Consequences
Twilight, Applejack, Rainbow Dash, and Zecora were all in the recovery ward of the Ponyville Hospital. Because a majority of the town were earth ponies, the hospital only had a limited number of unicorns, and that was only due to medical mandates. So, all those injured in the fight against the Black Griffon were stitched up and bandaged.
Only Applejack had gotten spells cast on her. Even with them, her eyes remained bandaged and she was kept away from the windows.
Rainbow Dash was chained to her bed, though she was now just resting on it, having realized resisting would only impair her recovery. She muttered to herself, “I’ll get there soon, Gilda.”
Twilight was lost in thought and covered in goosebumps. That shadow…
Everyone sat up when the door to the ward opened. Tantabus walked in. Beside him was a grey-haired beige mare. Above her ceremonial collar denoting her as a government official, her head was intricately detailed. It gave off the sense of being too realistic if one stared at it too long.
“So, these are the students that took down the Black Griffon?” the mare asked.
“Indeed, Mayor Mare,” said Tantabus. “They are quite the rambunctious bunch, but I am immensely pleased to see them safe.”
“As am I,” said Mayor Mare.
Dash asked, “Gi—the Griffon, how is it?”
“She’s stable, but it will be a long road to recovery for her. Aside from the injuries you dealt to her, it’s as if the life has been literally drained out of her. We have some specialists coming in to assist with that… and with interrogation.”
“She wasn’t in control!” Dash shouted, straining against the chain binding her to her bed. “I’ve been telling you all, that brood Equality had her under her spell!”
“Calm yourself!” Tantabus ordered. He martialized his eyes to get Dash to back down. Dash felt a chill but she still remained upright.
“We’re taking everything that happened into account,” said Mayor Mare. Her gaze sharpened. “That includes what to do about you three.”
Twilight paled. “Oh no…”
“What?” Applejack turned her head in the vague directions of Twilight and Mayor Mare.
“We are a nation of Heroes, but we are also a nation of laws. Ponyville is no exception. The use of Talents has always been a delicate balancing act of freedom versus regulation, especially for Heroes. Improper use of your Talents can cause massive damage. It can even cost lives. That’s why licenses or explicit permission under very specific conditions are the only ways for Heroes to use their Talents in their line of work. There are severe punishments for breaking the law.”
Dash bristled. “Are… are you telling us we’re in trouble for what we did?”
“Putting it bluntly, yes.”
“That’s bull!” Dash jabbed a leg (as well as she could given her restraints) at Zecora and slashed it over to Applejack. “We should have just left them to die?! It’s our damn job to save people!”
Twilight bit her lip. Applejack bent her head down.
“Is this how you’re teaching now?” Mayor Mare sighed at Tantabus.
Lightning crackled off Dash. “You brood…”
Tantabus gave Dash another glare. “There’s more.”
Mayor Mare shook her head. “That’s the official warning I have to give because you now have a choice to make. All the civilians had been evacuated by the time you defeated the Griffon. Only Shadowbolt, Zecora, and Nightmare Knight saw what happened afterwards. So, you can either keep the truth to yourselves and let Shadowbolt take the credit or accept the fame that comes with defeating the Griffon but also accept the consequences.”
“Can’t Nightmare Knight get some credit too?” Twilight asked.
“Yeah, at least say Teach had a hoof in this,” Dash added.
“I’ve always preferred to stay out of the spotlight,” said Tantabus.
Twilight closed her eyes and took a breath. “No one died, that’s what matters to me.”
Twilight’s words softened Dash’s expression and she sank back to her bed. “Fine, if that’s how it has to be.”
Applejack nodded. “I got everyone into this mess. As long as they don’t get in trouble, I’ll accept whatever they choose.”
“Am I to take that as acceptance of option one?” asked Mayor Mare.
“Yes,” Twilight, Dash, and Applejack said in unison.
“Then I will at least allow you this.” Mayor Mare bowed her head to the ground. “As Mayor of Ponyville, you have this town’s thanks.”
~~~
Filthy Rich came to visit Applejack a little later. Next to him was an elderly green mare. Applejack could not see her, but she froze when elderly mare ambled into the room with her walker. Despite her age, she was upon Applejack in a blink. A bit of smoke rose off her hooves.
“You foal!” she yelled. “Nearly gave me a heart attack! Caused Big Mac to fall out of his chair! Had to leave Apple Bloom with him, poor filly! I don’t care how old you are, when you’re out of here, you’re getting the biggest sp… spa…”
The mare stopped and broke down into tears. Applejack reached out and they hugged each other with all their strength.
“I’m sorry, Granny!” Applejack sobbed.
“I can’t take this,” Granny Smith sniffled. “One more of you goes and I’ll…”
“I promise, Granny. I promise it won’t happen again. Ever.” Applejack then pulled back. Her face was pale. “The Harvest! Oh shoot, Granny, my head was so cluttered, I wasn’t even thinking of the Harvest!”
Granny Smith gave her a whack on the top of her head. “What in Equestria are you talking about, girl? You already forget all the lucky stars you thanked for all the wonderful friends you have?”
Applejack tilted her head. “Granny? Are you okay? You’re not making sense.”
Twilight spoke up. “Sorry, Applejack, you were in surgery for a while, so I did some research on Apple Bucking Season. You have such a short timeframe to work with so I went ahead and sent a letter.”
Applejack’s confusion deepened. “Letter?”
~~~
“Ugh,” Suri groaned before slamming metal hooves into a tree, knocking down its apples into buckets below. “How in Equestria is this Hero work?”
“Quite better than just doing photo shoots.” Rarity bucked a neighboring tree with crystalized hooves. After the apples finished falling, she wiped the sweat off her brow.
“I guess I needed to review the basics a bit too,” said Sassy Saddles as she bucked a tree.
Nearby, a tree shook violently when a large fist slammed into it. Apples, leaves, and a few branches fell down. The owner of the fist, a hulking minotaur, grinned. “Ha-ha! Iron Will could do this all day!”
There was a tap on his shoulder. He turned and saw Fluttershy hovering beside him. She shook her head at him and he bowed his head. “Oh, gentler?”
Fluttershy nodded and then glided over to a nearby tree.
“Huh, looks like you and your supervisor are really getting along,” said Spike. Instead of striking the tree, he flew up to the apples and breathed fire across the canopy. His flames danced through the branches and only engulfed the apples, which reappeared in the buckets below no worse for wear.
“We still have a lot of work to do.” Fluttershy’s hind legs thickened and her coat gained a sheen to it. Her buck sent the apples tumbling. “But I think it really helped me understand what kind of Hero I am and what I’m not.”
“Wish I could say the same about mine,” Spike sighed.
Unlike the others’, Spike’s supervisor was nowhere to be seen.
~~~
Spike had closed his eyes. Smoke afflicted him, but as a dragon, it did not affect his breathing. Even though his body was too small, he had spread his wings as wide as he could to shield the filly below him. It had been all he could do when he saw the wall of her room lurched from the heat of the fire and came crashing down, taking the roof with it.
But the impact never came. It also grew a bit cooler. Spike dared to open his eyes and saw he was in the shadow of a large teal dragon. Its mature frame supported the wall and the roof. A single breath from it scattered the flames and debris away from Spike and the filly. It glared down at Spike and spoke in a bit lower but familiar voice.
“Whelp,” Ember muttered, “I will have words with you after this, but for now get that foal out of here.”
Spike lifted his wings up and bolted out the gaping hole he now noticed in the building. His flight to the ground was crooked due to the heat warping the air, but he made it and then set the filly down.
“Crafty!” a colt yelled and raced over to her. A mare in tears and a stallion in a ruffled and sooty suit followed after him. The family all embraced.
Above them, the building shook as Ember clawed her way out of the fire. Rising into the air, her massive form was observed for just a second before it shrank down to normal size. When she joined Spike on the ground, she was bipedal rather than on all fours like in the building. Said building heaved and caved in at places while crews raced to douse the flames.
The family now turned their attention to the two dragons. Spike tensed, but his eyes widened when the father bowed his head. “Thank you! Thank you!”
Spike took a breath. “Just what a Hero would do.”
It was the colt’s turn to bow his head. “Sorry about the rock earlier.”
Spike rubbed a tiny sore spot on his arm. “It’s my job to protect others. No matter who they are.”
“So that’s how you see it,” said Ember. Her eyes seemed to be looking elsewhere when she addressed Spike. She spread her wings. “You’re not good for my hoard. I’m going to need to reevaluate the whole thing now.”
With that, she left Spike pondering her words… and dealing with the guards.
~~~
Rarity took care of another tree and looked down the orchard path. “Phew, almost there. I’m getting quite parched though.”
“On it!” Pinkie popped up by Rarity and hoofed her a mug with a straw sticking out of it that twisted and looped in a multitude of directions.
Rarity took a sip and was delighted at the fizzy cooling sensation that drink imparted on her dry mouth. “Oh, thank you, Pinkie dear…” She rolled her tongue around. “I just wish I could place the flavor.”
“Concentrated Pink,” Pinkie answered. “I figured it out from watching the boss. I just need to put everything I have into this drink and it’s good. Still not on the boss’s level though.”
As if on cue, Mincemeat’s voice echoed from the end of the orchard, “Keep those drinks flowing! We need everypony hydrated if we’re gonna clear these trees!”
“Roger!” Pinkie shouted, saluted, and scooted away to the next thirsty harvester.
~~~
“Once everything is wrapped up, they’ll visit,” Twilight finished explaining.
Applejack’s bandages dampened again. “Twi…”
Before Applejack could say more or Twilight could respond, a unicorn doctor stepped into the ward. “Ms. Applejack, it’s time for your next operation. Have you decided which option to go with?”
“I have,” Applejack sniffled and wiped her nose. Though her eyes were covered, everyone could feel the intensity radiating off Applejack. With solid footing, she got off the bed and made it over to the doctor.
At the door, she turned her head back around. “Thank you, Twilight. I’ll never forget what you’ve done.”
~~~
“We could still make it in time to help with a few trees,” said Cadance.
“I said no,” Sunset snorted. She then turned away from Cadance as they continued their patrol of Canterlot’s streets. “I just want to focus on the internship. That’s it.”
Cadance stared at her and grinned while Sunset’s eyes were elsewhere. “I see…”
~~~
While the heat from Tartarus’s infernal depths made even the guards specially trained to work there sweat, Celestia’s fur was still pristine as she marched alongside them. Their path spiraled downward into the deepest depths of Tartarus, past countless cages holding villains and dangerous creatures alike.
The journey was punctuated by occasional stops at physical gates and magical barriers, each requiring keys, spells, or both to get through in addition to identification verification by the guards posted at each checkpoint.
It went from blazing hot to cool once they passed a certain point. There were fewer cages now, but those that remained were reinforced and covered in sealing glyphs.
At the very bottom of Tartarus, they reached a cube rather than a cage. It was suspended by chains that glowed bright with magic. Only a single slot in the door allowed an outsider to peer in or deliver food. Guards stood at ledges overlooking the cube or flew up near each side of it.
Celestia looked up at the cube. “And there have been no changes?”
“No,” said one of the guards at her side. “His magic is sealed by just the binding inside. Everything else is a failsafe.”
“His magic.” Celestia clicked her tongue and then ordered, “Lower it.”
The guard gulped and walked over to a lever. The other guard at Celestia’s side joined him. Both produced keys and stuck them into the base of the lever at the same time and turned. Then, the first guard pulled it. The chains holding the cube up rattled and slowly brought the cube down to the ground.
Celestia approached the cube’s door. This time, it required five guards putting in keys at the door’s corners and its center to unlock. Celestia lit up her horn and undid the seal she had personally cast on the cube long ago.
The door creaked open.
When Celestia peered in, the cube’s inhabitant scampered into a corner. He was a withered thing with what remained of his flesh hanging off his bones.
“Tirek.” Celestia’s lone word made all the guards shudder.
Even in his current state and his four legs and two arms bound by chains with even stronger magic attached to them and his mouth muzzled, Celestia still kept her distance and her horn ready for use.
That was until she looked into his eyes. His pupils, little dots of yellow in a sunken abyss of black shook when they beheld Celestia.
She rushed at him.
“Your highness!” the guards all shouted, but Celestia was already upon him.
She raised a hoof and waved it through where his head should have been. It passed through like there was only air there. Tirek’s image wavered and vanished.
In his place was a cowering pinkish gray filly, little more than a foal. Blue curls covered her terror-stricken face. She sobbed, “He said not to say anything, he promised… he promised…”
The world seemed to crash down on Celestia. She paled. “He’s escaped.”
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I was waiting for this
Cozy? Wow this Tirek is really crafty.
Lets see just how deep the rabbit hole goes, if this is part of Cozys plan.
Spike with the messaging breath apples though. Good thing he isnt full sized adult. Dragon Fire Groceries? Delivered directly from the tree to the plate?
Do you mean materialize?
I suppose both kinda work, in this context. Never mind.
You know what they say about good deeds.
.
Twi has the right idea.
#incomingaside
#possibleflashback?
Cozy being Cozy. She Toga using illusions, or was that placed on her and she is just her very good a lying self?
In the words of the Postal Pelican from Legend of Mana,
Probably because Twilight asked.
Just as well; she'd more likely set the trees ablaze.
Oddly, the first thing I thought of
Still, better than nothing.
Hm, I wonder...
Big trouble.
And you got lucky.
Yeah, this is about how I expected the post-Stain fight equivalent to go.
Hm?
It's part of getting food to ponies. You can be the best damn Hero in the world, but if you're half starved and delirious from lack of nutrients, you ain't gonna do shit.
I really like this. I could not tell you why, but I really like it.
She's not in the best mood, I take it?
... Not gonna question it.
I'm sure.
I find it amusing that if this is what I think it is, you don't even NEED to change the name.
Tirek, I suspect.
Called it. Everyone's favorite All For One allegory. He even has a similar powerset.
Cozy Glow. Tai Lung has escaped from Chor Ghom Prison.
Whoof. Sorry for no proper review this time, but this chapter was pretty incredible! You have a knack for wrapping things up, insinuating even more future plot points, and doing it all while tracing BNHA's path while at the same time diverging. It's an art in and of itself. :)
Hmmm so Cozy looks like she isn't going to menace the main 6 in this setting as she had to already be in Tartarus for the switch. But I wonder in this universe does her just steak energy or does he take the victim's talent. In which case Cozy might not be a threat but her talent would be. I shutter to think what "Chessmaster" translates to as a super power.
"It's pink!"
ScottyScottish pony slurred drunkenlyNice to see Iron Will and Fluttershy briefly
Cozy Glow and Tirek, though...