• Published 20th Jul 2012
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Monsters - Sharpe Quill



When Twilight returned from Tartarus, she claimed no monsters had escaped. What if she was wrong?

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Chapter 11: Resolution

Monsters

By Sharpe Quill

Chapter 11: Resolution

Less than an hour after the battle had ended, the chaos on the docks had effectively been replaced by 'aftermath.' Belle, once again in her barding, stood on the docks, trying to keep as much of her weight off of her injured leg as she could. One of the doctors who were even now tending to the many wounded ponies had splinted her leg and told her to not do anything strenuous with it.

It had only been maybe a quarter of an hour since the fresh contingent of soldiers had arrived on the scene, accompanied by Twilight and Corporal Snowflake. They had double-timed it from Canterlot as soon as Snowflake had given the warning and had returned to the Guard House, but found only Twilight there.

Now the unmoving form of the Chimera had been roped off. The bodies of the slain guards were being carefully and respectfully gathered together. Past the bustling and busy ponies, Belle could occasionally see the armored form of Captain Sunspot directing soldiers about and conversing with a large, similarly armored mare who seemed to be in command of the new contingent of soldiers from Canterlot.

Belle wasn’t exactly sure what she was supposed to do.

She was still somewhat in shock from the whole thing. It was amazing how much life could change in an hour. She looked down at the blood-stained wooden pier at her hooves and shivered.

Next to her, Twilight turned to look at her. The unicorn seemed to have recovered a good bit from her magical exhaustion, although there were still faint circles under her eyes. “Are you alright, Belle?” she asked.

Belle started to nod but then stopped. “Honestly, Twilight,” she said, “I don’t know.”

Twilight merely nodded, her expression grim. “Can’t say as I blame you,” she said somberly, scanning the devastation around them.

Despite her own horror, Belle couldn’t help but be thankful that Twilight hadn’t seen the attack. No matter what the young unicorn had said about facing down dragons and a hydra and Discord himself, she didn’t have to see this kind of bloodshed. ‘Not that I should have to see it either,’ thought Belle, ‘but at least I’m a guard.’

Twilight shook herself, as though trying to throw off dark thoughts. “I can’t believe what you did, Belle,” she said, pointedly looking away from the blood stains. “I mean, shoving lead down its throat? That was rather ingenious.”

Belle shrugged, Twilight’s praise hollow in the wake of the disaster. “It worked,” she said, “that’s all that matters.”

Twilight didn’t quite know what to say and they just stood there for an uncomfortable few seconds. Belle took pity on her and finally broke it. “I wonder what they’re going to do with it.”

Twilight looked at the still form of the Chimera. She had taken the time to examine it before it had been roped it off, being careful to not get too close or touch it, and had jotted down whatever information she had gleaned onto a scroll before stowing it in her saddlebags. For her part, Belle had had an up-close look at the creature, at the eyes and teeth and mouth, and never wanted to see the foul thing again.

“I don’t actually know,” Twilight said. “I would guess they’ll find a way to transport it back to Tartarus. I suppose-“

She was cut off by a commotion coming from near one of the smashed wagons. A raised voice yelled unintelligibly, and the nurses seemed to be struggling with something. Paling, Belle rushed over as fast as she could on her bad leg, Twilight close beside her. They had to push through some of the Royal Guards who had clustered around the scene as well. When she finally managed to get through, Belle saw the zebra who had managed to nearly fight the Chimera to a standstill. She had thought him killed by the blow, but apparently he had been merely stunned, for he was now thrashing about. Two Royal Guards held him down as a nurse tried to tie a splint onto one of his forelegs. He was gesticulating wildly with his other forehoof.

“The gem! Is it safe? Please, you ponies, let me see, I must see it!” He had a heavy, exotic accent, and he was shouting in frantic tone.

Belle and Twilight exchanged glances. Belle stepped forward. “Wait!” she said, putting as much command in her voice as she could. “Let him speak.”

The Royal Guards who were trying to quell the thrashing zebra looked at her, confused. Their gaze immediately shifted to the side. Belle glanced over too and saw Captain Sunspot standing nearby, battered but unbroken. He looked at Belle for a second and then nodded to the two guards. They took a step back, just as the nurse finished tying off the splint. The zebra immediately struggled to his three good hooves, heedless of the protests from the nurse, and hobbled over to the one remaining intact wagon, the one from which he himself had sprung when he had attacked the Chimera. In all of the excitement, Belle hadn’t given the wagon a second thought.

The zebra threw open the concealing curtain and gasped. Belle, who had followed him, looked inside and froze. Inside of the wagon, the two robed ponies who had carried the ornate chest lay slumped in the plush seats, their throats neatly slit, dried blood coating their robes. The chest itself was lying on its side on the floor of the wagon, its lid open. It was empty.

The zebra gave a cry of dismay at the sight and began spouting something in a language unknown to Belle. Twilight glanced into the wagon as well and flinched, covering her mouth with a hoof. She looked like she was going to be sick.

Belle rounded on the zebra. “What was in that chest?” she demanded.

The zebra yammered in his own language for a few more seconds before fairly shouting, “The Apple! It is the Apple. It is gone! We must find it!”

Belle stared in confusion. “An apple?” she said, skeptical. “You mean this whole thing is about an apple?”

The zebra shook his head violently. “Not an apple! A gem, a stone of power! The Apple of Discord! It has been taken!”

Twilight spun around to face the zebra. She still looked sick, but her eyes were intent. “Apple of Discord?” she said quickly. “Is that what you called it? Are you sure?”

The zebra nodded. He was quivering now, and seemed to be about to collapse. Two nurses arrived and tried to coax him to lie down on a stretcher. Twilight looked troubled. Belle caught her eye. “What? What is it?”

Twilight bit her lower lip. “I think we might be in trouble.”

***********************************************************

Twilight and Belle walked briskly down the street towards their destination, the latter limping somewhat with her bandaged leg. Behind them, silent and unassuming, Sergeant Emerald followed just behind, her large hooves barely making a sound on the cobblestones.

"Are you sure about this?" asked Belle, struggling to keep her voice even and calm. Her leg hurt her worse than she had wanted to admit, and she knew she would have to get off it soon or it might get much worse.

"Well," said Twilight, "I don't have any proof. It's more of a gut feeling. But at the very least it's worth investigating."

"But why?" asked Belle. "What did the zebra say that makes you suspect her of all ponies?" It was a testament to her trust in her new friend that Belle had even considered investigating her suspicion without actual proof.

"He said the gem was the Apple of Discord," Twilight replied.

Belle snorted. "So? What's that got to do with Eris? I thought Discord was trapped in stone."

"He is," said Twilight with a bit of a shudder, "and with any luck he'll remain that way forever. No, the Apple of Discord is an artifact from ancient myth." Twilight's voice took on a more comfortable, almost lecturing tone. "It's said that several thousand years ago, when pony civilization was still in its infancy, Discord, the Spirit of Disharmony, became fond of Eris, the Spirit of Chaos. It makes sense in a twisted sort of way, chaos and disharmony go together wonderfully, and where one is, the other is likely close by. Anyway, according to legend, Discord, in an unusual display of affection, gave Eris an apple-shaped gem that actually contained a small bit of his very essence. Wherever the apple was, disharmony would follow, even if Discord himself was not there. It wasn't nearly as powerful or... showy as the Draconequus himself, but was in fact surprisingly subtle. Anyway, the Apple is best known for its role in starting the Tori War, before Equestria was founded."

Belle listened to the story curiously. When Twilight finished she said, "But what does that have to do with our Eris? She's just a regular pony, she's not the physical embodiment of chaos. I've known her my whole life for Celestia's sake. I think I would have noticed."

Twilight chewed on her lip for a few seconds before answering. "I don't know. Like I said, it's more of a hunch. It just seems like too much of a coincidence that an artifact connected to the Spirit of Chaos is stolen in the town where a pony named after the Spirit of Chaos lives."

Belle nodded but wasn't convinced. Eris was such a sweet old mare. Belle really had known her all of her life, and they were certainly friendly, if not outright friends. It seemed impossible that such a frail and unassuming pony could be behind these atrocities and destruction. Although, she had to admit, the last few days had certainly been chaotic, and Belle could certainly relate to Twilight's questioning of the coincidence. She chuckled as a stray thought crossed her mind. "Heh, maybe it was her cat."

Twilight simply rolled her eyes and kept walking.

They arrived at Eris' house and veterinarian clinic a few minutes later. It looked as it always did, quiet, peaceful, even quaint. No lights were visible in the front windows, although the gate to the fence was wide open. There was no immediate sign of either Eris or her demon-spawn cat. Belle was quite thankful for the latter. They approached the front door and paused, listening. No sound could be heard from inside. Belle felt a slight shiver run along her spine, although she couldn't pinpoint why. She raised a hoof and knocked.

The sound of her hoof striking wood reverberated through the house, and they could hear it echo oddly back to them. Belle quickly put her forehoof back down as she felt a fresh throb from her twisted back leg. There was no response, and no sound yet from inside the building. Belle knocked twice more with the same results.

"Should we try to force it?" asked Twilight hesitatingly after a few seconds.

Belle looked at her flatly, an expression readable even from behind her glasses, and didn't say anything.

"Well..." Twilight hedged, "I don't know what the procedure is."

Belle snorted and rolled her eyes. She reached out a hoof and tried the latch. To her surprise, it turned easily and the door swung open noiselessly, without any resistance. Twilight and Belle exchanged a surprised look. “Well,” said Belle, “this is technically a clinic, I suppose it would make sense for it to be open.”

Twilight frowned. “But then why are all the lights out?”

Belle ignored her and took a few steps into the main room, wary of falling cats. "Eris!" she called out loudly. "Eris, it's Captain Belle! I'd like to have a few words with you if you don't mind. Eris! Are you here?"

There was no answer. The only sound was the soft hoofsteps of Twilight entering the building behind her. "Eris!" she yelled again.

“I don’t like this,” said Twilight in a low whisper.

Belle looked around the room. None of the lamps were lit, and the light from the open doorway seemed to cast unusually long shadows around the empty waiting room of the clinic. Something about it felt wrong. There was a heaviness in the room, like the air before a summer storm.

“She should be here,” she whispered back to Twilight. “She runs the clinic alone, and she would have closed things up if she were out.” She turned to Em, who had silently followed them. “Go check the pens around the back of the house, Em. Maybe she’s feeding the animals.”

Em hesitated for a moment, as though unsure if she should leave the two smaller ponies alone, but then nodded and slipped out the front door in her usual quiet way.

Belle and Twilight cautiously made their way through the main waiting area, Twilight’s horn glowing softly, providing just enough light for her to see by, but not enough to overwhelm Belle’s own vision. They searched the office and examination rooms but still found no trace of Eris, or anypony else for that matter. Finally, they found themselves at the foot of the stairs leading up to Eris’ living area. The stairs had walls completely enclosing them, and the top was completely shrouded in darkness, but a darkness seemingly deeper even than the rest of the house, almost as though it were resistant to Twilight’s light.

The darkness yawned like an open maw, and for a moment Belle’s mind flashed to the Chimera’s jaws, dark as death, moments before being lit by its own brand of hellfire. She surreptitiously shook her head, throwing off the fear, hoping that Twilight hadn’t noticed.

After taking a moment to collect herself, Belle determinedly faced the dark stairs. She hesitated before moving up them. Not because she was frightened, she told herself, she simply because she didn’t want to intrude on Eris or pry into her personal life if she wasn’t involved, not without more to go on than a hunch. She turned to Twilight, and was surprised to see the young unicorn staring into the darkness above intently.

“What is it?” Belle whispered.

Twilight shook her head. “There’s… something going on up there. Something strongly magical, but it’s… wrong. It’s not unicorn, or even alicorn magic. It feels older, more primal, less sophisticated. It feels more like…” She went rigid and her next words were in a terrified whisper, so low that Belle could barely hear it. “Like Discord.”

Discord. The name sent shivers down Belle’s spine. The Chimera had been bad enough, but now the physical embodiment of disharmony? This was definitely above her pay-grade. “We need backup, now,” she said definitively.

Twilight shook her head. “There’s no time. Whatever’s happening up there is happening now.” She resolutely began climbing the stairs. Belle hesitated for a brief moment before hurrying as best she could to follow.

Belle caught up with the unicorn at the top of the steps. Twilight’s eyes were closed, her head swaying gently, evidently trying to determine the location of the magical disturbance. The light given off by her horn cast unusual shadows down the hallways that branched from the top of the stairs as her head swung. Finally she made her decision and began to move off down the left hallway and turned to push open the second door, Belle close at her heels.

Belle pulled up short when the entered the room. It was Eris’ bedroom. It was comfortably furnished with several dressers, a vanity, and a large bookcase standing against the walls. Pictures and nick-knacks graced the tops of furniture and several shelves, casting odd shadows from Twilight’s light. A large, classical-style painting, depicting a handsome stallion holding an apple facing a trio of unfamiliar alicorns, hung over the head of a large bed.

Eris lay in the bed on her back, her blanket pulled up almost to her neck, her forehooves lying on top of the covers. At first, she seemed to be peacefully asleep, but then Belle noticed that her breathing was so shallow as to be almost non-existent, and there seemed to be an unusual quality to her stillness. Suspended in the air above her was a large, translucent, apple-shaped gem. It bobbed somewhat, as though floating on unseen waves. It was giving off some kind of aura, bathing the unmoving Eris in an unnatural light.

Belle and Twilight stopped in the middle of the room, staring at the unusual sight for a moment. Then Belle took a step forward. “Eris?” she called, her voice barely more than a whisper.

There was no response from the reposing figure. Belle took a few more steps forward, Twilight close behind her, but she had to stop up short, causing her to put more weight on her injured leg than she would have liked. She winced in pain. Some kind of unseen force blocked her from progressing further. “What the…?”

Twilight took a tentative step forward and, leaning forward, touched the barrier with the tip of her glowing horn. The air itself shimmered briefly for a second, completely closing off the bed and the hovering gemstone.

“It’s some kind of shield,” said Twilight thoughtfully, in a low voice, “but unlike any I’ve ever seen before. It’s not unicorn magic.”

A horrible, hissing laughter suddenly filled the room, echoing oddly off of the magical barrier. For a few heartbeats, Belle couldn’t locate the source, but then she caught a flash of movement from the hallway through the open door. The laughter repeated itself and then, stalking through the open doorway, came the last thing she had ever realistically expected: Miss Fluffles.

The two mares simply stood there staring at the laughing cat for a solid ten seconds. The cat seemed to find this particularly amusing, judging by the expression on its cruel face. It waved a paw and suddenly the lamps in the room were lit.

Twilight recovered her voice first. The glow from her horn winked out. "What are you?" she demanded, her voice firmer and stronger than Belle felt. "What do you want? What have you done to Eris?"

The cat cocked its head to one side, its eerie smile still on its face. "What have I done?" it hissed, a horrible happiness dripping from its voice. "Why, I have freed her of course!"

"What do you mean?" Twilight pressed.

For a moment, Belle wondered why Twilight didn't just blast the smug feline with magic, but she supposed that she must be sizing the creature up. It clearly had some magic, judging by the unnatural shield and the lamps, who knew what else it was capable of. Plus, Twilight might still be weak from magical exhaustion, it was entirely possible that she wasn't confident that she even could do anything as strenuous as fight. Belle gulped, they could be in serious trouble here.

The cat stretched its back leisurely before answering. It then fixed its vertically slit eyes on Twilight again. "I mean I am finally freeing my mother from her two thousand year punishment."

"Your... mother?" Twilight sounded confused now, and curious.

"Yes!" hissed the cat, almost gleefully. "My mother! Eris, Spirit of Chaos! For too long has she been confined to this mortal form, for too long has she been forced to live the life of a... a pony!" It spit out this last word. "Finally, she shall be free to spread her wonderful chaos across Equestria again! She shall awaken my father and bring about a new world!"

Twilight gasped in sudden recognition. "Atë!"

The cat grinned broadly and made a spiraling wave with a forepaw, an acknowledgement, but said nothing. Belle, however, couldn't help herself. She turned to look at Twilight. "Atë?" she asked.

Twilight nodded, never taking her eyes off of the cat. "Atë, the Spirit of Ruin and Folly. Daughter of Chaos and Discord. According to myth, she was never as powerful as her parents, but reveled in their work, assisting in the downfall of ancient heroes and causing mischief wherever she could."

Belle didn't know how to respond to this. She stared back at the cat with its manic grin and mad eyes. "A cat?" she asked finally.

The grin faded from the cat's features. "Bah," it spat, "I have been forced to hide my powers away, lest that accursed nag Celestia sense my presence and bind me as she bound my sires. But soon, my mother shall be free again, and with the sisters' power diffused to other, lesser mortals, nothing will be able to stop her from freeing my father and returning the world it its natural, chaotic state!"

"But why now?" asked Twilight, her brow furrowed. "Why wait this long? With Princess Luna returned, you would face much stiffer resistance. It doesn't make sense unless..." Her eyes went wide. "The Apple! Of course. Your power alone wouldn't be enough to undo the binding, you needed more, and the Apple has a portion of your father's power in it."

The cat cackled, its horrible smile back in place. "That's right!"

"But why here?" asked Twilight, as though she couldn't help herself from asking more questions. "This is an odd place to wait, so close to Canterlot."

Atë smiled broader and stretched again. "Ah, but it was the perfect place. A hub of merchants, a place where I could easily gather information, but just enough out of the way as to be unnoticed by that nag. I have hidden here for generations, in plain sight, watching out for my mother. Her mortal prison is renewed every few decades, and I have worked hard to ensure that she remains innocuous and unimportant. Ponies notice her, but then forget her. None here realize that she has been here since before this wretched town was built. She herself is unaware, her true mind locked away. But now at last, she will be reborn!"

"And the Chimera?" prodded Twilight. "Where does the Chimera come in?"

The cat sat on its haunches, and began licking at a paw. "Ah, the Chimera," it said between licks, "such a brute. I overheard in the tavern one night that the zebras had unearthed an unusual artifact, an apple-shaped crystal gem. That made me pause, if it was his apple, then it could be what I had been waiting for all these long centuries. I kept my ear out carefully, and discovered that it was to be shipped to Canterlot for study. I knew then that this was my chance. The Apple of Discord was perfect. It would have enough power to unravel the bindings and free Eris. I waited patiently until I heard when it was scheduled to be shipped here. The Zebra lands are far away and I knew that I would have time. I arranged to have Cerberus set loose from his post, and escaped with the Chimera in stasis. I myself placed a magical decoy in its place so that it would not be missed for a while, long enough for my plan to be completed. I arranged for the Chimera to be shipped here."

"How?" interjected Twilight, as though unable to stop herself. " And why? If you had the power to free Cerberus, to steal the Chimera, and even to fool me when I checked the roster of Tartarus, then why all the secrecy? Why not simply take the Apple yourself when it came here?"

The cat lifted the paw it had been licking and wiggled it. "Magic," it answered almost gleefully. "But I had to be subtle. Such workings were small enough, and I used various agents to accomplish my tasks. I yet have connections throughout Equestria. As for stealing it myself, I knew that it would be under heavy guard, it was doubtful that I could acquire it without drawing unwanted attention to myself. Besides, I knew the Chimera would cause considerable chaos in this town, and that is all the more conducive to my goal."

"How did you free the Chimera?" Twilight was in full academic mode it seemed. "Undoing such a binding should have been impossible without considerable magic."

"Ah, yes," the cat chortled, "that was actually much easier than I ever could have hoped for. The Chimera is a creature of such rage, such anger, that it took very little on my part. There is such resentment and ill will in this dying town that I had but to sneak into the warehouse at night and cause a spark. After its initial outburst, which even I thought was tad extreme, I was able to communicate with it and lead it down into the tunnels. I struck a bargain. I would help it get its vengeance against Celestia and her precious ponies if it would but retrieve the Apple for me. Bah, its incompetence nearly cost me. It allowed one of the smuggling crew to see it and escape. If word got out, I knew Celestia would at once recognize its work and come to stop it. All of my plans would be ruined. Keeping a monster of such power and rage in check was taxing, but I must admit, seeing the chaos it caused was quite satisfying."

All this time, Belle's mind had sluggishly been trying to keep up. She felt so tired, all of the week was catching up with her, and her leg was aching. This all seemed ridiculous, farfetched, as though a dream. She was standing here, next to one of the most powerful magic users she had ever heard of, chatting with a demon-spawn cat while the cat's comatose owner, a pony who Belle had known her entire life, was apparently really a prison for an ancient embodiment of chaos. It was all too much, after the horrors of the last few days, especially that day, her mind rebelled and basically shut down.

But her Guard Instinct didn't. Perhaps reinvigorated by the mention of a spark, doubtless the presence of those two poor fillies in the warehouse, it kicked in and focused on facts. The cat was talking to them. In fact, it was being surprisingly chatty. Why? Could it be that it simply didn't consider either of them a threat? If so, then why confront them? And if it did consider them a threat, why not attack them and kill them immediately, why waste time with the banter and explanations? Unless...

Belle's eyes widened slightly behind her tinted glasses.

Unless they were a threat, and the cat, Atë, didn't have enough power to overcome them. It had said that it had limited its powers so as to avoid detection, but what if its powers were still limited, not necessarily of its own volition? What if it wasn't bantering, but stalling? Whatever was happening to Eris clearly hadn't finished yet. What if it was waiting for the process to be complete? Then they would be facing a fully liberated Spirit of Chaos. This creature was trying to keep them occupied, and it was working. Despite everything else, Twilight had become enamored with curiosity and the opportunity to get answers, while Belle was too exhausted and overwhelmed to react.

That needed to stop. They needed to act. Now.

But what could she do? She was just a tired, injured earth pony, what could she do against a being of such magic?

Her mind went back to two small, still forms lying among a charred ruin; to two families, full of anguish, which would never be the same again. She felt a familiar anger boil up inside of her. Her reason failed, but her instincts kicked in: she charged. With her injured leg it wasn’t a very impressive charge, more of a fast hobble. But considering she was only a few strides from the laughing demon-cat, it was enough.

The move seemed to have caught everyone by surprise, Belle included. Despite her handicap, she had crossed the distance between herself and the demon cat in just a few heartbeats. She pivoted and bucked hard with her good leg. Atë’s eyes were wide in shock; she apparently had not anticipated a straight-forward attack and had hesitated for too long. Belle's hoof made contact with the demon-cat's face with a crack that was oddly satisfying.

The cat went flying, slamming against the hallway wall across from the room. Whatever else it may have been, it was still physically in the shape of a cat, and not an overly heavy one at that. The form crumpled to the floor. Belle hobbled forward and pressed a forehoof down against the cat's back, holding it to the floor and pinning it in place. She turned her head sharply to look over her shoulder at Twilight. "Twilight!" she barked. "The Apple!"

Twilight roused herself with a shake, took a moment to register what Belle had said. When she did, she nodded sharply and turned back to the shield. Her horn shone brightly and with a bright flash the shield collapsed, leaving her path to the Apple unimpeded. She moved in to study it. Belle watched her for a few seconds but her attention was drawn down to the floor at her hooves as she felt the cat stirring beneath her hoof. She looked down and her eyes met the harsh, vertically-slit pupils of the demon. Atë snarled and squirmed beneath Belle's hoof, trying to get away.

"Remove yourself, cow!" it snarled.

Belle snorted and pushed harder against the struggling form.

The cat squirmed and tried to swipe at Belle's hoof, but couldn't turn enough to get at her. "Stay still, Miss Fluffles, and stop squirming," Belle ordered, putting as much authority in her voice as she could. "You're under arrest. I advise you to cease resisting and not make things worse for yourself."

The cat raged against her hoof, hissing and spitting. Belle turned her attention to Twilight, who was now leaning her head forward with her eyes closed, the tip of her horn a few inches from the hovering fruit. The aura surrounding her horn seemed to meet the aura surrounding the apple and the two merged, forming a link between the unicorn and the floating fruit. The air seemed to get heavy and thick, as though in anticipation.

Suddenly, there was a flash of light and a smell of ozone. Twilight stumbled backwards, a puff of smoke rising from the tip of her horn. The aura around the apple vanished and it fell, bouncing off the prone figure of Eris and onto the floor.

“Twilight!” Belle cried out, but she resolutely remained in place, her hoof pressing against the struggling form of the cat.
But the very next moment, she was struck in the gut by some kind of blow. Her barding absorbed the worst of it, but she was lifted off her hooves and thrown back into the room again, landing with an “Oof” of expelled breath. There was muffled crunch and a fresh wave of pain shot up her hind-leg.

When she looked up, her head spinning, she saw the cat rise up, now standing on its hind legs, its eyes glowing. It stepped into the open doorway and stared at Belle. The foul voice came from it again. “You meddlesome horse! You have interfered for the last time!”

Belle shook her head dazedly, the pain nearly overwhelming her, but managed to say groggily, “Miss Fluffles, this is your final warning. Surrender.”

The demon cat snarled and began to change. Still on its hind legs, it began to grow larger. Horns, one pronged like a stag’s, one curly like a ram’s, began to sprout from behind its ears. Its fangs began to length and slip over its lower lip. One of its hind legs began to shiver awkwardly and change, the fur receding and small overlapping scales replacing them. Within a few seconds it was already twice its original size.

“I will crush you, and your little friend too!” Atë snarled. “And once I have released my mother, she and I will bring this sickeningly orderly nation to its knees. You won’t live to see the darkness we will wrought! The time for secrecy is over!”

It threw back its misshapen head back to laugh once more.

Which is why it saw, just too late to avoid, the massive, heavily armored hoof of Sergeant Emerald Grass slam down right against its face. There was a short burst of sickening crunches and the half transformed creature collapsed, its spine folding over upon itself. Its laughter cut off abruptly.

With a grim look on her normally kind face, Em lowered her forehoof to the floor. In her usual, quiet, and overall gentle way, she had come looking for Twilight and Belle, creeping up the stairs and had moved behind Atë, completely unnoticed.

She looked at Belle. “Are you alright, Captain?” she asked in her usual whisper. Nothing about her expression or manner belied any kind of nervousness or fear.

Belle stared at her Sergeant, barely able to focus on her with the pain starting to overpower her mental functions. “I’ve… been better.”

Em carefully stepped around the collapsed form of Atë and walked quietly up, bending down to examine Belle’s injured leg. “I think this may be broken, Belle.”

Twilight carefully levitated the Apple and put it in her saddlebag. She then moved over to examine the collapsed form in the doorway. After a moment, her horn glowed again and a nimbus of energy surrounded the mangled figure.

Belle winced as Em began to repair the splint around her leg, which had cracked in the fall, mimicking Belle’s own leg bone. She grimaced but said, “What are you doing, Twilight?”

Twilight didn’t take her eyes off of the amalgam cat. “Just taking precautions. Atë, like her parents, isn’t just some evil creature, she’s a literal force of nature. Damaging or destroying her physical form won’t stop her forever, she’ll recover. I don’t think she’s quite powerful enough to reform quickly, but just to be sure, I’m going to try to keep her unconscious and block her from her power.”

Belle stared at her, disbelieving. “You can DO that?” Her question turned into a grunt as a fresh wave of pain coursed through her.

Twilight shrugged. “Honestly, I’m not sure. I never could have if she were conscious and aware, she’d be able to fight me off, but now…” She trailed off. “Like I said, a precaution.”

Belle nodded, but winced again with a sharp intake of breath as Em tightened the last bandage. “Thanks, Em.”

Em nodded. She seemed surprisingly calm about everything, composed. But Belle noticed that she shifted a little, as though unwilling to put weight on her bloodied forehoof, and she pointedly refused to look in the direction of the doorway.

Belle reached out a forehoof and placed it as high on Em’s other foreleg as she could (which, since she was still lying down, was barely higher than her knee). “Thank you, Em. You saved us, and you stopped the one responsible for all of this… mess. What you did was necessary.”

Em didn’t say anything, but Belle could see gratitude in her eyes. Belle smiled. “Now, Sergeant Emerald, kindly go inform Captain Sunspot that we have found his missing gemstone and apprehended the party responsible. And kindly request that he send some guards to secure both.”

Em smiled at that before slipping back into her guard role. She saluted, which seemed doubly ridiculous to Belle from her position on the floor, and she carefully left.

Belle laid her head back down onto the bare floor with a sigh. She felt a tension that had been growing for days slowly start to drain away replaced by a deep exhaustion like nothing she had ever felt before. She sighed deeply again and closed her eyes. This time she didn’t fight it, but allowed the darkness to overtake her.

***********************************************************

Belle opened her eyes, jerking slightly as she woke. Her dreams had been filled with fire and blood and the screams of the fallen. Luckily, it was already fading. She immediately screwed her eyes shut against the harsh light of the room she was in. She was lying in a bed, too thin and narrow to be her own. That, plus the muffled sound of voices and general bustling she heard, made her guess that she was in a hospital.

There was a soft sparkling hum of magic and she felt something settle onto her snout. Cautiously she opened her eyes; her darkened glasses rested comfortably in place on her snout, greatly reducing the glare of the light.

She looked around the hospital room and immediately spotted Lemon sitting next to her bed. His large face brightened with a huge smile when he saw her looking at him.

“Hey there,” he said softly.

She smiled, feeling much of her unease and anxiety, built up over the last few days, drain away. “Hey.”

She was surprised by how weak her own voice sounded. She stirred, trying to sit up more, but Lemon gently but irresistibly held her down.

“Don’t move, love,” he said softly. “You’ve been through a lot and even if you can’t feel it, you’re in for a lot of pain and problems if you move around too much.”

He nodded towards the foot of Belle’s bed. Belle looked down and saw that her injured rear leg was wrapped in a large cast and was raised above the bed with straps. This surprised her because she hadn’t felt it. Then, with a sudden panic, she realized that she couldn’t feel her other hind leg either.

Lemon must have noticed her realization because he quickly shifted the hoof that had been holding her down up to her head and he started stroking her mane soothingly.

“It’s alright,” he said in a calming voice, “the doctor cast a pretty powerful anesthesia spell on you. She warned me that when you woke up you might not be able to feel your hindquarters, but that it would wear off eventually.”

Belle forced herself to calm down, nodding at this new information. She swallowed before find her voice. “How bad is it?”

A dark and fearful expression passed over Lemon’s amiable face briefly. “Bad. It turns out you had pretty badly fractured your leg at the start, but then there were complications caused by the second… trauma.” He almost choked on the word. “It was bad, Belle. Dr. Crystal said you might never recover the full use of it.”

Belle took this news as stoically as she could. She stared straight ahead, not really seeing anything, quietly thankful for her husband’s continued mane stroking. She tried to think, to focus. Now what, if she couldn’t walk properly? There was no way she could perform her duties as Captain of the City Guard. What would become of her?

She didn’t know how long she sat there, staring at nothing, but soon she shook her head forcefully. This was foolish, she refused to feel sorry for herself. Her future wasn’t set in stone, and there was no way she would give up before she had even begun to fight. ‘Might’ was a nebulous word, and she could overcome this.

But that was a battle for another day. She turned as best she could, focusing on her husband. He was looking at her, patiently, steadfastly. He had always been her rock and her support. She smiled and leaned forward to kiss him. He studied her expression (he had always had an uncanny knack for that, even with her tinted glasses) and smiled back. The tension that had grown while she had processed the news quickly drained away from him.

Belle settled back against her pillows. “How long have I been out?”

“About two days, well, three nights and two days,” said Lemon. “It's the morning now. You were in bad shape when they brought you in. They had to do surgery on your leg, so the doctor put you under. Honestly, it got a little hard to follow everything she said, I’ll just let her explain it herself when she comes back in.”

Belle took a moment to process this. Two whole days. That seemed impossible. There was so much that had yet to be done. She had to get out of the hospital, she needed to see the investigation through to the end.

With his usual uncanny ability to read her, Lemon said, “Don’t worry, Oak and Em have been handling things. They’ve stopped by a few times to check up on you and they filled me in. You can relax, Belle. It’s over.”

***********************************************************

Of course, it wasn’t really over, not yet.

The rest of the day passed slowly, and yet at the same time it felt unreal, like a dream. Lemon, and later on Em when she stopped by to visit, filled Belle in on what she had missed. Apparently five strange ponies had arrived the day after the Chimera’s attack, friends of Twilight Sparkle. The six of them together had performed some kind of flashy magic that had somehow transformed the bodies of the Chimera and Atë. When all was said and done, the Chimera had been turned into a stone statue and Atë had become a wooden statue of a regular-sized cat.

Oak, serving as acting captain while Belle was laid up, had worked through the majority of paperwork and the two statues had been officially signed over to Captain Sunspot to be returned to Tartarus. Eris, who had been brought to the hospital at the same time as Belle, had still not woken up and was being transferred to a Canterlot hospital. The golden Apple of Discord had been collected by some of the Royal Guards and already been hurried off to Canterlot. Things in Dock were slowly returning to normal.

Belle had several visitors during the day, including a brief one from Twilight and her friends, who seemed to be a rather merry bunch. They couldn’t stay long, but it was a happy visit and greatly improved Belle’s spirits.

Later in the day, Dr. Crystal came to check in on her. She explained as best she could what had happened to her leg, but Belle was never quite able to comprehend it properly. The gist of it, however, was that it had been a bad break. As Lemon had said, it was likely, if not certain, that she would never recover the full use of it, although with some rehabilitation she should be able to get around serviceably. The doctor examined it while she was there and informed Belle that, barring any complications during the night, she should be able to leave the next day, although she would be confined to a wheelchair for the foreseeable future.

True to the doctor's word, Belle was released early the following morning. Even though she had to remain in a wheelchair for the time being, she felt significantly better to be out and about again.

That afternoon, Lemon brought her to Soil’s Funeral Home and Taco Hut. While Lemon was ordering, a familiar unicorn approached Belle’s table.

Belle looked up. “Hello, Twilight.”

Twilight smiled at her. “Hello, Belle. I’m glad I found you. I went to the hospital, but they said you had been discharged. I was hoping to see you before I left.”

“So you’re leaving soon? Do you have time for one more burrito?” Belle nodded to a vacant chair at her table.

Twilight shook her head. “I’m afraid not, My friends and I are leaving right away actually, they're waiting for me now, but I didn’t want to leave without saying good bye.”

Belle smiled and unthinkingly made to move over to shake her hoof, but was stymied by her wheelchair. She grinned sheepishly at Twilight, a little embarrassed. Twilight moved around the table and hugged her. Belle was surprised, but not unhappy at the affectionate gesture, and returned the hug gladly.

“Thank you, Twilight,” said Belle. “I couldn’t have done any of this without you. You saved a lot of lives here, including my own, several times. Princess Celestia should be proud of you.”

Twilight blushed slightly but looked pleased at the praise. “I have a feeling you would have found a way on your own. I wouldn’t bet against you, not even with a Chimera and minor Spirit of Folly thrown into the mix.”

Belle grunted skeptically but didn’t feel like making the effort to argue, but instead decided to change the subject. “What will happen to Eris?”

Twilight shrugged. “Honestly, I’m not sure. I suspect it will depend on how she is when she wakes up. In Canterlot, she’ll be supervised, and Princess Celestia herself will be nearby should things go wrong. With any luck, she won’t remember any of it and still be her own self.”

“But… she’s not even really a pony, is she? She’s just a vessel.”

Twilight shook her head. “No, I think she is a pony. I think that even if Atë was right and not just crazy, the Spirit of Chaos has been buried so deeply that she’ll never be able to reemerge. She’s still the pony you’ve known, Belle. With any luck, she always will be.”

Belle nodded slowly, not fully reassured. “And the cat?”

“Atë and the Chimera,” Twilight shuddered at the name, “have been sealed into their own prisons by the Elements of Harmony, and they are going to be locked back into Tartarus. This time there won’t be any more escapes.” She trailed off into silence, looking thoughtfully at nothing in particular.

“Twilight?” Belle prodded after minute’s silence. After no response, she said again, “Twilight? Are you alright?”

Twilight roused. “Hmm? Oh, sorry. I was just wondering, if I missed the Chimera’s absence when I checked Tartarus, what if something else got out too? Something else I missed.”

Belle shrugged. “Well, if anything else did escape, I wouldn’t want to be them once you found out. I’m sure you can manage anything. I have a feeling you’ve got some big things in your future.”

Twilight smiled, blushing slightly again. “Thank you, Belle, you’re a good friend. Get well soon, Dock needs you.” She extended a forehoof.

Belle managed to reach out far enough to bump forehooves. “Take care of yourself, Twilight. I’ll see you around, I’m sure.”

With one last smile, Twilight turned and walked away, quickly disappearing behind a corner. Belle watched her go but then noticed Lemon walking back to their table, tray of burritos floating beside him. Beyond him, she saw Soil at his counter, waving enthusiastically at her. Lemon smiled at her, sliding the tray onto the table.

Belle glanced down at her wheelchair, a renewed sense of purpose and resolve filling her. Nothing was set in stone, she reminded herself. She could come back from this. She could and she would, no matter how long it would take.

This was her town, and she would be there for it. Some may say Dock was dying, but as long as she was alive, it wasn’t dead yet.

THE END

Author's Note:

And so it ends.

After nearly three years, I've finally managed to bring this story to what I hope is a satisfactory conclusion. This last chapter may have been the hardest of them all to write. While I had had the framework and the basic elements in place since the beginning (having Atë be the one behind the Chimera's attacks, as well as the confrontation in general), the specifics of it took forever to get right. In the end, I'm happy with it overall, and I hope you all are too. I considered writing an epilogue, and I may still have an informal one posted on my blog, but I was happy with the idea of leaving it somewhat nebulous as to what happens to everypony afterwards.

A great thanks to all of you who have waited so patiently for me to finish this story. It ended up being much longer and much more intricate that I planned, but I have to say, it's been a pleasure to write. A special thank you to those who have encouraged me and supported me through this. I hope the finished product lives up to the expectations.

As always, MLP and its characters are © Hasbro and Lauren Faust respectively.

All OCs, however, are purely mine, or their respective owners.

Any and all feedback/comments are greatly appreciated.

Comments ( 17 )

Wow. This story has been going so long it's surreal to see it finally end. Still it was a satisfying conclusion. Great tale, dude. Good on you :)

A satisfying conclusion to an excellent mystery. It’s a travesty that this story doesn’t get more love: it’s damn near perfect.

I'm really glad you finished this story. It's definitely one of the better stories on the site.

And a satisfying conclusion was had by all. ^.^

This was a great story, thanks for finishing it.

Look at it this way. If it hadn't taken so long, you wouldn't have had that reference to Tirek sneaking out.

Whatever was happening to Eris clearly had finished yet.

You accidentally a not.

All in all, this was quite enjoyable, if rough around the edges. Portions of the narrative, particularly descriptions of characters or places, repeated themselves over the course of the story. It made those portions a bit of a slog to get through. Other than that, though, I enjoyed the world-building, and I thought you did a pretty good job with the OCs.

if I missed the Chimera’s absence when I checked Tartarus, what if something else got out too?

Totally not sequel bait. Nope.

I squealed with delight when I saw that this had updated! It's been a while since the last update, so I had to go and read the last chapter over again, and stop a few times to remember the characters and such, but this is a wholly satisfying ending to the story. Well done! I love the reference to Tirek at the end. Which you wouldn't have gotten to do if you had finished this much sooner. Haha I can just imagine Belle hearing that Twilight stopped Tirek and being like "I told her so!"

All in all I'm glad I read it and this remains one of my favorite stories on here. I don't comment on stories often, like, ever really, but I had to on this one :). One last thing, in the episode of MLP where the Chimera pops up when Apple Bloom is delivering pies the first thing I thought of was this story and I was like, "OMG 0_0 They really do exist in Equestria!!"

Great story! A good, solid plot, and well-realized characters. Very enjoyable. :pinkiehappy:

Thank you all so much for your feedback! :twilightsmile:
I'm glad this story has received so much positive attention, and I'm glad you all enjoyed it :pinkiesmile:

5915622

Thanks, fixed.
Glad you enjoyed it. I will admit that I might have been a bit repetitive at times. Partly that's just a part of my writing style, but at times I intentionally did it for emphasis. I noticed that a lot of time when I read I miss small small details that turn out to be important later, so when they come up I feel like "wait, what? where did that come from?" So I wanted to avoid that. Possibly I overdid it *shrug*

5949095

Thanks, fixed those issues. And not at all, I always appreciate it when I can improve my writing. Nitpick all you want : )
Unfortunately you're right, around this time my editor wasn't as available as he had been up to that point, and for the rest of the story it was basically just me, so I'm afraid there might be a few more small errors. I hope they aren't overly large errors that make it less enjoyable.

5949199
Nah, any other errors were pretty tolerable :twilightsmile: This was a really great story and quite well written, especially when you didn't really have anyone to look over the later sections! I really enjoyed reading this. It was a ton of fun!

Okay... to be honest... Great ending.. not QUITE as awesome as the clash with the Chimera, but still damn good. Just all around, a really great story but.... full review to come soon for details.

Short version.... simply amazing.

Okay, it took a little longer then I expected but
have a review

Hope you like it, and once again thanks for making such a great story.

That certainly was a satisfying end.

You know you have enjoyed a story when you get a twinge of sadness when you see the "COMPLETE" sticker on it.
:applecry:

Thanks for an interesting 2 ½ year journey!

Still another story that makes up for no longer making those forays to Barnes & Nobel!

I wonder if the 24th monster was Tirac, and the 2nd one that got turned back was Scorpan? He was turned back into a human prince in the original debut of the cartoon franchise.

Apple of Discord(actually I got a bit past that before I had this idea).
Or maybe the 24th got away and was Eris...

(Stuff about love)
...wait, no the timing is wrong. He didn't create her, she probably pre-existed all of the 24.

came the last thing she had ever realistically expected
Actually I vaguely suspected that might be the case, and the shallow breathing was another clue.

She herself is unaware, her true mind locked away.
Ah, but she is RANDOM, and she might decide that she is tired of being Evil and will experiment around with Goodness for a bit even once free? Also, this is where I realized how certain throats had been slit.

(Stalling)
Perhaps the one stalling qualified as the 24th? It is certainly slippery enough to have evaded capture until last... probably not though since it was "created" by Discord in a much different way probably.

What would become of her?
Uh... retirement with triple her previous salary for the rest of her life? Various fanon could be created for why the Bearers don't each have a bag of bits equal to their combined mass waiting for them after each time they save the world, but in this case I think it would be justified... either that or Celestia busts out some magic that takes her multiple days to cast but heals her fully.

‘Might’ was a nebulous word, and she could overcome this.
...or, ya'know... that.

Great story! I’ll have to check your list and see if she reapers in any other stories

This chapter was disappointing.
I loved Monsters as a whole, but Atë's exposition dump was a slap to the face for an otherwise perfectly paced ponyfic.

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