My Little Equestroid: Stompin' is Magic

by ForeverChasingRainbows

Chapter 14 - What You Are in the Dark

**Twilight Sparkle**

Twilight barely noticed as Princess Celestia took a half-step back from the large alien, beginning to apologise in spite of her evident surprise.

"You can- You've been able to understand us the whole time?!" Twilight said incredulously, volume rising over Celestia's apology. "Why didn't you say anything?"

"No, I couldn't," the huge grey-furred stallion - that apparently didn't like being called a horse - replied, "It only started just now."

Not only is he suddenly speaking fluent Equestrian, he also sounds like he's related to Applejack for some reason. What the hay is going on?

Luna's voice cut across the conversation, halting and vibrating with amusement. "You should... y-your faces!"

Twilight turned to face the Lunar Diarch, a glance at Celestia revealing the same dawning realisation on her mentor's face. Luna was battling valiantly to remain standing against the force of her barely-restrained mirth, one hoof held to her muzzle to stifle a laugh.

Celestia quirked an eyebrow at her sister. "Translation spell?"

"Mm-hmm." Luna murmured with a nod, still holding her mouth shut.

"We'll talk about this later," Celestia said, eyes narrowing.

"Worth it," Luna said quietly, eyes sparkling as she struggled to keep her voice level. "So worth it."

"Your Highness?" the lead guard prompted, his gaze still moving between the Royal trio and the large stallion.

"Thank you Captain," Celestia said, returning to her usual regal composure. "You can stand down for now."

The guards pulled back as the three alicorns moved toward the stallion. As they approached, he reversed Twilight's earlier outburst in a sarcastic tone. "Ya had a spell that could translate the whole time? Why didn't ya say anythin'?"

"Well, uh..." Twilight began, before Princess Celestia took over.

"Translation spells are notoriously difficult and unreliable," Celestia said, addressing their visitor. "My sister has something of a unique affinity for them, as well as a sometimes... questionable sense of humour. I apologise for any offense I may have given, such was not my intent."

"Ah, it ain't nothin'," the stallion replied, mollified. "Y'ain't exactly the first to make that mistake."

"Then, if you don't mind me asking," Twilight asked hesitantly, "what, uh... what exactly are you?"

"A Techno-horse," the stallion replied, "the last o'the Equestroids. Or you could use my name, seein' as how we can talk now an' all." He extended an arm towards her, offering a metal hand from where he still sat on the ground. "We kinda did this bit already, but it'll prob'ly work better this time. Name's Thirty-Thirty."

Twilight brought her hoof up towards the offered hand slowly, a little uncertain at first - then she mentally connected the stallion's limbs to those of a minotaur or griffin, and decided the same sort of hoof-shake would probably work. Placing her hoof inside the huge grey paw, she tried to force the nervousness out of her smile.

"Twilight Sparkle. Princess Twilight Sparkle, actually," she said as the stallion gently shook her hoof. Twilight cringed a little when his eyes widened at her title, then stepped back to introduce Celestia and Luna.

"Please," she said, mind racing to recall the proper protocol, "allow me to introduce the Diarchs of Equestria; Princess Celestia, Regent of the Sun, and her sister Princess Luna, Regent of the Moon." Each of the alicorns slightly inclined their heads as she spoke. Twilight noted that Luna seemed to have suddenly lost all of the laughter she had been holding in a moment ago, and was worried to see she was also avoiding meeting the large alien's gaze.

What's up with that?

The stallion - Thirty-Thirty, Twilight reminded herself - seemed quite taken aback by the titles. "I'd guessed you were somethin' from all the guards, but... wow. I ain't ever exactly met royalty before," he said, running a hand back through his mane awkwardly. "Seems like a lot of fuss to go to for just me. Uh... should I be, y'know, bowin' or somethin'? Don't want to just jump up without askin', you little ladies seem to get pretty jumpy when I do that."

"I think we can dispense with formalities for the moment," Princess Celestia said. "There is, however, one matter we must resolve. You have harmed one of our little ponies and taken him as a prisoner. He is to be released, immediately."

"I didn't hurt the little guy, it was only a freeze round," Thirty-Thirty replied. "He'll wake up in a couple hours. An' he's under arrest."

"For what, exactly?" Princess Celestia asked. As Twilight opened her mouth to remind the Princess of what she herself had already told Celestia about the events of the last hour, Celestia shot her a look and she hesitated.

She wants to hear his side of it, before he learns anything from us? I guess I am interested to know exactly how he figured out what was going on...

The stallion glanced aside at the bound pegasus, a little uncertainty creeping onto his face. "I, uh... I'm still kinda workin' that part out," he offered sheepishly. "I've got this thing where I sometimes do stuff without really thinkin' about it as much as maybe I should, but... look," he said, returning his gaze to the three alicorns, "when someone poses in front of a giant storm cloud yellin' and monologuin' like that, and all o'you in the camp were frightened of him, after that guard came in all beat up... I just figured he was probably up to no good."

Twilight shifted a little, uneasy. That's... not exactly the best reason for blasting somepony. I guess everything worked out though.

"He was under the influence of powerful dark magic, and not entirely in control of his actions," Celestia said levelly. "I am happy to hear that you at least intended to do my little ponies no permanent injury, but I would still ask you surrender him to us so that we can make sure he is unharmed."

"Well, I guess y'all are in charge 'round here, and I was gonna try and give him to some kinda sheriff or somethin' anyhow," the stallion replied. "Take him."

At the Princess' command, a pair of unicorn medics brought a stretcher forward from the guard formation. Twilight looked on as they bore the bound pegasus away, hoping he wasn't hurt.

He should be free of the dark magic contained in whatever that amulet was at least. I'd like to believe it was the Alicorn Amulet - it would solve a huge problem and raise less questions - but the Alicorn Amulet is not even close to that easy to get rid of...

Twilight noticed Princess Celestia's gaze travelling back and forth between the unconscious pegasus and Thirty-Thirty, a small amount of concern still evident on her face. Then she felt an almost imperceptible push against her magical senses - Celestia was looking for something, and trying to do it without being noticed.

Luna huffed out a short breath and stepped forward. "Well, now that is resolved, We suppose thou may'st benefit from some explanation. We believe the answers thou desirest are..." Luna's gaze drifted upward as she thought, punctuating each answer with a tap of a forehoof on the ground. "Yes; ponies; yes, really; about a dozen, but the vast majority are pegasi, earth ponies or unicorns; neigh, there are zebras, minotaurs, griffins, dragons, donkeys and much more besides; We are working on it; then yes to the next two and mayhap to the last."

Twilight had to admit to herself that what Luna said left her with very little clue what was going on. Judging by the reactions of the surrounding guards, her friends, and Princess Celestia, they were as confused as she was.

"Oh come on," Luna said, "surely 'tis not that difficult."

That's easy to say when you're a literal mind-reader, Twilight thought, and especially when you already know the answer...

"Anyway, it doesn't have to make sense to all of you," Luna said, motioning towards Thirty-Thirty, "they're the answers to the first ten questions he wants answered in the order I believe he is most likely to ask them."

Contrary to Luna's assertion, Twilight noted Thirty-Thirty was looking almost as confused as everypony else. "The first one works," he said carefully, "but I think maybe the order's wrong after that, 'cos 'ponies' don't make no sense for a yes or no question."

"For the benefit of everypony else present, could we please just have a normal conversation?" Celestia enquired.

"Fine," Luna huffed. She glanced at the stallion thoughtfully. "Thy priorities must have shifted a little since last you slept."

Surprise, and a maybe a hint of anger, crossed Thirty-Thirty's features. "And I reckon they just changed again. You've been snoopin' around in my head?"

Luna flinched. "We- I-" she began, before closing her eyes briefly and taking a slow breath. "I promise I shall explain after, but thou..." Luna paused again. Rather than appearing frustrated, as Twilight expected after all of the 'thou's she had been throwing around, she seemed to be deliberately choosing to use the alternative. Emphasising the pronoun slightly, Luna began again in a more subdued and regretful tone. "No, you have other questions that should be answered first. The answer to that will likely be the last words we exchange."

Twilight looked between Luna and the large stallion curiously as Thirty-Thirty simply folded his arms and waited for the Princess to continue. That was an interesting development - she hadn't considered that perhaps Luna's apparently inconsistent use of 'thou' and 'you' was deliberate. If she was consciously choosing to refer to Thirty-Thirty with what, for Luna at least, was the term of address for an equal or superior rather than the one for an inferior... considering the other factors involved she obviously felt indebted to him in some way.

The pranks, those answers... and the way she just deflated when- Wow. She isn't trying to be funny, she is really nervous about something.

"First," Luna said after a moment, "you are correct in your assumption regarding where you are. You have passed through an unstable gateway powered by dark magic into the place you know as the Celestial realm."

"Yeah, I figured," Thirty-Thirty replied.

To Twilight's surprise he didn't seem all that concerned about falling through a gateway into another world, and without really thinking about it she blurted out "Doesn't that worry you at all?"

"This ain't exactly my first rodeo, kid," he replied, not taking his eyes off Luna, "I've done the hole-in-space thing before. Just not to here. Next I was gonna ask if you'd been talkin' to Shaman at all, and if my partner was okay."

Luna's eyes widened a little. "Oh, that's where we got mixed up. Your curiosity over the strange place in which you find yourself has understandably fallen behind your concern for your friends over the day. This would be the later answers - yes, I have spoken to him, and yes, your companion is unharmed. Your partner went to him for help after what happened, and he contacted us to see if you had arrived on this side of the portal. He is alive and uninjured, and he knows that you survived and that we were going to attempt to send you home."

"When were you going to tell me about that, sister?" Celestia asked.

"In your room, in private, before you decided to go off like a solar flare and leave me behind!" Luna replied angrily, voice steadily increasing in volume. "Now let me finish!"

Twilight stuck a hoof in one ear and wiggled it around. Ow! That... Oh. It's 'yell-at-your-sister-in-front-of-the-guards-and-everypony' bad. This, uh, isn't awkward at all.

Before Celestia could respond, Luna turned back to Thirty-Thirty. "As to your follow-up of whether or not you can talk to them, I am not certain - with no magical ability of your own you cannot do so directly, but we may be able to work something out. Hopefully we can simply return you home before that becomes an issue. After that, I suppose it's back to the questions about us and our world."

Thirty-Thirty paused for a moment - probably going back over what Luna had said earlier, Twilight realised - before stating, "So y'all're ponies." There was a slight undercurrent of amusement in his tone, as if he half expected it was a joke at his expense.

"Yes. There are three major pony tribes that make up most of our population - earth ponies, pegasi and unicorns - along with some less numerous ones. Around a dozen in all. We share our world with a large number of other races, as you do. Our nearest neighbours are the griffin and zebra nations, and we also have a small but significant donkey population living within our borders."

The stallion turned his gaze on Twilight. "That three tribes thing what you were tryin' to explain with that little line-up ya did?"

"Um... yes," Twilight said, feeling heat rising in her cheeks. "I don't think I did a very good job. Sorry. Wasn't really thinking too clearly at the time."

"I got some of it I think," the stallion replied with a small smile, "but mostly I was confused about why you weren't puttin' yourself in a group too. Was a bit weird havin' you show me there were three kinds o'ya when you didn't fit into any o'the groups yourself."

Twilight brightened a little at the chance to explain herself. "Oh, well, I can explain that part now - alicorns are kind of an exception. There's only three. Well, four now. I was-" Twilight paused as she caught sight of the look Celestia and Luna were giving her. "You know what, never mind. Way to much to go over right now."

"That's what you three are? With the wings an' a horn?"

Twilight nodded. "Yes."

"And there's... just the four of ya?" Thirty-Thirty said. Twilight wasn't sure what to make of his slightly subdued tone.

"Yes?" she replied, a little uncertainty creeping into her voice.

The stallion lapsed into thoughtful silence for a little while, before turning back to Luna.

"I think you've still got somethin' to tell me."

Twilight saw Luna's ethereal mane darken and droop as her ears turned back. "Yes, I do," she said reluctantly. She glanced at the surrounding guards and Twilight's friends before adding, "In a less... public setting."

Twilight stood by awkwardly, feeling a little like a third wheel, as Celestia instructed the guards to return to their impromptu aid post with Pinkie, Applejack, Rarity and...

...and Rainbow, Twilight thought sadly, as she failed to locate the colourful pegasus. She must still be... Celestia, I'm such a mule. She'd felt terrible when Rarity had made her think back over the way she'd worded what she'd said to Rainbow Dash during the argument she'd been having with Nightshade. As soon as this was over she was going to have to find her and apologise.

She was silently thankful when Rarity tactfully avoided mentioning to Celestia exactly why Dash had flown off alone to bust clouds. A few guards were dispatched skywards to pass a message to the Meteor squad dismantling the storm, instructing them to point Rainbow towards the aid station when they found her. A few short moments after the pegasi disappeared into the dark sky beyond the firelight, the rest of the troops marched off with her friends - leaving the three alicorns alone with their alien visitor.

Looking between the royal sisters and Thirty-Thirty, Twilight wondered if Celestia and Luna realised that, size-wise, he would appear about as large to them as they did to regular ponies.

"Before We begin," Luna said reluctantly, "We would beg two things of you all. First, that any acrimony resulting from my actions remain solely between the two of us. It would be best if everypony else refrained from involving themselves, on either side. There is too much at stake for both our worlds for you to cease interacting with one another."

"That's gonna depend entirely on what exactly it is ya did," Thirty-Thirty responded, "but I get what you're sayin. If they ain't involved, I'm not gonna let this spill on them."

Luna bowed her head briefly in acknowledgement. "Second," he gaze shifted from the stallion to Celestia and Twilight, "you three need to have a discussion about Arcanite. After this," she added, forestalling the question Twilight was about to ask. "The situation is worse than we thought, and your unfortunate attacker was only one of many. You should be able to put it together immediately if you start there, without the need for me to break faith."

Twilight saw Celestia's eyes dart back and forth a few times as she considered something. She apparently came to a conclusion and her eyes widened as she focused on Luna. "The other disturbances-"

To Twilight's surprise, Luna interrupted her sister. "Yes, but this... situation needs dealing with first."

An uncomfortable silence stretched out as Thirty-Thirty sat with his arms folded, looking at Luna with undisguised irritation. The Princess seemed to be stuck on the verge of speaking, as if she knew opening her mouth would be the start of something horrible.

At length, voice carefully neutral, he said "So... you've been in my head."

"In a manner of speaking, yes," Luna replied, with a hint of shame. "Not intentionally," she added hurriedly, before the stallion had a chance to reply, "please, allow Us to explain. We know this will sound passing strange to you, but one of Our Royal duties is guarding the dreams of Our subjects as they slumber. Normally We have to deliberately seek out a pony within the realm of dreams, and entering requires at least some level of consent from them. Each of Our little ponies creates a sort of bubble within which their dream plays out. You might think of them as tiny universes, contained in a room of sorts. For you, however..." Luna trailed off as she searched for words. "Your dreams are... loud. There is no boundary, no barrier around them. It is as if everypony else is sat in their room reading a book, and you are leading a marching band down the corridor. When first you arrived We saw only brief snatches of things, and We were preoccupied by other matters, but when you slept 'pon the surface..."

Twilight suppressed a shudder at how awkward that situation must be, for both of them. She also noted that Luna had fallen back into a more archaic speech pattern. Such events were becoming less and less regular these days, and more often than not Luna would catch and correct herself relatively quickly. Presumably she was nervous about their visitor's potential reaction to the whole situation, and that combined with discussing her traditional role and special talent was drawing it out.

She had been expecting something negative, but Twilight was still surprised by Thirty-Thirty's response. His initial hostility had disappeared entirely, and now fear was rolling off him in waves. The huge stallion looked like he was about to be sick. His mouth opened and closed a few times before he managed to speak.

"I don't believe you." The tone of his words made it readily apparent to Twilight that Thirty-Thirty's words came more from denial than actual disbelief.

"Two hundred and forty-three years, two months and eight days," Luna said, voice hushed and heavy with the weight of speaking a necessary evil. "Twenty-seven was the last to die."

Twilight became increasingly worried as Thirty-Thirty's voice and bearing grew more desperate. "No," he protested, "someone could've told you that. There are still records-"

"Not of how, and why, you survived. Or of what your people are. What you were built from," Luna pressed on, seemingly determined to prove her point. "You destroyed all trace of that, along with knowledge of the measures they put in place to control all of you. All of you took back your freedom that day. That was your liberators' answer when you asked them why they came, wasn't it? 'Freedom is the right of all sentient beings'? But the others were flawed in one way or another, and only you survived many years beyond that. A fusion of living flesh and living metal. You are truly a child of two worlds, Unit Thirty. Earth, and-"

In one smooth, blindingly fast motion the huge alien swept up his weapon, worked a hinged section of the grip back and forth with a metallic sound - which Twilight found all too easily echoed in her recent memory - and pointed the open end directly at Luna's face.

The cavernous maw of the thing was almost large enough to swallow the Princess' head. Twilight only held herself back from intervening for what was presumably the same reason Celestia had; Luna had apparently anticipated the response she would incite, and faced the stallion calmly with one hoof extended back to ward off her fellow alicorns.

Thirty-Thirty's voice came out in a low growl. "Stop talking. Now."

All four figures stood motionless for what seemed like an age. Twilight tried not to breathe as she waited for Luna to do... something. Anything, whatever it was she had planned to make sure everything would work out.

She has a plan, right? Celestia always has a plan!

Luna and Thirty-Thirty continued to stare into each other's eyes for what Twilight realised was the first time since they had actually met. After some undefinable length of time crawled by, Twilight caught a faint creaking sound at the edge of her hearing. A few moments later the stallion's weapon began to waver slightly in his grip, the crushing power of which was, Twilight realised, the source of the strange sound.

"I am not one o' them," he said, as if daring Luna to contradict him.

Then, as quickly as the stalemate had begun, it was over. Something seemed to drain out of Thirty-Thirty, and he screwed his eyes shut as the end of his weapon slowly lowered towards the ground.

"We are sorry." Luna murmured, bowing her head. "We had to make you understand what We have done."

The fire had left the stallion's voice, which now matched his defeated posture. "So you... I mean you've-"

"We saw everything. Including how you wouldst feel about somepony else knowing," Luna said in a small voice, ears flat against her head. "We cannot undo what We have witnessed, but neither have We abused that knowledge nor shared it with anypony else. We can only offer you Our solemn oath that this will not change, with this confession as a display of Our faithfulness thereto. We are both aware that had I a desire to use what I know for ill, I would have no cause or need to make this admission to you."

"I suppose I gotta believe ya," Thirty-Thirty said bitterly. "Either way, it's not like I could-" he broke off and looked aside with a whispered "Damn it."

"We are sorry that circumstance has put the two of us in this position. We will not trouble you again, but if you change your mind-"

The stallion's reply held an implacable finality. "If you've seen everythin', then you know I won't."

"All things change in time, and the future is often not as we imagine it will be," Luna said sadly, before bowing her head and turning to leave. Celestia moved to follow her sister, concern plain on her face.

Without looking back, Luna said "You still have duties to attend to," her voice thick with repressed emotion. Twilight could hear the underlying message - Luna was acknowledging that she came second to Equestria in her sister's priorities. Celestia drew up short.

Twilight had seen the expression currently occupying her mentor's face only once - when she'd brought up Nightmare Night in one of her tutor sessions as a filly. Celestia had put Equestria before Luna once before, and the emotional turmoil on the elder alicorn's face was making Twilight's own heart ache.

Time to pony up Twilight. You've got the wings and the crown, and Luna needs her sister.

She swallowed and straightened her stance, before giving Celestia a slight nod.

I'll take care of this. Go.

Celestia gave Twilight a brief flicker of a smile, overloaded with a storm of emotion - pride, gratitude, happiness, fear, nervous anticipation and so many more - and followed her sister into the night.

Comments

[Booster Spice]

The way 30-30 is acting, reminds me of the Mars horses of Perter Hamilton. Built for combat against insiduous overwealming opponants.

Still they haven discovered the loss of Dash yet. theres going to be self recrimination there.

Is it ever shown how 30-30 alters Sarah Janes settings, or is it a ,standard, smart link, through the cybernetics? As in the lever cock is a mechanical interface, preventing him using the gun remotely?

[CCC]

...so now Dash is still MIA, and both Princesses have stepped away from the field.

Moreover, the Dark portals appear to all have been Stampede - I'm guessing he'd trigger off a small portal, send a bit of dark magic through it, and shut it down immediately if one of the senior Princesses tried to close it; or drop a mind-warping Arcanite artifact through if somepony else turned up (he's probably got one with Twilight's name on it). With the aim of putting together enough of an Equestrian army to take down the Princesses before moving in himself and taking over.

The frozen pegasus should hopefully be able to provide useful information when he wakes up. I wonder whether that will be before or after Dash comes back? I'm guessing "before", because I expect it'll take a lot longer than a couple of hours for a Dark arcanite artifact to warp her mind...

[AngryDesu]

Oh my, now that sounds like an interesting backstory for Thirty-Thirty indeed.

[Dipti]

whelp that went well...really couldnt expect much more than that though.

[Starcat5]

'Freedom is the right of all sentient beings'

You went there. Normally I would say I approve, but Thirty-Thirty clearly doesn't.