How Do You Shoot a Gun With Hooves?

by defender2222

Tropic of Capricorn Part 3

The chase for Tydal was on but Castle's heart was no longer into it. The fun and thrill of hunting down a capricorn warlord held zero appeal to him, what with Tydal's words echoing through his head. They teased and taunted him and made him consider things he wished he didn't have to. No matter how hard he tried, he could not pull himself away from the mental path he had set himself upon and each step he took through the Everfree was accompanied by another thought or memory that made him question everything they were doing.

The part of him that remained a writer, even in this 4-legged form, screamed that something didn't add up. The details and facts were not sliding into place with the information Twilight and Beckett were running with. If he were reading this he would have been screaming at the pages, demanding the characters get a clue and realize their mistake before it was too late.

But he wasn't some reader separated from the world by ink and page or a computer screen and wires; Castle was living this adventure and he had to play by certain rules and accept certain facts: namely that Beckett had already made up her mind and getting her to come to his line of reasoning would be a Herculean task.

He had considered for 3 seconds trying to convince the others, but realized that would be silly. The 6 girls were friends and, while nice to him, they would trust each other long before they trusted him. Oh, they might hear his words and consider them, but all it took was for one of the girls to go against his idea and Castle would find himself shot down within seconds.

Beckett was the only answer.

Of course, the first step in convincing her would be, strangely enough, to stop taking steps. It was hard to have a deep conversation about the nature of good and evil when you were galloping through a dark forest.

Luck shone upon him soon enough in the form of a section of the forest that had collapsed upon the trail, halting their chase to a snail's pace. Up ahead in the darkness the ponies could hear Tydal struggling to get through the fallen trees and underbrush that had reclaimed the trail. It was a good sign, as it meant that he could not outfox them while they attempted to traverse the clutter. It was their hope that, with their superior land speed, they could catch him.

It also gave Castle a chance to hang back and have a word with Beckett without any other pastel ears listening in.

He trotted over to her and used his magic to lift a heavy branch, allowing her to slip through. Beckett flashed him a grateful smile before attempting to get over a half-rotted tree trunk.

"This would be so much easier if I had hands," Beckett complained. When she saw that he was not laughing at her little joke she gave him a good once-over, wondering if he had been hurt. "Castle, what's wrong?"

"Beckett...things aren't adding up."

"I don't think they really do in this world," Beckett answered before grabbing a hold of a branch with her teeth and using the leverage to pull herself over the massive fallen tree trunk. “Yuck!” She let go of the branch and spit in disgust.

Castle shook his head. "No, I mean about Tydal. Something is wrong."

"We'll get him Castle, don't worry."

"That's not what I mean." Castle blew locks of his mane out of his eyes in frustration as he hurried over the log. "None of his actions fit what we think about him."

"What are you talking about? He said it himself, Castle: he is running to the coast to get his army. And unless you haven't been paying attention, he is still running towards the ocean."

Castle frowned at her glib tone. "If he has an army that must mean he's a major deal, right? And he has magic...powerful magic. Twilight herself was shocked he could pull off that water-transmutation thing." He stopped on top of the log, making sure he was out of earshot of the other ponies before continuing. "Why are we still alive, Beckett? Why didn't he kill us?"

"Maybe he is trying but we are too good," Beckett said, but Castle could tell just from her tone she didn't believe her own statement. His words were making a chink in her armor.

"Really? Because I think that display in the clearing showed he has some moves."

"Then he is smart and didn't want to risk the odds. We have him 8 to 1. He's on the run because he doesn't want to risk defeat."

Castle shook his head, not buying that theory. "That's another thing," he leapt down from the trunk and began to make his way through a tangle of vines. "He hasn't attacked us once."

"The clearing-"

"We attacked him. I watched him Beckett, well, before I was knocked out...the only time he acted was to counter something we did. He never once pressed the attack...what kind of great fighter does that?"

"A smart one."

"Or one that doesn't want to fight...one that isn't looking for a fight at all and doesn't want to hurt anypony." He looked at her, trying to convey his honesty and his desire for her to listen. "He had me right for dead, Beckett. Back in the clearing he could have killed me but he didn't."

"Don't joke about that."

"I'm not, I'm being honest. Tydal could have killed me but he didn't." Castle's jaw worked. "He said something about Discord...thought that dragon-thing had sent us."

Beckett was silent for a moment and Castle began to hope that she was actually listening to him and coming to his side. "He was lying, Castle."

Castle's shoulders slumped.

Beckett sighed, taking a moment to catch her breath before attempting the next section of the trail. "Ok Castle...what do you think is going on?"

"If I were writing it...Tydal isn't the enemy. He was trapped in that stone a long time and I think he believes he's in the middle of a war that already ended."

"This isn't one of your stories, Castle." Beckett moved to sweep past him, only to find her partner blocking her way.

"No Beckett...but this world plays by a different set of rules and I think you are jumping into something you don't understand."

Beckett glared at him. "I am trying to save this place."

"And I am trying to save you before you do something stupid!" Castle shouted in frustration. He loomed over her and for the first time Beckett realized just how much bigger he was than her. "How many times have you done this? How many times have you rushed in, acting like Big Bad Beckett, only to realize you were in over your head? I watched you get shot...I watched you nearly die...I won't do it again." His voice grew quieter as he attempted to get her to understand. "I think we are making a mistake, Kate. I think we are going after somepony that is confused and if you rush in you are going to kill an innocent creature....and that will break you."

If he had hoped to get understanding from his partner he was sadly mistaken. Rage replaced blood in her veins and Beckett was in his face the moment he finished, eyes blazing crimson. It would have been funny to see the steam shooting out of her ears and her mane on fire if it weren’t freaking the heck out of him. "And how many times have you been wrong, Rick? How many people did you think were innocent, only to be made the fool? That call girl. Your old prep school buddy. Both murderers and both people that suckered you in. And what about all your ex-wives? That isn’t the mark of something who is a good judge of character!" She knocked her head against his. "So how about you remember your own faults before you call me out on mine? And how about you remember that you are just some spoiled writer playing make believe before you begin making decisions that could affect an entire world!"

She watched him lower his head and begin down the trail, his tail drooped and shoulders slumped. She knew she had been rough with him and the magic of this world was already making her regret her words. Or maybe it was her own heart. She instantly wanted to run up to him and beg for his forgiveness but she forced that feeling down, ignoring just how sick the act made her tummy feel.

"She'd be so proud of you." Beckett looked up, startled by Castle's words. He answered her silent question before she could voice it. "Your mother...she worked to help people she believed were innocent...she dedicated her life to the wrongly accused, believing everypony deserved a champion. She died for that ideal. She'd be so proud to see you condemning somepony so quickly. So...very...proud."

Beckett felt like he'd physically struck her, her knees wobbling and the blood leaving her face. Shame and rage and hate and despair warred within her. But when she looked up to deliver her tirade she found Castle already gone.

And she had been left alone.

Again.

~MC~MC~MC~

It took another 30 minutes before the 8 ponies burst through the foliage and found themselves leaving the Everfree Forest and galloping along the white sands of Bridle Bay. Dawn would be approaching soon but they had no time to wait, as they could see Tydal's hoof-prints all along the beach, leading towards the water.

Castle remained in the center of the herd, never allowing Beckett a chance to get near him. He had known it was a low blow but his anger had burned so bright that he couldn't help but speak the words. Within 10 minutes he had been sucking up his tears and telling Fluttershy he was suffering from allergies. All he wanted to do was run to Beckett and apologize but he knew he couldn't do that, not now. Maybe not ever. They had drawn their line and each had picked a side, their hateful words building a wall along that line so thick and tall Castle doubted they could ever break through.

"Don't worry, sugarcube...we're almost there and we will get that no good capricorn."

Castle smiled at Applejack's bold words but couldn't find the heart to agree.

"Just up ahead!" Twilight called out, racing along a curve of the beach. Her horn glowed, illuminating the way through the darkness. "We're-"

She stopped dead, the rest of her friends colliding into her and sending them sprawling to the sands. They stared in shock, trying to comprehend what they were seeing.

The waters of Bridle Bay still churned, lapping at the walls of the great structure had arisen from the sea floor. While Twilight and her friends might not have realized what they were looking at, to Beckett and Castle it was clear that this was a dark sandcastle on a gigantic scale. There were several towers the surrounded the main body and windows cut into the hardened sand and even a great drawbridge that hung out over the water, its lip touching the very edge of the beach. It would have been magical had it not been for the seaweed and barnacles that covered much of the surface, giving it a dark, unkempt feel that whisked away any notion that it was something from a fairy tale.

"Oh no," Fluttershy gasped, pointing to one of the castle walls. The rest of the group cringed and trembled at the sight of armored capricorn warriors standing upon the bridge, glaring out across the waters. Though it was hard to tell in the darkness Castle and Beckett got the impression that the capricorn warriors were smaller than Tydal, with shorter horns, beards and tails. In fact, if Castle had to wager, he’d have bet that they were roughly Twilight’s size.

That didn't stop the dread the group felt at the sight before them, realizing it was too late to stop Tydal from raising his army.

"Wait a minute," Rarity said, taking a step forward. "They aren't moving!" Her friends blinked, realizing that what the designer had said was true: none of the capricorns were moving..blinking...breathing.

"They're...they're stone!" Rainbow Dash exclaimed. She flew closer, inspecting one of the frozen soldiers, before zipping down towards her friends. "Yeah. those guys are just big dumb rocks!"

Their courage relit, the girls, Castle and Beckett made their way towards the drawbridge, keeping a watchful eye for any tricks. But the stone soldiers never moved and there was no sign of life anywhere in the castle.

Save one.

They all stopped at the foot of the drawbridge, watching as Tydal stood before two stone capricorn sentries, each just a bit bigger than Castle. Each was dressed in grand battle armor and stared out at the beach with hard, dark scowls. He reached out with his hoof to touch the face of one of the grim monuments but could not bring himself to make contact. Instead the mighty warrior lowered his head and let out a pitiful wail that rolled across the Bay like thunder heralding a storm. The ocean seemed to hear his call and the waves grew more violent as the currents churned.

"Tydal," Twilight said, taking a step forward. She steeled her heart when he turned to look at her, tears falling from his eyes, and took another step, thinking of Ponyville and Equestria and all that were depending on her. "There is no army..."

"Leave me be," Tydal said. All the girls were struck by just how old he sounded. Where once there had been a booming voice and bold proclamations there was now only a hollow sound of somepony who had lived a hard life only to find he had nothing to show for it. "You won...you have taken everything from me...just let me be."

"We can't be doing that, darlin'," Applejack said. "Now, I don't know what is going on, but it is clear that we can trust ya to be runnin' around."

Tydal let out a bitter chuckle, the capricorn looking like all he wanted to do was lie down and sleep. "You expect me to follow you back to your city, clad in chains for your ruler to jeer at me?" He puffed up a bit, his strength returning in the face of a challenge. “Never. I may be willing to lie here and mourn but I will not be a trophy.”

"We expect ya to stop running and to stop threatening Ponyville!" Rainbow Dash declared.

"I have never threatened your town, only those that would stand against me."

"Well that is us," Rarity declared firmly.

"Yeah, Mr. Fishy Tail!" Pinkie Pie added.

Fluttershy bobbed up and down in the air, trying to sound as strong as her friends. "You won't hurt our friends...ok?"

Tydal turned his back to them. "I have nothing more to say. I will never be your prize and I no longer have the power to change your fate. Leave now and find some way to live in the chaos that you call life. As I will mine."

Rainbow Dash scoffed, floating over to kick one of the sentry statues. "Yeah, you think we are going to believe that? How do we know you won't come back with another army and these statues aren't some trick?"

Tydal whipped back, eyes ablaze with fury. He fired a magic blast that sent Rainbow Dash skidding across the sands, the girls crying out in shock. Castle’s eyes widened…that was the first time Tydal had lashed out at one of them. "You will not speak of them that way!" He planted himself between the sentries, his horns beginning to glow. "I tire of your insolence. I do not wish to end you but if you force my hoof I will become the weapon of your destruction!"

"That's funny," Applejack said as Twilight used her magic to retrieve the Elements of Harmony and place them on each of their heads. "We were thinking the same thing."

The only noise to greet those dark promises was the lapping of the waves against Tydal's fortress. The capricorn's horns glowed as Twilight's eyes went pure white, their duel magic begin to swirl about the air. The ocean began to swell as if a storm was brewing, though not a cloud was in the night sky, while on the beach a rainbow of colors began to form around the girls as they were lifted into the air.

"No."

Castle stared in shock as Beckett step forward, placing herself between the ponies and the capricorn.

"Twilight...no." Beckett closed her eyes, steadying her nerves. It was never easy to face down someone with a loaded weapon and this was no different. She had been in so many of these situations, watching as rookie cops egged on a junkie to the point that a shootout was the only outcome that could happen. And as she had stood there, Castle's words echoing through her head, Beckett realized she couldn't let this happen.

Today...no one died.

"Kate..." Twilight said, struggling to contain the mystical energies that flowed through her and her friends.

"Twilight, listen to me...Tydal is not our enemy." The girls began to clamor at once but Beckett rolled right over their protests. "For the last day I have been reacting and not thinking like a detective. Maybe if I had things wouldn't have gone as far as they have." She gestured to Castle, who stepped forward, still a bit nervous that Beckett would beat him for his earlier words. "Castle clued me into something and I am ashamed that I was too stubborn to see the evidence that was right in front of my nose."

"And what evidence is that?" Rarity demanded, though her voice cracked a little as she too struggled with the magical buildup.

"That if you removed Tydal's first words to us, his actions don't look like those of a villain...they are those of a hero." Beckett turned towards Tydal, the capricorn making no move to strike her as she walked to him. Behind him the Mareatine Sea continued to churn. "He has never attacked us. He has never tried to hurt us. And other than his first comments he has never threatened us. He has given us the chance to leave him alone and we have refused. We are the aggressors here…not him."

"But you can't ignore what he said!" Rainbow Dash shouted in frustration. "He wants to destroy Ponyville!"

"No, he wants to save it!" Castle declared. He moved to Tydal and, with more respect than Beckett had ever seen him display, Castle bowed to the warrior. "Tydal...tell my friends what enemy you wish to defeat. Who do you believe their master is?"

Tydal appeared confused by the request. "The Element of Disharmony and Chaos...Discord." He said the name like it was the most vile of curses. “He is the mad god that controls Equestria and turns its ponies mad. All know this…don’t you?”

Twilight and her friends began to murmur in surprise.

"Piles said the statue dated back over a thousand years..." Castle turned to Tydal once more. "Tydal...Discord has been defeated. Twice. You believe that the war goes on but it has not. You have slept for many years and the battle you think you must wage has long been over. You have made a mistake…and you need to be an honorable…er…goat-fish…and accept that!"

The capricorn looked at Castle then Beckett, trying to comprehend what they were saying. "Discord...is no more?" He closed his eyes, his memories so jumbled they caused him physical pain. “No…but…”

"Because of these six ponies he is," Beckett said. "Heroes...just like you." She turned to Twilight, pleading with the unicorn to listen. "Twilight, this has all been one big misunderstanding...Tydal thought you were under the command of Discord...and you have let your past experience with him and Nightmare Moon cloud your judgment."

"Don't listen to them, Twilight!" Rainbow Dash said brashly. "They are lying! They might be under some spell! He could have bewitched them himself, to try and trick us!"

Pinkie Pie nodded quickly. "And how do we know you are really Richard and Bucket? You don't answer to that name! You keep saying your name is Beckett! Maybe you are spies that kidnapped poor Bucket and took her place! Oh, poor Bucket…she’s probably trapped in some broom closet, sad and alone…"

Twilight looked at Kate, the elder pony's eyes silently begging Twilight to consider her words.

The Elements of Harmony trembled around their necks and the two former humans realized that within moments there would be nothing Twilight could do to stop them from unleashing their magical energy.

Castle slowly placed his hoof again Beckett's. "If they attack us...I want you to know how sorry I am...I should have never..."

"I know."

Castle took a deep breath, not daring to look at the faces of their six friends. "And Kate...I want you to know...I-"

"Castle...me too."

Tydal moved to stand with the two, head held up proud. "If we are to die today…I am proud I ride to oblivion with two ponies such as you.” For the first time they had seen him, Tydal actually smiled. “Unleash your magic, unicorn…we are ready to meet the Creator!”

Twilight blinked away tears and her friends let out yelps as they fell to the sand, their necklaces no longer glowing. "No..." Her horn glowed and she ripped the necklaces and tiara away, flinging them aside. She walked forward, offering her hoof to Tydal, the capricorn tilting his head in confusion. "No...I would rather fall into a trap offering friendship...then hurt an innocent. Tydal, if Kate and Richard think you are on the side of good…then so do I. And I would like to be your friend."

The sky around them exploded in a great light and for a moment Beckett believed that Tydal had lied and cast a spell to destroy them all. But then she saw the light was pure and came not from the capricorn but from a magnificent winged unicorn.

"I'm guessing that is Princess Celestia," Castle said as Twilight and her friends bowed before the coming of the sun goddess. "A little over the top but not a bad entrance."

Celestia settled onto the sand and all saw that she wasn't alone. Spike hurried over to Twilight and gave her a hug, and while next to Celestia Princess Luna, the former Nightmare Moon and goddess of the night, stood regally. Celestia took a step forward, staring at all nine of them.

“Celestia,” Tydal whispered, taking a step forward. “Is this real?”

"I hope that it is. I did not believe it when Spike spoke of your return, Tydal," Celestia said, looking at him, studying him as if trying to find some flaw. "I needed to see it with my own eyes."

Luna was not as formal as her sister. Twilight and her friends had only really seen Luna twice: once after her freeing from her Nightmare Moon persona, and again during Nightmare Night. Both times she had been skittish and unsure of herself, trying to find a way to interact with ponies. But now the smaller princess darted across the sand and tackled Tydal, sending them both into the surf. Twilight and her friends could only stare as Luna reached around...and hugged Tydal tightly.

"I can't believe you're here!" she squealed, sounding like the young princess she was than the powerful moon goddess. She didn’t care that she was getting wet or that one of her shoes had been lost in her gallop. She merely continued to hug the capricorn warrior with all her strength.

"Luna?" Tydal said, his voice losing all formality as he stared up at the princess.

And then the capricorn laughed.

It was a joyous sound and all that heard it wondered how it could come from the mouth of one who had appeared so grim. Tydal got to his feet and placed his hooves on her shoulders, looking her over with a careful eye.

"Look at you! You...you were barely filly when I last laid eyes upon you...and here you are, so mature and beautiful. Who would have thought the little foal that enjoyed riding upon my back would grow up to be such a beautiful mare!"

Luna sniffed, tears gathering in her eyes. "Tydal..."

The capricorn nuzzled her before turning his attention to Celestia. "And are you too old to greet me like this one?"

Celestia responded by walking over and resting her head against the capricorn warrior's. Twilight and her friends were struck by the fact that Tydal and Celestia could look each other in the eye with ease…they had never seen the princess matched in size. "I have missed you so much."

Twilight and the others slowly rose, their confusion clearly written on their faces. "Princess Celestia...I don't understand," Twilight whispered.

Celestia turned to Twilight and smiled. "Twilight Sparkle, my faithful student...when I received Spike's letter Luna and I raced to find you, to prevent a great tragedy. I am so very proud that you were able to see beyond what you at first believed and look upon the truth of the matter. You allowed the power of friendship to remove the blinders that kept you from seeing reality and for that I am truly proud.” Twilight smiled, taking joy from the remarks even if she didn’t understand them. Celestia sighed, lowering her head slightly. Never had any of the 6 girls seen the Princess look like this, so emotionally vulnerable. “It is my fault, in my own way, that things progressed as they did. Had I been more open with all of you…you would have understood just who this was and the respect he deserves.”

“Who is he, your highness?” Fluttershy whispered.

It was Luna that spoke, and her words were filled with pride. “This is Lord Tydal, the god of the sea and King of the Mareatine.” The 6 holders of the Elements gasped as the proclamation while Luna moved to stand next to the warrior (now revealed to be so much more) and nuzzled him again, as if afraid he would disappear if she lost contact with him. As if seeking to prove her statement true, Tydal’s horns glowed and the sea behind him instantly went calm. The others could only stare in shock as they realized just how lucky they were. “But more than that…he is our mentor and our friend.”

Tydal returned the friendly gesture, sensing Luna’s fears. “Do not worry, my faithful student…I am not going anywhere.”

It was those three words, which had been spoken by her own mentor so many times, that caused Twilight Sparkle to realize just who Tydal was and understand just how grave of a mistake she and her friends had almost committed.

“You’re him,” she said, bowing before the capricorn in utter reverence, “you’re The Teacher.”

Comments

[defender2222]

And at long last the truth is revealed!

When I started this story I wanted to do something different with the Big Bad (because every 'season' of MLP needs a Big Bad). Originally Tydal was a forgotten sea god who, enraged that all had forgotten him, removed memories for ponies (thus explaining why Beckett and Castle could claim not to understand things)> Celestia would, in the end, make peace with him and everything would be a-ok.

But I decided that was too much like Luna.

Then I began to think about just how little we know about Celestia and Luna's past...and slowly a new history began to form in my head, of new gods and goddesses that ruled the elements...and Lord Tydal, king of the Mareatine and god of the sea was born!

Next chapter will reveal ALOT about my view of the history of Equestria...I hope you all enjoy!

[Hi]

Aw crap now twilight is going to run and tackle/ hug him but maybe to death also by asking to much questions and the tight hug

[Gysp3]

so much win

[chartreusephlox]

This was wonderful. Just awesome. And super cute.

[BenRG]

It was quite a twist and it deserves acknowledgement for being an original wrap-up.

It also shows why Beckett and Castle were brought to Equestria - It was Castle's ability to understand narratives and story logic that helped him work out who Tydal real was. It was Beckett's battle-hardened experience that enabled her to face down the Elements, something that no other ordinary pony would ever dare to do.

Happily ever after? Well, in the real world, 'happily ever after' doesn't happen. What you have is consequences, good and bad, echoing down through history. We now have a being of immense power (equal to the Cestial Princesses) who has been seperated from his time and culture. Who knows what repurcussions such an ancient power could have on the modern world?

[fferror]

you were barely filly when I last laid eyes upon you

"barely a filly"

[musicluvr1974]

1191878

Happily ever after? Well, in the real world, 'happily ever after' doesn't happen.

However, in Equestria... who knows?