Chapter 60 - An Interesting Week
While it had been fun getting together with my other selves on the weekend, Monday saw me back to work as usual with Trixie and I holding the morning session of Day Court. Twilight had also gotten up early so she could wait for her husband to arrive from his hive. I had a feeling she was eager to tell him about some of the things she had learned that weekend. After a pretty standard session and then a break for lunch, I went to my scheduled training with Crimson Boulder. That afternoon was brutal. Crimson had obtained the services of a lightning wrangler named Blue Arc from the Cloudsdale Weather Factory a few weeks ago and they had been working on techniques that took advantage of my ability to handle lightning. I remembered Twilight talking about having him calibrate the lightning system in her wind tunnel, but the subsequent lessons with him had never materialized due to his and my schedules never lining up. Now with my secret out and my self-defense a national priority, arrangements had been made for his time.
Blue Arc had obtained permission from the Canterlot Weather Service to bring in a small storm cloud to utilize for generating the massive electrical bolts. Of course, we couldn’t use the usual training grounds for this purpose and, instead, located ourselves on the plateau from where I was first pushed off in an attempt to teach me to fly. I had almost accidentally set off some lightning then when I crashed into a cloud and it was obvious why in hindsight. But just because I had a talent for generating it didn’t mean that I was good at controlling it yet. Between Crimson and Blue, they worked out a way to challenge me to bolster my defenses and work on some new attacks. After my alter-ego became publicly known, I had smirked and switched to Marklestia form for the next training session, handling it all with ease. I made the mistake of feeling a bit too full of myself and bragged a little. Blue Arc’s only response was to give Crimson a knowing glance and nod.
“Good,” Blue said, “Now we can finally go up to the next level.”
Me and my big mouth. If I thought I had worked hard before, my instructors cured me of that delusion. But I was learning. The pegasus showed me how to better harness the power being thrown at me, and my special ability allowed me to store the electricity in my cells and then release it at will. My aim was rough but that still managed to impress Blue. Usually, the lightning wranglers used the power to charge the weather factories systems and let it go in a controlled fashion into massive batteries. Then again, none of them was a pegacorn with my additional capabilities. Nevertheless, I was exhausted by the time I dragged myself back to the royal suite to freshen up before dinner. Trixie was already there and joined me in the shower to help me clean up. We took a long time cleaning up.
Tuesday was our regularly scheduled all-day session with the nobles and ministry. All three triarchs worked that day on national business. The Treasury was happy to report that we were already seeing the benefits flowing in from the new financial arrangements with the dragons. The First Draconian Bank’s extensive investments into new businesses increased tax revenues and the economy was picking up. Various heads of industries were brought in to further discuss how best to take advantage of this. It was the unglamorous and tiring side of being the co-ruler of a nation but it had its occasional bright moments. Twilight proposed a new festival that would capitalize on all the new alliances we’d been making with the various races. It would also attract special event vendors and entertainers, therefore not just being good for the population’s morale but also for the Canterlot economy. The resolution was passed and the Festival of Friendship was officially a go. Of course, it would take a few months to organize but an appropriate firm date was set. Twilight was confident that she could put it together in that time… with a little bit of help from her friends, naturally.
Wednesday morning, I was delayed getting back from yet another ribbon-cutting ceremony. A sinkhole opened up in the middle of the main thoroughfare for that part of the city. Thanks to heightened security rules, I had to “shelter in place” until the Royal Guard had determined it was safe to continue. I pointed out that I could have flown back to the castle but that was shot down. My guardsponies didn’t like the idea of me traveling between Point A and Point B with any of my possible routes restricted. Once it was determined that a faulty sewer line was the cause, I was allowed to return, though a full hour and a half late.
Hastening back to the interior of the castle, I turned off a side passage towards the conference room where I was supposed to be a long time ago. I stopped when I heard my wife’s voice behind me. Turning my head, I saw Trixie walking down the hallway with a very large bipedal creature that was unfamiliar to me.
I said “Trixie?” to get her attention. She and the ambassador to the Storm King’s Realm turned around as I trotted up to them.
The blue mare said, “Ah! There you are, Patriarch Hotels. The Venerable Kreesach and Trixie just finished a very enjoyable talk.”
The yeti’s form was covered in layers of beautifully patterned silks and he pressed his hands together in front of his chest, possibly in a form of greeting. I didn’t feel any pang of regret this time. It seemed my psyche was no longer bothered by the loss of those appendages.
If the color of his beard was any indication, the ambassador was rather old. I had heard that yetis were quite trim, but the Ambassador’s bulk was nearly the width of his impressive horn-spread. He smiled in a way that emphasized his fangs. If the ambassador had been a human, the expression would be considered condescending. However, this was the first yeti I had met and I couldn’t pretend to know how to read his non-verbal cues. That made me wish one of the Royal Guards present had been a red changeling. I would have to fix that for future meetings.
The ambassador said, “Ah, Prince Mark Wells. A thousand greetings I to you extend from the Storm King. May your empire never know a final sunset and prosperness come from every victory, small and large.”
Not exactly perfect at our language, but I certainly wasn’t going to correct him. It’s not as if I knew even one word of his tongue. I bowed fractionally. “I apologize for the delay, ambassador. Sometimes I feel my security controls me rather than the other way around.”
The old yeti’s head leaned back and he laughed freely. He then said, “Oh, this is problem same, everywhere, I think. Much like twenty protective swans a single chick guarding. Yes, I know this problem well.”
He was probably talking about his travels in the Storm King’s empire because he had no guards with him here… or perhaps about the Storm King’s personal security.
I said, “I am ready to sit down with you now if you would like.”
My wife said, “Never mind that, Honey. Trixie has already taken care of the diplomatic niceties. You may get to know Dear Kreesach over lunch.” With a toss of her tail, she started down the corridor. I fought my urge to roll my eyes as I trotted up beside my wife. Again with the sweetie-pie affectations.
The blue mare smiled. “Since we had so long to wait, Trixie had the chance to tell our honored guest about Trixie’s plans for the Friendship Festival.”
Wait, she did? Despite it being her pet project, Twilight had not hesitated to enlist both my help and Trixie’s for organizing the festival. I was the stallion in charge of security and coordinating with all of the Canterlot vendors and tradesponies. Trixie was in charge of entertainment and Twilight had her hooves full with everything else.
“Oh? Pray tell.”
Trixie’s smile answered my question before her words did. “Sadly, you missed that chance, Embark Smells. I’m afraid it will have to remain our secret.” She looked up at the yeti and they shared a conspiratorial chuckle. She looked back to me. “I have invited the ambassador to the Festival, in the name of Friendship.”
Glancing back, I saw that same smile as before. “Ah, yes. This one hopes he can be there. For the name of Friendship, of course.”
On Thursday, Trixie and I had lunch in the Canterlot Castle dining room with two very excited expectant parents… well, Twilight was so energized that she bounced in her seat while Thorax sat there with a supportive smile for his wife. The purple mare was definitely excited enough for both of them.
“… and I thought ‘wouldn’t it be great to have the exact same room in the hive for our foal and also in my palace?’ The hive workers I have living in both places could easily make that happen! I mean, that way, the little cherub would be in a familiar, comforting location no matter what! What do you think?”
Trixie said, “I—” only to be cut off by Twilight.
“Except 54% of the articles and 34% of the books I read on foal-rearing recommend lots of variety to encourage active brain development; which makes sense when you think about it, though the quality of the research data is admittedly poor in the newer articles and laughably biased in the earliest books, skewing the results to the point they are pretty much just guesstimations.”
Thorax’s smile was starting to look strained. My wife tried again. “You could—”
No use. “And don’t get me started on what décor to choose. And did you know how widely disparate foals’ toys are just among the tribes? Not to mention between species. And hubby and I have decided to be surprised by the sex and makeup of the foal. No high-tech scans to give us any clues beyond the health of our Little Sprouting Legacy.” She giggled at her cute pet name.
Despite the brief pause, Trixie once again failed to get in a word edgewise.
“Thorax and I are considering having a permanent portal set up between the Crystal Hive and Friendship Castle. Though that’s a bit of a misnomer. Because the daggerscale portals only last a couple of hours, and mirror portals can only go between realms, the gender-swapped Twilight agreed to wall off a small closet for me which would house two portals facing each other. Portal… step… portal and we’re there! Although I have to run tests to make sure there are no molecular side effects from multiple portal transitions in quick succession. But it’s all for the foal so it’s worth the time and effort, right?”
I could hear the strain in my wife’s voice and saw her ears twitch. “That’s—”
Twilight wasn’t paying attention. Instead, she had lifted her hooves skywards while looking up. “And don’t even get me started on education! No matter what, Miss Cheerilee will need help teaching our foal.” She leaned her head to the side. “There’s all the Equestrian princess stuuuuuff…” Leaned it the other way. “…and all the changeling princess stuuuuuff…” Back to the middle. “…and everything about nature that Zecora has offered to teach our little one. I can only imagine you are going through the same.”
Trixie said, “Act—”
“Fortunately, we have Rarity poised on a moment’s notice to provide a wardrobe in no-time flat! I don’t know what I’d do if everything wasn’t perfect for our little foal…”
This was going to be a very long lunch. I leaned back in my chair and sighed heavily, only to hear the exact same sound directly across from me. I looked up to see a resigned look on Thorax’s face that doubtless matched my own. He, likewise, had slumped back in his chair at exactly the same time I had.
Both of us burst out laughing, almost drowning out Twilight, who only shot a couple of quick glances our way. She leaned forward with wide eyes, looking desperate to keep Trixie’s attention. “… from the Crystal Empire to remind him of his heritage, and crystal is the perfect material for a crib. That’s because…”
Friday afternoon, Cadance and Shining paid us a visit with Sunburst looking after Flurry Heart and the changeling nanny whom we learned was named Brachia keeping her eye on Shiny Button. The ponyling was evidently excited to be visiting Canterlot and he was proving to be a handful. Or should that be a hoofful?
“How’s your new son been behaving?” I asked his parents when Twilight and Trixie were amusing themselves with the foals elsewhere while we sat down for tea.
“I have never known such a curious child,” Cadance said with a smile.
“I should know,” groaned Shining Armor. “I’ve had to dig him out of all kinds of places. If it wasn’t for Brachia, I’m not sure I would have even found him a couple of times.”
I chuckled. “Besides that, how are you both coping with a changeling foal?”
Interestingly, Cadance was quiet but looked toward her husband. Shining paused for a long moment, mixed emotions flickering through his expressions before he replied, “I was quite prepared to hate him. It’s bad enough that his mother is Chrysalis, but he’s also the result of her raping me. I have every reason for not wanting him around but… he’s just so darn… nice! I mean, I was sure I was going to think of nothing but how Chrysalis used me to make him every time I looked at him, but then he just smiles happily at me and tells me how much fun he’s having, and I find it impossible to be mad at him.”
Cadance gave him a poke with a hoof. “Tell him!”
The stallion rolled his eyes. “Cady – they don’t have to know every little thing.”
“It isn’t little. Tell him!”
Shining sighed. “Alright. I had just found Button after he escaped Brachia once again. I discovered him playing with Flurry under Sunburst’s watchful eyes. Sunburst informed me that Flurry had been a bit difficult that morning, but once Button arrived, she settled down and they had been playing peacefully ever since. I went over to Button and asked him why he was here instead of with his nanny. He told me that he felt that Flurry needed him. That surprised me but I said, ‘I want you to listen to Sunburst and play nicely with your sister.’ He gave me that adorable smile of his and replied, ‘Okay, daddy. Love you!’ Then he hugged me before returning to play with Flurry. I then left to tell Brachia where Button was.”
Cadance smirked and said, “What my tough as nails hubby hasn’t said is that he lost his heart to Button then.”
Shining blushed. “He’s my son and I have accepted that. Why shouldn’t I care about him?”
“Then you shouldn’t have problems that any other couple with two young foals would have,” I said.
“It’s not that simple, Mark!”
“Oh? What am I missing?”
“He’s the eldest!”
“So?”
“It means that by royal right of succession, Button is heir to the Crystal Empire’s throne.”
“I hope it’s called the Crystal Principality by that time,” I commented.
Shining stared at me for a moment before face-hoofing. “You don’t get it! How will the citizens react to the fact that a changeling may be their future ruler?”
“Given the fact that it’s extremely unlikely to happen for a very long time, especially considering Cadance’s potential longevity, I think they’ll have time to get used to the idea.”
“Are you serious? A changeling ruling a pony kingdom?”
I shrugged. “Why not? Your sister is now a Hive Mother.”
“It’s not the same though!”
“I concede that the role is far different, but no less a huge change to the status quo. In fact, I reckon that Thorax’s hive is going through a much greater upheaval than the Crystal Empire.”
“You seem awfully confident that the crystal ponies will accept Button.”
“Prince Button,” I corrected. “It’s not as if you don’t have an excellent example to go by. You’ve met Chryssy. Not only is she an honored and respected co-ruler of the Crystal Empire, but her offspring are also recognized as heirs to the throne. Why should Button’s situation be any different?”
Shining sighed. “When you put it like that, I suppose I’m overreacting.”
“Give it some time, my friend. It’s not as if I adjusted quickly to my rude introduction to Equestria. Now I am married and expecting a foal and it’s awesome. Life has thrown some pretty crazy things at both of us but we’ve learned to cope and found out that things weren’t so bad.”
The stallion chuckled. “Yeah, I guess you’re right.”
Cadance said, “At last! Nothing I said seemed to get through to you.”
“Sorry, Cadance,” I said. “Sometimes a guy just needs to talk to another guy about these things. Don’t worry – I still think you’re a great therapist.”
The pink alicorn giggled. “It’s not as if I can change gender like a certain somepony.”
“I’m not ashamed to cheat,” I replied with a grin. “So how do you feel now that you’ve gotten used to your expanded family, Cadance?”
The mare returned my smile then looked thoughtful. “I never would have expected having a second foal so soon would be so rewarding. Our lives have truly been blessed.” She gave a loving glance at her husband and swished her tail.
Just then, two energetic youngsters burst into the room, closely followed by their caretakers and my wife. Flurry made a beeline for her mother but Button bounded up to Shining Armor.
“Daddy! Miss Trixie showed us some neat tricks!”
The stallion picked up his son in his forelegs and sat back on his rump. “So, you’ve been enjoying the visit, Button?”
“Yeah!’ the colt replied enthusiastically.
“Then we’ll have to visit Aunt Trixie more often.”
Trixie smiled smugly. “Foals know Great and Powerful magic when they see it.”
“Preaching to the converted, hon,” I replied, but my eyes remained on sire and offspring. Shining was hugging Button and, judging by the expression on the ponyling, he was lapping up some quality love. I smiled. No wonder a whole race could subsist on the positive emotions of another – ponies had so much love to give. Shining just needed a little reassurance that its recipient deserved it. But Button was his son and I never doubted the outcome. I only hoped this former human could be just as good a father.
One of the true pleasures of Saturday mornings is the late sleep-in. Combine that with snuggles with my wife and then a leisurely breakfast with our host, Twilight, and you have the start to a great weekend. This one began that way, at least. Then Rainbow Dash abruptly burst into the dining room.
“It’s a disaster!” she cried.
We immediately went on alert. The pegasus wasn’t prone to seeking help for a problem if she didn’t think she could handle it herself.
Penny’s replacement for the day put himself between the pegasus and me and grasped the hilt of his sword in his teeth.
I called out, “It’s alright, Staunch Blade. Let her through.”
“What’s wrong, Rainbow?” Twilight asked.
Pushing herself past the earth pony guard, Dash held her forehooves on the sides of her head as if to contain her horror. “AK Yearling is retiring! There won’t be any more Daring Do books!”
I groaned. All this drama over some cheesy novels? Twilight had told me how she managed to get the pegasus interested in reading through them and Dash loved the stories, but it was hardly the end of the world if the author wanted to put away the typewriter. To my surprise, however, Twilight looked equally shocked.
“What?! Do you know why?” the alicorn asked.
Rainbow Dash waved a copy of the Ponyville Chronicle in front of her. “No, the article only said that she was quitting. But a pony like her just wouldn’t do something like that out of the blue.”
“What’s so weird about that?” I asked. “Maybe she got tired of writing.”
Dash was suddenly in my face. “A world-famous author and adventurer like her doesn’t!”
I blinked. “Adventurer? Just because she writes that stuff doesn’t make her one. I admit I’m not too much into Yearling’s works – I find Daring Do’s adventures a tad unrealistic. And although they weren’t dull, I usually prefer reading a book that’s a bit more sophisticated than an Indiana Jones knock-off.”
“A who what now?” Rainbow asked. Then she shook her head. “Forget I asked. Something from your human world, I suppose. But you’re wrong about AK’s stories because they’re all true!”
“Ha! Pull the other one, Dash!”
Twilight said, “Rainbow! You can’t tell him that.”
My ears pricked up. I smelled something interesting that Twilight thought I shouldn’t know. “Tell me more, Dash.”
“We’ve met Daring Do – she’s a real pony, not a story character.”
Twilight facehoofed. I smirked. “Sure she is. I bet Yearling has somepony cosplay her character for hardcore fans like you.”
“No – AK Yearling is Daring Do, and we’ve been on an adventure with her.”
“Rainbow Dash! That’s supposed to be a secret!” Twilight scolded the pegasus.
“Not you too, Twi?” I asked with one eyebrow raised in disbelief.
Twilight sighed. “Might as well tell you the rest. Daring Do is a real pony just as Rainbow said. She’s a professional archeologist who funds her expeditions by selling books about her adventures. AK Yearling is her pen name and an alter ego to take to book signings and conventions. Yes, her stories are dramatized versions of her experiences but the core events are genuine.”
I was briefly stunned. Then I considered all the fantastic adventures that I’d had and realized that it wasn’t so farfetched after all. “Okay, I suppose it could be true, but it still isn’t the end of the world.”
Rainbow Dash’s expression hardened. “No, there’s something wrong, I just know it. Come on!”
She grabbed my foreleg and started dragging me out of the room.
“Wait! What do you think you’re doing?” I protested.
“We’re going to visit AK Yearling and you’re going to see for yourself that she’s not only real but she’s also in some sort of trouble.”
I looked back helplessly to Trixie who merely said, “Be back in time for Monday afternoon’s Day Court session, Tanbark Upswells.”
Abandoned by my wife! Sure, she wasn’t going to go on anything too adventuresome now that she was pregnant, but the least she could have done was to rescue me from the obsessed pegasus.
“Hold up, Rainbow Dash!” Twilight cried out.
At last, somepony was intervening in this craziness.
Twilight continued, “You’ll save a lot of time if you use one of the daggerscale portals.” She started heading out of the room.
“What?! You’re going to waste our limited resources on this?” Then a thought occurred to me. “And how come there’s a portal anchor near AK Yearling’s place anyway?”
“The anchors are set up everywhere – I’m just sending you to the one nearest her home.”
I might have found that more credible if she wasn’t avoiding looking me in the eyes.
Twilight said, “OK, the oversize scales that can accommodate someone as large as Torch are still hard to come by, but Starlight and Moon Dancer found a way to mass enchant a roomful of the pony-sized portals. Thanks to the latest delivery from Queen Novo, we literally have thousands of spares now.”
And so, I found myself stepping out onto a path that wound through a forest. I had put on my travelling cloak for protection from any weather that might crop up. The fact that it hid my cutie mark was a bonus. After I planted the replacement scale-topped pole, I didn’t get the chance to look around because Dash immediately began to drag me away once more. I gave in to the inevitable and stopped resisting. It was only a matter of a couple of minutes before we came to a neat little cottage which further cemented my suspicions about the convenience of the location of the anchor. The remote glade in which the house lay probably made for a peaceful place to work on Yearling’s stories but it hardly seemed a strategic military location. Only then did I realize that my substitute bodyguard-shadow wasn’t with me. I guessed he’d catch up eventually.
Rainbow immediately hammered on the door to the cottage, calling out Yearling’s name. When there was no response, she grew even more agitated and pounded again.
“She’s not answering. Maybe something has happened to her. She could be in big trouble!” she wailed.
“Or she could be just ignoring you,” I said drolly.
“Waddya mean?”
I pointed to the window through which I could barely see a pony slumped in a chair. “Looks like she’s shaking her head a lot, but that’s hardly a crisis.”
So, what does Dash do? Doubles down on bashing the door with her hoof.
“AK! It’s me – Rainbow Dash! Your friend! Let me in!”
That seemed to motivate the pony inside to slide off her chair and slowly head for the door. It opened and an orange coated mare with what looked like a greyscale version of Rainbow’s mane, wearing large glasses and a maroon cloak, answered the door. After glancing at Dash, she looked at me and raised her eyebrows in surprise.
“You brought a prince with you, Dash?” In hindsight, I shouldn’t have been surprised that the worldly author would recognize me right away, despite the cloak.
“Mark’s cool, AK. But we’re here because of you. What’s this crazy idea about retiring?”
Yearling sighed and turned around, heading back inside. As she left the door wide open, Rainbow took that as an invitation to come in and I followed her. The first thing that I noticed was what were obviously relics scattered all around the room, some in the process of being packed up. This gave a lot more credence to the assertion that AK Yearling was an archaeologist too. The jury was still out on the fantasy alter ego though.
“Whoa! This place looks like it’s been ransacked!” Dash said. “Have you been attacked by Caballeron again?”
“No, nothing like that, Dash.”
“Then what’s going on? You love this stuff, so why are you saying you want to retire?”
AK said, “There’s nothing to tell. It’s just time for me to put away the typewriter. I explained it all to the Ponyville Chronicle.”
Rainbow held up the aforementioned newspaper and started reading from it. “ ‘Author AK Yearling announced yesterday that the next adventure novel in her popular series, Daring Do and the Curse of the Pharaoh’s Tomb, will be her last. Yearling looks forward to her retirement.’ That doesn’t explain anything! All it tells me is that you’re giving up writing stories and having adventures. Maybe an ordinary mare would do that but we know that you’re not. What the public doesn’t know is that the stories are real and you’re actually Daring Do, the adventurer who laughs at danger and never gives up when she’s in trouble.”
“Hsst! Ixnay!” AK said, inclining her head toward me.
“It’s okay – Mark Wells knows you’re Daring Do.”
I said, “Actually, I believe that you put yourself in the role of your character. I admit that it helps the reader get immersed in your stories. Anyway, Dash dragged me here when she learned that you were retiring but I think she’s overreacting. If she’s as good a friend as she claims to be, she should be supportive of your decision.” I gave the pegasus a meaningful look.
“Uh, right. Of course, if you really want to do that, it’s fine. You just haven’t told us why yet.”
AK waved a hoof. “Okay, fine. If you really want to know, my last quest took me to a village in southern Equestria where I started seeing these.” She dug a folder out of a chest. Upon opening it, there were numerous clippings inside.
We began reading the headlines. “ ‘Wake of Destruction: Daring Do Ruins Entire Marketplace’ … ‘Dare or Scare: Local Rogue Daring Do Involved in Frightful Fiasco’ … ‘Daring Do Leads Minotaur Bull into China Shop During High-speed Chase’…”
“That’s enough!” AK cried. “Every pony I try to help is angry with me instead.”
“Technically speaking, they’re mad at Daring Do,” I said, “but what brought this about?”
“I guess that I was so focused on saving the relics and defeating the bad guys that I didn’t notice the mess that I was leaving in my wake.”
I swept a wing to indicate the house full of relics. “But you’ve obviously been doing this for years, so why is this only becoming a problem now?”
“I don’t know. Maybe this was the last straw. Either way, my adventuring days are over – having or writing.”
Rainbow frowned. “Come on! There have to be thousands of ponies who appreciate what you’ve done for them versus this hoofful in this village—” Dash looked down at the clippings. “—Som-nam-bu-la.”
I looked critically at the articles. “Wait. All these are from the same newspaper? Are you sure you didn’t just earn the wrath of one snubbed journalist?”
The author and adventurer looked forward intently for a moment, then dropped her head. “It doesn’t matter. I leave a trail of destruction everywhere I go. I’m sure the same things are said about me everywhere.”
“But you don’t know that!” protested Rainbow Dash. “Look, why don’t we go there and sort this out? There’s got to be an explanation for all this and we’ll see what a heap of rotten apple cores these articles are!”
For the first time, AK looked hopeful. “You really think so?”
“I know so! Let’s go there right now!”
I said, “All the way down to southern Equestria? That’ll take days for a round trip. We can’t do that. Trixie will flay me if I’m not back in time.”
Dash nodded. “You’re right. Let’s go back to the castle and get Twilight to open another portal down that way.”
I sighed in resignation. I knew there was no point in trying to argue with the colorful mare.
“A portal?” AK queried as she put on a large floppy hat that hid her mane. “What am I missing?”
As we headed out the door, I replied, “Seeing as the one that we used to get here should still be open, you’ll soon find out.”
Despite Rainbow Dash’s heartfelt predictions, what we found in the quaint desert village of Somnambula was a horde of ponies justifiably angry at Daring Do. Apple carts destroyed, rude behavior, and bills not paid were just the start. Those were isolated incidents with individual ponies. The coup de grace was a pile of rubble in the central square that used to be a huge statue of the heroic pony from whom the town took its name. When Rainbow and I cocked an ear towards AK Yearling, she whispered that her battle with a glorified grave robber named Dr. Caballeron and his goons ‘got a bit out of hand’.
No pony could seem to remember much about the doctor or his sidekicks. They did say that Daring Do had burgled their homes over the course of the past three days, which couldn’t be true since it took a pegasus that long to fly to the part of Equestria where the author lived. Neither she nor anypony else had taken the daggerscale portal either, as the identification number on the one we used matched the one placed by the Equestrian Corps of Engineers months ago.
The three of us split up to try to learn more about the recent string of thefts. An hour later, I trotted to the agreed meeting spot at the base of the nearest pyramid that towered over the village. Idly, I wondered about the construction techniques and preservation spells of the ancient civilization that made a structure that could last to the current day and still look brand new. AK Yearling looked up as I approached. “Any luck?” I asked.
The mare adjusted her glasses and frowned. “I got several ponies to admit they had not seen Daring Do for the last few days. There’s just one stallion that no pony can name going around saying he’d seen her slinking out of ponies’ houses.”
I nodded. “Huh. Sounds like a setup to me. I got a long lecture about the town’s patron saint Somnambula. The short version is that over a thousand years ago, she outwitted a sphinx to rescue the prince of the land. Apparently, this beast was ten times the height of a pony and lived in the pyramid ruins about two miles to the east.”
The town’s clock tower chimed in the distance, and we both looked around us and overhead. AK said, “Where’s Rainbow?”
I frowned. “I doubt she’s taking a nap – she’s too keen on clearing your name. If she found a lead, she would have come back to find us. Come on.”
We trotted over to the outskirts of town where we had last seen the blue mare. I pulled up short when my companion held out a hoof to stop me. She was staring intently at the ground at marks in the dirt I couldn’t make sense of.
“Somepony was tied up here.” She shook off her cloak and glasses while trading her hat for a pith helmet, her facial expression deadly serious. Suddenly, any impression that I’d had that the mare was just an overblown legend was wiped away. I had no doubt that I was seeing an experienced and determined adventurer. Daring Do scanned the surroundings until her head stopped. The mare crossed the street and reached into a bush, pulling out a small blue feather. She started galloping towards the desert. “Rainbow was dragged off this way.”
I put my trust in my guide’s tracking skills by staying a couple of body lengths behind her. After a few minutes, we were on a lightly worn trail. Cresting a hill, I saw a large pyramid in the distance. Daring and I passed between two gigantic statues of sphinxes. Curiously, the one on the left was in a much better state of repair. We slowed our pace to a walk as we stepped inside the entryway. I noted with some disquiet that it was more than ten ponies in height above our heads.
“How many ponies?”
“Five. At this point, one was heavier than he was earlier. Obviously carrying Rainbow Dash.”
Both of us started calling out for our friend as we descended into the depths of the structure. I was happy to let my partner take the lead in case there were any traps along the way that she could detect before I blundered into them. We ignored side passages, instead advancing towards a dimly lit opening in the distance.
When we heard Rainbow’s answering calls, we pressed forward as quickly as we dared, coming to a stop in a huge chamber that must have been at the center of the pyramid. Sunlight bounced off of a square column overhead that opened to the sky above. Ancient glyphs of some long-dead language inscribed the walls of the chamber. The most prominent feature was a rectangular pit that filled the center of the room. A viscous, bubbling green liquid filled the bottom of the pool. A stone pillar rose from the pit and tied to the top was a blindfolded blue pegasus.
“We’ll get you out of there, Rainbow!” I called out as I spread my wings. I hesitated as booming laughter filled the chamber, echoing off of every surface.
“Will you, ponies? I think not. Without your flying magic, you will simply watch your friend perish!”
Daring and I took a couple of steps back as a shadow emerged from a landing overhead and leaped down to the chamber floor. It… I suppose she… had the body of a lion and the head of a mare. The resemblance to equines ended when the creature smiled, revealing a set of jagged, sharp teeth that would have looked at home on a shark. She had a deep reddish-purple coat, wings, and a two-tone bluish-purple mane. She wore gold jewelry, including a wide choker, a headpiece, and a single armband. So this was a sphinx. Interesting.
She regarded us with her yellow, slitted eyes. Her smile turned a bit cruel as Daring and I both tried to lift off the ground, only to find that our flying magic was indeed being suppressed somehow. However, as long as unicorn magic was unaffected, I still had my ace-in-the-hole.
“Foolish mortals! Witness the doom of your fellow equine!” With a wave of her paw, the stone pillar began to sink with the sound of stone grinding on stone. Rainbow must have sensed it because her limbs started flailing so quickly that they were a blur.
Despite the danger of the situation, I couldn’t suppress a question. “Aren’t you supposed to be as tall as ten ponies? I mean, you’re not little, but you can’t be more than a couple of ponies high.”
Daring gave me an incredulous stare while the sphinx rolled her eyes. “Yes, yes. I can hardly be held responsible if each generation retelling the story exaggerates more than the last, now can I?”
“Hardly,” I agreed. “In any case, mistress of the pyramid, I challenge you to a contest of riddles.” I was pretty sure that was how things worked with a sphinx, wasn’t it?
The creature’s paw shot out and the pillar stopped its descent. “Foolish pony. I would have freed your compatriot if you had merely answered my one riddle, but now you will have to answer true while presenting me with a riddle I cannot answer.” She leaned closer, showing me all of her teeth. “And I spent centuries learning every riddle there has ever been.”
Rainbow yelled out, “Mark! Stop messing around and kick her sorry flank already!” The sphinx’s self-confident grin slipped a bit.
I laughed and yelled back, “Don’t worry about it, Rainbow. Daring and I have got this!” I glanced over at the adventurer. Her eyes were narrowed and she was looking critically around the chamber. I wanted to know what was the source of her frown, but I didn’t have the luxury of time to ask.
I turned back to the sphinx. “As you now know, my name is Mark. May I ask yours?”
The creature sat back on her haunches and blinked twice. “It’s Asperitrex.” Her grin returned, along with her booming voice effect. I had to assume this was an aspect of her race’s inherent magical abilities. “Now pay attention, little pony, for your friend’s fate depends upon it.” She sat up straighter and her voice took on a melodious tone.
“A box without hinges, key, or lid,…”
I interrupted her before she could finish. “An egg. My turn.” Her wide-eyed look of surprise almost made me chortle, but I had other matters to attend to. So you’ve heard every riddle there is, have you? Let’s see about that. “How is a raven like a writer’s desk?”
This time her mouth hung open to go along with the wide eyes. She recovered quickly, though and began to mutter to herself. “Ah, let’s see… A raven. .. Writer’s desk… Bird… What a bird does… Parts of a bird… Parts of a desk... Supplies…”
She looked up and gave me a haughty grin. “They both have quills!” When I didn’t respond right away, her voice dropped in volume. “… right?”
I beamed. “That’s as good of an answer as I’ve ever heard. Full credit!”
She returned a very warm smile, only to shake her head and glare down at me again. “I see you are wise in the way of puzzles. No matter. My next riddle will confound you!”
I do not breathe, but I run and jump.
I do not eat, but I swim and stretch.
I do not drink, but I sleep and stand.
I do not think, but I grow and play.
I do not see, but you see me every day.
Now that was one I hadn’t heard before. The default answer to lots of riddles ‘shadow’ didn’t work. I tried to think of a creature that would do all of the second and third actions but not the first. After several seconds, I had the suspicion I was on the wrong track.
“Do you admit defeat, mortal?”
I just shook my head, not wanting to say anything aloud that might be taken for my answer. That might work for Bilbo Baggins, but I didn’t think it would work for me. I was tempted to ask Daring for help, but she was… sniffing the rubble at the back of the room? What the buck?
Bringing my attention back to the matter at hoof, I decided to try a different tack. OK, how did Asperitrex go about puzzling through my question? Parts? Like body parts? With that, the answer leaped into my mind.
I smiled. “A leg.”
“Bah! You ponies are so troublesome. Very well. Ask your next question.”
Well, this was all fun and good, but I think it was time to end the game. “Are you ready for a surprise?”
Asperitrex cocked her head to the side. Again, she forgot to make her voice reverberate around the chamber. “What?”
I released the clasp holding my cloak in place while I switched to my long-maned Marklestia form. I spread my wings wide, tossing my cloak away, and used my own magic to amplify my voice. “Surprise!”
“GAH!” The sphinx stumbled backwards a few steps. “No! Stop! Don’t blast me to the moon, Princess Luna!!”
Rainbow Dash laughed, having heard and recognized my change of voice. “I think you mean ‘Princess Celestia’. ”
The sphinx glanced between us, cocking her head. “What kind of name is ‘Princess Sir Lestia’? ”
I used my magic to untie the bow knot securing the rope around Rainbow. A few seconds later, I was levitating her across the pit to come to rest next to Daring Do, who was looking at Asperitrex with a raised eyebrow.
As Rainbow Dash removed her blindfold, the yellow mare said, “Are we done here now?”
The sphinx reared back and threw her arms upwards in exasperation. “Fine! You win the Challenge of the Sphinx! I’d tell you to pick up your complimentary T-shirt at the souvenir stand, but that won’t be open for a while.” Her accent and delivery had changed completely.
She continued, “More than a bit off script, but it was fun for this rehearsal to be something out of the ordinary. Might have to do something about unicorn magic before we open though.” She looked down and tapped the knuckle of one paw against her chin.
Now it was my and Rainbow’s turn to stare with our mouths hanging open.
Not so for Daring Do. She said, “This is all just a set isn’t it? Is this a stage production?”
The sphinx nodded with a bright and friendly smile… which meant she didn’t show her teeth. “Of course! The grand opening of the park isn’t for several weeks. Did you see the big pyramid south of town? The work crew just last week finished doing the outside of it. They have a bunch left to get fixed up in this place. I do double-duty as watch-sphinx on the job site since it’s the weekend. Can’t really stay in town with my size and all.”
Rainbow turned to her idol. “How did you know?”
The yellow mare smiled. “Well, aside from the antagonist breaking character a few times…”
“Hey! I’m just getting used to my role, OK?”
Daring smiled and continued. “…there is fresh plaster and paint on the wall behind us. Plus this.” She held up a paper label.
Moving closer, I read aloud, “Economy-size lime pudding mix. One gross weight.”
Rainbow exclaimed, “You mean that isn’t boiling green acid at the bottom of the pool?”
The sphinx laughed. “As if! Do you think the Southern Equestria Board of Tourism would let us open if there was anything harmful at the theme park? The first thing we did was drain the old goop from the pool and replace it with pudding. The bubbles come from air blowers we just got working yesterday. There’s even a spell over the entrance to warn us if anyone is allergic to limes.”
I switched back to my stallion form, sat down, and gestured with a hoof. “Asperitrex, would you mind telling us how the theme park idea came about?”
“Sure! First, you need to know that I grew up on my great-grandmatron’s stories about her adventures here and other places around Equus.”
Daring Do asked. “Wait. So the sphinx that Somnambula outsmarted is still alive?”
“Yeah, yeah. Rub it in, why don’t you?” Her friendly grin belied her words. “You bet she’s still alive! She runs a falafel restaurant in Catmandu. Anyway, in my hometown south of Abyssinia, I met a venture capitalist from the First Draconian Bank looking for unusual projects. I pitched the idea of a Somnambula theme park and flew the bank rep over here. After a meeting with the town elders, seed money was acquired and we are tentatively looking at the park opening in a couple of months. Like I said, the outside repairs on the big pyramid next to town are already finished. Inside, all excavation work is done, including wall and ceiling reinforcement by hidden steel columns and permanence spells.” The sphinx gave me a hopeful smile. “The hotel and restaurants inside should be open in six weeks if you and your two wives would like to return then.”
I could only sputter while both mares rolled on the ground, holding their stomachs and laughing their asses off.
“Oh, that’s one I’m telling Trixie!” said Rainbow Dash. “It might be safer if you decide to wait here for the hotel to open!”
There was no graceful recovery possible. All I could do was get us back on track. “So what happened when Rainbow was brought here?”
“Oh, yeah! Your five friends dropped her off to play the role of the prince.” The sphinx brought her head down towards the blue pegasus. “And you stayed in character the whole time! Better than me, that’s for sure. I almost believed you really had been foal-napped.”
Rainbow got to her hooves and spread her wings aggressively. “That’s because I was!”
Asperitrex looked at me while pointing at my friend with a claw. “See? A true professional!”
Daring Do asked, “What did the lead pony look like?”
“Hmm. Well, I admit I am not the best at telling you ponies apart. Let’s see. An earth pony. You know what? They were all earth pony stallions. Anyway, the leader had two-tone grey hair that looked kind of nice, actually. I think he was trying to grow a beard. And definitely the kind of pony that thinks he’s better than anyone else.”
The pegasus shifted her pith helmet. “Did he have a golden monkey skull as his cutie mark?”
“Yep. That's him.”
“Caballeron,” Daring said with a snarl.
The sphinx laughed again. “Well, you’ll be happy to know I stayed in character for them at least. I even got them to give me these as ‘payment’ for not eating them.” She reached into a chest and pulled out five necklaces made of square plates of a green stone that gave off its own light.
“Glowpaz,” said the adventurer then looked up into Asperitrex’s eyes. “I’m afraid those are stolen property. May we take them back to town?”
The sphinx’s expression fell. “Bummer. I thought it was a little too good to be true. Well, okay – I don’t want any part of that.” She carefully placed them on the archeologist’s outstretched hoof.
I said, “We’d better go if we want to stand a chance to catch them.” I turned to our host. “Asperitrex, it’s been a pleasure. I hope to see you again the next time we visit.”
Rainbow held up the blindfold. “Do you mind if I keep this as a souvenir? I mean since you don’t have the T-shirts and all.”
The sphinx smiled and waved a paw. “Sure thing. One of the workers found that at the bottom of the pool after we drained it. Once it was cleaned up, it looked as good as new.” She winked at my friend with a smile full of dagger-like teeth. “Who knows? That piece of cloth may date all the way back to the age of Somnambula herself!”
I grinned. Asperitrex was starting to get into the spirit of showmanship…
Show-pony-ship?
Show-sphinx-ship?
You know what? Never mind.
The three of us made up for lost time by flying back to town. Rainbow and I followed Daring Do’s lead and landed behind five earth ponies about to exit the central square, heading north. The rear two ponies were dragging a huge sack between them.
Daring Do spread her forehooves wide. “Caballeron!”
All talk in the square ceased and the villagers turned to look. The earth pony in the lead turned around and smiled. He had a light brownish-gray coat and dark gray mane and tail. A red ascot with white polka dots with a white, collared shirt told me everything I needed to know about his imagined station in life. He pointed at Daring while yelling to the townsponies. “There she is! The one who has been stealing all your jewelry!”
Rainbow scoffed and took to the air. With her trademark blinding speed, she zipped over and struck the bag, splitting it open. Glowpaz necklaces and loose stones cascaded out and onto the ground. The ponies around us gasped. The blue mare landed gracefully between Daring and myself, peering down at a raised forehoof with a disinterested expression while pointing her ears at me. Yes, Rainbow, you are awesome, but this is not the right time to tell you so.
Dr. Caballeron stopped smiling. “You are too late, Daring Do. You and your band of misfits can’t stop me from leaving with my prize.” One of the goons made good on his word by pulling a number of smaller empty sacks from his saddlebags and began to fill them with loot.
Daring’s rival continued. “You should have just stayed beaten. You were a worthy opponent once, but now you are merely another forgotten artifact. Go back to your place as a dusty relic, forever lost on the back shelf of that antique store in the slums of Fillydelpia.”
That reference seemed to hit a nerve with Daring Do and she ground her teeth. Looking past Caballeron and his goons, I noticed Penumbra stalking into town from the north. She wore her full set of armor and had let her shades slip down so I could see her eyes. I knew this was extremely painful to the thestral, but apparently, she wanted me to see her heartless, icy glare. And she was looking directly at me. Well, then. Time to do something about that.
I said to the earth pony, “And do you think you will just walk out of town with everything you have stolen from these good ponies?”
Penumbra stopped in her tracks and her eyes widened.
Caballeron snorted. “My four stallions are the best money can buy. Not you, your friends, nor the ungrateful wretches in this Celestia-forsaken hovel can do anything to stop me.”
Behind him, a grin slowly spread across Penny’s face until she was positively beaming.
I smirked. “I’ll give you five minutes to change your mind.”
The earth pony tilted his head and didn’t respond. That’s fine. I wasn’t talking to him. Penumbra nodded and slid her sunglasses back up to cover her eyes.
Four minutes and five seconds later (Penny was able to entertain herself for a minute with each of the hired thugs, but their leader folded like a wet napkin at the first solid strike), Penny was dusting off her armor.
“Sorry I’m late. I spent a little while imprinting into Staunch Blade’s head that he should not have assumed you and Rainbow were ‘dallying’ and wanted privacy.”
I said to my bodyguard, “So are we good now?”
“Oh absolutely not. But I’ll call this an acceptable early birthday present.” She gave me that smile that promised imminent mayhem. “Now stand still while I ‘thank you’ for my getting called back to work on my day off.”
I fervently hoped this was an empty threat, but the surge of adrenaline cleared my head and gave me an inspiration. I grinned and threw a wing around each of the mares at my sides. “Before you do, let me introduce you to my two new wives.”
Penny snorted. “Yeah, right. As if...” Her smile fell as she looked between Daring Do and Rainbow Dash. “Neither of you are laughing.” All three of us just grinned as we waited.
Finally, Penumbra turned away. “Fine! Punishment for that is above my pay grade. I want no part of this.”
“It doesn’t have to be,” said Rainbow in her best approximation of a low, sultry voice.
“Not listening! Your Highness, I’ll need your help to levitate these five glass jaws to wherever they store the pony trash around here.”
We ended up spending the night at Somnambula as the citizens insisted on celebrating the capture of the true villains and the return of their stolen glowpaz. Daring Do went around the various establishments that she had genuinely affected in her earlier attempts to deal with the Caballeron gang and promised reparations backed by my guarantee as Prince of Equestria. I also commissioned a sculptor to replace the broken statue. As Trixie had given me until Monday morning to get back, I felt safe staying and relaxing a bit. Daring Do was a lot of fun when she wasn’t completely depressed from the bad publicity, and she, Rainbow, Penny, and I enjoyed several drinks at the local bar. It turned into a bit of a drinking contest and I shamelessly cheated by switching to my pegacorn form which had far more capacity for the hard cider. Still, I was glad to be able to sleep it off before going home the next morning. Well… most of it. I had a bit of a headache while levitating the four hired goons to where the daggerscale portal was scheduled to open. Dr. Caballeron had escaped his cell sometime in the very early morning much to the chagrin of the local peacekeepers. The fact that he couldn’t be bothered to free his hired help spoke volumes of his true character. Curiously, Daring Do was neither surprised nor dismayed at the news. Privately, I wondered if she wouldn’t feel complete unless her arch enemy was still loose and trying to thwart her. Ah, well. That was more of a question for Cadance to ask than myself. In any case, I reckon we four mares left quite an impression by then – thankfully a favorable one this time.
Relating our experiences to Trixie and Twilight when we got back to Ponyville was enjoyable. There were the gasps of dismay at the beginning, puzzlement when I told them about what our investigations had found out, concern at Rainbow’s abduction, and amazement at the encounter with Asperitrex. But it was the laughter when I told them about the multiple wives misunderstanding that made me feel good. Then after relating how Penny reacted to our ‘new status’, my co-rulers were crying tears from laughing so much. If I hadn’t had Trixie firmly under one wing, I think she would have been rolling on the floor. Poor Thorax, though, was smiling the smile that you make when you don’t understand the joke. I was sure that Twilight would explain the context to the changeling later, but for now, he would have to settle for supping on our positive emotions.
It was great to be sharing this much time with Trixie, but when Rainbow Dash returned later that day, it was time for our postponed session of sky-dancing. As we rose to get some altitude, I noticed a new accessory around her neck.
“Is that the blindfold souvenir?”
“Sure is!”
I grinned. “You’re going to lose it over the Everfree. That knot will come untied and you’ll never see it again.”
Rainbow did a few quick snap rolls in either direction. “Nope! I checked the knot with Twilight before I left. She said the permanence charm on the fabric not only makes it super-tough, knots won’t come undone until you want them to.”
I did a couple of upright spins around the mare as I likewise warmed myself up.
Rainbow said, “Get this. Our know-it-all mare hasn’t seen a preservation spell this strong anywhere before.”
I smiled. “Huh! Somepony must have really valued it.”
“And now you’re talking about me again, not that I mind.”
We shared grins, then I saw a familiar sparkle in her eyes. “You finally ready?”
“Been ready for hours!” I shot back.
That made her pause only long enough to give me a pleased smile. “Three-Two-One-Go!”
As the prismatic mare and I cleaved the air with our acrobatics (shadowed by Penny, of course), I reflected on how much excitement this week had brought and how enjoyable my life was. I had added to my long list of friends, Equestria was growing in prosperity, and I was going to be a father in several months. Life was good.
# # # # # # # # #
Not a bad life if you can have it. 
Art by Amalgamzaku.
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Yes Mark, taunt Murphy some more.
Oh Trixie, you just don't know what you started. But i I wonder of its effectiveness this time since security is tightened
Hmm... the first appearance of a Yeti of the Storm King. I'm interested in seeing where that goes.
And it looks like they are starting to gather the Artifacts of the Pillars. Another potential future to consider.
I'm happy to read a story that shows how great capitalism is. With how badly people often talk about it these days. And after all the wonderful things it's done for us in the first world.
This can only end poorly.
Life was good. Then, everything changed when the Storm King attacked.
Asperitrex.
How did you ever come up with such an interesting name?
It feels like something I should know, but it is absolutely unique within the purview of all names known unto the Mighty Google, so it is not a direct reference to something else.
I don't think Button would be eligible for inheriting the Crystal Empire, as it sounds more that it's Cadence that is actually ruling and shining her consort, as Equestria seems to put line of succession to mare before colts and being born out of wedlock and isn't actually related to Cadance by blood he would be ineligible for the throne unless all his potential sibling, along with Twilight, Spike, and the Sparkles are dead as they would have a better clam by tradition over Button. I think he would have a better chance of ruling the changeling hive way before that and even that wouldn't be guarantied, with his mother being dethrone now.
And after the race, Rainbow notice the lack of blindfold
Life always finds a away
Ah Mark, when will you learn not to taunt fate?
It might be, considering the potentially dangerous ancient artifacts she finds
Oh, She. Is. Pissed
... YO MURPHY, GET OVER HERE, GOT A JOB FOR YA
So. when will the shit hit the fan again?
Artifact get! Hey, if Rainbow will keep it better than that key item in canon...
So it seems we've headed off cycle, starting with the hippogryphs and now contact with the storm nation. With two Alicorns MIA we wonder what the impetus for their sudden but inevitable betrayal will be.
Keep going! ;)
a must say a vary impressive chapter
grate writing team.
How about these.
Buckets, barrels, baskets, cans
What do you fill with empty hands?
Round as an apple
Deep as a cup.
The whole bitter sea
Can't fill it up.
A houseful
A hole full
You can't get a bowlful.
Riddle me ree
Rote tote tote!
A wee little man in a red, red coat.
A staff in his hand
A stone in his throat.
Answer this riddle and I'll give you a groat
9758164
If the traditional rules on succession were made by Sombra, a male line of succession might well be the case. Or simply the eldest child born of the royal parents, regardless of who actually bore (hatched?) them.
Come to think of it, I'm not even sure how Equestria in this universe does noble lines of succession. If Blueblood had a sister, she wouldn't automatically be Princess instead because she's the firstborn female, right?
Awesome chapter
9759444
What walks on four legs in the morning, two legs in the afternoon, and three legs in the evening?
It could have gone either of two ways--
1) She answers correctly but then demands to know how Mark knew that riddle, which he can either reply honestly or be deceptive with his reply--either way for that would give Mark the leg up to ask the next riddle since she wasted her opportunity by asking how he knew of it (only her grandmother spoke about that riddle she had once used on another world) ... or ...
2) she doesn't know the answer is Man.
9765562
I filtered the possible riddles to not include answers that had borderline non-sensical answers (some old ones fell in this category) or were not applicable to Equestrian life. I figured an answer like "The Incomparable Dale Earnheart Sr.!!!" would be unsatisfying to read.
9766136
It's just that's the famous riddle from Oedipus' encounter with the Sphinx, which would help tie in some of Equestrian mythology back to Mark's home.
9766622
Yep. I remembered that from my Mythology class in High school.
In Equestria, the answer could be “a diamond dog” or “a Minotaur.”
9766694
Or a Yak.
9758096
I knew it had to end with an "x." I tried an online sphinx name generator but didn't like the results. I thought about doing a play off of an ancient name like Aristotle and 'Asperitrix' popped into my head.
9777329
Well, I am glad that I have helped.
You have done a nice job creating this story. Keep being awesome, alright?
you know that timeline that they visited where chrysalis is married to shining armor and cadance as well, I want to know where that story is of if it even exists, because I want to read it.
Asperitrex was a awesome character. Very lovely story. Great humor. A chapter very well done!
9761433
I was thinking that flurry heart would be the heir because her mom was the last heir to the crystal throne before that.
11285258
Ponies tend to be matrilineal, especially in my canon.
One would think that the princess of love, the only reason he has his prince tittle and is ruler of the empire, would weight more into who gets to be heir, I would think her blood more important than anything else.
Imagine Fancy Pant’s wife getting pregnant with another’s foal and having them be heir to everything Fancy has. It’s a dangerous precedent. Or it would be here in our world.
11303127
If Cadance hadn't formally adopted Button, then succession would have been clearly to Flurry. Such a thing wasn't important to Cadance though, and neither Flurry nor Button is ever going to have to worry about who takes over unless Cadance abdicates.
Celestia getting mistaken for Luna? A first one for everything
Mark herd is growing
All I know about Somnambula was that she was by all accounts filled to the brim.
Also, one Sonambula being dragged from magical crawl space later...
"You bastards! You think money can sooth this afront! This whoring of my culture? What do you think my peoples dignity is worth?"
One gryphon check cut later...
"Thats it to the jangle. I'm off to buy an island thats an actual decent place to live!"
9766136
I'd just chuck dead baby jokes at her