Chapter 85 - Critical Developments
For me, it was just another Friday Day Court. Trixie got to do the fun bit, spending the morning with Gemini and Regis, keeping an eye on them as they zoomed around the Castle Gardens. Well… perhaps ‘tore through’ would be the better description. Regardless, the pair had loads of fun together playing tag, keep away, bury Trixie’s book, and other fun games only cute foals could get away with. The two of them didn’t cause all that much damage in a day, at least compared to my average early flight lessons. Still, I had high hopes they would rise to my level eventually.
Later that evening, Trixie and I sat in one of the Royal Lounge Suites, helping Twilight brainstorm ideas for the final term of Friendship School.
I said, “Zecora still recommends that we not take the students to Zebrica. Their attitude towards other races is still ‘barely tolerate and then only if you are an ambassador or trader’.”
Trixie said, “Don’t zebras populate an island north of Seadragon Deep? Trixie would think that because they are on the main shipping route, they would be more tolerant of outsiders.”
Twilight shook her head. “More like ‘disappointed with the mainlanders speaking to those that are impure. Let’s go somewhere where nopony will bother us’.”
I smiled. “Sounds like you have personal experience with them.”
“I sure do. They were… reluctant to take the vaccine we brought back from the Plague Dimension. Only when the zebras discovered they could not break through my shield and I could sing in the Canterlot Royal Voice for twenty-four hours straight did they relent, even if it was just to get me off their island.”
My wife said, “Trixie is offended for your sake. You have a lovely singing voice. It’s as if a professional singer takes over. The zebras should have been honored by such a gift.”
Twilight smirked. “I sang like your husband in his Celestial form.”
I winced, not wishing that punishment upon any being.
We all swiveled our ears and then our heads toward the sound of galloping horseshoes hitting the stone. A moment later, a guardspony stopped in the hallway, held back by the guards stationed there. “Your Highnesses! It’s Regis! There’s an emergency! Chrysalis is demanding that we bring Thorax immediately!”
Twilight said, “Why does—”
Trixie and I were already running for the doorway. Relying entirely on my gut instinct, I yelled back over my withers, “Do it, Twilight!” I heard the sound of teleportation from behind me as I followed the guardspony back down the corridor. Crimson Boulder and Feather Staff, Trixie’s unicorn bodyguard for this shift, thundered after us.
Twilight reappeared with Thorax at the entrance to the dungeon just as my wife and I arrived. Together, we galloped down the passages and stairways to get to the bottom level. Belatedly, I realized I hadn’t tripped or stumbled on the stairs once – probably because I wasn’t thinking about it.
Fortunately, the fields were missing from the entrance to Chrysalis’ cell so the four of us entered the chamber immediately. Chrysalis held the limp form of Regis Novellus between her hooves. A chill ran through my body. I knew the difference between ‘asleep relaxed’ and ‘dead relaxed’ from being there for my cat when she had to be put down. This did not look like the asleep kind.
Twilight reached out. “Give me—”
The changeling queen snarled. “Shut up! Thorax, link your nymph into the hive immediately! He has expended all of his love reserves and can’t stop!”
Thorax pushed his way past his stunned wife and placed a hoof on his son’s forehead. Regis began to shiver then flailed about wildly with random movements of every appendage. I gripped onto Twilight with both forehooves. She warned me long ago about interfering with powerful magic. I didn’t trust my friend to control herself when her child looked like he was drowning.
With one last jerk, Regis went still. I sighed with relief. Now he just looked to be sleeping. That ended with a huge yawn and lots of blinking.
I released Twilight. She rushed up to him. “Regis! Are you OK? Say something!”
Her foal looked around at his parents and one grandparent. All three hovered so closely that their manes intertwined. Regis smirked and two forehooves and one hind hoof extended to lightly touch three noses. “One-two-three boop!” He laughed uproariously. Apparently, this was a kiddo win of the highest order.
Twilight gently took her delighted foal from Chrysalis’ grasp. She kept her voice level as she glared at the changeling queen. “Explain.”
Chrysalis laid her head down on the floor and sighed. “As hive-mother, you should already know. Since that is not the case, understand that every changeling since the First Egg can only expend or share a portion of their love stores. A part is always preserved to maintain bodily functions. At worst, a changeling will lapse into unconsciousness. They will need external love given to them or they perish within two or three days.” She shifted to look at Thorax. “At least, that was the case before today. My grand-nymph obviously has no such reserve.”
Thorax said, “What did you do, exactly?” His voice was even, devoid of anger. Meanwhile, Regis snuggled up against his mother, still giggling.
“I led my grand-nymph through exercises on controlled transformation. A hoof, an eye, a wing.” She looked down. “I could see him growing bored with the exercise so I declared a break for playtime. I started the game ‘I spy with my huge, freaky eye’ but Regis did not respond, looking elsewhere. Then, his expression brightened. ‘I know! Look at what I can do, Grandma!’ That’s when he changed into his mother’s shape, adult-sized and complete with glowing eyes and horn.”
She winced. “My command for him to stop was already too late. He reverted to his base form with a look of shock on his muzzle, collapsing in my hooves. I poured my love into him but some part of the shape-change had not dissipated. It was like pouring water into an endless well. I could only hope that what I provided could sustain him on the way out his body.”
Thorax looked at his wife. “By linking him to the hive, I could enter his mind and understand what was happening. I took over control of his magic and canceled the remnants of the transformation. Then I restored his reserves.”
Twilight hugged her foal protectively, frowning. “I told all of you it was a terrible idea, allowing Regis to come here.” She glared at the changeling queen. “This is all your fault.”
My wife said, “It sounds to Trixie like this event was unprecedented and could not have been predicted.”
Chrysalis said, “No, the hive-mother is correct. Her foal’s safety was my responsibility and continues to be.” She shifted her wings on her back. “If you would allow it, hive-mother, I will work with King Thorax to find a means to ensure this does not happen again.”
I blinked in surprise for two reasons. First, I had never heard Chrysalis acknowledge her son’s royal title. As for the second…
“Chrysalis, look behind you.”
Slowly, the changeling queen craned her head backward. She extended her wings and examined them. They sparkled in the dim light like a thousand fireflies. As she swished her tail, it shimmered, matching her mane’s new glory.
Chrysalis sighed as she furled her wings again. She grumbled, “Wonderful. Just when I thought this day couldn’t get any better.”
Trixie cocked an eyebrow, “Was that a regretful sigh I heard, Your Majesty?”
“Of course not,” the changeling queen snapped. “I swore that I would protect my grand-nymph with my life. This corruption of my beauty is merely cosmetic.”
Twilight carried Regis out of the room, closely followed by Thorax.
I smirked. “Still, this change is hardly ideal, is it? Looking adorable in the eyes of ponies isn’t going to help you cow them with fear.”
The queen frowned and rustled her wings before stopping herself with obvious effort. After a pause, she said, “I will admit that the circumstances are… unfortunate.”
My wife caught my eye and pointed with her muzzle to the chains leading from the prisoner’s manacles. They both ran under her body, but the changeling made no effort to get up. That couldn’t be comfortable. “Are you well, Chrysalis? Why aren’t you returning to your knitting?”
A longer pause this time. “I had to estimate how long it would take for Thorax to reach my cell, knowing that I needed to stay conscious long enough to instruct him. Then I metered out my love stores to flow into my grand-nymph. Unfortunately, my time estimate was a bit optimistic.” She lied down on her side. “I am unable to stand.”
I turned to the nearest guard in the hallway. “Get the prisoner a double… no, a triple ration of her daily love supply!”
The pegasus mare, Torch Blaze, I think, said, “Immediately, Your Highness!” She galloped up the hallway.
Trixie said, “In the meantime, why don’t you share some of your ample supply with her, Patriarch Parallels?”
I blinked. “Excuse me?”
“Think of it as… making yourself useful.”
I turned to Penny for help. My bodyguard shrugged. “Don’t look at me. I wouldn’t be able to generate anything more than grudging respect.”
Feather Staff shook her head, but not enough to stop aiming her horn at the prisoner. “Sorry, Your Highness. The pretty wings aren’t enough. She still scares me.”
A wheezing sound brought my attention back down to Chrysalis. Her smile didn’t falter through her coughs. “Idiot stallion. I thought you would have accepted by now that mares make all the decisions in Equestria.”
Bloody hell.
I awkwardly moved over to the changeling, trying to hug her barrel with the minimum amount of body contact. Rather than being hard and unyielding, her chitin felt more like thick leather.
Concentrating on the love I held for my wife was complicated by a nagging doubt. I had to beat down the paranoid suspicion that every mare in my life kept me around just for their amusement. With a mental effort, I refused to count the number of times I looked like a fool, especially since many of those occasions were self-inflicted.
Chrysalis’ breathing grew steadier and slower. After I don’t know how long (what was holding up those damn rations?), the changeling smacked her lips and her body shifted into a more comfortable position. I glanced up to see her craning her neck to look me in the eye.
“Odd. Your love is different from any I have tasted.”
That sounded uncomfortably familiar. “Tirek said the same thing about my magic.”
“Did he now?” Chrysalis lowered her head back down and closed her eyes. “Someday, I will need to discuss the matter with him.”
“Another cherry chimichanga, Mark?”
I groaned and pushed away the tray of nigh irresistible treats. “I’ve already had way too many, Pinkie.”
“Okay. Waste not, want not!” She then proceeded to tip the entire contents of the tray into her open muzzle and swallowed them all in one gulp. How she managed that, I have no idea, especially after consuming massive quantities of other party foods already. I mourned the loss of my favorite dessert.
“I could have saved those for tomorrow,” I protested.
“Don’t be a Silly-Billy! Do you really think I wouldn’t have enough treats for everypony to go home with goodies for breakfast?”
“I’m not the birthday boy though,” I replied while looking over in Gallus’ direction.
I had only learned that it was my adopted son’s birthday when Pinkie came around about a week ago and asked me what I intended to do for it. Not surprisingly, the precocious party planner knew his date of birth despite not even him clearly remembering due to griffon culture never celebrating it. Of course, we needed to do something to remedy that situation. I suggested that we make it an all-out birthday bash and hold it in Canterlot. Things had been quiet for several weeks now and no major events were scheduled, so why not make a big fuss over him? He could invite as many friends as he liked and not have to worry about whether they could all be crammed into one place. He ended up inviting every student at the school. The Canterlot Castle banquet hall was being well utilized today!
Pinkie said, “The perfect party has every creature fully satisfied so that the special pony of the day can enjoy themselves without feeling guilty.” One of her ears twitched up and down, which I didn’t think was possible. “Gotta go! I sense a fruit punch alert!” In a blink and a cloud of dust (flour, I think), she was gone, leaving me wondering what a fruit punch alert was.
My wife and I let Pinkie do all of the planning, of course. We just followed her instructions, sure in the knowledge that the party mare knew what she was doing far better than us. Everything from the decorations to the entertainment was perfectly matched to the young griffon’s tastes and he was having a ball. As for Trixie and me – we got to sit back and relax while watching our son enjoy his day. And eat too many treats. My wife had a blob of whipped cream clinging to the side of her muzzle that I hadn’t told her about yet. Would she find out before one of the students told her… or should I just surprise her by licking it off?
A Royal Guard burst into the room and made a beeline for us. As the Guards were under instruction to secure the room and not to interrupt us short of an emergency, this could only mean bad news. The unicorn came to a halt in front of us and snapped a salute.
“Your Highnesses! Please come with me immediately. Princess Twilight Sparkle wishes to speak with you in the throne room.”
I shared a worried glance with Trixie and we both got up. We headed out of the room with the Royal Guard, while Crimson Boulder and Diadem followed close behind. The changeling princess had been attending the party at my insistence for her further education in Equestrian culture, not to mention the emotional feast I knew she would get. I think she was feeling as bloated as me right about now.
We hastened to the throne room where we found our co-ruler in the company of a squad of Royal Guards in white barding with gloss black engraving. I shuddered when I realized who they were – the Guardians of Tartarus. I had a sinking feeling.
Security for that realm had been stepped up since Cozy Glow’s banishment there. Its defense was not left up to just Cerberus – a terrible oversight of ours that allowed Derpy to be used as a go-between for Cozy and Tirek who assisted in the mini-mare’s plot. Now, there was a full-time contingent of Guardians of Tartarus to watch for intruders and unauthorized visitors, not to mention checking that the prisoners didn’t find some way of escaping their cells. However, if all three shifts of the Guardians were here, what the heck had happened?
“Report!” I said before I was halfway across the floor.
An earth pony mare stepped forward and saluted. “Sir! Sergeant Daisy Cutter reporting! At approximately 1320 hours, a large blue ram approached the guard post at the gates of Tartarus. Upon being warned away, he laughed at us and said, ‘Begone!’ Then the world exploded.”
“What do you mean by that, Sergeant?” Trixie asked.
“I mean that there was an enormous blinding flash and we all dropped unconscious. By the time that we recovered, the gates of Tartarus had been forced open. The creatures caged there are all still accounted for, but three of the prisoners were missing – Tirek, the Storm King, and Cozy Glow.”
“Oh, buck,” I whispered.
“You have a knack for understatement, Dark Quells,” my wife replied with a tremor in her voice.
“Ditto,” was Twilight’s contribution.
After a long moment while we stood in stunned silence, Crimson cleared his throat. “What are your orders, Your Highnesses?”
As my bodyguard, it was not his place to do anything but maintain his vigilance for my safety, but his words achieved their desired effect. I shook off the feeling of helplessness and faced Diadem. “Put out the alert that I want every creature of importance here immediately.”
“Every creature?” Diadem repeated.
“Yes! I want General Crushing Blow here soonest. I want the Captain of the Royal Guard, the Head Ranger, the Changeling Squad Commander, the Captain of the Griffon Contingent, the Element Bearers, the changeling queens, the Pillars of Equestria, Prince Armor, Princess Cadance, Princess Gilda, Starlight Glimmer, and recall Tempest Shadow. Hell, I even want Duke Blueblood. Go!”
The changeling princess hastened away, her wings a blur as she zipped out the door.
Twilight said, “That will take a couple of days. What are we going to do while we wait for everybeing to turn up?”
“There’s one more person invited to this party,” I replied. “Discord! Discord! Discord!”
The was a crash of thunder accompanied by a puff of black smoke and the draconequus emerged dressed in a black and white striped suit, with a green fright wig and blackened eyes. His head was spinning on his neck until he grabbed it in his paws his hands to stop it. His eyes spun like a poker machine reels until they both came up ‘TILT’. He shook himself, returning his eyes to their normal yellow, and then grinned at me.
“What’s got you in such a delightful tizzy, Markicorn?”
“More like who. Know any powerful blue rams who like busting prisoners out of Tartarus?”
“Oho! Sounds like someone wants his bell back in the absolute worst way.”
I blinked. “You don’t mean…?”
“I do. Grogar hasn’t been seen since before Faust’s time. I wouldn’t be surprised if using the bell was the alarm clock that woke him from his long nap… or opened a portal to this dimension from his own. The old goat must have tracked down the one who wielded its power.” The stripes on Discord’s suit began to shift back and forth, fighting for territory across his chest and pants. The distant sounds of swords clanging against shields amplified the war-like scene.
“That explains why Cozy Glow was taken, but what about Tirek and the Storm King?”
Discord held up a clawed finger as if he just remembered a point. “Did I mention that he likes to conquer worlds with the help of powerful lackeys? By the way, during my dimension-hopping adventures, I ran into Tirek’s brother. Nice chap – we traded crochet patterns. Anyway, Scorpan mentioned that Grogar also hails from that dimension. He was deposed ages ago and spends his time shuffling around alternate worlds, trying to become the Biggest Cheese once more.”
I tapped my chin. “Did you ever encounter him? Either in this dimension or another.”
He shrugged. “Before my time, sorry. I caused mischief as soon as I arrived. I was … a bit of an attention seeker at the time.”
My wife asked dryly, “Only then?” Trixie emphasized her point by poking the draconequus’ suit with a hoof. That seemed to be the turning point ‘black’ needed. The disruption behind the ‘white’ front lines caused an immediate collapse of their defenses. To my surprise, the only thought I had on the matter was that Discord actually looked fairly dapper in a black suit.
“Well, can I help it if everypony found me both strange and wonderful?”
“You mean you were an immature twit with no self-control.”
Discord blinked. “Ahhh… maybe.”
I said, “Would you please join us at the council?”
His grin was not friendly. “And miss the chance to prank all those overblown leaders at once?” His smile fell and every part of him drooped. “Meh. You are all going to be intensely boring; I can smell it from here.”
Discord’s smile returned and he gave me a wink. “What’s that? Show up as a personal favor to you? Done! Consider yourself to be in my debt. Ta ta!”
Before I could protest, the Spirit of Chaos was gone in a puff of pink smoke. His laughter echoed off the walls for a few seconds until it faded away.
My wife punched me on the shoulder as she walked past. “Well done, Dowser. Trixie was concerned she would unfairly be held responsible for your impertinent summons. Please repay your IOU without involving Trixie… or her wardrobe.”
The draconequus’ voice reverberated around the room. “But where’s the fun in…. fine! Something else!”
I took it back. It wasn’t just the mares that got a laugh at my expense.
“May I have a private word with you, Your Highnesses?” Tempest asked.
I think the three of us had the same idea about what the Commander of our Foreign Forces wanted and, after a nod from Twilight, Trixie said, “Come with us, General.”
We headed off to my wife’s office. While we all had a personal workspace, my wife’s was bigger and used for private meetings which involved all three Triarchs or large groups. Once inside, Twilight took the initiative.
“You wish to know if we are ready to restore your horn yet, correct?”
Tempest nodded. “I will be more productive in my service to Equestria if I can properly control my magic. The sooner that my horn is healed, the sooner I can train myself to use it most effectively.”
“Of course, and you will be pleased to know that, yes, I am confident that I can restore your horn with a better than 93% chance of success.”
The unicorn gave her a wry smile. “So – not a sure thing?”
The alicorn shook her head. “Still too few test subjects and too little data to consider it completely effective or safe.”
Tempest tapped her chin. “Hmm. Prince Mark told me that I would likely have only one chance because of the length of my horn stub. Is that still the case?”
“That’s right. The process involves paring back the horn to get rid of the dead or damaged parts before starting the regeneration process. This would leave you with even less than you have now if it fails. In all likelihood, there won’t be enough left to try again.”
“I see. And when can you be certain that this won’t happen?”
Twilight started to answer but I interrupted. “With all due respect, Twilight, I get where you’re coming from but you have to draw the line somewhere.” I turned to Tempest. “My co-ruler is a perfectionist and there is a real possibility that she will never be 100% certain of success. I have been getting updates on the progress of Princess Twilight’s work and the opinions of her learned colleagues who worked with her on this, and we agree that the horn restoration process is ready to be used. As long as you are aware that there remains a real risk of failure, we are ready to fulfill our promise to you.”
Tempest considered my words for a moment before nodding. “I am prepared to take that risk.”
Twilight gave me an annoyed glance before saying, “Very well. If you would care to follow me to my castle laboratory, Tempest, we will attend to it immediately.”
The two left and my wife gave me a smirk. “Trixie thinks that Twilight is ticked with you, Stark Tells.”
I grimaced. “Maybe, but this isn’t the time to be too cautious. I’ve worked hard to fortify Equestria’s defenses and we keep encountering stronger foes to test them. We’re going to need everything we’ve got to meet this latest threat, and perhaps more. In the end, though, this was Tempest’s choice to make and our promise to keep.”
As I had found out back when Twilight used her healing salve on me, basic repairs happened immediately but the healing effect could keep working for several hours after application. The horn-restoration treatment couldn’t change the long time-frame needed for the process. The big difference was in the degree of control over the procedure. The salve had gifted me with yard-long tufts of hair and massive feathers sticking wildly out of place. Immersing the subject in a healing pod and controlled delivery of the regeneration gel drastically slowed the speed of the regrowth. This allowed the mana channels to develop naturally. In any case, we had to wait until the next day to see the results.
Twilight invited Trixie and me to come to the room where Tempest had stayed overnight. It was the same laboratory where Penny had been healed months ago, though now populated with a half-dozen jumbo-sized pods. At least a dozen ponies and an equal number of changelings scurried about, paying the visitors no mind. The identical lab coats and reflective goggles made them all nearly as adorkable as our co-ruler. Trixie and I found the maroon unicorn standing proudly and showing off her new horn. It was slightly shorter than expected but otherwise perfect… well… except for the odd coloration. The bottom half-inch of the horn matched her coat, but from the point where the new growth had begun, it abruptly changed its hue to a golden yellow.
Twilight gave me a chagrined smile. “I never gave a moment’s thought to the horn’s color. I assumed it would match her original hue.”
Tempest said, “My mother’s horn was this color. I guess that’s where I got it from. It doesn’t matter.” The unicorn skipped a bit on her hooves and a beaming smile took over her face. I wondered if her mother would recognize her foal Fizzlepop Berrytwist at this moment. “I have a fully functional horn! After so many years without one, I can feel my magic is under control for the first time since my horn was broken.” The grinning unicorn did an adorable little dance. Then, with visible effort, Tempest dialed her expression back down to a nonchalant smile and she gave us a bow. “I am extremely thankful.”
I noticed a tremor in Tempest’s voice and her eyes were glistening. Despite her calm words, their were tears of joy leaking from the corners of her eyes. Only a lifetime of discipline was keeping her together right now. “We’ll leave you to start familiarizing yourself with your restored abilities. Let us know if you require an instructor or just someone to help practice. Just be certain to turn up for tomorrow morning’s all-hooves meeting.”
“I will be there, Your Highness – Your Highnesses. You have my eternal gratitude and loyalty.”
“Thank us by continuing to serve Equestria well, General.” I turned to my wife and Twilight. “Shall we go, ladies? I believe Tempest has some long-overdue horn practice to get in.” And in need of a little privacy to deal with her emotions, no doubt.
The next morning, the conference in the Canterlot Castle Great Hall began with a bit of a thud. Discord, Star Swirl, Somnambula, the Head Ranger Eagle Gaze, Pinkie, and Applejack were not in attendance. Weekly reports with vague plans of where ponies might be was a luxury we could no longer afford. After sending out dozens of ponies to track them down, we could expect everypony’s return in the next couple of days. The one exception was Star Swirl who had left to thoroughly explore three dimensions where he once took the Royal Sisters in hopes of finding them again. Of course, he didn’t bother to inform anyone of the coordinates of his destinations. On the plus side, Queen Sanguine Dreams and Apicula participated via their communication plates while Polistae, Trochanter, and Carpacia were in attendance. Queen Novo likewise attended remotely through her own communication plate.
Twilight pulled select members from her research teams to form a new one with the ponies, changelings, and griffons best qualified for a new project. Their job was to prevent no-shows from happening in the future by finding a way to mass-produce miniature versions of the communication plates.
Princess Diadem served as her sister’s go-between for the meeting. At first, I thought my advisor was just tracking down anyone that Queen Apicula wanted to speak with, but I overheard Diadem explaining to her sister the finer details of our countermeasures against rogue unicorns. Later, the princess took charge by moderating the side sessions on improving pony/changeling relations by leaps and bounds. Carpacia, Trochanter, and Trixie all deferred to Diadem’s authority for the purpose of keeping the meeting productive. During the lunch recess, my advisor announced an agreement hammered out between the hives and Equestria. Now that changelings had ready and open access to ponies, this was the perfect time for radical expansion. New towns consisting of an equal number of ponies and changelings would be founded throughout the less populated regions. Using the lessons learned by the Crystal Hive in Queen Trochanter’s home dimension, brand new, exciting communities would soon dot the countryside, integrating the two cultures like never before. Diadem’s wings buzzed in excitement and she smiled constantly. Such a transformation from the inexperienced changeling who recommended mandatory podding of Equestrian ponies only months ago.
Discord arrived fashionably late, at least I think that was the joke. I couldn’t think of any other reason for him to show up wearing a grandfather clock. He sat to the side knitting a baby blanket from a ball of yarn the same shimmering blue shade as Chrysalis’ mane and tail hairs. I refused to humor him by asking why that particular color, sticking to the topic of Equestria’s defense. With an apologetic nod, Discord explained to the Triarchs that the Precepts of Chaos would prevent him from taking an active role in our attempts to restore order to Equestria. “I’ll have to settle for being reactive, which can be just as much fun!” That left me more confused than when I started the conversation with him.
The conference with the power figures of Equestria and her allies had been progressing for several hours. Plans to deal with our foes both individually and in groups were being put forward and analyzed. Some were approved while others were rejected. There was surprisingly little infighting between the species which I put down to how truly concerned or even frightened that they all were of this unprecedented crisis. At least, that meant I didn’t have to butt their heads together to make them cooperate and I could concentrate on devising plans of my own.
At the dinner break, everyone gathered around the expansive dining table. The remotely attending Queens Apicula, Sanguine Dreams, and Novo had their communication plates set on the table in front of one of the chairs.
Queen Polistae happened to be seated next to Cadance. She leaned forward to catch her husband’s eye. “So, Prince Armor – is it true that your love is the most powerful in the entirety of Equus?”
Her timing was perfect and Shining practically choked on his drink. While he recovered, the queen turned to face an obviously displeased Cadance. Polistae’s smile, as always, conveyed goodwill and shrewdness in equal measure. “It would only stand to reason since he is married to the Alicorn of Love.”
Cadance’s expression softened, then she got a mischievous smirk. “Hmmm. I don’t honestly know. Perhaps one of my sister-in-law’s studies would be in order. How well can my husband share his love?”
Shining Armor stammered. “Wait. Cady… what?”
Cadance gave him a wide-eyed smile, the picture of innocence. “Purely for the purpose of increasing scientific knowledge, my dear. What could be more platonic than that?”
I chuckled. Cadance had been trying to get Shining to loosen up more around changelings. I figured this was as much tough-love therapy as much as an opportunistic prank.
Trixie said, “Indeed. While I suspect my stallion will only prove half as… potent in that area, he does have recent hoofs-on experience in the matter.”
Every changeling queen turned and their gazes bore into me, their swiveling ears betraying their sudden interest in the current topic of conversation. Maybe it was being around Princess Diadem every day at Day Court, but all the changeling attention didn’t faze me… this time. Instead, I rolled my eyes. “You just had to mention that, didn’t you dear?”
Rainbow Dash said, “You know, queenies, when a pony says something here in Equestria and they mean it, they’re willing to put a few bits down on the table to back it up.”
After a short silence, Rarity gave me a sly smile. “Here, my darling queens. Let me make it easy for you. I’ll bet a shiny bit that Prince Mark's love has over half the strength of Shining Armor's. Any takers?”
Carpacia rapped the table once with a hoof and I heard Sanguine Dreams do the same in her chamber. The Red Hive queen said, “Setting up testing conditions might be tricky. Princess Twilight, is it not best to keep the vict—, the subject ignorant that any test is happening?”
Twilight turned away from Thorax, “Hmm? Sorry, I didn’t catch all of that, but yes. The more relaxed and ignorant the test subject the better. If you’ll excuse me.” Our co-ruler returned to her discussion with her husband.
I felt a paw land on my back and a heard a familiar chuckle in my ear. Looking across the table, I saw Discord’s clawed hand emerging from a floating envelope to pat Shining Armor’s withers. “Oh, you two lucky, lucky stallions! To be the focus of so many mares. Why, there must be at least five other males in the world that would just die for such attention.”
Queen Trochanter said, “I’ll bet five hundred bits that the trickster god has more love than the two ponies combined.”
The draconequus froze. His eyes bounced on the table with a clatter, ending with them blinking at the realm’s newest changeling queen, freshly arrived from Chryssy’s dimension.
Queen Apicula asked, “What makes you so sure?”
In answer, Trochanter nodded her head towards Fluttershy. The pegasus was no longer butter yellow. Instead, her blush extended from bright red on her face down to light pink at the base of her tail. Silently, every other mare leaned back in their chairs. It seemed no being was fool enough to take that bet.
Twilight brought her attention back to the rest of the table. Her eyes settled on her brother. “What’s on your mind, B.B.B.F.F?”
The unicorn stallion looked up. “Nothing… it’s just… I have this nagging suspicion we’re overlooking something. Something big.”
Tempest Shadow snorted and a single spark rose from her horn. “I wouldn’t say ‘overlooked.’ More like ‘we looked hard but didn’t get any satisfying answers in our side session on the topic’.” She waved a hoof. “What is it that Grogar is thinking right now? The others we are familiar with to some extent and can prepare for.”
I turned the question back around on her. “Well, Tempest, if you were Grogar, what would you be doing?”
“I’d either be at this meeting in disguise or spying on it.” Then her brain seemed to catch up to her mouth. Her ears flattened down and her eyes darted around the table.
Queen Sanguine Dreams voice carried from her communication plate. “A reasonable concern. Everyling and pony, talk to your two closest beings. Use what you know to verify they are who they claim to be.” Princess Diadem repeated word-for-word what I had said to Cozy Glow during her appearance at Day Court and I listed off the names of all four griffons assigned to Night Guard duty.
I smirked as I turned around. Verifying my wife’s identity would be much more pleasant and would involve kissing. I stopped short when I saw a miniaturized Discord sitting on the edge of the table between Trixie and myself. He kicked his legs like a schoolfoal and pointed to his puckering lips. My wife finished her conversation with Twilight and regarded first Discord, then me. Her raised eyebrow and tight frown promised a week on the couch for the wrong answer.
Bringing my hoof up to my face, I pressed my lips to the frog of my hoof then blew the kiss Discord’s way. A horseshoe-shaped impression dented his cheek and the draconequus went limp, slumping bonelessly off the table and onto the floor.
My wife glanced across the table then back to me. She grinned. “Don’t look now, but The Stare just might be aimed your way.”
I didn’t look. Once was enough, thank you very much.
“Everyone checks out? That’s great!” Twilight beamed. “That just leaves espionage. Maybe… something we’d never think to look for?”
Starlight Glimmer said, “Like a trans-dimensional rift covering itself by warping light around itself?”
“Yes! Like that!” The purple alicorn lifted her head, horn glowing. “Now let’s see…”
The world went crazy, specifically, black and white crazy. I could see everyone and everything as black shadows with a white background that snapped to white silhouettes in front of a black sky. These two perspectives shifted back and forth a dozen times per second, threatening to overload my brain. A tan lion’s paw slammed into the table next to me and I stared at it, grateful at the island of normality. Looking up, I saw Discord was entirely unaffected by the otherworldly effect. His ears and gaze were focused at something over the table. “There,” he said.
Twilight shrank the flashing, color draining area until it encompassed a space a couple of feet across hovering well above the center of the table. Now that the flashing area filled only a small part of my vision, I could barely make out a perfect sphere the size of an adult’s hoof. It was only visible because the shifting black and white pattern lagged a bit around whatever it was.
Discord’s clawed arm stretched until he could flick the object with a talon. The sphere changed into a circular window showing a pale green eye with a red iris. White eyebrows rose and the window winked out right before a knife sailed through the space it had just occupied.
“Got it!”
Everyone turned to see Starlight Glimmer wearing a triumphant smile. “When it popped, the cloaking spell gave up its secrets. I’ve got a fairly good idea of how the eavesdropping window functions as well. Give Moony, Crispberry, and me a week and we’ll have those spells collapsing before they form. But for now…” Her horn flashed and a light blue glow filled the chamber. “… this will keep everything we say or do private.”
I saw Twilight’s magic return Penumbra’s knife to my scowling bodyguard. Apparently, the batpony had been hoping for a different outcome from her throw.
I winced. “Ok, everyone. We’ll have to throw out all of the strategies we’ve come up with so far because our enemy knows them. We’re going to mix up the members of each side session and start over from scratch.”
Trixie said, “And that will start tomorrow morning. I know many of you only planned to attend for a day, but the Triarchy asks you to stay on because of the change of circumstances.”
Twilight added, “Please take this evening to relax and let your imaginations roam free. We’ll meet up again after breakfast. The council is adjourned!”
Trixie and Twilight stood and walked away from the table. With an inrush of air, the purple mare teleported away. I quickly followed my wife.
Once we were alone in the hallway (well, excluding our bodyguards), I said, “Thanks, dear. I wasn’t thinking clearly. You’re right. Starting tomorrow would be better than an all-nighter.”
“Of course, Dowser.”
I noticed my wife’s tail twitching much more than usual. “Having our enemy spy on us made you nervous, didn’t it?”
“No, it’s just…” My wife ground her teeth. “Trixie will admit that seeing you talk to all those mares and queens made Trixie… even more appreciative of her husband.”
I smirked. “Not to mention possessive.”
Her wings fluttered. “Certainly not!” She narrowed her eyes. “Unless you intend to sleep on the couch when you should be showing me how much you love Trixie, you will drop that line of thought.”
I bowed as we walked. “As the Great and Sexy Empress Trixie demands, so shall it be done.”
“Indeed.” My wife leaned into me and gave my neck a nuzzle. “Trixie does indeed wish to feel like an empress tonight.”
Everyone stayed over to continue our planning and brainstorming. While we were engaged in these discussions, we had left instructions not to be disturbed unless a matter of vital importance came up. Therefore, it was with some surprise and a lot of dread that a soldier was allowed entrance to the conference hall. The Crystal Guard made his way over to Cadance and Shining Armor and had a quiet word with them. The Princess turned to face the rest of us, her expression etched with worry. “Gentlebeings, our city is under attack.”
Trixie asked, “Is it Grogar or one of his minions?”
“Neither. It seems that King Sombra has been resurrected through some unknown means. The city is besieged by shadow demons and mind-controlled ponies.”
There was a burst of frantic conversation as everyone tried to take in this new threat. My thoughts were consumed by the question of how a supposedly dead umbrum now lived again and who had revived him. Was it the work of Grogar and, if so, how were we supposed to defeat a power that could raise the dead to serve him?
# # # # # # # # #
Stats
Page generated in 0.028 seconds
Total duration
745 users online
921,834 hits today, 2,004,447 yesterday
FIMFiction
My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic Fanfiction
Designed and coded by knighty & Xaquseg - © 2011-2024
Follow & Support Us
Support us
SubStar
Chat!
Discord
Follow us
Twitter
MLP: Friendship is Magic® - © 2024 Hasbro Inc.®
Fimfiction is in no way affiliated with or endorsed by Hasbro Inc.®
Do we? He's famously capable of being in two places at once.
Oh boy, this is going to prove interesting. Though the entire story, we've always had at least some knowledge because of the show. With the real Grogar showing up, we have to throw all that out.
At least Mark has helped prepare Equestria, and the whole world for that matter, for such an event.
10228137
Sigh. OK, you got us... but that's not all!
Discord is Mark, too!
** PLOT TWIST!!!! **
... but not Trixie as well. 'Cause that would just be weird!
10228175
Look, I'm sorry! It's just that I'm hugely paranoid and Discord lies like a cheap rug.
next thing you know they will ahve to face donw the 'original' smooze....the life destroying ooze that sings as it consumes everything.
10228180
Believe us. Goldfur and I do not want 40+ minute long videos being made with titles like:
MLP:FiM Finale - The Grogar Twist And How It Ruined Discord
10228326
Yeah, I can see how there might be a bit of an aversion there. Alright, you've convinced me. That's the real Grogar.
Now what's he want?
Chrysalis has at least escaped from her chains, even if that is Chrysalis?
Starlights anti spy spell also has an overpowered version that can either create or even dispell gravity singularities?
Maybe somone could make a dimentional portal vaccuum cleaner for invading demons?
How do we know is not Discord in disguise? He can clone himself and be in many places at the same time.
Also, maybe they should alert the other timelines about Grogar
Ooh, so this is being updated. Great! More to read!
"Hawaiian punch?"
"Sure!"
*WHACK!*
Oddly, I just imagined this fitting in somewhere.
Go to DEFCON 2, I'd suggest.
Beetlejuice reference.
Tomato, tomahto.
To quote Aramau, "Meh. Blunt gets thimgs done."
Well shit. Firs things first. Nice chapter. Now my next point is when will they let chrysi out of her damn cage. She's done enough to be allowed free roam of the castle at least. I love her so much. I just want her to be the best damn queen she can be.
Holy shit! Seeing Tempest’s new horn made me instantly think of Moguera’s Savage Skies series
)
(and it would be wicked as fuck for her to be able to use dark matter magic
10229270
Link to the author's works, including the 10 Savage Skies stories.
I really hope Sombra isnt just Rainbow Nuked into perma death, it was so disappointing in the show
Discord is a little eager to be reactionary. Deflecting and converting things with chaos to be beneficial will certainly be a challenge.
That spy spell would be incredibly useful in security systems! Having a nigh-undetectable viewing utility would be great!
Keep going! ;)
god I hope this is actual Grogar not that dumb Discord play in the show
10231485 well.... discord has had multiple copied of himself before...
10232766
yes but him BEING grogar was a bad idea in the show
10232805
wasnt disputing that
10237053
In general, the show canon Celestia comes across as a beloved but not wholly competent ruler. This works great for the show, forcing Twilight and her friends to go fix the many problems that result from Celestia’s failings.
10247363
Indeed
PRICELESS humor
Tough times ahead with Grogar running rampant.
Discord is a very prominent character by now. A rare treat to enjoy. Wonder if we get more of him. Always a treat
umm...did you mean sister?
Heeeee's okay.
Tempest Cutie Mark looks like a creative drawing of a male/Stallion
Just saying...
Mark arrived at Sombras return, now after years he stand against him personaly alongside the others.
Regis's condition initially sounded like the seizures I used to have years and years ago. I myself don't remember them, instead all I know is that one of the meds I took could mess with things and day would be going along and next thing I'd wake up in the hospital.
I'm fine now, but maybe have a few quirks that are left over from whatever the seizures did. (Doctors words not mine).
how were we supposed to defeat a power that could raise the dead to serve him?
A powerful Cenobite once said "we shall tear your soul apart!"
Love the VA jab.