Chapter 24: Time to Say Goodbye
Earlier in Canterlot…
Although rarely used, Alternia had made sure the War Room, which featured a very accurate topographical model of Equestria, was not only spacious, but had access to many phones so that they could be contacted and contact Equestria’s armies. This was paying off as now the room was packed with general staff, taking telegrams to be sent, and reading out telegrams to other officers.
In the midst of it all was Cadance, Shining Armor, General Caesar Salad and Admiral Marenitz, who were worriedly observing the map and all the little pony figures atop of it. The reports they were getting were not encouraging, though.
“General Iron Duke is sending reports of organized and armed formations of cultist ponies attacking his barracks in Manehattan and is taking casualties! He has escalated to using lethal force to repel them!”
“Acknowledged,” said Caesar Salad; glancing at the city of Manehattan, he placed a pony waving a pitchfork onto it.
“Another crowd has rioted and has risen in Cloudsdale. They’re going for the weather factory! General Ermane reports that his pegasi can handle it, but he can only offer limited air support. Two brigades at the most. Wonderbolts are available for deployment!”
“General Guts reports that unknown pony forces have launched an attack on the barracks of the Seaforth Highlanders and the Vanhoofer Artillery Regiment! He is also trying to contain two more riots that have broken out.”
Shining Armor glanced at Caesar. “That’s the fourth mind-controlled induced riot in Vanhoofer this week. Guts is keeping the city under control, but for how long can he keep it up?”
“Not for long. Your highness, I recommend we authorize the evacuation of Vanhoofer and the instatement of martial law there,” said Caesar.
Cadance closed her eyes briefly before she sighed heavily. “Alright. Perhaps we should also have the Wonderbolts and three battalions of the Dragoon Guard sent there as well to assist with the evacuation?”
“Agreed. Octavius, inform General Ermane he is to send the Wonderbolts to assist General Guts. Tell Guts he is allowed to institute martial law and to begin the evacuation of Vanhoofer. After that, order the Dragoon Guard to Vanhoofer,” Caesar ordered his aide.
Octavius, who was actually Caesar Salad’s nephew, nodded and dashed to a phone line while another pony quickly spoke up.
“We have unknown pony forces assaulting the Dodge City Militia and a riot breaking out in Baltimare! General Hanna Belle is sending Colonel Ambrosia and a company of the Foreign Legion to reinforce Dodge City. Luckily, General Hanna Belle and Queen Simulacris’s hive have Baltimare under control!”
“Not for long! REINS observation balloons are radioing in bands of ponies heading to Baltimare! General Hanna Belle has been informed of the situation!” yelled another mare.
“That’s not good. Keep us posted,” said Shining Armor.
“Your highness, Queen Lamia of the Evergreen hive has arrived!” announced a Royal Guardspony.
Shining Armor and Caesar Salad stood to attention as the young queen trotted in, but she waved them down with her good foreleg.
“There’s no time. I’m here to offer my mother’s hive’s help. What can we do?” Lamia asked.
Cadance grimaced. “Not sure. We have enough guards to respond to these riots and attacks, but they’re growing in number. We need a way to actively counter this, but the Old One’s mind control is unbreakable even for our best mages.”
“Speaking of the riots and attacks, something doesn’t make any sense,” said Shining Armor.
“What do you mean, Armor?” asked Caesar.
"At first the riots like the one in Vanhoofer and Las Pegasus were filled with mind controlled ponies simply marching towards public property and destroying it. But as they increased in number, we started getting reports of abductions. Ponies going missing. We ordered the police to start investigating, but then they had their hooves filled by ponies suddenly going after our military facilities. Not only that, but these ponies were armed, and as the reports tell us, they were organized.”
Cadance looked up, horrified. “But that means… that means that either the Old God is actively mind controlling the ponies to stir up conflict, or that there are ponies actively working for the Old God.”
The unenviable prospects silenced the leaders for an entire second.
At least until Marenitz snapped them out of it.
“Oi! Our best intelligence says that the Old God doesn't bother doing deliberate shit like this. So that means we have genuine cultists to deal with. Can we get somepony or changeling on the inside?” demanded the admiral.
Lamia’s brow furrowed for a second, followed by a smile bursting across her face. “Yes! Of course we can! I’ll send a liaison to work with the REINS on that and ask Queen Belladonna’s hive for help. Grennel should be happy to oblige.”
“Grennel?” asked Shining Armor, puzzled.
“My cousin, apparently. She’s Belladonna’s current heir and usually lives in Yakyakistan with her hive, but has since returned to help rule the Shadow Empire in Belladonna’s stead,” said Lamia.
“Ah. That’s good. I must say, though, infiltrating would be difficult to pull off. I mean, these ponies must be fanatics. After all, how long would these cultists have waited for their god to return and, considering what they’re saying, what kind of sick religion do they practice?” said Caesar.
“Very long it would seem, but we have options. Replacing one would be possible, especially since we’ll be working with your mother’s hive Queen Lamia, or considering the influx in attention, we can allow one of our agents to be recruited,” suggested Marenitz.
“You two get to work on that; we need to address another issue…” Cadance grimaced. “Discord.”
Lamia gasped. “You’re worried he’ll get out?”
Cadance nodded. “Ever since the last time, I and my aunts and I have checked the statue’s protections regularly and posted guards around that statue. We’ve also made sure the garden is the very picture of order, with field trips from schools now being forbidden. I have no idea how the last one was approved. However, if enough chaos occurs outside of the garden and in Equestria, there is still a chance Discord can break free.”
“You could booby trap the statue,” said Lamia.
“That was what I was thinking. I take it you have some experience in this, Lamia?” asked Shining Armor.
“Trap making was part of my training as a daughter of my mother. I’ll discuss with my chevaliers to see what spells and techniques we can come up with and you do the same,” said Lamia.
Caesar nodded. “Good. What about the Queens—”
“Report! Ponyville’s under attack by brainwashed diamond dogs numbering one hundred! The citizens have barricaded themselves in and thrown up a hasty defence in the middle of the town square and around the Apple Family Orchard, but they’re not going to hold for long.”
Caesar Salad and Shining Armor’s eyes widened and he immediately checked the forces they had available.
“Send the 22nd Royal Guard Company under Steel Feather?” suggested Caesar.
“And put the 50th Royal Guard Company on standby, whilst mobilizing the rest of our reserves?” asked Shining Armor.
“Sounds good! Send them!” ordered Caesar.
Lamia bit her lip as she examined the war map. “How many attacks is that now?”
Caesar grimaced. “Vanhoofer’s practically a warzone. Las Pegasus is currently dealing with another riot. We got a riot in Cloudsdale. An attack in Ponyville. Baltimare and Dodge City also have riots, whilst Manehattan is dealing with a riot and an attack. Altogether, seven major to minor Equestrian settlements are all being hit by riots and attacks. Each of our corps has ten thousand ponies not mobilized and that’s not counting the reserves, but the civilian casualties from these attacks are mounting.”
“Basically, we need that Old One dead soon or else we are in trouble. Wait—” Lamia suddenly turned to the side, and gestured with her good leg to her changelings. They immediately surrounded her.
Shining Armor couldn’t see what Lamia was doing but it looked as if she was having some kind of mental conversation judging by how the changeling’s body suddenly tensed and her tail flicked from side to side.
When Lamia turned back to the table, her jaw was set in a grim tone.
“We have a problem. I’m receiving reports from the Queens Council that changelings in multiple hives have essentially been disabled by mind control or are rebelling. Grennel has also just told me that several of the Shadow Empire’s safehouses and outposts have been attacked by rogue changeling cultists. That is, changelings who aren’t linked to a queen.”
“How do you know this?” asked Caesar, eyes narrowing.
Lamia quickly turned away for a second, which was when Shining Armor realized she was reaching into her saddle bag to touch something.
“We have a way of communicating with one another, general. I can’t say more than that. The only reason Queen Sarar, de facto head of the Queens Council has allowed me to tell you this is because it’s an emergency. All the changelings in hives are linked to their queen and the fact that even they are falling to mind control is—”
Cadance’s cheeks paled. “Terrifying. If the Old God has changelings working for it, willinging and unwillingly… we can expect an attack or act of terrorism and have no way to trace it.”
Shining Armor turned to a staff officer. “Get a crystal ball and a mage, and get the princesses on the line and tell them of the situation immediately!”
Venecia…
The quiet that fell over the group after Shining Armor finished his report was suffocating. Everybody was trying to think of a solution or of something helpful to say, but nobody knew what.
Finally, Celestia, her brow still furrowed, looked at Luna. “Luna, do you think the Elements of Harmony can erase the mind control on the ponies?”
“Yes, but only in small groups. The Elements draw a degree of energy directly from the bearers. Use them too much or on too large a scale and Twilight and her friends may be harmed,” Luna said.
Alternia nodded. “But at least that provides us with a solution to one of our problems. In the meantime we need to locate the Old One and kill it as soon as possible. We should send out scouts to its last known position.”
“There is a high chance they’ll succumb to the mind control, Alternia,” said Simulacris.
Belladonna shook her head. “And if we don’t, there’ll be no one left to resist it.”
Alternia nodded and turned to Mareel. “We’ll meet you at the sea shore so you can take the weapon to Tethys. Tell her that we need to meet in order to finalize our plans at her earliest convenience.”
Archmage Mareel nodded and ducked into the water with her mages. Alternia was about to leave when the seapony popped back out of the water.
“There’s no need. Empress Tethys says she wants to meet you now,” said Mareel.
Alternia blinked before nodding. “Give us an hour to transport the weapon to her.”
Tethys didn’t meet them at their normal location at the western tip of Venecia, but at where she would normally go on shore to get to the factory. This was the remnants of the eastern sea wall of Venecia, which had been practically destroyed by the tsunami when it had hit.
Most of it was underwater now, or had been blown to sea by the force of the tsunami, but the very northern tip of the sea wall remained, a great concrete block sheared off from where it extended into the sandbar that had made up of part of Venecia. Behind it, were the new and clean condominiums and townhouses that were being built upon the bedrock of the island, whose occupants now peeked carefully out of windows as they watched the massive Empress, her silhouette clear in the moonlight, met with their leaders.
“We have located the Old One. It’s apparently called Shi-Nihalar,” Tethys said, her massive form looming above them. It still scared the alicorns and changeling queens despite the fact that they’d been interacting with the Empress for almost a week.
“Where is this Shi-Nihalar?” asked Alternia.
“The Old One has yet to leave the Western Ocean and is establishing itself at a place called Vanhoofer island,” Tethys said calmly.
Alternia would have blanched if she could, but changelings couldn’t. Vanhoofer was a major population centre and the fact that the Old One was so close to it was terrifying to her. Then again, it certainly explained why the situation in Vanhoofer had deteriorated so severely.
As these thoughts ran through Alternia’s head, Chrysalis nodded curtly. “While we find the news welcome, I am very curious as to how you know of this, Empress.”
Tethys’s expression continued to be stoic. “I learned it from some cultists. They were spilling blood into the water so I decided to investigate.”
“Ah. How did you deal with the cultists?” asked Alternia, deciding not to ask about the blood.
“I froze them. These particular cultists were not mind controlled but apparently elements of a long dormant religion based on the Old Gods,” said Tethys.
“Understood. However Empress, I don’t think you came all this just to inform us of this news. What do you want to ask of us?” asked Luna.
Tethys inclined her head slightly in affirmation. “I heard that the weapon is complete.”
Alternia glanced at Chrysalis and Celestia. “Yes, your mages and our mages have actually just finished putting the final touches on it.” Gingerly, Alternia and her comrades stepped aside and revealed the massive weapon, spread out atop of wooden rollers. A team of their strongest stallions had pulled it to the shoreline.
“Here it is,” said Chrysalis.
Slowly, Tethys’ tentacles wrapped around the haft of the spear securing themselves to it. With great precision, the massive kelpie then lifted the spear off of the rollers.
“What of the spell being placed upon the weapon? I assume it’s a paralysis spell?” asked Tethys, her tentacles slowly maneuvering the spear through the night air.
“Yes. We designed it to freeze the Old One in place and prevent it from moving its limbs in any fashion,” said Celestia, trying to keep her voice calm even as Tethys stabbed the air experimentally.
Tethys’s head rotated slightly to face Celestia. “It will be temporary at best. The Old One will not be contained so easily.”
Cold dread filled everypony and changeling’s stomachs.
“But will the spear allow us to close the distance at least?” Celestia asked, her voice just a bit quieter.
Tethys nodded. “It should allow me the chance to begin feeding off of Shi-Nihalar.”
As most of the ponies and changelings sighed in relief, Luna nodded. “Good enough. Do you know anything else about Shi-Nihalar’s abilities?”
The Empress didn’t respond immediately, only twirling the spear once more with a speed only possible due to her massive bulk, and her many tentacles. The massive weapon actually made a “whooosh” noise as she spun it, causing gusts of wind strong enough to make the smaller alicorns and changeling queens wince. Whilst Celestia’s and Luna’s manes remained unaffected due to some secret only the alicorns knew, the spear’s wind did whip back the manes of the changeling queens.
“The cultists will swarm to their god’s aid. And Shi-Nihalar might have servants that have been held in reserve. Creatures not necessarily of this world,” Tethys said finally.
Chrysalis bit her lip. “We’ll have to mobilize our own forces to counter him… it… whatever Shi-Nihalar is. But at the same time, we’ll risk them being mind controlled…”
“Or have our approach blocked, Chrysalis,” interrupted Belladonna. She glanced back at Tethys. “I don’t think we have a choice in the matter. I’ll mobilize three companies of changelings.”
“I’ll order Lamia to mobilize three companies as well. Retariusil, Simulacris, you both should hold your hives in reserve as they’re not as large as ours,” said Chrysalis.
Retariusil nodded quickly, but Simulacris’s didn’t reply immediately, and her older and younger sisters could sense her annoyance. After a second, she sighed and nodded. “Understood. I’ll focus my efforts on trying to get some other Queens to support our attack.”
Alternia’s eyes widened, and she had to catch herself before she mentioned the Queens Council by name.
“Wait, why won’t our fellow Queens contribute. It’s their world and the Old One Shi-Nihalar is a threat to all of our interests! My diplomats have reported that the Griffons, Saddle Arabians, Minotaurs, and even the Yaks are asking about how they can assist our war against it!”
Her fangs showing as she sneered, Simulacris shook her head. “They are doing the typical, watch and wait. They’ll inform us of what is going on in the world, but they don’t want to sacrifice their members to engage an enemy they’re not sure about winning against.” Simulacris snorted. “The irony is, their decision is more likely to doom them rather than save them.”
Alternia, a rare scowl on her features, closed her eyes and breathed slowly out to recompose her expression. When she finally had done so, she looked somewhat pensive.
“My military has recently sent one of my regiments, the Dragoon Guard, to Vanhoofer to suppress the riots and attacks incited by the Primal God. I’ll order them and brigades from a second regiment, the Vanhoofer Artillery, to support our assault.”
“If I recall correctly, the Vanhoofer Artillery regiment commands nearly two hundred cannon of varying sizes, and the Dragoon Guard numbers about two thousand ponies, doesn’t it?” Luna asked.
Celestia nodded. “Active members, yes. However, I believe Shining Armor,” Celestia glanced at Tethys, “—the captain of my Royal Guard—mentioned that he’s sending three of its battalions, which means three thousand ponies in total.” The alicorn turned to Alternia. “Speaking of which, I know they’re your elite regiment, but how long has it been since they’ve seen action?”
“One of their battalions saw combat not too long ago, but most of them haven’t seen action in a while. This is unfortunate, but they’re the best I have in the region, and I hope that their esprit de corps would at least make it a bit more difficult for them to be mind controlled,” said Alternia. Craning her neck back to look up at the Empress, Alternia swallowed. “Empress, how many Aquestrians will you be bringing for this fight?”
Tethys took a moment of stoic contemplation, before she responded. “A good portion of my Abyssal Guard and some of our dragon turtles.”
“The Abyssal Guard are the elite guard Captain Ebb Flow commands right?” asked Luna.
Tethys nodded.
“Good. Is there anything else we need to discuss about the forces we’re bringing before we set a time?” asked Alternia.
Mareel raised a hoof, drawing everybody’s looks.
“This isn’t about the forces we can bring, but I would like to warn you Princesses that you not being able to attend to the cycle of day and night due to the battle will likely have a fairly severe impact on the environment.”
Celestia glanced at Alternia and Luna, who were just as perplexed as she was as to why Mareel had chosen to bring this up now, in front of her Empress nonetheless.
On that note, it then occurred to the three princesses that it probably was a good idea to tell Tethys and the other world leaders this. Tethys in particular though.
At Celestia’s wordless nod, Luna spoke up. “If we are going to defeat the Old One, we’re going to need all are power and concentration.” Luna turned to Tethys. “We’re sorry for not informing you earlier Empress, but we just realized won’t be able to raise the sun and lower the moon during our fight with Shi-Nihalar. Please inform your people there will be an interruption in the cycle of day and night.”
“There is no need. I happen to have a solution to this,” Tethys said.
Celestia, Alternia and Luna, along with the changeling queens snapped their gazes back to Tethys faster than you could say “praise the sun.” At the same time though, their was no hiding the trepidation they felt.
“Can you please elaborate, Empress?” asked Celestia.
“Who controlled the Sun and the Moon before you did?” asked Tethys.
“The unicorns, of course,” said Retariusil.
Luna shook her head. “That is actually not the entire story, Queen Retariusil. You see, while a massed group of unicorns could control the sun and moon if there were enough of them, the first unicorn stewards of the sun and moon actually used two massive magical amplifiers to make it so that the sun and moon could be moved by a much smaller group of unicorns.”
“Amplifiers? Why haven’t we heard of this?” Chrysalis asked.
“This was in our mother’s time, long before Celestia and Luna came to rule Equestria. In fact, it seems to have even predated the Hearth’s Warming Tale,” explained Alternia, recalling the information from what remained of Celestia’s memories.
Nodding, Luna’s brow furrowed slightly as her mind was cast back thousands of years. “And as for the amplifiers themselves, they were no simple amplifiers. They were the size of cities as large as Canterlot. One in the west and one in the east. The western city has been lost to time. Even my sister and I don’t know what its name was. As for the eastern city, its name was Vale Auras. We know of it better because—”
Luna’s eyelids snapped open and she looked up at Tethys, jaw dangling from her mouth. Celestia was barely half a second behind her when her wings flared open in shock and her eyes fixed on Tethys’s stoic features.
“Well, what happened to it?” asked Belladonna after a brief pause in which no one continued, in a mix of impatience and trepidation at Celestia’s and Luna’s reaction.
Alternia frowned. “From what I know of the legends… it was lost. Destroyed in a battle involving Starswirl the Bearded and a powerful sea pony mage against an unknown opponent of terrifying power. Actually, Vale Auras wasn’t exactly destroyed. Ponies remember its name now because the city apparently sank—” Alternia blinked and stared up at Tethys. “—into the depths of the Eastern Sea.”
Tethys nodded. “It is known as Vol Oros now and has been a haven to kelpies for centuries.”
Celestia blinked. “Vale Auras—Vol Oros, phonetic mutation. But how in tartarus did the city and its magical amplifier survive the battle? Can the amplifier even work with the entire city being underwater?”
“It can be moved if necessary. The entire city is mobile. One of the reasons we kept it as opposed to leaving it on the bottom,” Tethys said.
“Alright. If that is the case, if you can raise it above water near Venecia, we’ll send a team of mages to check that it functions and to help maintain the celestial cycle,” said Alternia as calmly as she could. She couldn’t quite hide her awe though.
“Good. When will you have your forces ready to attack?”
“It takes about a week for us to get back to the mainland and three more days to travel to Vanhoofer. Chrysalis, Belladonna, will your hives be ready in ten days?” asked Alternia.
“Yes,” said Belladonna as Chrysalis nodded.
Twilight could barely see anything, even the flock of chariots that surrounded her. Granted, the princesses were taking no chances and a contingent of Royal Guard and Venecian marines were going to be among those that would escort Twilight, her friends, and the mage group that would shepherd the sun and moon to Vol Oros.
Yet, so far as Twilight could tell, the city was nowhere in sight. She could see the ship-dwarfing Empress Tethys swimming below them, leading them to the rendezvous, but Vol Oros wasn’t even on the horizon.
“Um, Alternia, where is Vol Oros?” Twilight asked.
“Probably just under the sea and about to rise right up as we approach. From what I can tell, the Empress has a habit of wanting to strike fear and awe into us,” Alternia said coolly, her smile not wavering.
“Wait what? You mean she’s showing off?” asked Spike.
“Showing off is a very important aspect of diplomacy and of socializing, Spike. I do it too during negotiations as well. If you’ve noticed, I always prefer to arrive from the sky with an escort of guards. This was always a conscious decision to make myself look imposing by taking advantage of my height and of the presence of my escort. Also, remember that when you brought Belladonna to my negotiations with Chrysalis, I sat at the end of the hall, while my guards and those of Chrysalis and Simulacris flanked the carpet. It’s an intimidation tactic, meant to establish my authority without me having to state it.”
“Huh, that really explains why Rarity is always so concerned about how she looks,” Twilight said.
Alternia nodded. “Precisely. And… oh, I think the city is coming.”
Ahead of Tethys, a white light was growing from the depths of the sea, getting bigger and brighter. As Twilight sucked in a deep breath, a great sphere of balefire that dwarfed even Tethys, burst out of the water and continued to rise. Despite it being night, the great sphere of balefire at the top of the city’s main spire shone so brightly, it seemed it was daytime. There was a harshness to the magical light, though—a quality that seemed so alien, so unlike real sunlight or even candlelight that it didn’t seem surprising to any of the Equestrians that the balefire didn’t actually harm the kelpies.
Following under it was a dead white, octagonal spire that grew and grew out of the ocean, water pouring out of its pointed arch windows. The spire widened, its sharp architectural lines drawing down to four triangle-like columns that suspended the spire above ground so there was a sort of courtyard there. Interestingly enough, there was a fairly large hole in the side of the castle that didn’t seem part of the original structure, judging from how it was circular rather than arched.
The city itself then followed, an massive assembly of buildings that appeared from the water, all of it dead white. From what Twilight could see from how the houses and the ground of the city abruptly ended, Vol Oros was roughly the size of Canterlot.
Most of the Vol Oros’s buildings were one or two story houses, and they still had their flat roofs, but gone were the doors. There was also what looked like an ancient open-air amphitheatre, whose walls and seats had long since corroded. To Twilight’s surprise, this seemed to be the city’s market as there were many kelpies there who were now releasing their holds on the structure and their goods and beginning to resume bartering. They were probably using spells to help them speak as they were now above water.
Finally, cutting through the row upon row of houses, were four large roads that led to the central spire. Each of them was large enough for Tethys at her full size to walk through.
“Wow,” gasped Spike, while Twilight was simply unable to find words to describe her amazement, and judging from the wide-eyed silence of her mentor, Twilight could tell that Alternia was just as taken.
“It’s huge,” whispered Twilight.
Alternia nodded. “Indeed. I did not expect the amplifier to be so large. Thank the hive mothers we don’t have to be concerned about it being in kelpie hands.”
Twilight gasped, and was speechless for a moment as she stared at the sphere balefire that towered over the entire city.
“Wait, that’s the amplifier?” asked Twilight, pointing jerkily at the fireball.
“No, from the looks of it, the entire city is the amplifier,” said Alternia.
“That’s… that’s insane! If the kelpies wanted to they can turn the amplifier on us and wipe us out completely!” babbled Twilight, panic rising in her voice.
“Twilight, calm down, it’s not quite as simple as that. You know spells must have a target and an intent. The amplifier was designed to magnify both, which means that your target signature has to be massive. Thus, the amplifier works for moving the sun and moon, but it won’t work even if used against Celestia, or Tethys. Even their magical signatures are too small to be used as a target,” Alternia said.
“Oh, phew,” wheezed Twilight
“It’s a good thought, though, my student,” said Alternia as the chariots descended toward the edge of the city.
“Thanks, Alternia.”
“So… um, you have a very interesting way of decorating things,” Rarity said.
She had a very good reason for saying that. The Elements of Harmony, their Royal Guard escort and Spike were all noticing the rather unique additions the kelpies had added to the houses of Vol Oros now they were close enough to actually see them.
Bones, lots of bones adorned the fronts of all the dwellings. Some looked like ribs, except these were as tall as a two-story house. Others were spinal column bones the size of an alicorn. Still more looked like hexagonal, pony-sized pieces of shell from some massive monster. Once in awhile, they’d come across something that looked like part of a jawbone or a skull. Except these would be laid across the top of the house, adding an extra story to it.
“The bones serve as hunting trophies, Miss Rarity. Depending on the size of the bone and what type of bone it is, they declare the role and the significance of that kelpie’s achievement. They also state how capable that warrior is at providing for Aquestria and for his family,” explained Typhon. He was leading the group, and was accompanied by two silent kelpie guards. Typhon and Ebb Flow had met the Equestrians, Empress Tethys, and changelings at the landing point on the outskirts of the city. Whilst Ebb had taken the princesses straight to the city centre, Typhon had led the Elements of Harmony on a tour of the city. Whereas Ebb had said little, Typhon was practically acting as tour guide.
“What kind of bones are they?” whispered Fluttershy quietly.
“Wild dragon turtles. We have tame ones we use for combat, but wild ones serve to feed our young and provide us with materials to fashion armor with. We also hunt wild leviathans for a similar purpose. Sea serpents and bunyuns are two other choice targets. Their scales are valued for trading and their meat for food,” explained Typhon matter of factly, but in the same friendly tone he had used as he had showed them around the city.
Deciding they needed a distraction from the somewhat… macabre decor, Twilight spoke up.
“Honestly, it’s remarkably well preserved considering this place predates the Castle of the Two Pony Sisters by thousands of years.”
Typhon nodded. “The city’s existed so long that even the kelpies don’t know where the city came from. Heck, I didn’t even know it was originally constructed by ponies with the assistance of sea pony magics until fairly recently,” he said nonchalantly.
Twilight filed that new information away as she glanced at the kelpie prince, trying once again to reconcile the image of the stoic, recalcitrant Ebb Flow with the cheerful, friendly persona of Typhon.
“You didn’t learn that in school?” Applejack asked.
Typhon shook his head. “Kelpies don’t exactly go to school, miss Applejack. For one, we have absolutely terrible eyesight, and the war didn’t exactly allow us time to study things such as history, poetry or the arts. Most of our young, the fry, went right into survival and then combat training. Only the most recent batch of fry have begun to receive a more comprehensive education.”
“How do you learn about your culture then? Your society?” Rarity asked.
“Kelpies learn about our history and culture through listening to respected warriors, who listened to their respective warriors. When necessary, Empress Tethys and the few elders who have survived elaborate on events. As for how they remember? Well they tell the stories again and again, with a certain rhythm to it. Honestly, I’m not too sure on what the nature of this rhythm is as I grew up in Aquamaris, but somehow it helps them remember all of the history,” Typhon explained.
“How do kelpies and seaponies work so well together, given your war was over less than a year ago?” asked Rainbow.
“What prompted that question, Miss Dash?” Typhon asked.
Rainbow flicked a wing back from where they had come. “I noticed some seaponies and kelpies trading on the edge of the city when we initially arrived.”
Typhon pursed his lips. “Well, peace hasn’t been easy. Some seaponies, deep ponies, and kelpies still hate each other due to the war and it's only recently that the Empress has begun to trust Aquestria’s seapony forces to involve themselves in military operations. That being said, due to the fact that kelpies, deep ponies and seaponies can give birth to one another, there are seaponies and kelpies that support the peace simply out of family ties. Moreover, the Empress has been very respectful of the seaponies and while they were initially skeptical, they’re now all very much in favor of her asserting Aquestria’s interests in the surface world.”
Twilight couldn’t help it, but her eyes narrowed, an action that was shortly followed by Rainbow Dash, Applejack, and Rarity. Pinkie Pie and Fluttershy simply seemed to press their lips even closer together.
Typhon didn’t miss it, and he blinked in sudden realization. Quickly turning to face Twilight, he met her glare calmly.
“Look, there’s no way to put this tactfully. Equestria had to suffer in order for Aquestria to be at peace, and we did what we thought was required to protect our homes. I wish that we could have cleared the confusion up with the communications earlier and I wish less lives were harmed. But as much as I hate what I and my subjects need to eat, the fate my subjects faced if we starved was far worse. At least now, we have a framework for a future peace.”
“I know, but you are aware there are a lot of angry and frustrated Equestrians and Venecians as well, and many who think you’re probably going to stab us in the back, right?” asked Fluttershy.
Typhon let a little breath out from between his fangs. “That was what we expected when we offered you the deal, but you must realized that we were aware of that and we offered it to you anyway.”
“Wait, you thought we are going to renege on our agreement? You must know Equestria realizes that would be suicide!” exclaimed Rainbow Dash incredulously.
Typhon was about to open his mouth to respond, but Applejack spoke first. “Well, considering what happened with Equestria First and the changelings, I don’t think Prince Typhon and the Aquestrians are being too wary. It just takes one madpony to ruin things and the fact is, there are a lot of mad ponies.”
“Precisely. The treaty…most of my subjects have been living under the consequences of an agreement Equestria broke for years and they think the treaty we’ve agreed to is something they were entitled to in the first place. Plus, I believe the exchange of hostages will be beneficial for both our nations as we will learn from each other through it.” Typhon took a deep breath. “However, I do recognize that it makes a lot of demands on Equestria and it changes what you’ve been used to for years. The Empress feels that it’s in her power to demand these revisions and that it’s also within her right. I agree, but I also know that if we don’t continue to try to accommodate each other in the future, we might come to blows again.”
“Are you saying you will be trying to get the Empress to um, go easy on us, for a lack of a better word?” inquired Rarity.
“Yes, though it’s unlikely to happen if it conflicts with Aquestria’s interests. What I can do is create a team of Aquestrian experts on Equestria to inform the Empress and her advisors about the effect that future policy decisions will have on Equestria. We have Brinewing, scouts and we’ve studied your country, but much of Equestria’s society and culture eludes our understanding. Brinewing is also a fairly… flamboyant personality and prone to embellishment. So, if you can help me get as much information on Equestria’s values and opinions as possible, preferably through audio recordings, I will be able to present information to the Empress so she can at least make an informed decision in regards to Equestria.”
“Agreed, we’ll probably send them via Princess Luna. At the same time, though, if it is possible, can send us whatever information you can on Aquestrian culture, history and society? We want the princesses to be able to be just as informed as you are.”
Typhon paused for a moment, before nodding slowly. “I’ll have to check with Empress Tethys, but as long as it’s non-military, I think she will agree.”
“That’s great.” Twilight smiled. “Thank you, Your Highness.”
“My pleasure, Miss Sparkle.”
Once the tour was over, Typhon and the Elements of Harmony arrived at the central spire of Vol Oros.
Unfortunately, the spiral staircase that had once led up to the top of Vol Oros had been dismantled by the kelpies so they could just swim up and down without having to swim round and round. Thus, Twilight and the others had to be shuttled up the spire by chariots pulled by the Royal Guard.
Instead of a pointed tip, Twilight and her friends discovered that the spire had a small platform right under the great balefire sphere that shone over the entire city. It was fairly small, but even with the princesses, a group of twenty unicorn mages and their escorts, they still had enough space to move around.
Tethys and Ebb Flow were there as well. The Empress had walked up to the central spire by marching down the wide central road that led up to it. Now, standing up on her colossal hind legs, her enormous head was raised just above the platform’s level.
Once she had gotten over staring at the Empress’s head, however, Twilight’s attention was drawn to a pony she hadn’t seen in years.
“Sunset Shimmer?” gasped Twilight.
“Oh, hi Twilight, it’s been a while hasn’t it?” said Sunset, a small smile on her features.
“Forever!” Turning to her friends, Twilight gestured to Sunset. “Everypony, this is Sunset Shimmer, one of my upperclass ponies at Celestia’s School for Gifted Unicorns.” A frown suddenly coming over her features, Twilight turned back to Sunset. “Wait, last I heard, you were researching how to heal wounds made by fire magic. Why are you here?”
Sunset scratched her hair sheepishly. “I’ve been accompanying Princess Celestia since she left Venecia as her… friend? Aide? I’m not exactly sure how to describe it.”
“Sunset Shimmer has been serving as my seneschal, a bit of a combination of secretary, aide and personal mage,” said Celestia, trotting up beside Sunset.
“Your highness,” said Twilight, bowing to… well, the pony her mentor had been impersonating for the last thousand years. Sure, Celestia held herself quite differently from how Alternia did, her pose was more stiff, and her smile wasn’t as wide, but it was still a very weird feeling.
“You need not bow to me, Elements of Harmony, and Spike the dragon, heroes of Equestria,” said Celestia magnanimously. Turning to Tethys, Celestia gestured with her wing. “Come, we’re convening our final council.”
In various states of nervousness, Twilight and her friends all trotted or, in Spike’s case, walked up to the edge of the platform, where they faced Tethys. The half circle on the top of the platform was made up of ponies, changelings, kelpies and sea ponies as well as deep ponies. In order to compensate for the fact they had no water, the sea ponies and deep ponies had surrounded themselves with a sphere of water, using their hydromancy to maintain its form.
Among those present, Twilight could see Equestria’s three princesses, flanked by Alternia’s sisters, Retariusil also beside them. She could also spy Doggess Sebastiana, Archmage Meringue la Pie, Sunset Shimmer beside her as well as several other senior Equestrian mages. On the kelpie side of the platform, next to Tethys’s head, was Typhon and Ebb Flow, as well as Brinewing. There was also a few sea ponies and deep ponies beside them.
“So this is your student and her friends, Princess Alternia,” Tethys said.
Twilight nodded, and dipped her head in a short bow, trying not to swallow or tremble out of fear. She remembered far too well the might of the Empress on the night they had arrived on Venecia.
Glancing at her mentor, Twilight noticed Alternia’s neutral smile give nothing away. “Yes, Empress. Shall we begin?”
At the Empress’s nod, Archmage Meringue stepped forward and rolled out a map of Northern Equestria so large it basically covered the floor surrounded by the half circle of unlikely allies. This was shortly followed by Ebb Flow stepping onto the map and pointing at Vanhoofer Island.
“Alright, the plan is simple. Empress Tethys, I, the Abyssal Guard, and the Dragon Turtles will go through the Northwest Passage to the rendezvous point at the Northern tip of Vanhoofer Island, ten days hence,” said Ebb Flow.
Harlequin nodded. “On that day, three thousand ponies from the Dragoon Guard, one thousand ponies of the Vanhoofer Artillery Regiment accompanied by fifty guns, the Royal, Lunar and Mirror Guards numbering two hundred ponies and changelings in total, and six hundred changelings from Queen Chrysalis’s and Belladonna’s hives will join us there in ten days hence.”
“A hundred Venecian marines will also accompany you,” added Sebastiana.
Ebb nodded and turned back to the centre of the circle. “Our current intelligence believes the Old One Shi-Nihalar is just off the coast of Vanhoofer island. So Empress Tethys will confront him there, and, using the spear, paralyze him and drive him into shallower water, whilst allowing the changeling queens and princesses to approach.”
“That is when our armies are to begin their artillery and magic bombardment from the eastern side. That way, we can keep putting pressure on the Old One as the Empress devours him. Meanwhile, the priority of the accompanying kelpie, Equestrian and changeling forces are to distract any forces the Old One may summon,” said Luna.
“We the princesses of Equestria, Princess Alternia’s sisters, and Queen Retariusil will back Tethys up as she devours the Old One and provide mid-range supporting fire,” stated Celestia.
Archmage Meringue spoke up then, gesturing to the deep pony floating in the water beside her. “Meanwhile, in Vol Oros, I’ll be working with Archmagus Mareel here to continue the sun and moon’s movement.”
“For the most part, the moon shall be our responsibility while the Equestrian team will take charge of the sun,” said Archmagus Mareel from within her water bubble, her voice magically echoing out from within it.
“The Elements of Harmony in the meantime are to be on standby in Vol Oros. They and the mage team will be escorted by a hundred Venecian marines and Royal Guards with chariots. Twilight, you are going to assist Archmage Meringue in helping raise and lower the sun along with Sunset,” said Alternia turning to Twilight.
“Wait what? You don’t want to use the Elements of Harmony on Shi-Nihalar?” gasped Twilight.
Alternia put her head down so that her eyes were level with Twilight’s. “No, Twilight. I’m worried that Shi-Nihalar’s mind control will corrupt you and your friends permanently. Given we have been unable to make any progress lifting the mind control now, I can’t just assume that you will return to normal when he dies. Also, since I’m not even sure if the Elements would have the power to seal the Old One, I won’t risk your lives unless it’s a last resort. You have my permission—should we be defeated—to attempt using the Elements on the Old One, but please consult Cadance first.”
“But Alternia…” Twilight started to protest, but the silent, stern look in Alternia’s eyes cut her off. Biting her lip, she nodded.
“Good. Is there anything else we have yet to review, Empress?” asked Alternia.
“No. I expect you at Vanhoofer in ten days,” said Tethys, in a firm tone.
Luna nodded. “We’ll be there.”
The Equestrians had just started boarding their chariots to go back to Venecia. Twilight was about to get on with Spike, when she felt a gentle hoof on her shoulder. Turning, she found herself looking up at Alernia, who had a neutral expression on her features.
“Twilight, may I sit with you on the ride back?” she asked.
Twilight blinked, glanced at Spike, who nodded.
“Yes,” she said.
And so Twilight and Alternia sat quietly together as the pegasi guards pulled them into the air. As they did so though, Twilight couldn’t help but wonder if she should speak up. She had some idea why her mentor wanted to talk to her, but should she prompt her?
The moment they were clear of Vol Oros though, Alternia spoke up.
“Twilight, I’m sorry for being brief with you, but I didn’t want to draw the Empress’s attention to you any more than I had to.”
Twilight blinked. The first part was expected. But as for the second part...
“What? Why would the Empress be interested—” Twilight frowned. “Wait, nevermind; that was a silly question. I’m your student, I and my friends defeated Discord and reformed Luna, and I’m also a pony you care about and so somepony Empress Tethys would be interested in.”
“Yes.” Alternia paused for a moment, before glancing back down at her student. “Twilight, would you say the future is like an undiscovered country?”
“Um… in what way? And why do I feel that comparison seems familiar?” asked Twilight.
Alternia smiled. “Chancellor Gore Beak of the Griffon Kingdom said as much when we concluded the peace treaty between Equestria and the Griffon Kingdom at the end of the Second Griffonia-Equestria war. He had made several very difficult concessions to us in return for some assurances that would preserve his people’s future. And yet, he always yearned for peace between our kingdoms. Unfortunately, he never saw that dream come true as he was assassinated by his own officers shortly before the peace treaty was concluded.”
“Still, as time has gone on, I have come to agree with him wholeheartedly. For even though we, the Aquestrians included, are afraid of the coming battle, we’re all thinking about the promise of the uncertain future.”
“Wait, Empress Tethys is afraid?” gasped Twilight.
Alternia shook her head. “For Empress Tethys, the word “afraid” is not an accurate way to describe her feelings. I could only sense so much as she masks her features well and has trained for a long time to compose her emotions. However, I do think she has a warrior’s apprehension for the battle ahead. It is fear, but the kind of cautious anxiety tempered by years of experience, and which is also driven by an eagerness to see the battle won.”
Twilight nodded, not sure what to say for a moment, until it suddenly clicked in her mind.
“You’re afraid too, aren’t you, Princess?” Twilight asked quietly.
“Yes, Twilight. I am afraid. But better to feel true fear rather than false confidence.” Alternia closed her eyes for a moment and bent her neck down so that she could look at Twilight at her level, her lips blossoming into a soft smile. “Twilight, regardless of whether I survive this coming battle or not, if we succeed, I am certain you are going to become one of Equestria’s greatest leaders.”
“Alternia… please don’t talk like this,” whispered Twilight, tears welling in her eyes as the enormity of the situation, the possible future ahead, finally hit her.
“I have to, for your sake,” said Alternia quietly. Reaching around her student with her hoof, Alternia brought Twilight into a hug, which was fervently returned. “Of course, I intend to live, but should I not, you will have new teachers, new friends to make, and eventually, new students to teach.” Alternia smiled. “I am so proud of you, Twilight.”
Twilight’s grip on her mentor tightened. “But Alternia… I don’t want to lose you!”
“Twilight, there will be always a time when you have to say goodbye. This was sooner than I expected, but I’m glad I could be here to teach this to you. For I always knew that you would have to stop being my student eventually and become your own mare.” Alternia took a hoofkerchief from her peytral and pressed it to the corner of Twilight’s eye. “Truthfully, I’ve had many students, but you are the one I am most proud of. Just don’t tell Hanna Belle that.”
Twilight chuckled. “I won’t, Alternia.” The unicorn sniffled. “I love you.”
Alternia, her own eyes feeling moist, nodded. “I love you too.” And as her own hooves squeezed Twilight closer to her, the world seemed empty for that moment except for a changeling queen and her unicorn student.
That same evening…
As her empress had instructed, Ebb Flow had helped to escort the Equestrians back to Venecia and was just about ready to dive back in the water. Typhon was saying goodbye to the Elements of Harmony, while the Empress and the Equestrians had just finished saying their formal goodbyes.
That was when Retariusil approached her.
“Captain, if you can, I’d like to talk to my mother, one last time.”
Ebb glanced at her Empress, who nodded. So the captain promptly summoned the water from the sea to cover part of the beach. Her tentacles swiftly moving, Ebb formed the pane of water on the shore and linked it to the sea.
Retariusil’s heart sank as she saw Murmillar, an air bubble around her head, sleeping on a bunch of books, that had obviously been magically waterproofed. The changeling queen was still looking very thin and had obviously been hard at work, researching the Old One.
“Mom?”
At her voice, Murmillar instantly woke up and as she saw Retariusil a bright smile burst across her gaunt features.
“Retariusil! You just finished meeting Empress Tethys?” Murmillar asked.
“Yes, mom. I just want to talk to you before I turn in for the night,” said Retariusil. She knew she left a lot unsaid, but she didn’t know how to say it.
Thankfully, Murmillar seemed to know what Retariusil wasn’t saying, judging from how her smile faded with worry.
“Retariusil, please be careful.”
“I’ll do my duty, mom,” said Retariusil.
Murmillar stiffened and snarled with an energy that the queen didn’t seem to have it in her. “Damn duty! Don’t throw away your life if the situation becomes hopeless!”
“Murmillar…” growled Ebb.
“Would you have my daughter sacrifice herself if your Empress, the princesses and the other queens die, Captain?” snapped Murmillar.
Ebb didn’t flinch at the Queen’s glare, but she didn’t retort immediately.
“No, but only if that’s the case,” said Ebb slowly.
Retariusil swallowed and nodded. “Mother, don’t worry, I’ll take care of myself. Just stay safe down there.”
“Not much I can do apart from that. I’m afraid I haven’t found much information about the primal god apart from what Empress Tethys has told you. Unless she hasn’t told you to be careful about the Others?” asked Murmillar.
“She has. Do you know what they are, though? She didn’t give us many details,” said Retariusil.
“That’s probably because they aren’t bound to a set form. Don’t worry, from the little I’ve gleaned in the accounts, you’ll know what they are by sight,” said Murmillar.
“Good to know.” Retariusil swallowed, trying to blink back her tears. “Love you, mom.”
Murmillar nodded, trying, and failing, to hide the anguish in her voice. “I love you too.” Forcing a smile on her face, Murmillar sniffled. “And show that Doggess of yours an actual good time tonight.”
Retariusil would have blushed if she could, but all she could manage was something halfway between a laugh and a sob yet one that held a tad more sadness than relief.
“I will. Bye, mom.”
“See you, Retariusil,” said Murmillar, smiling proudly, even as tears ran down her face.
Late that night
Alternia had just finished brushing her teeth when Ethelflaed, her night guard replacement for Diamondshell, opened the door, her red eyes blinking owlishly.
“Your highness. Um, Spike is at the door and would like to speak to you,” said the changeling.
Alternia frowned for a moment. “Let him in.”
Spike walked in, tiddling his claws, not looking up at Alternia. Unsure of why Spike wanted to see her at this hour, Alternia signalled Ethelflaed to leave them and waited until the door was shut.
“What’s wrong, Spike?”
“Alternia, um… would you mind telling me a bedtime story? Like you used to do?” asked the dragon.
Alternia smiled, and quietly berated herself for not thinking of such a thing earlier.
“Of course, Spike,” said the changeling, trotting to the sofa of her chambers. Pausing for a moment, Alternia turned around and asked, “Would you like me to get you a gem? I brought a fire ruby on my way to Venecia.”
“Yes, please!” exclaimed Spike, running after her.
Celestia and Sunset were in Celestia’s chambers, though they weren’t sleeping. They were just sitting next to one another at the coffee table. Frankly, Sunset had practically moved into Celestia’s chambers weeks ago, though she had always slept in a bed on the other side of the room as the alicorn. Both were holding a glass of whisky with an ice ball in it, though neither had taken a sip yet.
“Sunset… I would just like you to know it has been a pleasure knowing you as my friend.”
“I know, Celestia. And I’m glad to be your friend.”
Celestia nodded and raised her glass up a bit, though she didn’t take a sip. “Prince Blueblood and Princess Cadance have been named the successors to the Realm of Equestria. However, I also have bequeathed you some of my personal artifacts.”
“Celestia, you didn’t have to—”
“I had to, Sunset,” said Celestia, looking Sunset in the eye. “I have only made a few friends since my awakening. You will be one of the few who will remember me if Luna, Alternia and I perish.” Celestia swallowed. “Just promise me one thing.”
Sunset swallowed. “Anything, Celestia.”
“If my sister survives and I don’t, please take care of her,” said Celestia solemnly.
Sunset raised her glass so it clinked gently against Celestia’s.
“I will,” she said, and she drank the entire glass. Celestia smiled gratefully and followed suit.
Once Sunset finished the glass, she made a face. “Ugh, this is vile.”
“Would you like some more?” asked Celestia.
Sunset grinned. “Oh yes.”
One week later, REINS Headquarters…
Contrary to popular belief, the headquarters of the Royal Equestrian Intelligence Service wasn’t based in the castle at Canterlot, or some secret top secret base on an island or some remote underground location.
The REINS headquarters looked like an ordinary bank building. In fact, it was an ordinary bank building from which the Royal Equestrian Bank operated out of.
That was all a facade though. The front of Royal Equestrian Bank branch #1962 was real, but the customers were all REINS agents. The building itself extended into Canterlot mountain, where the rest of the REINS base continued.
In truth, most of the REINS base was underground, but the location was by no means remote.
At that moment, Admiral Marenitz was seated in a well-lit briefing room, eagerly tapping her cane against the ground as Agent 246, a pink unicorn code named “Miss Spider,” made her report.
“Under Director Hunt’s supervision, I entered a Vanhoofer branch of the cult of the primal god Shi-Nihalar a few days ago. Infiltration was not particularly difficult thanks to the intel provided by our changeling allies, but by no means easy. The only reason I was able to join was because of how Queen Chrysalis’s hive had replaced one of the cult’s members and that agent, codenamed “Witch Doctor,” was able to get me in without needing me to go through the initiation ceremony.”
“Initiation ceremony?” asked director Hunt codename “Ethan,” one of his talons scratching his beak in thought.
The agent nodded, her face briefly wincing out of disgust. “To go and kill a civilian or an Equestrian in secret, and sacrifice their blood to Shi-Nihalar. It’s a good thing my cover story and the criminal records provided for it were quite good as I still underwent a fairly strenuous interview. However, I would probably still have been suspected had it not been for the fact that the cultists are revving up for something big and have been far more concerned about preparing for that instead of checking their own members.”
“How big, and what nature?” asked Marenitz.
“All cultists around Equestria are apparently moving to Vanhoofer in preparation for a crusade to unite land and sea. They’re assembling an army, Admiral for a full scale rebellion.”
Hunt’s eyes narrowed, and he stiffened slightly, but his voice was cool. “How many?”
The agent pursed her lips for a moment. “The actual number of non mind controlled cultists number only around two thousand, and of that only one thousand are Equestrian. The rest come from Saddle Arabia, Griffonia, rogue changeling communities, Minotauria, Maretania and Maretonia. I do know there are some kelpies and seaponies among them too, about twenty kelpies and a hundred seaponies.”
“Well, at least we know what the Princesses will be up against. Still, they’ll need reinforcements if the battle is prolonged. I’ll order Rommel to take his Cloudsdale Blues to support them,” said Marenitz.
“Miss Spider” nodded. “Good idea, M. Most of these cultists do not have much military training, but they’re highly fanatical and dedicated to their cause. I would not take them lightly.”
“Can you tell us a little more about the nature of the Old One we’ll be facing, Miss Spider, or shall I just call you Sunshine Smiles now?” asked Hunt.
Sunshine Smiles chuckled. “Alright, director Hunt.” Her expression turning serious again, Sunshine frowned. “We might have a problem in that regard, director. The cultists mentioned that another group of theirs on the eastern coast has gone missing. While discussing it, the cultists brought up two names that you’re going to need to look into with the Aquestrians.”
“I’ll make a note of that. What are their names?” asked Marenitz.
“Ist’ytal and Yoth-Atal. I’m not sure if they’re related considering their names both end with the ‘tal’ phrase. From what I and Chrysalis’s spy have heard, Yoth-Atal is another of the Old Ones.”
Marenitz’s teeth clenched.
“However, I don’t think Yoth-Atal has returned yet. This is because the cultists have been discussing whether to try to call upon the aid of her ‘first priestess,’ Ist’ytal. Apart from that, I have no idea who this Ist’ytal is. All I know is Ist’ytal doesn’t appear to be some normal creature. The cultists say very… strange things about this being. That she’ll be leading an army of monsters on a massive wave and that she’s been the eternal and most loyal servant of this Yoth-Atal,” explained Sunshine Smiles.
“So is this Is’ytal going to be a factor in the upcoming battle?” asked Marenitz.
“I’m afraid even they don’t know, Admiral. All I know is that they seem to sincerely believe that this Ist’ytal exists in this world,” said Sunshine.
“Alright.” Marenitz stood up and glanced at Hunt. “I’m going to report this to the Princess. It may not be a factor now, but they need to know about this.”
“Got it. Be quick, though, they’ll be getting on the train to Vanhoofer soon,” said Hunt.
Marenitz closed her eyes for a moment, her shoulders stiffening. “I know.”
The theme song for this chapter:
The next update might take a while. This battle against the Old One is going to be huge and I, Zerv, and the pre-reading team do not want to screw around with it.
The good news is that the first of my assignments are done and while I need to get started researching for some long term projects, I can actually write somewhat consistently now.
Also, 900 likes! Awesome!!!!
Stats
Page generated in 0.036 seconds
Total duration
1,103 users online
1,983,713 hits today, 2,054,621 yesterday
FIMFiction
My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic Fanfiction
Designed and coded by knighty & Xaquseg - © 2011-2024
Follow & Support Us
Support us
SubStar
Chat!
Discord
Follow us
Twitter
MLP: Friendship is Magic® - © 2024 Hasbro Inc.®
Fimfiction is in no way affiliated with or endorsed by Hasbro Inc.®
Looks like shit's gonna hit the fan... but are the Equestrians ready for the coming storm?
What she neglected to mention is that those griffon officers (led by General Fang) were conspiring with Admiral Cart Ride from the Equestrian Navy and Zebran Ambassador Nankoolous, and that the assassins were Equestrians.
7633509 BWAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA. You actually got that reference lOl!
all our power
Otherwise, pretty good. I can't help but feel that this is gonna get really big really quickly.
7633567
taH pagh taHbe'!
Seems the truth will soon reveal itself, especially if REINS are able to figure out who is Ist’ytal, Empress Tethys will have a lot of explaining to do.
But one thing, the title for this chapter Time to Say Goodbye, well... it miffed me a bit. The reason was that I thought you were quitting the story. There has been several compelling stories in Fimfiction that has not been update for more then a year, abandoned, or outright cancelled, especially when the authors upload a 'chapter' to explain their reason of abandoning the story or outright quitting writing more stories. They may write & upload a series of chapters, keeping the pace & then suddenly they upload a good-bye message to their fans. I hate that...
I have a lot of stories that I have tag as 'Favorite' that have been cancelled or abandoned by their authors.
So when I saw the title of this chapter Time to Say Goodbye, I instantly thought, "Dammit! Another bites the dust..."
For a moment I didn't want to read it thinking it was just another good-bye to the followers of your story. I was like
for a moment there. 
But happily it was not, & it was a good chapter. Even sobering as they all say good-bye to the people they care. Interesting that it even has Tethys somber, matter of fact, there is nothing of her saying good-bye to the people she trust like Ebb Flow. That would be something to read about Tethys thoughts & concerns about her the upcoming battle.
Anyways, can't wait for your next chapter.
7633655 Okay sorry... I don't speak Klingon.
This was awesome. However, my heart is heavy with anticipation of how many will live after this confrontation.
Also, I totaly dig the Star Trek 6 reference.
Yeah, things are going to get worse before they get better.
Keep going! ;)
It's typical.
Gods always loves to meddle in mortals' affairs (Steven Erikson would be proud).
P.S. The Old One is more than able to control ponies' mind. And what is their plan??? Send in more troops.
7634436
My thought exactly... Worst comes to worst that's another 5000 enemies to fight.
7633862
Translated it's "To be or not to be."
S'what Chang quotes at the dinner and what he yells when he fires the first torpedo.
https://youtu.be/VPz-6HuM8Sc?t=1m11s
..of course, he says it in English too before he dies.
7634011
EgggggAH I HATE THIS, IT IS REVOLTING!
Damn, how could I spot the Undiscovered Country reference but not the Generations one? This saddens me.
7633757 That's good :D. Zerv brought up before we published that this seemed like our version of Return of the King, but i went ... "better now than later".
7634011 XD
7634120 I was wondering how to express the uncertainty of the future and then I remembered that metaphor.
7634138 Will do :D
7634436 Unfortunatley as they pointed out, not really much of an option. Go in with what they have, risking mind control and try to fight their way through, or try to bring more troops to at least provide some temporary cover.
7634498 Depends. Recall that most of the mind controlled in the cities are civillians. My thought process was that military ponies are a tad more resistant.
7634554 Ah also, lol XD.
7634643
When the kelpies encountered him (or were those seaponies?) only one managed to resist, and with a lot of effort. Those were all military weren't they?
7634706 ... huh you have a point. but at that time, the kelpies and seaponies unfortunately got the Old One's attention. there were also less of them.
This description made me think of Empress Tethys and that worries me.
7634725
Hmm... Then time is a factor I suppose. In a group of 5000 there are bound to be more weak-minded individuals who are easily turned. Those will have to be disabled, and they might disable some non-turned individuals first, shrinking the group. I could see a chain effect where the group gets smaller, leading to more turned ponies, leading to a smaller group, etc, until the group collapses.
I suppose in a group of 5000 though, the original wave of turned individuals might not be that problematic yet if its a relatively small group.
Really good chapter. Very well written "calm before the storm" style chapter. Can't wait for the big battle. Also really like the Star Trek reference. It was my favorite Trek movie.
7634706 It is a concern, but without something to distract the Old One's more deadly minions, the Alicorns would find themselves fighting the Old One and a host of beings from another plane. S0 better to have them tied up in some way while they fight Shi-Nihalar
Very good chapter Vrenn, I'm filled with apprehensive dread at how the battle's going to turn out. :D
7634734 It's because Tethy here IS Ist’ytal. Reread chapter 22: Complications. It's there.
7635704 ...wow, I do not remember that scene at all when the chapter was first published. Did the chapter get edited, or is my memory really that bad?
The build-up is good.
My only concern is the aftermath, with the exchange. Luna is supposed to be a "guest" of the kelpies and the sea ponies. She is a sitting ruler of a nation. I feel Twilight would have been the best choice for the exchange.
If you think of the ponies in general, this is a political nightmare from a PR standpoint. The populace of any nation who loves their ruler would find this offensive and perhaps an opportunity for the changelings to take control of Equestria.
It would be a subversive thing even Chrysalis would be proud of.
Just sayin'!
I feel like it says a lot about just how deep I am in fantasy/sci-fi literature that I simply rolled with this line. Horrible monster from beyond the stars? Well of course folk are worshiping it.
Hm... I do wonder just how these amplifiers will come into play later. Perhaps a doomsday device to deal with Tethys?
Great chapter. This reminds me of why I favourited this in the first place.
Can't wait for the epic battle!
7635724 I edited ti :P
Okay, so we know Tethys is Ist'ytal, and we know the cultists got her at least somewhat wrong. The question is how, how much, and whether she plans on stopping a second Elder God from showing up or becoming it.
7635890
Also, keep in mind that there were two cities. It makes sense from a narrative perspective for the unaccounted for city to still be in play.
When you say "Deal with Tethys", do you mean after she eats the Elder God's physical form, thus allowing the Elder God to posses her body and sand blast her soul from the inside out?
7636579 I'm thinking "Tactical Friendship Strike." She's dangerous, she's arrogant, and she's an outright liar. Equestria needs something to keep her in check. Especially if the elder god does as you predict.
7636948 So is every other ruler in this context.
Tethys might be an elder gods preistess, but she definately cares about those beneath here, which indicates somethings not exactly as it seems. This warrants at least an attempt at observation as she might be playing for the removal of the gods or even the rising of one more willing to let be all the others around it.
And again, Celestia and Luna are arrogant, Chrysalis is, and so are all the other Queens. They also all lie, repeatadly, throughout.
7636948
What 7637692 said. Also, she never actually lied. She simply dances around the relevant issues like a high impact ballerina.
7637851
7636948
Something any creature derived from old Faeries does. It's an intregal part of a culture where Honor and dignity are so highly held, and even more so when there are dire consequences for losing and desecrating them, such as if a Fae where to be called and outplayed in words.
Comparing Tethys to old fae like Mab and Titania, just to name the more commonly known, she's outright honest and a blabbermouth.
7637939 7637851 7636948 FYI Zerv was definitely influenced by the Fae when designing Tethys and the Aquestrians. In fact, the Kelpies are a kind of Fae. XD Glad someone got that.
More details on Tethys and her relationship to Yoth-Atal + her role as Ist'ytal will come in the announced "Journal of Samudra". THough not all of them...
7635890 They could use the amplifier to use the elements on...the whole of equestria or something like that. Or maybe an Old One is already big enough to be targetted. I mean, Twilight and friends are placed right there with it, when they don't really need to be present. I doubt that's a coincidence
Sound like the Crystal Emp- Oh!
The other city that went missing is the Crystal Empire, isn't it?
7647359 Nope... but headcanon wise, the people who designed the crystal empire were influenced by those who designed the magical amplifier.
Just finished the latest chapter, all caught up.
Celestia, Luna and Alternia long with the Elements are safe I believe... but with the others and all these goodbyes... One of them is not coming back, but who I wonder?
7656560 the problem with that analogy is that the "thief" in question can walk through doors and building more ships is basicly just putting up more doors for the thief to walk through.
rather than building a massive amount of highly ineffective ships it whould be a much better idea to develop countermeasures agianst an underwater enemy.
like we did.
Cap.(name of building)
Cap (rank), and you need the word 'under' between 'are' and 'the'.
___________
You have 22 instances of Vanhoofer.
It is Vanhoover I linked the article in several other places in the story so no need repeating that link here. But still. Vanhoover is it's canonical spelling.
______________
our
_________
Earlier you write it as:
Shi-Nihalar
For the first half of the story (9 instances). Which one is it?
_________________________
On a similar note. Are you sticking with the Ist'ytal, or was it supposed to be a - instead of a '?
________________
Interesting chapter. Looking forward to the battle. Although your pre-readers need to keep an eye out for Vanhoover, to make sure it's being spelled right.
So sounds like Tethys is Ist'ytal, which would explain how she's still alive to this day and so big and powerful...but it also means Samudra must have been an absolute MONSTER to have stopped her for over a thousand years.
I find myself mildly surprised that none of the Changeling queens knew anything about the cultists, either. Given that changelings often sneak in and take the form of ponies, I would have thought they would have stumbled upon a sect or two over the years (unless there were rogue cultist changelings even then making certain to prevent regular changelings from finding out about the Old Ones).
7657754 It is Shi-Nihalar and Ist'ytal. Vren got the two mixed up on occasion and I apparently missed a few places when I was going through fixing that. I was going for the same convention as C'thulu and Yog-Sothoth, C'thulu being the priest and Yog-Sothoth being the Outer God.
As for Vanhoofer, I didn't even think about it actually being Vanhoover.
7657832 Until now, the cultists have been a very small number of worshippers in tiny groups. Much harder to infiltrate. Plus this lot worships an eldritch abomination. Not much love being thrown about there.
7658714
Ah. That's a good naming convention.
As for Vanhoover. I did link it a few times ^_^ (look under Luna Bay). And there's also the map ^_^.
Still y'all are doing well on the fic. I look forward to seeing the upcoming battle.
Ethan Hunt? Really vren? Oh God, I love your names.
Overall I liked this chapter. All of the little interactions with characters and the buildup to the big confrontation worked very well.
My only real complaint here is that the conversation between the element bearers and Typhon seems really casual and relaxed considering they know kelpies eat ponies and I don't think they've had enough conversations with kelpies to really acclimatize yet. Then again, I suppose it is Typhon, and if there's any kelpie who could come across as approachable it's him.
7697333 That's pretty much why we went with Typhon. If they interacted much with Seiche, they'd have more of an issue. At any rate, they have that whole looming issue of the old god so they can't spend too much time acting skittish around the kelpies.
7675725 Some people don't like them actually, but I was like... well OCs are going to weird people out so why don't I just do what MLP normally does and make a crap ton of pop culture references?
I mean... srsly, Gladmane = Donald Trump
Convenience, smonvenience. GET IT NOW! :P
7658714
That's similar to how the WoW team named their own old gods.
Even if they could it would probably destroy the planet to focus that much power in sucha small space.