A collection of posts written for the Thirty Minute Ponies tumblr, with themes based on the number 500.
A set of stories based on a series of prompts from the Thirty Minute Ponies tumblr. The prompts were done for the week leading up to the 500th TMP prompt, and all featured the number 500 in some way.
Untagged because I'm not sure what to use - I can't use cumulative tags because the nature of the individual stories means those conflict with each other. Ditto for the character tags - each individual story focuses on different characters, so no one set of tags applies other than that I've used. If anyone has any suggestions as to how to improve that, I'd appreciate hearing them.
As they headed home, Celestia asked it again. “And you’re sure you’re all right, Luna?”
Princess Luna stared at her sister. Admittedly, it was her first night back since being banished, but why did Celestia seem so worried? “Verily, Tia. I own that I was fearful of how thou wouldst return me unto our subjects, but thou didst well in the presenting of it. I do confess wonderment at something, though.”
Celestia looked up at her. “What’s that?” Again with the gentle verbal nudging, as though Celestia were trying to somehow support her. It didn’t make any sense to Luna, but perhaps it was just her sister’s guilt, trying to assuage itself.
“‘Tis the strangeness of their manner. Several of the buildings of the town in which thou didst present me were exceeding strange, after all. Beyond that, their speech unto thee was… not disrespectful, per se, but it did not offer thee the level of honor to which I had thought thee acclimated. Was that part of the accords thou didst put together after my banishment?”
Celestia shook her head. “Things have changed a bit while you were gone, Luna. That’s all there was to it.”
Luna shook her head, rejecting the idea. “Mayhap a slight change I could see, but so much of it? In such a short time? ‘Tis an unreasonable thing to me, Sister.” She turned back to Celestia, only to see the elder princess staring at her. “Sister? Is aught the matter with thee?”
Celestia shook her head, trying to pull her mouth closed. “Short time? You call that a short time to be separated?”
It was Luna’s turn for confusion. “Separated? But thou didst watch o’er me, didst thou not? I could feel thy presence as a constant reminder, comforting me, for those few weeks of mine entrapment.”
“WEEKS?!” At Celestia’s outburst, a bit of a satisfied smile came over Luna’s face. At least the Royal Canterlot Voice still saw use, if perhaps a bit more rarely. Luna watched as Celestia visibly calmed herself and tried again. “Luna, you’ve been gone for a thousand years.”
The color seemed to drain from Luna as she heard those words. “Nay, ‘tis not possible! How can such time have passed, and I be not aware of it? Sister, if this is thine idea of a jest, ‘tis a most cruel one indeed!”
“Believe me Luna, I’m not joking! You really have been gone for that long. You even said so yourself when you showed up in Ponyville.”
“I did?” Luna looked up in confusion. “Was it truly I, or that monstrous version of myself? I own that her deeds were as mine own, but I can recall only vaguely any actions I did take while in that form.”
Celestia stopped to think, and then nodded. “It was Nightmare Moon, you’re right. But if you can’t recall that, what do you recall?”
Luna frowned in concentration. “Thou didst banish me, reluctantly… I remember the tears in thine eyes as the Elements of Harmony did act upon the Nightmare. And then, thou wert there with me in my banishment, so that I had thought the Elements had taken thee with me, though I know not why they should have done so. ‘Twas so for three weeks, or so it seemed, and then the vaguest sense of the Nightmare’s actions, which did end in a burst of light as the Elements did surround her and separate her from mine heart once more. After that, I remember all.”
“Three weeks.” Celestia closed her eyes, mind rapidly turning over events. “Why do you remember those three weeks of your banishment and nothing else, and why do you remember me being there?”
“I know not, sister. Forgive mine ignorance.”
Celestia shook her head, eyes still closed. “It was a rhetorical question, Luna. But why those three weeks…!” Her eyes shot open. “Moonrise. That has to be it!”
“Celestia, wouldst thou please explain thyself?” The tone of impatience in Luna’s voice brought back wry memories, and the elder princess turned toward the younger, inviting her under a sheltering wing.
“Without you, I had to find some way to raise and lower the moon, Luna. I managed to get it to lower itself safely, but I still had to raise it each night, and I never could without longing for your return. Somehow, my feelings must have crept across the expanse to where you were trapped. That’s got to be why you remember it - because it was coming to you, my beloved sister, instead of to the monster who took you.”
Luna digested the idea. “But the moonrise only takes a few seconds to accomplish. How then was I aware of such a long… no, I begin to see. A few seconds each day, but stretched out over enough days, it would fit.”
Celestia nodded. “And a thousand years would have provided enough time.”
“Indeed. Trapped for a thousand years… e’en an I were unaware of most of it, thou certainly didst take thy precious time coming for me, Tia!”
Celestia rocked back, stunned by the sudden accusation. “Hey! I had to try and…” She cut herself off as she saw the twinkle in Luna’s eye. “Oh, you!”
“Me, indeed!” Luna stuck her tongue out at Celestia, and launched off of the chariot they rode. “Catch me an thou can, Sister!”
Celestia called out to her drivers. “Take the chariot back home; I’m staying out a bit longer.” She then took to the air in Luna’s wake.
‘A thousand years or three weeks, Luna,’ she thought, ‘either way it’s good to have you back home again.’
“Wakey wakey Rainbow Dash. It’s time to get moving!”
My first reaction over having everypony’s least favorite mix-and-match monster suddenly looming over me was anger, followed by a swift buck. Naturally, though, by the time my legs got there, he was gone.
“Dear me, Rainbow. One might almost think you don’t like me.” The smug smirk on Discord’s face vanished as he went on. “I’m afraid that doesn’t matter now, though. We need each other, my dear.”
“I don’t need you for anything, Discord! Just leave me alone, would you?”
Instead of wandering off like I’d hoped, Discord grabbed my head and pulled it up to his own. “That’s not true, Dash. You do need me. That is, unless you like the thought of being stuck here forever… well, for whatever ‘forever’ means now.”
“What are you talking about?” I snarled, then cringed at myself. ‘Bad move Dash, you don’t want to play his games!’
Discord’s face was disturbingly serious as he bent down over me again. “It’s quite simple, really. It seems your dear friend Twilight,” he said, spitting out Twi’s name, “has gone and gotten in over her head again. And this time, it’s even nasty enough to affect me. Look around you, my dear. Besides the two of us, who’s moving?”
Reluctantly, I did what he said. The answer to his question? Nopony was moving except me. “Discord,” I growled at him, “what have you done?!”
He held that chicken claw of his up in some kind of salute. “Not me, my dear. As I said, it’s your dear Twilight Sparkle who’s responsible for this mess. She really should know better than to play around with time magic like that.”
“Time Magic?” The words just sort of popped out of me. “That’s crazy! She said she’d never do anything like that again after that one time! What’re you really up to, you freak?”
He tried to give me that ‘sad dog eyes’ look, which is really creepy coming from him. “As much as it pains me to have to admit it, I’m completely serious. I don’t know what she was trying to do, but it seems dear Twilight managed to freeze time. And as much as I’d like to help, I can’t get things back to normal on my own.”
“Why would you even want to?”
Discord sighed and gave me a disappointed look. “Think about it, Rainbow. Do you realize how boring it’ll be to have everyone permanently frozen in time?”
That… made a strange kind of sense, coming from him. “I’m not saying I believe you, but if I did… you can obviously move around, and you got me moving. Why don’t you just go solve this little problem yourself?”
Discord snapped his claw, and in the space of an eyeblink we were outside the edge of Canterlot. He stuck his paw out and pressed it against the air. The sound it made, all sizzly like someone leaving a kabob on the fire too long, was nasty, and the black marks covering it when he took it away sealed that effect. I cringed; I couldn’t help myself.
“Canterlot’s too far gone for me. I can’t even set foot in it anymore; it’s all crystal-orderly now that nothing’s happening. I need, frankly, you. And you, my dear, need these.”
I stared at the thing he put down in front of me, a sort of clear ball filled with some kind of dirt. “What in Equestria is that?”
“That, my dear, is five hundred grains of the sands of time. Someday I might tell you what I had to go through to get them. For now, suffice it to say if you don’t have those, you’ll freeze too. And the instant you pick that ball up, the clock’s going to start ticking.”
“Ticking on what?” A really nasty thought was coming into my mind, though.
Discord verified it for me. “Each grain is one second, my dear. It’ll let you move once I drop my little protective bubble, but only until you run out of sand. After that’s done, you’ll freeze in place wherever you are, and we’ll all be out of luck.”
“I see.” I stepped over, and put my hoof on top of the ball. “GO!”
Discord froze. That’s the only way I could put it… once his little zone of chaos was gone, he was hit by the time freeze the same as everything else. I wasted a couple of seconds looking at him, then tore into Canterlot.
Do you know how big that city is? Even knowing Twi’d probably be in a lab somewhere, there were simply too many places I had to check. If anything other than me’d been moving, I’d probably have been leaving rainbooms at every major intersection as I sped my way around.
Twi wasn’t at her parents’ house, nor anywhere in the palace; those were the first two places I tried. She also wasn’t in any of the museums she kept talking about; and by the time I found that out, I’d burned about five minutes of my precious time. Seriously burned; they were sparking like embers on a fire, then disappearing.
I finally found a lab, off in the back corners of one of Canterlot’s big business blocks, with a logo I remembered seeing on some of Twi’s mail the last time I’d crashed into the library. I hit the door so fast I think it actually disintegrated around me on my way in, which was kind of cool, and sped through the hallways, the little flickers from that ball of sand eating away at my mind. Finally, with only a smidge of them left, I saw Twi, her horn touching some kind of metal ball, down a long hallway, and charged.
Five
The air in the hallway was really thick for some reason; I’m not sure why. It slowed me down, almost like it was pushing me away from the door. Four
I finally managed to barrel past the thick air, but managed to clip my wing on the wall and started spinning. No time to correct myself. Three
I turned my spin into an impromptu dive, flailing my legs in hopes of hitting the ball away from Twi as I went past. Two
I could see the ball, just inches away from my hoof, and gave one final stretch– One
I watched the last grain of sand flicker out of the ball, and my heart went out. An instant later, I felt as if I’d been hiding in the middle of a cloud when somepony thunderbucked it. Everything went bright white, and I hit the ground smoking. It took me a bit to realize that I’d done that.
When I looked up, Twi was standing straight on top of me. “Rainbow, what are you doing here? How did you get here? And why are you messing with this experiment? That was one of the most important things I’ve been working on!”
Twi turned her head and started to point her horn at that metal ball again; I panicked, and jumped on her to get her away from it. “Twi, for Celestia’s sake, don’t do it!”
“Rainbow, what has gotten into you?” I could tell she was hurt. I won’t say I didn’t care, or that it didn’t matter; it did. But I will say that, in that instant, it wasn’t important.
“I’ll explain everything, Twilight. Just please, don’t do this!”
I guess the scared look on my face was enough. “I’ll drop it for now,” Twi said, “but we’re going to have a long talk about this before the day’s over.”
Translation: I’m gonna get lectured. I’m gonna get lectured, and Twi’s gonna be mad at me. Not fun, but as a tradeoff for saving the world? Not bad, not bad at all.
“Thank you, all of you.” The unicorn Platinum, now shorn of her title of Princess, stood before the small group gathered before her. “I know that I have no right to ask this, but I extend my thanks to each of you for your assistance. I… I know that we may not be able to stand against Starswirl’s Windigo-driven madness, but I cannot stand by and let the dreams that ponykind has built upon this land be destroyed by his insane obsession with tribal purity. To do so would respark the war which only so recently ended.”
Platinum closed her eyes in sorrow. “I’m sorry. I’m no leader, I know that. I’d have preferred for my father, or my dear friend Clover, to lead you, to lead us, but that isn’t possible. Both have fallen under Starswirl’s spell, and seek to aid him.” She broke off, blushing in embarrassment. “I apologize. I shouldn’t be repeating things that you already know. Please, forgive me.”
The green-and-gold pegasus at the head of the crowd of fifty saluted. “Ma’am. You have every right. The king may have stripped your title from you, but he cannot take away who you are. Even if… no, especially as you aren’t one of those pure-blooded ponies Starswirl’s obsessing about, you’re our princess.” Around the room came voices of agreement, as those ponies Platinum had managed to gather for her resistance echoed the sentiment. They stood a mere hundred strong; a single hundred against the forces the maddened Starswirl had gathered unto himself.
Platinum wept. The fire within her precious subjects drove them onward, but it wasn’t enough. And the desperate cries for aid she had sent forth to Equestria’s allies had not been answered; no doubt, she was sure, because they wished to see where the rule of the realm would lie after the battle was over. She would stand, and she would, in the end, die. Quite possibly it would be her own father, or dear Clover, who did her in. But she would not back down.
A sudden rumbling of the ground alerted Platinum, and she looked upwards in confusion. Then, as the sensation became clearer, as her ponies began to shout, she called out in the voice she’d learned for royal proclamations. “My ponies! All of you, head outside! If this is what I fear, we must break free ere we are crushed… but if it is what I believe, then we may yet stand a chance! Hurry along!”
Platinum herself shepherded the last of her crew outside, to the edge of the town, where a massive pit had opened in the earth below. Several ponies began to wail with fear at the sight, but the tears that sprang to Platinum’s eyes were tears of joy. “Enter, ye worthy workers of metal and stone, and be welcome to the true Equestria!”
One by one, paws began to appear over the edge of the pit, as armored warriors of the race known as Diamond Dogs began to haul themselves out. Platinum knew, from her own battles both against and alongside these creatures, that one Dog could be worth several ponies in battle. But even then, even after she had sent agents to speak with them, she had imagined nothing like this.
By the time no more came from the pit, two bannered warbands of Diamond Dogs stood arrayed before her, numbering one-hundred and fifty dogs in all. No, one-fifty-one, for a single individual stood before both groups, and Platinum began to fall to her knees in respect as Jarl Cavall, heir to the Diamond Dog throne, stepped forward.
As Platinum knelt, Cavall reached one thick paw over and raised her up to her feet again. “It is not meet for a leader to bring dishonor to herself so, my lady.”
“I’m no leader,” Platinum said. “I’m simply an ordinary pony, trying to do what must be done.”
“Oh? I believe these,” Cavall said, his arm sweeping across her subjects, “would disagree. It would be unwise of you to let them down.” At the look in his eyes, Platinum nodded.
“I understand. Thank you, old friend, and please forgive a foolish old mare her misgivings.” She nodded her own head, taking in his warriors. “I’m grateful for your aid; I’m sure we all are. Yet I cannot help but think that, were we twice as strong between us, it would not be enough. And no further assistance do I see coming to us.”
Surely she merely imagined the twinkle in Cavall’s eye. Surely, it was not… “Do not be so quick to judge, my lady. Two treasures do I bring you, that I think shall be enough.” He motioned for the heads of each warband to step forward; they did so, each carrying a small jeweled cask.
Cavall opened the first cask and drew out a circlet of gold chain, easily as wide as he was tall, gemmed fastenings along the edges. “First, my lady, a gateway into that realm of light whence distance matters not; a gateway to your other sworn allies - for though your own agents to Altai were taken by your enemies, we too know the griffon-folk as doughty warriors and true. King Lionel’s own daughter leads a flight of them… a flight, as you said, perhaps in prophecy, equal in number to your forces and mine combined. But find me a place to lay this strand, and we shall soon have allies enough to face whatever Starswirl the Mad may lay against us.”
Platinum blinked; surely it was only the whipping wind which made her eyes water so. “I thank you, old friend, from the deepest part of my heart. You give me new hope, the like of which I had not expected to know.”
At the booming laugh from the Diamond Dog Jarl, Platinum looked up. “Ah, so. That makes the next a bit simpler, then.” He opened the other cask, to where a set of jeweled torcs were held. Each bore a single star-shaped gem in a different color - green, orange, red, blue, violet, and blinding white. “These, my lady, are our gift to you, forged of your gift to us. Your servants were most interesting - though I have forged objects of virtue and power before, never before have I forged them on a flame of virtue itself. The power of your Fire of Friendship burns within each of these gems, and I’ve no doubt it will continue to do so long after all of us here are as the dust.”
Cavall grasped the blue-gemmed torc and snapped it about his own neck. “As you say I have granted hope unto you, so I will willingly bear the Mantle of Hope at your side, my lady. I know not to whom the other four must go, the Mantles of Justice, Honor, Sacrifice, and Compassion, but for myself, I am sure of the last, and I would wager my own throne that your loyal-hearted ones would agree.” So saying, he lifted the white-gemmed torc from the cask, knelt, and placed it about Platinum’s neck, then saluted.
Platinum stared, shocked, then nodded and spoke her piece. “My lord Cavall, might I ask of you what virtue it is that you pin upon my presence?”
The Dog grinned. “You have raised your own to rally against the enemy from within, you have driven those of us who stand with you to act of our honor rather than stand on pragmatism… what else should it be, my lady, but the Mantle of Inspiration? For of a surety, no matter what you might once have been, as you now are you inspire greatness from all who come within your reach.”
Apple Bloom’s heart pounded in her chest as she ran across Ponyville, her precious burden carefully slung across her back. She’d lost Scootaloo and Rumble some distance back; the enemy closing in upon them had brought Rumble down, and Scootaloo had turned to hold them off, urging Apple Bloom onward.
As she tore through the market, Apple Bloom heard a voice calling out from behind her. “Hey, wait up!” She turned, and saw a clear-eyed Scootaloo running as fast as she could to catch up.
Apple Bloom was confused, and confusion quickly turned to suspicion. “Ah thought you were gonna hold them off?”
“They got away with Rumble, but I managed to take down the ones coming after me. After I got away, figured I’d try to catch back up with you, make sure you got to the base safely.”
“Right nice of… eep! Watch out!” Both fillies twisted and turned, skimming their way around the shoppers milling around the market square. Several mares turned to glare as the two went past, and both Apple Bloom and Scootaloo had to call out ‘I’m sorry’ several times as they moved. Apple Bloom noticed, however, that each step Scootaloo took carried her nearer and nearer to the package on Apple Bloom’s back, and more importantly, that Scootaloo didn’t seem to want to use her wings any.
As they neared the market fountain, Apple Bloom made her decision. “Scoots?”
“Yeah, Apple Bloom?”
“Ya know the mission’s what’s important, right?” At her friend’s nod, Apple Bloom continued. “If that’s really you, Ah’m sorry about this.” Without another word, Apple Bloom swung her hoof into Scootaloo’s stomach; catching the pegasus filly on the rise, the hoof lifted her upwards, out of control, and she sailed into the fountain, sputtering as she landed.
After regaining her balance, Apple Bloom headed onward to her final destination - the town library.
As Apple Bloom neared the library, she saw the marker that Twilight had left for her, the small vase that her burden needed to be placed in. It stood inside a ten-foot wide circle, and was flanked by a second vase holding… nothing. That shouldn’t have been the case. Apple Bloom skidded to a stop. “What…?”
“Oh, hello Apple Bloom.”
“Sweetie, what’s goin’ on? You were supposed ta be standin’ guard in case they came here! What happened?”
“Well, she seemed so nice…” Sweetie finally turned around, and Apple Bloom jerked back at the sight of the green over her eyes. “She was so friendly, and she asked so politely if I could get it for her. How could I say no?”
“Oh, Sweetie, no…” Apple Bloom looked back to the twin vases, both still dull brown, and began to move toward them. As she did so, Sweetie stepped in front of her.
“I can’t let you do that, Apple Bloom. Dinky said not to let anyone else near them.”
“Sweetie, Dinky’s a changelin’! Yer not supposed ta… oh, ferget it!” Apple Bloom jumped to the right, only to have Sweetie match the move and knock her to the ground.
“Dinky! I’ve got Apple Bloom here for you!” On cue, the gray unicorn filly walked out from behind the library, and over to stand above the prone earth filly.
“I’ll admit you did well, Apple Bloom. By the way, nice work figuring out that last little trap in the market. But it’s all over now, I’m afraid.” The gray filly’s horn lit up, and a band of green began to dance in front of Apple Bloom. “Just relax, Apple Bloom. It’ll all be over soon enough.”
“Ain’t gonna happen!” Apple Bloom began to sweep her legs around, as though making a snow angel in the dirt. It wasn’t enough to stop Dinky, but it was enough to throw Sweetie aside, and Apple Bloom just barely dodged out of the way as the green band lanced past where her head had been and tore into the dirt. Another sweeping roll, and Apple Bloom was back on her feet, charging at Dinky, who was preparing for another attack.
“Like I said, it ain’t gonna happen!” Apple Bloom jumped at the last instant, over the hypnotic attack and actually over Dinky, who fell to the ground to avoid Apple Bloom’s charge. In an instant, Apple Bloom was inside the protective ring around her target, and she pulled her prize from her back and slammed it into the waiting vase. The vase lit with a brilliant white light, and a chiming tone rang out from it as the white light began to pulse outwards.
▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓
“Aww, shoot! I was certain we’d won that time!” Apple Bloom turned toward Dinky, who was rolling back to her feet. “If I’d just gotten that lousy headband on you…”
Apple Bloom shrugged. “Sorry, Dinky. Ya did do a good job of plannin’ your traps, though. There were a few times I thought I was a goner, and ya did make me finish it off alone.” She looked at the flag unfolding in the breeze, a green banner with a black hoofprint on it. “So what’s the score now?”
“Changeling team three, Pony team two… thanks to your miracle comeback.” Dinky and Apple Bloom both turned to look at the library door, where Twilight Sparkle stood watching the aftermath of the game. “How’s the equipment holding up, girls?”
Sweetie spoke up. “The headbands are a little weird, but the walkie-talkie spells on them are a nice touch.”
Dinky chimed in as well. “And those illusion capes are doing a good job, Miss Sparkle. Thank you for making them for us.”
Apple Bloom nodded her agreement. “Makes for a right fun game, that does. Um, getting wet won’t hurt those, will it? I kind of threw somepony in the fountain.”
Twilight laughed and shook her head. “No, but you might want to go back and help clean up any messes you might have made.”
“Yes’m.” She turned to look at Dinky and Sweetie again. “Same thing again tomorrow?”
“Throw her out of my palace. I wish no more to do with this crazed emissary of a crazed ruler.”
The ambassador stared up into King Proteus’s face as the guards surrounded her. “It is not I who is crazed, oh foolish king. His Majestic Eminence Lord Tempest, Emperor of the Azure Skies, cannot be stopped. Remember well that he offered you a chance to surrender peacefully, and that in your arrogant folly you rejected it. Remember this, as your lands are drowned from existence by the power my master commands!”
“I shall remember the ramblings of a rabid hound, nothing more. Begone!”
As the ambassador was hauled, still yelling her screed, out of the palace, King Proteus sat back in his throne, hoof on his face. After a moment, he raised his head and beckoned for his closest advisors to join him. “What options do we have, my friends? I will never submit to a tyrant like Tempest, yet I admit his realm, his forces, do far outnumber those of our fair Lemaria. Can we field an army against him, even for a time, or has my pride destroyed us all?”
For long minutes, no answer was forthcoming, until finally the youngest of the King’s gathered companions spoke. “You did as you must, father, and so thus shall we.”
“Ah, Pearl. You fill my heart; I can only hope that you are right.
That night, the rains began.
Rains, day 7
“Majesty.”
King Proteus looked up as one of his guards circled down for a landing. “What news, soldier? Has there been any sign of easing in the clouds?”
The pegasus shook his head, water splaying everywhere as he did so. “I am afraid not, your majesty. If anything, the storms have redoubled over the land. These storms are unnatural, sire - the clouds do not respond to our commands.”
“I see. Change your plan of action, soldier. Take orders to your commanders from my own hoof - you are to cease attempting to stop the weather, and to focus on aiding Our subjects in seeking shelter from the flooding.”
The pegasus blinked, saluted his king, and flew back out into the darkening gray skies.
Rains, day 45
King Proteus looked up, as one of his retainers stepped into the throne room, a sick look upon her face. “Majesty, I am afraid that I must report the death of Stoneridge Harbor, and all those who dwelt within. The rising waters have overcome the village. Many of those who once lived there have been moved, but some three dozen souls refused to leave their homes. They will remain there eternally now.”
The muggy, oppressive humidity in the room became the slightest bit wetter, as hot tears of anguish poured forth from the king’s eyes at the news.
Rains, day 100 “Majesty, those of our people who remain dwell now in the highest of highlands around the castle. Even so, that shrunken realm looks to you for leadership. What can we do, Majesty?”
King Proteus nodded to his advisors. “Gather all those unicorns who you can find. Enjoin them to gather their powers into building a shield around the city, and draw all those you can within. I am afraid that our time is close to an end, however.”
Rains, day 365
A solid year of rain, a year without sunlight, without wind… only the dome around Lemaria’s palace had kept those precious few within, less than a hundred all told, alive, and that only because the King had rationed out the palace’s stores of grain and fodder scantly. Even so, those reserves would run out in a few days, as there had been no way to replace them.
King Proteus turned his eyes upwards, to where the stars above had once shone down, and cast a wish to them with all his might. “Would that there was some way I could aid my people once more… my own life I would gladly surrender, if it came to that.”
The king jumped as a voice answered from behind him. “Would you, now. Perhaps we might be able to come to a deal, then.”
Proteus spun, eyes widening in shock at the sight behind him. From nowhere, it seemed, a strange mare had appeared, her form covered not in loose hair, but shining coral shell. “What manner of being are you, to appear in such a way?”
The mare gave a rueful grin. “An opportunistic one, I’m afraid. I might be able to aid your people, your majesty, but I freely admit I’m doing it for my own reasons. My kindred fight against the monster who calls himself Emperor Tempest, and we’re searching for anything we can use against him.” She stepped forward. “I’m afraid I can’t free your people from Tempest’s threat, but I do have something I can do about what he’s done to your land. My people, oh noble king, are known as Changelings. Moreover, some among us have found a way to extend a portion of our power to others, at a cost. Will you, and your people, pay my price?”
“I see not that I have a choice, milady Changeling. Let us gather, then, and hear what you would say.”
Rains, day 500
At long last, the shining sun broke over the sea that had once been Lemaria. Emperor Tempest had satisfied himself that the realm had been punished; never again would their names be known in history. In that, he was sadly mistaken.
Underneath the seas, through the magic of a Changeling Queen, and the sacrificial love of a King for his people, a transformation had taken place. No longer were the inhabitants of Lemaria as they had once been; whether Unicorn, Pegasus, or Earth Pony, now all were a new breed, freshly come upon the world, and the aquatic Uisge of Lemaria once more freely farmed and froliced in the drowned lands below the waves.
“It’s hard to believe it’s been three months, isn’t it, Twi?”
Twilight turned toward Applejack. “No need to be imprecise, Applejack. It’s been three months, one week, and one day.”
A gentle laugh went through the group, and Rainbow said, in her own way, what the others were thinking. “That’s our Egghead.” Twilight simply grinned at the remark.
“So, darling, you said you had something you wanted to say to us?”
Twilight glanced over at Rarity, then back to where the sun was just beginning to touch the horizon on its way to rest. “I do, but it can wait a few minutes. Let’s just finish watching the sunset first, okay?”
As the sun gradually sank below the lip of the earth, the sky began to grow purple, then darker. Finally, the moon began to rise, indicating the end of the day and the beginning of night, and Twilight gave a sigh of contentment. “There. It’s done.”
Applejack looked up at Twilight. “Yeah, sun’s set. What was so important about that?”
“Oh, not the sunset itself, Applejack. The day it ended, that’s the important part.” Everypony looked up at Twilight in alarm as her voice began to change, and a cold wind suddenly whipped through the night air. “One hundred days. Exactly one hundred days have passed since you used the Elements of Harmony and Twilight Sparkle became an Alicorn.”
“Um, Twi? You’re not going down the ‘Great and Powerful Trixie’ route, are you? ‘Cause talking about yourself like that is creeping me out a bit.”
“Who says I’m talking about myself?” They could hear the gloating note in Twilight’s voice, despite the fact her back was turned toward them. At the sound, Fluttershy gave a brief ‘eep’ and ducked to the ground, her hooves over her eyes.
“Twilight, explain yourself. What is all this nonsense about?”
“Oh, it’s simple, Rarity. You used the Elements, as you know. They did, indeed, allow Twilight Sparkle to ascend to becoming an alicorn. But poor Twilight wasn’t as strong as she thought. The sheer power of her new magic tore through her. I’m afraid she only had a few minutes to enjoy her new status before it killed her. How very fortunate for me. I simply had to slip in and take her place. No one, not even that pathetic old dotard Celestia, ever suspected a thing.” She gave a low chuckle, the sound of which chilled her friends to their bones.
“Enough, Twilight! You practically worship Princess Celestia; there’s no way we’d believe something like that from you! Stop trying to scare us!” Rainbow grabbed Twilight by the shoulder, hauling her around. As their eyes met, Rainbow jumped back, a cry of fright on her lips.
The eyes of Equestria’s newest princess were still their same purple color. They weren’t the friendly and open eyes of Twilight Sparkle, however… they were the slitted eyes of a cat.
It was Rarity who took the lead. “Nightmare Moon, I presume?”
Twilight shook her head. “I’m afraid not, although you’re close. I was only ‘Nightmare Moon’ while I was bonded to Luna. Now? Just the Nightmare, please.”
“What’n tarnation makes ya think we’ll just let ya get away with takin’ over our friend, ya monster?”
The Nightmare shook her head, sighing. “You can’t figure it out, Applejack? You won’t stop me with the Elements again because you don’t have them all. But more importantly, in a few minutes you won’t even want to stop me.”
Rainbow flew forward, getting into the Nightmare’s face. “As if! There’s no way we’d let you get away!”
“Oh, really?” The Nightmare grabbed Rainbow in her magic and hauled the pegasus over to her. “Do you know why I’ve waited this long?” she asked, as Rainbow struggled to get free. “If all I wanted was to fight you, I’d have done that the very first day.” The Nightmare shook her head. “No, I have something more in mind.
“One hundred days of watching you train, of swallowing my pride and reading those pathetic ‘Daring Doo’ books with you, of listening to your incessant bragging. One hundred days in which you soaked up my presence, believing me to be Twilight Sparkle. One hundred days to bring you under my banner, would you or no.” The Nightmare touched the tip of her horn to the edge of Rainbow’s throat, directly on the position where her Element’s gem would have lain. “And now it’s time for that investment to pay off. Arise, my Shadowbolt.”
As the Nightmare unleashed her magic, Rainbow stopped struggling. Her hide began to grow pale, and her hair shifted color, becoming a single shade of deep blue. Nopony else moved, frozen in shock at the sight. As it ended, Rainbow Dash settled to the ground and bowed before the Nightmare. “Your orders, my princess?”
“Grab them all, my pet.”
Within minutes, Rainbow had managed to trap the others in a wall of wind, as the Nightmare approached each one.
“Applejack. One hundred days of hauling apples, of helping out with farm work, of aiding you in your finances. Now arise, my Disparager.
“Pinkie. One hundred days of far too many sweets, of foolish parties with more foolish reasons, of your relentless prattle. Arise, my Mocker, and turn your nonsense upon my enemies.
“Rarity. One hundred endless days of listening to you moan about fashion, about Canterlot, about everything under the sun. One hundred days of being used as a dress dummy without letting loose my complaints. Arise, my Herald, and prepare the land for my coming.
“Fluttershy. One hundred days of carrying seed, of hauling water, of caring for your pathetic animals. One hundred days of listening to you cringe and whimper at every slight detail. And still, my power rests on you but lightly. I’ll have to work on that, but until then, arise, my Innocent, and be still in my presence.
“Five hundred days preparations spent between you. And now, it is at an end. Let us begin my reign, my new legion. Poor Celestia and dear Luna won’t know what hit them.”
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Princess Celestia, this is Spike. I don’t know if Twilight’s gone crazy or been replaced by a changeling or what, but she’s spouting off a bunch of nonsense about taking over Canterlot and overthrowing you. All of her close friends seem to be egging her on, and they’ve changed, Princess. Please, do something to get ready for when she comes after y
Celestia grimaced as she read the words. The scroll had arrived in the normal manner for a communique from Spike, but it hadn’t been bound; the signet that allowed him to send it to her had instead been pressed into the parchment, which had been wadded up around it. It seemed an impossible warning, and part of her suspected a prank, but she’d learned well the folly of ignoring a potential threat.
“Luna. Gather the soldiers. I’m afraid we’re going to have to go to war.”
At the knocking on the library door, Twilight called out. “Spike, would you please go get that?”
“Sure thing, Twi.” From the second floor, Twilight could hear his footsteps as the baby dragon bounded across to greet their guest. “Welcome to the Golden Oa-oa-oa… ha. Ha. Ha-ha. Ha-ha-ha-hanh…”
Twilight looked up in confusion as Spike’s voice went from cheerful, to disbelieving, to a strange sad-sounding tone. “Spike, is everything okay?”
“T...Twilight, get down here - I think we’re being haunted.”
“Haunted?” Twilight bounded down the stairs. “Spike, what do you mean by…” She froze at the sight of the mare in the door. “Fl… Fluttershy? Fluttershy, is that really you?”
“Um, I think I’m really me. I remember being me, and I don’t recall being anypony else.” The butter-yellow pegasus shrugged. “Is there some reason I shouldn’t be me?”
Gingerly, Spike reached over and tapped at her legs. Finding them solid, he threw himself into them, gripping her in a desperate hug. “You’re here… you’re really here, you’re not a hallucination, you’re not a ghost, it’s really you…”
Twilight wasn’t too far behind him, her own hooves grasping Fluttershy’s barrel with equal intensity. “Fluttershy, I can’t believe this! I mean, I have to, because I’m seeing you with my own eyes, but...Shy, we thought you were dead! After that blast of magic hit you, all we could find was the tips of some feathers and a bit of hair! How did you survive? What happened to you?”
“I… I don’t know. I remember trying to throw Spike to safety, and then a very bright light, and I think I blacked out. When I woke up, I was resting on the dirt somewhere with a sore wing. After that, Seri and Seef found me, and they took care of me until I was well enough to start back home. I’m sorry it took me so long to get back.”
“Please, Fluttershy. Tell me whatever you can about your trip.”
“I’ll try. Um, could you let go of me, Twilight? It’s getting a bit hard to breathe.”
“Oh...oh!” Twilight stepped back, freeing Fluttershy from the death-grip hug. “Sorry. Now go on, please.”
Fluttershy nodded. “It happened like this.”
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“Ah, our fair guest is wakening up. How do you feeling, little flier-pony?”
Fluttershy looked upwards. Standing above her was a brown stallion with blackish-gray mane and tail. She couldn’t see his cutie mark, but she could see that, unless her eyes were playing tricks on her, he was one of the biggest ponies she’d ever seen, almost the size of the princesses. And he had an expectant look on his face.
“Um, I’m sorry. I’m afraid I don’t know who you are, or where I am.”
The stallion reared back. “My sorry, little one. I am being called Seef… in your tongue, I trusting it means rock-made? Forgiving, please; I sorrying if my talking is not so good; it is rare that I have even those who talking my Arabian tongue, let alone others.”
Fluttershy shook her head. “Oh, that’s all right. You’re speaking Equestrian very well, actually. Um, it’s a little unusual, but not much.” She then pulled her hoof to her mouth. “Oh, I’m sorry too! You told me your name, and I didn’t tell you mine. I’m Fluttershy.”
“Much goodness and thanks do I giving, then, little Fluttershy. My companion was finding you in the wilderness, and she was having me bring you to this place to recovering.” He turned aside. Fluttershy couldn’t tell what he said next, as it wasn’t in Equestrian, but he turned back to her. “Little Seri-heart is come to seeing you.”
Fluttershy watched as something bounded into the room. At first glance, it looked like a yellow rabbit, a bit smaller than her own Angel-bunny, but then the bouncing creature stopped and she got a good look at it. She’d missed one detail - the yellow ‘bunny’ in front of her had a black horn on it, almost like a unicorn’s horn.
“Seri-heart, this is Fluttershy. Fluttershy, please meeting Seri-heart. It is she who has been keeping you warmth through the nights.”
“Oh, she’s beautiful. What kind of creature is she? I’ve never seen anything like her before.”
Seef laughed. “She is being an almiraj, little Fluttershy.”
Fluttershy spent a week recuperating with Seef and Seri, helping Seef to work on his Equestrian and learning Arabian in return, and at the end of that time, she thought she was ready to try heading back to civilization. Seef loaded her down with as much food and water as he could spare for her, but the real surprise was when she headed to the door. Seri stood in front of it, looking up, and Seef looked at the almiraj, then back to Fluttershy. “She wants to go with you, little Fluttershy. She tells me you need her protections on the way.” He shook his head. “Be taking her, little one. Otherwise, she will follow anyway and may come to hurt.”
Fluttershy looked at the almiraj’s planative face, and nodded. “Come along then, Seri-bunny. I bet Angel-bunny would just love to meet you.”
▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓
Spike broke in. “Wait, you brought a, a bunnicorn back with you?”
Fluttershy nodded, but Twilight glared at him. “Let her finish her story, Spike.”
“Oh, I’m sorry, Twilight. There’s really not that much to tell after that. Two days after I left Seef’s house, we came into one of the smaller towns in Saddle Arabia, and from there I just kept going until I made it to the border. After I crossed into Equestria again, I thought about trying to get a letter back to you, but I decided I could probably make it back just as fast as a letter could. Again, I’m sorry it took me so long.”
“I don’t care how long it took, Fluttershy. But we do need to tell the other girls… they’ll want to know you’re back. It’s just so good to see you again!”