Chapter 12 - The Inquisition (Part 2)
Twilight returns to the group with Ember. She takes her place on the couch next to Arc as Ember stands before the other princesses. Celestia smiles at her warmly.
“Hello again, Ember. Or should I call you Dragon Lord?”
Ember glares at Celestia as she raises her voice. “You should…!”
Arc leans forward, takes her arm, and sighs. “Let’s try to keep this civil please.”
Ember grits her teeth as she pulls her arm free. “Fine.”
Turning back to the princesses, she narrows her eyes.
“Let’s get this over with.”
Celestia nods as she gestures to Arc. “We were just told about the events leading up to Twilight banishing… her friend here.”
Cadance looks to Ember. “Would you please tell us how exactly he conducted himself in Tartarus?”
Ember rolls her eyes. “There’s a lot to unpack there.”
Luna smiles at her. “Perhaps you should start at the beginning then.”
“Fine.”
Clearing her throat, Ember collects her thoughts for a few moments before speaking.
“You see, I was a citizen of a town full of ponies whom had rescued me from certain death. After fighting a group of demons I was badly injured. They took me in.”
Celestia nods approvingly. “Commendable. Or did they do so out of a desire to exploit the Dragon’s Code?”
Ember shakes her head. “They didn’t know anything about it. After I was somewhat recovered, I decided to repay them by helping with some chores around the town.”
Luna raises an eyebrow. “What did you do?”
“Process beetles mostly.”
Twilight appears confsued. “Process?”
Arc sighs. “Remove the organs and separate the contents of the stomach. Among other things.”
Luna grimaces. “For sustenance?”
Ember nods. “Yes. However as we were finishing up one day there was a commotion outside. Everyone ran to the gates where a wagon was just entering. Several stallions helped the heavily wounded driver down from the seat and carried them to the Town Hall. That’s where injured ponies were taken as the mayor, Mythic Honor, was also our doctor.”
Cadance gasps. “Did he recover?”
Ember shakes her head. “No. He died on the way there.”
Luna nods soberly. “A loss to the community.”
Ember groans. “The problem was that he was their best warrior. That’s why he went out every day. I decided I would help fill up their supply house in his place before departing.”
Arc chuckles. “And on one such supply run you met me.”
“Right.”
Celestia frowns. “Did he attack you, Ember?”
“Quite the opposite. You see, the demons had put quite a price on my head for causing them so much trouble and even sent out trained beasts out to search for me. During one of their attacks I was surrounded and cornered. I thought it was all over for me until Arc came charging in to help.”
Twilight nods approvingly. “That was very brave of him.”
Ember scoffs. “More like foolish. He didn’t hardly know which end of the spear to hold.”
Arc sighs. “I just kinda acted without thinking there.”
“Darn right! I thought your technique was pretty strange back then. At the time I just figured it was something to throw off opponents.”
“Kinda was.”
“What?!”
“Hey, I got better!”
“Thanks to me!”
“Right.”
Luna clears her throat loudly. “So Ember trained you, Arc?”
“Yeah. Proper form, weight distribution, spear stance, the works.”
Ember rolls her eyes. “Took longer than I thought it would.”
“Well, you were dealing with a total amateur.”
“Eventually he got good enough to actually go outside and help me hunt beetles. They’re pretty much harmless.”
Celestia narrows her eyes. “And you used them to get Arc used to killing?”
Arc turns to Ember. “Did you?”
Ember shrugs. “Yeah. So what?”
“Makes sense. I did the same for my squad if you recall.”
Ember grins smugly. “And you thought you were being original.”
“Kinda did.”
“Anyways… at one point we needed some supplies that couldn’t be foraged for. So Arc and I snuck into the capital city to deal with a demon vendor.”
Luna smirks. “Very daring!”
Cadance “Disguises?”
“Kinda. After all, we needed to blend in with the locals.”
“How did you do it?”
Ember groans. “Mythic Honor… put a magic leash on me. He told Arc to pretend I was his lover.”
Twilight gasps. “WHAT?!”
Arc shrugs. “It worked!”
Ember blushes slightly. “Yeah. And he did take really good care of me when I was under his control.”
“Mostly because you would have whooped me when the twenty-four hours was up.”
“And all this time I thought you were being a gentleman.”
“I was!”
Ember grins. “That you were.”
She turns back to Celestia before continuing.
“Sometime later when we were out foraging, I… fell ill.”
Celestia raises an eyebrow. “I wasn’t aware that such a thing was possible given dragon biology.”
“It generally isn’t. But Arc took me back to town and had me looked at.”
Arc sighs. “Some kind of weird disease had taken ahold of her.”
“Mythic Honor said another dragon that lived there years ago had it too.”
Cadance smiles. “And you were treated as he was?”
“Nah. He died.”
Arc nods soberly. “That’s when I went out to find Hydra Humor.”
Twilight raises an eyebrow. “You went to find an extinct… THE MARQUIS!”
Arc puts a hand over Twilight’s mouth as Ember glares at her.
“Twilight!”
Celestia gasps. “There’s still a living hydra?!”
Arc sighs. “Yes.”
Luna frowns. “Might we ask where?”
Ember grits her teeth. “NO!”
Cadance holds her hooves out. “Alright, alright. Let’s all just stay calm.”
Ember points a claw at Celestia. “You want to know where they are, fine! In the Dragon Lands!”
Celestia smirks. “They?”
Ember blushes and covers her mouth with both claws as Arc shakes his head.
“Dragon Lord Torch granted them amnesty a long time ago to hide them from those whom sought their humor.”
Ember clenches a fist. “And you’d better not set one HOOF over there if you know what’s good for you!”
Celestia sighs. “Very well, Ember. I promise that I won’t go to the Dragon Lands in search of the hydra.”
“Or send anyone else?!”
“You have my word.”
“Good! You just remember…!”
Twilight interrupts her. “Ember, please… the topic at hoof.”
Arc nods. “Yes. Let’s let this one go.”
“Fine.”
Grunting, she again speaks.
“Arc found the hydra, defeated him, befriended him, and was given the humor as a gift.”
“That and he donated the scales used to make my original armor.”
Celestia raises an eyebrow. “Original armor?”
Ember grits her teeth. “The armor that YOU destroyed when YOU tried to kill Arc!”
“Ember, let that go.”
“I will not! She almost…!”
“EMBER!”
Taken aback by Arc’s tone, Ember sits there stunned for a few moments as Arc speaks.
“There’s quite a few things in the past that I’d like to leave there. Please respect that.”
Ember grimaces. “I’ll try.”
“Continue.”
“Mythic Honor made a cure out of the humor Arc brought back. I was on my feet in no time. But Arc wasn’t so lucky.”
Twilight gasps. “Were you injured?!”
Arc puts a hand to his forehead. “Exhaustion mostly. I remember getting back to Ember’s side. The rest is kinda hazy though.”
“That night I helped Mythic Honor created Eidolon’s Ward. The signature armor of his that YOU…!”
Twilight cuts her off. “Ember, please!”
Arc frowns. “Continue the story.”
Ember groans. “Fine. But you KNOW some parts trigger me!”
“Keep going.”
“As per the Dragon’s Code, I couldn’t be indebted to Arc for saving my life.”
Celestia frowns. “Oh?”
“It wouldn’t do to have the Dragon Lord beholden to someone, after all.”
Luna shrugs. “Makes sense.”
Cadance appears apprehensive. “So what was done instead?”
“I challenged Arc to one-on-one combat.”
Twilight shudders. “Was he okay?!”
Arc chuckles. “Just bruised mostly. Ember was exhausted too.”
Cadance grins. “Who won?”
Arc raises an hand. “I did.”
Celestia narrows her eyes. “What… does that mean?”
“That he was worthy of becoming my mate.”
“And the next Dragon Lord?”
“Supposedly.”
Luna looks to Arc. “Was there a problem?”
“Age.”
Twilight turns to her friend. “You were too young, Arc?”
Ember sighs. “No, I was.”
Luna looks Ember up and down. “But you appear to be an adult.”
“For egg laying.”
“Oh. I see.”
Ember puts a claw on her belly and sighs. “My body just wasn’t ready for it and still isn’t. That and Arc won’t live long enough for me to reach sexual maturity.”
Celestia puts a hoof to her chin thoughtfully. “That sounds like quite the issue. You couldn’t take a mate that wouldn’t live long enough to help you produce the next Dragon Lord, after all.”
“Aunt Celestia?”
“I know a bit about dragon customs, Cadance.”
She turns back to Ember soberly.
“Can I assume you’ve spoken to your father about this matter?”
Ember nods. “Yes. He deemed the situation impossible as it stood and ordered me to take another as a mate.”
“Good.”
“And then Arc beat them all up.”
Luna gasps. “I’m sorry, what?”
Arc frowns. “Ember didn’t appear to like any of them. So I defeated her suitors in order to disqualify them from being worthy to marry her.”
Cadance raises an eyebrow. “Excuse me, Arc. But wouldn’t that just make you appear more worthy than before?”
“I hadn’t thought about that. Fortunately I was already ineligible.”
Celestia sighs. “So where does the matter stand as of now?”
Arc grimaces. That’s… complicated.
Ember points a claw at Celestia. “And not an Equestrian matter!”
“Understood. We won’t try to interfere with whom you marry, Ember.”
“Good!”
Luna clears her throat loudly. “Going back to the Tartarus affair, I’m still a bit hazy on the rest of the story though.”
Cadance grimaces. “I arrived with my forces just in time to help hold the demons back.”
Celestia frowns. “How did the barrier fall though?”
Twilight raises a hoof. “That one I can answer.”
She takes a deep breath before continuing.
“Unable to find a solution on how to enter Tartarus, my friends and I returned to Ponyville to tell Derpy of our failure. However when we did so, time seemed to slow down.”
Celestia lowers her voice. “What do you mean?”
“That it literally moved slower. Until it stopped completely, that is.”
“Then the light started to fade?”
Twilight gasps. “How did you know that?!”
Celestia sighs. “Kronos.”
Arc clenches a fist. “We’ve met.”
Celestia turns to Twilight. “They helped you enter Tartarus?”
“Yes.”
“How so?”
“By giving us a gem that, once channeled, could temporarily dispel the barrier.”
“And where is this gem now?”
“Gone. It disintegrated after one use, as Kronos told us it would.”
Luna sighs. “Arc told us of this creature some time ago.”
Cadance looks to Celestia. “What exactly is Kronos anyways?”
“The Keeper of Time. It’s their job to alter the timeline in a manner that allows, theoretically, the best outcome for the largest number of individuals.”
Twilight gasps. “So you’ve met them before?!”
“Several times over the centuries, yes. However they only came to me when the need was great or the situation dire.”
She looks Arc up and down for a few moments before continuing.
“I can’t imagine them intervening for a single individual though.”
“Do you know anything else of this creature, Aunt Celestia?”
“Nothing more other than they have always acted in the best interest of Equestria.”
Luna puts a hoof to her chin. “A matter for deeper discussion later perhaps.”
Ember points a thumb behind her at Arc. “Yeah. Let’s keep going with Arc’s story.”
“As you can see, I was able to escape Tartarus along with the innocent ponies of that town.”
Celestia scoffs. “How certain are you that they are not mere criminals?”
Ember yells angrily as she points an accusatory claw at Celestia. “They’re just the descendants of the mares and stallions that YOU swept under the rug!”
Arc nods. “Right. None of them deserved to be there, and have done nothing but live peacefully since coming to Equestria.”
Luna turns to Celestia. “At Cadance’s suggestion I authorized the construction of a town for them, sister.”
“What’s done is done, I suppose.”
Ember seethes. “In any case, I followed Arc through to Equestria and have been by his side ever since. At least until YOU…!”
Arc groans. “Ember, enough.”
Luna sighs. “I think we now understand what exactly happened back then.”
“Agreed. Did you have anything to ask, Aunt Celestia?”
Celestia shakes her head. “Not at this time, no.”
She turns to Ember before continuing.
“Before we close this interview, was there anything you’d like to add?
Ember nods, clearly furious. “Yes, I would! First of all, as I’ve made clear, I’m STILL MAD about what you did to Arc!”
Arc leans forward. “Ember…”
“No, Arc! This is MY time to make a statement, and I’m making one!”
She sneers as she looks to Celestia and continues.
“I just want you to know that every fiber of my being wants to do nothing less than fly every dragon over here and dethrone you!”
Celestia sighs. “Perhaps I deserve that. But what I don’t understand is this. If you were so intent of my removal why you were so insistent on a treaty before.”
Ember points to Arc. “Because of HIM!”
Cadance appears surprised. “Arc?”
Luna’s eyes grow wide. “What did he…?”
“Sereb and I vowed to protect Equestria to honor Arc’s memory at his funeral! We didn’t want the land he loved to EVER be overrun by its enemies! Foreign OR domestic! But when I learned that YOU were the ENTIRE reason he was gone, I prepared to fly here and deal with you… personally!”
Luna gasps. “What stopped you?”
Celestia nods soberly. “Certainly not the treaty.”
“My father!”
Twilight raises an eyebrow. “Dragon Lord Torch?”
“He told me that I had to abide by the treaty I had signed! As much as I wanted to burn it to ash, I was forbidden from doing so.”
She points a claw at Arc before continuing yet again.
“I even offered to help him ASSASSINATE you when he came back!”
Twilight chimes in quickly. “Arc talked her out of it though!”
Arc frowns as he turns to Celestia. “You’re welcome by the way.”
Ember clenches a fist, clearly furious. “Rather than take me up on my offer to help take YOU out, he CHOOSE to voluntarily leave Equestria to return to Earth! That meant he had to leave behind pretty much EVERYONE he cared about here!”
Twilight bows her head. “Derpy and their filly Dinky went with him though. Couldn’t break up their family.”
“He left and I returned to the Dragon Lands! And no it was not a happy time for me! Knowing that the one I loved was in EXILE for doing NOTHING less than his duty to this land, its citizens, AND the monarchy! Knowing that he might NEVER be allowed to come back! And knowing that thanks to YOU, nearly EVERYTHING he did for Equestria was pretty much tossed out the window one day along with HIM!"
Ember points a claw at Celestia before continuing with her tirade.
“You…! You don’t deserve to sit on that throne! Arc was and is TWICE the ruler you ever were! And do you want to know why?! Because, unlike you, he actually LISTENED to those around him! Because he actually CARED about this land! And because he actually WANTED to find a happy resolution! You didn’t even TRY, you didn’t even ATTEMPT to hear him out before doing your very best to MURDER HIM IN COLD BLOOD... YOU PASTEL-MANED, STUCK-UP, POMPOUS CUNT!”
Turning on her heels, Ember storms toward the door. Putting a claw on it she stops and looks over her shoulder.
“Do yourself and Equestria a favor and leave the ruling to those whom actually WANT to do the job... PROPERLY!”
Without waiting for a response Ember leaves the room, slamming the door behind her. For a time no one speaks. Eventually Celestia breaks the silence.
“Twilight?”
“Yes, Princess Celestia?”
“Has she always been like that?”
“Like what?”
“So angry.”
“Not really, no.”
Arc frowns. “Just when you get her mad."
Luna smiles slyly at Arc. “And you were going to marry her?”
“I didn’t want to at the time, no.”
Cadance raises an eyebrow. “And now?”
“Things have… changed.”
Celestia narrows her eyes. “So you would entertain the idea?”
“Yeah.”
“Perhaps you’re braver than I thought."
She looks to the now closed door and sighs.
“Or perhaps you’re just a glutton for punishment.”
Arc shrugs. “It’s complicated.”
Twilight clears her throat. “Perhaps we should move on to what happened next.”
Luna nods. “A good idea, yes.”
Arc chuckles. “My promotion to Hero of Light?”
Twilight sighs. “That was certainly… interesting.”
“The former Heroes of Light came to Equestria during another attack by the Ursa Minor AND it’s mother.”
Cadance gasps. “An Ursa Major?!”
Twilight nods approvingly. “He was able to drive both off without doing permanent damage to either.”
“Yes. After which they publicly announced their retirement and asked me to give their insignias to Luna.”
“I was told that ‘the torch has been passed’.”
“Luna and I agreed and offered Arc the job, which he took.”
Twilight smiles. “My friends and I witnessed the ceremony in the Mausoleum of the Hero of Light together as well as meeting his newly appointed squad of Lunar Defenders later that evening at dinner.”
Arc grins. “We went on a camping trip together after that. Living off the land, hunting, fishing, sleeping in tents.”
Cadance raises an eyebrow. “For what purpose?”
“Like Ember said earlier, to teach them how to kill to survive. Lessons we would all need in the months to come.”
He clenches a fist before continuing.
“That’s when they told me about the New Beginnings Orphanage and Matron Tempest.”
Celestia frowns. “A very decorated mare looking after the land’s future.”
Twilight grits her teeth. “She did so very poorly.”
“Oh?”
Arc grits his teeth. “My squad told me of the abuse they had received as foals. So I went to investigate... personally.”
Twilight interjects. “Perhaps we should hear the thoughts of the current matron though.”
Luna nods. “Agreed. Twilight, send for her.”
Cadance raises an eyebrow. “But isn’t she in Abyssinia right now?”
Arc turns to Twilight. “Tell her I’ll get her here with a portal.”
“Alright. Colonel Flash Sentry can make that call.”
Sliding off the couch she heads for the door. Celestia looks to Luna.
“This story just keeps growing.”
“That it does.”
“I’m finding it very hard to believe or even accept.”
“Do try to keep an open mind, Aunt Celestia.”
“Oh, I will. If nothing else, for Twilight’s sake.”
Meanwhile, Brightwing returns to her room with the moss. Trying to stuff it into the potion bottle she finds it too large to fit. Laying a piece on the desk, she claws at it for a time to break it up. Smiling, she picks up a clawful and carefully drops it in. Grabbing a nearby stick she puts it into the flask and begins stirring.
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great chapter
Celestia has cut herself off from those who love to talk with her but she has spent all her time on the throne that nobody can talk with her about their problems and she doesn't want to face that arc is a better leader than her because he treats everyone the same and tries to be there for everyone.
wow fianlly ember could let some steam out and tel the bitch whats what. its amasing it absolutly did not face her
fucking really bitch
Brightwing is going to end up putting Poison Joke in that mix?
As long as they dont use it in order to invert the behaviour of the Dragon Sneeze Tree Pollen?
Not gonna lie, Ember telling Celestia off was soooooooo the highlight of this chapter, and kind of a turn on^^
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Glad you liked it.
Only a few more chapters left of this inquisition.
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Ember's never been much for verbal filters.
Questioning that which is presented is a normal and healthy part of life. However, denying the truth in the face of overwhelming evidence to the contrary is idiocy.
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of Poison Joke.
Fortunately for Equestria Brightwing does not know about the existence
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I pictured Ember with her wings spread, fist clenched, and a single claw pointing at Celestia as she screamed at her.