Stroke of Luck

by Gboyd

Chapter 4: Trial and Terror

"To every cycle of life, there is a balance. Day, night, good, evil. The green grass on one side of the fence; the dead grass on the other. It doesn't matter which side you choose---if you choose a side at all. What matters is the balance you keep. To which way you lean." ~ Anonymous

"How things change so quickly," Twilight mused. She felt self-conscience, staring out over Canterlot like some sort of tyrannical figure. Which, considering what she'd done just previously, was probably an appropriate description. The thought made her sick.

It was amusing, really, how just a few nights ago, she and her friends were laughing under the moonlight, exchanging stories and teasing each other about everything under the sun. Now here she was, brooding and scheming out every detail down the last atom, going so far as to bring a hated nemesis in the mix, under the pretense of 'desperate times call for desperate measures.' And her friends? They were trapped by bars of another's making.

At that thought, fury surged through through her for a brief moment, only to replaced with despair. "How in the world will I get them out!?" she screamed in inwardly. Sure, she had one of Equestria's most hated enemies under her control, for lack of a better term, but he scared her to death! What in the world would she even use him for!? The only reason she was able to set him free was because she'd had the Element of Magic with her. On that note, she was very surprised the Element had even allowed her to set Grogar free. But maybe because she was it's bearer, she had control over it?

Twilight rubbed her temples, a headache forming. She didn't know! Everything was so confusing. She didn't know where to turn and even Princess Celestia didn't have any advice. For once.

"Peace, child," a soft, motherly voice cooed. Instantly, her panic ceased. Twilight took a shaky breath. Her thoughts were spinning out of control again. She paused. What was that? That... that voice she'd heard. She could have sworn she'd heard it before... But before she could ruminate on it further, she heard the doors open.

"Princess," a sudden male voice sounded, causing Twilight yelp with fright and accidentally burn the window sill. She turned, heart pounding.

The guard cast her an apologetic glance. "My apologies, Princess." His voice was quiet. He cleared his throat and raised his voice. "The Courts are ready for you."

Twilight drew in another shaky breath. "This is it," she thought. She pushed open the throne room doors, stepping into the room, preparing to fight yet another battle. As the doors closed behind her, no one noticed the burn on the sill disappear, leaving the painted wood unblemished.

***

Chiseled Dagger stood there, against the wall. Safeguarding one of Canterlot Castle's many, many halls, as he had done for over forty years. His will was just as polished and unyeilding as the breast plate he wore. Inmovable, stubborn, with a streak of red-hot anger if push came to shove. He wasn't known for being a softy and letting others into his open heart. However, a few came close. One in particular, being the sister to one his favorite students in training, back when he was younger, more carefree, and willing. Shining Armour. Strong, willing, malleable, and with a magical skill not all could copy. One of the few Gleaming Dagger was proud to call his student. If the past was anything to go by, Shining hadn't lost his touch. Maybe that was why he was now the Prince-Consort of the Crystal Empire.

But despite his outer, expressionless demeanor, his thoughts were anything but. Something had happened at the castle. Something strange. When Princess Twilight Sparkle ascended the throne, things in the castle changed. Mostly for the better, in his personal opinion. The newest Princess encouraged all castle staff to become more friendly with each-other; helped the castle staff with their tasks so long as she wasn't too busy; even going so far as to fix their problems. All castle staff were amiable with each-other; some were even good friends, such as Dandruff Particles, Head Servant, and Raven Inkwell, Princess Celestia's head assistant. The thought caused the old guard to smile. There was a reason for that. Ever since a certain indigo-haired, lavender-winged girl became princess. More smiles were exchanged, trade increased, need he say more? In short, the entire castle's atmostphere had changed, going from all business, to that which it truly was: a home. Open. Refreshing. To say that Chiseled Dagger liked it was an underestimate.

But lately, things had changed. Drastically. Especially since the successful capture of five 'criminals', although Chilsed wasn't entitely sure that was true. Whispers now dominated the halls, servants rushed to and fro without exchanging a word to their fellow guards like they used to. Tensions between once strong relationships grew thicker and thicker, and absolute trust between even the best of friends drained at an alarming rate. More fights behind closed doors occurred, and glares were constantly being shot at others when mistakes were made, instead of the laughter that used to happen. When Princess Twilight arrived, things had lightened up a considerable amount, but that didn't last long.

Something wasn't right. At all. Even the Princess herself had seemingly changed, no matter how hard Chiseled tried to convince himself otherwise. In all the years he had known her, excluding all the times Equestria's safety hung in the balance, she was always a paragon of hope, always willing to lend an ear or a hand. Always relaxed. Always smiling. Always... friendly. For as long as he had known her, Princess Twilight had never acted like this. Never for this long.

Footsteps softly approaching him yanked the old guard out of his thoughts. He straightened to attention, and allowed his eyes, and only his eyes, to wander towards the sound.

Speak of said princess, and she shall appear. Princess Twilight walked, or stalked more like it, down the hall. She kept one hand down by her side. She was holding something, although he couldn't tell what. In any other normal case he would be suspiscious, especially since she wasn't the type to hide anything, unless it was private. But it wasn't his place to pry. She was a princess.

Her other hand waved aimlessly through the air, seemingly following an invisible trail of some sort. He had seen this before, as it was common amoung unicorns. Princess Celestia did it all the time. He didn't really understand it, being an Earth-born, but he got the jist. It was a second-nature habit, as easy as breathing, depending how strong your well-spring was. They were instinctively searching for leylines in the air, following energy trails no one else could see. Of course, he had heard the possibility that for some it was a tic, but he had a feeling it was mostly the former.

"Chisled Dagger." It wasn't a question, and it snapped him back to reality in an instant. He blinked, before focusing on her. Her gaze was steely, something he had rarly seen.

"I have an... offer for you." Her tone was light, but he could sense a dark undertone, and he stiffened. He didn't like this. Not from her.

He shifted his position and spoke, his voice cracking from lack of use. "Your majesty?"

Her eyes glittered with mirth for a moment, making him wonder if he had said something wrong. She blinked it away. "I know you're not under my authority, but I heard you have a good record with safe-gaurding Equestria's Treasury, as well certain stone relics in Canterlot's Gardens." She bit her lip, her eyes going distant for a moment. "The name 'Discord' comes to mind."

The old gaurd cocked his head slightly. "Where is she going with this?" he wondered.

"I need you to gaurd something else," she said. He paused. His duty was to Canterlot Castle, nowhere else. But she WAS a princess. He couldn't undermine her authority. Still...

She smirked, causing the uneasy feeling in him to grow stronger. "Judging by the look in your eyes, I have a feeling I'd have a hard time swaying you if I just asked. Unfortunately..." For just a moment, regret and sadness flashed across her expression, only to return back to its original state. But he saw it.

"I'm going to have to make this an official royal order, signed and sealed." With a raspberry flash, a scroll appeared in front of him. It bore Celestia's royal seal, causing him to gasp.

"You can do this?" he blurted, forgetting his place. A smooth chuckle sounded from within his mind, causing him to freeze in place.

"Well if we're getting into the nitty-gritty, no. I'm not. However, I AM a princess, something several people seem to forget, so I say it's time to put my foot down. Let's not include the fact that Celestia is not involved; so why is there the need for her to know?"

He didn't respond to her words, too shocked. "You can use telepathy!?" he practically shouted in his mind. He heard a patient sigh.

"Does everyone believe that Celestia and Luna are the only ones able to use it? Any unicorn with enough skill and mental control is able to do it, and---" a soft chuckle was heard, "I'd like to think I'm more magically skilled than that. The Element of Magic did choose me, after all." There was a long pause. Chilsed decided it was best not to say anything.

"But more to the point. I'm using telepathy for a reason. You'll notice the hallway is nearly empty, and I approached YOU.

I need you to gaurd something for me. This won't take any time off your usual schedule or pay."

"I shall do as you command, princess." He said, bowing his head. He heard her release a sigh, and then felt fingers lift his chin.

"Thank you. And, please don't bow to me. There's nothing i hate more."

"What would you have me guard?" he asked. She paused for a moment.

"Not 'what', but who. And if you have any hesitations...." She trailed off and lifted her hand, dropping a small, brown bag in his hand. Several clinks sounded from inside, and Chisled nearly dropped it due to the weight.

"... I assure you, this is worth the pay."

***

Magic ceased glowing. A sense of relief emanated from her, causing the plants around the Tree to perk up. Her siblings, however, weren't so calm.

Her bearer had only returned her five hours ago after the.... shall we say deed, and instantly, Honesty pried the truth out of her. Her siblings were greatly displeased. And they let her know.

"GROGAR!?" Loyalty raged. "What in the good light of Celestia's sun was your bearer thinking!? And you let her go THROUGH WITH IT!? IS YOUR HEAD SCREWED ON STRAIGHT!?"

Magic flinched, but refused to answer.

"Loyalty, enough," Honesty said gently.

"But she--"

"I know. But I also know she has a good explanation. Right, little sister?" he said pointedly.

Magic flinched again. If she had a form, she would have gritted her teeth. A strange burning sensation stung her, and she paused, confused. It felt like like liquid, almost. It didn't cause pain, but it wasn't exactly pleasant either. Were those... tears? Was this what it was like to shed tears for those they had always watched over? Yes, that must be it.

Magic claimed her nerves. She knew Loyalty. He had a short fuse, and she also knew she was on thin ice. She had to be careful.

"I'm sorry," she murmured quietly, feeling her 'tears' spill over. Her voice was unsteady, the depth of her emotion showing through. She knew her siblings could hear her, and they were drinking in every word.

"Magic," Kindness breathed, obviously feeling her pain.

"My bearer... She's... She's desperately clutching at straws and is getting trapped at every turn, no matter what path she takes." Magic gritted her teeth again. "Even I am running out of options. I... I was so desperate to help her that I... I guess I no longer cared what she did."

"Magic," Honesty began, but Magic continued.

"I--I know it was wrong, but she has a plan." Magic fell silent, unable to continue. Her siblings were quiet. Perhaps her explanation was good enough.

There was a long pause of silence. Then Laughter spoke up, albeit hesitantly. "Why are you doing this for her, M? You know Grogar is dangerous--we barely escaped last time!"

"I love her," Magic answered simply. Her siblings had no response. There was another long bout of silence before one of them spoke up again.

"What can we do?" Generosity asked.

"Be careful," Honesty answered. "It's all we can do."

Author's Note:

I apologize for taking so long. I do have the next part pre-written, so I should have the next chapter out sooner, rather than later.

I know this this is late, but you all had a Merry Christmas, and let us hope that 2021 will bring us many more good changes to look forward to!

Please let me know what you think; I'd love to hear what you all have to say!

Comments

[Dark Rose 777]

Wow, this is insane. It was rather short, but I think the level of foreshadowing, and considering how INTENSE this chapter was, made up for it. Twilight is the perfect protagonist, soon to be antagonist, for this story, and I believe we will see another side of her, considering Magic loves her to much to stop her. I like Chisled Dagger's character a lot, and you wrote his thought trian almost perfectly, it was like I could hear his voice as I read it. Flawless dialouge with Twilight and Chisled, by the way.

I like this so far, as I have stated on previous chapters, but I feel the story is starting to feel rushed. Perhaps you slow down a bit.

I feel like Twilight is rushing into this "I'm going insane because I no longer have my friends by my side so I'll become evil instead!" too fast. Maybe fill us in on little more on why Lily is the antagonist? I would love to see more of her and what her plans are for the girls.

[musoperatica]

To the author - Hi!👋 i've read the latest chapters of your story (thus far)
Review: ch.3 is mostly about the trial and twi trying to a loophole/counter measure, have no thought or comment.
with ch.4 Twilight's doing a good thing getting spike out of harm's way by having him visit the dragon lands.
This is third time i've seen of the elements of harmony being voiced & having emotions
you have one spelling error - it's 'guard' not gaurd!

now to the personal side of things: hope you're doing okay. as for me finally on my new laptop a Samsung notebook 7 which took about two years,lol (i'll explain in more detail on it with a blog post...eventually) still i'm gonna post fics just not the one i told you about but will have the same pairing/couple😉

p.s: don't know what that 1st fic was called nor it's title but remember certain details like pinkie and her element of laughter whisked every pony away & had dance party on Princess luna's moon!
the second is called To love the moon by Baxter1984. a twiluna story but has a r63 version of luna whose known as artemis.

this message was written out on 4/25/22