Extra - Royal Knight
The sky was blue as was typical in Canterlot County. One or another white cottony cloud dotted the sky, bright with Celestia's sun. Déjà vu… He had been in a similar situation before when Twilight Sparkle and her friends had left for a picnic and found him lying in the grass, not far from their hometown. Like that day the air smelled freshly of grass and he again felt like he could just lay there forever.
Except, this time, it was not because of the warm heat caressing his body, soft grass like a natural mattress and peaceful feeling of waking up after a long night of healing sleep. He was still stunned with the several-hooves fall with an anvil tied to his neck. Discord could have killed him. Granted, he had shoved a sword through his face, but it was an accident and it was not like it could have hurt the draconequus anyway.
Ouch… His whole body hurt, and he wasn’t sure, but he might have dislocated a wing.
Then the griffon intruded in his view of the nice blue sky, with his white head and ugly scar.
“You alive, kid?” His grin accompanied his gruff but well-humored voice. “That looked great. It’s a shame it didn’t work.”
“Yeah… Tell me about.” Chocolate covered his face with his leg. “Why did you come? Did Celestia put you to follow me too?”
The other had started to untie the rope on the alicorn’s neck. “What? No. It just looked like you had had enough of their shit and I was getting paid, so... Not to mention, I like seeing your kind fight.”
The alicorn sat on the grass. “Let me guess. Second Griffon War? Sided with the ponies against your race?”
The gruff veteran chuckled. “More like griffons and our egos against all the races of the world. Ponies simply were our target and we learned the hard way that the other races don’t take it lightly when you mess with the ones that makes the day and night work… But yes. Most griffon ‘veterans’ that wound up as mercenaries came from that. Let’s say I was on the wrong side of the battlefield and I regret it today.”
His curiosity and interest in Equestrian History got the best of him over his gloominess. “What happened?”
Flying Snake went around to stare at Chocolate. “I was young and stupid, also like most griffon mercenaries. Let some radical speech get the best of me and almost got myself killed. Decided I’d prove my mettle against the commander of the enemy forces in the Battle of Saddle Valley and found myself fighting The Mare herself.”
“Ouch…”
He smiled. It was a bit of an awkward smile from the grizzled looking warrior but was a sincere smile. “So, I wanted to see what you can do.”
“Well, sorry I disappointed you.” Chocolate replied back to his gloomy mood.
“It’s okay. You’re young and inexperienced. These things come with time. Ah, done!” He had finished untying the anvil and stopped for a second. “What is your story, Sir Chocolate Velvet? It’s not usual for Celestia to endear herself to her knights nowadays, I hear. Nor for alicorns to come very frequently.”
“You could say I got a second chance in life. I made a deal with Celestia. Now I’m the Prince-Consort and Knight of the Royal House. I’m just not very good at it.”
“Actually, you handle yourself well in a fight. Well-trained, at least, and with a good head for fighting. Maybe you don’t understand who you were fighting against.” The griffon grinned. “Though I think you should, as a royal knight.”
“Well, I do. A lot. We spar every week. Though I gotta say that Twilight, at least, doesn’t hit as hard as Celestia.”
“Well, she’s right. Monsters are gonna hit you hard, and if you’re gonna be a monster hunter, you gotta be trained the right way. My point that you didn’t do anything wrong. You need more experience.”
“Yeah. I suppose I do.”
“That is not a bad thing. Nobody is born knowing these things.” The griffon opened his wings. “Well. I’m going back to Ponyville. Princess said she might need a consultant for the local militia. It’s easy Bits and the Royal House always pays in time.”
“I’ll be here for a while.”
The other shrugged. “Suit yourself. I’ll tell the princess that you’re fine. See you later.”
The alicorn looked towards the sky. Twilight’s airship was nowhere to be seen and he expected to hear the griffon’s wings flapping away, but instead he heard his voice again. “Kid.”
The griffon was still behind him, staring at him. “I know that stare. You’re thinking. Don’t. Look, I get it: you’re in a position where everyone… Everypony expects you to be awesome and badass, but screw them. You lose some, you win some. It doesn’t mean anything and the only one you gotta answer to is yourself. And even then, you can still be too hard on yourself. It’s only going to make you feel miserable and drop your confidence. Well, I suppose Celestia too, but she is the most forgiving creature in existence.”
Then the griffon took off, and flew away, quickly gaining altitude over a few seconds before disappearing in the distance. The alicorn simply laid on his side and sighed a profound sigh of frustration, letting his head lay on the grass. After a few minutes he got an urge to do something, but instead decided to simply lay there and feel sorry for himself some more, as though the solution to his woes would materialize from thin air.
What did materialize were more unproductive thoughts… He appreciated the sentiment, but the griffon wasn’t the Prince-Consort, Knight of The Royal House, expected to be the best because the Princesses chose him over the entirety of noble class. Sometimes it wasn’t even ponies, but yaks and griffons that would bother him over that. It’s not like he regretted his decisions that led to his situation. Not at all. He simply wished he didn’t have to deal with that additional drama. Then again, he did want to be a knight, he was tied to the princesses and those beget drama by the virtue of their position; so, he supposed he should have thought of that.
Maybe he just thought that things would be different. And then he caught himself feeling sorry for himself. How exactly should things be different? He berated himself for falling in that old trap of blaming everything around him, except himself, for his failures.
Everything around him was as perfect as it could be, and he had only himself to blame for his failures. From the position he had gained, to the friends that took him in as one of them, to Princess Celestia that did everything in her power to make him belong.
Maybe the problem was that he wasn’t very deserving of everything, then. He knew how improper for his status he was. His mind wouldn’t let him forget his insecurities, especially in his present situation.
Time passed and Celestia set the sun to give space for Luna’s night. In a moment of clarity, he saw that laying on the ground and thinking sad things wouldn’t help and that he should go back to Ponyville, Celestia would, after all, be worried for him, if he took too long to return.
At least he would like to think that she would. Well, she would also know that he, likely was pathetically feeling sorry for himself. If he kept that up enough, he might even manage to end her patience and ruin his new life.
No pressure.
Damnit! He was doing it again! Fortunately, no one was looking to see the big brown alicorn hitting himself over the head like a lunatic until he regained his composure.
Still that wouldn’t keep the other thoughts out of his head. His eyes found Luna’s stars and he let out a sigh. Couldn’t help wondering if she missed him or if she was too busy doing whatever she was doing about Ponyville’s local militia. He felt so childish again, considering Celestia was working and he was thinking like an attention whoring child.
Though he was supposed to be special to her, wasn’t he? How could he think of her like that when he doubted her feelings for him?!
He sighed again, and stood, rising to his four legs and stretched his neck upwards, as well as his wings and grimaced at the jolt of pain. Left one was definitively dislocated and moving it reminded him of misaligned gears. He would have to deal with that.
Which way to Ponyville, though? He had kind of lost his way while falling out of control barely keeping his speed survivable with a freaking anvil tied to his neck. Come to think of it, he actually did alright in that regard. His flying training did manage to rub off something on him.
Yeah… Celestia had put him on a mission he had no way of succeeding, supposedly since he failed at it. It was odd… Every time he fought with Twilight and her friends, he had the impression that he could win, but in the end he always lost. Well, it was to be expected since Twilight and her friends, especially with Shining Armor were experienced fighters and adventurers. He had been at it for one single year, and even then, not even a complete year.
This time it hadn’t been a sparring exercise. He thought it might have been different especially with Celestia talking like he did have a chance, but he ended losing anyway.
He caught himself, yet again. That line of thought was rather childish in retrospect, and he had already spent too much time feeling sorry for himself and Celestia wasn’t necessary infallible and could guess wrong; not to mention it was getting cold.
He looked around and saw Mount Canterlot. Looked to the sky and located a group of stars Luna always put in the same place, a reference for travelers. Panicking while he dropped from the sky he had lost his sense of direction, but he felt satisfied he had regained his bearings, and so started a slow walk towards where Ponyville ought to be.
He could smell water nearby and a drink would be welcome. Studying the terrain, he tracked the smell and turned to his ears for the sound of running water, soon finding a small creek of crystalline water, rapid running and cold. It probably came down from underground since Mount Canterlot was too far.
He tasted the water and it was clean, good as cold water always was, especially when one was so thirsty. He, of course, saw his reflection in the water too. His chocolate brown mane was a mess, but he was mostly unharmed. Not his armor, though. He hadn't even noticed yet, but in the place where Twilight had blasted him with a magical beam, his robes vaporized, and the metal underneath pretty much melted together and became a brittle and useless mess.
Goddamnit! These things were expensive! Well, that was what he got for fighting the freaking Bearer of the Element of Magic in a mundane barding. Just how powerful was she anyway? Celestia had told him that magic becomes easier to use, in all of its levels, the more one used it. In fact, Luna had told him the same thing and so did Twilight in one of their study assignments.
Though when he did study with Twilight, they always ended discussing the differences between their worlds. Twilight just couldn’t resist it: at the end of every session, she’d ask about a different aspect of his former life. Once, he blew her mind with Newton’s Theory of Gravitation, and then with General Relativity. She organized a meeting with Celestia and Luna and made him talk about it until he exhausted all he knew of it. Then it freaked her out when he said his knowledge of the subjects were at the layman’s level. According to her, the common pony barely knew more than the practicalities of most sciences in Equestria.
The subject also fascinated Luna, of course, though she was more reserved about it than Twilight. Later he found out princess thought her stars were better…
Another thing his mind brought up in that train of thought was that Celestia simply listened and soaked in what he had to say. Like Twilight, but instead of finding things in common, she simply accepted what he had to say, and after a long night of recounting all he could about physics in general, Twilight went home and he was left with Celestia and Luna for dinner. They talked more about magic, and maybe it was because Luna had had a few more glasses of wine than she should have, but she told him that there is more to magic than what unicorns typically did. There was ancient and powerful magic in words, feelings and sensations, in existence itself… Whatever that meant. Magic that the common pony didn’t even know existed. Though he would hardly have used that word to describe Twilight.
Celestia explained that Twilight had a problem. She believed in a too rigid structure on how magic worked. The most powerful magic existed before the time of mathematics, of universities and blackboards ponies filled with extensively lengthy formulae. Magic came from the heart, not the brain. She did use music to teach him magic in the beginning, and the flow of arcane mental images that caused magic did seem like music to him.
That was why nopony taught pegasi how to fly, or earth ponies how to coax life out of the ground. And, if he managed to break free of these shackles, he would become amazingly powerful.
He hadn’t taken that very seriously until their wedding night… Whoa. Digression. The point was that he was supposed to study the magical science, thaumatology, but the two of them kept warning him that those where a guideline. There was immense power ‘outside’ the rigid structure of the academical study of magic, waiting for him after he had mastered the mundane.
To be fair, he couldn’t imagine Discord running a magical formula in his head, so it made sense.
Back to the subject at hoof, he did have the money to replace his armor and his robes, but it felt bad wasting the Princesses’ money like that.
He raised his front leg and took a look at his shins. Twilight`s magic sword literally melted pieces of it off. She could’ve sliced it off along with his leg if she meant to! That is why one didn’t fight without proper protection a monster capable of channeling magic or a creature with enchanted weapons.
Duskshine, Twilight called her sword, a replica of Star Swirl's Spellbound. Because, of course it was…
He angrily ripped off the burned remains of his half-disintegrated robes and along with it came his wheelock pistols, all four of them, ruined, with metals melt together and charred wood parts. They were completely useless and away they went with the robes and plated metal armor. Some plates were in useable condition, but they were custom-made and the whole thing would have to be made again and, right now, they did little more than irritate him.
He still felt bad throwing it away, though. It was a gift, after all, and it wasn’t magical, enchanted armor, but it was very expensive and Celestia and Luna did give it to him. He was very happy when he first wore it. It was a shame it was ruined now. His sword was a gift too and only Discord knew where it was.
He sighed again. He'd have to wear his Royal Guard armor, the one that did have its enchantment, but was meant more as ceremonial since he’d always be near the Princesses. He was meant to ‘grow out of It’, eventually, when he had got his actually enchanted armor as a Royal Knight. Technically, he had been knighted already, but they were only allowed to wear such armor and wield such weapons after they have proved their skill and valor. It was meant to inspire the inexperienced into improving and seeking great deeds and making a name for themselves. He was also sure it was meant to keep the richer ponies bound to a code of honor and of humility, but also show them the value of such items. How much more dangerous an enchanted weapon was when compared to simple steel.
But sometimes, it only got in the way. Pff… Great… Now he felt like an entitled little brat.
He lifted the mess of metal and cloth in his magic, somewhat conflicted about simply throwing it away, but he didn’t think it could be salvaged. It used to be beautiful, with its shinny white metal and gold embroidery. Not to mention his pistols: they were a work of art.
What? Should he bury it or something? He felt stupid.
Part of him though couldn’t help imagining it as a metaphor for the good-looking knight that is ultimately useless at anything other than looking good. Especially next to The Sisters and their immense power.
When he moved it out of the way his left wing reminded him it’s joint was out of place. Sure, it hurt, but it didn’t feel that bad. He was sure no tendons or nerves had been ruptured and the dislocation felt like it was only partial. He could get it back into place with his telekinetic magic and then all he’d need was immobilize it and take some anti-inflammatories. Or rather a healing potion… Whatever. For an instant he wondered if he should learn the more advanced medicinal magic. Those could be useful even as a knight and Royal Guard.
Heavens forbid, he would be able to help one of the Sisters if they ever got injured, but that was an issue for another time.
He stepped on his robe and bit at it, pulling a swath of cloth. Expensive linen, but it was still cloth, and even though it was not perfect, it should suffice. Then he folded his wing and pulled its shoulder articulation back into place with a pop. The pain didn’t even bother him that much. Apparently, his training did harden him a bit, after all. Finally, he tied his wing into place.
Then he turned his attention to what remained of his robes and armor.
“Throw that trash away.” A harsh female voice said with its eerie reverberation and aggressive tone. “I would give my favored knight something far better, if I had one.”
‘Subtle…’ He thought and didn’t even have to look to imagine the changeling queen approaching him. Her hooves disturbed the grass and her magic radiated, oppressive, enveloping him as she walked past behind him, until she stood next to him looking down at the things he held. “You don’t look very happy. I suppose I wouldn’t too.”
He didn’t answer, instead stared at her. He had seen the queen a few times before, always in a formal situation and close to Celestia and Luna, so she hadn’t intimidated him much. Typically, he avoided her despite her curiousness about him. Now, alone with her, in the dark and with insistent thoughts about her fame and his infame she looked dangerous while she circled him, staring at him in a very uncomfortable way that made him fell naked.
Well, he was, but the point was the way she looked at him.
“What is the matter?” She asked in what he identified as false concern and then disguised mocking when she looked him in the eyes. “I thought Celestia had covered you in the most expensive of enchanted armor.”
She let her eyes wander again and smiled very indulgently. “Though I wouldn’t cover those flanks.”
“Yeah…. You probably also heard she refitted her old airship because of me too.” He sat on the grass holding the armor in his hooves… And his flank away from her. “Newspapers do everything they can to make me the biggest problem in Equestria. You’d think they’re more afraid of me than of the Lion.”
Why was he even talking to her? He didn’t even like her and it would be better for him to simply leave.
“By the looks of it…” She stared down at the broken barding again. “Celestia could be doing a better job of taking care of you.”
“Chrysalis, what do you want?” His patience had reached its limit. What he felt, he realized, wasn’t exactly fear. It was more a sense of annoyance. “I really don’t feel like entertaining these games right now.”
“I thought I should tell you some things about yourself.” She was serious, like he had never seen her before, when she would usually mock and make fun of others, of him. “Celestia had your body made and needed me to keep you alive long enough. You were not born like ponies usually are.”
His eyes bulged. “What… What do you mean?!”
She grinned. Just a barely perceptible grin of satisfaction while she paced around him. “You’re not normal. You’re a freak she created just to entertain her perverted little fantasies. All you’re supposed to do is look pretty next to her. Luna said it herself.”
“Oh no…” He deadpanned. “I suppose I must change to your side and let you pamper me with all my desires as though you’d want me to like you so that you would use me to hurt Celestia and Luna.”
Then he faked a small sad cry and she frowned, stopped pacing around him when he scowled at her. “You’re late to this party. It was one of the first things she’s told me, and not a moment too soon because it seemed like every creep from Yakyakstan to Saddle Arabia wanted to recruit me in their little scheme to attack the Princesses.”
“Then I think you ought to have more self-respect than that.” She frowned right back at him, accusingly. “Do you like being her toy?”
First, he grinned smugly. “Well, first of all, better to be her toy than yours.”
“I mean, it’s not my fault your cutie mark is a heart shaped chocolate box…” She grinned mockingly. “I bet Cadance was jealous.”
Second, he gave her a neutral stare and she rolled her eyes. “Not to mention that I know what I’m doing here. You don’t. If you knew the things that I know, you would be begging me to follow you.”
“I knew it… Luna was lying. Though I am confused, Chocolate Velvet.” She grinned a little more. “I thought that you had a problem with the way Celestia treated you. Sounds like you know your worth, that I should say, seems to go beyond appearances, yet you are here, moping around like you’re not happy. What am I missing? Better yet, what are you missing? Because I’m pretty sure I could give it to you.”
“Seriously, Chrysalis, stop. You’re not the first viper to pull this with me, this month alone. You’re the fifth to try and make me their ally. Those nutjobs from the Pillars of Canterlot Society, some loser from the Male Rulers Association and three of those rising nobles that think they can take on the Crown and rule from the shadows like they’re in a cloak and dagger novel. Please…”
“Well, I am almost offended you think I am on their level…” She moved in front of him, seductively, carrying her hips and letting her tail dance in front of him. “You should think more carefully on what I could do for you, and what you could then do for me, and what we could do, together, with Equestria. If we only moved The Sisters out of the way.”
“Do you take me for an idiot, Chrysalis?” The brown alicorn scowled angrily at what he saw as a personal offense. “We don’t even know what would happen to the sun if you killed Celestia. For that alone, I could go to the Senate right now and accuse you of plotting against her life and the entire world would fall on your head faster than even she could protect you. Then, even if you got Celestia killed, all you’d have would be a bunch of useless titles because Celestia has Cadance as her secondary inheritor and Luna as her primary and regent. If you managed to kill both Sisters, you’d still have to deal with Cadance, and then, even if you did, the empire would splinter into all its individual kingdoms. She’s managed to carve for herself and her sister an unassailable position. First because everyone loves her, and second because they see her as their protector from idiots like you and the Lion.”
“Oh… Nice speech, Bishop Velvet.” She mocked him derisively. “When is the Church of Celestia opening its doors, so that the rest of us, the mere mortals can bask in her glory?”
She smiled delightedly next. “Also, it sounds like you know some things about the dear Sisters, because last I checked, the common pony believed that the Sun can be moved with a team of unicorns…”
“Go to hell, Chrysalis…” He turned, walking away angrily. Ponyville was the other way, but he wanted some distance from the changeling queen for the time being. His head was hot with frustration and anger. He couldn’t trust himself to keep a level head talking to her.
She laughed and followed, though, keeping a small distance. “You are young. You didn’t see that she started just as any of us, the humble queen of a pathetic, dirty fiefdom in the middle of what survived Discord. She never did anything that couldn’t have been done by you, or I.”
He sighed, stopped and turned in defeat. “What is your point, Chrysalis?”
“My point.” She stopped next to him and her hoof touched his chest. “Is that you think way too highly of her. Celestia, and her little sister, are every bit the evil monsters that you think I am. In fact, they have lied and killed quite a bit more than I did.”
“You see…” She went on. “Moving the sun and the moon was nice and all, but it was expected. It was the legions of Battlehorns that made a lot of difference, because normal creatures don’t give their realms to be ruled by someone else.”
“I don’t care! I don’t even know what is a Battlehorn, and as far as I am concerned, Equestria is in the best hooves it could ever be.”
She rose an eyebrow, holding his leg so that he wouldn’t turn away. “Do you know this weird feeling right now? It’s called ‘cognitive dissonance’. How come you are fine with Celestia lying and killing, but you are not with me? She is lying to you, using you right now.”
His leg pulled away from hers. “It’s because I doubt you would ever do it because you believed it would be the best for Equestria. The difference between you and Celestia, and Luna, is that while I’m sure you would make everything about yourself, they made it about unity and coexistence when it was possible.”
“Oh, aren’t you a good little trooper?” She mocked him with her unnerving smile.
He was about to tell her a collection of bad words he remembered from his original world, but a bright flash drew both of them to the arrival of the white alicorn. She wore her typical royal regalia, looking around for a second or two before she finally saw them. “Chocolate? Why didn’t you go back to Ponyville? Oh my goodness! You’re hurt!”
“In quite a few ways, I have heard.” The changeling queen grinned at her.
“Is that so?” The princess smiled full of confidence, though Chocolate Velvet wasn’t sure what she was so confident about. “I am terribly sorry then. I seem to have interrupted something. Please, pay me no mind.”
“Actually, Chrysalis was just leaving. Or I was just leaving. Either work for me.” His unfriendly expression should have scared both away, but Chrysalis was too annoying and Celestia was too motherly for that.
“So, I suppose that you are perfectly fine with everything that is going on in your perfect little home…” He didn’t answer right away, just wished she was gone already, and she knew she had hit the right spot. She laughed jovially. “Come on, stud. Talk to me. You wouldn’t be here, sulking like that if things where perfect. You know I can help. Ah… I understand if you don’t want to betray Celestia since she has done so much for you already despite what difficulties you may be encountering… How about you start by telling me about yourself?”
He let out a frustrated sigh, sitting on the grass and staring distantly to Mount Canterlot under Luna’s stars. “My parents were very rich. We were leaving the movie theater… It’s like a regular theater that you have here, but instead of watching the actual actors playing the performance, you see a series of projected images, very fast, giving the impression of movement. With music and sounds…”
“Sounds amazing!” Celestia had sat on the grass and clapped her hooves together.
“Less pointless details, more story, please.” Chrysalis rolled her eyes.
“Well, we left the place late in the night and our car was on the other side of the alley. We had crossed it before, but it was still day and it didn’t seem that scary. At night, we didn’t even see where that guy had come from. He smelled bad of alcohol and pointed a gun at mom, demanding her pearl necklace. He was trembling more than we were and Dad tried talking to him, he asked him not to hurt us, and said that he wanted to help. Dad had all sorts of social assistance corporations in the city… He could have given that guy a decent job, a better life.”
“What happened then?” Celestia asked softly, as though she already knew the answer but felt that her consort needed to say it.
Chrysalis remained quiet, memorizing the details in his story and filing it away so that she could use them to exploit his feelings as soon as the opening showed.
“He grabbed Mom’s collar and it broke. The little pearls fell to the street. She screamed and that scared him. He shot Mom.” Chocolate went on. “Then he shot Dad and ran away. They died there…”
The white alicorn stared at him with her ears flopped down and Chrysalis let some worry into her voice. “What happened them? How did you survive into adulthood?”
“I inherited my parents’ money, even though that couldn’t bring them back.” He said gloomly, but then he puffed his chest and rose his head in a heroic pose. “I vowed that I would avenge my parents and that I would fight crime. I used my money and all the resources in my father’s corporate empire to make myself stronger and better. I became not the hero the city deserved, but the one it needed! Criminals feared me and I even had my own theme song. Nanananananananana Batman!”
The two stared at him for a few seconds, stuck between confusion and surprise while he ‘sang’ with the most annoying high-pitched voice they have ever heard until Celestia started grinning and then giggling uncontrollably. Chrysalis just grunted and angrily hoofed his shoulder.
“You are an idiot.” She growled. “You are both idiots! And I hate both of you!”
Chrysalis growled some more and Celestia smiled at Velvet. “You can tell her what is bothering you.”
“But-” He started, but she silenced him softly shaking her head.
“I got it!” Celestia grinned. “I’m going to sit there and cover my ears so that I don’t hear what you tell her.”
For a few seconds, both Chocolate Velvet and Queen Chrysalis stood next to each other staring at the ridiculous scene of Princess Celestia stepping away from then and sitting with her back to them covering her ears with her hooves.
“Fine!” He grunted. “I thought that Celestia had sent me to fight Twilight and her friends knowing that I couldn’t beat them. But then, she needed me to motivate the ponies from the militia and didn’t care about how I felt. Then again, I am goddamn tired of Twilight making fun of me because of me being more of a pretty accessory rather than an actual knight.”
He let out a sigh this time. “I know I sound like a child. And I don’t like this. But…”
He couldn’t say anymore. Chrysalis was listening and he wasn’t enough of a fool to believe that she would be nicer to him than Celestia was. Or even be nice. And it wasn’t about that. He was frustrated with himself, his own lack of power and skills. He knew that Twilight’s teasing, now that his head was cool, was friendly teasing. He could never find malice in Twilight. Or any of her friends… Maybe Rainbow Dash… But that wasn’t the point.
“I understand…” Chrysalis did her best to sound understanding. Could even have fooled him if he didn’t know better. “You feel cheated. Sounds like somepony made a promise that they are failing to fulfill.”
They stared at Celestia’s back a few paces away, covering her ears. “Well, then I don’t think that she could be making my point much easier to prove.”
Chocolate felt awful… She was not going to because she didn’t need to. Unlike himself, she did have faith in him. Maybe he should have more faith in her. It’s been a year they’ve been living together, and she’s tolerated his childish way far more than he would have.
That thought stung. But he supposed he deserved that and in a much harsher way than he thought it. What could he say about her faith in him when his own faith in her left a lot to be desired? It was, usually, so easy for him to trust Celestia… He wished he could will these conflicting feelings away from his mind.
He didn’t mean to, but his inner feelings certainly showed outside, and the changeling queen was next to him, metaphorically, like a tigress about to pounce. “Well, you certainly don’t seem very happy.”
He was tired of that charade, though. “You can’t offer me anything, Chrysalis. And the reason I’m not happy is because I am frustrated with my own abilities.”
Instead of becoming angry, as he expected, she grinned maliciously. “You are wrong. I can give you all the strength you would ever need or desire. We are unlocking the secrets of the flesh and of the soul. Sounds like you could help me even more with what you know. You have enemies, I know. We can destroy them. I can give you all you would ever need to make them suffer. Let’s see… How about those snobs in the Canterlot Society for the Good Manners of Royalty? Or whatever stupid name they gave themselves? How would you like to flatten a few of them against the nearest wall? We can do that, and I know you will like that.”
“We don’t even need to be that specific.” She grinned even more, this time like a predator about to pounce. “You could name any one of those annoying pricks that make your life a personal Tartarus because they’re angry Celestia chose you for whatever she needed you, and not them.”
She walked around him like she had done before, throwing her tail around seductively. He was sure it was meant to invoke a feeling of seductiveness, at least, but it was simply vulgar in his eyes and he wished she’d realize that wasn’t helping her case. Still, she walked around him, like a snake coiling itself around its prey.
Regardless, he knew that she could do all that, and more.
“Or maybe, you would prefer to take revenge on the one that’s fooled you?” She finally stopped in front of him, smirking and raising an eyebrow. “Maybe you don’t have the abilities you would need, or maybe she would prefer that you don’t.”
“What do you mean?” She didn’t exactly surprise him, but her words made him see one important detail: as much as he knew, what he knew was told to him by Celestia, and she could, easily, have hidden things from him. Matter of fact, it was possible that, since Celestia needed Chrysalis for whatever magic they did that made him, the queen could know things about him that Celestia didn’t. Or, worse yet, did know, but wouldn’t tell him.
What an easy jump it was, from that to thinking that Chrysalis might tell him things that Celestia didn’t know she knew and didn’t want him to know. What if she did have some ulterior motive to have him close to her. Something she didn’t disclose to him, after all, she did hide things from the others… Why else would she resort to a complete outsider and not one of her own ponies to be with her and her sister?
Great. Just great.
“Well, it looks like you’re not so sure anymore…” Her voice startled him, and to his panic, his inner thoughts showed. He could see it in her grin that she saw right through him.
“What do you mean?” He insisted, tried to sound angry rather than scared, hoping she wouldn’t read just how unsure, bordering on the scared he was right then. “I want to know.”
“Well…” She started with a silky and venomous tone. “Maybe Celestia only needs your… Body. And not in the way that I had assumed.”
“What?” His head cocked back. “I don’t…”
“I have some reasons to believe that Celestia intends on using you to be reborn.” The queen, again, seemed much more serious, more direct than she usually was, staring intently at him. “You see, I messed around with the pieces that Celestia gave me… Do you know what for?”
He didn’t. His mind drew a blank that was soon colored in all shades of horror with ideas and fears that were likely worse than the reality, had he tried to picture the kind Celestia involved in them, but also a possibility… He knew stories. Some of them absurd tales ponies told themselves about the Sisters. Some reasonable tales of not such a nice pony. Most of them whispered far away from the throne room, repeated by his fellow Royal Guards when the princesses weren’t around, conspiratory musings seeking to know the truth from the one that was closest to them.
Tales of deities and of monsters. Of queens and far away, ancient wars only the princesses would have witnessed. Of ancient magic with weird powers and dangerous repercussions.
Even Twilight poked at him for answers, once or twice… He had plenty of material to fill his head with… Bad things. The idea of the monster hiding within the nice and pretty pony was too alluring, too amusing and fascinating to ignore.
Also, too clichéd.
His head turned to the white alicorn still ridiculously sitting on her haunches with her back to them and covering her ears with her hooves like an innocent child in a game. That just so happens to have a golden and respected crown over her head. Her weird mane that waves about like it’s caught in an ethereal wind that touches nothing else. He knew her power. He knew her knowledge… Every bit as dangerous and terrifying as Chrysalis’s fangs.
His eyes found the queen, standing next to him, staring at him with draconian eyes and a blank, inscrutable expression. Waiting for her words to fester inside his head.
Well, what about her? Every bit as evil as she looked to the point even her own changelings called her a monster. Every pony, griffon, yak and dragon – even the dragons – called her a monster.
He sat on the ground, looking at nothing in particular through concerned eyes. Perhaps two monsters, one overt and explicit, despite its secretiveness and covert methods; and another, hiding and lurking under its openness and charming ways.
“Come with me…” The whisper came in the reverberating voice of the readily apparent monster. “Leave her… I can hide you where she can’t find you. Safe and sound, while I get things ready.”
“What do you mean?” He whispered back, more in reaction to her own whispering than on his volition.
“I have samples of what Celestia gave me… Her flesh and her soul.” She grinned mischievously; sure she had defeated an old enemy. “With them, I’ve created powerful changeling soldiers, and with time, I can unlock powers we haven’t imagined yet in you. I’ll make you any way you wish to be.”
They both stared at the princess’ back before the queen went on subtly seductively, promising everything and anything if he would only leave that geriatric moron sitting on the grass to find an empty field of grass where they now stood. “Do not concern your thoughts with ideas of golden and white armor or naïve knights running around the land slaying monsters for the sake of a princess that pays you no mind enough to give you decent means to get your job done. You won’t need any of that and you know as well as I do that they are bloated with self-importance.”
She had laid herself over his back and her legs surrounded her chest, caressing him with her velvety black carapace. “Leave the mantle of Servant and become King. To take whatever you desire, under no laws… A god among the mortals, as sun, moon and land yield under our will.”
Images of black coats and red eyes, certainly with bat wings and jagged (or broken) horns floated before his mind before he caught himself being utterly ridiculous. Other than that, Chrysalis’ words didn’t have the effect she desired, mostly because he saw something important: she meant to turn him into a monster.
His eyes drifted back to the white alicorn, with her back turned to them, still ridiculously holding her hooves to her ears. He wondered for a second if she realized how silly that looked. But, then again, he had already learned that Celestia didn’t care about looking silly. And that was when she didn’t intentionally. He simply didn’t know which was the case this time.
Celestia was manipulative, just like Chrysalis as a matter of fact. Still, trusting her was so much easier. On the other hand… Hoof… Didn’t that just mean that she was better at that? He would be lying to himself if he said that Chrysalis’ words didn’t scare him… What if she was right and Celestia really had hidden motives to keep him close to her? He didn’t fully understand the magic behind the things those two did to bring him into the world… It was well within the boundaries of the reasonable that she would surprise him one day and he would be powerless to resist.
The Royal Knights are known for being pompous and self-important, but they also do protect the entire world from monsters that would wreak havoc in every city they ever came in contact with. Chrysalis made fun of them because she knew he yearned for their acceptance. If not for that, she likely would never have mentioned them.
With that said, Celestia made sure he understood his situation, instead of trying to use it to sway him to her side. She also didn’t try to buy his loyalty with ridiculous promises -that he was sure the queen could follow on-, but the Princess instead let him be whatever he wanted. At the time, he had the feeling that she wouldn’t even force him to help them with their joint project with Chrysalis.
Maybe it was part of her ruse, so that sometime in the future she would be able to use him for whatever nefarious intention Chrysalis hinted at, and he would be none the wiser, but his heart told him the most convincing argument of all: he liked being with his princesses. Both of them. Memories of intimacy told him they felt the same… They would be vile to play such a game in their moments of passion. He couldn’t keep his thoughts out of the wedding night.
Though, for some reason, he didn’t have problems imagining Chrysalis actually doing so.
The bottom line was that both Celestia and Chrysalis, could be lying to him, but one of them didn’t try to buy him with promises of power and ridiculous abilities. Instead, she trusted him to make his own choice, and let him struggle in his own personal battles. While ridiculously sitting on the grass and covering her ears.
He sighed once, deeply, and then he stood on his legs and walked slowly towards the white alicorn without a single stare towards the other.
“You are making a mistake.” He could hear the anger in her voice. He didn’t answer though: he closed his mind to her or else he might never make a decision. That infuriated her even more. “You are unbelievably foolish if you think she didn’t plan for this! Under that ridiculous display of hers, she knew every word out of us and you have no idea what she would’ve done to both of us had you chosen my side!”
He ignored her and approached Celestia, still sitting on the grass, covering her ears. A light touch on her back roused her and she smiled at him.
He smiled back, a little shyly. “Let’s go back to Ponyville?”
Her hoof touched his cheek. “I’ll be right behind you.”
And with that, he started on his way towards the small pony town. Celestia stood and turned to Chrysalis, though. The queen managed to sulk angrily, but the princess didn’t find it endearing as she approached her.
Chrysalis spoke first though, with her typical mocking smile. “What did you do with him to make him into such a loyal good boy?”
“I treat him like a pony, not an asset. That’s ‘the secret’.” Her voice wasn’t very friendly or match the queen’s lighter tone. In fact, Celestia didn’t look like she was in the mood to entertain any of Chrysalis games. “What are you doing here?”
“I wasn’t aware I am not allowed to roam freely, Celestia.” Her mocking smile became even deeper.
“Do not test my patience, Chrysalis. There was no need for this childish game.”
“Oh… You are worried that you could’ve lost him.” Her mocking tone was starting to get on Celestia’s nerves. “Sounds like that it was the perfect idea.”
“I trusted him enough to know that he wouldn’t turn his back on me.” She said. “But your irritating game was a provocation that you could have afforded to avoid.”
“And you…” The queen narrowed her eyes, staring angrily at the alicorn and poking at her chest with a hoof. “Could have afforded to be a little more forthcoming with your little scheme. Luna has just told me that you came up with your dreamy knight in shining armor purely for… Carnal reasons.”
Despite her best efforts, the princess simply could not stand the idea and her anger crumbled in a fit of laughing. The queen smiled at that, and paced about, in front of her from one side to the other like a prowling cat. “I am glad you find it funny, Celestia. Because I swear on the Changeling Rock I did not. And I am also ready to know the real reason behind this whole drama with his creation, because as you know I have invested significant resources into this project. He had better benefit me in one way or another.”
“You are seeing this through the wrong mentality, Chrysalis.” The princess said calmly, after regaining her breath. “This is not about you helping me. I didn’t need you.”
“Nonsense!” The queen exclaimed triumphantly. “Are you actually going senile? You needed me to keep him alive!”
“You needed me, Chrysalis. I could have waited for another millennium if I had to. But you could not.” The princess remained calm. “The changelings wouldn’t have you. The ponies wouldn’t have you. Neither would the dragons or griffons. You had managed to make an enemy out of every single government and even individuals that could have helped you out of charity or even self-interest. Mostly because you never gave a chance to peaceful coexistence, but also because you tried to subvert or abuse every attempt at helping you. When Thorax became king, nopony cared that you had left and that you were going to die. Alone and starved in some Harmony forsaken hole.”
She was furious. If she could, she might have murdered the pony in front of her right then and there. She inhaled deeply through flared nozzles and stared as though she could set Celestia on fire by its sheer intensity.
None of that perturbed the pony, who simply remained calm, stoically staring back at her.
When, in a few instants her inner fury had run its course, the queen relented and closed her eyes softly. She backed out, sitting on the grass with a heavy sigh.
“I am terribly sorry, Chrysalis.” Celestia said sympathetically. More than the other liked. “This is a terrible thing to hear, but it is the truth. You are between friends now, though. You don’t have to act like that all the time, and no one has the desire to hurt you. In fact, we could have a much easier and fun time if you understood that.”
“Oh, spare me, Celestia.” She rolled her eyes. “You’re not my friend. You are hiding things from me. Things that are relevant to the deal we made.”
Then the princess’ eyes narrowed. “So are you. But I am giving you your space. I am trusting you.”
“Right…” Chrysalis almost choked on her words and chuckled nervously in a most uncharacteristic way for her. “I better go, now. I… Well, Luna needs me.”
She backed a few steps and them her green-tinted magic teleported her away, leaving the Princess alone next to a small magical scorch mark in the grass. She didn’t linger however, going after her consort at a slightly hurried pace.
She soon caught up with him, who looked back at her approach and smiled at her.
“Are you feeling better?” She asked, while she took the lead in the walk.
“I am… She… Uh… It was a bit unsettling.”
“Chrysalis isn’t the problem, Chocolate Velvet. Your insecurity is not cute. It is not endearing.” She said without looking at him following her. “If you cannot trust me to be honest with you, then I cannot trust that you would do the same to me. If you do not trust me intrinsically… This is not going to work. Not with me, not with Luna.”
Then she stopped walking and he stopped next to her, looking at her, whose eyes aimed at the ground. “We wanted a lover. A companion to share our long years. Not a foal for me to raise. Especially because Luna would simply lay that on me, being the older sister.”
“I understand, Celestia…” He said calmly. “I have a question for you though…”
He couldn’t remember ever seeing her put such an angry expression before but didn’t have time to react. “I could have just left you lose in Equestria, but you chose to be with us... Did you join me simply because it would give you a higher status? Because of my access to resources?”
“What?” He grimaced and took a step back, blurting out words before his head caught up with his mouth when he understood her point. “I mean… Ah… I’m sorry… You’re right. You won’t hear of this again.”
“There is more I need you to understand: yes, you could have beaten Twilight. She and her friends are used to fight monsters. You have the training of a Royal Guard… Fighting ponies is included in your job.” She frowned a little more. “Yes, I have used you to motivate those ponies… It is my job to use ponies who put themselves at my service. That is why I need you to trust me.”
Finally, silence set in and they walked in silence for a few minutes, under the starry clear sky. He followed her under a little cold air, but not enough that it would bother them too much through their coats, and the grass made for silent steps. He spoke softly when he did. “Chrysalis said some things I think you should know of.”
She had softened a little. “I am sure she did. Chrysalis has a tendency of becoming arrogant when she thinks she is winning and of giving in to anger when she thinks she is losing. In the meantime, she is conniving and self-centered… We will talk about it later. We’ll see to your injury once we’re in Ponyville. Then we dinner and after that, you can tell me all you need.”
They walked in silence, again, for a few more seconds, until she turned to him again, and her horn glowed with its golden magical aura. She grabbed his left ear and pulled it like he was a misbehaving child.
“Ow! Celestia! OW OW!” He protested but her magic didn’t budge in the slightest and he was sure it would rip his ear off before he escaped her magical grasp.
She stared at him with a deep crimson tint in her cheeks. “I swear I am going to make you regret vanishing on me like that!”
“Ow! Okay! I get it! Let go!” He paused for an instant. “You’re sending some very confusing messages right now!”
“Hush.” She pulled at his ear, forcing him to walk faster and in front of her. “We’ll discuss this too when we arrive at Ponyville’s inn. Make haste!”
He broke into a panicked gallop with a squeak and she followed, flapping her wings angrily. “I will teach you rascal to respect your matriarch!”
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Ah, I was wondering if they would ever find his carcass after the anvil incident.
Not going to lie, Chocolate had me going with that Batman backstory for longer than I'd like to admit!
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Chocolate Velvet is a silly pony.