bit

Chapter 41

Chapter 41

Travel Light

At the library, Twilight and Greed sat down at the kitchen table and discussed their plans on approaching Canterlot while they waited for Rainbow Dash, Fluttershy, and Envy to return. The lavender bookworm noted the serious look on Greed's face and felt concerned "Greed...You don't seem to happy about going to Canterlot. I can't believe that your father was the one responsible for all of this! Is he dangerous?"

Greed scoffed "Dangerous is an understatement, Twi...My Dad once managed to swallow up God to achieve a crazy amount of power." His eyes narrowed when he remembered how he managed to take down Father with the last of his strength.

Twilight tilted her head in confusion "But who is God?"

Greed shifted his eyes to Twilight "By the looks of it, he thinks Celestia is with how she runs the place..." He pulled off his sunglasses and examined them in his hoof "I wouldn't blame her with being so well-known and able to move the sun at will. And my dear old dad won't stop there once he absorbs her...He'll probably turn us all into Philosopher's stones..."

Twilight could not be more curious as she was confused about Greed's explanation "Philosopher's stones? What in Equestria is a Philosopher's stone!?"

Greed set his sunglasses on the table "I can explain on the way, but right now, we gotta think of a way to make an entrance..."

Twilight nodded "The only fast way to Canterlot is the Friendship Express, but we can't bring Sloth around with his massive size! So it's only best we gather supplies and trot our way there!"

Greed chuckled "I guess that's the only good plan we have. But we'll have to be quick. We don't wanna keep the old bastard waiting..."

Pinkie hopped into the kitchen with a chipper smile on her face "Heya Twi! Hey, Greedy! You both almost ready to go yet? This battle's gonna be a real doozy!"

Greed smirked at Pinkie and then looked at Twilight "Her confidence is admirable. Is she always like this when shit goes down?"

Twilight rolled her eyes "Pretty much. Almost nothing can stop Pinkie from being herself."

Pinkie giggled "Well, what are we waiting for? The others are waiting out in the library and we cannot wait no longer!"

Twilight looked concerned "But what about Rainbow Dash, Fluttershy, and Envy?"

Pinkie waved a hoof "We're not gonna leave without them, silly! All I'm saying is we're up and ready to go!"

Twilight sighed "Well, we'll need to find an alternate route of transport if we're all going together! No doubt our balloon won't be enough to fit all of us..."

Greed rubbed his chin in thought and slammed it onto the table with a smile "Sloth!"

Twilight cocked an eyebrow at Greed "Isn't he our main concern about transport, Greed?"

The avaricious pony nodded "Yeah! But he's gonna be our solution as well! He's big and he's fast! All we need to do is coax him into running while pulling a cart or two with all of us and we could be at Canterlot in no time!"

Twilight tilted her head "But Sloth's so lazy...sure he could pull all of us, but he can't be that fast."

Pinkie shook her head "Nopie Dopie! Gluttony and Envy told me and Dashie that Sloth was the fastest out of their family! I think Greed is onto something here!" She grinned at the avaricious pony, who returned one with his own.

Twilight thought about it for a moment before she smiled "Okay! But the first thing we'll need is some carts if he's going to pull us all! I'm sure the folks in Ponyville will help us out!" Twilight and Greed rose up from their seats and joined Pinkie in walking out into the main part of the library where the others stood and waited.

Applejack looked out the window "So yer pappy's the one responsible fer all this trouble? And with Chrysalis?"

Lust nodded "I'm afraid so, if what she said was true. He seems so eager for us to meet him in Canterlot for a family reunion..."

Gluttony looked up at Lust with a frown "But I'm sure Father will be happy to meet us once we arrive!" He then smiled "Maybe he can help us out with learning the Magic of Friendship!" The voracious pony chimed obliviously.

Spike looked up at Gluttony with a deadpan expression "Gluttony, I doubt your dad would wanna help out with friendship lessons when he's causing trouble in Canterlot!" He looked away with a wince "I just hope Celestia and the others are okay..."

Rarity looked devastated as she draped a foreleg over her temple "Of all the worst things that could possibly happen, this is-"

Applejack turned to Rarity with narrowed eyes "We get th' point, Rarity! No need t' be overdramatic about it!" She looked out the window again "We still have t' wait fer Dash an' th' others t' come back..."

Lust trotted over to the window next to Applejack and peered out towards the distant city of Canterlot. She was nervous to meet Father after a long period of separation between her and him. The lascivious mare felt conflicted between embracing her father and creator once more and staying with the friends she had made in Ponyville. She was thankful for Rarity's hospitality despite her being so clingy at first, and Equestria in a whole was beginning to grow on her. This new world gave her a sense of purpose and almost a whole new outlook. With a sigh, she looked away with closed eyes 'This could be the fight of our lives once more...'

"Get ready, folks!"

Everypony turned to see Greed, Twilight, and Pinkie trot over with their own expressions on their faces. The avaricious pony continued "We got ourselves a plan to move onto Canterlot quickly!"

Applejack smiled "Well that seems promisin'! Let's hear it!"

Twilight trotted forward and explained "With how the Friendship Express is out of our reach with Sloth's size, we're only limited to traveling to Canterlot on hoof! But thanks to Greed and Gluttony's explanation, we can have Sloth pull us to Canterlot!"

Applejack's brightened mood dimmed at the mention of Sloth "Y'all better be kiddin', Twi..."

Twilight shook her head "Trust me, I'm not! Sloth's the fastest out of the homunculi! If we can get ourselves some carts, we can use Sloth to bring us to Canterlot easily!"

Lust shifted her gaze to Twilight "Did Greed mention Sloth's inability to control his speed OR his direction?" She asked in a curious tone.

Twilight paused and turned to Greed with a light glare. Greed looked back and scoffed "Look, if it's a straight trail, we can handle it! Sloth's good at moving straight! Let's just get us our carts so we can get out of here! We're wasting time!" Everypony agreed and made their way outside.

Before she joined the others, Twilight turned back to Spike "Spike, I need you to-"

Spike nodded "I know...It's gonna be big if it involves all of Greed's family and you girls..." He waddled up to Twilight and looked sad "Just be careful out there, okay? I know you fought against the changelings before, but I don't want you to get hurt..."

Twilight gave a reassuring smile "Don't worry, Spike. I'll come back safe with Greed and everypony else. I just want you to wait for me once we do, okay? Make sure to keep the library in order while I'm gone."

Spike smiled back and nodded "Yeah. I will! Good luck in Canterlot, Twilight." Him and Twilight then shared a big hug before she trotted out the door.

When the ponies gathered outside with Sloth, Pinkie hopped up and pointed at something in the sky "Hey! Over there! It's Dashie and Fluttershy! And they got Envy!" She beamed at them approaching. The others turned to see that what Pinkie said was true.

The three pegasi were flying back toward the rest of the group and landed in front of them with smiles on their faces.

Gluttony noticed Envy and galloped at it "Envy! You're back!" The jealous pony reared back and gave a displeased grunt when it was tackled by Gluttony "Yay! We're a family again! Now we can all meet Father without leaving you behind!"

Envy groaned and pushed Gluttony off, then brushed itself along with its clothes "Yeah, I'm back. So what's the plan?"

Greed pointed at Sloth "You're looking at him!" The indolent pony groaned after Greed made mention of him.

Envy stared up with a deadpan expression "You gotta be kidding me...How's Sloth gonna get us to Canterlot?"

Greed smirked "You'll see!" The group then made their way towards a cart and strapped a makeshift harness to Sloth.
_____

At Canterlot Castle, Shining Armor and Princess Cadence were held under the same paralysis spell as Celestia, Luna, and Wrath as all five laid in pain. Father paced back and forth with a sour expression on his face 'Where are they? I want them to see this for themselves!' He heard a buzzing noise and turned to the window expectantly, but then his mood dropped when he noticed an injured Chrysalis land and trot her way towards Father after flying through the window. He greeted her with his bored expression "Did you send them the message?"

Chrysalis growled and snapped indignantly "I despise your children!!"

Father nodded to Chrysalis "So a yes then." He then noticed the gaping hole in Chrysalis' side "That won't do at all..." The pale alicorn then aimed his horn at the hole and conjured his magic to heal the wound and seal it shut "Much better...Now tell me, who or what was responsible for that scar of yours?" He asked in his calm tone.

Chrysalis scoffed "Only the one called Greed! He wanted to tell you to wait for him and his siblings along with those wretched element bearers!! Tell me, are your children so ill-disciplined!?" She was angry, but it left when she noticed the new expression on Father's face.

It was a face of pure rage as he bared his teeth and growled "Greed..." He hissed with ire in his voice as his body was crackling with red static "So that little whelp managed to come here as well, hm?" The pale alicorn held the vague memory of how his own son along with his old friends thwarted his goal of becoming the perfect being.

Chrysalis took some steps back while Father fumed "Are you worried about their arrival? Were you not expecting Greed?"

Father remained silent for a small moment and took a deep breath as the static subsided along with his anger "No...As a matter of fact, I'm happy..." He trotted over to the window and gazed out at the distant town of Ponyville "For all I know, he could be a changed boy ever since our last...encounter...and with the help of his siblings, I'm sure they all cannot wait to arrive..."

Chrysalis scoffed, but then smiled as she trotted towards his side "You know, once this is over with you becoming one with Celestia, where would that leave me, hm?" She looked over at Father, who looked ahead out the window.

The pale alicorn responded "Your changelings are free to do as they please with the rest of these citizens..."

Chrysalis nodded "Of course. Thank you for your kind gift." Her smile widened as she leaned her head near Father's "I'm sure with Celestia out of the way, it would technically make you the next king of Equestria..." She extended a hoof to Father's cheek and directed his gaze onto hers "Perhaps you would desire a queen to be at your side? Your child Envy happens to be a changeling, so it's only proper..." She batted her eyelashes at him. On the inside, she wanted to know how much power she could leech out of Father if she managed to sway him.

Father stared back for a moment before he moved and walked away from Chrysalis with his bored expression "I'll think about it..." He spoke in an uninterested tone. The changeling queen snarled in displeasure over Father's response.
_____

Sloth stood in front of the exit that lead to Canterlot attached to a chain of carts that contained the group in two divisions. Greed was in the front cart along with Twilight, Pinkie, Gluttony, and Lust while the rest were in the back cart. The avaricious pony called with a confident tone "You ready, big guy?"

Sloth only gave a moan "What a pain..."

Greed nodded "I'll take that as a yes!" He looked ahead at the path in front of him and grinned with pleasure "Alright, Sloth! Full speed ahead!"

Sloth moaned again as he went to take his first step. Pinkie giggled and shivered with excitement at what was going to happen next.

Rainbow Dash sat in the back with a skeptical look on her face "I still don't see how Sloth's the fastest out of your family, Envy! He's so huge!"

Envy chuckled "You'll see..."

Rainbow Dash rolled her eyes "But he can't be the fastest when he's so super laz-YYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYY~!!!!" When Sloth took his first step, he then bursted into a mighty blur of speed that broke most of the path he breezed through.

Everypony but the former homunculi were screaming while they were being pulled by Sloth. The avaricious pony noticed how bigger Canterlot was getting in his sight and laughed "Score one for Greed!! We're coming for your ass, pops! We got this in the bag! Soon, we'll-huh!?" He noticed there was a large left curve in the path with a large rock in front of them and widened his eyes "SLOTH! MOVE LEFT! FOR THE LOVE OF GOD MOVE LE-" It was too late. Sloth, along with everypony in their carts crashed into the large rock.

When the dust settled, the group moaned in pain and crawled out of the wreckage. Rarity complained immensely when she spotted several wood chips in her mane. Gluttony nibbled on some of the cart's remains with a smile. Rainbow Dash came out, and while she looked angry, it slowly turned into a look of excitement "That...was...AWESOME!" She zipped over to Sloth as he picked himself up out of the rock's rubble "I can't believe you could go that fast! Envy and the others were SO right about you! We totally gotta race sometime!!" She beamed at the indolent pony while he moaned at her rambling praise.

When they all recovered, everypony but Rainbow Dash and Sloth glared at Greed as he shifted his glances between the many sets of angered eyes "Okay, I get it! My bad! How was I supposed to know it wasn't gonna be a completely straight trail from here!? At least we're almost to Canterlot with how far Sloth got us!"

Twilight looked back and noticed that Canterlot was just a stone's throw away. She sighed as she rubbed her head "He has a point...But we're gonna have to pick up the slack if we'll make it in time!"

Envy trotted past Greed and jabbed him in the stomach, causing him to fall with a groan and clutch himself "You dumbass..." It muttered in annoyance. Soon after, the group picked themselves up and trotted to Canterlot the rest of the way on foot.

End of Chapter 41

Comments

[Dirty Bit]

What just happened, you ask? Chrysalis just got FRIENDZONED!!!

Also, Greed managed to be 'that guy' in a transport situation. Whatever any of you do, don't be 'that guy' unless it gets you far enough to where you can manage...

[blawrg]

903654
'cet homme.' ;3
I'm actually surprised you can spew these out daily, with how good they are. Are they pre-written? or is it a collaboration? :3

[Dirty Bit]

903697 Neither. All me.

[Poise]

903697

He writes at his own pace, but I'm wondering how long he can keep this up. Soon, he's gotta buckle...

[501st Party Brigade]

903654 But its funny to be that guy.

[Dirty Bit]

903753 That much is true. I already have my second fic on hiatus and my third fic on a monthly update

That, and I got another one in the works

[jar'o'mayo]

This is most likely going to end awesomely.

[Twin Buster]

Jesus chainsaw-twirling Christ, I thought Cadance and Shining were dead. Good to see I was wrong.

[Dirty Bit]

904618 Did I scare you? Did I~?

[DavidPony]

and that is why you never let sloth drive
which is wierd cos youd expect him to just fall asleep at the wheel

[Genesis1212]

Heh chrysalis thinks shell be made queen? Hell naw father could care less about such annoyances xP

[Dirty Bit]

2675609 Double posts can be a bitch

[VilkaTheWolf]

EnvyDash ship!

[Waifu Crossbreed]

I finally found this fic again! I only needed to search gate in the fimfiction search bar