More Players, More Plans
Are you two sure about this? I don’t know if this will have the effects you both think it will.
Just relax, sugarcube. You do your thing, we’ll do ours. We need to get a message to her, and we can’t use any of the normal channels. This is the best way.
And if you get in trouble, we’ll be there to pull you right back out, okie dokie?
Well, if you’re absolutely sure… I’ll try.
It was going to be another typical day, just like every day before it, and just like every day that would come after until the two stallions were relieved from duty and sent back to the Regia. Supposedly, they had been chosen for their excellent observational skills and attention to detail. The communication crystal they carried with them had a direct line to Golden Radiance, and every transmission was scrambled to within an inch of its life. Their observation blind was well equipped, and the two stallions were at the top of their classes in the Lunar Guard in observation, camouflage, and ranged combat. They were veterans of the Whitetail Woods incident, and the Red Rock campaign. They were two of the best soldiers the Ever Free had to offer, and they both knew it.
Why, then, were they both stationed at the edge of the Forest, watching a scrawny Pegasus who had done nothing since the start of the Rebellion feed her pets? Because Twilight Sparkle had asked them to, that’s why. By name, actually. One of the absolute best scout teams the Lunar Guards had to offer, pulled to an observation post for six months in order to keep an eye on her. That tour of duty was unheard of, the longest either of them had heard of was three months. But they had their orders, and so the Pegasus Cool Breeze, and the unicorn Silver Star hunched down in the trees, waiting for something, anything to happen in order to relieve the boredom.
They knew her habits, the small yellow Pegasus. Every day around noon, she would leave her house and wander into the edges of the Everfree Forest, checking for hurt animals needing her care. Though the wild animals of the deep woods still were far too dangerous, she was nonetheless a friend to those tamer species living on the outskirts of the woods. Occasionally, she would go to a different location, a nearby bog, or an old abandoned hut under the roots of a massive tree, and do business there. Her position was always relayed, and they were given swift, concise orders on how to handle the problem, which usually boiled down to following or not following her.
Though the duo were bored, they remained vigilant. This Pegasus was an Element of Harmony, and as such, was keeper of a great deal of power. Neither of them had seen her wearing it, exactly, but they had been informed that Celestia had entrusted the Bearers with possession of their own Elements, and as such, she was likely to have it nearby. Which was why, at the first sign of trouble, both would retreat to their bolt-hole, a small underground camp, and seal the entrance behind them. They had done this exactly twice, once when the Pegasus had apparently murdered a large bear in a fit of pique, and another when a damned cockatrice had come slithering out of the woods. Both had been false alarms. The bear was in need of chiropractic help, and the cockatrice had apparently come looking for a safe place to lay eggs, and had not petrified a single thing there.
So, another day, another shift, and about a month until they could both return home. They were currently engaged in their favorite part of the day, though neither would care to admit it to the other. Directly before entering the woods, the Pegasus would spend some time among the animals staying with her, feeding them and singing all the while. It was a pleasure to watch her work, truly it was. The Pegasus was the sort of beautiful that existed without effort, a graceful and delicate beauty that, while not exactly the sort that made you want to compose poems, made you think of marriage and a quiet life on a farm somewhere.
The unicorn turned to his comrade, whose eyes were glued to the Pegasus still, as a strictly precautionary measure, of course. “She’s finishing up with the chicken coop now. Are you ready to head back to the next post? We can’t stay up here much longer.”
The Pegasus nodded slowly. “I’d be fine with it, but…take a look at what’s around her neck.”
The unicorn looked. What was unusual about today was the presence of a pendant, a very simple thing consisting of a strap and a river rock that had been attached to it. It was very much the sort of thing both could imagine her wearing, if not for the fact that she had started wearing it today. “What do you suppose it is?” he asked.
The Pegasus snorted. “Don’t know. Want to go ask her?” he replied sarcastically. “I’m just saying we should be careful. What if that’s her Element? Why would she be wearing it?”
The unicorn looked at him disdainfully. “You’ve seen the Elements. You know, big metal things, rattle like nopony’s business, visible a mile off? That’s no Element. Come on, we’re falling back. She’s putting away the feed bucket now.”
The two ponies moved quickly and silently, retreating into the forest to set up inside of a very well hidden vantage point, almost totally invisible from the outside, and well off the beaten trail. They occasionally had trouble finding where it was, even if they knew exactly where to look. They waited for her to come trotting along the path, and sure enough, not fifteen minutes later, along came the Pegasus, moving according to the same route she did every day. However, something wasn’t quite right.
The Pegasus turned to his companion. “She’s acting differently. She’s not looking for animals, she’s headed somewhere. Get ready to move if we need to.”
The unicorn held up one hoof. “Is that…is that singing? She’s singing something.”
Both watched as the Pegasus walked by their blind, slowing as she did so. Her voice was melodious, extremely so, and she was singing softly enough that the duo had to crane their necks in order to catch the words she was saying.
“Hush now, quiet now, it’s time to lay your sleepy head.
Hush now, quiet now, it’s time to go to bed.
Drifting off to sleep, exciting day behind you.
Drifting off to sleep, let the joys of dreamland find you…”
Cool Breeze stifled a yawn. His partner did likewise. Both watched through burning eyes as the Pegasus stopped, kneeling down by the side of the path, still singing. The Pegasus got a glimpse of the pendant around her neck. Strap, rock, a small hole bored through, but…what was that? On the rock?
“Hush now, quiet now, it’s time to lay your sleepy head.
Hush now, quiet now, settle down to bed.
Slipping into a dream, let my music bind you
Drifting off to sleep, just let slumber find you…”
Oh, shit. Silver Star struggled to get up and head for the bolt hole. The Pegasus was headed right for them, and he could see very clearly the pink butterfly emblazoned on the front. She was drawing on the power of her Element. He toppled to one side, as he watched Cool Breeze’s eyes slam shut. She was standing over him now, directly over him. He looked up into her beautiful blue eyes, as she sang another verse.
“Hush now, quiet now, and let fall your sleepy head
Close now your tired eyes, and lie down, time for bed…”
The two stallions woke up with a start, bound securely but not uncomfortably to two chairs. Both were also incredibly not dead, which was something they had not expected after being captured by one of the Elements. They looked at one another. Both were also clean, and slightly damp. They had not bathed in a while, having spent the past several months living in the woods, and they had both been acutely aware of the fact. The Element of Kindness was apparently having none of that, however, and had taken it upon herself to bathe them. The two were unsure if they should be thankful for that, or frightened. Cool Breeze tested his bonds a bit, but was interrupted by the arrival of a newcomer.
A violently pink Earth pony poked her head into the room, looking at them both carefully. “Oh, good, you two are up!” she chirped, walking over to the captured ponies. “Fluttershy said that you two would be up soon, but you both have been asleep for a really long time, and it’s been a bit boring and exciting at the same time waiting for you both to stop napping, we’ve been here all day, and-“
“Pinkie!” another voice snapped from the same doorway. The voice belonged to another Earth pony, this one orange, with a weathered Stetson perched on her head. “Get away, you’re not helping matters none.”
The Lunar Guards looked at one another confusedly. A third voice sounded from behind them, a very familiar voice. “I’m glad they both woke up, I didn’t want to hurt them, and they looked so still…”
Cool Breeze and Silver Star realized that they had been captured by no less than three of the five remaining Elements of Harmony. While this soothed their bruised egos to one degree or another, this meant that they were effectively at the mercy of whatever these three mares wanted to do with them. Their eyes met, and they nodded. A wealth of information was exchanged. It had been an honor, they had to remain strong, and it would probably be over quickly. Probably.
“Oh, will you cut it out with the looks? You both look like we’re about to bury you behind the house.” The orange one, Applejack, said.
Silver Star cringed. He spoke nervously. “Well, we were there for Whitetail and Red Rock. Our experience with the Elements has been…less than pleasant.”
Fluttershy’s eyes got wide, and she nodded understandingly. Applejack stomped one angry hoof. “Ah swear, next time I see Rainbow Dash, I’m going to shove my hoof up her-“
Pinkie Pie cut in. “We are not Rainbow Dash. That’s a promise. We just need your help with something, otherwise we would have left you alone.”
Cool Breeze snarled. “What, how to get to the Regia? How many ponies we have? Spy locations? Fat chance, I’d bite off my own tongue first.”
Applejack chuckled. “Easy there, stallion. We just want you to deliver a message. And it ain’t from Celestia, or the Elements. Just us three. It’s for Twilight herself, and nopony else. We want to talk with her.”
Silver Star spoke up. “No offense meant, but that sounds like a crock of shit if I’ve ever heard one. Lady Twilight hasn’t lived this long by wandering out of the Everfree on a whim.”
Pinkie Pie placed a comforting hoof on his shoulder. “All you need to do is deliver the message. And preferably, stop spying on Fluttershy.”
The Pegasus crossed a demure hoof in front of another. “Oh, I don’t mind, really.”
Applejack looked each of them squarely in the eyes. “Cut it out, y’hear? No more of that.”
Cool Breeze sighed. “Look, we will definitely deliver the message. And we will undoubtedly be pulled from our post to deliver it, and it’s unlikely that we will be back. That’s all I can promise. But what reassurance will she have that you won’t try something?”
Fluttershy smiled, a sad smile. “We can’t give her any. We’ve already betrayed her once, and it was one of the worst mistakes we’ve made. All we can do is make amends.”
The Princess of the Night was bored. Granted, she usually was, but there had been nothing to relieve that for near on two weeks. Not a visit from Celestia or Cadance, not a single attempt at interrogation made, not a thing. She had simply been left down here, in the darkness, apparently forgotten. So, she had turned inwards, and was now examining her psyche in minute detail, attempting to patch the miniscule cracks that could lead to major breakdowns later on. By her estimation, it was nearly the Midwinter Solstice, when her power was at its very greatest. That meant nothing here of course, but it was still a welcome event in her own mind.
Idly, she began to reminisce about the grand festivals thrown in her honor, back before even the Regia was built, back when they had ruled wild over the city-states, consolidating them under one power, providing them with unity and purpose and, yes, harmony. They had been wondrous affairs, she being the one who waxed and waned the growing seasons for those who followed her. Stone circles, harvest dances, the taste of winter wine on her lips…she licked the inside of her mouth, realizing that she was still incredibly thirsty. She sighed, wishing for something, anything, to relieve the monotony. She’d even welcome a visit from her sister.
There was a rattle from the door outside, and it swung open, revealing two large, winged ponies. The taller of the two lit her horn, and sunlight spilled into the cell that was Luna’s home, causing her to blink and squint. She smiled despite herself, appreciating the humor in the situation. “Speak and she shall appear. I was just thinking of you, dear sister.” she said, as Celestia and Cadance stepped inside.
“Good morning, Luna.” Celestia said, approaching her.
“Actually, it’s late afternoon, sister mine.” Luna said. “I keep my own time, remember?”
“How could I forget? Still, I simply wanted to see if you were still as…regular…as you claim to be.”
“Well, it isn’t as though I had much else to do down here.” The dark Alicorn said. “Aside from swinging on my chains, of course, or calculating how many ponies it would take to fill this room to the tip top.”
Celestia tilted her head curiously. “Now I must ask. How many ponies do you think it would take?
Luna smiled humorlessly. “Well, assuming we are using the same caliber of pony that is accepted into the Guard, I would estimate…two hundred and nine, comfortably. Turn me loose on the Guard prior to the experiment, however, and I think we could fit what was left of the entire Guard in here without too much trouble. We might need a mop to get them back out again, however.” She laughed at the look of disgust that crossed Celestia’s face. “Oh, pardon my little jest, prithee. ‘Twas quite worth it, to see the look on your face.”
Celestia ignored the jab. “I presume you know why I am here?”
Luna was quite aware of why she was here, but decided to see if she could get another rise out of her sister. “To spend some quality time as family? Perhaps thou wouldst like a game of charades? Or chess? I do miss chess.”
Celestia was blunt. “I am here to offer you another chance at Harmony, Luna. Cadance is here to provide moral support, should you need it. I can give you access to more of your power, allow you simple magic again. Food, drink, the company of other ponies, all I ask is that you give me your word, on your name and Power, that you will be my ally.”
“I say to you now that you will never count me as an ally in this. Never.”
Celestia’s tone took on a note of concern. “Luna, look at yourself. You’ve been down here for years. I miss you. The ponies miss you. Your night misses you. You know that I can’t make it the way you do. You’re an artist, Luna, and I hate having to keep you from your greatest creation, but I must count you among my friends before I can trust you with that sort of power.”
Luna was silent and still, as if transfixed by some new revelation. “No…”
Celestia stamped one hoof, her voice ringing with imperious force, her language slipping into the archaic Equestrian she had once used. “Thrice I ask and done, Luna Aetheria ex Equestria. Wouldst thou stand by me in my hour of need?”
“An’ for a third time I deny thee, foul temptress. May your false face hide what thy false heart doth know.”
Celestia snorted and headed for the door, Cadance in tow. Luna raised her voice. “Oh, Cadance?”
The Dawn Alicorn turned. “Yes, Aunt Luna?”
“How is Shining Armor?”
Both Celestia and Cadance froze. Celestia spoke. “So you know?”
Luna smiled thinly, showing no teeth. “Of course I knew, the moment she walked in. Dost thou forget so easily my harems, sister? Well I know the signs of a soulbind. She absolutely reeks of it. Child, thou wert with him directly before coming here, were you not?”
Cadance nodded. “Yes. He’s almost done.”
Luna laughed both long and loud at this, a cackle that bordered on madness in places. “Surely he is. And he is fit enough that he will survive, so long as you restrain yourself. This is your first, is it not? What do you plan on doing with the…leftovers? That will be quite valuable, you know.”
Celestia cut in. “You have no need to know that, Luna.”
“Oh come now, surely you jest! Your prudish ways may have blinded you to the true nature of the soulbind, but my experience in the matter vastly outweighs thine. And you know full well that her actions would have fallen under my purview, back in the wild days.”
“You speak of them fondly, Luna.”
“And why would I not? Of course they were filled with the follies of youth, but thou and I, we were revered as goddesses, and well they should have knelt before us, for goddesses we were. I miss the wild ways still, betimes.” Luna said wistfully.
Celestia rolled her eyes. “This is precisely why we centralized the ponies, in order to prevent that sort of behavior, that lack of control you so frequently exhibited.”
“The old argument, sister? Aye, things were less controlled back then, but ponies lived free and wild, able to make their own choices.”
“Are we speaking on the past or present, Luna?”
“Who says that they are different? To creatures such as us, they are simply words, Celestia.”
“I will not be portrayed as a villain because of your desire for anarchy, Luna!”
Luna laughed again. “Oh, sister I have missed these talks of ours. Quality time with you is so very hard to come by.” She said, her voice light and airy. Suddenly, she lurched forward, straining against her chains, face inches away from Celestia’s. The monarch of Equestria did not flinch as she spoke, her voice low and threatening. “Make no mistake Celestia, I will be free. I will have my revenge on you. And I will have my freedom back, and then the world shall see exactly how cruel the night can be. This I swear, on my name and Power, by the Aether, by Order and Chaos and Day and Night. I swear it on blood and bone, wood and sand. All your subjects will bow before me, and in place of a Princess they would wish for a queen, not radiant but mysterious as the stars, and treacherous as the night!”
Her voice climbed in volume. “I will see your subjects as mine, Celestia! All would see me and desire me, for I am the Night incarnate, and so long as darkness lingers in Creation, there shall I dwell. My time comes, Celestia, it comes very soon. Bow before me and despair, for just as I have brought Chaos to heel, so shall I shackle you, Celestia!”
The monarch stared into the furious face of her sister impassively, meeting the Royal Voice head on. “If you wish to be freed, Luna, you know what to do.”
She turned to the cell door once more. “Come, Cadance.” she said to the trembling Alicorn, and the cell door slammed, leaving Luna in her darkness once more.
Her mind began to work furiously. If Shining Armor was that close, and Celestia was involved…she sniffed the air. The scent hanging on Celestia, though she had done her level best to hide it, was familiar. The Circle, then. And if she had been to the Circle, then it could only be for one reason. Luna began to plot and plan, devising strategies and backup plans in order to counter this move of her sister’s. Now all she needed was to get free…
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Now this is interesting... Of the five, I didn't expect Fluttershy, Pinkie Pie and AJ to be the ones to contact Twi. Considering Appleboom is in the guard now. Okay... maybe Fluttershy, she would want the fighting to stop and them to be friends again. Pinkie Pie is random, so I wasn't sure which way she would bounce.
AJ... Honesty would force her to confront some unpleasant truths. It also sounds like one Rainbow Dash is a violent brute on the battlefield.
Good chapter... the plot thickens even more!
Also, Luna has gone crazy. Or was crazy. But I suddenly find her a lot less sympathetic than I did before this chapter.
Hell yeah, I can't wait for Luna to bust out of there and join the revolution.
Oh god, it's already 3D chess, now you're trying to incorporate Chinese Checkers, Monopoly, and Clue? I mean, with real-time movements. Why does intrigue have to be so damn complicated?
On a more serious note, why no Rarity or Rainbow? Actually, Rainbow I can understand, since she was originally the first to question Tia, so she's probably been leaned on the hardest. Rarity, though....
Also, does this mean that Honesty has learned how to lie, to family even? Or does she feel proud of AB despite not being proud of the guard in general? Or does this attempt to make amends have nothing to do with her feelings about the Royal Army?
You know, this fic has got me thinking about things. Can't really put it into words, but I'll try.
Thouht #1:
Basically, my line of thought is that order is like a game of chess. Each piece has its place, and its movement pattern. And each side can only move in one direction thanks to this pattern—towards each other. And when they meet, the concept of order each side has is incompatible, for whites forwards is blacks backwards. So they clash and fight, and kill and die until only one side remains. But what then? There is nothing left for the victor. There is no reason to advance, and they are unable to go backwards, so they stagnate.
A chess board with only white pieces is a very loney place, and that is the world Celestia is trying to build.
Thought #2:
In a game of chess, even the queen is just another pawn.
Just some amature philosophy that this fic inspired.
Aha! I knew Cadence did something to Shining!
That's pretty Nightmare Moonish there, Luna. Just what do you really want out of all this...
1605931
And thus you have just stumbled onto the reason that the rebellion exists - for total order and total chaos have the same end, the extinction of everything. It is only in the harmonious balance that life can flourish.
It's getting really hard to keep track of who's on who's side. Are Applejack, Pinkie, and Fluttershy defecting over to Twilight? Has Luna gone around the bend, and is she still on Twilights side or her own side?
Yikes, even though I don't really like SA, I can't help but feel sorry for him. First the changeling queen messes with his head, then his sister brutally wounds him and now his wife is viciously messing with his very soul.
Wow, this chapter was certainly interesting. Several points stick out:
1.at least some of twilight's friends feel bad about what happened, mind you, I'm not too sure about applejack, considering how proud she was of applebloom joining the guard.
2. The last time twilight's friends "just wanted to talk," she ended up in chains with celestia routing around in her mind, so frankly I don't trust them at all.
3. I'm not sure of Luna's insane, power hungry, or just fucking with celestia, either way, it raises some questions.
1605931 I think you're getting chess confused with checkers. Only 1 piece is forced to move forward, and that is the most important piece in the entire game, the pawn. While all the other pieces are special and good, if they ever die a pawn can easily replace them.
Also yes, that is something most people forget, that the queen while is very important, can be used and sacrifice for victory in the end if needed.
Huh, I never considered the pawn as important. You can easily win games without redeeming a single pawn; I always found Knights more useful, due to the more unpredictable - or at least harder to see immediately - moves you can make with them. I'm thinking Fluttershy's going to be a knight this game.
i call bullshit on both accounts...or at least to them...
luna is looking a little shaky, i hope twilight won't gain a new enemy if luna gets out, or worse yet, maybe luna never actually was an ally of twi to begin with. all alicorn have their perfect vision after all.
poor shining...
I really hope that Luna is just screwing with Celly But I have to accept the possibility that years of Celestia torturing Luna may have broken Luna.. Just not in the way that Celestia wanted..
Luna is capable of trolling with the best of em (look at what she did after Twilight was captured) so her relative sanity is still a possibility.
Go Luna! Please don't be crazy!
Calm yourself Galadrie- I mean Luna.
1607669
I was wondering when someone would pick up on that!
1607807
Haha, I myself have slipped a couple Toklien references into my works. So I keep an eye out for others doing likewise. Done very nicely.
1605862 - To be fair, Luna is her nature. She is the balance between Chaos and Order. If one is in prominence, she will work to even the scales. She definitely went a bit dark with her little monologue there, and it may well be that she will wreck glorious vengeance upon her release, but I expect she will focus most of her ire on Celestia and Cadence.
Once again... Celestia needs to die.
Also, the plot thickens about Shining Armor. Obviously soul binding is at least moderately dangerous. I almost expect it involves some form of decomposition. He's strong enough to survive, but 'leftovers'? Bind his soul to Cadence, and it will survive, but his body is left behind perhaps?
1608232
I don't think she needs to die, but I do think Celestia is out of balance and has effectively corrupted Luna and Cadence at this point. The one to obsession over love and the other to Chaos.
As to Shining Armor my guess would be that soul binding allows you to draw energy from the other creature, and that the addiction to power gained in such a way could cause you to drain them to death. The stronger the pony in will and body the more useful they are and the more resilient to being destroyed by it. As to leftovers, I assume that it might be possible to use them as a servant of some kind (i.e. they still have control of their body, but not their mind) or perhaps you can use unicorn horn for something?
Did Cadence actually love Shining Armor, or was she just looking for some pony that could be used up with soul binding? Does the other pony have to love the pony doing the binding? I just feel like Luna having a harem and it being related to that is not a coincidence, in fact I bet it had something to do with her transformation into NMM.
How does your story universe deviate from canon in general?
...may the sun fall upon you, Celestia.
And your blood stain this cursed soil where you have grown your children. The maggots.
...take no note of my rants if it bothers. Also, excuse me.
A return to friendship ahead?
Oh, how I long for the magic of friendship between those mares to be restored. I usually can't bear to read fics where they would betray Twilight rather than sticking by her side till the bitter end, but their reasoning is so perfect.
i suspect that fluttershy, pinkie pie and applejack mayhaps be trying to side with twilight
but...now i must now....WHAT THE BUCK IS RAINBOW DASH DOING IF HER FRIENDS WANT NOTHING TO DO WITH HER?!?!?!
go on luna, break out, let hellfire rain upon celestia for what she has done to twilight
have no mercy on the day
BRING FORTH THE EVIL ETERNAL POWER OF THE NIGHT
1605862
Hey, sorry, late to the party but I found this relevant:
Of course Celestia doesn't want anarchy... But note the careful wording there; To make their own choices.
I'm starting to heavily suspect that Celestia doles out free will as a finite resource, to be rationed where appropriate. If you read Luna's rant in that context again (As well as the Tolkein references
) you'll find Luna a hell of a lot more sympathetic.
May your false face hide what thy false heart doth know- methinks Macbeth? On the subject of attempted regicides/betrayals?
So it seems that instead of forcing the ponies to accept her as their Queen of the Night, Luna wants them to make the choice on their own. Those who choose with their free agency will be more loyal in the end, and will be true subjects, not mere pawns.
Dorfy.
i.imgur.com/FR1wxYj.jpg
Sounds a bit like Galadrial from the Fellowship of the Ring, saying what would happen if she had the ring.
I think you need a 'but' in there
Also; where is Fluttershy's husband in all of this? I clearly remember Fluttershy was recently married t the beginning of Lines and Webs, if the scouts have been watching her for months there should be some mention of him being there, aside from just the pets; and if they've been married for four years it would be entirely likely that they would fave a foal or two by now.
Frankly; if I was married and my Country was at war, and my wife decided to kidnap two enemy soldiers, hold them hostage in our house, give them baths while they were unconscious, and then release them with a message for their leader; I would want to know about it.
Luna kinda channeled Galadriel for a bit. Nice touch.
I knew, I knew she was casting something on Shining to make him dependent on her. I wonder what actions exactly were they talking about when they brought up the "wild days". Soulbinding and similar things?
To say I'm a bit relieved would be an understatement.
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1607669
Funny, twas just watching LOTR last week and thought that halfway through reading as well…
3090615 Needs more spikes of Goblinite.
I really hope this means they want to be on the right side now.
So now we've gone from Doctor Who references to Lord of the Rings.
Now, THIS sounds interesting.