14 Darkness
Lyra Heartstrings - 10th of Midsummer ‘15 EoH - Evening
Some days I feel like I should get somepony to set up a permanent portal to Canterlot for my friends and I to use. Or maybe invest in a teleport circle. Sure, the mana use would be more than I could supply myself, and would probably tax the house’s crystals beyond their capacity, meaning I’d have to shell out for an upgrade, but it can’t be good for Meep to keep opening portals for me every few days.
I swear, if I didn’t have a life firmly established in Ponyville I’d just move back to Canterlot. It would make everything so much easier.
Especially when transporting a prisoner.
That didn’t happen much, but when it did it was a world of annoyance. There’s all sorts of safety protocols that have to be followed, even by me, and even when I’m direct lining that prisoner to an interrogation cell in the Canterlot dungeons. I’d always considered the protocols to be a pointless hassle. Not anymore I didn’t.
As nopony available could teleport myself and the unnamed prisoner that far, we had to take the train. Alright, no problem, there’s military trains kept in reserve at all towns for emergencies. First problem, the unicorn I was transporting was in fact able to teleport.
Fortunately a Solar Guard noticed her attempt to vanish and was able to prevent her from leaving with a quick ward. That guard basically had to come with us, and continuously apply her anti teleport charm to the train car.
Most times I took somepony prisoner, the chains and restraints seemed like an unneeded cruelty. If I was able to take somepony alive, they probably had surrendered. This unicorn, on the other hoof, literally attempted everything in her power to escape, at every opportunity.
Breaking the bolts holding her restraints to the train car via brute force. Somehow completely shorting out three separate anti-magic collars. Three separate attempts to kill me through various means. Using equipment concealed within her armor (which we couldn’t remove because she was arcanely sealed in the suit) to melt a hole in the bottom of the train car in an attempt to drop down and vanish into the distance.
It took me, two Lunar Guards, and a huge stallion literally named Buck Brickbarrel, all constantly watching and foiling each and every single attempt at escape this single Unicorn made as they came.
By the time the train had pulled into Canterlot, I was done. Mana reserve, empty. Patience, gone. Wits, firmly at their end.
It wasn’t the the constant escape attempts that made it a hellish ride. It was her literal nonstop preaching. From the second we had her in chains until a guard forced a gag into her mouth when I finally arrived at the dungeon, she spewed a torrent of religious bullshit.
No pauses. No stops for any reason. It was like if Pinkie was a viciously hostile and hateful sack of horseapples and wanted to tell everything within hearing range that she found them to be inferior collections of eye-crud. And yet, at the same bucking time, also wanted to scream to everything within earshot that her situation at present was a sick perversion of the natural order.
If it wasn’t extremely important to actually get information out of her, I think I might have beaten her to death in the train due to the pure bullshit spewing induced rage. This mare was lucky, so very bucking lucky, that my sense of duty and honor outweighed my emotional side.
She should buy lottery tickets. She’d win every time.
Thank the bucking moon that the interrogation cell she was now in was literally escape proof. Never before did I ever even remotely think that having those cells that warded would ever be justified or necessary. They felt like a hold out from an earlier less civilized age.
Ha! Nope! Here comes Mask McBiggot to make the entire goddamn thing feel totally justified and necessary! Ah-ha ha!
At least I had the breather of delivering my report to Luna before having to actually question the prisoner.
“So, that’s your field report.” Luna said slowly, leaning forward in her throne as if doing her best to not fly into a rage.
“Yep.” I answered.
I just didn’t have the energy to use the ‘proper’ words.
“Ponyville was attacked by three groups of monstrous creatures,” she continued.
“Yep,” I answered, getting a glare from Luna due to mistaking a short pause in her sentence for her stopping her sentence.
“You stopped the attack as swiftly as possible, killing a few hundred never before seen centripetal monsters,” Luna continued.
“Dead.” I confirmed.
“Then the windigo you discovered last week spotted invisible agents via their auras in the midst of kidnapping a foal for reasons unknown, and you managed to capture one.” Luna finished.
“Yes, do you need me to go over the entire thing again?” I asked, seriously wondering if I’d been speaking oddly or something.
I was drained enough to say something like ‘mumble-fumitch’ instead of ‘sleep’ after all.
“No. I just want to crystallize everything in my mind.” Luna said bitterly. “Now then, this prisoner attempted to escape from custody thirty six-”
“Thirty seven!” I corrected.
“Thirty seven times.” Luna apologized. “Implying she’s absolutely dedicated to her cause, and has equivalent training to any member of our own security forces.”
“Yes,” I agreed.
“Why the flying buck does some serious national emergency level problem come out of Ponyville every four to six months?” Luna demanded of the otherwise empty throne room. “Was it cursed while I was banished or something?
“Nothing used to happen there, and now a thousand years later, it’s a bigger trouble magnet than a town which was literally built atop a natural rift leading to Tartarus!”
I triple blinked. “Wait, Muster was a real place?”
“Yes!” Luna grunted. “And it seriously caused fewer problems than Ponyville.”
She sighed and shook her head, standing up. “The fire’s been extinguished, and by now Bonbon will be home. I imagine you want to be home as soon as possible.”
I nodded. “Yes.”
“Then, shall we interrogate our prisoner now? Because if your report is at all accurate, I imagine we both will want a drink afterwards.” Luna asked.
“Trust me, we’ll want ALL the drinks.” I grumbled.
Luna rolled her eyes, stood up, and with a quick flash of light, teleported us to the dungeons.
The Canterlot Dungeons are not as bad of a place as everypony thinks. Everypony pictures rough hewn stone bricks, held together with hardened sewage and mold, with water dripping down from the ceiling to pool on the floor, which is made of plague rats who have malaria.
That’s not at all how the dungeons are.
They are white, flat, square, completely clean, perfectly angled, and absolutely maddening. Everything is white, and perfectly angled. It literally will drive you mad. That’s the entire point.
Everywhere you look, every wall is glowing the same exact shade of white, so you can’t even tell where the edges of any given room are. The entire place looks like a featureless white void. You leave somepony here for a month at most and they will tell you absolutely anything you want to know just to get to see something blue.
You don’t stick normal prisoners here. It’s not for keeping people confined, the dungeons are for breaking the mental barriers of dangerous prisoners. No other torture is used. You just stick them into this white nothingness, into a place where if they do break out of a cell there is no actual exit without teleporting.
Cruel? Yes. Necessary? Also yes. Spellcasters willpower can easily go off the charts. Since everypony decided that mind control magic on prisoners is not okay, room of white nothingness it is.
When I first heard about it, I didn’t think that would work. But then, well, I learned that the guards stationed there get enchantments which let them see an alternate decorated version of the dungeon. Because the guards were literally going insane.
I didn’t have that.
As far as I could tell right now, Luna had just teleported us into the void.
It was honestly already getting to me.
“Uh, so, I’m seeing the white version.” I said giving Luna a hopeful look.
“Don’t worry, we won't be here long.” Luna replied, beginning the walk down a hallway that I could only barely tell was even there.
“It would be pretty nice to get that spell the guards here have.” I remarked.
“Yes, it would. The trick is to squint, then the very edges of the walls can be seen.” Luna replied simply.
“Hold it, you don’t have it?” I asked incredulously.
“No. Just the guards. Nopony else.” She said in an honest tone before suddenly turning right. “Cell one, correct?”
“Yeah,” I agreed.
The cell appeared on my right, literally looking like space had just sort of, unfolded, revealing the new room. Even though I knew that I had been walking down a hallway, and now was looking through a window, it still felt like space just… warped.
“Who even built this place?” I asked aloud to myself.
“Celestia wouldn’t tell me.” Luna grumbled. “To be fair, that was three months after my return, and I haven’t asked since.”
I couldn’t help but notice that the unicorn was still in all of her armor. I didn’t feel quite so stupid for not being able to work out how to get it off her now.
Luna gently moved her right hoof along the wall, searching for something until there was a click. Almost immediately, a Solar Guard in full armor teleported to Luna’s side.
“Yes, your Highness?” The guard asked, giving a half-bow.
“Sir Heartstrings and I need to interrogate this prisoner. Can you restrain her for the duration?” Luna asked.
“Aye, Ma’am.” The Guard replied, quickly pressing a series of hidden mechanisms which doubtlessly she could see clearly.
“So, uh, what do I have to do to get that enchantment you guys have?” I asked the guard.
“Sign on to serve as a Dungeon Guard, Sir.” she replied.
Great…
“Is there anything I can do to prevent headaches then?” I pleaded.
“Aye, Sir.” The guard replied. “Cross your eyes a bit. That will make the optical illusion fail, and you’ll see the walls clearly. That should help you for a few hours.”
I quickly crossed my eyes. Sure enough, the borders between wall, floor, and ceiling all suddenly came into view.
“Thank you.” I sighed in relief.
“No problem, sir.” The guard said, tapping one final spot on the wall.
A flash of gold light flared from beyond the window. I spun, ready to throw a punch or three at what had to be the thirty eighth escape attempt. A completely unnecessary move. The flash had materialized shaped shield spells which formed restraints around the prisoner, forcing her into a standing position.
The Guard observed something on the wall before making a small concerned noise. “Mmm… Your highness, the prisoner is unusually powerful. While the cell wards will be able to contain her, I don’t think we can keep her restrained for more than an hour.”
“Perhaps it’s a property of her equipment. Is there any reason she was left with it?” Luna asked curiously.
“It very likely is,” the guard responded. “Unfortunately nopony on staff has been able to remove it. It’s very well sealed, both arcane and physically. Will you be going in now, Ma’am?”
“Yes. Open the door please.” Luna asked.
The guard pressed the button. Thanks to the cross eyed trick I saw the door slide open into the wall. By chance the prisoner was facing it.
“Abomination! I will destroy you!” The unicorn screamed with every last drop of malice available for at least a hundred miles.
Luna rolled her eyes and stepped into the cell. I followed, mentally kicking myself for not packing a manabar, and bracing myself for the next wave of-
“The horn upon your head is an insult to all true heirs of arcane power!” She continued. “The second I am able, I will snap these bonds, and remove your eyes with your horn before presenting it to father as penance for allowing subequine slime to lay eyes upon me!”
“That’s nice.” Luna said calmly.
“You dare to patronize me!?” She scream-shouted.
“No, I dare to mock you.” Luna replied. “Patronize means something entirely different. Perhaps you would enjoy some tutoring in grammar? By the way, that was patronizing.”
I swear I heard a few blood vessels burst behind the mare’s mask. The next fifty strait seconds were filled with a sputtering rage filled nonsense. Sounds that could have been words, yet were distorted beyond all recognition due to their sheer venom. Until the last few sentences managed to ring loud and clear.
“-and as the unicorns at last stand free from the notions of being equal to the inferior species around them I shall slit your throat so your last living moment is spent knowing the false utopia you built is a failure!”
I couldn’t help but take a hoof step back in reflexive fear. Luna leaned down and gave the unicorn a slim smile.
“Now, that might be intimidating, if well…you were intimidating. Or if I was my sister.” Luna said standing back up. “I think you have me confused for Celestia. She’s the one who shaped Equestria into this form. All of this was done after my banishment.”
“It doesn't matter which of the four abominations you are! All are the same! All shall perish as father demands!” The unicorn scream-nounced.
“Heh… You know, Celestia never was good at solving problems through violence.” Luna mused, turning to look at me. “For instance, this particular brand of zealotous bigotry she’s spewing, was quite popular when we were fillies. Watch this, I’ll poke her ego a bit and within five insult’s we will get something like ‘The world itself bows to the will of the unicorn, that is why we are the supreme beings!’.”
“Those who mock the truth shall feel the wrath of the righteous!” The unicorn screeched ear-bleedingly.
“I should have made bingo sheets for this,” Luna laughed, “As I was telling you, Lyra, Celestia is… A pacifist. She will fight when she must, but she isn’t very good at it. She tends to seek to capture, disable, or rehabilitate the enemy.
“As noble as that is, the idea has flaws… Ever notice how every major threat which returns is from ‘a thousand years’ ago? Nothing is ever from before a thousand years ago. Not. One. Thing.”
“Spare me your pathetic attempts at intimidation, slime!” The unicorn spat. “I can see your aura, you’re half as powerful as I am!”
I seriously doubted that particular assessment. She might be a bit more powerful. I mean, she did give me a real hard time keeping her captive. Definitely had one hell of a reserve, but twice as powerful as Luna? Yeah, rig-
“Oh, no no no…” Luna chuckled, “That’s simply me being polite. I was briefing nobles on the matter of a certain fire. No need to frighten them. Aura sensing is such a silly thing to rely on. Lyra, did anypony ever teach you any advanced sorcery, particularly transmutation?”
“No, not that I can remember.” I replied slowly.
Then it clicked. I knew what Luna was doing. I’d seen her do it only once before. Which was good, because that meant I wouldn’t panic.
“Pitty. Now, as I was saying, Celestia is a pacifist, and that’s the difference between she and I. She likes to talk, I on the other hoof…”
A pulse of raw, unrefined, cracking mana exploded outwards from Luna, leaving her standing in what looked like a pillar of blue flames, which hid the quick flash of magic as Luna cast an illusion spell in order to step out of the flames as a pseudo-Nightmare Moon.
“I prefer permanent solutions to my problems!” Luna roared, lunging forward to grab the mare by her face. “You can talk, or you can talk. I’ll let you choose how that comes to be.”
“Perfect!” The unicorn exclaimed eagerly. “For father!”
I barely had time to jump out of the way as the space around the unicorn erupted into a sea of lightning! Waves of heat flashed over my body, radiating outwards from the sparking, shrieking, mass of energy!
Then, a heartbeat later, the firestorm of electrical arcs was gone.
“Ow… That kinda burned a bit.” Luna said disgruntledly.
Blinking the white spots out of my vision, I stood up, turning to see Luna, illusion disrupted by the attack, looking only slightly singed.
The unicorn, on the other hoof, hung limply in her restraints, ash from several large holes burned through her cloak and armor drifting slowly to the ground.
Luna frowned and placed a hoof against her neck. “Huh… First time one of these zealots has tried a suicide attack.”
“Are you okay?” I asked, coughing on the super ionized air.
“No. I’m quite livid. But I’m used to dealing with anger.” Luna said bitterly. “I’d thought this millennia old barbarism was long dead. Casual speciesism, simple dislike of other kinds, that I can accept.
“But the evil that drives a pony to raise their children to become this… I thought I’d killed the last of them two thousand years ago. It seems I’ve missed a few, a mistake that we will be rectifying as soon as possible.”
I flinched. “Do we really have to kill them all?”
“Yes.” Luna insisted. “I know you grew up under Celestia’s exclusive rule… I don’t expect you to fully understand… While I admire Tia’s ability to create this paradise of a nation, and keep it running smoothly… Her methods depend on dialogue, diplomacy, civility.
“These…monsters, they won’t listen. You can show them scientific proof they are wrong and they deny it. They will scream and gnash their teeth, resist any attempts to persuade them that their position is wrong. Nor will they compromise.
“All these people ever do is force their beliefs onto others, and become more and more violent over time. If you don’t want to deal with their insanity, the only way to be rid of them is to kill them. Because they will never listen to reason.
“That’s why Equestria exists today, Lyra. Celestia can do the talking with the civilized peoples, while I can put monsters like this into the deep dark hole where they belong. Now, come on, with her being dead this gear should come off. There could be a clue on it somewhere.”
Luna removed the mare’s mask. She had blue fur, though it was quite charged from the electrical discharge. I couldn’t help but frown, I could swear that I had seen-
My heart skipped a beat. “Trixie?”
Luna’s ears twitched in surprise. “You know her?”
I nodded slowly. “Yeah, Trixie Lulamoon. Didn’t I mention the time she-”
“Ah yes. The mare who was briefly possessed by the Alicorn Amulet.” Luna mused. “Odd… Did she seem this…evil?”
“No not at all!” I replied immediately. “She was arrogant, a bit bombastic, but… Well, that was just her stage persona. I talked to her after one of her shows once. She’s actually quite nice! Though her speaking in third person constantly is irritating.”
“Third person?” Luna asked, looking back at the charred corpse. “Now this is interesting… Perhaps this isn’t the mare you think it is. Did she mention having a sister?”
I shook my head. “No.”
“Do you remember her cutiemark?” Luna asked in a serious tone.
“Yes, she used it as a signature. It’s all over her pamphlets and autographed things.” I replied as Luna sliced the leather armor off of the mare’s left flank with a thin ray of energy.
A swash of violet energy shaped like crescent moon, with a star-like gemstone of a pale blue centered within the crescent. Not Trixie’s, but very close. Twin’s close.
“This isn’t Trixie. But given the mark’s general arcane theme and overall look, along with the identical face shape, this mare is definitely related. Probably a twin.” I informed.
Luna nodded to herself. “Lyra, would you have any problems with finding this Trixie and getting her to agree to talk to me?”
I flinched slightly. “We don’t have any solid evidence. I’d rather not arrest somepony on suspicions of being involved with a… Death cult.”
“She’s not under arrest. As far as we know she’s a honest citizen. I’d rather have you find her and bring her in willingly and quietly, than alert the enemy by sending out a Battalion to check every city in Equestria.” Luna said with a sigh. “If she is related, and suddenly the military was looking for her, the mare would be found dead in a river within days.”
“Ah.” I hadn’t thought of that. “That sounds about right for ponies who bred windigos and kidnapped foals for who knows what…”
“So you’ll look for her?” Luna asked.
“Yes. First thing in the morning I’ll get on checking to see if she’s got a show on. She’s a traveling magician, shouldn’t be hard to find.” I sighed. “But right now, I need a drink.”
Luna nodded. “I could also go for some tea, or perhaps a Sarsaparilla.”
I gave her a long critical look. “You…don’t feel the need to have something hard after that?”
“Lyra my friend,” Luna chuckled, “you would not have fared well in the Classical Era. Besides, I’ll be saving my proper drinking for after talking Celestia about all of this. Before I do that, would you like to get dinner?”
I nodded eagerly. “Yeah! Oh, hey, how about you port us to Ponyville, and you, Bonbon, and I go get a pizza or something?”
“That sounds wonderful. Just a moment.” Luna walked over to the door, the Guard immediately opening it for her. “Gather up her gear and send it to my armory, along with instructions for my Artificer to reverse engineer it. I want to know how all of it works.”
“Aye, Ma’am!” The guard said, snapping a salute.
I walked out of the room with a sigh. Thank Moonbutt that was over. I needed bonbon, food, and a drink. And not necessarily in that order.
The Hearth, Deepwoods, Everfree Forest - 10th of Midsummer ‘15 EoH - Night
Deep within the Everfree Forest, where the trees are as ancient beyond measure and not even a single glint of light can pass through their branches to reach the earth below, lies a city.
A place where even the most learned and astute of individuals would have no way of knowing if they sat above or below ground. A city difficult for even it’s inhabitants to find within the ever shifting maze of the Deepwoods. The aptly named Hearth, where the Ashes smoldered like the remnants of the evening’s fire, ready to be rekindled with but a single breath to burn anew.
The Hearth was not like any place else within the world. Even the most impoverished people seek to make the space they live their own. Every place has a certain feel to it, even if all that can be found is scratches in the walls of a cave, illustrating some past event. Every place that is, except the Hearth.
The Hearth would give anyone who visited it perfect understanding of the words ‘spartan’, ‘utilitarian’, and ‘pragmatic’. It was the inverse of comfort and luxury. Every stone was placed with purpose. It was a place designed in the way an engineer might seek to create the perfect city, if they forgot the purpose of a city was to house people, and designed everything around industry, economy, and efficiency.
If a sewage pipe passing through a mess hall at head height improved the Hearth’s sanitation system, then that pipe passed through. If an area was rarely utilized, it was torn down and incorporated into a higher traffic area. If workers could not reach their work from their barracks, their sleeping quarters were merged into their workspace.
Nopony not born within the Hearth could ever live within its labyrinthine walls. Without being raised to find walls painted even just one uniform color to be a needless extravagance, the Hearth would destroy one’s spirit within days. But for the thousands who lived within the hidden city, the Hearth was the one sane place in the world. A place of logic, reason, and truth in a world that sought to disguise the harsh realities of existence with smiles and garish decorations.
Within the very center of the Hearth sat the King. The King had no name, there were none alive who remembered it, not even himself. The King ruled the Hearth by Right of Creation. The city was his, built by his own sweat and blood. It’s people were his, grown by his magic and at his desire.
Few of his children had ever seen him. They only existed for express purposes, and thus only those who distributed his orders needed to see him, and so that is the way it was.
The King sat upon his throne, literally and figuratively the heart of the city. The throne was made of solid gold, but it’s square, unadorned, blocky nature told you the gold was not for decoration, or to display wealth. No, the gold served a purpose.
As did each and every last rune and circle carved into the floor, walls and ceiling of the room itself. Visible lines of magic flowed from all corners of the room directly into the throne, and the dusty, hunched over, unimposing suggestion of a creature upon it.
Along with the ribbons of magic, tubes, wires, and pipes ran into the throne as well, feeding energy, strange liquids, and gels into the throne, and perhaps into the King himself, though none knew for sure.
The throne and it’s apparatuses filled all of the throne room, save for the space for a single pony to stand before the throne. This single spot sat directly behind the unassuming door which led to it. The only point from which one could enter or exit the room, magic or not. The only point from which one could get a glimpse beneath the black blanket which adorned the King.
The only point at which the unprepared would see the slimy tendrils of flesh, stuck to the petrified skull beneath the cloth in a manner which suggested they were crawling out wards from within the eye socket, illuminated only by the dim red glow of the King’s single unblinking eye.
Standing in that spot, and staring unblinkingly into that eye was a unicorn dressed in a suit of plate armor. The normally silver arcanite had been dyed Vantablack, making the armor so dark that it seemed to drink in the light around it, turning the unicorn’s forest green cloak the gray of decaying leaves, even where the cloak should have covered the armor completely.
This was Sacred Shadow, the King’s loyal proxy. The only creature under his control permitted to act with the King’s own authority. A creature cloned from the King’s very flesh, the one being that the King knew would never betray him, nor even act in a way which would displease him.
Sacred Shadow; the power of a demi-god, the calculated cunning of the King himself, and the loyalty of a three year old to it’s mother, all rolled into one package. Just as the King designed.
“Father,” Sacred said in a tone both apologetic and yet strong, “I have failed. A TR was captured during today’s harvest. I do not have any information regarding how the team was spotted, but I have agents working on it as we speak.
“Fortunately, our harvest brought us nineteen of the targets successfully. They have been processed and the resources have been sent to the laboratory, all as per normal.”
The King’s eye slid mechanically to center itself on Sacred’s head. “I see.” He whispered in a voice one might mistake for a death rattle.
Sacred nodded. “Perhaps I got cocky… I did not think the Princesses would develop new countermeasures so soon.”
“Such thought is useless.” The King hissed. “Only the present matters. We have been exposed… As I knew we would be after the Ponyville lab fell. Though the cause is different, I have planed for this day.”
“What do you wish of me, father?” Sacred asked, bowing low enough to scrape the floor with his helmet.
“Give the Princesses time. Allow them to investigate. Let them discover what they will about us. Deceive them only in this, allow them to believe you are the leader of my Kingdom.” The King commanded. “When the time is ripe, you will take half of my forces, and attack the princesses head on. Convince them this is your last ditch assault. Let them think they have forced you out of hiding.
“There will be no retreating. No surrender. You will fight them until every last soldier and you yourself lies dead upon the battlefield. The Princess’s will believe us to be no more, and we shall have the next millennium to continue our holy mission.”
Sacred nodded. “As you wish father.” He accepted.
There was no fear in his eyes, stance, or tone. Only delight at being able to help a loved one with a problem.
Sacred stood up and turned to leave, but hesitated, turning to ask one final question, “Father, will you be lonely?”
“Don’t ask foolish questions.” The King ordered.
Sacred nodded, bowed again, and left the chamber.
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Lyra takes 'very' enthusiastic walks through Ponyville...
7027627 Hey, it's not her fault! Tia needs to hurry up and approve a DSL hook up in there!
7027627
Why, some might mistake her for a certain vampire.
Interesting I gather the 'king' has apparently done his gambit before
7027741 Yup. Several times.
Well, I most certainly was not expecting that particular apperance for the TR series, though it does mean that I will be filled with a certain amount of dread when re-watching certain episodes.
I was going to write up short bit about what we now think we know, but instead I will ask if there is anyone who wants to help me. I've got two keys that need to be turned at the same time but they're too far apart for me to do this myself.
7027771 I got the idea to use that appearance due to you frequently seeing multiple Trixies on screen in the background in the same frame. Also it lets me make a good joke with her name. Its one of the few you can spell with alphnumarics. TR-1x-13. Heh ^.^
... You just had to use the emperor's golden throne didn't you meep?
7027787 HA! And 7027627 here said everyone would think it was a FMA:B reference! SUCK IT!!!!!
Also yes. I did.
7027805
Your loyalist golden throne can't fool me meep!
7027815 You're going to be like, the one guy to get the rest of the reference. Brohoof buddy!
7027821 /)
7027823 /)*(\
Lich...?
So, I feel like the way this was described was a lich sitting on a throne similar to that of the man god of the warhammer 40k universe. :P
Which, I wonder if people realize those humans do technically worship a Lich.
...
And even sacrifice people to keep him and his life force going... >.>
Anyways, great chapter as always. Now that we are seeing a glimpse of the bad guys, I feel this will get very interesting.
I give you all 5 out of five hearts.
<3<3<3<3<3
(Ugh, stupid net keeps going out on my pc so I couldn't get my thoughts out. >.<)
7027898 Parsnips...
7027747 why do I think it might not work this time. Luna seems determined to root out the issue completely this time. Not suddenly pop back up a century or ten down the road
7027927 Well... I mean, it wouldn't be a good story if the badguy got away cleanly >> SO yeah, sure... But you know, it's the journey, not the destination.
7027936 Basing it on Luna's personality not the idea of a good story or now after all maybe you are going to make a sequel or several. Some stories put forward the idea that Celestia favor diplomacy over fighting because its hard for her to control collateral damage when she lets go
7027988 That's what I go for as well. Tia is a pacifist because unleashing the power of the sun is not wise.
Oh dear. All the downsides of "FOR THE EMPRAH" but without the excuse that the alternative is even worse.
Lyra's POV was hilarious up until the end.
7028107 Yeah, pretty much. It wasn't going to be a nice chapter, but I hope it was still good.
7028137 Yes Celestia has. There's a reason Celestia is a pacifist. She's not able to control her own power in combat. Tia could have stopped Triek herself... and vaporized all of Ponyville, glassing the land and rendering it unlivable for centuries to come. Tia learned this very early on, and is sort of unable to seriously fight something due to moral issues and metal blocks.
Luna on the other hoof, is just as powerful, but she can control all of her power (Unless she gets realy pissed off... Then Nightmare Moon.)
The problem here is that Twilight fully embraces Celestia's pacifist ideology, not for a practical reason but because she's been raised in a pacifist culture. Luna's only been back for 15 years, and is still learning the ropes. Until Luna is 100% up to speed, and back in top form, Tia sees no choice other than to banish big threats.
You're a dark and evil changeling, Meep. I was all like, "OMG NUUUUU
" when they pulled the suit off that TR. Toying with us like that! 
I'm surprised the armor itself wasn't made to self destruct....
That being said i dont think any of those children are coming back ...
7028206 I'm not evil, I'm ebil. Evil's younger cousin who seems just like evil at first, but is only realy vaguely irritating.
7028223 Problem is, he forgot to make his 5 year old child adviser not grow up, and is just too lazy to make a new one.
7028159 Twilight needs boxing lessons!
7028315 She's slowly over the years started to grow a few teeth. The problem with a utopia like Equestria is it's inhabitants don't know what evil is... So when they encounter evil, they are not likely to know how to properly confront it. Hence why it took Tirek pissing Twilight off for her to go full Goku.
I really hope you are not going to play the reaccuring villian trope with the battle against this "Father"...I really really really really really really really dislike it.
7028332 I was so delighted with Twilight getting her 'world of cardboard' moment in that episode. I never really expected to see quite that much firepower in MLP:FIM.
I like Twi's pacifist stance (and Celestia's), but I do hope she's had (or is planning to have) some degree of actual combat training. The old ultraviolence might be a last resort, but it's always good to have a last resort.
7028273
Tell Zorbak I said hi.
7028364 I only use Reoccurring Villein if the plot makes sense for them to come back. Because yes, it's overused and rarely done well or even at the right narrative point.
7028368 I agree. It's always best to be able to talk a foe down... But if you can't, you also need to be able to give them the smackdown to end all smackdowns.
7028397 Okay. He says, um.. He said something, but it was exceptionally unexceptional. So I'm omitting it.
7028413
In which case I do reply, "You may be more naturally gifted but Kabroz is much more Ebil than you."
7028425 Oh but of course! I'm atop no ladder, save for "least fucks given about things I dont give a fuck about."
7028430
Awww, no need to be like that. How about we just go and play a bit of Punt Twilly, eh? That will probably cheer you up.
Also maybe this too.
7028457 I tried that once. Horrible idea. Now I just mail her Quesadillas from an unlisted address once or twice a month.
Loneliness? FEELINGS? We doth see a fault in his master plan...
7028490 Heeeeyyyy! Someone caught it! ^.^ Didn't expect that moment to get picked up on :D
7028500 but it's right at the end! It's being to be noted and commented upon!
7028547 I know, but in general, people comment on things from the middle of my chapters for some reason XD
7028552
your readers are weird 
7028561 Yes, they are, but I love them all :D
7028404 Looking forward to seeing what you are going to do then.
Interesting, very interesting. A new baddie, always fun to have, but boy heh if it is referencing something(and I'm sure it is) this time unlike most of the others I feel lost. By the other comments I am thinking the game AdventureQuest? I did play it a little, but being how from what I remember if you wanted to get anywhere you had to become a paying member, (or to even get on often, as it had limited server room for non-paying members?) I never got very far before I went on to other things.
BUT I am still excited to read more, as always, That is one thing you never fail to do, keep me wanting more.
7028705 Actually, it's a reference to this setting meant to invoke a 'ah shit...' moment with readers who know it: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=h67JpMyrOVE
7028561 You're a reader...
7028712
Woah, sounds like quite the game! Even just that little snippet gives me a little shiver hehe. Might have to check it out if I have the platform for it. (Probably not, but then I'm sure there is a 'let's play x game' kind of thing for it online somewhere I could watch, (have done that with Pokemon Games just so it is like, someone is playing along with me?))
7028561
Yes, yes we are, but I love it! Who wants to be normal? :P Normal is overrated.