Adrian Stormsword, A twenty year old Battle-Mage is given a spell book by a stranger which sends him to a new land he doesn't recognize.
This is the journey of one Adrian Stormsword, a Battle-Mage in training. Leaving his home town to learn more about magic and swordsmanship, he sets off towards the capital city of Reymorah to attend the Academy there.
At an Inn, a cloaked stranger offers him a rare book of magic. Little does he know of what lies within.
###NOTES###
Human X Celestia, Luna, OC Changeling Queen named Shella, and Cadence
Adrian's magic is based off the game Magicka. Thus is sort of a Crossover, but has no world lore from the Magicka Universe.
This is mainly a first person perspective from Adrian's point of view. But other views will be shown when necessary for the story.
Chapters with clop will be skippable for those who wish to skip them.
These are Notes I've compiled throughout the development of this story, up to the latest Chapter (101).
These detail who has what, what they know, who they are, and locations discovered. (This is constantly updated when needed)
This also helps me to remember important stuff.
===General Information=== Time since arrival = 10 months 29 days Grand Galloping Gala 327th Luna Pregnancy = 1 month 28 days Shella Pregnacy = 24 days / Time till next impregnation = 7 days
===Locations=== ---Terra--- Hedonia - Continent Reymorah - Kingdom - King = Vortigan Llywelyn / Queen = Alyssa Llywelyn / Prince = Kain Llywelyn Elysium - Reymorah capital city Elerune - Adrian's home town
Dead Sea - South of Reymorah Dread Wastes, previously the Moonglade Forest
Vaylen - Kingdom of the Elves - King = Sylvaan Haluran - Elven capitol city.
Orgrim - Homeland of the Orcs - Warlord Chief = Grom'Thak Tar Yar'grith - Orgrim capital city
Dangurak Marsh - A marsh land near the Orc homeland filled with trolls and other creatures
---Equus--- Magic Research and Development Academy - Canterlot Canterlot - Equestria Capital Ponyville - Equestrian town Whinniesberg - Equestrian town Shella's Hive - Lapis, at the base of mount canter Neighpon - Equestrian town Manehatten - Equestrian city Cloudesdale - Equestrian city Trottingham - Equestrian town
Gryphonia - Aires Peak - Capital - north west of Equestria
Chrysalis Hive - Jade Shell - (destroyed) Dark purple Changeling hive - Queen unknown Onyx City - Ancient changeling city in the badlands
Drakonis - Dragon Homeland
===Groups=== -Equus- Black Hoof Clan - assassins
-Terra- Haluran Council - Elven magic school and archives Way Walkers - Elven special unit
===Important Characters=== ---Humans--- Grogar Vilethorn - A powerful necromancer.
Theo Dryton - Elysium Guard Captain.
Maria and Lenson Stormsword - Adrian's parents.
Jasmine Stormsword - Adopted daughter of Maria and Lenson Stormsword.
Orthos Llywelyn - Vortigan's brother.
Nathaniel Thornston, head of the most powerful noble family Blackthorn in Elysium. Julian Thornston, son of Nathaniel Thornston.
Clare Wittell, baker in Elysium.
---Ponies--- Silk Sheets - Her fur is a powder blue and her hair is a light yellow. She has the standard
black and white Maid uniform on where the skirt goes down to her shins. Her mark is
a pile of blankets with different colours.
She is the personal maid of the Equestrian royal family and Shining Armour's marefriend.
Cream Cake - Head chef of Canterlot castle.
Shimmer Hooves - a Unicorn with sapphire blue fur and silvery white hair. Her eyes are a
greenish gold colour.
Scarlet Incense - a Pegasus with crimson red fur and orange hair. Her eyes are a deep blue.
Firm Hands - an Earth Pony with light green fur and light pink hair. Her eyes are a light
purple colour.
Golden Scroll - Husband to the Canterlot spa Mares.
Fleur Lily - Blueblood's and Rarity's adopted daughter.
---Changelings--- Chrysalis - Queen of the Jade Hive changelings - Has been killed by Adrian.
Chitain and Chameleon - Changeling guards that went to Terra with Adrian and are now guarding Ponyville.
Thraxx - Captain of Blueblood's personal guard.
---Gryphons--- Venna - 15 year old female Gryphon caught in Haywaii. offered Equestrian citizenship in exchange for information
Hagriff - Venna's Father. Black Gryphon with grey feathers with black tips and black beak, he has a scar across his left eye which stays closed. offered Equestrian citizenship in exchange for information
Orphious - A member of the Gryphon Council.
---Dragons--- Ember - Daughter to Dragonlord Torch and mate to Spike. (Now the new Dragonlord)
Spike - Keeper of the Canterlot Archives and mate to Ember.
Dragonlord Torch - Dragonlord of the dragon race and father to Ember. (He is a big ass bastard) (Killed by Adrian)
---Kitsune--- Empress Jin'lee of the Kitsune.
Kienmon - Guardian of the Kitsune Empress.
---Aquarians--- Tide Priestess Hisana of the Aquarians.
---Dwarves--- King Ivan Bronzebeard of the Dwarves.
---Elves--- King Sylvaan of the Elves.
Elune - Strong female elven enchanter under Vortigan's rule.
---Orcs--- Grom'Thak Tar - Warlord Chief of the Orcs.
-<>-Equestrian Royal Family-<>- Mavis Stormsword - Daughter of Shella and Adrian.
Vespula Stormsword - Second daughter of Shella and Adrian.
Valiant Stormsword - Son of Celestia and Adrian.
Hope Stormsword - Daughter of Cadence and Adrian.
Solaris - Father to Celestia and Luna, husband to Galaxia.
Galaxia - Mother to Celestia and Luna, wife to Solaris.
===Sub Characters=== Olvera - Gryphoness caught at the camp. killed during an escape attempt. Silver Vase, Scroll Minder and Golden Blossom - Traitorous Nobles who joined Goldrush in an attempt to kill the royal family. Shining Jewel - Noble pony conned into funding the assassination attempt at the royal wedding. Released and back to living her life.
===Aspects=== Infernus, the Aspect of fire (Male) = Covered in flames with only two bright eyes on his face. He has no legs but a small trail of flames as he hovers. His hair looks like the flames you would see on a campfire.
Mother Gaia, the Aspect of life (Female)
Arcanum Mortis, the Aspect of Arcane (Male) = Looks like skeleton in a tattered black robe holding a very morbid looking scythe. The pole is made of four arms, one holding the next, the fourth arm is holding a skull with a blade coming out of the mouth. his eyes are also glowing with red and black arcane magic.
Umbra, the Aspect of Shadow (Female) = A human shaped woman whose body looks like it's made completely of black shadows, wearing a dark blue shadow like dress.
Lux, the Aspect of light (Male) = A man made of pure white energy. His face only shows two eyes that are a bright golden colour and he seems to be wearing some kind of toga.
Discord, the Aspect of Chaos (Male) = We all know what Discord looks like!
Harmony, the Aspect of Order (female)
Gust, the Aspect of Air (Male)
Terra, the Aspect of Earth (Male) = A golem made of stone and earth, two diamonds for eyes with moss growing on the top of his shoulders and head. Vines hang from his face, making it look like a beard.
Aquaria, the Aspect of Water (Female) = A woman made of pure clear water, she's wearing a dress that looks like it's made from seaweed and seashells, and her hair looks like a flowing river that fades away at the end.
===Pets=== Keanu - Fluttershy's male plane runner. Angel - Fluttershy's pet bunny. Philomena - Celestia's pet phoenix
XXX=Main Important Characters=XXX ====ADRIAN STORMSWORD==== Age = 20
---Scars--- On chest from right shoulder to left hip
---Items--- Gems, life and fire infused Lockpicks Flask of Water Starswirl's Spell Book Elven hand mirror Heart shaped Pendant with marks of the Alicorns and a black trim made from a tiny piece of shella's chitin. A picture of him and his lovers inside it. A ring made from Shella's chitin with a life infused emerald on it in the shape of the life element icon.
---Equipment--- Camping Gear (Tent/Cooking Pot+Utensils/Bed Roll/Small Shovel/Hatchet) Enchanted Longsword Enchanted golden plated full-plate steel armour Yew Stave Enchanted shield Two gold with diamond bracelet foci
---Spell Elements Known--- 4 elements max / 5 with life and fire. Arcane Shield Life Ice Cold Steam Fire Lightning water earth --- Air --- Light Shadow
---Aspect forms--- Life - Magic Life - Physical Life - Champion Fire - Magic Fire - Physical Fire - Champion Heltirius Arcane - Magical
---Spell Combos--- Haste Teleport Revive Nullify
===LUNA=== ---Currency--- Terran Coins = 0g 0s 0c Bits = A shit ton in the Canterlot Castle vault Aspect = Shadow / Umbra ---Items--- Diamond moon ring from Adrian
I yawn as I slowly get up from my straw bed, these Inns may not be the most comfortable, but at least they're affordable.
Getting up slowly, I stretch my limbs and get my blood flowing again. I check my belongings to see if it's all still here, can't be too careful in places like this.
My iron longsword and yew wood stave are still at the foot of the bed, my half-plate armour is still there as well. I put my armour back on which consists of an iron chest-plate with small pauldrons, iron boots and iron gauntlets, black leather leggings with three pouches down each side of my thighs, and a black leather hood. I strap the sword to my left hip and use the stave as a walking stick.
My coin pouch still has what I arrived with, five gold, thirty silver and twenty-two copper coins. I also have a few gems in my top right pouch I found during my travels, my lock-picks are in my left middle pouch and my few salted meats are in my bottom left pouch, I have a flask of water in my bottom right pouch while the other pouches are empty.
I put my camping gear on my back which contains a small two person tent, a small cooking pot with utensils, a bed roll, a small shovel and a hatchet.
Once all equipped, I head down into the bar area of the Inn, I look around at some of the people drinking and eating; I notice two of them looking at me with scowls, I'm going to have to keep an eye on them, one of them is wearing torn studded leather armour and the other is wearing frayed robes with a splintered staff next to him.
I sit at an empty table and order a light breakfast. Halfway through my meal, a stranger in a brown cloak and grey hood sits across from me. His face seems longer than most, with a long white goatee and bushy long eyebrows. Two mismatched horns seemed to be attached to his hood as well.
But it's his eyes that disturb me, they're yellow with red irises.
"Greetings my friend, I could not help but notice your stave, are you by chance a mage?" he asks.
I swallow the eggs I'm chewing on. "Battle-mage, still training but I know the basics," I reply.
"Close enough, I have a book here you might be interested in," he says and places a thick leather tome on the table, by the looks of the book, it's old, very old.
"What is it?" I ask warily.
"A very unique spell book, it teaches how to cast spells and it even teaches a few elements forgotten to time," he tells me.
I raise an eyebrow sceptically. "Oh? And why offer such a book to me? Wouldn't you get more for it at the Academy?" I ask him.
"I don't want money, I've learnt all this book has to offer, I'm just passing it on so somepo... one else who can learn from it," he replies.
I was about to open the book but he places a hand on it. "Read it alone, only those worthy of such knowledge may read its contents," he tells me seriously.
I frown and look down at the book. "And what makes me worthy of such a book? I'm still an apprentice, I can only combine two elements," I tell him.
"I see potential in you my lad, I see great things in your future," he tells me. "A word of advice though, when you leave, watch your back," he says. He then snaps his fingers and is gone in a puff of... pink smoke.
The other patrons are also staring in confusion at the spot the man was sitting at, I then pick up the book and place it in my camping pack on the floor beside me. The others continue to stare for a while before going back to their meals or conversations. I finish my own meal and put my pack back on, I then pay the Innkeeper twenty silver and make my way out.
I follow the road towards the Capital City Elysium, I guess it will be another three days on foot to get there. After a few hours of walking, I hear some rustling in the bushes behind me, I turn around and don't spot anything out of the ordinary, an animal perhaps?
I turn back around and keep walking. About ten minutes later, the rustling returns and I draw my sword and ready my stave. I hear a few creepy chuckles as those two men who were scowling at me from the Inn step out from the tree line.
"Hehehe, hello boy. We'll be taking anything you have, as well as that book that old geezer gave ya," he says holding a rusty looking sword, the other is pointing his staff at me.
I point my stave at the bandit holding the staff and channel my mana through my stave, two small orbs of light coloured arcane red and fire orange circle the small focal gem on the tip.
After a few seconds of tense staring, I release the magic and the two elements meld together, a thin beam of fire bursts out from the gem and hits the staff bandit in the shoulder making him cry out in pain before healing himself, I really need to work on my aim.
The rusty sword wielding bandit charges at me and I parry his vertical swing with my sword, I then counter with a right horizontal slash from my left side at his stomach and cut open his gut, he screams and places his left hand over his wound and backs off.
The staff wielding bandit casts a healing beam at his friend and his wound starts closing but I quickly channel two cold elements and spray out a cone of frozen mist.
The staff wielder is covered in a light coating of ice and starts shivering, I quickly raise my sword and channel an earth and water element into my sword and swing down with an overhead strike, a line of rocky spikes burst up from the road and runs towards the rusty sword bandit, water blasts out of the cracks and hits him with decent force.
He's sent back a few metres and I charge at the staff wielder, his eyes widen as I plunge my sword through his throat, I then rip it back out and point my stave at the other bandit.
I channel two lightning elements and spray out a wide chain of electricity at him, since he was soaked from my previous attack, the electricity deals more damage and leaves him a crispy corpse. I hunch over with my hands on my knees panting hard, I'm still not used to casting so many spells in quick succession.
I walk over to a small boulder as I sheath my sword and sit down on it. I pull out my water flask and take a few gulps of the refreshing liquid, then I eat the last of my salted beef. I get the book out and give it a once over, cracked black leather binding with no text on the cover.
After a few seconds more of just looking at it, I open it up to the first page.
A bright flash of light blinds me momentarily making me drop the book and rub my eyes, I fall onto my back as the boulder I was sitting on disappeared.
I sit up and look around; I'm in some dark foreboding forest. I quickly get to my feet and put the book back into my pack, I'll look at it later once I know where I am. I draw my sword, pick up my stave and get into a stance, I stand still for a few minutes just listening for any movement.
A low growl to my left gets my attention, I turn towards it to see a large manticore, except it's missing its horns. Its rear end is comically small while its head and torso are huge, but the tail still looks as lethal as ever.
I slowly try to back away from it, it growls louder and advances on me. I slowly point my stave at it and channel a water and cold element through it, the beast gets closer and closer and leans close the the ground, ready to pounce.
I charge up the energy to narrow the spread of the ice bolts, I then release the spell and six shards of ice soar towards the Manticore where four of them dig into its hide.
It roars in pain or anger and then leaps at me, I swat its claw away with a swing of my sword and cut its paw. It roars again and thrusts it's stinger at me. "GAH!" I yell as it stabs my left thigh. I swing my sword down in anger and chop its stinger off.
It roars again and backs away, my leg begins to start burning as I channel two earth elements together, while it's writhing in pain I charge up the spell to increase the force of the rock the spell ripped out from the ground.
The manticore stops writhing and glares at me, until it sees the rock the size of my head floating with energy radiating from it. I release the spell and the rock impacts its skull with sickening force, a loud crunching sound of bone rings out as the manticore goes limp to the floor.
My mana is just about to run out and I'm pretty sure I'm poisoned. I pull out the stinger and attached it to my belt on my right hip, hopefully I can find a village or town nearby to make an antidote quickly. If the same logic applies, a manticore's poison takes twenty-four hours to kill. I apply what little mana I have left into healing the wound on my thigh a little, it's not closed, but it's better than bleeding out.
I start heading towards what looks like a dirt path and follow it for about ten minutes, the burning in my leg gets worse and starts spreading to my shin and waist. I see the forest's edge and walk out to see a large field with a town in the distance, the dirt path leads to the small town about ten minutes away.
I sheath my sword and use my stave like a walking stick as the pain is getting worse. Some time later I'm limping into town, to see something I'm sure I'm seeing right. Horses that stand upright with clothes on and come up to my chest in height are staring at me with mixed expressions, they kind of remind me of the Kitsune people.
They just stare at me with confusion, fear, curiosity, and even some worried expressions. I manage to take about twenty more steps before coughing up some blood and collapsing in the street.
"Oh my gosh! Quickly! We have to get it to the hospital!" says a female voice.
I cough again as I feel someone pick me up and wrap my right arm around their neck.
I groan as I slowly wake up, I hear a gasp and then a door opening and closing.
My eyes slowly open as sunlight flows over me like a warm soothing touch from the open window.
I try to sit up, but I appear to be strapped down to the bed, I try to struggle but for some reason I feel slightly dizzy.
I hear the door open again and two small bipedal horses walk in, I'm not sure if I am dreaming or have gone insane. The one on the right looks male with brown fur and darker brown hair, and is that a horn on his forehead? The left one looks female with white fur and pink hair but she has no horn on her head, I also notice that their muzzles are shorter than a horse's, their heads are rounder with larger eyes as well.
"Good morning, Sir, how are you feeling?" he asks me.
I'm too shocked to reply as I just stare at them.
"Do you even understand me?" he asks again.
I slowly nodded up and down.
"Are you shy?"
I shake my head.
"Lost your voice?"
I shake my head again.
"...Surprised perhaps?"
I nodded.
"Ah... well please relax, you're in safe hands here," he tells me.
A sudden pain in my left thigh makes me look down to see bandages wrapped around it, my weapons, armour, and gear are missing, leaving me in just my underwear.
My mana has recharged, but I'll wait till I'm alone before healing myself, I don't want them to know I can use magic just yet.
"Can you untie me please?" I ask.
"I'm afraid I can't do that, we don't know what you are or why you were so well armed," he replies. "but I assure you, as long as you behave yourself no harm will come to you. As for your injury, we removed the poison from your body and cleaned your wound as best we could. For some reason you're very resistant to our magic," he says.
That's good then, at least I'll have an advantage if things go south. "How long have I been out?" I ask.
"Only an hour," he replies.
"And where are my possessions?" I ask again.
He's silent for a few seconds. "They're being stored at the guards Barracks in town, but Miss Sparkle is looking at a book you were carrying," he replies.
I frown at that, so not only did they take my gear, but they also took the book that could be responsible for sending me here.
"We shall bring you something to eat and drink in a few minutes, just lie back and get some more rest, I'll also inform Miss Sparkle that you're awake now," he says as they both step out.
I lie my head back and stare at the ceiling. I flex my hands, feeling the flow of my mana through them. I channel two life elements through my left hand and cast it on myself, I repeat the spell a few times and the wound is fully healed.
I wait for a few minutes and the door opens up, the white furred woman steps back in with a tray in her hands, she sits in the chair to my right and scoops some strange green mash like food onto a spoon.
"Open up," she says kindly. With nothing else to do and my hunger catching up to me, I open my mouth and she places the spoon inside, but the moment the mash hits my tongue, I spit it out, It tastes like grass.
"I know hospital food isn't the best, but you really need to keep your energy up," she says and tries feeding me another.
"Sorry ma'am, but I can't eat grass," I tell her.
She looks confused for a second. "Oh... I'm sorry, I didn't know, what do you eat?" she asks.
"Fruits, vegetables, grains, nuts, berries, and meat," I reply. Her eyes widen and she drops the spoon. "Are you alright?" I ask her with a raised brow.
She runs over to the door and leaves the room yelling for a doctor. I'm quite confused as to why she just ran out the door, but judging from her reaction, I'm guessing meat eaters aren't welcome here. I channel two cold elements through my right wrist and try to freeze the strap holding me down. After a few seconds, I stop as it's starting to make my hand feel numb.
I pull on the strap and it snaps, I then undo the left strap and then my ankles. I rub my right wrist to get the numb feeling to fade, I can hear heavy footsteps coming from the other side of the door so I get up and walk over to the wall. I then place my hand on it, it's solid stone. That's good, I can use it to cast a weak stone armour spell if I need to.
The door opens and two male gold armoured horses walk in with their shields pointing at me and their hands on the grips of their swords.
"Put your hands up and get on your knees," the left one demands sternly.
"What have I done?" I ask.
The right one looks unsure while the left one glares at me. "Doesn't matter freak, get on your knees, now!" He draws his sword and the other does reluctantly as well.
I frown at them. "I'm warning you now, I do not wish to fight, but should you attack me, I will not hesitate to put you down," I tell them and channel a shield and earth element in my left hand.
The left one grins while the right one looks worried. "I was hoping you'd say that," the left one says and charges at me with his shield pointing at me.
I cast the spell on myself and the stone wall behind me breaks apart. I'm covered in a thin layer of stone and then channel two cold elements in my right hand, I hold my palm out and spray the guy's legs with a light mist of frost.
He's surprised and slows down enough for me to punch him in the face with a stone covered fist, he's sent onto his back and I pick up his sword.
A third armoured man steps in, this one has a horn which starts to glow. He fires a bolt of blue energy at me from his horn, which I block with my left stone covered forearm, the stone shatters and my arm feels slightly burnt.
I grunt in pain as I see his horn glowing again, I channel a shield element into my left hand and hold my palm out, I cast the spell and a small curved back semi-circle of golden energy forms in front of me. He fires another bolt which bounces off the shield and into the ceiling.
His eyes widen but I quickly cancel the shield, channel an earth element and fling a small piece of the wall at his head. It clangs against his helmet and he goes down, out cold.
The other shield bearing guard looks at his two unconscious allies and then back to me. "You'll let me pass or you'll be joining them," I tell him. He gulps and lowers his sword and shield. "Actually, drop your sword and shield and take me to the guards Barracks, I want my gear back," I tell him.
He nodded, drops his sword and shield, and slowly walks out, I follow him as we pass terrified nurses. We make it to the exit where four more guards are waiting outside.
Two of them have wings and spears, another has a horn and some kind of gem on a handle. The last one has neither but has a large two-handed hammer. "Stand aside and don't move," I tell my 'guide'.
He nodded jerkily and stands a few metres to my left. I channel an arcane element into my sword which gives it a sinister red glow, the guards all take a step back with unsure expressions.
"All I want is my possessions returned and I shall leave," I tell them. They all glance at each other, but before they could respond a voice yells out at us.
"WAIT!" I look to my right and see a purple woman with a horn and dark blue hair with pink highlights going through it. She's wearing a white shirt, a dark purple blouse, and a dark blue skirt going just past her knees, I also notice they don't have feet but hooves instead. "Please stop fighting," she says with a worried expression.
I look from her to the guards and then back to her. "I am defending myself, I just want my gear and book back," I tell her.
"Alright, just stop fighting okay?" she asks me.
I sigh and drop the sword, the four guards then decide to rush me. I quickly channel a shield and earth element and cast the spell making five stalagmites burst out of the ground in front of me, forming a stone wall. The four Guards run face first into them and fall to the ground in a groaning heap.
The purple woman walks up to me slowly with wide eyes. "H-How did you do that? You don't have a horn," she asks me.
"I'd be happy to explain, but first I want my stuff back, especially the book that was on me," I tell her.
"Oh, the book is back at my place, but your equipment is at the guards Barracks. Do you really need your weapons and armour right now? I promise you'll be fine from now on," she says.
The doors to the Hospital open and that white woman leans her head out. "Twilight! Get away from it! It's a carnivore!" she yells to this Twilight person.
I look back to the purple woman to see her wide eyed with fear and backing up slowly. I groan and place my right hand over my face. "And what does my diet have to do with anything? Also I'm not a carnivore, I'm an omnivore," I ask and tell them.
"Y-You aren't going to eat us?" Twilight asks shakily.
"No," I reply flatly with a deadpan expression. "Eating another sentient race is considered murder where I come from and is an unforgivable crime," I tell her.
She exhales in relief. "I'm sorry, but you said you're an omnivore?" Twilight asks me.
I raise an eyebrow at her. "Yes, I can eat meat and certain vegetation," I reply.
She gasps. "Really? There's never been a sentient race on Equis that's an omnivore before," she says circling me. She stands back in front of me with a hand out, I notice she only has three fingers instead of four and the tips all look like one solid fingernail. "Hello, my name is Twilight Sparkle, welcome to Ponyville," she says, sounding much more relaxed.
I give her a small smile in return and shake her hand. "Greetings, I am Adrian Stormsword. And thank you, but I'd still like my leggings, shirt, boots, and money back at least," I reply. She looks down and notices that under the stone armour, I only have my underwear on.
She blushes and looks back up. "Oh, of course. Erm, shall we get going then?" she asks shyly.
I follow Twilight down the street with my stone armour still on, not only for protection but to at least cover myself up a bit. I'm getting a lot of stares my way from the residents of the town.
"So what are you? I've never seen anypony like you before," Twilight asks me.
Anypony? "I'm a human, what are you?" I reply.
"I'm a pony, a unicorn to be exact. I've never heard of a human before, where did you come from?" she asks again.
"I come from the Kingdom of Reymorah on the continent of Hedonia." I tell her.
She stops and looks back at me. "Reymorah? Hedonia? I've never heard of such a place and we've explored the entire world," she says.
I frown at that. "Where am I right now?" I ask.
"You're in Ponyville on the continent of Equestria," she replies.
Equestria? I've never heard of such a place before as well, or seen any people like these. "I've not heard of this place either," I tell her.
"Then how did you get here?" she asks as we continue walking, I look behind me and notice the guards following us, I look forward again and answer.
"I was given that book by a stranger and was told to only read it alone. I was then attacked by some bandits after we departed and I killed them," I tell her, to which she gasps at the news of me killing. "I sat down on a boulder and opened the book, a bright flash blinded me and I then found myself in a dark forest where a strange looking manticore attacked me. I got stung in the leg before I killed it, I then limped out of the forest and into this town where I collapsed," I finish saying.
"So that book brought you here? I must admit, I did feel some sort of magic in it, but when I tried to read it, the pages were blank," she says.
Blank? I'll have to look at it myself. We stop at a building in front of us, it's a tall cylindrical building with two long balconies, tall pink stained windows, and a pointed roof with flags around it.
"The guards Barracks are located behind the town hall," Twilight tells me. We walk around the tall building to see a smaller one that looks more like an apartment complex.
We walk inside where a guard behind a desk looks up at us, he nods to Twilight but raises an eye brow at me.
"Hello, Stalwart," Twilight says.
"Good morning, Miss Sparkle. What can I do for you?" he replies and asks.
"I'd like to get a few of Mr Stormsword's possessions back for him," she says.
"Oh, so he's been deemed not a threat then?" he asks.
"Erm, sort of? He just wants his clothes and money back for now," Twilight replies.
He stares at me for a few seconds. "Alright, wait here please," he says and walks into a back room. A couple of minutes later he returns with my torn black leggings and belt, an olive green long sleeve shirt, my iron boots and my money pouch. "Here you go," he says and hands them over to me. I cancel my armour spell and the chunks of stone fall to the floor. "You better clean that up," Stalwart says unamused.
I remove the bandages on my thigh and put my clothes back on and look inside my pouch, two of my gold coins are missing. "Where's the rest of my money?" I ask.
"What's the matter?" Twilight asks.
"I arrived with five gold, ten silver and twenty-two copper coins, there's only three gold coins in here," I reply and turn to Stalwart. "Where's the other two?" I ask him.
He just shrugs. "I don't know, I just store and retrieve whatever is put into the lockers," he replies.
"May I have a look at one of your gold coins?" Twilight asks me.
I pull out a coin and hand it to her. Her horn glows and the coin starts floating. It starts moving towards one of the beds in the back and lands on the third bed's pillow. Twilight walks over to it and lifts the pillow, revealing my missing two coins.
Stalwart frowns. "That's Crimson Blade's bed, I'll have a talk with him when he comes back from his shift," Stalwart says as Twilight levitates all three coins to me.
"Please do," Twilight says and then looks to me. "Now then, shall we head back to the Library so I can ask some more questions?" she asks me as she levitates the stone chunks off the floor.
I look with awe at the display in front of me. "Seems you have some questions as well," Twilight says with a giggle.
I nodded my head and look at Stalwart. "You better make sure my gear stays in good condition, it belonged to my father and if any of it is damaged, I'll kick your ass, got it?" I tell him.
He nodded un-fazed. "Don't you worry, I'll place it in a locker only I have the key to," he replies and heads back into the back room.
I turn around and follow Twilight out. The guards from the Hospital are out here glaring at me, I glare back and they back off. Twilight dumps the stones to the side of the Barracks and looks back at me. "Follow me, I can't wait to get started!" she says and pulls on my hand.
I stumble slightly as I follow behind her, I'm still getting some odd looks from the residents but now they're more curious than disgusted.
Not too long after we left the Barracks, we arrive at a large tree with a door, windows, and balconies built into it. I look from it to Twilight. "What?" she says.
"You live in a tree?" I ask.
"Yes, why? Something wrong?" she replies.
"No, just, unexpected," I say.
She opens the door and invites me in. "SPIKE! I'm home! And we have a guest!" she shouts into the house.
I look around and see bookshelves carved into the walls, a small table sits in the middle of the room with a couch and two arm chairs next to it, there's two doors to the left and a stair case in front of me.
"Be there in a sec, Twilight!" a voice replies.
A few seconds later a small lizard like person starts walking down the stairs, he spots me and gasps. "Wow! He's tall!" he says and walks up to me, he only reaches up to my thighs. "What are you?" he then asks.
"A human," I reply. "What are you?" I ask him back.
"Never heard of a human before... oh and I'm a dragon!" he says, before heading into what looks like a kitchen. "You guys want anything to drink!?" he yells.
"No thank you, I'm fine," Twilight replies and levitates some sheets of paper, a quill and walks over to the couch.
"I'd like a glass of water please," I reply as I walk over and sit next to Twilight.
"Okay! Be right back," Spike says and brings me a glass of cool water.
"So, let's get to those questions!" the purple girl says.
"So what would you like to know?" I ask her and start drinking.
"What was that magic you were using called?" she asks.
I put the empty glass on the table in front of me. "We just call it magic. We use eight elements to cast our spells and we can combine up to five elements at a time or mix elements to gain a different effect, I could give you a decent demonstration if I had my stave back. The spell you saw back there was a shield and earth element combined, then cast as a wall. It can also be cast as an area of effect spell which will surround the caster in a complete wall, or it can be self cast on the caster to give them a makeshift suit of armour, like the one you saw me wearing," I tell her.
"That's amazing! What are the other elements?" she asks me while writing.
"Water, cold, arcane, fire, life, lightning and two others that are made by combining two elements together, like fire and water make the steam element while water and cold make the ice element," I reply.
She writes everything I tell her down on the paper. "And what effects do these elements have?" Twilight asks.
"It depends on the manner of the spell. Target spells, which attacks a foe in front of you. Area of effect spells that attacks the area around you and self cast spells that effects the Caster."
"There's also different types of spells. Storm spells that leave a storm of fire, lightning, cold, water, and steam in an targeted area. Mines that leave small spheres on the ground that can deal damage or heal when stepped on. Quakes that cause the ground to shake and with other elements cause additional effects. Sprays that attack the area directly in front of the caster. Novas that blasts the area around you. Beams that attack a single target at a long range. Projectiles that launch a rock or ice shards on its own or with another element combined with it. Shields that reflect beams and sprays but are weak to physical attacks. Wards that reduce certain types of elemental damage against you and finally, walls that create defensive cover, blockades or unstable walls that will deal damage to those that break them," I tell her.
She's writing very quickly.
"Fire for instance, can have multiple effects. On its own it can spray out like a dragon's fire breath or blast a wave of fire all around the caster. Combine it with an Arcane element, it will turn into a beam of fire. With the Earth element, it will become a rock or boulder covered in fire that not only deals heavy physical damage, but also explodes on impact, or cast it as an area to cause a quake that also spouts fire out through the cracks in the ground. With the Shield element, it coats the caster in a fire proof ward preventing them from being burnt, or it can create a ring of fire around the caster or a wall in front of them. Elements can also be infused with weapons like swords or arrows to give them an added effect. Adding more of the same element only increases that element's effect," I explain to her.
"This is so fascinating! Our magic works so differently, we gather the magic we need from the atmosphere and store it within our horns, we then use our imagination and will power to form the spell we wish to cast and release the magic with the thought of what we want it to do," she tells me as she continues to write on the paper.
"Ah, we gather the mana within us to cast our spells. Our bodies contain two types of energies, mana is the energy allowing us to cast spells and Ki energy that allows us to perform feats of great strength or agility... If you gather it from around you, does that mean you can cast spell after spell continuously?" I say and ask.
"No we can't, our horns are like a muscle, constant use will strain it and make casting harder and more dangerous. The stronger the spell, the more strain is placed on our horn," she replies. "Can you give me some demonstrations out back of the Library?" she asks.
"Sure, as I said, they'd be a lot stronger if I had my stave though," I reply.
"That's alright, I just want to see your magic at work," she tells me. "Spike! I'll be out back if you need me!" she calls out to the young dragon.
"Alright! Just don't forget that Rainbow is coming soon for the latest Daring Do book!" he yells back.
With that said, we head out the front door and walk around the tree, there's plenty of space here for me to cast with.
"Okay, so what would you like to see first?" I ask her, moving at least six metres away from her.
"Can you show me each element on their own in all three forms?" she asks back.
"Sure, these are classed as spray spells," I reply and hold out my left hand. I channel a fire element and release the spell as a small cone of flame sprays out about two metres in front of me, I look back to Twilight and see her writing down what she saw. I channel another fire element and use it as an area of effect causing a small wave of fire moving away from me for a couple of metres, the grass was slightly burnt away.
"I can't cast a self fire spell as it would set me on fire," I tell her. "but the effect of doing that would dry me off if I was wet or defrost me if I was hit with a cold spell," I explain.
"Alright!" she says from the safety of her tree and starts writing.
I then channel a lightning element and cast it in front of me, short bolts of electricity spray out in random directions in a cone like manner. I then cast it again as an area of effect and an electrical discharge surrounds me.
"I can't cast this one on my self as it would only zap me instead, but this spell can jump from one target to another and deal more damage to those wet or wearing metal armour," I tell her to which she scribbles some more.
I then channel a cold element and cast it, a frozen mist sprays in front of me and the burnt ground is lightly coated in a thin sheet of ice. I cast it again as an area of effect, freezing the area around me.
"Again, should I cast it on myself, I would only freeze myself, but should my target be wet it would solidify the water on them and encase them in ice," I say and prepare the next element.
I channel a water element which creates a spray of cool water ahead of me. "This spell doesn't do any damage, but it makes a target wet to increase the effects of other elements like cold and lightning. It's also good for putting out fires and pushing light weight enemies or objects away as well," I tell her and recast the spell around me, soaking the area.
"Casting the spell on myself will just get me wet but also puts me out should I be on fire," I explain.
I then channel a fire and water element and release a spray of hot steam in front of me. "This would not only scald my target, but also soak them like a normal water element would," I tell her. I then cast the area version and a gust of hot steam fills the area around me.
"The self cast of this spell is pointless as it would just hurt me and get me wet," I finish. "These next two elements are classed as beam spells," I tell her. All this constant casting is starting to wear me out, but I try to continue as I did say I would show her.
I was about to channel an arcane element, but a cry of distress distracts me. "AAAAAAAAAH! LOOK OUT!" it says. I look up to see a sky blue woman with feathered wings wearing white shorts, a white shirt that exposes her toned stomach, a brown leather like sleeveless vest, and rainbow coloured wristbands. Speaking of rainbows, her hair and tail are the colours of the rainbow as well.
"OH BUCK!" she yells and crashes through one of the tree's windows. Twilight rushes in to see if she's alright and I follow.
"Rainbow Dash! Are you alright!?" Twilight asks as this Rainbow Dash is sprawled out on the floor groaning in pain, as Twilight tries to get her to come around, I notice her left wing is bending the wrong way with a lump sticking out from the middle. My guess would be it's broken.
Spike looks in from the Kitchen area with a worried expression. "Rainbow? Are you alright? Say something!" Twilight says with concern.
"Ooooh, that bucking hurt!" Rainbow says with a groan. She tries to sit up but yelps in pain as she tries to move her broken wing. "Aw horseapples! Not again..." she says with a frown and gritted teeth.
I walk over to her and kneel down. "Maybe I can help?" I say.
Rainbow looks up at me with a glare. "It's your fault this happened! I got distracted by what you were doing and lost control!" she replies.
"Then if that's the case, would you let me heal it?" I offer.
"Yeah right, even unicorn magic ain't that good... No offence Twi," Rainbow says.
"None taken," Twilight replies to her.
I chuckle which makes Rainbow glare at me again. "This isn't unicorn magic," I tell her. "So, would you like me to heal you or not?" I offer again.
She grumbles for a few seconds. "Fine, but no funny stuff!" she warns me.
I channel two life elements into my right hand and point my palm at her, Rainbow's eyes widen as she sees the two green orbs floating around my hand. I cast the spell and a green beam of soothing light hits her square in the chest, she gasps and clenches her teeth as the bone resets itself and repairs the damaged muscle and tissue around it. The small cuts, bumps, and bruises on her also heal, this would be so much easier if I had my stave.
After a few seconds I stop the spell and lie down on my back panting slightly, I think I used a bit too much mana from that and the demonstration. She extends and retracts her wing, her jaw drops and then she stares at me. "Dude... I... bu... how? You even removed the ache from when I last broke it!" she says with a grin.
Twilight is also staring at Rainbows wing with her jaw agape. "That... that was amazing! What would have taken a week to heal you do in seconds!" Twilight says and then looks at me. "Adrian, are you alright?" she asks seeing me panting.
I weakly wave an arm at her and let it flop back to my side. "Yeah I'm fine, just used too much mana from that and the demonstration," I reply. I feel a tingle as I glow slightly purple, I look at Twilight and see her frown a bit and then gasp.
"Why can't I lift you up?" she asks confused.
I chuckle a bit. "The Doctor at the Hospital said I was very resistant to unicorn magic," I tell her. "Now if you don't mind, I think I'll take a nap," I say and fall asleep.
I yawn and slowly open my eyes, it feels like I'm on a very comfortable bed, I guess Twilight and Rainbow brought me up here. I look around and notice another bed to my left with blue sheets and yellow stars on them. I sit up on the bed's side and stretch, that had to be one of the most pleasant naps I've had in a long while.
I stand up and walk over to the door, I open it and head down the stairs to see Twilight sitting at a desk looking over some sheets of paper. I quietly sneak over to her and spot Rainbow on the couch, she sees me and I place my finger to my lips to shush her, she grins and looks over at Twilight. I keep walking and look over Twilight's shoulder.
It looks like the notes she took of my magic, I cough to clear my throat which makes her jump with a yelp. Rainbow starts laughing as Twilight glares at me. "That wasn't very nice!" Twilight scolds me.
"Sorry, but I couldn't resist. So, what are you up to?" I ask her.
"I'm just going over the notes of what I've seen so far, are you ready to show me the rest?" she asks.
"Sure, I feel refreshed and my mana is fully recharged, same spot as before?" I reply.
"Uh-huh. Rainbow, do you want to watch as well?" Twilight asks her.
"Oh, sure, could be fun," she replies.
We head back out where I continue where I left off. "Right, we were doing beam spells right?" I ask.
"That's right," Twilight replies.
"Okay, well you saw the target version of the life element so here's the area and self ones," I say and channel a life element and send out a pulse around me making some of the damaged grass regrow around me. I channel again and cast it on my self, a green glow engulfs me and fades.
"This next one is the arcane element," I say and channel the element. I cast it and a beam of blood red and black energy flies out from my palm, it hits a tree which starts to expand, a few seconds later it couldn't handle the pressure anymore and shatters half way up the trunk. I quickly set up an earth wall as the splinters and chunks bounce off it, the other two were far enough out of range though.
I look over the wall and chuckle nervously, the top of the tree is a few metres away from the stump with bits of wood everywhere.
"I think it might be a good idea to stop for now," Twilight says with shock.
"Awwww! But that was sooo cool!" Rainbow says.
"I agree with Twilight. If anyone else was nearby they might have gotten hurt," I reply and walk over to them.
Twilight writes down a few more things then looks up at me. "Were you some kind of soldier where you come from?" she asks.
"No, I'm what's considered a battle-mage, I use half plate armour with a sword and stave. I was actually heading towards the capital city to learn at the Academy there," I reply.
"Wait, so how did you learn what you know now if you didn't go to a school?" Twilight asks me.
"I was mostly self-taught from books, our town's elder was a retired mage, he helped teach me a few things as well," I tell her.
"And how long did it take you to get to where you are today?" she asks.
"Just over six years, but that was while I was travelling and working as well so I didn't have much time to myself to practice. I'm still learning and training, my mana reserves are still considered low and I can only combine two elements at a time," I reply. "Now that I don't know where I am or how I got here, I guess I'll just have to keep training myself," I tell her. I then remember that book.
"Twilight, where is my book?" I ask her.
"Oh, that's right, follow me," she says and we head back inside.
She walks over to her desk and pulls the book out from a drawer. "Here you go," Twilight says and hands it over to me.
I open it in the middle and see an element I've never seen before, It looks like a tornado within a circle.
Air.
This element has the ability to conjure razor sharp blades of air to cut through the caster's enemies.
To cast this element, one must have a clear and tranquil mind, as miss-casting could result in cutting the caster apart instead.
As I'm reading, Twilight looks over my shoulder, only for the text to suddenly vanish. "See, it's blank," she tells me.
"Actually, there was text, but I think I understand what the stranger meant by reading it alone now," I reply.
"So, only you can read it?" Twilight asks me.
"Seems that way," I reply which makes her frown, I guess by the amount of books she has that not being able to read a book is quite frustrating for her.
"What's the book about? There's no title on it," she asks curiously.
"It's a book about my kind of magic, it appears to even have elements that no one knows of anymore," I tell her.
Her eyes widen, she heads over to her desk and starts writing again. I walk over to the couch and begin reading more of the book, Rainbow sits besides me and reads her own book.
After a few minutes I finish reading up on the element of air and decide to try channelling a single element.
But before I could, the Library's door suddenly bursts open and those guards from earlier swarm inside.
"WHAT THE BUCK!" Rainbow yells out and jumps behind the couch in her surprise.
I quickly get up and drop the book on the couch, I hold my hands up ready to cast spells and defend myself again if I have to.
"What are you doing!" Twilight says to them angrily.
"We got reports of the creature using illegal magic in the area," the guard I first knocked out at the Hospital says with an almost smug tone while looking at me, it seems he's sporting a black eye from where I punched him. "We're to detain the creature until the Princesses arrive to deal with it personally," he says.
I frown at them. "I'll warn you again, I do not wish to fight. But should you attack me, I shall not hesitate to put you on your ass again!" I threaten them, I see Rainbow grinning up at me while Twilight looks very worried.
I notice the window that Rainbow crashed through is just big enough for me to dive through, the guards start charging towards me, so I run towards the window. I dive through head first and roll as I land.
The guards swarm out of the Library and rush at me. I channel the same shield and earth spell and create a weak suit of stone armour from the stone in the road.
They stop their attack and try to surround me, the other residents of the town look at us with curious or fearful expressions. I channel a water element in my left hand and a cold element in my right, I don't want to kill them but freezing their legs to the spot might be enough to stop them.
I quickly cast the water spell and soak them all where they start laughing at me, so I cast the cold spell and aim for their legs. They gasp and start chattering their teeth as their legs are covered in solid ice, I look up to see two of the winged guards charge down at me so I cast an area of effect shield spell, creating a dome around me and boost it to full strength.
The two guards slam into it which causes the shield to crack all over, the guards slide down the shield to the ground with dizzy expressions as the shield then shatters.
Twilight comes out of the Library and sounds very angry. "What in Celestia's name do you think you're doing! He's been nothing but friendly so far! And I asked him to demonstrate his magic for me!" she yells at the guards.
One of the guards I haven't come across before speaks up. "B-But he w-was using i-illegal spe-ells," he says with chattering teeth.
"Then that's my fault! He comes from some place where his magic may be very well common! Now you will all stand down before I report you all to Princess Celestia myself!" she threatens them.
They all look at her wide eyed except the one with the black eye, I pick up a spear that one of the winged guards dropped, Twilight sees this and speaks up with alarm.
"Adrian, put the spear down, don't make it any worse than it already is!" she pleads to me.
I frown at her and then at all of the guards, I sigh and drop the spear and walk over to Twilight. "Adrian, can you thaw them out please?" she says and points to the guards. I grumble and comply, I cast a single fire element and thaw each of them out except for the one with a black eye.
"W-What about m-me creature?" he demands coldly with chattering teeth.
I look at him for a few seconds with a frown. "Nope," I simply reply and walk back into the Library as the other guards are rubbing their legs to warm them back up.
Once inside I sit back down and go back to reading my book. Rainbow then sits beside me again. "Dude! That was bucking awesome! Where did you learn to fight like that?" she asks me.
I look from the book to her. "The guards of my home-town actually taught me how to fight physically while our elder taught me magically. I'm by no means the best but I know enough to survive," I tell her and return to my book.
Rainbow hums in thought. "How old are you?" she suddenly asks.
Without looking back to her I reply. "Twenty,"
I hear the clanging of armour and look out the window to see some of the guards watching me, I ignore them and continue reading on how to successfully use the air element.
I follow the instructions and a white orb orbits my hand, I look at it for a for a while before it starts to destabilise and I quickly cancel the element before it gets out of hand. I look back at the book to see what I did wrong only for the text to suddenly vanish.
"What ya reading?" a happy and perky female voice says over my right shoulder.
"GAH! PINKIE!" Rainbow yells startled, I look over my shoulder and see a pink furred woman with really poofy darker pink hair, she's wearing a white and pink striped shirt with light blue short overalls.
"Oh! High'ya Dashie!" this Pinkie person says. "So what're you reading? Looks like a sketch book... You gonna draw some pictures?" she asks me.
"No, It's a spell book," I reply and close the book. Looks like I'll have to wait till it's quieter before I can read any more. "and how did you get in here?" I ask her.
"Through the front door silly!" she replies. I didn't hear the front door open, and I doubt the guards would let anyone in or out.
I ignore the strange woman and look to Twilight. "So what's going to happen now? Those guards are still out there," I ask her.
She looks up from her notes. "I'm not sure, I could send a letter to the Princess to see if she really is on her way," she replies.
"Well, as long as those guards don't try to attack me again, I don't mind," I say.
"Spike!" Twilight calls out.
Spike walks in from the kitchen. "What? I'm trying to make some sandwiches for you guys... Oh, hi, Pinkie," he says and greets the pink girl.
"Hiya, Spiky!" Pinkie replies to him with a wave.
"I need you to send a letter to the Princess," Twilight tells him and she starts writing a letter. After a couple of minutes she hands Spike the letter.
He takes a deep breath and blows a green flame onto the letter, which turns into ash and flies out the broken window.
For the next ten or so minutes, Twilight asks me questions about where I come from. I told her about my homeland of Hedonia and the town I was born in, I didn't say anything about my parents but I explained what life was like in the quiet little town and about how my kind of magic was used.
"So you even use the life element of your spells to heal dying crops?" she asks in wonder.
"Yes, if it was damaged by pests, the element would repair the damage caused by it. Then we would use the water element to water said crops," I reply.
Twilight was about to speak again but Spike interrupts with a loud belch and a scroll forms from the flames. "Baahahaha, nice one, Spike!" Rainbow says laughing.
Twilight levitates the letter that formed over to herself and opened it up. She reads it and gasps, looking at me, then back to the letter and then back to me with a nervous smile.
"Something wrong?" I ask.
"Nope, nothing at all!" she quickly says. "Rainbow, Pinkie, can I have a word with you two in the Kitchen?" she asks to the two women next to me.
"Oh, errr, sure?" Rainbow says and stands up, leaving her book on the little table in front of her. "See ya in a bit, dude," she says to me with a confused tone.
"Not like I got anywhere else to go," I say with a chuckle. Pinkie just giggles and skips into the Kitchen humming a tune to herself.
I notice Twilight left the letter on her desk, so I stand up and head over to it, I pick up the paper and read it.
Dear Twilight
I'm afraid you may be in danger, if he really is a human as you say he is, then you need to keep him there while Luna and I make our way to Ponyville.
The last human to enter Equestria a thousand years ago brought an army of undead with him. We sealed him in stone and locked him away, but the damage he caused scarred the lands now known as the badlands.
If this new human is anything like the last one, then all of Equestria is in danger, especially if he has a book of ancient human magic with him.
Until we get there, please be careful and stay safe.
Princess Celestia.
I frown at the letter, I'm being judged by the actions of another human from a millennia ago? If I stay here, I could be imprisoned, sealed away like the last human or worse... killed, or I'll have to try and escape before these Princesses arrive.
I hear four gasps and turn to see the four of them staring at me with the letter in my hand, Spike looks afraid while Rainbow looks conflicted, Twilight Looks nervous while Pinkie just looks confused.
I sigh and wave the letter in their direction. "So what's this about a necromancer one-thousand years ago? Am I really being judged for the actions of another?" I ask them.
Rainbow speaks up. "That's what I've been trying to tell Twilight! I don't think you're a bad guy. If you were, you wouldn't of healed my wing," she says.
"Yeah!" Pinkie decides to speak up now. "My Pinkie Sense isn't getting anything from him either!" she exclaims. Pinkie Sense?
Twilight looks between them and then to me. "I'm sorry, but the Princesses want you to stay here for when they arrive," she tells me.
I sigh, if I'm to earn their trust, then I'll just have to show them who I am. "Alright then, I'll wait here and have a word with your Princesses when they arrive, I'm not here to cause any trouble," I say and sit back down on the couch.
Twilight walks over to her desk and pulls out a black ring from the drawer. "Can you put this on your finger? It'll stop you from casting any spells and show that you mean no harm," she tells me and holds it out to me.
I look at the ring with a raised brow as I slowly take it and examine it. It has some strange silver words or runes inlaid on the inside of the ring, I sigh and place it on my right index finger.
I try to channel a shield element to my right hand and surprisingly, it orbits my hand making Twilight gasp and grab my hand.
"What!? But... how? It should be blocking your magic from being cast!" she says.
"Maybe it only blocks unicorn magic? Remember, my magic is different," I tell her.
She looks at me worriedly. "Can you, erm, cast one of your life elements to see if you can cast a spell and not just channel an element?" she asks nervously.
"Okay," I reply and cancel the shield element and channel a life element. I point my palm at the guard looking through the window and cast my spell at him, a thin green beam hits him on his forehead making him yelp, he tries to back away but drops out of sight with an 'oof'.
I hear Rainbow, Pinkie, and Spike laughing as I look back to Twilight and shrug. "It didn't feel any different," I tell her.
She frowns and takes the ring off my finger and puts it on herself, she tries to cast a spell but the ring glows with a silver light and her horn stops glowing. "This doesn't make any sense. These rings cancel all magic, not just unicorn magic, for this to make sense it would mean you're..." Her eyes widen. "You're not from Equus," she says.
"Equus?" I ask confused.
"Yes, Equus, the name of the planet," she replies.
My eyes widen at the implications. "That can't be right, everyone knows the world is called Terra," I tell her.
"Then I'm right, you're from a different world!" she yells with fear mixed with excitement.
I just stare dumbly at her, I'm not on Terra anymore? What the hell did that stranger do to that book!? I pick up the book and check the first few pages, they're only an index and nothing about interplanetary or dimensional travel. The last few pages just have a biography of the mage who wrote the book, someone named Starswirl the Bearded.
I close the book and place it back on the table, I then place my face in my hands and sigh, I'm guessing I won't be going home any time soon.
I feel a hand on my right shoulder and look up to see Twilight with a sad smile. "Don't worry, maybe the Princesses can find a way to send you home," she tells me.
I just sit back for an unknown amount of time thinking to myself, a knock on the door gets our attention and Twilight goes to answer it.
"Twilight, is he contained?" a voice that sounded like it belongs to an angel asks the purple unicorn.
"Erm, not really... he's just sitting on the couch, Princess," Twilight replies to her.
Twilight steps aside as a woman my height with fur as white as freshly fallen snow walks in. She has deep magenta eyes and long multi-toned hair and a tail of green, blue, light purple, and pink that waves as if in a gentle breeze. She has a Long horn on her head and large wings on her back, a dress of white and gold adorns her slender body, a crown of gold with an amethyst gem in the centre atop her head.
I look at this woman, captivated by her.
She locks eyes with me and speaks with a demanding tone. "Who are you."
I stand up and walk towards her, she frowns and her horn lights up faintly, I stop just a few feet away from her.
"My name is Adrian Stormsword, I am a battle-mage from the kingdom of Reymorah," I reply.
"And why are you here?" she asks again as another woman just slightly shorter than her steps in. She has dark navy blue fur with hair that looks like a piece of the night sky itself, her eyes are a teal colour and she's wearing a black dress with silver trimmings, an onyx black crown sits upon her head. Just like the first, she has a horn and wings larger than the others.
"I'm not sure, I was brought here against my will, I take it you are Celestia?" I reply and ask the white woman.
"Yes I am, and this is my sister, Princess Luna," she says gesturing to the dark blue woman. "Tell me, how did you arrive here?" she asks me.
"I was given a spell book by a stranger, he told me it had forgotten elements lost to time, he said I had the potential to be great," I say and head back to sit on the couch, this action apparently offended Luna.
"How insolent are thee!? Thou dare show no respect!?" she says angrily.
"I'm sorry if I have offended you, you are the first members of royalty I have ever met, so I don't know how to react to such a situation, so I believe I shall just be myself," I tell her and sit down, this seems to intrigue Celestia.
"So you would treat us as you would anypony else?" Celestia asks me.
"Yes, again, I'm sorry if this offends you," I reply.
She hums in thought and sits across from me on a small armchair while Luna sits on the chair next to Celestia. "If you cannot find a way home, what will you do?" Celestia asks me.
I frown and look down in thought, what will I do? I don't know the area or its customs, apparently my kind of magic is illegal here and there are no schools here that teach my kind of magic.
"I'm not sure to be honest, I was heading to the Capital to learn more magic at the Academy there, but now the only thing I have is that book by a mage named Starswirl the Bearded," I tell her.
Her eyes widen and she quickly levitates the book over to herself, she opens it only to find blank pages. "Thou jest with us? Thy book is blank," Luna says, her expression of anger getting worse.
"No, apparently only I can read the book, if anyone else looks at it, the words vanish," I tell her.
Celestia looks back to me. "Very well, prove it by reading this page," she says and flips to a random page then she floats the book back to me.
I take the book and read aloud. "The element of fire. This element is used mainly for offensive spells and has a multitude of effects when combined with others, it can be used as a spray, beam, nova, storm, mine, ward, or projectile and can also be used to light a campfire when travelling or provide a light source in dark areas such as caves," I say.
Their eyes widen as they look to each other. "Very well then, now, can you tell us why you assaulted our guards?" Celestia asks me.
I frown at them. "I did no such thing, I simply defended myself, the moment I mentioned what my diet consisted of, they got aggressive with me, I'm not about to just stand there and let them hurt or kill me," I reply. I give a glare to the guards by the door who recoil slightly.
"And what does thy diet consist of then?" Luna asks me.
"Fruit, vegetables, nuts, berries, grains, and meat," I reply.
Luna glares at me at the mention of meat, but Celestia looks even more intrigued. "You can eat plants and meat?" she asks again just to be sure.
"Yes, but as I've told Twilight, I don't eat anything intelligent. Mainly small game such as fish, chicken and rabbits or farm animals like pigs, cows, and sheep," I tell them.
They look uneasy but except it. "So thou shall not prey on us, even if thy life depended on it?" Luna asks with a sceptical expression.
I look her in the eyes. "I'd rather die first," I reply.
This brought a smile to Celestia's face for the first time since she arrived, it makes her look even more beautiful, Luna still looks unsure.
"We got reports of thee using Illegal magic that only our guards are permitted to use, is this true?" Luna asks me.
"That depends, my magic is completely different to yours and is perfectly legal where I come from, so how can my magic be illegal if its not even the same?" I reply with my own question.
Luna looks to her sister, Celestia then Looks to me. "Then would you care to show us your kind of magic?" she asks.
"Sure," I reply. I follow them outside and head to the same spot where I showed Twilight, I repeated the same spells and even showed what an Ice element does as the shards of ice stay lodged in a nearby tree.
"So thy magic is purely destructive?" Luna asks me.
I shake my head "No, it can also be used to defend and heal," I tell her. Again I cast the stone armour spell and stone wall spells. Their eyes widen at the thin layer of stone covering me, I cancel the armour and walk over to one of the guards. "May I borrow your sword?" I ask him, he looks to Celestia who nodded to him and he gives me his sword. I roll up my sleeve and cut the back of my left forearm.
"What do thee think thou art doing!?" Luna asks alarmed as I hand the sword back to the guard.
"Demonstrating the life element," I reply with a grunt of pain and channel two Life Elements through my left hand and cast it on myself. The small cut closes and they gasp.
"How did thou heal thine wound so effectively? Even we have to concentrate hard to get such results!" Luna says.
"Its just how my magic works, I've noticed your magic has a lot more variety in what it can do while mine is limited to what the elements mixed together can produce," I tell her.
Celestia walks up to me with a caring smile. "May I look at your memories? It will give me insight to who you are," she asks me.
"All of them?" I ask in return.
She simply nodded and held out her right hand, palm up. I frown and look at her hand for a few seconds, I have memories I'd rather not relive, I look back up to her eyes and she just smiles at me patiently.
I sigh and hold her hand with my right one, she closes her eyes and her horn glows. Silence spreads throughout the area as the gentle hum from her glowing horn is all that's heard, during the silence I see a single tear roll down her cheek.
After a few minutes her horn stops glowing and her eyes open, her expression looks mixed, I can't tell if its pity or something else.
"Well?" I ask.
She smiles at me. "You've had a hard life, but do not worry, I shall keep it between us," she replies. "I'd like you to come to Canterlot with us, I'd like to see what you are truly capable of," she asks me.
This will be a good chance to see the capital of this land. "I'd like that, but first I would like to get my gear back," I reply.
"Of course, from what I saw, it is in the Barracks correct?" she says.
"Errr, yes," I reply.
Celestia and her sister start walking towards the Barracks leaving a gawking Twilight at the Library. The two Sisters talk to each other while the guards flank us on all sides, Rainbow follows us in the air while the residents all bow to the two sisters, Pinkie has disappeared somewhere while we weren't looking.
We arrive at the Barracks where Celestia asks Stalwart for my possessions, he retrieves them and I equip my armour and sword, I put my pack on my back and hold my stave in my left hand. I check for the other things I had as well, my lock-picks, gems, and water flask are all accounted for.
"That's everything," I say.
"Good, now let us head back to Twilight's Library where we will take the carriage back to Canterlot," Celestia says.
We start walking back to the Library and I see that guard with the black eye again glaring at me as we pass, I ignore him and keep following Celestia. We arrive to a well polished dark wooden carriage with gold trimmings, what confuses me is that there are four of the winged guards in harnesses at the front, do they pull the carriage for the Princesses? And why only the winged ones? The images of the sun and moon are adorned on the doors, I also notice a large light blue gem or crystal attached under the carriage.
Twilight then walks over to us. "I'll try to visit some time when I can, Princesses," she says to Celestia and Luna and then points at me. "Be on your best behaviour! Being invited to stay at the Castle is a huge honour," she tells me and hands me my book.
I chuckle. "Don't worry, I'll be on my best behaviour," I reply with a smile and place the book in my pack.
Celestia gives Twilight a farewell hug while Luna just says her goodbyes, we step into the carriage and each take a seat. The sisters sit next to each other while I sit across from Celestia.
"To Canterlot Castle please," Celestia says to the guards and the carriage starts moving.
A light humming sound from under the carriage fills the air, then the carriage starts to tilt back a bit, I stare wide eyed out the window next to me... we're flying.
I watch as the landscape passes us by, I hear the sound of my wooden stave bump against my iron boot and turn to see Luna holding it with a curious glance.
"Tell us, Sir Stormsword, what purpose does this serve? Is it a fancy walking stick?" Luna asks me.
I chuckle which seems to have irritated her. "No, it's not a walking stick. It acts as a focus for my magic, I can channel elements through it to the amethyst at the top, this stave can double the effectiveness of my spells... So I kindly ask you not to damage it please, as it's the only one of its kind here now," I tell her. She looks at it wide eyed and gently places it back next to me.
Celestia then speaks up. "From what I gathered from your memories, you wished to be a high ranking battle-mage to catch or eliminate outlaws and criminals?" she asks.
"Yes, I believe you also saw the reason why?" I reply.
She sombrely nodded. "That I did, it is a tragedy I wish nopony to go through," she says. Luna looks like she wants to know but keeps quiet.
For the next few minutes I just watch the land go by, I see a lake with a small cottage nearby with what looks like a small boat next to it.
I eventually fall asleep from the relaxing ride.
POV: Celestia
I watch Adrian closely, he looks so calm and peaceful. "Dost thou think we can trust him?" Luna asks me.
"I believe so, he's had a rough past from what I saw of his memories, but a kind and strong personality," I reply to her. What I neglect to mention is that he's been alone for the last few years of his life. No friends, lovers or family. Yet he still pushes on.
I notice he starts frowning with discomfort. "Luna, can you see what he is dreaming about?" I ask my Sister.
"Very well," she replies and places her right hand on Adrian's head.
After a few minutes, Luna gasps and removes her hand, her eyes start to get moist which she quickly rubs away with a handkerchief.
"What's the matter, Luna?" I ask concerned.
She looks at me with a sad expression. "He feels so alone, and the fact of being here just seems to increase that feeling," she tells me. If anypony knows that feeling better then any other, it's Luna.
"Then we'll just have to be as friendly as we possibly can to him, help him fit in at the Castle," I tell her and look back to Adrian who now isn't frowning any more. "I take it you gave him a nicer dream?" I ask her.
She smiles and nodded. "That we did, he now dreams of a future with friends and possibly more," she replies.
I smile and watch the scenery go by in silence.
POV: Adrian Stormsword
"Sir Stormsword? We have arrived at Canterlot," I hear a voice say, bringing me out of my strange dream.
I yawn and stretch my limbs, then look out the window to see a city on the side of a mountain, it's not as big as the Capital of Reymorah, but certainly looks grander. Buildings of white with deep purple roofs dot the whole city, I look to the left and spot a Castle that would put Reymorah's to shame, tall towers of white with roofs of purple and gold reach up over the city.
We land within a tall wall next to the Castle and the doors open up with what look like a couple of maids holding the doors open.
"Welcome back, your Majesties," they say in unison. The left one has light pink fur and blonde hair while the other has green fur and purple hair, I've only just noticed that these ponies have marks on the back of their hands, the pink one has a feather duster while the other has a stack of clothing neatly piled.
The Princesses step out and the maids close the door on me, I burst out laughing at the humour in it, they didn't even notice me. I hear a pair of gasps and the doors open again.
I step out with my stave in hand and smile at the maids, who blush with embarrassment while looking down, I walk over to the Princesses with a smile.
"I apologise for that, they weren't expecting us to bring somepony back with us," Celestia tells me with the faintest hints of a giggle.
"It's alright, I found it amusing," I reply with a grin.
The two maids walk over to us. "We are very sorry about that, Sir," the pink one says to me as they both bow.
"It's fine, no harm done," I tell them and turn back to Celestia. "So what do we do now?" I ask her.
"Thy lack of manners is... somewhat refreshing, if we are to be honest," Luna says.
"I take it everyone treats you like as if they upset you that you would punish them for it?" I ask.
Celestia sighs. "Yes, or to gain some sort of position of power or status," Celestia replies with a sad expression and a slight shake of her head.
I stand in front of her and hold my hand out to her. "Well, rest assured, I'll ask of no such thing from you, as long as I have a roof over my head, three meals a day and a place to practice my swordsmanship and magic, I'll be happy," I tell her.
She smiles at me and shakes my hand. "Speaking of a roof over your head," she says looking towards the castle. "You're welcome to stay in one of the guest rooms if you'd like," she offers me.
Wow, free stay in a castle? Who would refuse such an offer? "I would like that, Celestia, thank you," I reply with a slight bow.
"That's Princess Celestia to you, peasant," a voice to my right says. I look to the source and see a grey man with combed back black hair and a horn, he has a pompous looking scarlet outfit with gold trimmings and puffy frilly pieces on his upper arms and thighs. I couldn't help but snicker at him, it looks ridiculous if not uncomfortable.
He looks at me with disgust before turning back to Celestia. "Princess, there is a matter of import that requires your immediate attention," he says passing a scroll over to her.
She takes the scroll, but I see a slight frown on her face towards the man. She opens the scroll and reads it, another sigh leaves her lips. "They continue to demand that we send them some of our ponies as a delicacy or risk war?" Celestia mutters in a whisper.
What the... someone is actually demanding Celestia to send people to get eaten? Who the hell would demand such a thing?
"Very well, I shall be in my office should I be needed," she says rolling the scroll back up. "Luna, would you please escort our friend here to his room please," Celestia says to her sister which caused the man to sharply breath in with wide eyes, I give him a smirk.
"Of course, sister. Come, Adrian. We shall show thee where thou shalt be staying," she tells me and I follow behind her.
The interior of the Castle is breath taking; finely polished marble walls and floor, tapestries adorn the walls with beautiful patterns and stain glass windows with what look to be snippets of this lands history. We head up some stairs to a long curved hallway with large doorways along it.
We stop at a door with the number five. "This shall be thy room while thou live here," Luna tells me.
I open the door and look inside, my jaw drops at the splendour of it, a large circular bed lies in the middle of the room with a drawable curtain around it, to the right is a door and a dresser, to the left is a desk with paper and writing utensils on it, a comfortable looking chair is in front of the desk and landscape paintings decorate the walls. I notice doors to a balcony behind the bed, I close my mouth and look to the giggling Princess.
"It's amazing!" I tell her.
"Just do not make a mess whilst thou live here. If thou need directions, just ask a guard or maid and they shall guide thee," she informs me. I notice a guard not too far away standing at attention just down the hallway.
"Thank you, both you and your sister. I wasn't sure what I would've done if you didn't come to... where was it again? Ponyville?" I say and ask.
She nodded with a smile. "Yes, Ponyville. We are just glad thou art nothing like the last human to come here," she replies.
I frown in thought for a few seconds. "Who was this other human?" I ask her.
She sighs and gestures into the room, we both enter and she takes a seat on a couch I didn't notice just to the right of the door, I sit on the edge of the bed.
"His name was Grogar, a powerful necromancer who raised an army of the dead. We suffered heavy losses when he invaded our kingdom one-thousand, two-hundred years ago, but with the aid of the Elements of Harmony, we managed to seal him within stone and locked him away in the deepest pits of Tartarus," she tells me.
I frown for a few seconds then my eyes widen at a realisation. "Wait... you said you sealed him away over a thousand years ago? Then that means you and Celestia are..." I say but she interrupts.
"Yes, we are over a thousand years old," she tells me.
I shake my head after staring for a few seconds. "Well, you look great for your age," I say without thinking.
She barely blushes under her dark blue fur. "We, thank thee for the compliment," she says and stands up. "We... we must head back to aid our sister, if thou need anything, just ask a maid or guard," she tells me and quickly heads for the door.
After she left, I remove my pack and place it next to the dresser, I walk over to the balcony and step outside. The sun is high above my head and it looks just about noon as I gaze across the city; winged ponies fly across the skies towards their destinations, some carrying items or pulling carriages.
I look down and spot what looks like a training ground, an obstacle course, practice dummies, and sparing rings are set up with a large, long building to the side of it all.
I watch as the guards train below me, some of the horned ones are shooting bolts of different coloured magic at targets, I wonder what other spells can they cast, from what I'm seeing, my magic is much more effective for combat.
I kind of want to go down there and join them, if only to see what else they can do.
I leave my pack in the room but keep my sword and stave with me, I leave the room and ask the guard just down the hall to guide me down to the Training Grounds.
He simply nodded and told me to follow, the trip was silent as he didn't speak a word, even after I asked for his name. Once we arrived, he just pointed to the grounds and left.
I walk over to the large building and enter, the inside looks similar to the Ponyville Barracks, just bigger. "What do we have here?" a snobbish sounding voice asks.
I turn to see an ice blue furred man with silver hair that has a light blue streak going through it and a horn, he's wearing guard armour and has one of those gems on a handle like the one I saw in Ponyville on his right hip.
"That's some rather... antique looking armour you have there," he says in an insulting tone.
I frown at him. "It was my father's," I reply calmly.
"Yes, well, why is a strange looking creature like you here? This is the guards Training Grounds, not some tourist spot," he says contemptuously.
"Thought I'd ask whoever is in charge here if I could use the facilities to practice my skills," I reply.
"And what skills would a commoner like you have? Do you even know how to use that sword?" he asks with a smug smile, so judging from his attitude, he's either wealthy, racist, or a Noble.
I draw my sword and channel two fire elements through it and point the blade at him, his eyes widen as the blade has a fiery aura around it. "Want to find out?" I reply.
"Stand down, both of you," a voice orders firmly from behind me.
I cancel the fire elements and the flames fade away, I turn to see a white furred man with two toned blue hair and a horn in what looks like a fancy military uniform.
"Who are you?.. And what are you?" he asks me.
"Adrian Stormsword, Sir. I'm a human," I reply and sheath my sword.
"Alright, and why are you here?" he asks again.
"I wanted to ask for permission to use the facilities here," I reply.
"Oh? You a member of the guard or planning to join?" he asks with a raised brow.
"Neither, I just arrived around thirty minutes ago with the Princesses, I'm staying in the Castle until I find something to do... I thought I could practice my magic and swordsmanship here until then," I tell him.
He hums in thought. "What kind of magic do you specialise in?" he asks with curiosity.
The other man interrupts before I could reply. "Sir, you can't be thinking of letting this commoner who isn't even a guard be here?" he asks, clearly not liking the idea of me even being here.
"That's up for me to decide, you're dismissed until your shift later, Frostbite," the blue haired man replies.
Frostbite snorts and walks out. "Sorry about that, most Nobles think they can order poorer ponies around, I'm Shining Armour, Captain of the Royal Guard by the way," he says holding a hand out.
I shake his hand, already liking the guy. "Nice to meet you, as for speciality, I use a different kind of magic than yours, would you like a demonstration?" I ask him.
He smiles. "Different kind of magic huh? Sure, let's see what you got."
I head to my sister's office quickly, my cheeks feel like they're burning and my heart is beating faster than normal, in my long life have I never felt like this before.
I arrive at Tia's office and I quickly open the door and enter, Tia looks up with a surprised expression. "Lulu? Is something the matter?" she asks with a concerned tone.
"We are not sure sister, we feel, strange. There's a feeling in our chest we have never felt before!" I tell her.
"A feeling? Can you describe it?" she asks me with a raised brow.
"Our chest feels tight like it's hard to breath, our heart beats as fast as a humming birds wings, and our cheeks feel like they art burning," I tell her.
Her other eyebrow raises slowly and a smile forms on her lips. "Oh, Luna, you're perfectly fine," she tells me sweetly.
"How art we fine sister! We have never felt this way before!" I say.
"Because my dear sister... you have a crush."
POV: Adrian Stormsword
Shining Armour and I arrive at a fence with targets down a range.
"So what kind of spells do you have?" he asks me.
"Well from what I've been told, they're classed as illegal unless you're a guard," I reply.
"So you know combat spells?" he asks as I point my stave at the closest target.
"Yes, a lot of combat spells," I say and channel an arcane and lightning element at the tip of my stave.
"What's that?" he asks pointing at the orbiting orbs.
"My kind of magic, I can combine elements to create an effect. These are arcane and lightning elements," I reply and cast the spell, a small beam of Lightning impacts the target instantly, I hold it for five seconds and cancel it. The target is scorched slightly black.
Shining's eyes widen with a surprised expression, a wave of whispering amongst the guards can be heard nearby as they start to crowd around us.
Shining shakes his head. "That was rather impressive, what else can you do?" he asks intrigued.
I then cast a fire beam, water beam, cold beam, and an arcane beam. "These are beam spells, I have other types of spells as well," I tell him.
"So when you said elements earlier, you meant the actual elements?" he asks.
"Yes and no. The Elements are just different aspects for a spell, for instance," I reply and channel a shield and earth element into my stave. I cast the stone armour spell and stone from under the ground covers me, it's twice as thick now than when I cast it without my stave.
More hushed whispers spread throughout the gathered guards. "This spell uses a shield and earth element. The shield element dictates that the spell will be a defensive type spell. The earth element gives the spell a physical attribute, I can then cast it in one of four ways, on my self, which is what I just did, in front of me creating a wall of stone, in an area as a wall all around me or through a weapon." I explain to him.
"Fascinating," he says making me chuckle. "What's so funny?" he asks with a raised brow.
"Sorry, you remind me of Twilight when you said that," I reply.
"Twilight? As in Twilight Sparkle?" he asks with his right brow raised.
"Yes, do you know her?" I reply and ask.
"Yeah, she's my little sister," he replies with a chuckle. "How do you know her?" he asks.
"I was injured by a manticore when I first arrived here earlier this morning, I stumbled into Ponyville and passed out from the poison. Woke up in a hospital where I... knocked a few guards out in self defence," I tell him with a chuckle.
"So you're the one I got a report about in Ponyville," he says with a slight frown.
"Yeah, but I'm not sorry about it, they attacked me and I defended myself. Anyway, Twilight showed up and stopped the first fight," I tell him.
"First fight? You mean to tell me you got into another fight with the guard?" he asks unamused.
"Yeah, I went with Twilight to at least get my clothes back from the Barracks and then went to her Library. She was interested in my kind of magic so I showed her some, just like I did for you, seems like someone reported it to the guards. I healed Rainbow Dash's wing after she crashed through the Library's window a few minutes later. I took a nap, then the guards burst through the door demanding my arrest for illegal spell casting after some time reading," I say and sigh. "I then jumped through the shattered window where I was then surrounded, I froze their legs to the floor where Twilight broke it up again. After that, the Princesses arrived and questioned me, now, here I am," I finish.
"I see, well at least you're here now where we can keep an eye on you, no offence, but with your kind of magic, you could be quite a threat," he tells me.
"None taken, I just hope to prove I'm friendly while I'm here. I still don't know what kind of spell brought me to this world," I tell him.
"Wait, world? You're from another world?" he asks shocked.
"That's what Twilight believes, and I have to agree with her. She's never heard of my country before as well as I've never heard of Equestria before," I reply.
"So you're stuck here?"
"As far as I know, yes," I say with a sigh.
Shining pats me on the shoulder. "Don't worry about it, you're alive and safe, that's what matters for now right?.. Or did you leave somepony behind?" he asks.
"No, I was alone, I was heading to the City to learn more magic when I was sent here," I reply.
"Ah, well, I hope you enjoy your stay here, and as to you using the facilities, you can use them as much as you want. If there is no way to send you back, I suggest joining the guard, you'd make an excellent addition," he tells me before looking around. "What are you all staring at? GET BACK TO TRAINING!" he yells out at the other guards who scramble back to their areas.
"You also said you wanted to practice your swordsponyship?" he asks me.
"Yes, I'm a battle-mage, I fight with both blade and spell," I reply.
"Care to have a friendly match with me?" he asks pointing over to a circular ring on the ground.
"Sure, sounds fun," I reply and walk over to the weapon rack with wooden swords, spears, maces and shields. I place my sword and stave next to the rack and pick up a wooden longsword an inch shorter than mine, Shining also picks the same kind of sword.
"Here's the rules; first to hit the other three times with solid blows wins, glancing blows don't count, no aiming for the head or below the belt and no magic, agreed?" he says and I nodded in reply. "Okay, en garde!" he says and takes a swing at my left arm. I parry the strike and thrust at his chest, he sidesteps the thrust and flicks his wrist, swinging at my extended right arm, I duck and bring my arm down.
His swing goes over my arm and I swipe at his left shin, he yelps and hops on the spot with his right leg while rubbing his left shin, some of the other guards watching chuckle at Shining. "Ow, not bad, not bad. Time to step it up a bit," he says with a chuckle. Wait... he was just playing with me before?
He swaps his longsword for a wooden rapier and changes his stance, he holds his sword, pointing it at me with his right arm as his left is behind his waist.
I frown and hold my sword in front of me, I don't recognise that stance. He quickly thrusts repeatedly and I parry as best as I can, on his sixth thrust, he hits my right thigh. "AH BUGGER!" I yell out and start rubbing my leg, he chuckles and gets back into his stance, I can hear more chuckling from the guards.
I hold my sword to the right and get ready, I act first this time and swing for his stomach, he steps back, just avoiding the tip of the blade. He then thrusts at my right shoulder and I lean away and rotate my body around, I swing for his left hip and barely hit him with the tip, a glancing blow.
He chuckles. "Glancing blows don't count, you need to hit me with a solid blow," he tells me. I get back onto my feet and we resume.
He swipes at my upper left arm which I block with my sword, I try swinging at his right forearm, but he pulls his arm back into a vertical stance with his sword pointing up, I thrust at him and he again steps aside with grace and thrusts back, he hits me in the gap of my chest plate under my left armpit.
"GAH!" I yelp. Damn that stings!
"Two to one, pick up the pace, Mr Stormsword," he taunts me.
I frown with a smirk, he's good. I get ready again and was about to strike when a voice calls out. "Mr Stormsword! The Princesses have requested your presence for lunch!" a guard tells me.
As I turn to him, Shining thrusts his sword right onto my tail bone. "OW! MOTHER FUCKER!" I yell and drop my sword as I rub the bruised area, a few of the guards laugh at my misfortune.
"You shouldn't let yourself get distracted," Shining says to me.
I glare at him but chuckle all the same, I place the wooden sword back on the rack and retrieve my weapons. "Yeah, yeah. I expect a rematch later!" I tell him as I walk over to the guard.
"Sure, but it'll just end up the same either way," he replies with a chuckle.
Shining puts his sword back, gives me a handshake, says farewell and heads into the Barracks. The guard leads me to a large Dining Hall where both Celestia and Luna are sitting, drinking tea and chatting with each other.
They then spot me entering. "Hello, Adrian. We were getting worried when you weren't in your room," Celestia greets me.
"Oh, sorry about that, I went down to the Training Grounds for some practice," I tell them.
"They let thee on the grounds?" Luna asks, her cheeks are again tinted a darker shade.
"Well, one of the guards tried to shoo me away, but someone by the name of Shining Armour let me stay and has granted me permission to use it when I want," I reply and sit to Celestia's left and across from Luna.
"Oh? He must have taken a liking to you then, it's rare he lets anypony not a guard use the Training Grounds," Celestia tells me.
"Huh, well he even suggested I join the guard," I tell her as waiters walk in with platters of food.
The silver trays are covered with fruits, vegetables, eggs, cheeses and breads. Some bowls of sauces are placed down and pitchers of water as well. A plate is placed in front of me, Celestia, and Luna, another plate is also placed next to Luna.
"Who's that plate for?" I ask.
Before they could answer, the halls doors open up.
A guard next to the door starts shouting. "Announcing his royal highness, Prince Blueblood!"
"Announcing his royal highness, Prince Blueblood!" the guard by the door shouts out.
A man with white fur, blonde hair and a horn walks into the hall, he's wearing an even more ridiculous outfit than that last guy.
He walks with his nose pointing slightly up and takes a seat next to Luna, who looks suddenly unhappy.
"Hello, nephew. I take it your day has been splendid so far?" Celestia asks him, nephew? Is he Luna's son?
"Dreadful actually, one of the maids mixed my white tuxedo with the red silk sheets which has stained my attire pink! If I catch the one responsible, she'll be packing her bags by the end of the day!" he says while picking what he want's from the platters, he then apparently just notices me. "And who is this, aunty?" he asks Celestia.
"This is Adrian Stormsword, a human from... a far away land. He has come to practice his skills with the guard," she says. I'm not sure why she's lying, but I guess I'll play along.
"A human? I can't say I have ever heard of such a race, well, as long as he is civilized, I guess I shall say, welcome to Equestria," Blueblood says. "I am Prince Blueblood, I help manage the Nobility of Canterlot," he introduces himself and extends his hand to me.
I shake his hand. "Thank you, I'm just here to sharpen my skills with a sword and my magic," I tell him.
"So are you a mercenary? Or are you looking to join the guard?" he asks me.
"I'm no mercenary, as for joining the guard... I don't know. I've only recently arrived here, I'd rather get to know the area before I make any big decisions," I reply.
"I see. Well, if you need to know anything about the Nobility or of Canterlot customs and traditions, I shall do my best to teach you," he tells me and takes a bite out of his meal.
I notice Celestia and Luna look worriedly at each other.
"Thank you, I shall be sure to ask if there is anything I don't understand," I say with a small bow.
We eat in silence for the rest of the meal. Once we have all finished, Celestia speaks up. "Thank you for joining us, Sir Stormsword, but I must return to my duties. Luna, could you give our guest a tour of the Castle?" she asks her sister.
Luna smiles but is interrupted by Blueblood. "I would be honoured to show him the Castle, aunty. It is no trouble at all," he says.
POV: Celestia
What is Blueblood up to? He never offers to go out of his way to help others anymore, I share a worried look with Luna.
'What is he planning, sister?' Luna asks telepathically. Seems like I am not the only one who thinks so.
'I'm not sure, he must be after something... but what though?' I reply.
"That is not necessary, we can guide him through the Castle," Luna tells Blueblood.
"But I insist, I would also like to get to know more about him and where he comes from," Blueblood replies.
Adrian then speaks up before we could reply. "I don't mind, I'm sure you both have royal duties to perform, I wouldn't want to get in the way."
Luna looks slightly down cast at that. 'Do not worry Lulu, you can talk to him tonight. Perhaps you could invite him to the Gardens,' I tell her.
She looks back to me with a small smile. 'Mayhap we shall,' she replies.
POV: Adrian Stormsword
Blueblood and I say our goodbyes to the two Princesses, we walk out of the hall and down an empty hallway, I notice that it is eerily quiet and there are no guards or maids around.
Suddenly, Blueblood turns around and pins me to the wall with his right arm, making me drop my stave.
"Now then, peasant. Let me make a few things clear for you, I saw what you can do down at the Training Grounds, I can use talent like yours. So tell me, who do you work for?" he asks me.
I frown at his sudden change in personality. "What the hell are you talking about?" I ask him.
He growls and sends a small electrical discharge from his horn to my chest, I grunt from the mild shock and glare at him.
"I'll say it again, who do you work for?" he asks in a stern tone.
"I'm warning you, let go or you'll regret this," I threaten him. Prince or not, I'm not going to let myself be treated this way.
"Wrong answer," he says and zaps me again. "You work for me now."
I've had enough and charge my mana into my left hand without any elements, I release the mana and a gust of air blasts out and pushes him off of me and into the wall across from me.
He grunts from the impact but gets up quickly. "You dare attack me!? You're just a filthy commoner, no pony disobeys me without punishment!" he yells now furious.
He points his horn at me again and sends a stronger bolt of lightning at me, I dive to the left where I pick up my stave and draw my sword. I channel a Shield element and cast it in front of me, I then boost the shield to full strength.
Blueblood fires off another bolt which bounces off my shield and back to him which barely misses his head, he gasps in surprise and glares at me.
"If you will not work for me, then you better watch your back, because if you are not with me, you are against me... and do not bother telling my aunts about this either, I will just deny it. Besides, who will they believe? You, or their beloved nephew," he says with a wicked smirk and walks away.
Once he is gone, I cancel my shield spell, sheath my sword, and frown. I should tell Celestia and Luna about this... but I get the feeling that would just make matters worse somehow.
I walk back down the hallway and spot a guard, I ask him to guide me back to the Training Grounds, right now I'm angry and need to vent my anger out on something.
The guard nodded and leads me to the Grounds, I head back over to the target range and practice my aim with the earth element. I channel a single element into my stave and aim at a long range target, a rock the size of my fist comes out of the ground where I channel more mana into the spell to increase the force and distance of the rock.
I fire the rock and hit the fourth inner ring, I keep practising, but not once did I hit a bullseye. The other guards are watching with wide eyes as I channel an earth and fire element and cast the spell, the rock is now engulfed with fire and explodes once it hit the target, which is set on fire.
"WHAT THE BUCK WAS THAT!" I hear the voice of Shining Armour shout out.
I turn to the Barracks and see him walking over to me. "Adrian? Why do you look like somepony just spat in your cider?" he asks once he's next to me.
I didn't realize it, but I'm scowling hard... do I tell him? "I'm fine... actually, can I talk with you in private?" I ask him.
He looks surprised. "Sure, let's talk in my office," he says and we head into the Barracks and into a side room.
Once the door closes, he sits behind a desk and I sit across from him. "So, what's got you all riled up?" he asks me.
I sigh. "First, you promise that what I say here doesn't leave this room?" I ask him.
"Alright," he replies with a nod.
"I had lunch with the Princesses and their nephew," I say, which he frowns upon when I said nephew. "Luna was about to give me a tour of the Castle, but Blueblood offered to instead. I thought nothing of it at first, thinking he was just trying to be nice, he led me down an empty hallway and then pinned me to the wall..." I tell him what happened after that as well.
"I see, he has been trying to increase his personal guard lately, mostly by threats or bribes I hear. If he saw your demonstration earlier, then I'm not surprised he would try to get you in his guard, but I've never heard of him attacking anypony for it before, he probably sees you as a threat," he says rubbing his chin with his right hand. "And I agree not telling the Princesses just yet, knowing them, they'll try to punish Blueblood and he might do something rash. I'll ask my guards to keep an eye on him, just to make sure he doesn't do anything to retaliate against you," he tells me.
He then gives me a serious expression. "Just be careful, I believe he's done some rather... unethical activities in the past couple of months, but I can never find the evidence to back it up. If he tries to attack you again, come here and tell me, alright?" he asks.
"Okay, but am I allowed to defend myself if I have to? I don't want to get in trouble if I have to fight back," I ask him.
"Fine, but don't kill anypony, do what you did in Ponyville and root them in place or knock them out. Now then, you're welcome to stay here until the Princesses call for you again," he says.
"Thanks, I think I'll practice my magic some more," I tell him and head back out to the target range.
After about two hours of practice, I take another break to let my Mana recover. I finish off the water in my flask and lie down on the grass, I then pull my hood over my eyes.
I can hear some hushed voices and the sound of footsteps approaching me. "Excuse me," a soft female voice says. I look up to see a woman with a horn, dark orange fur and red hair, she has sapphire blue eyes and is wearing a robe of some sort with one of those gem rods on her hip. Her hands have a ruby with a flame around it mark on them.
"Yes?" I say politely.
"Me and a few others were wondering if you could teach us those spells you were casting," she asks.
I sigh and sit up. "I don't think that is possible, from what I've seen and heard, you cast magic by thought or through a muscle in your horns and gather magic from around you. I cast my magic with Mana that is generated within my body and cast my spells by using different elements together," I explain to her.
"Oh..." she says with a disappointed expression. "I'm sorry for disturbing you then," she then says and walks away back to a group of ponies waiting for her.
I lie back down again and try to take a nap.
I wake up to the sound of a blade being drawn, I look over to see a guard wearing light blue coloured armour standing in front of a training dummy. That's odd, I thought the guards wear purple and gold armour? I also notice he's glaring at me.
I stand up and brush the loose grass off of me, I pick up my stave and head towards the castle, ignoring the glaring guard.
I just realise I left my bag in my room, unprotected. I rush inside and follow the hallway Luna lead me down before, the guards and maids look at me with raised brows as I tear through the halls. I arrive at my room and look inside, my bag is still where I left it, I check it's contents and find nothing missing. I sigh and pick up the spell book and walk over to the bed.
I sit down and open the book to the air element again, I read the text and learn that the element has an interesting effect when combined with a shield element. When cast as a target, a wall of turbulent wind is created in front of the caster, deflecting projectiles to the sides. When cast as an area spell, it creates a tornado around the caster pulling enemies towards it and deflecting projectiles.
But it's the self cast spell that has my attention, similar to how the earth element adds armour to the caster, the air element gives the caster wings made from the air itself. One air element allows the caster to glide while two increases the gliding speed, three air elements allows the caster to fly like a bird by controlling the wings and four elements increases the speed again.
I spend the next hour practising to control the air element, I've lost control a couple of times and cut my hand, which I healed quickly, but I finally have decent control over it.
I try combining it with a shield element like the book says, glowing yellow and white orbs orbit my stave's gem and I self cast the spell. Two wings of gently flowing air hover just an inch from my back, they're both a transparent white colour and about two metres long each.
The door then suddenly opens without warning. "Adrian?" Luna asks as she leans her head in. She spots me and her eye brows shoot up... as well as her wings. "T-Thou has wings? Why did thou not tell us?" she asks and walks towards me.
"I, errr. I learnt this spell just now actually," I tell her as she tries to stroke the right wing where her hand goes right through, but I don't feel a thing.
"Amazing... can thou fly with them?" she asks.
"No, this is a weak version of the spell. I can only glide slowly at best. Still, it would prevent me falling to a gruesome death at least," I reply and cancel the spell.
"We see," she says and lightly shakes her head. "We've been looking for thou for the last half hour, did our nephew show thee the castle like he said he would?" she asks me.
I think for a second, what do I tell her? "Erm... yeah. He's an... interesting guy," I reply.
"Then which way from here would thou go to find the Archives?" she asks and frowns at me.
I chuckle nervously. "Down the hall and to the left?" I reply with a sheepish grin.
She sighs. "We thought so, where did that pompous foal take thee to?" she asks me sternly.
I sigh as well. "He took me to an empty hallway and tried to force me into joining his personal guard..." I tell her.
If I thought she looked angry when I first met her, she looks absolutely pissed off now. "That conniving spoiled colt! We'll make sure he understands that he can't do as he pleases anymore!" she says and starts walking over to the door.
"Wait!" I say to her.
She stops and turns to me. "Why? We art just going to discipline him," she tells me. I get the feeling that involves hospitalising him.
"He said to watch my back, and if he knows that you now know, he might do something rash," I tell her. I've met a few people like Blueblood before... and they don't make idle threats.
"And thou think that he is a threat to us or our sister?" Luna says.
"Maybe not to you, but I don't know what he has or is capable of, I'm just asking you to wait for awhile and see what he does," I ask her.
She frowns. "Fine, we shall wait and see what our nephew will do... but should he do anything to harm thee, he shall feel our wrath," she replies.
I raise an eye brow, confused as to why she's being so protective of me. "Fair enough," I say.
She leaves the room and I sit on the bed, I pick up the book and continue to read about the air element.
POV: Blueblood
Blasted creature, he will regret not taking my offer.
I walk back to my office and sit down at my desk. "Silent Shadow," I say, calling my Spy.
A shadow from under the desk moves out and forms into a black furred unicorn stallion with a dark red mane and grey eyes. He's wearing a black vest and trousers with many pockets and vials on them, he also has a black pair of daggers on each hip.
"Yes, Master?" he asks, making me smile.
"I want you to keep an eye on our new... guest. Let me know what he does or says to anypony, I get the feeling he'll be a thorn in my side later... but if you can get rid of him and make it look like an accident, do it," I tell him.
"As you wish, Master," he replies and turns back into a shadow.
I chuckle and start sorting though some of the nobles requests.
POV: Celestia
I yawn as I finish writing my reply to the gryphons, even if it means war, I shall not allow them to prey on my ponies. The door to my office opens and Luna steps in with an expression of deep thought.
"Is something the matter, Lulu?" I ask her.
She quickly looks up at me. "Nay sister, we art well... so how goes the matter with the gryphons?" she replies and asks me. I know something is up but don't press the matter, yet.
"Not well I'm afraid, they demand our ponies as a delicacy in exchange that they won't invade our lands to just hunt us," I tell her.
"And we shan't, if we must, we shall fight them in battle along with our guard!" Luna says. She always was the more hotheaded of the two of us.
"Let's just hope it won't come to that," I tell her.
A yell outside gets my attention. "Oh SHIT!" the voice says as somepony falls past the window.
"ADRIAN!" Luna shouts as we rush over to the window, we both watch as he falls to the ground, a bright white light bursts out from his back and a set of beautiful flowing wings appear on his back. He wobbles badly but glides down to the gardens, I wince as he lands face first into the grass, but stands up after a few seconds.
POV: Adrian Stormsword
Ouch, that's the last time I sit on a balcony's railings. I stand up and spit out a few strands of grass, I'm so glad I had my stave in my hand while I was practising the air element some more. Two flashes of light to my right gets my attention, Celestia and Luna are running towards me with concerned expressions.
"Adrian! Art thou alright!?" Luna asks me.
"Yeah, I'm fine," I reply and look up towards the balcony, I frown and shake my head.
"How did you fall from the balcony?" Celestia asks.
"I was sitting on the railing while reading my book, I guess I lost my balance and fell, good thing I learnt that new spell then," I reply with a chuckle.
"Yes, it is, please refrain from doing so in the future," Celestia tells me sternly.
"No problem there, I think I've had my fill of heights for awhile," I tell her. I pick my book up off the floor and check for any damage, looks like it's still intact. "Sorry about worrying you both," I say.
"As long as thee aren't hurt, that is all that matters," Luna says. "At least thou got to test thy new spell," she says with a giggle.
I chuckle along with her. "I guess so, so what were you both doing before I interrupted?" I ask them.
"Just some paper work, nothing as exciting as what you were doing though," Celestia says. "Speaking of which, I must return to my duties. Luna, would you like to help keep our guest out of trouble?" Celestia says to Luna with a wink.
Luna smiles. "We guess so, mayhap we can teach him some manners while we are at it," she replies to Celestia.
Celestia disappears with another flash of light and Luna looks at me. "Come, Adrian. We shall give thee a proper tour of the Castle," she tells me, grabs my hand, and pulls me along behind her.
Luna pulls me towards the Castle earning some odd looks from the guards and maids, she shows me around the Castle; the Archives, the Princesses personal gym, a hallway with statues and stain glass windows, the Throne Room, and lastly the offices both Celestia and Luna use when not in the Throne Room.
We walk into the office Celestia is in, she's sitting at a desk and writing on a piece of paper. She hears the door close and looks up at us with a smile.
"So, did you two have fun?" she asks.
"I had a good time, Luna showed me the Archives and a hallway with important parts of your history," I reply.
"I see, so what do you plan to do for the rest of the day?" Celestia asks me.
"Probably go back to the Archives and learn more about this world," I reply.
"We shall speak with thee later," Luna says and yawns.
I leave the Princesses to their work and I make my way to the Archives, I arrive with no trouble and head towards the history section.
I read for a couple of hours and learnt that the carnivorous races see the other races as just another food source. The gryphons especially believe they have the right to hunt anything they want for food or sport while the dragons and diamond dogs just eat anything not their own.
The other herbivore races have created some sort of alliance against the carnivorous races to help protect each other. The minotaurs are a race of strong warriors, the cervine are a deer like Druidic race that can communicate with nature and even control plants, the zebras are a shamanistic culture and can speak to elemental spirits and are quite skilled in alchemy. The earth ponies are physically strong, the pegasi are fast, agile, and can manipulate the weather, and the unicorns can manipulate the magic in the atmosphere with their horns but lack the strength and agility of the other pony types.
The changelings though are neither herbivores nor carnivores, they feed off of emotions, especially love. I don't know how that can be possible... but this isn't my world, I'll just have to expect the impossible to be possible here.
I read up on how magic works here, it seems it's as Twilight described. Each race that can use magic gathers it from the atmosphere and channels it through a specific body part or tool, unicorns and changelings use their horns while the cervine use their antlers or hooves, the minotaurs, diamond dogs, and gryphons can't use magic while the dragons use magic to fuel their fire breathing abilities, the zebras use a system similar to ours where they use staffs and totems to channel theirs.
I put the books away and head out for a bite to eat, I notice another one of those guards in the light blue armour glaring at me from down the hallway, I glare back as I pass him and head towards the dining hall. I enter and head towards what I believe is the kitchens.
I open the side door and see about ten people running around restocking cupboards and other storage areas, one of the women in a white chefs apron spots me and walks up to me. "Can I help you?" she asks.
"Yes, I'm feeling a bit hungry, is it possible to get something to eat or will I have to wait until dinner time?" I ask her.
"I'm afraid you'll have to wait, only the princesses can order anything out of the normal serving times, I recommend going to one of the cafés in the city, or just wait until dinner is served," she tells me.
"I see, thank you anyway," I reply and leave.
I head back to the offices and knock on Celestia's door. "Come in," I hear her say.
I walk inside and see her put a stack of papers into a tray. "Hello, Adrian. Did you learn anything from the Archives?" she asks me.
"Quite a bit actually, I read up on the other races and how magic works here," I tell her.
"I see, and what do you think of the other races?" she asks.
"Why do all the carnivorous races eat the other sentient races?" I ask her.
She sighs and puts her quill pen down. "We believe it's just in their predatory nature, others believe they just have a lust for blood. The gryphons even have a large arena in their capital where they force their warriors against the other races they capture just for entertainment," she tells me.
I frown at that. "Well I also read that all the herbivorous races have formed an alliance, why not just force the gryphons to back off?" I ask her.
She shakes her head. "We all prefer to try and keep peaceful relations with the gryphons, dragons, and diamond dogs, but should they openly attack us, we will all rally against them," she replies.
"Then if you'll just gang up on them, why are they demanding you to send your people to be eaten then? Are they not afraid of such repercussions?"
"Not really, they're twice our size and weight and have a high resistance to our magic, they also have great strength and naturally sharp talons and beaks, it would take five ponies working together just take on one of them," she tells me.
"So what would you do should they decide to attack you directly? Has it happened before?" I ask her.
"They have attacked once before, we suffered heavy losses, but they also lost their King during their invasion. The pony who killed him sacrificed himself in order to do it," she says with a sad smile.
My stomach decides it wants feeding and lets out a loud rumble getting Celestia to softly laugh. "It would seem somepony is hungry," she teases.
"I tried getting something to eat from the kitchens, but they said only you and Luna can order outside of serving times, they suggested I go into the city to find a Café, but I don't think my money is good here," I tell her.
Her horn glows and a small pouch appears in front of her. "Take this and go treat yourself," she says and levitates it over to me.
I take the pouch and look inside, there's different sized gold coins in it with numbers on them. "Are you sure? I can give you the coins I have for them," I offer.
She hums in thought. "I'd like one of each type of coin you might have, I can add them to my collection of oddities, it's not every day you come across the currency of another world," she says. I chuckle and give her one gold, one silver and one copper coin.
She then picks up the silver coin and examines it. "Your coins have a lot more detail put onto them than ours," she says as she puts it down onto her desk.
My stomach rumbles again. "Well then, if you'll excuse me, I'll be off to get something to eat," I tell her.
She smiles at me. "Very well, please don't be gone for more then two hours at most, that's when dinner will be served," she replies.
"By the way, where's Luna?" I ask.
"She has gone to bed, she stayed up later than normal because of your arrival," she says.
I nodded to her. "Alright, I'll be back in an hour," I tell her and head to the Castle's entrance.
On my way out, I notice more and more of the guards in light blue armour around, and each one is glaring at me, I ignore them and head out into the city.
I notice a lot of the people avoiding me, I'm not sure if its my appearance or if it's because of my weapons and armour, perhaps I should have left them at the Castle...
After a good twenty minutes searching, I find a nice little café with tables outside, I walk in and a bell above the door rings.
"Hello! And welcome tothe..." a powder blue unicorn woman with blonde hair trails off as she sees me.
I just smile as I walk over to the counter, I look at the food and drinks on a display board above her head. "Hello, may I get an earl grey tea with one of those sandwiches and a slice of that orange cake please?" I ask pointing to a sandwich with cheese, tomatoes, and lettuce.
She snaps out of her daze and makes the cup of tea then places the sandwich and cake on a plate. "T-That'll be fifteen bits please," she says. I pull out two gold coins, one with the number ten on it and the other with a five and hand them over to her. "Thank you, enjoy your meal," she tells me with a smile.
"Thank you," I reply and nodded slightly.
I head outside and sit at an unoccupied table and eat my sandwich and cake. I then pick up my cup of tea and start taking sips while relaxing. I finish off the last of the tea and leave the cup on the table. I start heading back to the Castle, but a scuffle to my right grabs my attention, It appears a dark brown furred man with wings is harassing a mint green unicorn in the back of an alley.
I walk over to see what's going on but the man suddenly hits the woman's left cheek. "AAHHH!" she screams and starts sobbing.
"Ahem!" I cough loudly and get his attention.
"Huh?" he mumbles and turns around, by the red tint on his nose and cheeks, it appears he's drunk. "An what doesh yoooou want huh!?" he says aggressively.
I just stare at him with a neutral expression. "Simple, I want you to leave the lady alone," I tell him.
He then scowls at me. "Oh yeah? And what you gonna do abo... *hic* 'bout it?" he says and pulls out a small pocket knife.
I draw my sword slowly, letting the sound of sliding metal ring out through the alley and glare at him. "I'll cut off your only means at having children," I say coldly as I channel a fire element through the blade giving it a fiery aura and lighting up the dark alley.
His eyes suddenly widen and he drops the knife, he quickly spreads his wings and flies away out of the alley. I watch him leave before I cancel the element and sheath my sword, I walk over and offer a hand to help the woman up. "It's alright now, he's gone," I tell her.
She stares at me with wide eyes, her left cheek looks red and it's swelling slightly. She takes my hand after some hesitation and I pull her up onto her feet. "Hold still," I tell her and point my stave's tip next to her cheek.
I channel a single Life Element through the stave and cast a small beam onto her cheek, she gasps as the swelling disappears and she rubs her cheek. "Feeling better?" I ask her.
She nodded and smiles. "Thank you for helping me," she says.
"It's no trouble at all," I say and hold my hand out again. "My name is Adrian Stormsword," I tell her.
"I'm Lyra Heartstrings," she replies and shakes my hand.
"Do you know who that was?" I ask her.
She sighs. "He's an old classmate of mine, he's had a crush on me since school and has asked me out many times since then, but I'm already in a relationship with somepony else and he still keeps trying," she tells me.
"Hmmmm, I suggest telling the guard and get a restraining order or something along those lines," I tell her.
"Maybe... again, thank you for your help," she says and she starts walking out of the alley. "Oh! Also, if you're ever in Ponyville, come say hi sometime!" she says and walks away.
A month has passed since I arrived in this world, I returned back to the castle after saving Lyra from that drunk man and went to my room where I read up more on the air element before dinner where Luna kept glancing at me now and then, Blueblood didn't even show up.
Celestia got word of my helping Lyra and thanked me, I've been spending most of my time at the Training Grounds practising my magic and swordsmanship. Shining and I had our rematch and he still beat me, though I did manage to get two hits in.
I've finally managed to channel three Elements at once and the results spoke for themselves, my spells are stronger but also consume a lot more mana as well, I'm going to have to focus of increasing my mana pool before trying to use four elements at once.
I also found out those guards in the light blue armour are Blueblood's personal guards and the reason they glare at me is because I refused his offer. If they think they can intimidate me they've got another thing coming.
I've been sending and receiving letters to Twilight about how I'm adjusting to Castle life and what's going on over time. She managed to visit twice during the month like she said she would, first time to see how I was getting along and the second was to show Celestia a new spell she was working on and to visit her folks and brother, she even got word from Lyra about what happened in that alley and thanked me for helping her as well as someone else named Bon Bon.
I've also noticed a lot of accidents have been happening around me, like a suit of armour falling over near me where I almost got mauled by its halberd, there was another time where a potted plant almost hit me on the head, and the time when a maid was carrying cutlery for dinner, she tripped and all the utensils flew towards me and only me, mainly the knives. I panicked and cast a stone wall spell to block the cutlery and destroyed the marble floor in the process.
The maid apologised to me while I apologised to Celestia, she said it was fine and instantly repaired the floor with her magic. I swear I saw a shadow of some kind escape under the kitchen door afterwards.
I've heard nothing from Blueblood all month and I think that's a good thing. Luna has also been asking me to join her in the evenings more often as the weeks progressed, same with Celestia but during the mornings, we talk about each other and our worlds during breakfast and dinner, although Blueblood has ordered his meals delivered to his office stating he was too busy with a backlog of paperwork.
The Princesses and I have gotten to know each other so well that they've asked me to address them by name all the time instead of their titles, much to the displeasure of the Nobles. It still amazes me that she and her sister raises and lowers the sun and moon here.
I am sitting in the gardens with Luna while looking up at the night sky. "We've been keeping a close eye on Blueblood these past few weeks," she tells me. "We've noticed he has been speaking to somepony when he thinks nopony is listening."
"And how do you know that?" I ask her.
"We have sent our best spy to keep an eye on him," she tells me.
"And anything to worry about yet?" I ask.
"No, all she has managed to find out thus far is that he's talking to somepony, but hasn't seen who this is yet," she replies.
We chat about an up coming event called the Grand Galloping Gala for the next ten minutes, apparently I am invited to it, as well as Twilight and her friends. We're interrupted by a dark grey unicorn woman in dark purple leather like armour with lighter purple hair and two curved daggers on her hips, her eyes are cat like and the tips of her ears have tufts of fur on them, I also notice she has small fang like teeth and her horn is slightly curved backwards.
She kneels and bows to Luna. "Princess, I've just come back from Blueblood's office, it would seem he's been talking to what appears to be some sort of assassin, a black unicorn with a dark red mane and tail named Silent Shadow dressed in all black leather armour with many vials and other items on him," she tells Luna.
"We see, so those accidents during thy stay here were not mere accidents, but mayhap an attempt at thy life..." Luna says to me.
If that's the case, I'm going to have some words with Blueblood. "So what do we do then? What if he's listening to us right now?" I ask.
Luna's horn glows and all three of us are teleported to her room, my head spins from the sudden change of location but I shake it away.
Luna looks slightly dizzy after having to teleport me. "Now no pony can hear us or enter without our knowing," she tells me. "As of what to do, we shall tell our sister of what has transpired. For now, just keep thy eyes open for anything, should this Silent Shadow make another attempt on thy life, thou has our permission to defend thyself," Luna tells me then turns to the Spy. "Night Blade, keep an eye on Blueblood, we wish to know what else he may be up to. Also, search his office when thou get an opportunity to do so to find any evidence," she orders her spy.
"As you wish, Princess," Night Blade replies, her horn glows and she fades into the shadows.
Luna now looks at me. "We shall walk thee to thy room where we shall place a ward alerting us if anypony other then thou or our sister and our-self enter thy room,"
"Alright, sounds good," I reply.
We make our way back to my room in silence, I'm constantly on guard in case something else happens, though I doubt it will with Luna here.
We enter my room and her horn glows, a few seconds later, she stops and sighs. "There, the ward is in place, should somepony enter without our permission we shall know of it instantly," she says.
"Thank you," I say and yawn.
"Get some sleep, we have a surprise for thee tomorrow," she tells me.
I raise my right eyebrow with a smile. "I'll be looking forward to it, I'll see you tomorrow, Luna."
She smiles and leaves the room, I strip down to my trousers and get into bed. After a few minutes I fall into a restful asleep.
I wake up to a bright sunny morning and stretch. I slide out of bed and get dressed, though, I might need to get some more clothes... my own three sets are starting to get a bit worn out.
I equip all my gear and head out to the Dining Hall, I see Celestia and Luna already here waiting for breakfast to be served. Celestia smiles at me and Luna waves me over. I sit across from Luna and place my stave against the table beside me.
"Good morning you two," I greet them.
"Good morning, Adrian. Did you sleep well?" Celestia replies and asks.
"Very well, thank you. So, Luna tells me you have both have a surprise for me?" I ask them.
Celestia nodded. "That we do, it should be arriving any minute now," she replies getting me to raise an eyebrow at her.
The kitchen doors open and a few trays are carted in, one leaves the hall, no doubt Blueblood's breakfast, but three others are brought over to us, a plate is placed in front of me and the lid is lifted off, the smell of a cooked fish greets my nose, I stare at the food wide eyed. There's scrambled eggs, strips of fruits and vegetables with some kind of sauce next to them, and next to all that looks like a perfectly cooked bass.
I look at the Princesses and see them smiling, I smile in return. "Thank you, where did you get the fish from since you don't eat meat?" I ask.
"We went to the lake below the mountain and teleported one out of it for thee. From what thou told us, thou do need a source of protein correct?" Luna replies.
I nodded. "Yes, thank you for doing this for me, but if it's all the same, do you think you can find me a fishing rod so I can catch my own?" I ask them.
They look at each other, still smiling. "I don't see why not, while we ponies don't fish for food, we do fish as a sport and pastime," Celestia tells me. "Do you remember seeing a building next to the lake when we took the carriage from Ponyville to here?" she asks me.
I frown in thought, I do recall seeing a cottage besides it. "I think so, why?" I reply.
"Tis actually the Ponyville fishing club," Luna tells me.
Huh, sounds like it could be fun. "If I wanted to go, how would I get there?" I ask and start eating.
"Some of the guards and Shining Armour on their time off go down there to relax, you could ask them to tag along if you want," Celestia informs me.
I finish off half of the fish before talking. "I'll have to ask Shining about it later, so what plans do you have for today?" I ask.
They look at each other before looking at me. "Nothing at all, today is the day we take off each month to relax. Why? Do you wish to spend time with us?" Celestia asks.
I chuckle. "Sure, I've got nothing special to do, I was planning to go back down to the Training Grounds, but I can do that later. So, what do you want to do today?" I ask.
"We we're planning to go down to Ponyville to visit Twilight and then go to the Spa to relax," Celestia tells me.
"Okay, I'd also like to know how Twilight and her friends are doing since I came here," I reply.
We finish off breakfast and head out to the courtyard where a carriage is waiting, I see Celestia has a scroll in her hand where her horn glows and it disappears. We then step inside the carriage and take off.
"How is thy training coming along?" Luna asks me.
I look from the window to her. "Pretty well, Shining is teaching me different sword styles while I'm learning more about my magic from the book," I reply. "By the way, I remember you told me that Starswirl was one of your greatest unicorns a thousand years ago... so why do I have a book written by him about human magic?" I ask them.
Celestia sighs. "He disappeared while trying to perfect a long range teleportation spell. Unfortunately, he miscalculated and just vanished. We tried searching for him but found nothing, with your arrival, we guess he was teleported to your world and learnt about your magic," she replies.
Hmmm, so I have a book that's nearly a thousand years old? Then why have I never heard of such a well accomplished mage back on my world? Surely the history books would have records of such a mage...
My thoughts are interrupted as we touch down in front of the Library, Twilight's already outside with a smile on her face, a white unicorn woman with indigo hair wearing an elegant blue dress is also standing beside her.
I exit first and hold my hand out to help the Princesses out, they both giggle and thank me, they then walk up to Twilight as she bows to them.
"Oh my! What a gentlecolt," the white unicorn says.
"Good morning, Princesses. It's so good to see you," Twilight says and hugs Celestia.
"Good morning, Twilight. How have you been lately?" Celestia asks her.
"Pretty good, I'm getting closer to completing that new spell since I last showed you," she replies.
I walk over to spike who just came out of the Library. "Hello, Spike, how have you been?" I ask him.
"Oh, hi, Adrian! Yeah it's been quiet around here since you went to the Castle," he tells me.
"How's Rainbow and Pinkie doing?" I ask.
"The usual, pranking the town, Pinkie's throwing parties and Rainbow's practising her stunts," he replies.
The white unicorn then holds her hand out with the back facing me. "Hello, darling. My name is Rarity, I am Ponyville's resident Fashionista," she introduces herself. She sounds like the classy type.
I lightly hold her hand and give a light kiss to the back of her hand. "A pleasure to make your acquaintance, Miss Rarity. My name is Adrian Stormsword," I reply and let go. I notice Spike frowning at me.
"Oh my..." Rarity says while fanning herself with her other hand. "A stallion with proper manners," she says and giggles.
Twilight then taps me on the shoulder. "Hello, Adrian. Still running around in your armour I see, is there a reason you always keep it on?" she asks.
"Hello, Twilight. And yes I am, it's just a habit. I've always wore it, I guess I'm just more comfortable with it than without," I reply.
"I see. So, the Princesses tell me you're here to join us at the Spa?" she asks. Rarity looks at me with raised eye brows.
"I guess so, I had nothing important to do today," I tell her.
"Wonderful! Maybe you can tell me more about your world's magic while we're there!" she says excitedly.
I see Luna stifling a giggle and Celestia just smiling. "Sure, I can tell you about the Kitsune, Elves, and Aquarian peoples magic," I tell her.
She has a large smile and starts pulling me towards the centre of town. "Then let's hurry! I can't wait to hear it!" she says. Luna is now laughing while Celestia is lightly giggling as they follow us. Two guards also follow us while the others stay by the carriage.
Along the way, people are bowing down to the Princesses who smile and wave back at them, we arrive at a building with a three pointed dark pink tent like roof, a sign of an elegant looking woman posing hangs above the door.
We all enter and are greeted by two women who are exact opposites of each other, one is light blue with pink hair and the other is pink with light blue hair. "Welcome to our Spa your majesties, how can we be of service?" they ask at the same time.
"We'd like the full treatment," Celestia replies. Why am I getting a bad feeling about this?
"Very well your Majesties, please follow us to the changing rooms," the pink one tells us.
I lean down to Twilight. "Who are they?" I ask her.
"Oh, the pink mare is Aloe and the blue mare is Lotus, they're sisters that both run the Spa together," she tells me.
"Please pick a locker and place any belongings inside and take the key band once you're done," Lotus tells us.
I was about to follow them inside but Aloe pulls at my arm. "The stallion changing room is over there, Sir," she tells me and points to the right.
"Oh, thank you," I reply and enter. There's plenty of lockers and I pick the one closest to the door, I strip down and place my clothes and equipment inside and take the towel and shorts that are hanging from the locker door. I put the key band on my right wrist, put on the shorts and wrap the large towel around my waist.
I step out of the changing room and a chorus of gasps greets me. I see the others in robes matching their fur colour, their robes are hugging their bodies tightly leaving nothing to the imagination, but what they're staring at is the large scar going from my right shoulder down to my left hip, I look down at it and don't see what the big deal is.
"Adrian... how did thou get such a scar?" Luna asks. Rarity has a hand over her mouth while Twilight, and the Spa sisters all look shocked. Although Celestia looks sad as she already knows how I got it.
"Four months ago, I was knocked out and captured by bandits during my travels, they woke me up by slashing me with a sword for their amusement," I reply and they gasp in horror. "Sufficed to say, I was not happy. I broke free of the poor rope they used to bind me and killed the four of them with my magic, I healed the wound as best as I could, but it was too deep, and so left this scar," I tell them.
Luna walks towards me and trails the scar downwards with her left hand, I smile and hold her hand mid way. "I'm fine, Luna. Didn't we come here to relax?" I ask. Her cheeks turn a dark red and she pulls her hand back.
"Y-Yes, we did," she replies and steps back next to Celestia.
"So what are we doing first?" I ask.
"You'll be in the sauna while we get the tables ready," Aloe replies.
We're taken to a room with hot coals, a bucket of water with a ladle in the centre, and a long bench that encircles it. I sit down on the right side while the others walk in without their robes and are each wearing a bikini, I had to look away just to stop staring at them. Twilight and Rarity sit on the left, Celestia sits in the middle and Luna sits beside me.
I lean my head back against the wall and close my eyes as someone levitates the ladle of water onto coals making steam fill the room, five minutes pass and I feel something lean against me. I open my eyes to see Luna resting her head on my right shoulder, I see Rarity and Twilight staring at us with wide eyes while Celestia is just smiling at us.
I'm just sitting here with a blush on my face. After another five minutes, the door opens. "The tables are ready now," Lotus informs us.
Twilight and Rarity leave first while Celestia follows behind them. I shake Luna and let her know it's time to get out, we leave the room where five tables are set up, the others all pick a table and I get on the last one.
The Princesses got their massages first, then Twilight and Rarity, and then both Aloe and Lotus massage me starting with my shoulders. I sigh as they work out all the tension and turn my muscles into jelly.
They finish and I feel like a new man. The next thing is the girls getting facials of some green goop with cucumber slices over their eyes, I declined having any put on me and went to lie back on a long chair nearby.
For ten minutes or so they chatted among themselves, pretty sure I heard my name mentioned a few times. Aloe then takes us to some mud baths built into the floor, the girls all sink into one each and I hesitate. After some 'encouragement' from the others, I sink into one as well. It actually feels pretty nice, its warm and has a pleasant fragrance.
Twilight then asks me about the magic of the other races from my world.
"The kitsune people are masters of illusion magic. They can create copies of themselves or others and control the copy like a puppet, they can also make you see things that aren't really there. They prefer to be left to their own way of life, some do travel to other cities, but that's probably like eight percent of the population in total," I tell her.
"The elves are more in-tune with nature than the other races, kind of like the cervine here. They can communicate with nature and mainly live in forested areas, although they can use magic, most of them prefer using bows over staffs and swords. The aquarians are merfolk, top half human, bottom half fish, they can breath underwater and control water like it was a part of them, they can also walk on land by creating a pair of legs out of water, though it only lasts a few hours. They can also communicate with sea creatures," I finish telling them.
"Amazing, can you give us a detailed explanation on how human magic fundamentally works? You've already told me what the effects are and how they are cast, but I would like to know how you form the spells," she asks me. Luna looks interested as well, but Celestia already knows from my memories I think.
"Well, There's a flow of mana within our bodies, kind of like how blood flows through your veins. We can channel it to our hands and concentrate it there, we can also enhance the potency of the mana through items like staffs, staves, spell books, weapons, foci, and wands, though they're not required," I explain.
"To change the mana into a specific type of element requires concentration and focus. If you should mess up during the conversion, it could backlash and hurt the caster depending on the element they failed to form. For instance, I was practising the air element all last month and at first failed to form it correctly, resulting in the element destabilising and cutting my hand with sharp blades of air," I tell them.
"I take it you just healed it with your life element?" Twilight asks.
"Yes, that's why mages learn the life element first so they can heal the wounds that they get from learning the other elements. I remember failing the shield element the first time I tried it. I encased both my hands in shields and couldn't pick anything up for ten minutes," I tell them with a chuckle, they also giggle or laugh at that.
"Where was I?" I muttered. "Oh, right! Once you have converted the mana into the sequence of elements you want, you then fuse them together and release the stored mana. Depending on the elements and how you want to release the spell effects what it will do, an arcane based spell will be a beam if you direct the mana forwards, it will become a nova if you release it all around you, and will flow back into you should you self cast it, but self casting an arcane spell is just asking to be hurt. The arcane element has also been known as the death element, as it can heal the undead," I tell them.
"Wait... so does that mean Grogar was a master of the arcane element?" Luna asks.
"I would guess so if he was raising the dead, he would of used it to heal and empower his forces, but the undead can be killed quickly with the life element as it will purify the arcane energies within them," I reply.
"So you would be able to fight an undead head on and win?" Twilight asks.
"I've never fought an undead before, but I guess so. All I have to do is use the life element against them. If I combine the life element with a cold element, not only would I be damaging them, it will also slow them down to a crawl," I reply.
"We really could have used thine help when we first faced Grogar... then maybe we would not have suffered so many losses," Luna says sadly.
I'm not sure how to respond to that.
"You mentioned a spell type called storms before, do they do exactly as it sounds?" Twilight asks.
"Yes, storms are basically elemental walls that hurt or knock-back anyone who walks through them. You channel a shield element first followed by a fire, water, cold, lightning, ice or steam element and cast it in front of you, creating a wall of whatever element you used. A fire storm would set anything ablaze that walked through it while a cold storm would slowly freeze them. The water storm is the weakest as it only pushes anyone that walks through it back out and soaks them, but cast a lightning based spell through it and you'll deal heavy damage to whoever is in or wet near it," I tell her.
"Amazing, is there a reason why all of your spells are more combat based?" she asks.
"On Terra, there are creatures that can be twenty times our size and strength. I guess we evolved to be able to fight off such creatures ourselves without having to grow as big or as strong as them," I reply.
"I see, thank you for explaining it to me, Adrian," she tells me.
"You're welcome," I reply, I then lean back and just relax.
The others chat amongst themselves, mainly Twilight and Celestia discussing what I just told them about.
Lotus returns and asks us to follow her to the showers so we can rinse off the mud and head to the next part. We all step into a room just across the mud baths, I guess to minimise tracking the mud everywhere, and each step into a shower cubicle. I wash off the mud and I'm surprised at how smooth my skin feels.
I step out and dry myself off, the others also step out still wearing their bikinis. Luna leans back and stretches, making her chest stand out, I look away again with a blush on my face.
We're lead back into the main room and into a corner where some lounge chairs are set up and Celestia, Twilight, and Rarity sit down and get their finger nails, hooves, and horns polished and filed. I decide to step into the hot tub next to them and slowly sink into the warm bubbling water, I sigh and just go limp.
A few seconds later Luna joins me and sits beside me. "Are thou enjoying thyself?" she asks.
"To be honest, I was hesitant about this, but it's been rather relaxing and fun," I reply.
She giggles and leans against me again. "We art glad to hear it, most stallions would run away at the mention of going to a Spa," she tells me.
I try to fight my blush returning. "How so? Doesn't seem that bad to me," I say.
"Most think it's more of a mare thing and they'll lose their 'studlyness' just standing in here," she says.
"I still feel as manly since the moment I arrived," I boast.
She giggles and looks up at me as I look back at her, her eyes reflecting the light off the water, making her eyes look like stars in the night sky. She slowly leans forward and I find myself doing the same, our lips were about to touch, but a loud roar from outside snaps us out of it.
"What was that!" Rarity shouts out after her little jump.
I quickly get out the tub and look out the window, a manticore is running through town swatting aside the guards trying to fight it. It looks familiar, it's missing the tip of its tail and has a large scar across the left side of it's face, it also has four patches of missing fur... Wait a minute... it's the same manticore that attacked me when I first arrived!
I frown and head back to the locker room to retrieve my gear, I dry off and equip my armour and weapons.
"Adrian! What are you doing?" Twilight asks.
"That's the same manticore that attacked me when I first arrived! I thought I killed it before, I guess I wasn't thorough enough," I reply.
"So what are you going to do about it? The guards can handle it!" she tells me.
A scream from outside gets our attention, a butter yellow woman with wings and light pink hair in a long pink skirt and green sweater is running away from the beast who is giving chase. I quickly run past the girls and run outside and draw my sword, I channel an earth element into my sword and swing down between them, a straight wall of rock rises between them and the manticore charges head first into it. The wall shatters, but the manticore also falls to the ground with it.
It roars and shakes off the rubble on it as the guards nearby move to surround the beast, I look to the left to see three guards on the ground, one is missing his left arm, the second is missing half of her right wing and a large gash on her stomach. The third, unfortunately, is missing half of his head. I quickly channel an earth and two life elements through my stave and fire the life infused rock between them which explodes in a mist of green energy, closing their wounds at least.
I turn back in time to see the manticore charging at me with an expression of utmost rage and I quickly channel a lightning, arcane, and lightning element in that order and cast the spell. I feel myself pulled forward and vanish for a split second, then reappear behind the manticore feeling slightly dizzy. I'm so glad I decided to learn the teleport spell three days ago, still makes my head feel like I was running around in circles for hours though.
I shake my head and see the manticore looking around for me, I channel three arcane elements and fire the black and red beam at the beast. It turns around and raises its left paw and blocks the beam, I hear everyone watching gasp as the beast roars out in agony, its leg starts to bloat and expand, finally exploding in a shower of blood, bone, and muscle.
It falls to the dirt and writhes in pain while I channel two water elements and soak it, I then channel three cold elements and blast it with a spray of ice. It slows its struggle as I encase it in a thick layer of solid ice. Finally, I channel three earth elements and launch a large rock twice the size of my head through the frozen manticore.
It shatters into hundreds of pieces and the rock rolls to a stop in the middle of the road.
I pant heavily, exhausted from casting so many spells one after another, I fall down to my knees and drop my sword. "ADRIAN!" Luna and the others call out and rush over to me.
I smile at them and look over towards the forest. I squint my eyes and see someone in the shadows of the trees looking at me, I blink once and then they're gone, I then blink a few more times, maybe I'm just seeing things...
I yawn and go limp, I think I'll just take a quick nap.
Adrian passes out in my arms and I start panicking. 'Please don't be dead,' I think to myself and I place my ear next to his nose, I sigh in relief as I can hear and feel him breathing.
'Is he alright, Luna?' my sister asks me telepathically.
'He is still breathing, we think he passed out from exhaustion,' I reply.
"Is he okay?" Twilight asks.
"He is fine, just tired," I tell her.
Twilight and Rarity both sigh as I look down at Adrian, he looks so peaceful.
'Take him to Twilight's Library, I'll manage out here,' Tia tells me as a crowd begins to gather.
I smile at her and lift Adrian up, he's heavier than he looks, even with the armour. Twilight picks up his stave and sword and follows behind me.
We arrive at Twilight's home where I place Adrian on the guest bed and I remove his armour leaving him in his shirt and trousers. I lean forward and lightly kiss his forehead. "Sweet dreams," I whisper to him and I see a small smile on his face.
I leave the room and wait for my sister downstairs.
POV: Adrian Stormsword
I open my eyes and yawn as I look around and see that I'm back in Twilight's Library. I rub my eyes, sit up on the side of the bed, and stretch my arms and legs.
I notice my armour and weapons placed neatly next to the bed, I decide to leave them there for now and head towards the door.
Walking down the stairs I see Celestia, Luna, and Twilight talking with each other and drinking tea. Luna spots me and instantly smiles.
"Tis good to see thee up and about," Luna says.
"Yeah, I think I may have over done it," I reply with a chuckle. "How are the injured guards doing?" I ask them.
"They'll live, thou stopped them from bleeding out at least, but they'll have to be discharged from the guard as they can no longer fight at full capacity anymore," Luna replies.
"But there was nothing to be done for Stalwart, he shall be given a full military funeral with a medal of valour," Celestia says. Twilight looks like she's been crying, I guess he was a friend of hers.
"So, how did a manticore get into town?" I ask.
"Witnesses say that it just appeared in a flash of red light and started to attack everypony in sight," Celestia says. I walk over and sit on the couch next to Twilight.
How can it just appear?.. Wait... I remember seeing someone in the Forest... "Celestia, before I passed out, I remember seeing someone in the forest just behind the trees, they were looking at me and when I blinked, they vanished," I tell her.
"Do you remember what they looked like?" she asks me.
"Erm... I think they were wearing all black, and had a hood covering half of their face, but other that, It was too dark to tell," I reply.
"Do you think it was this Silent Shadow Blueblood has been speaking to?" Luna asks her sister.
Twilight looks confused. "What does Blueblood have to do with this?" she asks.
Luna and Celestia share a look between themselves. "We believe Blueblood may be trying to... get rid of Adrian after a disagreement they had," Celestia puts it lightly. "but we have no evidence other than a night guard's report," she says.
I lean back into the couch and frown. If it's true that this was another attempt at killing me, then Blueblood went too far and got other people killed, crippled, and injured. He will pay for this if he's responsible.
"I say we confront him and you read his memories, if he has nothing to hide, he'll let you, if not, then we'll know he's behind it," I offer.
"But then we'll have a political scandal should he be innocent, the Nobles will demand recompense," Celestia says.
Well damn. "Has Night Blade found any evidence yet?" I ask Luna.
"Nay, but she is still keeping an eye on him," she replies. My stomach once again decides to let everyone know that it wants feeding and rumbles out loudly. Luna giggles behind her left hand. "Sounds like somepony's hungry," she teases.
I smirk and frown at her. "Let's see you cast spell after spell and see if you're not hungry afterwards," I reply mockingly.
"We'll discuss this at another time, shall we go and get some lunch?" Celestia asks.
We all agree and leave the Library and head off into town. I asked Twilight where Rarity went off to, she tells me Rarity has some orders to complete and that Spike was helping her. We meet some of Twilight's friends along the way, Rainbow Dash said hi to us while the butter yellow woman, named Fluttershy, I saved from the manticore thanked me for saving her. We arrive at a large building that looks like it's made of sweets, cake, and pastries.
The others enter first and I follow in last. "Why is it so dark in here?" I ask.
Suddenly the lights come on and lots of people yell out. "SURPRISE!"
"FUCK!" I yell out and self cast a shield element, coating myself with a barrier, I then channel two lightning elements into my right hand and look around; everyone now looks a bit worried, I chuckle sheepishly and cancel the elements and shield.
"Sorry about that, I'm still a bit jumpy," I apologise, a few of the people laugh at that.
Pinkie Pie then appears in front of me. "Hiya, Adrian! Were you surprised? Were ya were ya?" she asks.
I just stare at her for a few seconds. "Very," I simply state.
She giggles and drags me over to a table with an assortment of food and drinks. "This party is for you! A thank you for saving the town and Welcome to Ponyville party!" she tells me.
I pick up a small cake and take a bite out of it, it tastes like strawberries. "This is really good," I say and try the other food.
"Thanks! Baked them myself. Here, try this!" she says and stuffs something in my mouth. I chew on it, tastes like vanilla.
I try a few more of the food and some of the drinks. Pinkie then drags me over to a picture of a woman facing left and bent over slightly, but she's missing her tail. "Lets see how well you can play pin the tail on the pony!" she says and blind folds me.
She places something fluffy in my right hand and then spins me around, I start to get dizzy and she stops me spinning. "Okay! Try and pin the tail in the right spot!" she tells me.
I wobble forward getting a few chuckles and giggles from behind me, I reach out my left hand and feel the wall ahead of me. I then push the pin into where I think is the right spot, followed by a chorus of oooohs sounding out. I pull off the blindfold and see that I pinned it an inch away to the right of the woman's backside.
"Very close!" Pinkie says and goes off to talk to other party goers.
The rest of the party goes by quickly and all the food and drink is gone. I had a go at bobbing for apples, unfortunately, the apple I got was attached to a spring and it pulled me back into the tub, I gave a mock glare at Pinkie but ended up laughing.
There was a dancing game where everyone had to pick a partner and copy Pinkie Pie's dance moves. Luna decided to drag me into it and we managed to get third place, I'm surprised how flexible Pinkie can be... my back is a little sore trying to do what she did.
The party ends and everyone heads out, I stay behind with Celestia, Twilight, Rainbow, Pinkie, and Luna.
The Princesses excuse themselves for a minute as they lower the sun and raise the moon.
"Hey, Adrian!" Rainbow says as she walks over to me. "I saw you kick that manticore's flank! That was bucking awesome!" she says.
"Hmm, I did it to protect the town... and I owed it payback for poisoning me when I arrived here," I reply.
"Wait... that was the manticore that attacked you?" she asks.
"Yup, I cut off its tail after it stabbed my leg with it and then smashed its face in with a rock... I thought I killed it the first time," I tell her.
"Well, it ain't gonna get back up this time!" she says.
"Adrian... could thou walk with us for a while. We... we have something we wish to tell thee," Luna says as she walks up to me.
"Oh, erm, Sure," I reply and follow her out of the building I learned is called Sugarcube Corner.
We walk in silence to a park with a pond in the centre, I can see the moon's reflection off its surface.
Luna stops and faces me with slightly red cheeks. "So what do you want to tel..." I start to ask but I'm cut off as she kisses me, my eyes go wide and she pulls back.
"Would thou give us the honour of being our coltfriend?" she asks shyly and looks down.
I space out and touch my lips with my right fingers. "I... Bu..." I mumble.
She looks up at me with a worried expression. "We have come to like thee, Adrian, and we wish to court thee," she says holding my left hand with both of hers. "Over the last month, thou hast treated us like a normal mare, thou do not fear us or shy away when we approach," she tells me.
"Y-You wish to go out with me?" I ask dumbly. She nodded and smiles, a Princess wishes to court me? "I..." She looks at me in the eyes, her smile slowly fading, replaced by a sad expression. Why am I hesitating? She's been the nicest person to me and my best friend since I've been here. "Yes," I reply.
She squeals and immediately hugs and kisses me again. "We thank thee," she says.
I smile and hug her back.
We walk back hand in hand and talk about what we're going to do at the up coming Grand Galloping Gala. She says she's going to have a dress and suit made for us that'll match each other, I don't think I've ever seen her this happy.
We enter Sugarcube Corner, still holding hands. Twilight looks over at us and her eyes go wide. "Adrian? Why are you holding Princess Luna's hand?" she asks. Everyone else looks over at us and Celestia has a big smile on her face.
"We've asked Adrian to be our coltfriend," Luna says and wraps her arms around my left arm while smiling making me blush a little.
"Y-You, and the P-Princess..." Twilight says to me. I smile and nodded.
"I am happy for the both of you," Celestia says as she walks over. "I trust you'll treat my sister well?" she asks me.
I look at her right in the eyes. "As if her life was my own," I reply.
Celestia nodded. "Very good, it is time we head back to the Castle," she says and turns to Twilight. "Today has been very interesting, to say the least. I shall contact you when we can visit again," she tells Twilight.
Twilight's still looking at me and Luna just nodded with a blank expression.
Rainbow walks over to me and elbows my right arm. "You sly dog, bagged yourself a Princess! You better treat her right or you'll answer to me, got it? And your fancy magic won't be able to save you either!" she tells me.
I laugh and ruffle up her hair. "No problems there," I tell her. We say our goodbyes and I follow Celestia out with Luna still holding my hand. Two guards fly down to us and escort us back to the carriage, I collect my gear from the Library first and then enter the carriage where we fly back to the Castle, Luna sat next to me and leaned against me on the way.
When we arrive, we head into the Castle where we have dinner and there's still no sign of Blueblood, though Celestia gave Luna some teasing about being my marefriend. Once finished, Celestia bids us good night and I walk Luna to her room, we're standing outside her door and she looks at me. "Would thou... would thou stay with us tonight?" she asks.
I look her in the eyes and smile. "If that's what you really want," I reply.
She nodded and opens the doors, she pulls me in and walks over to a walk in closet. I remove my armour and shirt and place them at the foot of her large round bed. Her room looks beautiful, it's like a piece of the night itself was used to decorate it.
She returns after a few minutes and her hair and tail are no longer flowing, her hair is now a soft blue colour that goes down just past her shoulders with slight curls at the ends, her tail is shorter as well and also curled at the end, she's also wearing a black nightgown that goes past her knees.
She looks at the floor shyly and walks over to me. "What happened to your hair?" I ask her.
"When we stop channelling magic through it, it returns to its natural state," she tells me.
I reach up and comb my hand through her hair, it's very soft and she hums in content. She then grabs my hand and pulls me towards the bed.
We slip under the covers and she cuddles up to me. "We thank thee for giving us a chance," she tells me.
"Of course, you're a kind and beautiful woman, and if other people can't see that, then they don't deserve to know the real you," I reply.
She quietly sobs happily into my chest until we both fall asleep.
I wake up with something soft and warm in my arms, I look down and see a smiling Luna still asleep, she looks so beautiful just laying there.
A knock at the door grabs my attention and a maid walks in. "Princess, breakfast is read..." she trails off as she spots us. It's Feather Duster, the same maid who closed the carriage door on me when I first came to the Castle.
I lift a finger to my lips and shush her, she just stands there and slowly nodded.
I place my right hand on Luna's shoulder and lightly shake her. "Luna, it's time to get up," I say to her.
She just mumbles and snuggles deeper into me, I chuckle and stroke her hair. "Come on, breakfast is ready," I tell her.
"Just five more minutes..." she says and wraps her arms around my chest, I look over to Feather Duster and see her smiling at us.
I try to pull away from her and slide to the edge of the bed, she stubbornly holds on, groaning in protest. I didn't realize I reached the edge and roll off. "WHOA!" I yell and fall on my back with Luna on top of me, she groans and opens her eyes.
"Alright, alright, we are up. Though we would rather stay in bed with thee," she says and kisses me.
The maid then decides to cough and Luna sits upright and looks at her. "P-Princess, breakfast is ready and Princess Celestia is waiting for you both," she tells Luna with a blush on her face.
"V-Very well, we shall be down in a while, we thank thee for telling us." Luna replies. The maid bows and exits the room.
Luna looks back at me and then at the position she's in, she blushes and quickly stands up. "W-We shall be back in just a moment," she says and hurries off into her closet. I chuckle and get dressed myself, I equip my armour and weapons and wait for Luna to come out.
She comes back out in a dark blue dress with a silver crescent moon on her right hip with stars all around it that twinkle when she moves, her hair and tail are back to their flowing majesty.
"Are thou ready?" she asks.
"Whenever you are," I reply. She grabs my hand with a smile and pulls me towards the door, she's like a little girl with their first crush.
We walk down the hallways holding hands. "What have you got to do today?" I ask her.
"We have to help our sister with the matter of the gryphons. To be honest, we'd like to go there and smack some sense into the arrogant lot," she tells me.
"Were they always like that?" I ask her.
"Nay, before our banishment, they were a proud race of hunters, they never hunted anything but animals," she replies.
Wait a minute... what banishment? "You were banished?" I ask surprised.
She gasps, her eyes go wide and she places her right hand over her mouth. She looks down and has a regretful expression. "Yes... we... we were banished to the moon for a thousand years when we tried to veil the world in eternal night," she tells me quietly.
"Why would you try to do that?" I ask her calmly.
She stays silent for a few seconds before answering. "We got jealous of the attention our sister was getting for her day while ponies ignored and slept through our night..." she says and starts to cry. "We understand if thee wishes to leave us," she says quietly.
She gasps as I wrap her in a hug. "The past is the past, you're not like that anymore. Do you still want to plunge the world into eternal night?" I ask her and she shakes her head. "Then don't worry about it anymore. Live for the now, not the past," I tell her and she lets her emotions out and cries against me, fortunately there was no one else in the hallways with us.
Once she calms down, we head towards the dining hall. Luna is feeling a lot better now that she got that out, we arrive and I open the door for her, she smiles and enters.
Celestia is sitting at her usual spot and we join her, but this time, I'm sitting next to Luna. "Good morning, Celestia," I greet her.
"Good morning you two, from what I've heard, you both slept rather well," she smirks at us.
Luna blushes and drinks from her cup and I smirk back. "That we did, Luna here makes a rather comfy pillow," I reply.
Luna spits out her mouthful of water from her embarrassment all over Celestia, I laugh while Celestia looks unamused, Luna blushes even harder and apologises to her sister.
"I suppose I deserved that," Celestia says as her horn glows, she's instantly dried off.
"Luna tells me that you'll both be sorting out the gryphon problem today," I say to Celestia.
"Yes, we're trying to find a solution so that we don't have to send anypony to their deaths while ensuring that they don't attack us," she tells me.
"We still say we should show them that we will not tolerate threats against us..." Luna says with a frown.
"That's just not how things are done nowadays, if we were to do such, it would break the agreement we have with our allies of never attacking another nation. Should the gryphons attack first, then we can retaliate, though I hope it never comes to that," Celestia tells Luna.
The dining hall's doors open and Blueblood walks in for the first time in over a month, he gives me the faintest of glares and sits at the other end of the table, Luna is openly glaring at him while Celestia has her neutral expression.
Breakfast arrives and we eat in silence. Luna and Celestia finish off their food and stand up. "We shall see thee later today," Luna says and gives me a quick kiss, I hear Blueblood give a sharp inhale to my right.
I ignore him and smile at Luna. "You can count on it. Until then, I'll head back to the Training Grounds for some more practice," I tell her.
They both leave the room, but not before keeping a guard by the doors. I'm almost done with my breakfast when Blueblood speaks up.
"So, you are courting aunty Luna it seems," he says distastefully.
"That's none of your concern," I tell him.
"Actually, I think you'll find that it is, only those of high military rank or of Noble birth may court royalty," he tells me. I look at him with a frown, he just smugly smiles. "Your courting of the Princess is against the law and punishable by sending you to the dungeons," he says with a wicked grin.
I stand up and head towards Celestia's office without acknowledging the prick of a Prince who is laughing at me, I arrive and knock on the door.
"Enter!" Celestia calls out.
I enter the room still with a frown on my face. "Adrian?.. What is the matter?" she asks me with concern.
"Blueblood told me that unless I'm of Noble birth or of a high military rank, I can't court Luna," I tell her.
Her eyes widen and she frowns as well. "I cannot believe I forgot that old law, I thought I abolished it centuries ago," she says.
Luna doesn't look worried at all. "So all he needs is a high military rank correct?" she asks.
"Yes, but that would take him years to get." Celestia replies.
"Is the law of allowing us to choose a knight in our name still in effect?" Luna asks.
Celestia gasps and smiles. "Yes! I just haven't had the need to choose a knight for the last eight hundred years, but yes, the law is still very much alive," she tells her.
Celestia and Luna both walk over to me and each summon a sword, Celestia's is a long golden sword with a ruby embedded into each side of the hand guard while Luna's sword is the same as Celestia's but a white silver colour with sapphires in the hand guard. "Adrian Stormsword, do you except the title, Knight of Equestria?" Celestia asks me seriously.
I gulp nervously. "And what does a Knight of Equestria do?" I ask.
"Thou shalt be our protector in times of danger and escort us in diplomatic meetings. Thou shall also be called to arms should thou be needed to protect the citizens from powerful beasts and demons," Luna tells me. "Tis also one of the highest ranks anypony can receive that only we can give," she says.
"So I'll basically be your personal bodyguard?" I ask.
Luna giggles. "Basically yes, thou will take your orders directly from us," she says.
I smile and kneel in front of them. "I accept," I tell them.
Celestia taps my right shoulder with her sword while Luna taps my left. "Then rise Sir Stormsword, Knight of Equestria," Celestia says and I stand back up. Luna's horn glows and an armour stand with what looks like a dusty suit of armour coloured white with dark blue trimmings appears behind them. Celestia's mark is on the right pauldron and Luna's on the left, a sword is strapped to the left hip of the armour.
Luna takes the sword and holds it out to me, I take the sword from her and draw it, the blade is a dark blue with a white flame pattern going up the blade, the hand guard looks like a crescent moon and the pommel looks like a sun. A diamond rests embedded at the base of the blade on each side.
"The sword's name is 'Twilight's Edge', a blade that will never dull and is very light," Luna tells me, both hers and Celestia's horns glow as the suit of armour warps slightly and reshapes to fit my body structure, the leggings turn into a chainmail like robe connected to the bottom of the chest plate while the helmet turns into a chainmail coif that my hood can go over, the upper arm plates turn into chainmail that hang from the pauldrons rims.
"Please remove your armour," Celestia tells me.
I carefully take my armour off and stack it in the corner. I take the boots, chestplate, coif, gauntlets, and put them on. Their horns glow again as they adjust the size to fit perfectly, the armour is lighter than my father's.
I move around in the armour and surprisingly, it doesn't restrict my movement. "The armour is made of the same steel as the guards, but enchanted to be lighter without the loss of density," Celestia tells me.
I sheath the sword and face them. "So what do I do now? Will there be a ceremony or something?" I ask.
"Normally yes, but I believe revealing you at the Gala would be just as good," Celestia replies.
"Shall I go practice with the sword and armour while you do your paperwork then?" I ask.
"That would be wise, it'll help you get accustomed to it," Celestia tells me.
Luna walks over to me. "We shall be seeing thee later, Sir Knight," she says and playfully pushes me out of the room.
I chuckle and head down to the Training Grounds. The guards I pass, both the Princesses and Blueblood's, stare at my new armour with gaping jaws and wide eyes. I couldn't help but smirk a bit.
I arrive at the grounds and walk up to one of the training dummies, I draw my sword and grasp it firmly as I pull my sword back and swing horizontally, leaving a deep cut in the metal and wood. I then channel an arcane and fire element into the sword and it gives off a dark red flame along the blade.
I swing at the dummy again and this time, the cut is even deeper and the dummy it set ablaze, I wonder if the diamonds in the sword are increasing my channelling efficiency.
I notice the man that insulted my armour the first time I was here is just gawking at me. "Adrian... is that you?" I hear the voice of Shining Armour ask me.
I turn to see him walking towards me. "Yeah, it's me," I reply.
He looks my new armour over. "Where did you get the armour? And why does it have the Princesses cutie-marks on it?" he asks.
"Have you heard about me courting Luna?" I ask him.
"I've heard rumours floating about, so it's true then?"
"Yes, and Blueblood told me about a law that only those with a high rank in the military or of Noble birth could court a Princess, so the Princesses made me their Knight," I tell him.
He gasps. "They made you a Knight of Equestria!?" he blurts out, causing other nearby guards to gasp and start murmuring.
"It was Luna's idea, I personally am happy with it, Means I can stay with Luna and also protect her," I tell him.
"Well then, since you're the Princesses Knight, I'll have to train you to be one of the best swordsponies there is," he tells me as he walks over to the wooden weapon rack.
He then looks back at me. "What are you standing there for? Let's get started."
Terrcana Chapter 14: The Grand Galloping Gala Part 1
Two Weeks Later
Over the next two weeks, Shining Armour has been training me hard, I'm still not as good as he is, but I can now hold my own for a lot longer and use my sword more effectively.
Blueblood got word of my Knighting... and to say he was upset was an understatement, he was absolutely livid.
I spent my mornings in the Training Grounds with Shining Armour and practising my magic, my mana pool has increased a small amount but not by much, I then go to lunch with Celestia and Luna where we talk about the upcoming Gala and other topics such as how our day has been. Blueblood only showed up five times during these two weeks.
I spent my time after lunch reading more from the spell book, I found two more unknown elements called light, a golden circle with a ray of light going across it, and shadow, a dark grey circle with what looks like black mist on the bottom half. Try as I might, I just can't stabilize the elements, the light element blinded me for ten minutes when it failed and the shadow element made me deaf to all sound around me. Though I have gotten much better with the air element.
I've had new clothes made for me and placed in Luna's room where I have been staying now, at Luna's request. Every night she cuddles up to me and I have to admit, it's much better then sleeping alone. Luna and I have been together every day at seven pm till bed time, she told me of what the world was like before her banishment and how drastically it changed on her return.
It also seems that the attempts on my life have stopped for now, whether or not the assassin isn't brave enough to face me after watching me defeat that manticore, or he's biding his time to find the perfect opportunity to strike. Either way, if he shows himself to me, I'll make sure he'll regret his actions in Ponyville.
Twilight and her friends visited once for a lunch date with the Princesses three days before the Gala, I said hello to them but left them to it while I practised my swordsmanship and magic.
I wake up and slowly open my eyes to see Luna is clinging onto me with her constant smile, I yawn and just hold her until she wakes up.
A few minutes later she opens her eyes and looks at me. "Good morning," she says and nuzzles me. She's been doing that a lot lately, it's apparently a sign of affection for the ponies.
"So today's the day huh?" I ask her.
"That it is, tis a shame thou cannot wear thine suit we had made," she replies slightly upset.
Since I'm being revealed as a Knight of Equestria, I have to wear the armour. "Yeah, it looked really nice too," I say.
We both get up and take turns showering. Once clean, Luna puts on her black dress with the silver trimming while I equip my new armour and weapons, my old armour and sword is in Luna's closet at the back.
We head down to the dining hall and open the doors, Celestia is at her spot and once again, no Blueblood. "Are you looking forward to the Gala, Adrian?" Celestia asks me.
"Yes and no, I've never been to a formal party before and I'm also nervous about the whole revealing thing as well," I reply.
"Thou shalt be fine, just be thyself and everything will go well," Luna tells me.
We eat breakfast and then go about our day until the Gala starts. The moon is now high in the sky and people are flocking to the Castle.
I'm standing beside Celestia and Luna as they great the guests, I go wide eyed as I meet some of the other races that attended. A cervine doe in a white dress with vines and flowers woven into it greets Celestia and Luna while two stags with large antlers and armour stood beside the doe.
A few minutes later and I meet my first minotaur, he's as tall as Celestia and me and wearing a rather fancy black suit, his shoulders are twice as broad as mine, but his legs are shorter. He has an escort in thick plate armour next to him.
Next up is a person that looks just like the ponies, only grey furred with black stripes. She's wearing a brown robe with a few small animal bones along the belt, she's also wearing gold rings around her wrists and neck, her left ear is also pierced with a golden ring as well.
A white man with a monocle, pale blue hair and moustache walks up to us. "So this must be the stallion the rumours say Princess Luna is courting," he says looking me over.
"Ah, Sir Fancy Pants. It's a pleasure to see you again and yes, he is Luna's coltfriend," Celestia says to him with a smile.
"I see, I wish the both of you the best of luck then. By the way, that is some rather impressive looking armour you are wearing. Oh! But where are my manners?" he says holding his hand out. "My name is Fancy Pants, and this beautiful mare is my wife, Fleur De Lis."
I might as well act like a Knight and shake his hand. "It is a pleasure making your acquaintance, Sir Fancy Pants," I tell him. I then kiss the back of Fleur's hand. "As with you as well, my lady," I say and slightly bow my head to them.
"He certainly has good manners doesn't he," she says with a smile.
"That he does. I say, would you be interested in visiting our home for tea sometime in the future?" Fancy Pants asks me.
"We'd be delighted to," Luna replies for me.
"Splendid! My schedule is quite busy, but how does two months from now at three in the afternoon sound?" he asks.
Luna hums in thought. "That seems acceptable, we shall see thee then, Sir fancy Pants," Luna tells him.
"Wonderful, We'll see you both then," he says and turns to Fleur. "Come my dear, we have many ponies to talk to," he says as they both walk away into the sea of people.
"He was rather nice," I say.
"He is one of the few nobles who actually cares for others and Canterlot, unlike the rest who only care about their status and wealth," Luna tells me with a bitter tone at the end.
Huh, I'm actually looking for to meeting him again then.
Twilight and her friends arrived all wearing beautiful dresses made by Rarity. I'm also introduced to an orange woman with blonde hair named Applejack, she runs an apple orchard next to Ponyville. Twilight stayed with us while the others went off to do their own things, Twilight also told me that Spike went somewhere else on his own.
It took two hours of greeting guests before we entered the throne room where classical music is playing in the background and everyone is talking to each other. Compared to Pinkie Pie's party, this looks rather dull.
Celestia and Luna walk over and stand on the stage. "Fillies and gentlecolts, we thank you for attending the three-hundred and twenty-seventh Grand Galloping Gala. Before we begin, we have an announcement to make," Celestia says and motions me to the stage. I nervously step up onto the stage next to them. "We are honoured to reveal Equestria's newest Knight, Sir Adrian Stormsword."
A few gasps and quiet murmuring spread throughout the crowd. One of the Nobles then speaks up. "There hasn't been a Knight in almost eight centuries, why have you suddenly let a creature that is not even a pony become a Knight of Equestria!?" he demands, clearly not happy about it.
Luna glares at the noble. "We have knighted Sir Adrian for his skilled swordsponyship and ability to perform high level magic, he is one strong enough to be our Knight," Luna tells him.
Another Noble speaks up. "And it has nothing to do with the rumour of him courting you?" she asks.
I look at Luna, to see her barely holding back her anger. The other Nobles are also voicing their disapproval, It's a crime against nature.He's not of noble blood.He could be a spy from another nation. A Spy? Really?
I've had enough. "Yes, I am courting Luna," I tell them and they fall silent, Luna looks at me with surprise. "I love her for who she is, not her status or power. I became their Knight just so I can stay by her side," I say, draw my sword, and glare at them. I channel a fire element through it and a flame engulfs the blade, causing the Nobles to look nervous. "Both Celestia and Luna have been my closest friends since I have been here, I will risk my life for them if I have to. But if anyone tries to pull Luna and I apart just because of race, origins of birth, or titles... then they'll have to do it by force!" I shout out. "And let me get one thing clear, I won't make it an easy task to do," I say and cancel the element in the blade, I sheath my sword and turn to Luna and Celestia. "I apologise for my outburst, your highnesses," I say and bow.
Luna has tears in the corner of her eyes and hugs me, which I return. Celestia softly smiles and I'm shocked when I hear Fancy Pants speak up.
"Well said good, Sir Knight," he says and claps his hands. Soon, others join in, including Twilight and her friends. Many of the other nobles look insulted at being addressed like that.
With nothing else left to say, I step down. Celestia wraps it up and the Gala goes on, many pieces of music was played by the small band on the stage, many of the guests talk to the Princesses, mainly the minotaur, zebra, and the doe, who are the representatives of the other races and some nobles, though most of the nobles kept their distance from me. Twilight looks miserable since every time she tries to talk to Celestia, a guest would interrupt, she gave up and decided to talk with me instead.
I tell her everything that happened over the past two weeks, she's surprised that I've befriended her brother and that I'm learning swordsmanship from him but tells me to keep at it, she already found out about my knighting from Celestia during their lunch date three days ago.
I spot Pinkie talking to the band during their break, the band looks confused and get their instruments ready.
Pinkie then turns to the crowd.
"Come on, everypony! I know what'll make you shake those groove-thangs!" She takes a deep breath and the band starts playing a different type of music. "You reach your right hoof in, you reach your right hoof out, you reach your right hoof in, and you shake it all about! You do the pony pokey meeting lots of folks with clout! That's what I'm talking about!" she sings.
She continues singing and the crowd looks very unamused, she even tries to drag a few in an attempt to get them dancing. I feel embarrassed just watching it.
As she continues, she then starts to interfere with the musicians by tapping keys on the piano and pulling at the cellists bow.
"You do the pony pokey, you do the pony pokey, you do the pony pokey and that's what it's all about. Yeah!" she spreads her arms wide and is greeted only with silence.
A well dressed woman then speaks up. "This isn't that kind of party," she sternly tells Pinkie.
Pinkie then frowns sadly and trudges off to the drink bowls.
"Well, that just happened..." I say quietly.
Luna looks confused while Celestia has a smile on her face and Twilight just looks embarrassed.
I look around and notice Rarity leaving with Blueblood, that's not going to end well.
An hour later, Pinkie is back with some strange table with two spinning disks, buttons, and switches on it. Music I've never heard before with a fast beat starts playing and again she tries getting the crowd to dance. Suddenly, Applejack walks in with a cart carrying a multi-layered cake with apple slices on it.
Pinkie then dives off the stage with her arms spread wide, I'm guessing she wants the crowd to catch her but instead they move out of the way and she hits the cart. I flinch at the impact, that looks like it hurt. The cake flies off towards Rarity who just entered next to us looking rather angry with Blueblood next to her.
Blueblood screams like a little girl and pulls Rarity in front of himself, she yelps as the cake hits her. Blueblood drops her and backs away from the mess. "Thank the heavens that my attire is unsoiled!" he says relieved.
Rarity turns towards Blueblood with and expression that says she's going to kill the guy. "Your attire!? I spent weeks making this dress and you have the nerve to use me as a shield! You, you... ruffian!" Rarity shouts at him and throws a piece of the cake stuck to her onto Blueblood's chest.
"Aaaahh! What do you think you are doing you commoner!" he shouts in surprise.
Rarity huffs and turns away from him with her head held high. "It's no more then you deserve!" she replies.
Blueblood raises his right hand in what looks like a gesture to hit her, so I step in between them and glare at him to which he growls at me and storms off out the door he came in.
The back door leading to the Gardens bursts open and a lot of animals flood inside, a ragged looking Fluttershy breathing heavily with an expression of pure frustration runs in. "You're... going... to... LOVE ME!" she shouts out loudly. Holy crap! I thought she was a timid woman!
So now the Gala has been reduced to a chaotic mess. "What do we do now?" I ask no one in particular.
Luna's horn glows and all the animals levitate off the floor and are taken back outside, Celestia surprisingly is still smiling. Luna returns while floating a sheepish Fluttershy next to her. "I'm sorry..." Fluttershy says quietly.
Maids are cleaning up the cake off the floor and the mess left by the stampeding animals.
"I have to say, tonight wasn't as boring as I thought it was going to be," I say.
"I'll have to agree with you," Celestia tells me.
"You're not upset that the Gala was ruined?" I ask her.
She shakes her head. "The Gala is always boring, this is actually a rather pleasant turn of events," she replies with a light giggle.
After a few seconds of looking around I spot Rainbow Dash walking over to us. "Whoa... what happened here? Looks like a hurricane came through," she says.
"Close enough, so, where have you been?" I ask her.
"Trying to talk to the Wonderbolts... but they were constantly swarmed by the press and I couldn't even get close to them," she says and crosses her arms with a frown.
"At least you didn't get the worst of it then," I tell her.
"What are you talking about?" she asks with a raised brow.
I point over to Pinkie who's sitting on the floor rubbing her right arm with Applejack trying to help her up.
"What happened to her?" Rainbow asks and I explain it to her. "Aw, I wish I was here to see it," she says with a slight pout.
I chuckle and look around, it's a complete mess. After ten minutes of cleaning up, screams come from behind the Ball Room doors, the doors suddenly slam open and four large gryphons walk in, two of them holding a guard each in of their talons.
The lead gryphon looks at Celestia with a cruel grin. "Princess, you throw a party and didn't invite us?" he asks mockingly. "Tsk, tsk. That is rather rude," he chuckles coldly. I look behind them to see some guards dead on the floor.
"We received your reply to our... request... I'm afraid the Elder Council doesn't share your sentiments, we're here to tell you that Equestria is now our hunting grounds," he says. The two gryphons holding the groaning guards by the head take a bite out of their throats and swallow, the guards go wide eye'd and gurgle for a few seconds before dying.
Celestia and Luna look absolutely furious, the guards in the room surround the gryphons as they laugh at us.
Enraged, I draw my sword and channel three earth elements through my stave, a chunk of marble rips out of the floor which I point it at the lead gryphon and release my spell.
Terrcana Chapter 15: The Grand Galloping Gala Part 2
I launch the marble chunk at the lead gryphon which shatters against his skull, causing him to wobble around disorientated. The other gryphons roar out in anger and charge at me, I cast three cold elements and spray them with ice, their movements are hardly effected and they keep running. One of them reaches me while the others are confronted by the guards, he slashes at me with his right talon and leaves three long tears in my chest-plate.
'Oh shit! Those are sharp!' I think to myself and channel an arcane and fire element into my sword and slash at the gryphon, I leave a decent gash in his right upper arm, but the elements barely even leave a mark, just a few blisters from the arcane element and singed fur from the fire, Celestia wasn't kidding about them being magic resistant.
He backs off and I quickly cast a stone armour spell with a shield element and two earth elements, the polished white marble breaks away from the floor and overlaps my steel armour making me grunt from the extra weight.
The gryphon swings again and I swing my sword at his talon, sparks fly as my blade and his razor sharp claws scrape against each other. 'What the hell? Are they made of metal or something?' I think to myself. Screams echo throughout the Ball Room as the guests try to get away through the back door to the Gardens. The minotaurs, zebra shaman and the cervine are protecting them as they evacuate.
I channel three more earth elements and slam a marble chunk into the gryphons face, they may be magic resistant, but that doesn't mean they can take a lot of physical abuse.
The gryphon falls to the floor clutching his face and thrashes out with his hind legs. Celestia and Luna are now standing in very polished gold and silver coloured armour, Celestia has a large flamberge greatsword that's actually on fire while Luna has a two-handed scythe with a crescent moon blade that's emitting a cold mist from it.
I spot a guard getting his hand sliced off by another gryphon and I cast an earth element spell, this time I take five seconds to charge it up and aim the marble chunk at the gryphon's head. Once I've poured enough mana into the spell, I release the chunk and it goes soaring like a cannonball into the gryphon's temple, I'm rewarded with a sickening crunch as the side of his head caves in and he tumbles into a wall.
The gryphon I knocked over has gotten back up and swipes the side of my head. "AARRRGGHH!" I yell in pain as the marble protecting my head shatters and I go tumbling to the floor, the rest of my stone armour falls off as I lose my focus.
POV:Luna
I blast the gryphon my sister and I are fighting away with a surge of magic, only for it to get back up. 'Sister, we do not remember the gryphons being this resistant to our magic!' I tell Tia.
'You're right, but what could have caused them to get this strong?' she wonders in reply.
"AARRRGGHH!" I look towards the cry of pain and see Adrian limp on the floor.
"ADRIAN!" I yell in fear for him. I raise my scythe above my head and throw the blade at the gryphon looming over Adrian, it impales his right shoulder, cutting through his wing joint and severing the wing off. I then use my telekinesis to pull as hard as I can with all my anger and the blade rips through his back leaving a long gaping wound in its place. I then pull the scythe out with a tug of magic and catch my weapon.
I run over to Adrian where my sister stands guard over us. "Adrian? Adrian are thou alright?.. Please answer us!" I ask him as tears fall from my face.
He groans and turns his head to face me. "Luna?" he asks in barely a whisper.
"Yes, tis us, heal thyself whilst thou can," I beg him. He slowly lifts his left hand to his head and I see two green orbs hover around it.
After a few seconds, he groans and sits up. "Well, that hurt..." he says and rolls his neck.
POV: Adrian Stormsword
Luna hugs me tightly and I hug her back. "I'm alright now, just got a headache," I tell her. I see ten guards swarm one of the two gryphons left and impale him with their spears. Surprisingly, the gryphon roars out in rage and swipes his right talon in an arc, decapitating three of the guards before succumbing to his own wounds.
I watch as Celestia flies up with her sword at the ready and while the last gryphon is being distracted by the remaining guards, she dives down while spinning. With a cry of rage, her blade shines brightly and connects with the back of his neck, cleanly cutting through with a light hissing sound, her blade then impacts the floor leaving a small crater.
The gryphon backs away slowly with an expression of surprise, his head then slowly slides down and falls off, there's no blood as the wound was cauterised by Celestia's molten blade.
The guards surround us as we wait for anything else. After a few minutes of silence, everyone relaxes, a few of the guards are saluting to their fallen friends before picking up their corpses and carrying them out. I stand back up, collect my stave, sheath my sword, and lightly shake my head. That bloody gryphon really let me have it.
"Did they really think they could just invade Canterlot with only four of them?" I ask Luna.
"No, tis how gryphons send a message, they select warriors who are ready to die fighting after said message is delivered," she tells me.
Suiciders? If not for the carnage they caused, I'd be impressed at their level of commitment.
"So I take it this means war?" I ask.
Luna looks grim. "Yes, if they want to continue treating us like prey... then we'll just have to become the hunters," she replies.
I smirk. "Well, since I am now your Knight," I say and kneel before her. "My blade is yours to command." I tell her and look at her with a grin.
She giggles slightly. "We thank thee, Sir Knight." Her smile fades as she looks around. "It will take awhile to clean up this mess," she says.
I look at the large chunks of missing marble from the floor. "Yeah, sorry about the potholes in the floor," I tell her.
"Worry not, it was the only effective means thou had to fight with, a simple spell will repair the damage," she replies.
I watch as the corpses are taken away. "It's times like this that I wish I knew the revival spell," I say to myself.
Luna gasps and looks at me. "Thou can revive the dead!?" she yells in surprise and slight fear, others also look at me with shocked or surprised expressions.
I sadly shake my head. "If your thinking of raising them as undead, then no. The revival spell will heal the body's wounds and return their soul to their body, but as I am now, there's no chance. It's one of the highest level spells there is, it takes a lot of concentration and a lot more mana than I have to perform it," I tell her.
Some of the guards looked disappointed at that and went back to clearing the room, Celestia walks over to us after giving her orders to the remaining guards.
I yawn, feeling tired, those last two weeks training hard have really helped my mana pool increase, I would have passed out again if not for it.
"So what do we do now?" I ask as Celestia repairs the damage to my armour.
"Thou shalt go to bed where thou will rest thyself," Luna tells me.
"But what if more return?" I ask her.
"Then we shall deal with them, thou art of no use to anypony if thee art exhausted," she replies.
I sigh in defeat and nodded.
POV: Celestia
We watch Adrian head out of the Throne Room towards the Living Quarters of the Castle.
"How will we respond to this?" Luna asks me.
"I gave them a peaceful way of co-existing, but this attack has made that offer null and void, they harmed our ponies in front of us. We march to war," I reply with anger in my tone. "Once the Throne Room has been cleaned, we'll gather the Captains and plan a counter attack," I tell her.
"Very well," she says and we go about cleaning and repairing the rest of the Throne Room.
POV: Adrian Stormsword
I make my way to Luna's room and run into Twilight and her friends. "Adrian!" Rainbow says spotting me. "Dude! You were so badass!.. Until you got decked that is," she says.
"Rainbow! He could have died!" Twilight admonishes her.
"Sorry," Rainbow says with her ears folded back.
"It's fine, I'm alive and the Gryphons aren't," I tell her.
Twilight then turns to me. "So what are you doing now?" she asks me.
"I was about to get some rest, why?" I reply.
"Well, I was wondering if you would like to join us at Doughnut Joe's," she says and my stomach answers for me. "I take that as a yes then?" she asks with a cheeky smile.
I chuckle and the others giggle. "I guess I could join you for awhile," I reply.
We head out of the Castle and into the city where a few civilians are still out, not surprising with the attack and how late it is. We reach a small shop with doughnuts lining the window.
I open the door for the others and they all thank me. "Why can't all stallions be as chivalrous as you? If you weren't already with Princess Luna, I would have taken you for myself," Rarity says. I chuckle nervously.
I follow in behind them and we all sit at a table, I see Spike sitting at the bar like counter. "Spike? What are you doing here?" Twilight asks him.
Spike turns around with a surprised expression before noticing it's Twilight. "Well, after you all ditched me to do what you all wanted, I wondered around for about ten minutes, got bored and then left. Went to the arcade for a few hours, then came here," he replies.
"What's an arcade?" I ask.
Spike gives me a 'you serious? look. "It's a place where you can play games for a few bits," Rainbow tells me.
"Oh, like a carnival?"
"Not exactly, but close enough," Spike says.
"Well well, if it isn't Twilight Sparkle! Been a while since you were last here," a unicorn man walking in from a door behind the counter says.
"Hello, Joe. It has been a while hasn't it? I've just recently moved to Ponyville to continue my studies," she replies.
"So what can I get for you?" he asks.
Twilight and the others all order a variety of different doughnuts and drinks, I get two iced chocolate doughnuts and a glass of water.
"So, how did your nights go?" Spike asks.
The girls all groaned and tell him their experiences. Applejack tried selling her apple products but no one was interested. Rarity was subjected to that which is called Blueblood and treated as his personal servant rather than a date, that got Spike to growl angrily. Rainbow tried to get the Wonderbolts attention but failed over and over as the press swarmed them. Fluttershy tried to befriend the Gardens animals but they kept running from her. Pinkie wanted to liven up the party and it backfired badly and Twilight just wanted to spend time with Celestia, only to be pushed away by the other guests.
Then I tell him about the gryphon attack minus the gory details, Spike's just glad none of us were hurt.
Spike chuckles. "Sounds like you all had a worse time than I did."
"You can say that again... my head is still throbbing from the hit I took," I say and rub the left side of my head.
"That did look pretty nasty," Twilight says.
"Though the Princesses were soooo cool! I didn't know they could fight like that!" Rainbow says.
"Neither did I," Twilight replies with a frown in thought.
We finished off our meals and I bid them goodnight. I walk down the street back towards the Castle where people move out of my way, either from fear or respect from the news of the fight that no doubt got out with all the journalists that were there.
I make it back without any trouble and head up to Luna's room. I strip out of my armour and take a shower, I put on a clean pair of underwear and trousers and slip under the bed's covers, a few minutes later Luna walks in and also showers. She puts on her nightgown and cuddles up to me with an exhausted sigh.
"Tough night?" I say teasingly.
"Thou hast no idea," she replies with a giggle, then sadly frowns. "Don't scare us like that again..." she tells me.
"I'll try, but I can't promise you that," I reply.
"Then thou leaves us no choice, starting tomorrow, we shall be training thee personally," she says.
Luna and I both wake up and get ready for my training session, Luna walks out of her closet wearing her armour from the Gala.
We head down for breakfast where Celestia is talking to Blueblood in the Dining Hall.
"Aunty, the Nobles are demanding an immediate response to the gryphons attack," he tells Celestia.
"That is why we are having a war meeting with the Captains today," she replies.
Blueblood looks over to us. "Good morning, aunty Luna," he says to Luna with a respectful tone, then glares at me. "Sir Knight," he practically spat out but still sounded respectful.
I just ignored him and look at Celestia. "Good morning, Celestia," I greet her.
Celestia looks confused as to why Luna has her armour with her. "Yes, good morning. Is there a reason why you're in your armour, Luna?" she asks.
"Yes, we will be training Adrian ourself from now on," Luna replies.
POV:Celestia
'You're what!?' I ask her telepathically with shock.
'We shall be training Adrian ourself to make him stronger,' she tells me again, sitting next to me and Adrian next to her.
'What suddenly brought this on?' I ask.
'He shows great potential, but his form and technique could use some more work,' she replies.
I sigh. 'That is true, while he did admirably against the gryphons, he was nearly killed due to his inattentiveness. Very well, just go easy on him at first,' I tell her with a chuckle.
I notice Blueblood squinting at Adrian while Adrian is just adjusting his armour.
POV: Adrian Stormsword
After adjusting the straps some more so my armour is more comfortable, breakfast arrives and I gather an assortment of foods.
"So what kind of training will I be going through?" I ask Luna.
Blueblood grunts in disgust. "You are a Knight now, you'll most likely be put through standard guard training, then through the higher level training programs," he says.
Luna ignores him and answers me. "We shall first improve thy perception, thou failed to notice the gryphon thou knocked down recovered. We shall teach thee to always observe thy surroundings," she tells me.
Blueblood gasps. "You're going to train him yourself!?" he shouts.
"Is this a problem?" Luna asks him calmly.
"Of course! You are a princess, what of your duties to the nation?"
"I shall see to the nation, my sister shall help Sir Adrian hone his skills," Celestia tells him.
"...Very well then," he replies, though I can tell he isn't happy with it.
After we finish breakfast, Luna and I head to the Training Grounds where she informs Shining Armour that she'll take over my training for now. He nodded and went back to training the other guards, she then throws me a wooden training sword as she also picks one up.
"Firstly, we shall test thy hearing, we shall use an invisibility spell and thou will try to locate us by our hoofsteps," she tells me.
"Sounds easy enough," I reply.
Her horn glows and she fades away, I close my eyes and listen intently. It's hard to locate her with the noise of the other guards training.
I hear a slight shuffle to my right and focus there, I then hear another to my left, wait... how did she get over there? I then hear a step in front of me and I lunge forward. I hit nothing but air and receive a whack to the back of my head. "Ow!" I groan from the light tap and rub my head.
"Focus, Adrian... again!" Luna says and I listen. Two steps to my right, three behind, two to the left... hold on, she's behind me again. I turn around and swing horizontally Clunk, Luna reappears holding her sword vertically where she blocked my swing.
"Much better, now we shall use our wings, listen for both our hoofsteps and our wing beats," she tells me and vanishes again.
I listen out for her, two steps left, one ahead, three right, wings flapping behind me, flapping above and steps to the left. I swing left and miss, I get another bash to my noggin. "Oooooh..." I hiss as I rub my head again.
"Thou were very close, let us try again," she says.
We practised for hours, I've gotten a tiny bit better but not by much, but it's a start. We take a short break where maids bring us refreshments. Once rested, we get ready for the next exercise.
"Now we shall see how thou can use magic to support thy attacks," she says.
She quickly teleports behind me and clonks me on the head. "Bugger!" I yell and some of the guards laugh, including Shining.
"We have seen thee teleport during thy fight with the manticore, we shall now have a little contest, neither of us can leave the circle, we both can only move via teleportation and the first to get three strikes wins," she says.
"Whoa whoa whoa, I can barely teleport without throwing up my lunch as it is, shouldn't I get used to it first?" I ask her.
She sighs in irritation. "Very well, thou has one hour to practise, then thou shall rest and then we continue," she replies.
So over the next hour I practise teleporting and I was very close to losing it after the third teleport, but after forty teleports, taking five minute breaks in between, I didn't feel as nauseous. Though it wasn't completely gone.
After resting up, I join Luna back in the circle. "Good, now thou has the first move," she says.
I quickly channel the three elements for the spell and teleport in front of her, she looks at me with wide eyes, I guess she expected me to go behind her and I swing at her. She quickly teleports herself away and I get clonked again.
"Thou need to shorten the time it takes thee to channel thy elements," she tells me, easier said then done.
She waits for me again and I cast the spell, I teleport to her left and swing, she teleports to my right and I just teleport in time to evade her attack, I appear right in front of her in a crouched position and bash her in the shin.
Her armour absorbs the blow and she yelps in surprise, I stand up and grin at her. "Yes yes, thou got us, now get ready," she says.
Two hours pass and I'm exhausted, Luna stepped up her game and I didn't get another hit in, I healed myself after receiving many, many bruises.
We head in to get lunch and Luna tells me what I need to do to improve myself. Once lunch is finished, we head back out.
We're standing back outside but this time at the target range. "We want thee to practise thy aim with thy earth element projectile spell, since normal magic shall not work on the gryphons, thou shalt improve thy physical based magic," she tells me.
I channel three earth elements and pull a rock out of the ground and channel mana through my stave, I fire the rock at the target and hit the forth ring... and rip a third of the targets top left corner off.
"Thy aim needs work, but at least thou hast power behind it, does it require thee to charge the spell up to increase velocity?" she asks.
"Yes, if I were to cast it without charging, it would look like I'm just trying to throw it," I reply.
"We see. Well, try again then, we must work on thy aim," she says.
For the next hour or two, I practise my aim. I can now score hits on the second inner ring, but moving targets are still a problem for me. It's now about five in the afternoon and Luna takes me to our final area of training for today.
We arrive at her's and Celestia's personal gym where we do some stretching before she sets me up on a strange platform with handles on each side and a panel in front. "We shall now run for three miles together," she says and stands on another to my left. "Now, do as we do," she tells me and presses a button on the panel in front of her, part of the platform starts moving and she starts jogging on the spot.
I look at my panel and press the same button she did. "Whoa!" I yelp startled and I stumble a bit before jogging along with her.
Ten minutes in and I'm really sweating, running in armour, even if it feels light, is not very easy. I then trip and fall onto my side, the platform still moving, launches me into a wall with my ass in the air. "Ow..." I mutter.
Luna giggles and steps off of hers. "Come on, up with thee," she says and helps me up. We both get back on what Luna told me is called a treadmill and finish the run. Celestia then walks in wearing a rather tight looking pair of pink shorts, a sleeveless, stomachless pink top, wristbands and a headband.
"Oh, Hello, Luna. I'm surprised to see both of you here," Celestia says as she gets onto one of the treadmills and starts a light jog. I had to look away from her out of embarrassment, her outfit showing off her body's curves.
"Well, our equipment is more suited to his size than the guards, we thought it would help speed up Adrian's training," Luna replies.
Celestia giggles. "It's alright, just don't break anything," she mockingly tells me.
Luna then drags me over to a bench with a set of weights, she tells me to remove my armour as she places a few metal disks on each end of the a bar. "We now want to see how much weight thou can lift," she tells me.
Once out of the armour, I lay down on the bench as she instructs me on what to do. I grip the bar as she tells me to and push, I extend my arms fully and hold it for a few seconds, it's not that heavy.
"Fifty pounds, put the bar back please," she tells me and I do so, she replaces the disks with bigger ones and tells me to lift again. I push, straining a bit as I do so. "One-hundred pounds, bar down again." She adds the other disks back on and again tells me to push, I grunt from the exertion but barely manage to lift it for a few seconds before placing the bar back on the stand. "One-hundred and fifty pounds, we need to build thy arms up some more," she tells me.
For the next hour or so, we do different exercises and lifting. I do sit-ups, push-ups, chin-ups and even rock climbing on an artificial cliff face on the back wall.
Once we finish, we all take a shower in the two shower cubicles in a room through a door to the left of the gym. I let them go first while I do some more weight lifting, then wash myself when they're done. I put on fresh clothes Luna brought for me and re-equip my armour after my shower, Celestia is wearing her white dress with the gold trimmings while Luna is wearing her black dress. Once ready, we all head down for dinner. "Thou did well for thy first day," Luna says. I yawn feeling extremely tired. "But tomorrow we shall increase our pace," she says causing me to groan and the Princesses to laugh.
"After dinner, we shall be holding a war meeting with the Captains to discuss what we shall do about the gryphons," Celestia says, suddenly serious.
Dinner was quiet as we ate and Blueblood didn't show up. Once finished, Celestia leads me to a room in the back of the Castle with a round table and chairs all around it, a map of Equestria and it's borders on the table.
Celestia sits at the back in the middle with Luna to her left and me to her right. Luna tells me that we'll be doing what we did today over the next two weeks, the doors open as five people walk in, the first is Shining Armour.
The second is an orangey yellow pegasus woman with fiery red hair wearing a tight blue suit with a yellow lightning bolt down the middle, she also has a pair of goggles on her head.
The third is a large muscular grey earth pony man with black hair wearing heavy looking plate armour and a massive hammer on his back.
The forth is someone who looks just like Night Blade, with the tufts of fur on the tips of his ears, the eyes and the sharp looking teeth but with leathery bat like wings instead of a curved horn. He has dark purplish grey fur with dark blue hair, he's wearing what looks like purple and black leather armour, but it's probably a different material since these people don't like killing animals. Then again, it could be the hide of a dangerous animal they had to put down... I'll have to ask later.
The fifth is a light green unicorn woman with yellow hair that has two white stripes through it, she's wearing robes with a gem rod on her left hip.
They all sit down at the table and Celestia speaks up. "Thank you all for coming, as you know, we were attacked yesterday during the Gala," she says making the Captains frown.
Luna then takes over. "We are here to form a plan of retaliation, they wish to treat us as livestock, then we shall put them down as the animals they are," she says, receiving nods from all the Captains.
"But first, introductions. Captains, this is Adrian Stormsword, the first Knight in over eight-hundred years," Celestia says. The captains all greet me. "Adrian, you already know Shining Armour who oversees the entire Royal Guard."
I smile and nodded to him which he returns. "Next is Captain Spitfire of the pegasi guard, who specialize in air to air combat with speed, agility, light weapons and bows, also known as the Wonderbolts," Celestia says towards the orange woman.
Spitfire smirks at me. "Nice to finally meet the colt that swept Princess Luna off her hooves," she says making Luna's face blush a bit.
I chuckle. "Nice to meet you as well," I reply.
"Next is Captain Hammer Strike of the earth pony guard, who specialize in heavy armour and weapons," Celestia says.
Hammer Strike gives a deep sounding chuckle. "I hear you crushed one of those turkeys heads in with a rock, is it true?" he asks.
"Yes, but it was a spell, not me throwing the thing. Probably would have dropped it on my own foot if I tried that," I reply.
He lets out a loud laugh while the unicorn Captain just rolls her eyes. "I like him!" Hammer Strike says.
Celestia smiles. "Next is Captain Bright Mind of the unicorn guard, who specialize in offensive and defensive spells."
"How you got the Princess's attention with your lack of manners is a mystery," Bright Mind says. "No offence to you of course, Princess," she then says to Luna, who looks annoyed.
I decide to throw in the ol' prince charming routine. "I apologise if my manners are not up to your expectations, my lady. I shall refrain from any future vulgarities and uncouth behaviour in your presence," I reply with a bow of my head, sounding as respectful as I could.
She looks at me wide eyed while Hammer Strike is once again laughing. "I really like him!" he says still laughing. I just sit there looking as calm as possible while Bright Mind glares at Hammer Strike.
Celestia coughs to get our attention. "Ahem, lastly is Captain Dark Wing of the thestral guards, who specialize in stealth and reconnaissance."
Dark Wing just nodded at me which I return.
"Now onto the matter of the gryphons," Luna says gaining all of our attention. "Our sister offered a means to live peacefully, but they responded by killing our guards and attempted to kill us. We are still unsure on how they managed to get in, but an investigation is under way," she tells us.
Celestia then takes over. "And as such, their act of aggression and openly stating that they shall now hunt us within our own borders, we have declared war upon the gryphons, any gryphon on Equestrian soil that isn't a legal citizen and without the correct paperwork will be either taken prisoner or killed if they resist," she states, anger showing in her eyes. "For now, we will station guards at each town and city along the border for protection, we want you Captains to sort mixed squads of twenty of each guard and send them to the towns. Each squad will have a pegasi messenger to return with news of any attacks where we shall send reinforcements if needed," she tells them.
They all nodded and Shining speaks up. "What will Adrian be doing during this?" he asks.
"We shall continue to train Adrian until such a time he is called upon," Luna tells him.
Hammer Strike gawks at me. "You're training him personally? Lucky bugger..." he grumbles, making me chuckle.
"Until we can gather enough Intel on the enemy forces, we shall defend the border and repel any attacks. Once we receive adequate information, we'll plan a counter-attack on the gryphons Elder Council at Aires Peak," Celestia says.
All the Captains agree and are dismissed.
POV: Silent Shadow
After listening to the meeting I head back to the Master's office, I step out of the shadows and kneel before Prince Blueblood.
"Ah, Silent Shadow, I take it the meeting is over?" he asks me.
"Yes, Master, they plan to send squads to the border towns and gather Intel on the gryphons forces before devising a plan of attack," I tell him.
"I see, keep watching our esteemed Knight, I want to know how he's progressing and if we can find a way to remove him without suspicion," he tells me.
"As you wish, Master," I reply and step back into the shadows.
POV: Adrian Stormsword
Luna leads me back to her bedroom where we say good night to Celestia as she goes to hers.
We strip down to our night wear and get into bed, or more like fall onto the bed in my case.
"Get plenty of sleep, thou will be needing it for tomorrow," Luna tells me, I just groan knowing what I'm in for.
Over the last four days, I have been training hard under Luna's guidance. We repeated the same exercises and my skills are getting better, I'm still having trouble trying to locate Luna with my hearing, and I have plenty of bumps to prove it. She can still out teleport me easy, but my aiming with projectile spells has gotten pretty good, I'm now hitting bullseyes and second rings on the stationary targets and at least hit a moving target four times out of ten.
Twice I've found myself staring at Celestia in her workout outfit, where Luna teased me and got me to refocus, why she wasn't mad about it I don't know.
Luna and I are getting closer and she's even showing public displays of affection, even during our training sessions at the Grounds, where the guards howl and whistle when they catch us doing so, though Shining puts a stop to that quickly when it happens.
Day 14
For two weeks we've been doing the same routine, I can now hear Luna much easier and half the time find her, I only get half the bumps I used to get. I'm much faster at teleporting now, it took Luna eight teleports to hit me this time.
My aim has gotten very good, I can bullseye the stationary target ninety percent of the time while getting a fifty percent chance at a moving target.
I can now lift one-hundred and fifty pounds easily and run for longer before getting tired. Celestia is still wearing that tight outfit, I got a nosebleed when she bent over stretching, trying to touch her hooves with her fingertips in front of me, and once again Luna teased me about it.
I've also got the feeling of being watched thanks to Luna's perception training, whether or not I'm imagining it, I don't know.
Day 15
Today, Luna has given me the day off to go fishing with Shining, Hammer, and a few of the other guards. I'm carrying my pack with my lunch in it and I also have a water proof bag to hold any fish I catch to cook for later.
They get on a carriage where four pegasi guards pull it, I decide to practice with my air wings since I can now use two air elements instead of one and increase my gliding speed. I cast the spell and the wings flow from my shoulder blades, some of the guards are impressed by it.
The carriage takes off and I hesitate for a few seconds when I look over the edge of the mountain, I run and leap off the edge while having a heart attack doing so, I wobble a bit but stabilize pretty well. I glide behind the carriage where one of the guards inside waves at me through the back window.
After a ten minute flight we land beside the lake, more like slide across the grass in my case, I'll need to work on my landings, also my mana nearly feels empty... good thing I'm taking the carriage back up then. We all set up along the lake where me, Shining and Hammer stick together.
We're all sitting on foldable chairs, each with a rod in hand and a bottle of cider in the other.
"So how's your training coming along? From what I can see at the Grounds, you're doing great," Shining asks.
"Yeah, it's going good, but at the end of the day I feel like I just want to sleep for a week," I reply.
They both chuckle and Shining's rod goes taut, he starts pulling and reeling it in with Hammer cheering him on.
He pulls it out and it's a decent sized bass, about the size of his head. "Nice catch!" Hammer says and takes a sip of his cider.
Hammers line then starts moving like crazy and he quickly pulls and reels it in, Shining and I laugh as Hammer holds a small fish the size of his hand near his face. The fish then starts wiggling and slaps him in the face and we just lose it, I fall off my chair holding my sides.
Hammer groans and puts the fish back in the lake before sitting back down with his arms crossed.
five minutes later I get a bite and start reeling it in, it's a huge struggle, whatever this thing is, it's big.
It starts pulling me towards the lake and I quickly cast my stone armour spell to give me extra weight and stop it pulling me, Shining and Hammer both help pull and after a good two minute fight, we pull it out. It's an eel as long as I am tall.
"What the buck? What's an Everfree Eel doing in the lake?" Hammer says.
I zap it with a lightning element and it goes limp. "...Is it edible?" I ask.
They look at me with wide eyes. "Why would you want to know that?" Hammer asks.
"I haven't had any meat in awhile, thought I'll just cook it here and be set for a few days," I reply.
"Ah yes, I remember Twily mentioned you eat meat as well as plants," Shining says.
"Yup, so... is it edible?" I ask again.
"I guess so, it has no poisonous or toxic parts," Shining tells me.
"Alright then, you two continue fishing, I'm going to cook it," I tell them. Shining doesn't look that bothered, but Hammer looks queasy.
"It's not that bad Hammer, think of it this way, we now have a meat eater on our side!" Shining tells Hammer.
Hammer's eyebrows rise up slowly as it just dawns on him. "Well damn, do you think he can eat a gryphon?" Hammer says with a chuckle.
"Get me some pepper, seasoning and barbecue sauce and we'll find out," I tell them as I cast a single fire element and spray the eel after I finished gutting it.
They laugh, but then gag at the smell of cooking meat. After a good two minutes of spraying the eel on both sides, it looks crispy and ready. I cut a section off and take a bite, holy crap this tastes good!
I finish a third of it off and place the rest in the bag Luna gave me.
Hammer gets another bite and this time, reels in a bigger fish three times his hand's size.
An hour passes and it's time to head back, the other guards all caught some fish but I caught the biggest with the eel, I also caught three bass about twelve inches long each. I hop in the carriage and apologize for the cooked eel smell coming from the bag.
They all chatted amongst themselves as I watched the landscape roll by, we arrive at the castle where the guards and Captains head back to the Barracks. I head off to the kitchen to place the rest of the eel and bass in a fridge.
Once done, I join Luna and Celestia in the Throne Room with my armour equipped and play my role as their knight by guarding them, much to Luna's delight and Celestia's amusement.
During my time with them, Nobles made requests and propositions to the Princesses, some were legitimate reasons, such as expanding farmlands to grow more crops, while others were just plain stupid. Like a Noble is asking Celestia to raise the taxes for lower and middle class citizens and lower the taxes for the Nobles...
It was so stupid I just told him to get out without thinking, Luna smirked at me while Celestia just shook her head with a very faint smile.
The Noble throws a hissy fit that would make a child look mature and demanding that I get thrown into the dungeons for speaking out of term.
"We believe Sir Adrian is correct, the taxes are fine as they are and there is no need to alter them," Luna sternly tells him, still with her smirk.
The Noble goes red in the face and storms out, Celestia gives me a stern stare but the faint smile remains. "Adrian, although you were correct to deny his request, it is our duty to pass such judgements," she tells me.
I just grin sheepishly. "Sorry, but you have to admit, he was pretty dense."
Luna giggles. "Don't be, we found it entertaining," she says.
"Luna..." Celestia says and mockingly glares at Luna, who just looks back at her with an innocent smile and a shrug of her shoulders.
After that, a few of the Nobles leave the line and out the door in a hurry, I guess they also had just as ridiculous requests.
Once court was done for the day, Celestia goes back to her office while Luna brings me back to her room.
"So what do you want to do?" I ask her.
"We wish to cuddle up with a good book," she says and get's into her nightgown. I strip down to my trousers and we both lie on the bed with her cuddled up beside me and a book floating in front of us, it appears to be a book about a tan coloured woman with black and grey hair going on adventures.
We read for an hour and Luna got me to read it aloud to her.
"Daring then flies across the chasm, escaping the thugs of Ahuizotl yelling at her as she runs down the cave's tunnels. Daring comes across a large cavern with moss covered walls and a small lake. In the centre of the lake is a small island with ruined pillars and a pedestal, a ruby skull sitting upon it."
"She flies over and reaches to grab it but Ahuizotl stands in front of her, blocking her path as he laughs. "You think you can take what's mine and just leave my dear?" he taunts her."
"Daring gets her whip out and cracks it on the floor. "I don't see your name on it." She replies with a smirk."
"They both get ready to fight for the ruby skull, Ahuizotl leaps at Daring as she pulls her whip back and..." I stop reading as I hear the soft breathing of Luna as she fell asleep.
I smile and place the book on the night stand and fall asleep as well.
Day 20
Luna and I are back at the Training Grounds where she now has me training to increase my mana pool. The best way for me to do that is to use my magic and rest afterwards, so for the last four days she's had me practising with my other elements during the day while I read up on how to create mines in the evening after a quick workout at the gym.
So far I can make one mine and I'm starting with the healing mines which is just a shield and life element together.
My mana pool over these two weeks and six days has improved nicely, I can fight for much longer now before getting tired.
Day 26
I've never felt so sore. My mana pool has increased, but I feel like a pack of wolves used me as a chew toy. Luna gave me today off to rest and I decided to take her out on a date at a nice café.
We're walking down the streets in casual clothing, though I still have my sword and stave with me.
"It is nice of thou to take us out for the day," Luna tells me.
"I thought we both could use a day off and relax, beating me to a pulp must be very exhausting for you," I cheekily say to her.
She playfully shoves me a bit as we walk towards our destination hand in hand. People bow to Luna and she nodded back, I get that feeling that someone is watching me again, and I don't think it's the citizens.
We arrive at the 'Golden Roast Café', a small coffee shop that I visit now and then when I decide to go out to eat.
I open the door for Luna and she thanks me as she enters. "Good afternoon, Mocha!" I greet the woman behind the counter.
"Adrian! How are you doing? I haven't seen you all week, you been kept busy?" she asks then notices Luna. "Princess!" she says in surprise and trips over herself trying to go around the counter.
Luna giggles lightly as I help her up. "Eh-heh. Erm, welcome to the Golden Roast Café, Princess! Would you like a private booth?" Mocha asks Luna.
"That will not be necessary, a table for two would be just fine," Luna replies.
Mocha nodded and leads us to a table with two chairs. We sit down and I look around. I notice a few of the other customers are looking at us shocked and a couple disgusted. This is a popular spot for the Nobles due to the great quality of the food and drinks served here. I guess they're still upset with me for courting Luna or from what I said at the Gala.
"What would you two like?" Mocha asks us.
"I'll have my usual please," I reply.
"We'll have what he's having," Luna says.
"Okay. I'll be right back!" she says writing it down.
I ignore the stares directed at us. "So, how's Celestia been handling the nations problems while you've been training me?" I ask Luna.
"She has been doing fine, but we can tell she is starting to feel stressed about it, and the fact a small gryphon hunting party tried attacking a small town near the border has her even more aggravated." She tells me.
"Did we suffer any casualties?" I ask.
"A few guards were injured and one lost her life, but the five gryphons were all put down. Seems the gryphons didn't take the guards seriously," she replies. "Oh, also, starting tomorrow, we shall be training thee deep In the Everfree Forest," she tells me.
I raise an eye brow at her. "Won't it be a hassle to go back and forth everyday?" I ask confused.
"Nay, thou still has thy camping gear correct?" she asks back.
"Yeah, it's with my pack... why?" I tell her.
"Then we shall pack enough for two weeks there, we shall see how thou fairs against the beasts and monsters that call it home," she replies.
My eyebrows both rise up. "You want me to fight the beasts of the Everfree Forest?" I ask her surprised.
"Yes, we wish to see how well your training is coming along," she says.
I'm not as sure as she is, but if it'll help me get stronger... then alright. Our lunch arrives and Mocha puts the plates and drinks in front of us.
We both have a large sandwich with lettuce, cheese, tomato, cucumber, and a sweet tasting mayo in it. We both have a cup of green tea and a couple of biscuits as well.
We start to eat and the stares and glares continue towards us. "Mayhap we should have taken a private booth..." Luna says quietly, also noticing their stares.
"Just ignore them, they want to be jealous and petty, that's their problem. This moment is just about us, don't let them get to you and ruin it," I reply and lightly squeeze her hand. She smiles, leans over and kisses me. I hear a growl of disgust but ignore it.
We finish our lunch and I pay the bill of twenty-four bits. Luna want's to go for a walk through the park and I oblige her.
She wraps her arms around my right arm and leans her head on my shoulder as we sit on a park bench. Children are playing with each other their parents in the open field and Luna just watches on with a smile. I rest my head on hers and we just sit there for a few minutes.
"We thank thee for taking us out today," she says and stands up. "but we must return to help our sister with the paperwork," she tells me and we head back to the Castle. She then informs me she will see me tonight and left me to find something to occupy myself with. I head back to Luna's room to read more of my spell book.
On the way I hear something moving behind me, I guess Luna's perception lessons are paying off. I turn to see a shadow just hide behind a potted plant. "Who's there," I state.
I grip my stave tightly and continue to walk and the noise of something like cloth being lightly dragged across the floor follows me. I channel a life element into my stave and quickly turn around and fire a beam at the shadow on the wall, it's startled and quickly slithers away.
I watch it go with a frown, I'll tell Luna and Celestia when it's time for dinner. I arrive at the bedroom with no sign of the shadow behind me, so I enter and sit on the bed with my book.
I take a break after three hours of reading and do some exercises to stretch my limbs. I then returned to read for another two hours, continuing my study on the air element and practised channelling it with other elements. A maid then comes by to tell me dinner is ready.
I thank her and head down to the Dining Hall where I tell Luna and Celestia about the shadow.
"It could be that assassin again?.." Luna wonders.
"What do we do about it? Has Night Blade found anything yet?" I ask.
"She believes so, but she needs more time to investigate it," Luna tells me.
Dinner arrives and we chat while eating. Celestia, as Luna said, looks very stressed. She's been dealing with the Nobles and the gryphon problem almost every day since the attack at the Gala. Luna assured her that after the next two weeks, she'll help her with it.
Celestia asks what's happening over the next two weeks and Luna tells her about the training in the Everfree Forest. To say she wasn't happy about it was an understatement.
"Are you sure you have to do this? Wouldn't a simple test against the other guards suffice?" Celestia asks Luna.
"Nay, we wish to see what Adrian can do going, as they say, 'all out'. He cannot show his full power against the guard, thus, we shall face the beasts of the Everfree," she replies.
Celestia sighs. "This isn't like the days when we were fillies, Luna... but alright. Just come back if things get too dangerous," Celestia tells us.
"Of course, sister," Luna replies.
We finish our meals and say goodnight. Luna and I head back to her room. We wash and change into our night wear, then we both go to bed and fall asleep.
Day 27
I yawn and notice Luna is missing, I look around and see a few bags on the floor next to my pack.
Luna steps out of her closet fully armoured along with her scythe. "Thou needs to get up, it's time to go!" she says in a rather happy tone.
"Why are you so *yawn* excited?" I ask her and stretch.
"Tis been many years since we have gone camping, we are looking forward to it," she tells me.
I shrug and get my clothes, armour, and weapons on. I place two spare sets of clothes in my pack along with a toothbrush and toothpaste. Luna puts her own pack on and carries another in her hand.
"We shall head down for breakfast first, then we shall fly to the Everfree. It will be good for thee to practise with thy wings," she tells me and gives me a kiss.
We head down for breakfast where Celestia still looks unsure about us going, no Blueblood once again. We say our goodbyes after we finish and Luna practically drags me along with a big smile on her face.
We're both standing by the edge of the city and I cast my air wings spell. "Are thou ready?" she asks.
"Yeah, I take it I'm following you?" I ask. She nodded and jumps off, I jump off following behind her.
We fly for a few minutes, well I'm gliding, over Ponyville and right above the Everfree. We both land in a small clearing, I stumble my landing and trip over which gets Luna to laugh and then help me up.
"Thou needs to work on thy landing," she tells me. She looks around seemingly to find something. "As a filly, there was a cave nearby that we used to camp in, but the forest has changed much since we were last here," she says sadly, still looking around.
Her expression then lightens up. "Ah we remember now! Tis this way!" she says and starts walking. I dust myself off and follow behind her.
After a ten minute walk, nothing of interest happens as we reach her destination. "Here it is!" she exclaims and walks in.
After a few seconds of walking, we enter a large cavern with a large pile of gems and gold in the middle.
"Whoa... where did all of that come from?" I ask.
A low rumble echoes throughout the cavern as the pile moves. A large green reptilian head pops out of the pile and its slitted orange eyes glare at us.
I stare wide eyed at it while Luna growls. "What is a dragon doing in the Everfree Forest!?"
Terracana Chapter 18: Dragons, Treasure, and Revelations
"What is a dragon doing in the Everfree Forest!?" Luna shouts out.
"Do dragons have any weaknesses?" I ask quickly as the dragon pulls itself out of the pile of gold and jewels.
"Electricity can stun them for a few seconds, but their scales are too tough to cut, even our scythe can't cut a fully grown dragon's scales," she tells me.
"What are you doing in my cave! Here to steal my hoard!?" the dragon roars at us.
"Errr, no. We're just looking for a place to set up camp," I tell him.
"Sure you are, at least I'll have a little snack before my nap," he says and lunges at us.
"OH SHIT!" I yell and channel an arcane and two lightning elements through my stave and fire a beam of electricity at him.
His eyes go wide as he roars while shaking violently, I keep the beam going for ten seconds before stopping. He drops onto his hoard and I look to Luna. "Now what?" I ask.
"We run! It would take our sister, us, and a hundred of our guards just to repel a dragon!" she tells me.
The dragon roars in rage and fires a fire ball at us from its mouth. I dive to the side and Luna flies over it. The fire ball impacts the cavern's entrance, causing it to cave in. I cast my stone armour spell and to my surprise, the gems from the hoard attach to me forming a solid coating of rainbow coloured armour, Luna's horn glows brightly making the cavern light up.
I cast another lightning beam and fire at the dragon. He dodges and swings his tail at me which I teleport behind his tail before it hits and let out a sigh of relief. Luna swings her scythe at the dragon's head and sparks fly off, enraging him even further.
He slams his tail on the floor knocking me up into the air. I look down and see him open his mouth ready to eat me.
"OH FUCK NO!" I shout as he lunges up and swallows me.
POV: Luna
My heart stops as I watch Adrian get eaten by the dragon. "Adrian?" I whimper. Tears falling down my face as I watch the lump in his throat go down.
The dragon then turns to me and snarls. My anguish turns into a burning rage and my eyes shine brightly, overflowing with magic.
"THOU SHALL SUFFER OUR WRATH FOR TAKING OUR MATE FROM US!" I yell at him with my Royal Canterlot Voice.
I charge at him and slam the back of my scythe into the side of his head like a hammer. His head slams into the ground causing a small crater. He gets back up and fires a ball of fire at me.
I swipe it aside with the back of my left hand, ignoring the slight burn. I fire a beam of pure magic at him and blast him into the back wall.
For the next minute, we fight tooth and nail. My rage blinding me, making me fight like a savage at the loss of my coltfriend... my mate... my Adrian.
Suddenly, the dragon roars in agony. Its stomach starts bloating, blisters start seeping out from under its scales. After a few more seconds, its stomach explodes and showers the ground and part of the hoard with blood.
A gasp and coughing gets my attention and my eyes widen in relief.
POV: Adrian Stormsword
I start coughing and wipe my face. I'm so glad I replaced my stone armour with a barrier shield, though I still suffered some burns and blisters from where the dragon's stomach acid started to get at me. I quickly drop my barrier and heal myself. I then fall on my back panting now that I can breath again.
"ADRIAN!" I hear Luna call out. She's quickly beside me and hugs me, despite the fact I'm covered in dragon blood.
"Hey, Luna. Remind me never to do that again..." I tell her. I had to stab the dragon with my sword and channel a constant flow of arcane energy through it while holding my breath. Good thing their insides aren't resistant to magic like their scales are.
Luna then starts sobbing into my chest. "We thought we lost thee," she says.
"It's alright, Luna. I'm here, I'm alive," I tell her and grip her hand. She helps me up and uses her magic to clean the blood off of us while I use mine to heal her wounds.
Once done, we look at the remains of the dragon. I look from the corpse, to the hoard, and then to Luna. "Does this mean this is all ours now?" I ask her as I start looking through the pile.
Luna is standing beside me, still sniffling a bit. "Well, technically it all belongs to thee now. Dragon law states that should any other creature kill a dragon, its hoard will belong to the one who killed it. Though this was mainly put in place for other dragons since it takes a dragon to kill a dragon," she tells me.
Well, I guess I don't have to worry about expenses anymore. Something catches my eye and I pull it out. It's a bow, but not just any bow, it's an elven bow from Terra. It looks pretty old with a cracked leather grip and faded wooden finish with small bits of mould along it, there's also four small gems, one above and below the grip on both sides.
A ruby, sapphire, emerald, and a diamond, representing the four natural elements. I recognize this from a book I read on elven magic, I tap the ruby and it starts to shine. I place two fingers on the string and pull back where an arrow made of fire forms, I can feel my mana get drained from myself to form the arrow. I let go and fire the arrow at the wall where it explodes on contact.
"What manner of bow is this? We've never seen anything like it," Luna asks me intrigued.
"This is an elven bow from Terra... but how did it get here?" I reply and ask.
"We do not know, mayhap we can take it with us? We would like our researchers to examine it, they may be able to replicate it for our guards," she asks me. I nodded and place it on my back between my pack and me.
"What about the rest of this?" I ask, waving to the huge pile of treasure.
"We shall send a letter to our sister to send a recovery team to take it back to the Castle's Treasury," she tells me.
I stand back up and look at the entrance. "So how do we remove that?" I ask pointing to the blocked entrance. Luna's horn glows brighter and the boulders blocking the cave roll outside. "That works," I say with a chuckle.
"Let us take a break and set up camp on the other side of the cave," Luna tells me.
I nodded and we head over there. While Luna starts to drag the dragon's corpse out of the cave very slowly. I set up the tent and a small fire pit with my cooking utensils next to it. I place a thick mat in the tent, two small pillows, and a blanket over it. A small lamp is hanging in the middle of the top bar that's holding the tent up.
Once finished. I help Luna by spraying the hoard and ground with my water spray spell to wash most of the blood away to the other end of the Cavern.
Luna returns once I'm done and removes her armour. She goes inside the tent and I follow her in after removing my armour as well.
She's laying on the mat with a piece of parchment and a quill in her hands. I lay next to her and wait until she's done. Her horn glows and the letter disappears in a flash of light.
"There, they should be here by at most tomorrow," she tells me.
Luna then cuddles up to me and I wrap my left arm around her. "So, would you like to take a nap before we get to training?" I ask her.
"Mmhmmm," she hums in reply and rests her head on my chest. We both lie there in silence and fall asleep.
POV: Celestia
Another Noble walks up and asks if she can buy the rights to a Spa located next to her house. I know this Spa as I tend to visit it now and then when I can.
"I am sorry Miss Clear, but I'm afraid I can't allow that. The family that owns that Spa are good friends of mine. I ask you don't bring this up again," I tell her calmly, but my patience is starting to wear thin with all these, as Adrian called them, dense Nobles.
She frowns but nodded and left. Before the next one in line could speak a scroll appears before me. Ah, a letter from Twilight, just what I need to get my mind off... I think to myself but stop as I see Luna's seal on it. I quickly open it and read it.
Dear sister.
We have arrived at the Everfree and have set up camp at our old camping site when we were fillies.
But a dragon has been inhabiting this cave for who knows how long and attacked us. It attempted to devour us and swallowed Adrian.
I gasp and place my left hand over my mouth as my eyes go wide.
Surprisingly though, Adrian managed to kill the dragon from the inside. We art both fine and in perfect health. I ask thou send a recovery team to collect Adrian's new hoard to store in the Castle's Treasury, along with the remains of the dragon, we art sure it's remains could be valuable in making a variety of magic resistant weapons and armour.
Your sister, Luna.
I breath out a sigh of relief, but then I get a worried expression. Adrian managed to kill a fully grown dragon and from within it no less. If other dragons get word of this, they would come seeking to challenge him.
I write a reply telling Luna not to mention this to anypony.
I send it off and stand up. "An important matter has just come up I'm afraid, court is adjourned until further notice," I tell them with a slight bow.
Once the Throne Room was cleared, I call in the recovery team. "Yes, your Majesty?" the mare in front asks.
"We are to head down to the Everfree Forest to recover a large dragon hoard from a cave... as well as the dragon's corpse." I tell them.
Gasps ring throughout the room. "A... d-dragon's corpse?" one of the stallions at the back asks.
"Yes, details will be given on route. Let us head to the carriages and begin," I say and look around for any signs of anypony not meant to be in here. Once I see and feel nothing, we all start walking to the courtyard.
POV: Luna
I slightly open my eyes, still laying on Adrian. I close my eyes and smile, my head slowly rising and falling on his chest along with a rolled up scroll from my sister. I ignore it for now and after a few minutes I hear a cough. My eyes snap open and I see Tia with her head poking inside the tent with a smile.
I carefully stand up without disturbing Adrian and exit the tent. Tia then hugs me and I return it. "I am so glad to see you both unharmed," she tells me, relief clear in her tone.
"We art fine sister. Though we have Adrian to thank for that," I reply looking back at the tent.
Tia then turns to the hoard. "That is quite an impressive hoard the dragon collected," she says looking over the pile of treasure. The guards then start loading it onto the ten carriages they brought with them. It takes about an hour to get only half of it on board. Once loaded fully, they take off slowly due to all the extra added weight.
Tia goes back with them but said she'll be back for the rest once that batch is stored. I notice Adrian is awake and looking through the pile still here, just examining the gems and gold. He gasps and is holding up a particularly big amethyst. "Tis an amethyst... why art thou so excited about it," I ask him.
He looks at me with a grin. "It's not just any amethyst, it's a pure one. If I could get my hands on a good long piece of rose wood, I could make myself a proper staff with this! Shame it's a rare and hard to find tree. I don't know if you even have them in this world," he says and takes it over to his pack and puts it inside.
"Rose wood? We have a rose wood tree growing in the Castle's Garden," I tell him.
He looks up at me with a wider grin. "Can I perhaps have a branch from it?" he asks me eagerly.
His excitement causes me to smile at him. "Sure, but could we also have at least a third of the gold? It would help boost our funding for Equestria," I ask.
"A third? Heck, get me a nice straight branch and you can have half of the entire hoard," he replies.
I smile wider and hug him. "Tis a deal."
POV: Adrian Stormsword
Once we settled on our agreement, we wait outside the cave for Celestia to return. I look around and it looks just like it was when I first arrived. The dragon is laying to the left of the cave and starting to smell bad. A few minutes later, growls to our right grabs our attention. A pack of wooden wolves with glowing sickly green eyes slowly creep towards the carcass. I draw my sword and stand in between them and the dragon corpse, then I cast my stone armour spell and just glare at them.
Luna stands beside me with her scythe in hand and armour equipped. I channel an earth element with two fire elements and point my stave at the three closest together. After a few seconds just staring at each other, one of them pounces and Luna cleaves it in two at its mid section. I release my spell and a fire ball hurtles towards the middle wolf.
It explodes making it shatter into pieces, the two next to it are set on fire by the blast and start rolling on the grass to try and put themselves out. Luna is keeping them from getting near me while I spray two more with three fire elements. A large wolf is standing on a boulder not too far away snarling at us, must be the alpha.
I channel three Ice elements and charge it up. Luna bashes a wolf out of my way and I fire my spell. Nine shards of ice rip through the large wolf who slumps to the floor as bits of its legs get blown off.
To our horror, it howls and the others, dead or alive, start to merge with it. It's now six times bigger and much more sinister looking.
I quickly channel an arcane element with two fire elements and cast the beam at it. It howls in pain as it's set on fire wherever the beam hits.
Luna throws her scythe at its front left leg, slicing it off. I erect a stone wall in front of us as cover, just in case. It starts thrashing and even throws its severed leg at us. We duck behind the wall and get showered in splinters, I look over the wall to see the wolf limping away.
I sigh and lean my back against the stone wall. "That went well," I say and cancel my stone armour.
"Very. Though they do not look it, timberwolves are very dangerous and are only weak to fire based attacks," she tells me.
We just sit behind the safety of the wall until Celestia returns, while we wait I use water elements to put out the fires still burning. Luna then tells me that we'll head to her old Castle in the Forest some time during next week.
Celestia returns and loads up the rest of the hoard, Luna also tells her about our deal and she agrees. After Celestia hugs Luna, she surprises me by giving me one as well.
"Thank you for keeping my sister safe," she tells me with a small gentle kiss to my cheek. I stand there dumbfounded as she steps into one of the carriages and flies off back to Canterlot.
I turn to Luna, who looks completely fine. "Did Celestia just kiss me?" I ask her.
"Yes, is something wrong with that?" she replies.
"You're not angry at her for it?" I ask confused.
"Nay, if she would ask thee to court her, we would support her decision," she tells me.
My jaw drops. "Wait... you wouldn't mind if I courted both you and your sister?" I say flabbergasted.
"Nay, we would encourage it. Thou hast proven thyself loyal and not after power or titles. Thou treats us as friends rather than rulers or goddesses. Tis a feeling we have not felt in centuries," she says. She then frowns. "Does your kind not take multiple partners?" she asks.
"Errr, no. We take one partner at a time," I reply.
"We see. Well, in Equestria, the male to female ratio is three mares to every stallion, so stallions can have around three to five partners at a time," she tells me.
I just stare at her for a few seconds, processing this information. I shake my head and smile at her. "Well if you are alright with it, I wouldn't mind giving her a chance. I have to admit, I found her very appealing during our workout sessions in the gym," I reply with a chuckle.
"We noticed," she says giggling along with me.
I then look her in the eyes. "Are you really positive about this? I don't mind being with just you," I tell her.
"That is very generous of thee, but we can tell our sister has feelings for thee," she replies.
I sigh and Lean against her, should I give Celestia a chance? "So you would really let Celestia join us?" I ask.
"Yes, we understand it will take thee some time to adjust to such a concept," she replies.
"Yeah, I'll think about it during our stay here," I tell her.
She smiles and pulls me towards the cave and back to the tent. We go back inside, cuddle up in the tent and fall back to sleep.
I awaken to the smell of something sweet. I look to my left and see Luna clinging to me with flushed cheeks. I lightly shake her shoulder with worry, I hope she hasn't got a fever. She moans and slowly opens her eyes, she also has a dopey smile on her face. "Hello, love," she says seductively.
I raise an eye brow at her. "Are you alright?" I ask.
"Mmhmm, we are alright as long as thou art near," she replies and straddles me.
I blush as she starts rocking back and forth. She moans and then her eyes shoot wide open, as if afraid. "By our stars... we're in heat."
"...We're in heat," Luna says and moans again, still grinding on my crotch.
"Heat?" I ask, blushing furiously.
"I-It means our b-body, ooohh, is ready to breed, and w-we get the urge to m-mate," she tells me and grinds harder. "b-but our cycle should not h-happen aaaahh! F-For another month or two!" she tells me and leans down where she grabs my cheeks and kisses me hard and passionately.
I couldn't help but return the gesture. After a few seconds she breaks away, saliva bridging our lips. "We want thee so badly!" she says and clenches her hands on my shirt.
"But if we were to, mate as you call it, wouldn't you get pregnant?" I ask.
She moans again and her horn glows. I see a soft light over her stomach. "W-We have just m-made ourself infertile for a week... n-now we can m-mate without any w-worries Nnngghh aaahh!" she tells me, grinding even harder.
My erection is fighting to get out of my trousers and get to her. Luna notices this and slides down, she then starts undoing my trousers and pulls them down with my underwear, letting my member free and spring up towards her face. She licks her lips and then starts to lick the tip slowly, savouring the taste.
I go cross eyed and lean my head back, letting out a low groan from the stimulation. She giggles and starts swirling her tongue around the head and then wraps her lips around it. I gasp as she starts to suck and lick, slowly going further down my dick.
She gets half way and then starts bobbing up and down. I place my hands on her head, scratching and rubbing her ears. She moans into my member, causing vibrations to go through it. I gasp and pinch her ears making her groan and take the whole thing into her mouth and just into her throat. She gags for a bit before bobbing up and down the whole length of my cock.
For five minutes she does this, bobbing, sucking, licking, and jerking me off. I try to hold on, but it's too much, I start cumming in her mouth and she moans in delight. After a few seconds, I rest my head on my pillow and pant heavily.
I hear her gulp down my cum. "Thy essence tastes delightful," she says and crawls up my body. Her horn glows and my shirt and her clothes are gone, her hair and tail also return to their natural light blue colour and short style. She sit's on my chest as I feel her slit leaking on me. "We have tasted thee, now thou shall taste us," she says seductively and scoots forward until her dripping sex is right in front of my mouth.
I breath in deeply and close my eyes, she smells like blueberries. I wrap my arms around her thighs and extend my tongue. She gasps and moans as I circle her vulva. "Yesss, more!" she demands.
I give her a long slow lick from base to clit making her moan deeply as she starts grinding her groin on my face. I poke her lips with the tip of my tongue and slip inside her wet slit. "AAAAAHHH!" She screams and grips my hair. I start thrusting my tongue in and out, getting her to moan and encourage me further.
For three minutes I continue to lick, thrust, and suck on her sex. I can feel her trembling, so I wrap my lips over her clit and start sucking and licking rapidly. She screams as she sprays my mouth and chin with her juices. She slides down my body and starts to make out with me like a crazed animal, her tongue is invading my mouth and coiling around mine as we continue to press into the kiss.
She slowly gets up and turns around, bending over on her hands and knees. She moves her tail to the left and exposes her dripping lips to me.
"Hurry, Adrian! Buck us!" she tells me. I'm already hard again and climb up behind her, I line myself up ready to penetrate her.
POV: Luna
I can feel him grip my hips as his tip presses against me. "Don't tease us! Put it inside!" I beg him, my heat driving me insane.
With a grunt, he pushes in and I scream from the pain and pleasure. My mind goes blank as I see spots fill my vision. My walls clench down on his member, trying to pull him in deeper. After a few seconds, I can feel his groin against my rump. My wings shoot out, poking the sides of the tent and my tail wraps around his waist.
"Are you alright, Luna?" he asks me, concern in his tone.
"W-We are just aaaaahh! F-Fine. Just give us a oooh... a m-minute to adjust," I reply. I can feel his stallionhood pulse and throb within me.
After some time I look back at him. "W-We are ready now," I tell him. He nodded and slowly pulls out making me moan in pleasure and lean back to try and keep him inside of me. He then thrusts forward making me scream as he hilts me again. "M-More, Adrian! Rut us!" I beg him.
He grips my flanks and digs his fingers into my cutie-marks while picking up his pace and starts thrusting at a pleasurable speed. "Ooooh, we thought we AAAH! we would never g-get to f-feel Nnnngh! like t-this!" I say as he gently thrusts into my marehood. Wet squelching sounds echo throughout the cavern as his hips slap against my rump.
My arms give out when he starts thrusting faster and harder. He leans over me and uses the base of my wings as hand holds. I scream out in utter bliss as he twists my wing joints, my eyes roll up in the back of my head and my tongue lolls out onto the blanket. My marehood is dripping all over the blanket as he bucks me like a savage beast.
I can feel my peak approaching and clench my teeth. "ADRIAN! WE ARE SO CLOSE! DON'T STOP!" I scream at him and grip the blanket beneath me. My inner walls are clenching and squeezing, trying to coax him into releasing his seed.
I hear him grunt and his thrusting starts to get erratic and after a few more hard thrusts and I feel his essence flood inside me. "NNNGGGHH! WE'RE CUMMING!" I yell out as I clamp down on his shaft, milking every drop I could get as my orgasm makes me shake violently.
After a few seconds he stops cumming but keeps thrusting, making my orgasm last longer.
POV: Adrian Stormsword
I pant hard as I slowly pull out of her pussy. She rolls over and holds her arms out lazily so I lean over her where she then hugs me to her chest. "T-That felt amazing," she tells me with a happy smile.
I nodded and nuzzle her cheek. She starts to rub my back with her hands and I start to feel aroused again. I kiss her furiously, she groans and spreads her legs. "Rut us again... please," she asks. I kiss her again and adjust my position. I line up my dick with her slit and push inside making her moan loudly into my mouth and I slowly begin to thrust.
Her warm, wet walls massage my length and pull me in. I lean back and wrap my lips around her left nipple while my right hand gropes her other breast, the fur of her breast is soft and her moans of satisfaction are arousing me further. "Yes, play with our teats! Ooooh!" she says. To my surprise I can taste a warm liquid flowing into my mouth. It's creamy and sweet, which I greedily gulp down.
"Oh! Suckle on our teats, i-it feels Nnngh... so goooood," she says as I continue to thrust into her. Once I drained the left breast, I move onto the right. She holds my head to her breast and starts to nibble on my left ear. I groan in pleasure as I start to thrust faster. "Nnngh... faster! Harder! Buck us harder!" she begs me.
I sit up and grip her ankles where I then begin to hammer into her with all my strength. "Nnnggh, aaaahh! Yes! Ooohh mmmm, more! Aaah. Nngh AAAHH!" she screams her lungs out as I assault her overflowing pussy. Her eyes are rolled up, tongue hanging out, and she's breathing rapidly. Her hands are gripping the blanket like her life depended on it.
I can feel my peak getting close, and it seems she can feel it as well. "ALMOST THERE! DON'T THOU DARE STOP! AAAAAHH!" she screams as she cums, her warm juices soaking my groin. Her pussy grips me like a vice which makes me cum as well, my semen gushes out into her, filling her up some more. "AAAAAHHH! YES! WE LOVE THEE, ADRIAN!" she screams out.
I keep thrusting to prolong her pleasure. After a few more seconds, I stop and rest on top of her, her face is deeply flushed.
I lean over to her right ear. "I love you too," I tell her.
She wraps her arms and wings around me and I return the embrace. We're both sweaty and tired, but she still has the energy to go again as she starts stroking my member.
"Aren't you tired yet?" I ask her.
"Once more? Please?" she asks with a pout.
"Alright, one more go." I reply and lie on my back.
She smiles and straddles me, she then grips my dick and aligns it with her wet puffy lips. She rubs the head teasingly against her pussy making me groan, she then slowly drops down as she spears herself on my shaft.
She moans the entire way down and rests on my hips. "Aaaahh! So big, so deep," she says, rubbing her stomach and starts to bounce on me. Her breasts jiggle all over the place as she rides me. I reach out and grasp both her tits and squeeze them softly, kneading them in my palms. Luna groans loudly at the attention and bounces faster. I lower my left hand and use my thumb to massage her clit which gets her to howl out in pleasure.
"Oh yes! More, Adrian, more!" She praises me and I rub her a little harder. She's clenches her teeth and eyes shut as she cums again, shaking on top of me as I keep thrusting for her.
POV: Luna
Oh buck me! I cum so hard I fall onto my back where Adrian lifts my right leg up and over his left shoulder. He continues to thrust into me, not giving me a chance to rest as he pounds away at my marehood. "Oh, Adrian! Aaaaah!.. Fill us again!" I tell him.
After a few more minutes of rigorous bucking, he groans as he spills his load into me again, making me cum with him. "By our moon! Soooo gooooood~!" I moan out as he twitches and throbs within me, still squirting his seed. After a few seconds of bliss. I feel satisfied and my heat slowly dies down. He pulls out with a wet plop and I cuddle up with him under the cum stained blankets. "We thank thee so much," I whisper to him before falling asleep exhausted.
POV: Adrian Stormsword
Luna falls asleep and I gently stroke her hair. "You're welcome," I whisper back. I turn off the lantern and join her in the land of dreams.
I wake up feeling really sticky, I look down and remember what happened last night. Luna is smiling while clinging onto me.
I lay back down and just wait for her to wake up. About half an hour later she yawns and opens her eyes. "Sleep well?" I ask her.
She hums in content. "Very, we feel like a new mare." She sits up and stretches, her chest is exposed as the blanket falls off. She then looks down and sees all the stains. "We think we should go and wash ourselves. There is a river not too far from here we can use," she says standing up.
I join her and we get dressed in our old clothes, no point in dirtying clean ones, I collect a fresh clean set of clothes and follow her out with my sword and stave.
"We thank thee for last night, and apologise if it was sudden. We did not expect our cycle to be so early," she tells me.
"It's alight, I won't lie and say I didn't enjoy it," I reply. She giggles and we keep walking. After five minutes, I hear the sounds of a flowing river.
We arrive and Luna strips down, I also undress and join her in the river. It's not a fast flowing river, but it's flowing at a nice gentle speed.
We laugh and giggle as we scrub each other clean in a teasing manner. After a good ten minutes, we step out and Luna uses her magic to dry us off. We then get dressed in clean clothes and head back to the cave.
Luna opens that bag she brought with her and pulls out a few fruits, bread, butter, a bottle of water, and some tea leaves. I get a couple of tin plates and cups from my pack and hand her one each. We fill our plates with apple, orange, and pear slices, and two pieces of buttered bread. I then boil the water in my pot over a small campfire, once boiled Luna makes us a delicious green tea.
"So what are we doing today?" I ask her and take a bite of my buttered bread.
"We shall try and look for a manticore, we wish to see how thou will do now compared to the one thou fought in Ponyville," she tells me.
"Well, compared to a dragon, this sounds much easier. At least I don't have to go down it's throat to kill it this time," I reply getting a small laugh from her.
We finish our breakfast and put on our armour and weapons, we then head out and begin searching. Luna seems to be following some kind of footprint. "Ah, here we go, manticore tracks," she says and we follow them quietly. Though she has a smile of her face, I think she's having fun with this.
We arrive after two hours of tracking and see a manticore standing outside of a small cave, dropping a carcass of some kind of lizard with a chicken's head inside. It then looks around and spots us. "Alright, Adrian, show us what thou canst do," Luna tells me.
I draw my sword and slowly approach it. The manticore quickly looks at the cave, gives a low growl and then looks back at me. I channel an earth element with two ice elements pulling a fist sized rock off the ground, the floating rock also has four inch long icicles sticking out of it, I release the spell and the manticore jumps to the left. One of the icicles catches its front leg making it roll across the ground.
The manticore gets up and looks at its leg, an icicle broke off and is now embedded in it. It growls at me and flaps it's wings, making it leap at me very quickly. Luna's training kicks in and I teleport behind it, I then channel three lightning elements and spray it at the manticore.
It roars in rage and pain as it spasms from the electricity coursing through it, It quickly shakes it off and pounces at me again. I charge up my mana with no elements and release a large gust of air, lifting the manticore over me and face first into the side of the cave's entrance.
I then spray it with three cold elements to slow its movement, It slowly gets up and I charge up three earth elements, ready to cave its skull in. Just as I'm about to fire, three little manticores look out from inside the cave, frightened and whimpering. I look back at the manticore and flashes of my parents getting killed in front of me make me drop the rock and stumble back.
"Adrian? What art thou doing?" Luna asks me as she walks over.
I frown sadly and turn to her. "I can't do it," I tell her. "It reminds me just how my parents were killed," I say looking back at the young manticores who are now whining next to their injured parent. "Killed in front of me where I was powerless to stop it." The parent has its tail wrapped around it's offspring and glaring at me.
I point my stave at the manticore and cast a healing beam at it, It yelps in surprise but relaxes as the icicle in it's leg gets pushed out and the wound closes, I slowly back away and pull Luna by her arm with me. The manticore keeps watching us as we walk away, once we're a safe distance away, I look back and see it licking it's children affectionately.
"Are thou alright?" Luna asks me.
"I'm fine, but I won't do to others what happened to me, even to wild beasts," I tell her and sit on a fallen tree trunk.
Luna sits beside me and wraps a wing over my shoulders. "Tis okay, we understand. But if it makes thou feel any better. Thou did much better against a manticore this time," she tells me.
I smile and wrap my right arm around her waist. "Thanks," I reply.
We get up and head back to the cave where we do some exercises, sit ups and the like. After two hours pass, we have lunch and get ready for the rest of my training.
One Week Later
During the last week, I've been fighting all sorts of beasts and monsters in the Everfree Forest. I've fought another manticore, but this one was alone this time, and had darker fur than the first one I fought. I've also fought two packs of timberwolves and something called a cockatrice. Luna warned me not to look it in the eyes, but the fight ended in seconds as I blasted it with an fire beam, roasting it in seconds.
Tasted just like chicken though.
I asked her why she wasn't as squeamish as the others about killing and hunting. She told me that long before she was banished, she and her father used to go hunting all the time. Mostly to get rid of dangerous beasts and monsters from attacking their subjects, and thus developed a liking to hunting. She made it clear it was not for food or sport, but protecting innocent ponies who couldn't protect themselves when they attacked.
She told me over the last one-thousand years of so called peace, the guard have gotten lax in their training. That's why she decided to train me herself and not with the current guards training program.
I tried asking about her parents, but she told me she didn't want to talk about it, so I didn't bring it up again.
Luna has also been sending updates to Celestia via letters about what has been going on.
We've also met a zebra named Zecora who lives nearby in the Forest, though her fondness for rhyming everything she says confused me now and then. She let us in her hut for tea and some company, she's a very nice woman despite how she talks.
Luna told me something called Nightmare Night was approaching in a few weeks. A night where children offer some candy to a statue of Nightmare Moon to appease her from eating them instead. Luna didn't look too happy that that's how she was seen over the millennia she was away. I told her I would stay with her if she would go to it or not, that earned me a smile and a kiss.
I've been thinking about what Luna said about courting Celestia, and that she also has feelings for me. I'm still uncertain about having a relationship with more than one woman, but Celestia is a kind and caring person. She gave me a place to stay and free meals. Heck, I even work for her now, earning a nice amount of bits as her's and Luna's knight. I'll wait until we start to head back before I decide anything.
I wake up and yawn while stretching my arms. Luna grumbles as she's splayed out on the mat. Her right leg is over my legs, her left arm is over her head while her right is wrapped around me. Ever since our intimate moment, she's been more of a cuddle bug than she used to be.
Not that I'm complaining.
I lightly shake her awake and she grumbles. "Five more minutes, sister... five more...minutes," she falls back to sleep and I chuckle. She then wraps me with both her arms and legs and sighs. What am I now? A hugging pillow? Again... not complaining.
I lightly kiss her forehead and her eyes slowly open. She yawns and smiles at me. "Good morning, Adrian," she says and stretches like a cat.
"So what's on the agenda today?" I ask her.
"Today we shall make our way to our old Castle. Last time we were there, we were freed from our corruption... we would like to see what has become of our old home," she tells me.
We get dressed and have breakfast. Our supplies are down to half, but there's plenty left to last us another week, although I've been getting a nice supply of meat and fish from the Forest. Once finished, we equip our gear and head into the Everfree Forest. Most of the Creatures have been avoiding us now due to our hunting.
We arrive at an old rope bridge going across a deep chasm, Luna flies over while I slowly make my way across. A couple of the boards break away giving me heart attacks, but I get across safely.
We walk over to a decrepit looking Castle ruin. Chunks of the walls and ceiling are missing and the windows are shattered, plant life has covered a lot of the wall from moss to vines, Luna looks upset at the state of the Castle. We carefully enter and look around, it's definitely smaller than Canterlot's Castle. We walk into the Throne Room where Luna says this is where she was freed. I can see scorch marks on the floor near the back window.
She then leads me through the Castle. The Library looks mostly cleared out, a few books lay scattered and in very bad condition. She walks over to one of the bookshelves and presses a hidden button which makes a small compartment pop open. She pulls an old looking book out from the hidden compartment.
"What's that?" I ask.
"Tis our diary from before our... incident. We hid it here since our sister kept reading it in our room," she says. Her horn glows and it disappears.
She then leads me to the armoury, everything that was left is all rusted or mouldy. I pick up a sword off the floor, only for the blade to just drop off. I place the hilt on a table and look around some more. I notice a faint red glow coming from under a pile of rubble in the back corner. I spend the next three minutes lifting and throwing the rubble out of the way.
Underneath is a shield with similar colours to my armour with the Princesses marks on it. In the top middle inside of the shield is a large ruby, but its cracked all the way through. I pick up the shield and the ruby falls out in pieces, the glow fades away with it.
"Luna, what's this?" I ask her.
She turns her attention from the old gem rod she's hold to the shield. "Where did thou find that?" she asks surprised.
"Under the rubble here," I tell her.
She walks over and examines it. "This is the shield that goes with thy armour. Where is the ruby that was inlaid to it?" she asks me.
I just look down and she follows my gaze. "Oh," she says with a frown.
"Could that amethyst in my pack fit into this?" I ask.
"Mayhap, once it is cut to the correct shape, but we thought thou wanted to use the gem for a staff?" she asks.
"Well, the inside of this shield looks like it was wood, it'll need replacing, but I thought the rose wood could be used to repair this shield. The gem would still act as a focal point, though how much it will amplify my spells will have to be seen. Besides, I've seen mages use shields before. Could work with this as well," I reply.
"If thou art sure. Now then, let us head to the next area of the Castle," she tells me and I hook the shield onto my back.
We head down some unsafe looking stairs into what looks like a basement. A few pieces of ruined furniture litter the floor and a large rusted metal door lies at the end.
"This is the artefact vault, it looks like it has not been opened since our banishment," she says and places her right hand on the door. Her horn glows and the door screeches as it unlocks and it slowly opens, we cover our ears and grit our teeth at the painful noise.
Once opened enough for us to enter, it stops, much to our relief. We step inside and Luna looks confused. "Over half of the artefacts are missing, and the rest seem powerless now," she says.
I pick up a dusty hand mirror from one of the tables and wipe it clean, it has silver embroidery at the base of the mirror. 'I wonder what Celestia is up to right now, she's probably bored out her mind.' I think to myself. I feel my mana being drained as it's surface ripples. I go wide eyed as I can see Celestia on her throne from above, talking to the Nobles and other people seeking help. "Errr, Luna... what's this?" I ask.
She walks over and gasps. "How art thou activating it? We never figured out what this mirror did," she says looking over my shoulder.
I notice Celestia looking around as if she heard something. "Hmmm, hey, Celestia!" I shout to her. Celestia gasps and looks up, her eyes widen as she looks at me. "I wonder if I can make it get closer to her," I think out aloud. As if hearing me, the mirror seems to respond and moves in front of her.
"Adrian?.. How are you doing this?" Celestia asks, she seems to look behind me and gasps. "You're in our old Castle's Vault?" she asks me in surprise.
"Greetings, sister. Yes, we are in the old Vaults, we wish to discuss some important matters with thou when we return," Luna tells her.
I can hear quiet whispering in the Throne Room. I make the mirror turn around and see a line of people just staring back. "Oh, right," I say and turn it back to Celestia. "We'll leave you to your business then, see you later, Celestia," I say and put the mirror back on the table.
"That was very interesting," Luna says and picks it up, but nothing happens. "How did thou get it working?" she asks me.
"I just picked it up, wondered what Celestia was doing, and felt my mana being drained into it," I tell her.
Her horn glows and it sticks to the back of her waist. "Then we shall take it back with us so we can have it looked at," she replies. The rest of the artefacts did nothing and were just useless objects now, whatever magic they once contained must have faded away over the years.
For the next three hours we explore the rest of the Castle. Luna checked her old room to find it bare and empty, the Dining Hall was completely overgrown with vines and moss, and the Servants Quarters was totally destroyed and inaccessible.
We leave the Castle where Luna takes one last look at it. "Let us return to camp, we believe we could have some lunch," she tells me.
My stomach rumbles in agreement, making her laugh. We start to head back when four loud roars makes me look behind us, a giant four headed long necked lizard stares at us with hungry eyes from over the treetops.
"Luna... what is that?" I ask.
"A hydra," she replies wide eyed.
"And how do we kill it," I ask again.
"We don't, RUN!" she says as the hydra charges at us.
"RUN!" Luna tells me and starts flying over the chasm. I follow behind her and get to the bridge, I try to get across it as fast as I can, but one of the boards breaks away leaving my leg dangling down. The hydra looks like its smirking as two of its heads bite through the ropes holding the bridge up.
The bridge falls down and swings to the other side while I grip the ropes tightly with wide eyes. A few seconds later, I slam into the cliff face and almost lose my grip. The hydra seems not too happy that I'm still hanging on and roars at me. I frown at it and channel two earth elements which rips out a large rock from the canyon's wall and a fire element, I charge it up as the hydra is looking for a way to get to me. I cast the spell at its second head where it knocks it out and blasts the other two heads besides it with flames.
It roars again in rage and pain. I climb the bridge like a ladder and once on top, I turn back to the hydra who looks like it's throwing a tantrum. I channel three arcane elements and fire the beam at it's chest. It starts to bloat and blister, but then quickly heals the damage.
I frown and then I channel an earth element with two air elements. I've only tested this one out a couple of times before while practising with the air element, but it's supposed to make some sort of magic air blade shuriken. A rock the size of my fist hovers in front of my stave with what looks like a saw blade of air spinning around it about a foot long.
I charge up the spell and fire it at the neck of the third head, I grin as the air blade cuts through and chops the head off.
"STOP! Thou will just make it worse!" Luna tells me.
I look at her confused and then hear a nasty sound of ripping flesh and gurgling liquid coming from the hydra. The part of the neck that remains splits down the middle where another two necks and heads regrow.
"Arg... that's nasty," I say and cringe.
The hydra roars and starts biting parts of the ruined Castle and throws them at us. Luna takes to the air while I teleport out of the way.
I frown at the hydra but get an idea, I continue to cast the air shuriken spell again and again, cutting off heads while dodging the incoming boulders.
"Will thou stop this instant! Thy plan is notworking..." she trails off as she looks at the hydra. It must have about thirty heads now and can't seem to move, where was it getting all of this extra mass from?
"I'd say it is," I reply with a smirk. It has so many heads now that its body can't handle the extra weight, it also looks like it's struggling to breath but still glares at me.
I notice it's quite close to the edge of the chasm so I start blasting the cliff face under it with rocks, Luna then joins in with her own magic. It finally gives way and the hydra tumbles down the chasm roaring with all thirty heads. That sound alone will probably give me nightmares.
I release a breath I didn't know I was holding in and sit down exhausted. 'Thank you Luna for the training and ass kicking you gave me,' I think to myself with a smile as Luna lands beside me.
"How did thou know that would work?" she asks me.
I pant and look at her. "It's just common sense... if it regrew two heads every time one is cut off, then that is its major weakness. You just make it grow so many heads until it can't support them anymore," I tell her. "Can it regrow other parts like organs and limbs?" I ask her.
"Yes, that's what makes it so dangerous, they can regenerate their scales, limbs and organs as many times they want, although not their heart, but its heart is covered in a thick layer of muscle and bone, so it would be near impossible to reach," she replies.
"How common are hydras here?" I ask and stand up.
"Not that many, they tend to live alone and near the bog, unless looking for a mate," she replies.
"Good, I don't want to do that again... I don't have the mana for it..." I say and stretch. My right arm is sore from where I hit the cliff side. "Can we go back to Canterlot now? Though the camping was fun... I'm really tired of this Forest," I ask her.
"Very well, with the dragon and now the hydra, thou has proven thy strength and wit," she tells me.
We head back to the camp with no problems and begin packing everything up.
"So, has thou thought of what thee will say to our sister?" Luna asks me.
I frown and look back to her. "I'm not going to lie. Celestia is beautiful, kind, and a great friend, but won't me courting her as well as you cause problems between us?" I reply.
Luna giggles at me. "Thou are still thinking like thee art still in thy own world. Remember, here in Equestria, stallions can have around three to five partners and live in harmony together," she tells me.
I sigh and look down in thought. What would I have to lose by just asking? And if it doesn't work out, we can still be friends... I look back at Luna with a smile. "Alright, I'll ask her when we get back," I say.
"Wonderful, though I recommend asking her in private as not to embarrass her in front of the Nobles... or thou can ask her in front of them, we would love to see their looks of shock," she tells me.
"Sure," I reply with a smirk and take down the tent.
Once all packed Luna says we should head back to Ponyville and wait for a carriage to come get us. We then start walking along the path back to town passing by Zecora who is picking some plants, Luna also teases me about how I'll ask Celestia out along the way.
We make it to the edge of town where I can see a small homely cottage to the left and the town to the right. We walk into town straight to Twilight's Library while Luna greets some people along the way, though some people try to avoid us. I guess they still fear Luna or remember what I did to that manticore a month ago... our armour and weapons probably don't help either...
After a few minutes of walking, we arrive and I knock on the door. "Thou does know this is a public Library, correct?" Luna asks me.
"Yes, but it's still her home," I reply as the door opens.
It's Spike who looks up at us. "Oh.. hi, Adrian, Princess," he says with a bow to Luna.
"Is Twilight in?" I ask.
"Na, she's out over at Rarity's helping her with something," he replies.
"Oh, can we wait here until a carriage comes for us?" I ask him.
"Sure, make yourselves at home," he says and opens the door fully.
Luna and I walk in and sit on the couch next to each other, she then summons a piece of parchment, some ink, a quill, and writes the letter to Celestia.
"So where have you guys been? And why all the armour?" Spike asks.
"Hmm? Oh, we were in the Everfree Forest doing some training," I reply.
"Cool, did you fight any monsters?" he asks again.
"A few, but they weren't that tough," I reply. I think I'll refrain from mentioning the dragon.
A flash of light besides me tells me Luna sent her letter. "And done, we just have to wait for the carriage to arrive," Luna tells me.
Spike goes back to cleaning the already clean looking Library while I turn to Luna with a question that's been on my mind. "So once we get back, will you continue training me or will you give me some sort of program to follow?" I ask her.
"We must return to our duties unfortunately, but yes, we will give you a list of exercises and tasks to perform. Mayhap thou can teach the guard once thou art stronger, heavens knows they need it," she replies with a roll of her eyes at the end.
We make plans for the coming week while we wait. I'll ask Celestia to court her while Luna takes over court duties for the week to let Celestia have some time off. I'll train in the evenings while I, in Luna's own words, woo Celestia in the mornings.
The carriage arrives five minutes or so after we finished planning. I open the door for Luna as well as help her up into the carriage, much to her amusement.
She leans against me on the way back in silence. We arrive and Luna's horn glows, she's now in her black and silver trimmed dress, her armour, bags, and the mirror are now gone, along with the bow and shield I was carrying. I step off and hold out my hand to help her down. She smiles and we head into the Castle.
There's a long line of people waiting to enter the Throne Room. I can hear a few of them sniff the air and look at me with wide eyes.
I just raise an eyebrow at them and enter the Throne Room right behind Luna. Celestia looks really ragged, her hair isn't flowing as much as before and there's dark bags under her eyes, but she instantly perks up at seeing us.
"Sister, Adrian. I'm glad to see you back unharmed, but I thought you would be away for another week?" she asks.
"Adrian has proven himself after defeating a hydra in a most interesting way," Luna replies.
"I see. You'll have to tell me about it later, as you can see, I'm rather busy at the moment," Celestia says with an intrigued expression and then looks at the line.
"Nonsense, we shall take over court for the week," Luna says and elbows me, nodding in Celestia's direction.
I sigh and close my eyes. Well, here goes nothing. I walk up to Celestia and kneel before her, she raises an eyebrow at me with a confused expression. "Princess Celestia, would you do me the honour of going on a date with me?" I ask her.
Her eyes go wide and the people in line gasp. I hold my right hand out, palm facing up. She looks at my hand and then at my eyes. I can see tears forming just at the sides of her eyes and a small smile on her face.
Just as she was about to reach out, the Nobles chose right then to ruin the moment.
"How dare you ask such a thing of the Princess!" a very old looking man shouts out.
"The Princess would never degrade herself for some commoner like you!" a women says angrily.
"The thought of both Princesses courting a savage like you is sacrilege!" another yells.
"The Princess is too pure to be tainted by anypony, much less somepony like you!"
More and more insults and objections are said. I frown at the Nobles then look at Luna who looks enraged at being essentially told she's worth less than Celestia, I then look at Celestia... to see her head down, hair blocking her face... silently crying...
I snap.
I draw my sword with an angry roar and without even thinking of the consequences, channel five arcane elements through the blade. A large swirling sinister blood red and black aura surrounds the sword and I swing it in front of the person at the front of the line. The energy rips apart the marble floor, leaving red and black energy to seep out of the cut floor like a mild flame. The man at the front and the others behind him stumble back with screams of terror.
My right arm is throbbing in pain and has a few blisters along it from channelling more arcane energy than I could handle, but I ignore it as I hang my head down with my eyes closed.
"Celestia and Luna are just like anyone else, living breathing people with wants and desires like you or me. You can insult me all you want, I don't give a damn what you fucking snobs think of me, but belittle Luna or make Celestia cry again with your pathetic selfish attitudes..." I say emotionlessly and lift my head to glare at them. "... you'll answer to me," I threaten them. They as well as Luna gasp at me, I look down and see my reflection on the polished marble floor under my feet.
The whites of my eyes are black and my irises are blood red, I frown and close my eyes at the reflection with a shake of my head. I look again to see my eyes are back to normal.
I then look up and glare back at the Nobles. "Get out," I simply say.
They quickly leave the Throne Room without looking back, the guards still in the room look confused and on edge. Once they're all gone, I drop my sword and grip my right arm as it goes limp with my left hand. My arm is in too much pain to hold it any longer. I sit down and channel two life elements into my right arm and slowly heal it.
"A-Adrian? Are thou alright?" Luna asks me, placing a hand on my shoulder, her anger now gone, replaced with concern.
I sigh and look up at her. "I don't know... fuck the Nobility," I reply and Luna agrees.
Once healed, I turn to Celestia who is quietly sobbing into her hands where I gently warp her in a hug. "I'm sorry I lost my temper like that," I tell her.
She hugs me back and calms down. "It has been centuries since anypony has treated me as just another mare, but as somepony too high to reach, untouchable, or they're just not worth my time," she tells me and Luna joins in on the hug.
"You and Luna are the first friends I've had in years... right now, you two mean more to me than anything else..." I tell her. I then look back at the damage I caused to the Throne Room floor. "Sorry about the floor," I apologise.
She giggles a little. "It's alright, and thank you." Her horn glows and the floor slowly repairs itself.
"So... how about it? Still want to go on that date?" I ask her again with a smile and let her go.
I wipe her eyes with a thumb and she smiles at me. "I'd love to."
"So... how about it? Still want to go on that date?" I ask her again with a smile and let her go.
I wipe her eyes with a thumb and she smiles at me. "I'd love to," she replies.
"Wonderful, we shall take over the court tomorrow since somepony adjourned it for the rest of the day," Luna says smirking at me.
"Good, it means Celestia can get some rest and I can plan for the date tomorrow," I reply.
Celestia then yawns with her right hand over her mouth. "I could do with some rest right now," she says tiredly.
I smile, pick up my sword, sheathe it, and pick Celestia up bridal style. She yelps from the sudden action but wraps her arms around my neck and starts to giggle.
I then look at Luna. "I'll see you later tonight, Luna. Just gotta get this one to her room first," I tell her with a chuckle and head for the door.
"Yes, we shall see thee tonight," she replies and stifles a laugh.
I leave the Throne Room and begin heading to Celestia's room. "This is the first time anypony has carried me like this besides my parents, this is nice," Celestia says and rests her head on my chest plate. "What made you ask me to court you?" she asks.
"Mainly Luna's idea, but she told me that men here can have multiple partners due to the male to female ratio. She also told me you have feelings for me, so I decided to give it a chance. You're beautiful, kind, gentle, and a great friend. I didn't see a reason not to try," I tell her.
She hums softly and just relaxes. The guards and maids are all staring at us as we pass by with blank expressions. I reach her room and Celestia opens the door with her magic, I walk in and before I could place her on the bed, she gives me a quick kiss on the cheek. "Thank you," she says and smiles.
I return the smile and place her down on the bed where her horn glows and she's now in a light pink nightgown... I wish I could change clothes and armour that fast. I tuck her in and kiss her just below her horn.
"Sleep well, Celestia," I say and start walking to the door.
"You can call me Tia if you want," she says looking at me.
"Sure, goodnight, Tia," I reply and exit the room.
I still have about four hours till I have to go to bed myself so I head over to the Archives to see what I can learn about the gryphons. Since their blatant declaration of war, they've been rather quiet with only a few raids, it wouldn't hurt to find out what I can about them...
Three Hours and Thirty Minutes Later
After three hours I finish reading the last book on my pile. Records state that the gryphons have a natural resistance to the magic from the planet and can greatly reduce the damage or effect they take, but there's something that is bothering me... how are they resistant to my magic if it's not from this world? Also the books say they're still damaged and effected by magic but just not by much, the ones I fought were practically immune to mine and the Princesses magic... I've got a bad feeling about what could be behind it.
The gryphon Capital of Aires Peak lies to the north west of Equestria on the other side of the Badlands. The council that governs them is on the tallest mountain in the middle of the kingdom.
The council consists of ten elders who vote, decide, and make the laws of the land. They also handle national threats and their army as well. They were formed after the last king died without any heirs to take the throne.
I've also looked at biology books showing what organs they have, muscles structure, and potential weaknesses. It seems they can't reach their own backs with their talons, but can with their beaks. That's something to look forward to should I find myself on the back of one.
I then spent thirty minutes thinking of where to take Celestia on our date. Once planed, I place the books back on their shelves and head to Luna's room and knock on the door. "Enter," Luna says.
I open the door and close it behind me. "So what have you been up to?" I ask her.
She sighs. "Trying to calm the Nobles down for the last three hours after thy little... rebuke. They're demanding thy head for thine actions against them," she tells me.
I huff and walk over to Luna sitting on the bed while stripping my armour. "If they want my head, they can come and get it themselves. I'm not afraid of their empty threats," I reply.
"That may be true, but it appears Blueblood is getting them riled up. If this continues, there may well be a riot on our hands," she tells me.
"How come you and Celestia have allowed them to be this arrogant?" I ask her.
"It was not always this way, they used to be kind and helped others with their status and wealth. It would seem during our absence, they've grown selfish and arrogant, thinking they're better than anypony else." She sighs and shakes her head. "It saddens us to see they have fallen so far."
"So, is there anyway to change them? Or is it a lost cause?" I ask.
"It would probably take years to adjust their attitudes. Only a few of the families remain loyal to the old ways, like sir Fancy Pants and his wife," she replies.
I yawn and nodded. "Well, I think I have a good plan ready for Celestia tomorrow. Maybe I'll wear that suit I never got to wear for the Gala." I say and lay down on the bed.
Luna changes into her nightgown and we go to sleep.
I wake up and get ready for the day. I get dressed into my black suit with silver cuffs, light blue shirt, and dress shoes. Luna wears her black dress with silver trimming and heads out for breakfast. I on the other hand, will be taking Celestia out for breakfast today. I grab a pouch with two hundred bits inside and my sword and leave the room. I may be taking her out, but I'm still her knight.
I walk down the hall to Celestia's room and knock on the door, the door opens with a golden aura around the handle. I see Celestia sitting in front of a table with a mirror on it, her hair isn't her usual multi pastel coloured wavy hair, but light pink that goes down the middle of her back. She's smiling while brushing her hair.
"You seem to be in a good mood," I say.
She stops brushing and looks at me. "And why wouldn't I be? I haven't gone on a date in over eight hundred years," she replies with a giggle.
"Well, I think I have a nice day planned out for you," I tell her. "Shall I wait outside?" I ask.
"No, you can wait here," she replies and finishes her hair, she then gets up and enters her closet. I wait for a few minutes and she comes back out in a sky blue dress with white and gold patterns on it, her hair is still light pink.
"Looking good," I tell her.
"Thank you, you're looking rather charming yourself," she replies with a smile. "So what do you have planned for today?" she asks.
"Well first, I'm going to take you to a nice café for breakfast, then we can go and visit Twilight and have lunch at Sugarcube Corner. After that we can come back for any activity you want to do, then we'll go for a romantic dinner at some fancy restaurant of your choice, and lastly, a relaxing walk through the park," I tell her. To be honest, I couldn't really think of anything else since I've never been on a properly planned date before.
She just smiles at me. "Sounds lovely. Well then, shall we be off?" she asks.
I hold out my left arm and she hooks her right arm around it. We leave the Castle with many a guard, maid, noble, and even the average civilian staring at us wide eyed and slack jawed.
We arrive at the Golden Roast Café and I greet Mocha. "Good morning, Mocha! I see you're busy today," I say. The customers that see us stop eating and just stare at us, which we just ignore.
She's facing away from us as she's making a drink for another customer. "Yeah! Been hectic all morning... but I'm doing well!" she replies and turns around, her smile instantly vanishes and her eyes widen. "P-P-Princess Celestia!" she says and once again trips over herself.
I chuckle as she gets back up with a sheepish grin. "H-How can I help you?" she asks Celestia.
"We'd like a table for two," Celestia replies.
"R-Right!" Mocha nervously says and looks around, there's a table in the back unoccupied. "Okay! Follow me please." We're lead to a table with comfortable chairs with a vase of fresh roses in the centre of the table.
We sit down and make our orders. I get a mixed salad with dressing, a few pieces of toast and a glass of orange juice. Celestia has prench toast, something called a sunday strata and a glass of water.
We eat as she tells me how she was doing over the time Luna was training me. The nobles and civilians have been asking her for advice and requests, and just like when I was with them, some... well mostly all of the nobles had unreasonable requests, some even demanded them.
"I asked Luna this, but why do you allow them to act like this? In Terra, the King would never allow such behaviour from the kingdom's so called elite," I ask her.
"I'm afraid that would be my fault. Luna was the one who kept them in line, but when she was... sent away, they took advantage of my kindness and while I denied most of their outlandish requests, they began acting like they were the ones running Equestria," she tells me and sighs.
"Well now that Luna is back, can't she just put them back in line?" I ask.
"She's already tried that and Blueblood even sided with her, he used to be a well respected member of the nobility like Fancy Pants. But just three months ago, he's gotten really... egotistic," she tells me.
Wait... Blueblood used to be a nice guy? "What made him change so drastically?"
"He went to Manehatten for a conference with the nobility there, though when he came back, he was different," she says. What the hell happened to him in Manehatten that would change him like this? "We never found out why he's changed so much, but now the nobility seems to be siding with him," she tells me.
I frown at that, I hope Night Blade can find something soon.
We finish our breakfast and I pay the bill of thirty-two bits. The other customers act like they weren't watching us, but they're doing a poor act of showing it. We head back to the Castle where we get a Carriage to take us to Ponyville.
Celestia leans against me in the carriage with a smile as she looks out the window. We land in the town square where everyone bows down to Celestia as I help her out.
"Princess!" I hear Twilight shout as she jogs over to us. "Why are you here? I didn't receive any letters saying you were coming," she asks.
"I'm here on a date with Adrian," she bluntly answers with a smile.
I swear I heard the sound of a string snap. I look at Twilight to see her pupils have shrunk and her hair has a few strands sticking out. "A-A-A d-date?" she stutters.
"Why yes. Adrian asked me to court him yesterday, and I agreed," Celestia replies.
"Eh heh, he he," Twilight laughs with a creepy smile.
"Is she alright?" I ask Celestia with a small chuckle as I wave a hand in front of Twilight's face.
"I'm sure she'll be fine," she replies with a giggle of her own.
Twilight then shakes her head and looks at me. "Y-You're courting both Princess Celestia and Princess Luna?" she asks me.
I open my mouth to answer, only to have someone jump on my back. I see sky blue arms wrap around my neck. "Whoa dude! You bagged both Princesses? You're a real mares guy ain't cha," Rainbow says teasingly.
"Rainbow! How many times have I told you not to jump on ponies like that?" Twilight scolds her.
"Ah he's fine, big strong guy like him can take a lot more than a little jump," Rainbow replies offhandedly.
"Yeah but his suit can't!" Twilight says. I look over my shoulder and see a tear in the seam.
"Oops," was all Rainbow says as she lets go. "Sorry!" she quickly apologises.
I look more closely as the entire sleeve just drops off. Bugger, and Luna got me this suit too.
The sleeve glows gold and slithers back onto my arm and reattaches itself to my shoulder. Wow, is there nothing Celestia can't fix?
I turn to Celestia. "Thanks, Tia," I say to her. I hear Rainbow sigh in relief behind me.
"Tia?" Twilight asks.
"So, Twilight. How has your spell been coming along?" I ask her.
"Oh, erm..." she says and looks at Celestia. I look at Celestia and see her nod at Twilight. "Well, It's almost ready. A few kinks left but it should be ready soon," she tells me.
"Nice, and what does it do?" I ask again.
"It's..." She looks at Celestia who nodded again. "It's a portal to your world," she tells me.
A portal... to Terra? "Why would you want to make a portal to Terra?" I ask confused.
"Well, if we can make a stable portal with your Capital. We could try and make trade agreements and an alliance with your King. We can trade knowledge and resources, even aid each other in battle," Celestia tells me.
"But what if someone decides to take advantage and invades you instead? Terra isn't all sunshine and rainbows like Equestria seems to be. There are some who would take what you have for themselves," I warn her.
"Then we just close the portal and never open it again. Having more allies like you would be a great help should the gryphons decide a full on invasion," she replies.
I sigh, she has a point. If we can get the Reymorian army to back us up, the gryphons would have a really hard time fighting back. From what I've seen, they don't have firearms here. Dwarven snipers and gunners could easily pick off the gryphons.
"Alright, I see your point, we can talk about it later. Right now, we have a date to continue," I tell her and she smiles.
We head back to the Library where Twilight makes us some tea and tells me how she started making the portal. She collected some samples of my magic from the residual traces of ice and water from when I demonstrated my magic for her. She then found a matching signal after Celestia sent her Starswirl's unfinished long range teleportation spell.
Pretty clever, I gotta admit.
She then tells us how she and her friends are doing so far. They have all the plans ready for Nightmare Night and their costumes all picked out... maybe I should get myself a costume, have it match with Luna's.
Celestia and Twilight go over some more details about the portal and I ask how will they know where to open the portal. They tell me I'll be there to confirm the location before they send an ambassador to the King to relocate the portal to an Equestrian Embassy. They've really planned this out.
Four hours pass and my stomach protests at me. "I think it's time we get some lunch," Celestia says with a giggle. Why do they always laugh at my stomach?
We leave the Library and head over to Sugarcube Corner, greeting the towns folk along the way. Once we arrive, I open the door and allow them in first. We sit at a table and wait for Pinkie to finish serving a customer.
After she's done she skips over to us. "Hi, Adrian, Twilight, Princess! What can I get for ya?" she greets and asks us.
"I would like a slice of your delicious banana split cake with a vanilla milkshake please," Celestia orders.
"I'll have two cupcakes, a slice of cheese cake, and a bottle of cherry soda," Twilight orders.
"I'll have the same as Celestia please," I say.
"Alrighty! That'll be twenty-two bits," Pinkie says and I pay her. "Thanks. I'll be right back in a jiffy." She then goes through the door behind the counter.
"So, Adrian. How did you ask the Princess to court you," Twilight asks. I told her what happened with the nobles and she looked shocked. "They really said all that?" she asks appalled.
"Yes, but I think I put them in their place. They certainly won't be saying those things in front of me again, that is if they know what's best for them," I reply.
"Still, it was sweet of you to carry the Princess to her room like that. It's like Rarity would say, you're her knight in shining armour," Twilight says with a giggle. Celestia smiles with slightly red cheeks.
Pinkie returns with our orders and places them in front of us. "Here you go, enjoy!" she says and skips back behind the counter.
We eat our tasty meals and then head out the door. "So what are you going to do now?" Twilight asks.
"We're going to head back to Canterlot for whatever Tia wants to do," I tell her.
"Oh... alright. Will we see you at Nightmare Night?" she asks.
"Yeah, I'll be coming with Luna," I reply.
"Great! We'll see you then, it was a pleasure seeing you again, Princess. I'll get back to work on the portal right now," Twilight says and starts walking away.
"Take your time, Twilight. There's no rush," Celestia tells her.
We head back to the square and take the carriage back to Canterlot after bidding the town farewell. We land in the courtyard and head into the City.
"So where are we going?" I ask her.
"I'd like to go to the Opera House and listen to some music," she replies. That sounds pretty nice.
We walk through the streets where people bow to Celestia and the nobles glare at me. I just glare back making them back off and scurry away.
We arrive at a grand looking circular building with pillars and stain glass windows. We enter without payment and are escorted to the Royal Box. I wanted to pick up a few drinks and snacks, but Celestia tells me we can just have them brought to us.
We sit in the two chairs here and I look down at the orchestra. I can see Lyra sitting on the left side with a harp or lyre in her hands. She looks around the crowd and then looks up at us, I wave at her and she waves back with a smile. The conductor then tells her off and she snaps back to attention, making us laugh.
The orchestra stands and takes a bow once it's over and the crowd applauded, us included. Lyra gives me another little wave which I return.
"Would you like to go say hello to her?" Celestia asks.
"Sure, would be nice to know hows she's doing after the alley incident," I reply.
We head back down and meet the orchestra backstage. Lyra sees me and drags a grey woman with black hair and purple eyes wearing a long black dress with a pink bow tie around her neck over to me.
"Hey, Adrian! This is the guy I told you about, Tavi!" Lyra greets me and says to the grey woman.
"Hello, Lyra. How have you been doing since you know when?" I ask her.
She smiles at me. "Much better! It seems he hasn't tried asking me again since then," she replies.
"So you're the one who saved Lyra from that creep?" the grey woman asks.
Time to throw in the 'ol charm. "That I am ma'am, and I must say that was a wonderful performance from the both of you," I reply with a slight nod of my head.
Lyra leans over to the grey woman. "Told you he's a charmer," she whispers.
The grey woman lightly giggles. "That he is. My name is Octavia Melody, but my friends call me Tavi," she introduces herself while holding her hand out.
I shake her hand. "A pleasure. My name is Adrian Stormsword," I reply.
"I know who you are, Sir Knight. Especially after what you did to the nobles yesterday," she says and giggles again.
"Yes... that. Well they had it coming to them. To be honest, I'm surprised no one else gave them a kick in the ass yet," I say.
"Well, when one has enough power and bits to make your life a living Tartarus, one does not tend to tempt such actions," she says with a sigh.
"The nobility really threaten people like that?" I ask. Shouldn't be too surprising really.
She sadly nodded. "Yes, my own parents had one of our servants, Silver Plate, exiled from Canterlot just because I made friends with her, said I shouldn't mingle with commoners. That's when I left my home and moved to Ponyville, I've even hired Silver Plate as a maid. It's also where I met Lyra and joined the Canterlot orchestra with her," she tells me.
These nobles really seem out of hand. I'll worry about them later, today is for Celestia.
"I see. I'll see what I can do about them later with Luna, but right now, I have a date to finish with Celestia," I say and bow to them.
"Wait... you're dating the Princess?" Octavia says looking stunned.
"That I am, and I believe it is time for dinner. So I bid you ladies a pleasant evening," I say and hold out my arm to Celestia. She hooks her right arm around my left and we leave the stunned people behind.
"So where would you like to go for dinner?" I ask Celestia.
"Hmmmm. There is a place I have been meaning to visit for a while now," she says and she leads me to a rather unexpected place.
"Really?" I ask her while staring at the building.
"Why not? I'm not a Princess for today, and I've never tried food like this before," she replies.
I chuckle and open the door for her. She thanks me and enters, we walk up to the counter where a woman in a red and black uniform and a cap just stares at us shocked. "W-Welcome to the Hay Bale. C-Can I t-take your order?" she asks nervously.
Of all the restaurant's Celestia could choose from, she picks a fast food place. "Yes, I'd like a hay burger with a side of hay fries and a colt-a-cola please," Celestia orders.
I just smile, looking at the menu. "I'll have a potato veggie burger with a side salad and a colt-a-cola as well," I order.
"R-Right, that'll be s-sixteen bits p-please." I hand her the bits and she heads off, yelling at the people in the back who just realize they should be working and not staring.
We wait for a minute or two and our order is ready. "H-Here you go. We h-hope you enjoy your m-meal," she says still nervous with a slight bow. We thank her and head to a table.
More then half of the people here are staring at us, being royalty seems like a right pain in the ass. I wonder if the King of Reymorah has to deal with this as well?
Celestia takes a bite out of her burger and smiles. "This is rather nice," she says and takes another bite. I chuckle and eat my own.
"So what made you pick this place over a fancy restaurant?" I ask.
"I've always been curious about this type of food. I just never had the time to go and try it," she says and munches on her fries.
"I like this side of you," I tell her. "No stress, worries, or cares. Enjoying yourself just like anyone else," I say.
"It has been centuries since I've been able to. With my parents and Luna gone. I had hardly any time to myself and even then I was invited to social gatherings and paperwork most of the time," she replies.
"Well not anymore. From now on, both you and Luna will have the weekend off unless something important comes up. Two days just for yourselves, and if the nobles don't like it? Then they'll just have to deal with me," I tell her.
Celestia smiles at me. "Thank you, that does sound like a good idea. All this time I thought my duty was to Equestria, even if it meant my own desires didn't matter," she says looking down, her smile fading.
I gently lift her chin with my right hand. "Never think your happiness is meaningless. Just because you're a Princess, doesn't mean you can't be happy like everyone else," I tell her.
She smiles again and I can see tears in the corner of her eyes. She leans forwards and gives me a light kiss. I hear gasps around us but ignore them.
I return the small kiss and stroke her cheek. "So, how about that walk in the park?" I ask her.
"That would be delightful," she replies and we head out after finishing our food.
We're walking through the park and Celestia entwines her right hand with my left. After an hour of strolling, her horn glows brightly and the sun begins to set.
"Still amazes me that you can do that," I tell her.
"We can only do it since we are alicorns and that it is our special talents," she says showing me the mark on the back of her left hand. "We don't actually move them by force, we communicate with the sun and moon and with our magic, guide them across the sky," she says.
"Wow, still amazing though. My planet Terra circles the sun while the moon circles Terra all on their own," I tell her.
"Unfortunately, that is not possible here. The sun's gravitational pull is just as strong as the planets. Should I or Luna stop guiding it, it would most likely drift off into the stars, leaving Equis to die, and should the moon lose our guidance, it would fall to the surface, destroying all life with it."
"Then how has Luna been guiding the moon when she was banished?" I ask.
"I've had to take that responsibility myself. So that was another factor of me having less time for myself as I needed more magic to guide both, requiring me to sleep longer," she replies. "But now that my sister has returned, she has taken over the moon once again."
"That's good," I say. We stop and sit on a bench near a pond, colourful fish can be seen swimming in it.
"Thank you for today. I haven't had a good time like this in a long while," she says and leans against me.
"You're welcome. Don't forget, you still have the rest of the week off as well," I tell her.
She giggles, and looks at me. She leans forward and I do the same, but something hitting the ground to my left pulls me away and I see three gryphons uncloaking from a spell with that black leather armoured man I saw in the Forest from Ponyville. Knives are heading towards us and I quickly cast a stone wall spell, but it's small due to the fact I don't have my stave with me. I also use myself as a shield for Celestia.
Most of the knives hit the wall but one gets past, impaling my left shoulder "AAAAAARRRRGGH!" I yell in pain.
"ADRIAN!" I shout as I see the knife sticking out of his shoulder.
"Argh... quickly... pull it out," he tells me. I grip the knife's handle and pull it out. "GAH!" he yelps and grunts in pain.
He quickly heals himself while I stand up, enraged at having the one time I've had in centuries to have fun and relax ruined. My horn glows as I summon my armour and greatsword.
'Luna, we're under attack by gryphons and the assassin, send the guard to the Canterlot Park Pond now!' I tell Luna telepathically.
'We are on our way, sister,' she replies.
My eyes burn with rage as I flap my wings and leap into the air. "I SHALL MAKE YOU REMEMBER WHY I WAS FEARED ON THE BATTLE FIELD A THOUSAND YEARS AGO!" I shout out in the Royal Canterlot Voice for the first time in centuries.
I bring my sword down on the right gryphon who quickly rolls to my right, leaving a small crater where he once stood. I ignore him and swing at the middle gryphon horizontally. She blocks my blade with the gauntlet on her right talon. I jump back as the left gryphon pounces where I just stood.
My horn glows again and I replace Adrian's suit with his armour and stave. He's back on his hooves and stands besides me.
The assassin then speaks up. "I'm sorry, your Majesty, but for our plans to start, you and your pet must be put down. Do not worry about your sister though, she'll be joining you soon enough," he says in a mocking tone.
Adrian 'psst's' at me to get my attention. "Tia, I think I have a way around their resistance. I've been practising a spell called nullify recently, it removes all magical effects in an area around me, barriers, shields and currently in use spells as well. I think these guys are using magic to amplify their resistances to yours and my magic," he tells me. "Although it will also remove any shields or barriers we have as well."
I scowl at the assailants. "Do it," I tell him.
He nodded and I see two orbs orbit his stave, one red and one yellow. If I remember correctly, that's an arcane and shield element. He raises his stave and a faint field of magic expands away from him and hits the gryphons and the assassin.
They glow faintly and a thin field around them shatters and fades away. "What!?" one of the gryphons yells in surprise.
I see Adrian grin wickedly and point his stave at the right gryphon, three red orbs appear and he fires a beam of black and red energy at him, an arcane beam.
It hits the gryphon directly in the chest and to my surprise, he quickly blisters and bloats, screaming in agony. After a few seconds, the gryphon's chest explodes in a shower of blood, bone, and organs. I raise a barrier to prevent us being coated in it.
I look back at Adrian who has a grin so wide, one would think he's gone mad. I look at the female gryphon again and teleport right in front of her. I swing my sword right at her head where she lifts a metal covered talon to block it again, only for my blade to burn right through it and cut off half of her skull with it.
I turn to face the last gryphon and hold my left hand out at him. I quickly gather magic through my horn and to my hand. I fire a large beam of extremely hot flames at him, he tries to fly away but he's too slow and his lower half is caught and instantly burns away. He screams and the rest of him falls into the beam, incinerating his remains.
Adrian teleports right next to the stunned assassin and places a barrier around them both.
More gryphons appear and fly towards the barrier, I can't allow them to interrupt Adrian so I charge at them with my sword raised.
POV: Adrian Stormsword
I charge the shield to full strength and swing my sword at the assassin, he leans out of the way and I thrust my stave at his head scoring a direct hit to the side. "Ooof," he grunts from the blow.
He recovers and glares at me. "How did you dispel our barriers? There was no data saying you could do such a thing," the assassin asks me. His voice now sounds distorted and his eyes are all blue with white where his irises should be. His fur is also gone replaced with hard black shell like skin.
I ignore him and channel three steam elements and blast him into the side of the shield. He yells in pain as the steam burns and keeps him pressed against the shield. After a few seconds I cancel the spray and stab him in his left shoulder with my sword. 'Payback bitch,' I think to myself with a smirk.
"GAAAHH!" he screams. I'm surprised when he starts bleeding, his blood is green.
I pull my sword out and he drops to the floor. "You don't need to know how," I tell him and stamp on his head, knocking him out cold. I look outside the shield to see Celestia fighting seven more gryphons. I drop the shield and recast the nullify spell. All seven gryphons' thin shield spells shatter and Celestia takes advantage of it.
She throws her sword and her horn glows. It impales one gryphon then flies off into another spearing both on the blade, she then pulls her hand back sharply and the sword rips out of the two gryphons.
I fire a lightning beam at the closest one to me and it's muscles lock up before falling dead to the floor, smoke rising off it's corpse.
I start getting light headed and my vision blurs... was that knife poisoned? I channel a healing spell slowly through me, repairing the damaged cells constantly. It won't remove the poison, but it will at least delay it.
Luna finally arrives with a contingent of the guard but she runs over to me when she sees me kneeling and healing myself. "Adrian! Are thou alright?" she asks with worry.
I cough and look up at her. "No... I've been poisoned... my healing is delaying it, but I feel light headed. I don't know how much longer I can keep this up," I tell her.
She inhales sharply and turns to the Guards. "Help our sister with these vermin while we take Adrian to the medical wing!" she commands them. They salute and charge at the remaining gryphons with roars of anger.
"Luna... guess who it is," I say and nodded towards the out cold assassin. Her eyes widen and then she scowls at the hooded figure.
"Tis Blueblood's dog, why have thou not killed him?.. Wait, is he a changeling?" she asks stunned.
"I think so, but I wanted him alive so you or Celestia can mind read him later," I reply and cough again.
Luna's horn glows and the assassin's horn now has a ring on it, he's then tied up and muzzled. He then glows and disappears. "We have sent him to the dungeons. Come, let us get thee to a Doctor!" she says and lifts me up.
"Thanks," I mumble out while still healing myself. I start breathing heavily as my mana is starting to go dry... 'Shit, can't hold on anymore,' I think to myself and pass out.
POV: Celestia
Adrian is taken away by Luna while the guard fight the gryphons. One of them is distracted and I fly up and slam myself onto its back with my hooves where a satisfying snap is heard as I crush his spine. The guards finish him off on the ground as I teleport behind the next one and impale the back of her skull.
The last two try to flee, no doubt to warn the others about Adrian's ability to disable their protections, but I won't allow them.
I take off leaving a shockwave behind me. My mane and tail no longer a calm pink, but raging infernos as bright as the sun as they whip around in the wind. I reach the first one and grip his throat and squeeze tightly as I crush his windpipe and drop his writhing body to the ground where the guards swarm him like vultures.
I teleport behind the last one and grab her by the tail, she squawks as I start spinning her in circles. After about twenty spins I cut off her tail and she slams into a nearby tree. I fly down and land beside her.
She opens her eyes, and for the first time since I can remember, a gryphon is staring at me with fear. "We are no longer your prey, gryphon. From this day forth, we fight back!" I say and behead her without hesitating.
'Luna, how is Adrian?' I ask her. I'm panting from over exerting myself, it has been many years since I've had to fight like that... maybe I should join Adrian in his training.
'He is alive, but he's been poisoned. The Doctors have discovered what poison it is and have administered an antidote,' she tells me.
I let out a sigh. 'Thank you, Luna. Stay with him, we don't know how many more of them there are,' I tell her.
'Don't worry sister, they're going to have to kill us to keep us away,' she replies. I can just feel the anger in her tone.
Terracana Chapter 23: Getting Answers and Getting Ready
POV: Adrian Stormsword
I open my eyes to a white sterile looking room, I look to my right and see a beeping machine hooked up to me with wires. I then look to the window and see It's dark outside, so it's night time then, how long was I out? After looking around for a while, I lay my head back down. 'Arg, I feel like shit,' I think to myself.
I place my left hand on my chest and slowly heal myself. Once I'm feeling much better, I sit up on the bed and stretch my arms. I look down and notice I'm in a thin gown with my clothes beside me on a side table. I get up and get changed into my clothes after removing the wires. The machine then starts making a long constant annoying beep sound.
Once dressed the door flies open and Doctors and Nurses rush in with panicked expressions on their faces. I just stare at them with a raised eye brow. "What?" I ask.
"How are you standing? You were poisoned with a potent neurotoxin... it would take a week or two for your damaged nerves to heal," the Doctor asks flabbergasted.
I shrug my shoulders. "My healing magic is just better than yours," I reply, trying not to brag.
"Errr." The Doctor shakes his head. "Please sit on the bed so we can check your vitals," he tells me. I do so and he holds a device in his hand, it has a screen and two crystals on each side. He starts hovering it up and down over my chest and head, it beeps a few times and a green light turns on. "Your nervous system seems to be in perfect condition now, what ever you did fixed everything. Please wait here while we inform the Princesses of your recovery," he tells me.
"Where are the Princesses?" I ask.
"Princess Luna went to check on the guard in the medical wing while Princess Celestia is with the changeling prisoner," the Doctor replies and leaves.
I wait on the bed for the Princesses to arrive while twiddling my thumbs in boredom. Luna suddenly teleports into the room and instantly jumps me. "Thank the stars thou art alright," she says and kisses me.
She then breaks away and hugs me tightly. "I'm fine, Luna. I healed myself the moment I woke up... How long was I out for?" I ask her.
She lets go and sits up on my lap. "Thou has only been asleep for two hours," she tells me. Huh, could have been a lot worse. My stomach then rumbles yet again and Luna smiles. "Stay right there, we shall bring thee something to eat," she says and teleports away.
POV: Celestia
The changeling is just glaring at me. I had him chained to the wall with a special mouth piece to prevent him from biting his own tongue off, though I believe he's trying to starve himself since we can't force feed him the normal way. I've tried reading his memories, but he's got a barrier with magic I'm not familiar with protecting his mind, I can't break through it.
I hope Adrian awakens soon so he can 'nullify' it like he did before. A few minutes later the doors open. "Princess. Sir Adrian has awakened," a Nurse tells me.
For the first time in hours, I smile. "If he is well enough, can you bring him here please?" I ask her.
She nodded. "Yes, Princess," she replies and walks out.
I look back at the glaring changeling and smirk, making his glare turn to a frown. Soon... we'll know what you're doing here and why.
POV: Adrian Stormsword
I sit on the bed next to Luna as we both eat a very early breakfast. "So what's happened since I've been out?" I ask her.
She swallows her mouthful and answers. "We have been guarding thee personally since we brought thou in. Our Sister has dispatched the other gryphons as well as kept an eye on our changeling assassin," she tells me.
"I see, so have you found out why he's here and who he's working for?" I ask.
"Nay, we have tried reading his memories already, but a powerful barrier is blocking our attempts and we cannot seem to remove it," she replies. "We have been waiting for thou to awaken so thou can remove it with thy 'nullify' spell, as Tia said thou called it," she tells me.
"Well I feel fine now and rested, and I really want to find out who wants us dead," I reply.
We open the door to see a Nurse reaching out for the handle. "Oh! Princess Celestia has requested for you in the Dungeons as soon as you can," she tells us.
"We thank thee for the message. Come, Adrian! Tis time we get our answers!" Luna says and I follow her to the Dungeons.
Along the way, guards are all over the place, running back and forth following Shining's orders. We arrive at the Dungeons and see Celestia sitting in front of the chained up Changeling, she turns her head at the sound of us closing the door and smiles at us.
"It is good to see you up so soon, Adrian," she says.
"It's going to take more then a knife to put me down. So I take it he hasn't been very talkative?" I ask as the changeling looks at me stunned. I guess he didn't think I would get up so soon.
"Not at all, I guess Luna has already told you, but we need you to remove a barrier that is shielding his mind," she replies.
"Sure, I'm not sure how it's still there after the first time I used nullify on him." I walk up to the glaring changeling and cast the spell. "Did it work?" I ask.
Celestia walks up to him and places her hand on his head. She frowns in concentration and then smiles, she then gasps and looks shocked.
"What is it Tia?" I ask.
She scowls and lets him go. "Prince Blueblood was captured in Manehatten and replaced with a changeling. He's being held in a Changeling Hive at the borders of the Badlands," she tells us. The changeling goes wide eyed and starts struggling against his bonds. Celestia's horn glows and the changeling passes out.
Luna and I look surprised. That would explain his sudden shift in behaviour when he returned! "Are we going to go rescue him?" I ask.
"Yes. You and Luna will go with three-hundred of our guard to retrieve him, but first, we must confront the impostor before he finds out what has happened," Celestia replies.
"Where's my gear?" I ask them.
Luna's horn glows and I'm fully equipped. "I really wish I could do that," I say with a chuckle.
Celestia then orders the jailer to keep the assassin chained up and prepare for another changeling.
We arrive at Blueblood's bedroom where Celestia quietly opens the door with her magic. Sixteen guards are behind us, ready for anything. They wait at the door while Luna, Celestia, and I sneak over to Blueblood.
I cast another nullify spell and his fur turns into a black chitin, his horn curves back, and his hair disappears which is replaced by fins.
Celestia looks ready to kill the guy in his sleep. I gently wave the princesses back and point my stave and right hand at the changeling.
I channel two cold elements into my stave while channelling a single water element into my right hand. I shower him with water which awakens him with a yelp, I then blast him with the cold elements and encase him in solid ice from the chest down. He struggles for a few seconds before getting angry.
"What is the meaning of this!" he demands, but then goes wide eyed. I guess he noticed his voice is now different.
Celestia ignores him and puts a ring on his horn and her hand on his head. He starts struggling, so I grip his horn and hold his head still. "Thank you," Celestia says to me.
The impostor tries to break free but can't move an inch. Celestia lets go and orders six of the guards to take him to the Dungeons.
"Now what do we do?" I ask Celestia.
"We formulate a plan to rescue our nephew. I got most of the hive's layout from the impostor, Blueblood is being held in the back of the forth level, I shall also draw up some maps and give Luna the same memories to use as well. You will go with her to cancel out the changelings guises and to protect her," Celestia tells me.
"Alright, what will you be doing?" I ask.
"I'll be looking for a way to get into Aries Peak so we can take out the gryphons Council. I should of kept one of the gryphons alive for information... but my anger got the better of me," she replies with a sigh.
"So what is the changelings connection to the gryphons?"
"The gryphons apparently offered them half of our populace as a food source and all of Equestria should they help in their invasion," she says.
Wait... If this Blueblood was a changeling... what about his guard? "Celestia, can you gather all of Blueblood's personal guard in the Throne Room and lock them in? There's a chance some of them could be changelings as well. Once gathered, I'll nullify the entire room, revealing any changelings among them," I tell her.
"That's true. Very well, head to the Throne Room with the guards here and act like you were summoned by us as well," she tells me.
I nodded and leave for the Throne Room, the ten guards still here follow behind me. We enter and I head over to the few guards already gathered.
One of the light blue armoured guards yawns. "What's going on?" he asks the man next to him.
"How would I know? I'm just as clueless as you are right now," he replies.
The first one who spoke spots me. "Hey! What are we doing here?" he asks me.
I just shrug. "I don't know, Celestia just told me to come here," I yawn and cover my mouth. "Said she had an announcement for the guards or something, I would rather be in bed right now though," I tell him with a tired expression, getting a few agreements and chuckles from the others.
After thirty minutes, all of Blueblood's guard are gathered along with some of the royal guard. Celestia and Luna walk in and stand in front of the throne and gesture me to stand with them.
"You are most likely wondering why I we have gathered you all here. Just a few hours ago, Sir Adrian and myself was just attacked by a changeling assassin along with ten gryphons. We have also discovered that Prince Blueblood was replaced with a changeling three months ago when he returned from Manehatten," she tells them.
The gathered guards start mumbling to each other. "So, I have gathered all of Blueblood's personal guard to find out which of you are changelings or not," she says and looks at me. "If you would?" she asks holding her right hand out towards the guards.
I raise my stave and cast the nullify spell. Four of the guards turn into changelings and the royal guard instantly pounce on them. They struggle but in the end are captured and have rings placed on their horns.
"Now that we have exposed the impostors, we are planning to attack the Badlands hive to rescue Prince Blueblood and anypony else held captive there. My sister Luna will lead the attack along with Sir Adrian Stormsword. Gather squads one, three, and six from each division as well as Captain Hammer Strike and Captain Bright Mind," Celestia tells them. "I want ten of you to take these changelings to the Dungeons and chained up," she orders the guards.
They Salute and head out to get the Captains and the squads. The changelings are dragged out of the room by their legs as they're tied up good.
Over the next two hours, the guard has been gathered, briefed, and equipped for the attack. Luna leads us to the back of the Castle to a place I haven't been to yet. It looks like a port with boats around it... except these boats have large balloons above them and propellers attached to the sides.
Luna leads me to the largest one that looks like a galleon with cannons all along the sides, two harpoon ballistas on the deck and a rotating cannon at the front. Luna's and Celestia's marks also adorn the sides.
There are also four schooner like ships as well as six sloops, they all have cannons, but not nearly as much as the galleon. I've been living here for months and I haven't noticed these?
"Where did they come from?" I ask Luna.
"Hmm? Oh, they have always been here, we just don't use them unless for emergencies or important meetings in foreign lands as they take a lot of magic and fuel to power. So they just sit here, waiting for a time such as now to be called into action," she tells me.
I watch as the guards get on board different ships. "Alright, let us be off and bring back our nephew."
We're flying through the air at a decent speed and we've entered a blasted lands like area, rock and sun bleached stone as far as the eye can see.
"What happened here?" I ask Luna.
"Tirek happened. He drained all of the magic out of the lands while we and our Sister dealt with Discord. We got word of Tirek's desecration a week later and set out to stop him. After a long battle, we succeeded in sealing him in stone and placed him in the deepest reaches of Tartarus. Further north is where Grogar attacked with his undead army... It's in even worse condition than here," she replies.
One person did all this? And the Princesses stopped him?.. Note to self, don't piss off Celestia or Luna.
Luna then calls over the other Captains. "Now then, let us go over the plan one more time. The Hive's front gate is sealed with a thick organic substance, we will blast it in with all the ships cannons. Pegasi will remain with a few unicorns to protect the ships and provide air support while we and the ground forces will storm the Hive," she tells us.
Luna then looks at me. "We both will head straight for the holding cells and retrieve Blueblood and anypony else being held captive," she then turns to the two Captains. "Ye both shall cause as much chaos as possible within the Hive to distract them from us, try to take down as many as thou can safely. We shall contact thee telepathically when we recover our nephew. Captain Bright Mind, we want thee to find their armoury and archives to find any information about them as well as samples of their arsenal for study. Captain Hammer Strike, thou shall locate their barracks and do as much damage as thou can," she tells them.
"Yes your Majesty!" they both reply and salute.
She then looks back at me. "Adrian, when we find them, we want thou to use thy life element to heal anypony injured."
"You got it," I reply with a nod.
We continue flying for another ten minutes before we reach our destination. A small mountain with a few holes in it stands ahead of us, at the base is a large black gate that looks pretty thick.
"All units prepare for battle!" Luna shouts out very loudly.
The ships turn so their left sides are facing the gate and slowly get closer to the ground, I can hear the gunner crews loading the cannons below. After a few minutes everything is silent, everyone on deck is ready and eager to attack.
After a few tense seconds, Luna shouts out again. "FIRE!"
About fifty cannons all start firing, it's like standing in a lightning storm as the loud bangs of the cannons echo throughout the Badlands.
The shots hit the gate as the ships turn around to fire off the right side cannons, another volley of cannonballs hit the gate and it caves in. Ramps leading off the ships are extended and everyone charges at the Hive roaring their rage along the way.
Luna and I lead the way into the Hive, it seems the changeling guards by the gate got crushed and a few more injured. Luna runs down the tunnels and I follow behind her. Hammer Strike and Bright Mind split off and head down other tunnels. Hammer is heading towards the changelings Barracks while Bright Mind heads for their armoury and archives to recover anything on the changelings so they can bring them back for research.
A group of changelings ambush us down the tunnel leading to the stairs we need to get to, they have black armour like the stuff on the walls and weapons also looking like they're made from the same stuff.
I cast my stone armour spell and surprisingly, the black organic stuff walling the tunnels attaches to my armour. I kinda look like a big, bulky, and very misshaped changeling now, but whatever its made from, it's effective at blocking their green bolts of magic.
I swing my sword at the first changeling in front of me and cut off his left arm, he screams in pain and swings his curved black sword at me in retaliation.
I parry the strike and point my stave at him and charge up some mana and blast him with a gust of air, he's sent into two other changelings and they all fall over. I quickly channel three fire elements and spray them all as they scream in pain while they're burning alive.
Luna is fighting using a pair of silver swords as she can't use her scythe very well in here. She quickly decapitates one of the changelings and spins to her left, tucking her wings in and avoiding a spear thrust at her. She twirls her right sword to a reverse grip and teleports behind the changeling and stabs him in the neck.
The guards that followed us are also fighting the changelings as well. A few of the changelings start morphing into our guards so I quickly cast a nullify spell and they all turn back looking confused, our guards take advantage of their confusion and quickly take them down.
I turn my attention back in front of me and channel three ice elements and charge it up a bit to narrow the spread. I fire the spell and nine shards of ice impale three changelings in front of me. I notice one of our guards get stabbed in the gut and pushed away. I run over and jam my sword into the changeling's neck and then quickly fire a healing beam at the downed guard, his wound closes and I help him up.
He thanks me and gets right back into the fight with a look of rage.
We push our way into the Hive bit by bit, taking down changelings along the way. This place seems more like a fort than a town or city, maybe it's a remote base for troops to rest or for supplies? Perhaps Blueblood will know since he's been here for months.
My thoughts are interrupted when we get down the stairs to the third level as an arrow lodges itself into the side of my left thigh, hitting an area that the chitin like rock didn't completely cover. "GAAHH!" I yell in pain. I point my stave at the changeling responsible and cast a fire beam at her. It hits her in the chest and burns right through, leaving a two inch wide hole where her heart was. She drops dead to the floor and I rip out the arrow in my leg and heal the wound.
We reach the holding cells on the forth level with only two casualties so far, I healed the other's wounds along the way, including one Luna received as well. Two changeling guards are standing at the door, the right one has a chitin like sword and shield at the ready, the left one has a bow. I channel two earth elements and a single fire element and charge it up. I jump around the corner and aim at the right one. I release the spell and hit him right in the face. His head caves in and the small explosion blows what's left of his head all over the walls and his ally.
Luna then throws one of her swords at the other one -who is blinded by the explosion and bits of her ally- impaling her chest and then pulls it out, leaving a large gaping wound in her torso, her organs then spill out from the wound and she slumps to the ground.
We enter the holding area and search the cells, a guard finds Blueblood in the corner of a cell along with two others in there with him.
A young girl with black fur and dirty white hair, she has no mark on her hand and she's wearing rags that barely cover her, she looks no older than six years old. And shockingly, the other is an injured looking changeling who looks pretty thin from starvation.
I tell them to stand back and cast a cold beam on the door's lock, freezing it solid. A guard with a warhammer then shatters the lock and the door swings open.
Luna walks in and kneels in front of Blueblood. "Nephew, we have come to take thee home, are thou fit enough to walk?" she asks him.
Blueblood tiredly looks up at her. "Oh... aunty Luna..." he responds with a faint smile. "I knew somepony would come eventually... and yes I can walk," he says and slowly stumbles onto his feet, he looks thin, I guess they barely feed him enough to keep him alive. The little girl stands up with him and holds onto his hand, she at least looks in better condition. Blueblood then helps the changeling onto his feet as well.
"Why are you helping this changeling?" Luna asks him.
Blueblood looks back at her. "He has helped keep us alive by getting the others to beat him instead of us and in turn, I have been helping him to survive by giving what love I could to him in return," he says.
Well, if he's helped them stay alive this long and that he's a prisoner of his own kind, he can't be that bad... I cast a healing beam on all of them and they instantly perk up, though it seems the holes on the changeling's arms and legs looked like they closed... I guess I'm just imagining things. My mana is about half way gone now.
"Ah... that feels much better, thank you very much guardsman," he tells me.
"I'm a knight actually," I reply. Wow, this Blueblood is actually very polite! I wonder what Rarity would say after meeting with the real Blueblood.
"I see, but still, thank you," he says with a nod.
I smile at him. "You're welcome," I reply and nodded back.
"Is there anypony else in here, nephew?" Luna asks him.
"No, we're the only ones left. They took the others somewhere else two weeks ago and we have not seen them since," he tells her.
"How many?" I ask.
"About seventeen of them," he replies.
"Very well, let us depart from here and return to Canterlot." Luna says. Her horn glows for a few seconds and fades. "We have alerted the other Captains to pull out," she says.
POV: Hammer Strike
So, Princess Luna found the Prince? Dammit, it was just getting fun as well. "It's time to pull out! Make your way to the surface!" I yell to my troops.
"YES SIR!" they all respond and we slowly make our way out.
A changeling lunges at me with a spear and I laugh at him. I grab his neck with my left hand and slam him into the ground. I raise my Hammer above my head and bring it down on his.
Splat.
'I love my job,' I think to myself as we leave the Barracks.
POV: Bright Mind
Time to leave huh? I think we have more then enough to take back with us. "The Princess has recovered the Prince, we're leaving now!" I order my guards.
"Yes ma'am!" they reply, carrying bags of scrolls, books, a few weapons and armour, even a few magical artefacts as well.
I've lost twenty of my guard for these, this had better be worth it.
POV: Adrian Stormsword
I take the lead and follow the tunnel back out, we manage to head up to the third floor unhindered. As soon as I reach the top of the stairs though, a large changeling a foot taller than me tackles me and drags me down the tunnel.
"ADRIAN!" Luna shouts as she gets further away.
"GO! I CAN HANDLE THIS!" I shout back and cast a teleport spell. I appear behind the brute and he slams into a wall.
I turn around and fire an arcane beam at him. Shockingly, the beam bounces off of him and he charges again. His armour looks very thick and reflects the lights in the tunnel off from it. It looks like it's coated in something, is that what is deflecting my magic?
He then charges at me again, so I run back towards Luna and channel a shield, an arcane, and a cold element and create a mine behind me. The brute steps on it and it blasts him with a thin sheet of frost, slowing his movement down. I turn to face him again and channel three earth elements and charge it up as he continues to come at me and I release the spell.
The boulder slams into him point blank, launching him down the tunnel.
I turn back to leave but the floor below me gives way and I fall down into the darkness.
"SHHHIIIIIIIIIIIIIT!" I yell as I hit the level below. "Ouch..." The floor gives way again and I continue to fall.
"Oooff!" I groan. My head is throbbing and I feel dizzy as I try to sit up. A sharp pain in my leg stops me from getting up all the way. I look down and see my right leg is facing inward. 'Shit, my leg's bloody broken,' I think to myself and channel three life elements through me.
I sit there groaning in pain as the bone resets and the damaged muscle repairs itself. I can't afford to take anymore damage, my mana is almost out and I have no idea where I am.
Once I finish healing, I stand up and look around. I can't go back up, the hole is too high. If only I could channel four elements, I could fly out. I'm in some sort of natural cavern, no black organic rock is covering the walls and there's a small lake with a small island in the centre. A pedestal stands in the middle... wait... this look familiar... oh yeah! It looks just like the place from that Daring Do book Luna got me to read to her.
The only thing missing is the ruby skull.
I look around and see a tunnel to my left, I then look back up at the hole and call out to Luna. "LUNA! CAN YOU HEAR ME!?"
No response.
POV: Luna
'He's taking too long' I think to myself. We got back to the ships and got Blueblood and the little filly named Fleur Lily something to eat and drink. The little filly is in better condition as Blueblood gave half of his food to her during their imprisonment. Blueblood has also put the changeling named Thraxx in his own cabin.
I want nothing more than to blow the hive up with a barrage of sunfire shells, but Adrian is still in there and the remaining changelings are attacking our ships. The pegasi guards are combating them in the air while the unicorns and earth ponies attack from the ships decks with spells and arrows.
And due to Adrian's resistance to pony magic, I can't feel his presence, I can't even feel the presence of his armour anymore or contact him telepathically. Just teleporting him a short distance the first time was taxing.
I look back at the Hive's destroyed gate with worry. "Please, be safe."
POV: Adrian Stormsword
I wait for a minute longer but there's no sign of Luna or any guards. I look back at the tunnel and head towards it, it's better than sitting here doing nothing.
I enter the tunnel and channel a shield element through my stave and the light from the orb illuminates the tunnel allowing me to see a few metres around me. I walk for a good twenty minutes with my sword drawn and at the ready.
The walls start turning back into the black organic rock stuff and the tunnel branches off into three ways. I can hear voices from the tunnel ahead while the other two are silent.
I head down the tunnel ahead of me to see if there is anyone else being held captive down here. I reach the end and I'm shocked to see some kind of small town, I hide behind a boulder to the left and look around. Changelings are walking around in rather poor clothing, men, women, and children, talking and playing in this small town. Dome like structures with doors and windows line the cavern's walls both at ground and ceiling height. Lights are placed throughout the town, allowing me to see everything.
To the right is some sort of market with stalls, changelings are trading items with blackish green coins with each other.
A lot of the people here look starved and have holes in their forearms and shins... I frown at the state of this place, how can anyone live like this?
A sudden tapping on my leg gets my attention and I look down to see a little changeling girl looking up at me with wide blue eyes.
"Are you lost, Mister?" she asks. I still have my stone armour with the black chitin like rock on me, I guess she thinks I'm a changeling.
I just stare at her, she's really thin and looks like she can barely stand on her own. She also has a bandage on her left arm.
"Are you alright?" she asks again with a tilt to her head.
"Err, yeah, I'm fine. Where am I?" I ask her.
"You're in the Jade Shell Outpost Hive," she tells me, her little dragonfly like wings flicking now and then.
"I see..." I look around to make sure I'm still hidden and then back at her arm. "How'd you hurt your arm?" I ask her.
She places her right hand on her bandaged arm. "I tripped and cracked my chitin," she tells me.
I sigh, sheath my sword and smile at her. "Would you like me to heal it for you?" I ask her. She may be a changeling, but she's still just a child.
"Really?" she asks and I nodded. "Okay!" she says and holds her arm out.
I remove the bandage and point my stave at it. I channel three life elements and she looks at the floating green orbs with wide eyes. "That's pretty," she says.
I chuckle and cast a healing beam at her arm and the cracked chitin slowly mends itself. What surprises me more is that the holes in her arms and legs suddenly start closing, her body also looks like it has put on a bit of weight as well.
She gasps and then burps loudly. "Excuse me," she says... what the hell just happened?
She looks at where the cracks were and then at her arms and legs. "Wow! My arm feels better and I don't feel hungry anymore! Thanks, Mister!"
"You're welcome... what's your name?" I ask her.
"I'm Shella!" she replies, sounding much more energetic.
"Nice to meet you, Shella. I'm Adrian. Do you know the way to the surface from here?" I ask her.
She nodded quickly. "Uh-huh. Just head back down that tunnel and take the next tunnel to the right. It'll take you out the side of the mountain," she tells me.
"Alright, thank you for your help," I smile at her.
"Shella! Shella where are you!?" a woman calls out sounding worried.
"I'm over here momma!" Shella calls back making me panic. The girl's mother looks over to us and looks at me with fear.
"I gotta go, take care of yourself alright?" I quickly say and sprint off down the tunnel.
"OKAY! Thanks again!" she calls back to me.
"What do you think you were doing!?That thing could have...." I hear the mother scold her child before I was out of range.
I followed her directions and reached the cross section again. To my left, I see armed changelings running towards me, ordering me to halt. I run down the tunnel to the right for five minutes and spot a black door at the end, I push it open and I'm back outside.
POV: Luna
After thirty minutes of fighting and worrying, I feel the presence of Adrian's armour again to my left at least half a mile away. How did he get that far?
"Set course! North by north west!" I shout out.
The ship starts turning and the pegasi land back on the ships. We fly for five minutes and I see somepony standing alone on the ground, I can feel that it's Adrian. Suddenly others appear out of the mountain and start shooting at him with bolts of magic.
POV: Adrian Stormsword
I cast a barrier spell in front of me and boost it to full strength. I then channel a single earth element and two fire elements and launch it at the attacking changelings as my barrier deflects their bolts of magic.
"Capture him at all costs! By order of the Queen!" one of them shouts out. They want me alive?
I can hear the sounds of the ships engines to my right and look up. I can see Luna's ships heading my way. I cast another fireball spell and launch it upwards as a signal.
I continue to fight the changelings for another two minutes. One tried flying over my barrier, only to get blasted by a beam of steam and blown away.
Pegasi guards land beside me and the changelings retreat back into the mountain, I blast the cliff face above the door causing it to cave in. I fall back on my ass and start breathing hard, my mana is just about to run out and I'm tired from the running.
The ships arrive and Luna flies down to me. "Adrian! Are thou alright? We were so worried about thee," she says and hugs me. "How did thou get all the way out here?" she asks me.
I tell her how I fell through the floor twice and found an underground tunnel network and the changeling town and how a little changeling girl told me the way out.
"There is a town in the mountain?" she asks confused. "There was no such place in the assassin's or the impostor's memories..." she says with a frown.
"It was rather small, like a border town. it looked like is was recently built as well, and the people looked like they were starving," I tell her.
"That would be understandable, changelings require love to feed on to survive. The hungrier they get, the more holes appear on their arms and legs. They're cannibalising their own bodies to survive," she tells me.
"Then how does that explain the girl's holes closing when I healed her injured arm?" I ask Luna.
She looks at me wide eyed. "Thou let a changeling feed off thee?" she asks shocked.
"No, I don't think so at least. I used a healing beam to heal her cracked arm, her holes just closed along with her injury," I tell her.
She looks down in thought. "Mayhap thy life element has the same properties of love?" she mumbles to herself. That would explain why they wanted to capture me alive then.
"Let's figure this out once we get back to Canterlot, I'm feeling exhausted," I say to her.
"Very well, let us be..." She's cut off as an explosion to my right kills a guard. I look up to see changelings firing their own cannons from the holes in the mountain. One of the sloop like ships takes a hit in the hull and bits of wood fall from the ship. The other ships start opening fire on the changeling cannons.
I look up to see a changeling taller than the others with an elegant green and black dress looking down at me. "So this is the creature that can create love instantly?" she says and smiles wickedly, next to her is the little girl I healed looking scared and crying.
The tall changeling then places a hand on Shella's head and I see pinkish green energy flow out of her and into the woman. Shella screams in pain and I see holes appear on her again while the woman's start closing slightly. Gathering what little mana I have left, I fire a rock at the woman and knock her back into the tunnel. Shella then collapses to the ground.
"Luna! Can you grab the girl and take her with us!" I tell Luna. There's no way I'm leaving her here with that monster.
Luna hesitates and looks at me, I plead with her with my eyes. She groans in disapproval and levitates Shella over to us. I pick her up and we make our way to the ships.
"DON'T LET IT GET AWAY!" the woman screams at the other changelings. Wow, she's back up already? She can really take a hit.
We get on board and the galleon ship takes a hit. The left harpoon ballista is torn off and one of the crew is blown across the deck, a piece of wood sticking out of his leg. I'd heal him, but I have no mana left.
"I'll have you all executed if you let it get away!" the woman threatens her people.
Luna helps me into her cabin and leaves me with the unconscious Shella on her bed. Unable to stay awake any longer, I fall asleep.
POV: Luna
So, Chrysalis thinks she can take Adrian away from me? I'll show her just what happens to those who threaten my mate!
I summon my scythe and jump over the side, thirty of the pegasi guard follow me and I engage Chrysalis who now has a black razor sharp thorn like whip and her own black chitinous armour.
I swing my scythe at her head and she ducks under it. She swings her whip at me and I teleport behind her, I then swing my scythe down and she jumps forward with the aid of her wings, leaving my scythe to pierce into the rocky ground.
She laughs at me and I fire a bolt of magic at her, she fires one of her own at it and they explode on impact. My guards are dealing with the changelings around us while I fight Chrysalis.
Chrysalis then brings her whip up and then swings it down at me. I jump to the right and the whip snaps at the ground, leaving small slash marks from the razor sharp thorns.
I fly back and get some distance from her, she laughs again, calling me a coward. I then charge at her with as much speed as I can gather. She holds her whip to her right side, waiting for me to get closer. Just as she was about to swing, I teleport behind her, still moving at high speed and tackle her into the side of the mountain.
I bring up my scythe to end her, but her horn glows and she teleports away. I look around but I can't feel her presence anymore. 'Look who's calling who a coward now,' I think smugly to myself.
The other changelings flee once they realise Chrysalis ran away. As much as I want to bring down this mountain on them, I will not kill civilians.
The guards and I return to the ship where I order all our ships to return to Canterlot.
I open my eyes to see I'm in Luna's room, I'm no longer in my armour and Luna is sleeping next to me. I look out the window to see the moon high in the night sky.
My mana has recharged and I'm feeling better. I remember the events of the rescue and quickly get out of bed making Luna wake up from my sudden movement.
"Hmmm? Adrian!" she says and also gets out of bed. "What is the matter?" she asks.
"Where's Shella?" I ask her.
"She's in the medical wing, why?" she replies.
"Is she okay?" I ask her. I'm not sure why I'm so worried about her.
"She is very malnourished. Chrysalis drained her of her energy to strengthen herself to capture you," she tells me. "It appears you are able to feed a changeling without them draining you of your love."
"Can you take me to her? We can test if it is the life element that is feeding her," I say.
"Very well. If it is true, then we may have a way to get the changelings on our side instead of the gryphons. We'll just have to figure out how to reproduce thy life elements effects," she tells me.
We get dressed and I bring my stave with me. Luna leads me to the medical wing where a Nurse greets us.
"Oh, hello your Majesty. Are you unwell?" the Nurse asks Luna.
"Nay, we art well. Adrian wishes to see the young changeling filly, we have something we wish to confirm," Luna replies.
"Ah, I see. Then please follow me," she tells us.
We follow her to a room in the back of the medical wing. We enter the room to see Shella laying on a bed looking rather pale. She has holes all over her arms and legs. They look so bad that she probably can't even move them herself anymore.
I make my way beside her and lightly shake her shoulder. She slowly opens her eyes and looks at me, her eyes look whiter as well. "Hello, Shella. Do you remember me?" I ask her.
She slowly shakes her head left and right.
"My name is Adrian, I healed your arm remember?" Her eyes widen and she smiles.
"I remember... you're not a changeling?" she asks me slowly, all the energy she spoke with last time is nowhere to be found.
"No. I'm a human... listen, I'm going to try and heal you again okay?" I tell her.
She nodded and I point my stave at her. I cast a healing beam at her and her holes start to close, her chitin returns to its black colour and her eyes shine with a deep blue. She lets out a loud belch again. "Excuse me," she says politely.
Luna and the Nurse look stunned and I just smile. "Feeling better?" I ask Shella.
She sits up and smiles, but then looks upset as if she just remembered something. "She killed momma..." she says.
"Who did?" I ask her.
She sniffles and looks at me. "The Queen... she took me away saying she needed me to capture a strange creature. Momma begged her to let me go... but she just... just..." She breaks down and starts crying.
I sit on the side of the bed and hug her. She wraps her arms around me and cries her eyes out. I look at Luna to see her with a conflicted expression.
"You're safe now, no one's going to hurt you anymore," I tell her. She calms down and lets go. "Try and get some sleep, I'll see you in the morning alright?" I tell her.
"Okay. Thank you again, Mister Adrian," she replies and cuddles her pillow. I smile at the adorable sight and tuck her in. I then leave the room with Luna and the Nurse.
"So thy life element can feed a changeling... we shall have to begin research on this and try to replicate it," Luna tells me.
"What happened to Blueblood, the girl, and the changeling they were with?" I ask her.
"They're here for a check up. The changeling named Thraxx is stable but still in poor condition, even after the small amount of healing thou gave him. Blueblood, while a bit thin and dehydrated, is making a full recovery. The little filly named Fleur Lily, has faired better than the others as Blueblood gave half his food to her while imprisoned," Luna tells me.
Huh, I really want to get to know the real Blueblood now. Compared to the imposter, he sounds like a saint.
I then turn to the Nurse. "Can you take me to their room please?" I ask her.
She looks at Luna who just nodded to her. "Alright, they're in room fifteen," she says and we follow her.
We enter room fifteen where three beds are set up, the left has Thraxx, the middle has Blueblood and the right one has Fleur Lily. The girl is fast asleep while Blueblood is eating a piece of fruit. Thraxx is just staring at the ceiling with a blank expression.
"Hello, nephew. We hope thou art feeling better," Luna says to Blueblood.
"Much better now that we are no longer in that horrid place. Though not to insult you and aunty Celestia, but, how did you not notice that I was replaced?" he asks.
Luna frowns in thought. "We thought thou was... getting pig headed with all the parties thou started to throw before thy Manehatten trip. As if thee were becoming like all the other nobles. So when thou returned and slowly became more arrogant... we thought thee just gave in to the other nobles," she replies.
Blueblood hums in thought. "I can see how you would come to that conclusion. I guess my attempts to get the nobles to follow the old traditions backfired on me... I shall refrain from any more parties from now on and stick to small social gatherings with my friends. How is Fancy Pants and his wife doing since I was away?" he asks her.
"They have been doing well, but have been upset at thy imposters attitude..." she replies and then looks at me. "If we recall, we have an invite to Sir Fancy's home in a few days," Luna says and looks back at Blueblood. "Would thou like to join us?" she asks him.
"If I am fit enough, then I would be delighted," he replies.
I walk over to Thraxx who looks like he's in pain. "How you feeling?" I ask him.
He looks at me with whitish blue eyes, his chitin is also pale looking. "Been better," he replies emotionlessly.
"I'm going to heal you okay? Just lie still and relax." I tell him.
"Don't bother, pony healing magic doesn't work on changelings," he says.
"I'm not a pony," I state and point my stave at him. I channel three life elements and fire a beam at him.
He gasps as his black colour returns along with the blue in his eyes and the holes start closing. After ten seconds he belches loudly and I cancel the spell.
He just sits up and stares at his arms, not a single hole remaining. "You...you healed and fully fed me?.." he mumbles.
"Apparently I can do that without having to give my love. My life element seems to have the same properties as love energy," I tell him.
He then looks at me with a worried expression. "Should Chrysalis ever get her hands on you... she would use you to power herself and her army..." he says.
"Already knew she wants me. Tried to grab me just before we escaped," I tell him. I then turn to Luna. "How'd that go by the way?" I ask her.
"We did battle with her. We were about to deliver the final blow, but she teleported away like a coward," she tells me.
"I see, so what will you do now Thraxx? I doubt you'll be allowed to return," I ask him.
"I plan to stay here and serve under Prince Blueblood. I was imprisoned because my mate returned with a large amount of love energy. I was so proud of her... until the Queen came and took it all from her, killing her in the process saying it was for the good of the Hive... I retaliated, and was overwhelmed. I was thrown in with the Prince and Fleur Lily," he tells me.
This Queen is sounding like a grade A tyrant. I hope I meet her again at my full strength, I'd be happy to put her down a few pegs.
"Don't worry, if I ever see her again, I'll give her a good blast to the face for ya," I tell him and he smirks. "So what will happen to Fleur Lily?" I ask.
Blueblood speaks up. "I shall be adopting her, her parents were two of the seventeen taken away two weeks ago. Until the day they are found, I shall be caring for her," he says.
Wow, I'm starting to like him already! I really can't wait to get Rarity to meet him now. "Sounds good. After everything you've all been through you deserve a break," I say.
"Yes, we'll rest for now and once I've recovered I shall repair any damage to my image and contact all of my friends and family, letting them know what has transpired," he replies.
"Alright, I'm looking forward to talking with you some more. Your imposter didn't leave you in a pleasant light," I tell him.
"I see. No matter, once this has all been sorted out, I shall continue to do as I planned and try to better the nobility like before," he says.
"Sounds like a plan. You have no idea what your imposter and the nobles have put us through so far..." I tell him.
"Oh? What could the nobles have to say to a knight?" he asks me.
"Just that me courting both Luna and Celestia is sacrilege, that I'm not good enough and the like blah blah blah... Bunch of children if you ask me," I reply.
He stares at me slack jawed. "You're courting both of my aunts?" he asks again. I simply nodded making him smile. "That is good news, they deserve somepony to love them. I've watched for too long as they've been miserable. I've noticed that since I have been back that aunty Luna is much happier than her old antisocial self," he says.
I chuckle as Luna crosses her arms and frowns at Blueblood. "Yeah, she was not the friendliest of people when we first met," I tell him, earning me an elbow to my ribs from Luna, only making me chuckle again.
"Indeed, no offence aunty, but you are much more pleasant to be around now. I remember you slapped me for speaking to you the first time, something about, 'Thou shalt not speak unless spoken to.' Or something like that," he replies with a chuckle of his own.
Luna huffs and looks away with a slight blush. "We just returned from our banishment, excuse us if we were still in our old mindset," she says crossly.
I smile. "So how's Celestia doing since we were gone?" I ask.
Luna looks back at me. "She has been searching maps and charts to find the best way into Aries Peak. So far her search has proved fruitless, but she believes she is onto something... Oh yes, she has also been worried sick about thee when we returned. She asked that should thou awaken before midnight, to bring thee to her room," she tells me. "So if we are done here, let us be on our way," she says and pulls on my arm.
"I'll see you guys later!" I call back to the two chuckling men in the room.
Luna leads me to Celestia's room and pushes the doors open. "Tia? Adrian has awoken," Luna says.
I see Celestia looking in her mirror brushing her hair and wearing her pink nightgown, her hair is also its natural pink style as well.
She turns to look at us. "That is good to hear, I was worried about you," she says. Making me smile.
"Not even a psychotic changeling Queen will keep me from coming back," I reply.
She giggles a little bit. "Be that as it may, I was still worried," she says and walks over to me and hugs me. I wrap my arms around her and return the hug.
"So why did you want me to come to your room before midnight?" I ask her.
She blushes and smiles. "I wish for you to sleep with me tonight," she says.
I look at Luna who is nodding her head, I then look back at Celestia. "If that's what you want, then sure," I reply.
"We shall take our leave then, we still have nightmares to banish," Luna says and walks out the room.
"Banish nightmares?" I ask Celestia.
"While asleep, Luna can enter the dreams of other ponies and if they are having nightmares, replace them with pleasant dreams instead," she tells me and heads over to her bed. I look around Celestia's room and notice it's the opposite of Luna's room. It's brighter than Luna's with white walls and what looks to be a realistic piece of the summer sky on the ceiling... makes me feel like I'm outside.
"Don't just stand there, come join me," she says holding up the blanket. I chuckle and place my stave by her closet door, remove my shirt, shoes, socks and climb into the bed. It's just as soft as Luna's bed.
Celestia cuddles up to me and sighs happily. "I can't remember the last time I've just snuggled up with somepony," she says and places a hand on my cheek, making me face her. "Thank you for treating me as a mare and not a Princess," she says and kisses me on the lips.
I press my lips to hers for a few seconds and pull back. "You're welcome, Tia," I reply and kiss her again.
She places her head against my neck and falls asleep with a smile. I gently stroke her hair and eventually fall asleep myself.
I wake up with Celestia in my arms, she's smiling with her head on my chest, her breathing slow and steady. I stroke her hair and she hums happily. After a few minutes a knock on the door then gets my attention.
"Tia? Are thou alright? Tis time to raise the sun!" Luna asks.
The door opens and Luna walks in. I quickly close my eyes and hear her sneak over, I can feel her lightly shaking Celestia.
"Come on, Tia," Luna says again. I open my right eye slightly and see Luna sigh. "Thou leave us no choice," she says and I see her wrap Celestia's tail around her hand and pulls lightly.
Celestia yelps and her wings shoot out and slap Luna in the face, I couldn't help but laugh at that. I laugh even harder when I see Luna spit out a small white feather.
Celestia glares at Luna with a heavy blush and I simmer down to a chuckle.
"Get up, Tia. Thou art ten minutes late raising the sun," Luna tells her.
"What?" Celestia looks at her clock on the wall, it reads ten past six in the morning. Her eyes slowly widen. "I've never slept in before..." she says to herself.
"We do not blame thee. Adrian is rather cuddly isn't he," Luna tells her with a smirk. Celestia looks at me with her arms still around me.
She smiles and kisses me. "That is true," she says. She then gets out of bed and they both head over to the balcony. I get up and stand behind them and watch as their horns brightly glow with their arms pointing up at the sky, wings spread and slightly hovering off the floor. The moon starts to descend and the sun begins to rise, but my attention is on the two alicorns who are glowing with an aura around them both, looking like angels.
They finish and touch back down on the floor as their auras fade away. Luna looks at me and giggles at my stunned expression. "Did thou enjoy the view?" she says.
I look between the two and nodded. "You were both beautiful," I say making them both blush.
"W-We were speaking of the sky," Luna stammers.
I chuckle. "Sorry, my attention was elsewhere," I reply with a smile.
They both smile as well and each give me a kiss on my cheeks. "That's very sweet of you," Celestia says.
"So, what are we doing today?" I ask them.
Luna speaks up. "We shall be going to the Magic Research and Development Academy to see how we can replicate thy life element," she tells me.
Celestia looks confused. "Why are you trying to replicate it? I understand it would be a great boon to Hospitals and the guard, but I don't think ponies can use his magic. I've read his memories and have even tried casting these elements, nothing happened," she says.
"We have learnt that Adrian's life element can not only heal, but feed changelings," Luna replies.
"You can feed a changeling with out giving any love?" Celestia asks with surprise.
"Apparently. Luna thinks if we can replicate the element, we can get the changelings on our side instead of their Queen's or the gryphon's," I reply.
"That... that actually sounds like a good idea. We could make a new ally while striking a blow to the gryphons," Celestia says.
"Can you bring my leggings here? I have a few gems that can be used to store elements in them to be activated for their effects. It was thought up by dwarves and humans as a form of explosive weapon and or quick burst of healing... kinda forgot I had them actually,"
Luna's horn glows and my leggings appear in her hand. I open the pouch with the gems and pull out two emeralds the size of a human eyeball. they have a dwarven rune etched into them to activate the element within. They both have a single life element in them for a quick burst of healing that heals the holder like a self cast spell. Only really good for healing cuts or bruises.
"When you place and press your thumb on this rune here," I say pointing to a rune that looks like thumb print. "It'll shatter and release its effect. The bigger the gem, the bigger the charge it can hold." I tell her. They're basically dwarven grenades... just using elements instead of gunpowder.
I give one to Luna and the other to Celestia and they look them over. "Tia, these are similar to the crystal wands the guard use are they not?" Luna says.
"You're right ,Lulu," Celestia replies... I snicker a bit, Lulu?
"What?" Luna asks.
"Lulu? That's adorable," I reply.
She blushes. "Yes, well," she says and her horn glows. One of those gem rods appears in her other hand. "Do thou know how to channel an element into a crystal?" she asks me.
"I charged those ones myself," I tell her while pointing at the emerald in her hand.
"Then try to put a life element into this crystal," she tells me and hands me the rod. I place my right hand over it and channel a life element into my hand, I then try to flood it into the clear crystal.
After ten minutes of concentration, it starts to change colour and turns a soft green. I hold it up and see small wisps of magic floating around inside it.
"Did it work?" I ask and hand it back to her.
"Only one way to find out," she says and heads over to the balcony. She points the rod towards the sky and her horn glows. The crystal fires off a bolt of green energy into the sky and the crystal dims in colour.
Luna walks back in. "It works, question is, will it recharge itself?" Luna says.
So we stand there for about ten seconds, watching as the crystal slowly starts to glow green again. "Amazing, we may have just revolutionized our medical and magical arsenal," Luna says.
"So what? I'm going to be charging a lot of crystals then?" I ask. The thought of doing nothing but charging crystals for the rest of my life doesn't sound fun.
"Nay. If thou can charge a large crystal, we can use that to make smaller copies," she replies. Oh thank the heavens for that!
Celestia and I get dressed, me with my armour and weapons and then after a quick breakfast we head down for the Magic Academy north of the Castle. Court has been postponed with the excuse of a more important matter that needs addressing. The looks on the nobles faces was well worth it.
We arrive in a carriage where I help them out and we walk inside, people bow to the Princesses as we walk by them.
We arrive at a door that looks pretty thick which Luna opens and walks in. I follow and see tables with many different crystals and tools on them.
A unicorn woman with white fur and crystal blue hair and eyes walks over to us. "Your Majesties! It's an honour to see you here. What can I do for you?" she asks them.
"Crystal Clear, it is good to see you again," Celestia says. "We're here to help develop a new kind of enchanted crystal," she replies.
Crystal Clear smiles widely. "A new crystal enchantment? What is it, what is it?" she asks bouncing up and down with child like glee.
Luna holds out the life charged crystal wand to her. Crystal snatches it away and examines it closely.
"Princess... what kind of enchantment is this? I don't recognize the magic signature," she asks.
"That would be Sir Adrian's life element inside it. We require a large pure crystal so Adrian can charge it for us," Luna replies.
"Oh! erm, sure. Be right back!" Crystal says and heads through a door in the back.
"What do you plan to do with that wand?" I ask them.
"Well, it would be given to one of the medic guards. Why? Do you want to do something with it?" Celestia asks.
"Yeah, I was actually wondering if I can give it to Thraxx, he can use it to feed himself and not rely on me all the time," I reply.
"That's actually a good idea, we can have one made for Shella as well," she says.
Crystal returns pushing a trolley into the room. It has a large crystal perfectly cut and clear about the size of my torso. "Here you go, our best crystal," she tells us.
I walk over to it and place my hands on it. "I don't know if I'll be able to charge this..." I say.
"Doesn't hurt to try. We can always purge it if you fail," Crystal tells me.
I shrug and start channelling a life element in each hand. "Please don't distract me. This might take an hour or two," I tell them.
One Hour and Thirty-Three Minutes later
I pant and sit down on the floor, breathing heavily. I look up and see the crystal glowing the same soft green colour as the wand.
"Thou did it!" Luna says excitedly. She kneels down and hugs me.
"So now what do we do with it?" I ask.
"We start putting it into other crystals and enchant them to slowly release the magic within. Changelings would then just have to stand near it and it should feed them. This would be the safest way to do this as giving them wands or other types of enchanted crystals would be a bad idea, as they could be used against us. This way, they would not dare bring their only source of food onto a battlefield," Luna says.
"Sounds good. Do I need to do anything else? I'm rather *yawn* tired from that," I ask and tell her. I probably used about eighty percent of my mana on that.
"Nay, thou can rest. We shall finish the rest," she tells me and kisses my cheek.
"Okay. *Yawn* See ya in a few hours..." I say and fall asleep in Luna's arms.
POV: Celestia
Adrian falls asleep on Luna's lap, it's rather adorable to watch. "Luna, can you take Adrian back to your room and then come back with Shella?" I ask her.
"Of course," she replies. She picks Adrian up and exits the room. I walk over to the crystal and watch as the swirling green magic within moves around hypnotically. I place my right hand on it and I can feel the warm magic of his life element flow through my fingertips.
Crystal Clear then brings in several smaller crystals with silver stands for them. She taps the smaller crystals to the larger one and some of the magic is transferred across.
Once all five of them are done, she places a golden brace on top of one of the crystals that will absorb magic from the atmosphere at an accelerated rate. Very slowly, a green mist escapes and surrounds the crystal.
Crystal Clear then does the same for the other crystals. A few minutes later and Luna teleports into the room with Shella beside her. Shella is wearing cleaner clothes now instead of the old torn ones she used to have.
She walks over to the large crystal and stares at it. "Pretty stone," she says.
I kneel down to her. "Hello, Shella. Would you like to help us with something?" I ask her.
She looks at me with a smile. "Okay!" she replies happily. How can she still be so innocent after what she's been through?
"Thank you, we would like to see if you can feed from one of these small crystals," I tell her.
She looks at one of the small crystals and holds her hand out near the green mist. I watch as the mist flows into her hand and after a few seconds, she lets out a small burp. "Excuse me, that tastes just like Adrian's love," she says.
I smile at her. "Thank you, Shella. Would you like some toys to play with? Or some books to read?" I ask her.
She nodded quickly "Uh-huh!" she replies.
I look from the filly to Crystal Clear. "Keep an eye on those crystals, see if they continue to emit magic or if they burn out," I tell her. She nodded and I stand back up, I'm surprised when Shella holds my hand as if waiting for me to do something. "let's go find you something then shall we?"
POV: Adrian Stormsword Two Hours Later
I wake up and look around, I'm back in Luna's bed and out of my armour. I get up, yawn and stretch, charging that crystal really drained me. I equip my armour and weapons and head out to find Celestia or Luna.
After ten minutes of searching, I find Celestia in her room with Shella playing with dolls. It seems they haven't noticed me yet as I lean against the door frame.
"Cute," I say with a smile, making them both jump.
"Oh, Adrian. I am glad to see you up," Celestia says.
"Hi, Adrian!" Shella says waving an arm at me.
"Hello, Shella. Feeling better today?" I ask her.
"Uh-huh! Princess Celestia was playing with me!" she says and gently throws a pillow at Celestia while giggling. I laugh as it gets impaled on her horn and slides down to her face.
Celestia just sits there with a blank expression before giggling. "Never in all my years has anypony other than Luna thrown a pillow at me," she says.
"So what happened once I passed out?" I ask.
"We have created five smaller aura crystals and Shella here confirmed that they work," Celestia replies.
Shella waves her left arm in the air. "Yeah! I helped!" she says.
"So what's our next move?" I ask Celestia.
"We shall wait a few days to see if the crystals can hold your life element in them. If they do, we'll then try contacting the town you found in the Badlands and try to convince them to come with us, with Shella's help, to show that we can offer them a better way. We can have a town built for them within Equestria's borders as well," she replies.
"Alright then, sounds good. I'm going to go and practice some more after I get something to eat, I'll see you both later," I tell them and head out to the Dining Hall.
I wake up in Luna's embrace and yawn. It's been two days since I slept in Celestia's bed. I went back to Luna's as now we take turn's on who sleeps with who.
I lightly kiss her cheek and she stirs. "Good morning, Luna," I say to her.
She smiles and snuggles into me. "Good morning, our Love," she replies with a yawn of her own.
I try to get up to start the day, but Luna holds me down. "Come on, Luna... we need to go and check on those crystals," I tell her.
She groans but lets go, we then get up and Luna heads towards her bathroom. "We are going to bathe... would thou like to join us? We could use some help washing our back," she asks while blushing slightly.
My face flushes as well but I smile. "I'd love to," I reply and follow her inside. She draws the bath and we strip down, I couldn't help but watch as she removes her underwear in a teasing manner.
She then bends over as she pulls her black panties down and shakes her backside at me, I'm just staring at her ass with wide eyes. I feel a small trickle of liquid coming out of my nose and wipe it with a hand... she just gave me a nose bleed.
Luna then turns around and smirks at me. "Oh? Did thou enjoy the view?" she asks.
I just nodded slowly. She walks over and unclips her bra and lets it fall to the floor, letting her breasts jiggle a little as they're no longer held up. She then wraps her hands around my waist and puts her hands down my boxers and gropes my ass.
She then grips the hem of my underwear, kneels on the floor, and starts to pull them down. My erection springs out and wobbles in her face, making her giggle.
"Somepony's excited aren't they," she says and licks the tip of my member.
I grunt from the pleasurable sensation and rub her ears making her moan from the action and start sucking on the head of my member, her tongue swirling around it while her right hand jerks at the base.
Her left hand starts to massage my balls and she takes my dick deeper into her mouth. We both moan and she picks up speed, I notice her right hand has gone from my member to her own dripping arousal.
She pokes my urethra with the tip of her tongue and swirls it around. She continues sucking, licking and stroking for a good two minutes while her jerking picks up speed.
She eventually lets go and heads over to the large bath tub and turns the taps off. She steps into the water, lies on her back and spreads her legs. "Come and rut us, Adrian," she says with half lidded eyes and starts stroking her pussy with her right hand while pinching her left breast's nipple.
Fuelled by lust, I step in with her and lean over her. She moves her right hand from her lips to my dick and lines it up. "Rut us like thou did in the Everfree..." she whispers into my ear as I can feel the tip rubbing against her flower. I wrap my right arm behind her back and brace myself with my left hand on the wall.
I thrust forward, piercing her heat and groaning. She moans and wraps her arms around my back and pulls me towards her, my face is engulfed by her cleavage and I begin a slow rhythm. My hips meet her groin with every thrust and she moans out loudly, I begin to stroke her wing joints with my right hand as I thrust into her.
After a few minutes, she speaks up. "Faster... ooooh... buck us faster!" She tells me. I pick up my pace and she gasps. "Yes! Nnngh, keep going! Aaaah!" she says and kisses me.
After five minutes of thrusting, I lean back so I'm sitting up with Luna on my lap. I wrap both arms around her and she starts bouncing on my member. "Soooo~ good! We love thee, Adrian! Nnngh... so much..." she says and begins grinding on my groin.
"Ugh... I love you too, Luna," I reply with a grunt, I cup her right cheek with my left hand and kiss her deeply, our tongues sliding and coiling with each other.
She groans and starts bouncing faster on my lap, she then wraps her arms around my head and pulls my face into her cleavage, the soft warmth of her breasts completely engulfing my face. "We are close! Oooh..." she tells me as her moans are gaining in pitch.
"Me too, Luna. Nnuuggh," I reply with a muffled grunt and start thrusting up into her.
"Nnngggghh... we're cumming! AAAAAAAAAHH!!" Luna screams as her hot silky walls grip my dick tightly as she cums, causing me to cum as well while she suffocates me between her breasts and I fire rope after rope of semen into her womb. "Aaaaahh. *huff* Oooooh. *huff* That felt. *huff* Wonderful..." she says and moans a little as she slowly grinds on my lap.
"You can say that again..." I reply with a dopey smile.
Just as Luna was about to get off, the bathroom door opens and Celestia walks in. "Lulu? Are you alright..." She trails off and her wings spring out to her sides as she sees us with wide eyes.
I just stare at her with a heavy blush. Luna though, moans as she quickly sat back down on my member causing some of my cum to leak out of her pussy. "We are f-fine Tia, we were j-just getting ready for t-the day," Luna replies shakily.
Celestia blushes brightly and nodded, I also notice she's biting her lower lip while squeezing her legs together. "V-Very well... it's just that you were late to lower the moon, s-so I came to see what you were doing..." Celestia says and is very slightly rubbing her thighs together.
"W-We see. We shall be out in a f-few minutes, can thou wait for us?" Luna asks Celestia.
Celestia nodded again and slowly left the room, all the while staring at us.
Once the door closed, I look at Luna. "Well, that was awkward..." I say.
"How so? Tia is a part of our herd. Mmmmm... she could join us if she wanted to," she tells me and slowly gets up, I blush even deeper at her words. My dick slides out and she turns around and sits in front of me. "Now thou shall wash our back as we asked thee to," she says.
We finish washing up, get dressed, Luna lowers the moon, and we then go check on the life crystals.
Four days have passed since I charged the large crystal with my life element, and so far it's holding together.
I've slept in Celestia's bed the first two nights, then went to Luna's on the third and fourth night. Though the plan now is to all sleep together, but just use the other's room each night.
On the third morning Luna and I had a little bath time fun together. Although it got awkward when Celestia walked in on us as Luna forgot to lower the moon, which got Celestia looking for her... we quickly got ourselves cleaned, dressed, moon lowered and then we went to check on the life crystals... Though Celestia has been giving me flustered looks since then.
The smaller crystals are now self-sustaining, although one did go out and crack. Crystal Clear found the problem and added more braces to the smaller ones and now they function perfectly.
Blueblood has gone through his personal guard and got rid of those being paid to work for the Imposter... Who along with the assassin and four fake guards, are still in the Dungeon chained up... and surprisingly are being force fed with Thraxx's life wand. It seems the life energy forces itself inside their bodies, acting with its intended purpose to heal the body. So keeping them alive and healthy is no longer an issue. Even the four fake guards are starting to wonder if staying with their Queen is a good idea or not.
Thraxx though, is now head of Blueblood's personal guard, much to the disapproval of the nobles, but Blueblood just smirked at them and then laughed in their faces, calling them petty, childish, and racist.
Celestia has also taken a liking to Shella. She plays with her whenever she has time to spare and I think she allows Shella in the Throne Room just to spite the nobles, although the middle and lower class citizens that came for advice smile at the happy changeling girl.
I wake up and stretch. I notice Luna is at the balcony and lowering the moon. I just sit up and watch as she floats and glows. Once she finished, she walks back in and notices me awake. "Good morning, Adrian," she says.
"Good morning. So today's the day we go over to Fancy's place for tea right?" I ask.
"Correct. We shall wash ourselves, get breakfast, check on the crystals and then head out to Sir Fancy Pants' home once we locate our nephew," she replies.
"Sounds like a plan. Do you want to use the bathroom first?" I ask her.
"Nay it will be quicker if we go together," she says with a smile.
"Alright." I say and follow her in.
We wash each other thoroughly, I think she really likes me washing her hair and tail for her. Once done, we get dressed in our own fancy clothes. I wear the suit I wore on my date with Celestia, I've had it repaired since then, while Luna wears her matching dress from the Gala. I also equip my sword as well, but leave my stave behind, Luna can always teleport it to me should I need it.
We head down to the Dining Hall hand in hand. The maids and guards bow to us along the way. When we arrive, two guards open the doors for us and we thank them. I see Celestia at her seat with Blueblood to her left and Fleur Lily next to him. Luna sits to Celestia's Right and I sit next to Luna.
"Good morning, auntie Luna, sir Adrian," Blueblood greets us.
"Hello, Blueblood. You and Fleur are looking much better, how's Thraxx doing?" I reply and ask.
"Very much so, and Thraxx says he's never felt better," he replies.
I smile and turn to Celestia who is still looking at me with a slight blush, it's rather cute to see. "Good morning, Tia," I say to her.
"Good morning, Adrian. Did you sleep well?" she asks.
"Very, so what do you have planned for today?" I ask.
"Court will start within an hour, then I shall head to my office and continue with my search to find a way into Aries Peak easily and stealthily," she tells me.
"Why not just postpone court and join us for some tea with Fancy Pants? You could use a nice break," I say.
She hums in thought. "I could use some time to relax. Since Blueblood's return, the nobility have been demanding I punish him for his sudden lack in manners, respect, and insulting them... which I shall not do. Luna and I will also later go through the laws and see what needs removing, added, or edited," she tells me.
"That's good. No offence, but you've let these nobles have far too much power to allow them to become as they are today," I tell her.
"And I agree with you, I let them get out of control... We will have to change that, and it won't be easy," she replies. "Hopefully, with Blueblood back, he and the few other decent noble families left can help set the others straight," she says.
The doors open and Shella comes in, I notice Fleur Lily smile and runs over to her as the two children have become friends over the last four days.
"Hi, Shella!" Fleur says.
"Hi, Lily! You wanna go play in the Gardens?" Shella asks her.
"Sure!" Fleur replies and runs over to Blueblood. "Can I go?" she asks him.
"Sure, just make sure you stay with Thraxx," he replies.
"Okay!" she says and runs out the room with Thraxx right behind them. I didn't notice him standing by the door, he's wearing Blueblood's guard armour with the life wand on his left hip.
We finish breakfast and Luna speaks up. "Nephew, we shall check on the life crystals quickly and meet thee by the Throne Room doors when we art done," Luna tells Blueblood.
"Very well. I'm looking forward to seeing Sir Fancy Pants again, hopefully I can mend the damage that impostor caused," he replies.
Luna and I leave the Dining Hall after saying our goodbyes. We then make our way to the Magic and Research Academy by carriage and greet Crystal Clear.
"Greetings, Crystal Clear. How are the life crystals faring?" Luna asks.
"Hello, Princess. They're doing great, still fully charged and self-sustaining," Crystal replies. "Oh, hi Adrian!" she says and waves at me.
"Hello, Crystal. Do you think they're ready to go then?" I ask her.
"I believe so. Thraxx and Shella can feed from them without draining them at all, but we'll have to see how many changelings it would take to deplete them," she replies.
"Is it possible to make pocket sized versions of these for like personal use?" I ask.
"No. I've tried smaller crystals, but they just shatter from the pressure. These are the smallest ones we can use like this," she says pointing to the four remaining life crystals.
"Oh... oh well. These hopefully are good enough," I reply.
"We thank thee for thy hard work. We shall prepare the airships tomorrow for a trip to the Hive and bring any changelings that want a better life back with us. We can house them in the many guest rooms in the castle while we find a place to build them a village or town of their own," Luna says.
"Thank you, Princess. If there is anything else you need, please just ask," Crystal replies and bows.
We say goodbye and head back to the Throne Room where we meet up with Celestia and Blueblood. "So how did it go with the nobles?" I ask.
"Oh they were very unhappy, demanding to know why aunt Celestia cancelled court and why is the 'monkey' more important?" Blueblood replies with a roll of his eyes.
I chuckle. "Huh... I wonder what they would have said if I was actually there... most likely nothing, considering what I did after they insulted Luna, me, and to an extent, Celestia right in front of me," I say.
"So I've heard. Though I must say it may come back to bite you in the rump later," Blueblood says.
"Okay, enough idle talk. Sir Fancy Pants and Fleur De Lis are expecting us soon and I think it best to not make them wait. Besides, I hear Fleur makes a rather delicious tea," Luna says.
We head out to the courtyard and enter a carriage. We go along the streets and arrive at a rather modest sized house. A two floor home that looks like it might have eight or ten rooms, and a nice sized Garden with statues and hedges.
The carriage pulls up the pathway and stops near the doors. I help Luna and Celestia out and we all walk up to the doors where I pull the cord to the left making bells ring out.
The doors open to reveal an elderly man with tan fur and greying black hair, he also has a curly moustache. He looks like some kind of servant or butler.
Once the door fully opens he looks us over. "Greetings your Majesties. Sir Fancy Pants is expecting you in the lounge, please follow me," he says and escorts us through the house.
The halls are decorated with landscape paintings and fancy looking drapes over the windows, vases with flowers stand on small tables along the way.
The butler opens a door to a room with three couches in front of a fireplace, a short table stands between them with assorted food and drinks.
"Princess Celestia! I didn't know you would attend as well," Fancy says happily surprised.
"Yes, well. Adrian convinced me to take the day off to relax, so here I am," she says and gives me a light kiss on my left cheek.
"That is good, a happy Princess means a happy kingdom, and I see the rumours of our fair knight asking you to court him are true," he replies.
Fancy Pants and his wife are sitting on the left couch. Celestia, Luna, and I sit on the right couch while Blueblood sits on the middle one.
"So tell me, why is Prince Blueblood with you as well?" Fancy says with a slightly unfriendly tone.
Blueblood was about to speak but Celestia cuts him off. "Blueblood was foalnapped in Manehatten during the meeting of the nobles there months ago. A Changeling took his place and has been abusing his position until four days ago when he was caught. Did you notice the fleet leaving the Castle?" she tells and asks Fancy.
Fancy and Fleur looked shocked. "So you're saying we were fooled by a changeling?... Come to think of it... it does make sense considering his sudden change in attitude," he replies and looks at Blueblood. "I am very sorry for ever doubting you my friend... after all these years we've known each other, I should have known something odd was ahoof," Fancy says to Blueblood.
"It's alright, no pony saw it coming. I'm just glad to be back home after those months of Tartarus I spent in that dank Hive, but I guess some good came of it. I met a kind little filly and a trustworthy friend during my stay," he replies.
"I see, well I'm glad you are back, your impostor was doing a terrible job and was rather rude to anypony who didn't follow him or do what he said," Fancy says.
"So I've heard, I've spent the last four days just fixing my personal guard. Now I shall continue my work of bringing the nobility back to its former glory," Blueblood replies to him.
"And I shall do all I can to aid you in that endeavour as I've done before my friend."
We all grabbed a cup of tea and some biscuits during their chat. I take a sip and it's very good, the biscuits taste like cinnamon and are rather good dipped in tea.
"So, how has courting two Princesses been, sir Adrian?" Fleur asks with a sly smile.
I look between Celestia and Luna and smile. "Best time of my life I'd have to say, and I can only hope it'll get better from here on," I reply.
Both Celestia and Luna giggle and lean against me. I put my tea down and wrap an arm around both of them making Fancy and Fleur smile at us.
"I'm happy to hear that, by the way, Princess Celestia, how has your niece been doing?" Fleur asks.
Niece? What niece? "Cadence is doing very well, she is currently with the Cervine, aiding them with a small problem they've been having. She should be back within a week or two," Celestia replies.
"Okay, I'm confused," I say getting their attentions. "You told me when I first met Blueblood... or his impostor, that he was your nephew. So is he your's or Luna's son?" I ask Celestia.
Celestia and Luna look at each other and then giggle. "No, his family did a great service four-hundred and twenty-two years ago that stabilized relations with us and the minotaurs. As such, we gave them royal titles for their aid and have since been advisers to us on noble and international issues," Celestia tells me.
"Okay, that explains one thing, but what about this Cadence? How is she your niece?" I ask.
"She was just a pegasus from Cloudsdale. She found her calling spreading love and helping others with their problems. One particular event caused her to ascended into an alicorn nearly thirty-five years ago. We invited her to stay with us to learn how to control her new magical abilities and about being a Princess," she tells me.
"I see, so she's not blood related?"
"No, it's just that Cadence was seen as royalty since her ascension. So we decided to take her in once her mother passed on," she replies.
"Ah, I can't wait to meet her, she sounds like a nice person," I say.
We chat for another hour, talking about the issue with the nobles and the up coming attempt to get the changelings on our side. Fancy and Fleur said they would aid in funding the foundation of the town for them as well as Blueblood. I will also add some funding with that hoard from the dragon I killed in the Everfree.
"Well, this has certainly been an eventful time. We are both glad you are back with us Blueblood, we thought we lost a friend," Fancy says.
"Do not worry, sir Fancy. I am back to being the stallion you knew before this whole mess started. Shall we make arrangements for another meeting?" Blueblood says.
"We would love to," Fleur replies.
Celestia, Luna, and I say our goodbyes and head back to the Castle. For the rest the day, I spent the next three hours with the Princesses talking with them in the Garden with a picnic spread. Once we finished that, I went back to the Training Grounds and practised my swordsmanship some more with Shining Armour. I stopped only when it was dinner time and joined Celestia and Luna at the Dining Hall where Celestia says she's making progress on finding a way into Aries Peak, but the path she's found is rather dangerous as it is home to some trolls.
Once dinner is done, Celestia tucks Shella into her bed and joins me and Luna in her room.
"So how are we going to approach the Hive tomorrow?" I ask.
"We will take the fleet with a life crystal and Shella to the Hive and bring whoever wishes to join Equestria with us. We will enter with a few guards and if any of their soldiers or guards attack, we shall incapacitate them," Luna replies.
"Sounds good to me," I say.
They both get changed into their nightgowns and we all get into Celestia's bed. Celestia is to my right while Luna to my left, I wrap an arm around each of them and stroke their hair lovingly. "Goodnight," I tell them.
"Goodnight, Adrian," they both reply and we all drift off to sleep.
I wake up to the feeling of two bodies pressing against me. I see Celestia to my right and Luna to my left, both with their heads buried into my neck and both hugging me tightly. I just sigh happily and pull them closer.
I lay there for about fifteen minutes, stroking their hair as they both slowly wake up. Luna hums in content while Celestia nuzzles me.
"Good morning. Hmmmmm, I've never slept so well before," Celestia says.
"We agree, this is very comfortable," Luna says.
They both snuggle closer and kiss each of my cheeks and I return their kisses. "What time is it?" I ask.
Celestia looks over to the clock. "Five forty-two... and as much as I would love to just lie here with you, we have a sun to raise and a moon to lower," she says.
Luna groans and just grips me tighter. "Do we have to?" Luna asks.
Celestia giggles. "Yes, lulu. Now come on, the sooner we get it done the sooner we can continue snuggling," she says walking over to her balcony. I lightly slap Luna on her ass and she 'Eeeps' from it and her wings shoot open with a light blush on her face.
"Go on, I'm not going anywhere," I tell her.
She smiles with half lidded eyes and runs her left hand over my chest. "Don't. Move," she says and quickly gets out of bed. She and Celestia do their thing and now the sun starts to shine over Equestria. Once done, they get back in bed and start cuddling up to me. I don't think I could be any happier than I am right now.
"I love you both so much," I tell them.
"We love you too," Celestia says and kisses me on the lips, followed by Luna.
We all just lay there with content smiles, enjoying each others company. After about ten minutes, a knock on the door gets our attention.
"Enter," Celestia says.
A maid with light grey fur and light blue hair walks in and bows without looking at us first. "Princess, breakfast is ready," she says and then looks at us. Her face instantly turns from her grey colour to a deep red. I couldn't help but chuckle.
"Thank you, Squeaky Clean. We shall be down shortly," Celestia replies.
"Don't want to," Luna mumbles into my neck and gently licks me, making me laugh as her tongue tickles me.
The maid then bows and leaves. "Well then, time to get up and get to work. You both have to prepare for your trip to the Badlands," Celestia says as she gets out of bed and into her closet.
Luna grumbles to herself, but also gets up. Luna teleports a set of clothes for herself and me as well as my stave. She also teleported the shield we found in their old Castle in the Everfree. It looks repaired and has the rosewood I asked for in it with the amethyst in the socket, perfectly cut to fit it. I also notice a diamond is in the middle of the shield on it's front with a metal frame protecting it.
"Wow. This is looking good," I say as I slide my arm through the strap and grip it. It feels light, like my armour and sword.
"We've placed new enchantments on it to be just like thy armour," Luna tells me.
"Thanks, but now I need to see if it will work as a foci," I reply. I point the shield at Luna and channel a single life element through it, my mana flows into the amethyst then into the diamond. I release the spell and a small beam shoots out of the diamond and hits Luna.
I cancel the spell and smile. "Looks like it works, it even feels slightly stronger too. I'll just have to get used to aiming with it," I say.
"Good, thou can always keep they stave on thy back as a back up," she tells me.
I notice a small silver ring on the middle of my stave. "What's this ring for?" I ask.
"Place thy stave on thy back and the ring will stick to thy armour until thou willingly pulls it off," she tells me.
I do as she says and place my stave on my back, I hear a light metallic tink sound and let go of my stave which stays on my back.
"Is it magnetised?" I ask.
"Yes, it's a simple enchantment, but it serves its purpose," Luna replies. She shows no shame as she drops her nightgown and old underwear and changes into clean clothes right in front of me. She then summons her armour and puts it on, so I do the same, much to her own enjoyment.
Celestia walks back into the room wearing her white dress with the gold highlights. "Are we all ready?" she asks.
I'm fully geared and ready to go. "Yeah, are we picking Shella up on the way or will she be at the Dining Hall?" I reply and ask.
"On the way. Shella's room is just down the hall," Celestia replies.
We all exit her room and head down the hall three doors down where Celestia knocks on the door. "Shella? Are you up?" she asks.
I hear the shuffling of cloth and the sounds of footsteps coming towards the door. The door opens with Shella smiling at us.
"Hi, Princess!" she says energetically. "Are we going now?" she asks. I'm surprised she's excited to go back at all.
"Yes, after we've had breakfast. You, Luna, and Adrian shall go with a crystal to bring back anypony who wants to live here," Celestia tells her.
"Yay! I can bring my friends here!" she says and starts jumping up and down. Her little wings fluttering slightly... wait a second... why is the fin on her head smaller... and is that blue hair growing on her head?... And her eyes are starting to show irises and pupils. Her horn is even starting to change shape... Her black carapace skin even has a slight dark blue tint to it now.
I lean over to Celestia with a frown. "Tia... is it just me or does Shella look different?" I ask her.
Celestia frowns at me then looks at Shella, her eyes then go wide open. "She... she's turning into a Queen," Celestia says in barely a whisper.
A Queen!? She's going to look like Chrysalis? "Is that a good or bad thing?" I ask. I watch as Shella goes through her drawers looking for a dress to wear.
"This is good, we can teach her how to be a kind and caring Queen, unlike Chrysalis. She's seen first hand what she's like, she can help future changelings as their new Queen," she tells me.
I look away as Shella starts to get changed right next to her dresser drawers. After a few minutes of Luna giggling at me, I hear footsteps running back over to us. I look to see the changeling girl wearing a blue dress that goes down to her shins, little butterflies all along the bottom of it.
"I'm ready!" she says with a smile.
I chuckle. I'm glad she's happy here. We walk down to the Dining Hall where we meet Blueblood and Fleur Lily, who are eating their own breakfast. Thraxx Is standing by the door where I see him looking at Shella with a stunned expression.
We all sit down and wait for our food. "Good morning, Blueblood, Fleur," I greet them.
"Good morning, sir Stormsword, Aunties," Blueblood replies. Celestia and Luna also greet him.
"Hi," Fleur just says. Shella sits next to her and they start chatting with each other.
"So, I hear you're heading back to the Badlands, but no details on why, are you going to eradicate the Hive?" Blueblood asks.
"Nay, nephew. We plan to bring any changelings who wish to live a better life as Equestrian citizens back with us," Luna replies.
"Live in Equestria? Does this have anything to do with those green crystals in the Magic Academy?" he asks.
"Thou hast heard of that? Or hast thou seen them?" Luna asks him.
"I've heard some guards talk about them, what will they be used for?" he asks.
"They can feed changelings without draining anypony for their love," Celestia replies.
Blueblood looks surprised. "You mean they're bigger versions of Thraxx's wand?" he asks.
"Sort of, they constantly release a mist that changelings will be able to feed from. We plan to show the changelings at the Badlands Hive that they don't have to live in isolation anymore," Celestia tells him.
"I see. Well... I hope it works, they would make excellent additions to Equestria," he says.
We finish breakfast and then head over to the Academy to collect a crystal.
We walk through and see Crystal Clear working on other types of crystals with the life element in them. "What are these ones for?" I ask.
She looks up and grins. "Hello, Princess, Adrian." She looks down and pats Shella on the head. "And you too cutie," she says making Shella giggle. "These are crystals for our guards. Healing wands, one time use crystal shards that act like those emeralds of yours, except these ones don't shatter and can be refilled and some wands for Hospitals," she tells me and gasps. "Oh! I just remembered. Can you fill a small crystal with another element?" she asks.
"Erm... I can try," I reply.
"Great! Wait right there," she says and runs off into a back room. A minute later she comes back with a crystal two times the size of my fist. "Here try putting another element in here," she tells me.
I take the crystal and try channelling a fire element into it. After about a minute it starts to glow red... but it quickly gets unstable, glowing brighter causing me to start panicking. I run over to the window and open it, I then throw the crystal into the middle of an empty Garden and duck down, a couple seconds later it blows and coats the area in flames.
I lean up look over the windowsill, the garden is totally ruined. I look back to Crystal and Luna to see them wide eyed. "I'm not doing that again!" I tell them.
Crystal just nodded slowly while Luna shakes her head and walks over to me. "We agree, that was much too dangerous. I believe that type of element's energy may be too strong or negative for a crystal to hold. Thy life element worked because we believe it is a mild, positive energy," she tells me.
"Makes sense, could they hold a shield element? Since it's a defensive type element, wouldn't it have a positive energy?" I ask.
"Mayhap, but we shall test it later in a controlled room," she replies. "For now we have to go and convince a Hive to join Equestria," she says and picks up a life crystal from the table.
"Alright... sorry about the Garden, but I didn't think you would want to have the crystal go off in here though," I tell Crystal.
"Oh no problem, we've tested the life wands on plants and it works! So we can just regrow the garden," she replies with a smile.
With that we leave with a life crystal in a steel box being levitated by Luna. It can only be opened or closed by her magic apparently.
We arrive at the airship docks where a hundred guards wait for us. Luna steps up to a platform and all the guards look at her.
"We thank ye for volunteering to join us on this mission. Our goal is to try and convince the citizens of the Badlands Hive to come back with us to live here where they can be fed and happy under the Equestrian flag," Luna informs them. A guard holds her hand up. "Yes?" Luna asks.
"Why are we helping them when they attack and drain us until we die?" she asks.
"They have no choice, would you like to die of starvation?" Luna asks her back. The guard shakes her head. "Which is why we shall show them that they no longer have to foalnap ponies just to survive anymore," Luna tells her. The guard nodded to her. "Ye all shall be there to aid us in case their guards get aggressive with us. Now, each ship shall hold at least ten guards to watch over the refugees. Tis just a precaution in case one of them tries to sabotage the ship," she tells them. I can't fault her on her logic.
They salute and go to their ships while Luna and I get on the Galleon ship. Once ready, the crews take off and we head back to the Hive.
Two Hours Later Badlands Hive
We're back at the Badlands and head towards that side passage I used to escape. The gate looks like it's still damaged from where I blasted it.
We disembark from the ships with seventy of the guards with us, the other thirty stay with the ships. Luna uses her magic to remove the debris from the tunnel and we carefully walk down the tunnel with me in the lead. I take the first left and we arrive at the underground town. The place looks trashed, changelings lay on the floor either dead or dying. Homes look destroyed or damaged and scorch marks litter the area all over the place... looks like a battle happened here.
I hear a female changeling coughing while holding onto what looks like a child. She looks like she's in bad condition as I see a pinkish green mist flow from her into the child.
I quickly run over to them and kneel beside her. "What happened here?" I ask her.
She looks up at me with pleading eyes. "Please... save my hatchling..." she begs me and coughs, looks like she can barely move. I Channel three life elements and cast it as a nova, sending a pulse of green energy around me. The energy flows into both of them and they look much better now. Their holes slightly close and colour returns to them.
She gasps as her child starts to move, she starts crying while hugging the boy. "Thank you... thank you so much... but why are you helping us?" she asks with confusion.
Luna walks over to us. "We are here to ask if thee wish to live in Equestria, we have found a way to feed thine kind without harm to us," she tells the woman.
Her eyes widen. "R-Really? You mean w-we don't have to suffer anymore?" she asks, tears forming in her eyes.
Luna holds her hand out to her. "Nay, we would be glad to have thee, we shall even build thee a town," she tells her. The woman takes her hand and Luna helps her up.
I look at Luna with a smile. "Luna, you take her to the ship, I'll see if I can help anyone else," I tell her.
"Very well, we shall also find out what has transpired here," she replies. I make my way deeper into the Hive with a few guards to heal and feed any survivors.
Two Hours Later Canterlot
We managed to bring seventy injured and near dead changelings out of the Hive... two-hundred and fifty-four didn't survive. Some starved to death while others had slash wounds, I fed and healed the survivors a little to stabilize them until my mana was very low.
The changelings told us that after I escaped when we saved Blueblood, Chrysalis had the whole town destroyed in her anger and took as much energy as she could from the people living there with her back to the main Hive. They've also been disconnected from something called the Hive Mind.
The ones that survived were given what little energy the others had left, mostly the elderly to their children. We explained to the survivors on what we planned to do for them and showed them the crystal. They marvelled at it and began feeding from it. The crystal held strong and wasn't even struggling to feed them.
By the time we returned to Canterlot, all the changelings were fully fed and healthy. Without even discussing it, they said they'll join Equestria and live here under Celestia and Luna's rule. Though they did give Shella a lot of hugs and praise at her changing into a Queen, which shocked Shella as she didn't even realize.
Celestia was there at the Docks to greet us and showed the changelings to the guest rooms. Though some changelings had to share a room which they still thanked her for.
So here I am in the Throne Room with Celestia, Luna, Blueblood, Thraxx, and four of the oldest changelings deciding on where to build this town for them.
"We could build it at the base of Canterlot Mountain? It would be close and we can help send reinforcements should they come under attack or need aid." Luna says.
"That does sound like a good idea, we can burrow into the mountain for our Hive. We shall build and wait for our new Queen to be ready for her own Hive Mind network to develop," a female changeling says.
"So once Shella's transformation is complete, she'll be able to communicate with all of you telepathically?" I ask.
"Yes, a Queen is the heart of a Hive. She helps to organise the Hive and what needs to be done, right now we're not as efficient as we could be as we have no Queen to guide us," a male changeling replies.
"How long will it take for Shella to complete her transformation?" Celestia asks.
"Not that long if she is well fed, a month at most," the second male changeling says.
"What triggered her transformation?" I ask.
"If a female changeling has no connection to a Hive Mind and is well fed, she'll start to transform to begin her own Hive, but this was rare due to the shortage of love energy," Thraxx replies.
"So then we are all in agreement as to the location?" Luna asks.
Everyone nodded in reply. "Then it is settled. Luna and I along with Prince Blueblood and sir Adrian have agreed to help fund the foundations of the town for you," Celestia says, gesturing to us.
One of the changelings looks at Blueblood. "Why would you do such a thing? After what our Hive did to you?" he asks.
"I do not blame you for your need to survive. Though I was originally taken to be replaced, I do not blame anypony other than your old Queen," Blueblood replies kindly.
The changelings smile and thank him, Celestia then speaks up. "We shall have a camp set up at the site with a construction crew as well tomorrow. Those of you who wish to stay here for now may do so, if they want to work here then I shall consider their talents," she offers.
The changelings bow to Celestia with smiles on their faces. "Thank you for giving us this chance, Princess Celestia, Princess Luna," the male changeling says. Before the changelings leave, Celestia gets their attention with a warm smile.
"Of course, everypony deserves a second chance, and I'd also like to say, Welcome to Equestria."
I wake up in Luna's room with both Princesses next to me again, I'm never going to get tired of the feeling of both of them next to me.
I yawn and look at the clock, it's five thirty-three in the morning. I pull Celestia and Luna closer to me and smile, I hear them both hum and sigh while holding me tighter.
After twenty minutes of just laying there with them, I gently shake them to wake them up. "Tia, Luna. It's time to get up," I tell them.
Celestia yawns while Luna just cuddles up to me more. "Five more minutes..." Luna mumbles while Celestia sits up and stretches, giving me a nice view of her chest.
Celestia glances at me and sees me staring at her. She giggles and walks over to Luna's vanity mirror and starts to brush her hair.
Luna also gets up and stumbles into her bathroom, I then stretch and get out of bed as well. I walk up behind Celestia and wrap my arms around her waist. "Good morning," I say to her.
She giggles again. "Good morning. Did you sleep well?" she asks.
"Perfectly, who needs blankets when I have you two," I reply and kiss her cheek. "So when do we start construction on the new Hive?" I ask.
"After we've had breakfast, we'll get crews sent down to the site and begin setting up camp. Then we'll send supplies down and start digging, this'll also be good for finding any gems or crystals in the mountain as well," she tells me.
"Alright, sounds like a plan. While you do that, I'm going to the Training Grounds to practice with my new shield," I tell her.
"Very well, Luna will be at the construction site while I shall be in the Throne Room teaching Shella about being royalty should you need to find us," she replies and I let go so she can continue brushing her hair.
I hear a flush of water and Luna walks back into the room with a yawn, but she's not wearing her nightgown... or anything at all. She then walks up to me and wraps her arms around me with her chest pressing into my back. "Good morning, our love," she says.
I blush slightly and hold one or her hands. "Good morning, Luna. Any reason to why you're naked?" I ask.
"Tis nothing to be embarrassed about, we're lovers are we not? Thou has done more than just see us naked," she replies as her hands start to travel south.
I quickly grab her hands and smirk at her. "Someone is feisty today," I say.
She nuzzles into the back of my neck. "We can not help ourselves, thou art the best thing to happen in our lives as of late," she replies and hugs me tightly.
Celestia then turns to face me. "She's right, Adrian. We were rather... unhappy, with our current way of life. Don't get me wrong, I love our ponies dearly, but they can be very demanding and hard to deal with when they treat you like a goddess, expecting you to fix every problem. You brought some life back into our lives with the way you treat us as equals... as mares," she tells me and stands up. She then hugs me from the front and kisses me. "As you said to us before, you mean everything to us right now," she tells me.
I can feel my eyes starting to tear up but hold it back. "Thanks," I reply and hug her back.
I hear Luna start sniffing at my neck. "Thou needs to bathe... though we don't mind thy scent," she says and licks my neck.
Celestia giggles and steps back as her horn glows where a light blue dress with gold and white floral patterns on it appears in her grip, along with a pair of white panties and bra.
Luna also steps back and does the same but has a dark purple dress with deep blue trimmings on it. A pair of black lacy panties and bra in her other hand as well.
And to my excitement, they get changed right in front of me in the most sexy way possible, shaking their hips as they pull their panties up, wobbling their chest as they put on their bras. I swear a river is coming out of my nose right now. Once they finish getting changed, they head to the balcony and begin their jobs. I watch in awe as they hover off the ground and start glowing. Once finished, they walk back over to me and to my surprise, start pulling my pants off and push me into the bathroom... to say I was aroused was an understatement.
I washed myself with a cold shower and used the toilet. I brush my teeth and walk back into the room naked and dry, then both Celestia and Luna begin dressing me in a clean pair of clothes while they make me hover slightly in the air with their magic. I may be very resistant to unicorn magic, but not to alicorn magic it seems.
Once dressed, they begin strapping my armour onto me with their hands along with my sword, stave and shield. "Well... that was an experience I'd like to repeat," I say which makes them giggle.
"Let us get some breakfast, we are famished," Luna says. As we walk down the halls, Luna is holding my left hand while Celestia is holding my right. The maids smile and bow to us while I finally see the guards crack a smile. I guess they've never seen the Princesses this happy before.
We run into Blueblood, Thraxx, and Fleur Lily along the way. "Good morning, aunties, sir Adrian," Blueblood says with a slight bow.
"Good morning, nephew," Celestia says along with me and Luna as well.
"Oh! Just to let you know, I've already sent the first shipment of building supplies I could afford along with sir Adrian's donation to the site with a construction crew and some of the changelings who wished to help," Blueblood tells us. Wow... that was quick.
"We thank thee, nephew. It shall help jump start construction when we arrive," Luna replies.
I turn around when I hear someone running up behind us. "Wait for me!" Shella yells at us.
I turn and notice she looks different. The small amount of hair on her head and tail has gotten longer as well as her horn and wings. She's also a few inches taller as well.
"Did you sleep well, Shella?" Celestia asks.
"Uh-huh!" she replies. "But I feel a bit funny."
"Funny?" I ask.
"Yeah, my tummy and chest feel all tingly," she says.
I hear Thraxx chuckle. "She's fine, her body is just getting ready to breed when her transformation is complete," he tells us.
I stare at him confused. "You mean she can have children at her age?" I ask.
"No, her body is changing into that of a Queen. And as such, she'll rapidly mature in both body and mind so she can start her Hive as soon as possible," he replies.
So she'll be forced to become an adult? I look back at the confused girl. "How long will that take?" I ask.
"She'll only be a hatchling for another week or two," Thraxx tells me.
So she only has a short time left as a child. "Shella, would you like to go to the park later today?" I ask her. I'm going to make sure she has fun with the time she has left. She smiles and hugs my leg "Yay! Can Lily come with us?" she asks.
I hear Blueblood chuckle as Fleur looks up at him with puppy dog eyes. "Sure, just stay close to sir Adrian alright?" Blueblood tells Fleur.
"Uh-huh!" Fleur says and starts jumping around with Shella.
Seven Hours Later
After my long training session, I can aim quite well now with my new shield, though I still need a lot more practice. Shining Armour and I also spared a few times as well. Once finished, I took a shower, put on clean clothes and my equipment. Me, Shella, and Fleur are walking through the park to a playground where other children are playing. Although Shella did get a lot of nasty looks from the nobles walking the streets along the way, but they said nothing due to my presence.
I watch from a nearby bench as the two girls run over to two empty swings, they're both giggling as they swing back and forth. About three minutes later, I notice a group of four girls that walk over to them with nasty smirks, the other children nearby also distance themselves from the group.
"What do you think you two are doing on our turf!" the tallest tan coloured girl says.
Shella looks over to Fleur. "What's turf mean?" she asks.
"They're saying they own the park..." Fleur says, not looking impressed.
"Damn right it's ours, now get your ugly bug rump out of here before we make you even uglier," a light blue girl says.
I frown and get up and start walking towards them.
Shella looks on the verge of tears, a green girl then pushes Shella off her swing and she lands on her back hard making Fleur glare at them. "Hey! Don't treat my friend like that!" Fleur says getting up off her swing.
The tan girl frowns, walks over and shoves Fleur to the floor. "Oh yeah? And what are you going to do about it?" she says to Fleur smugly.
I stand right behind them and cast a barrier spell between the girl and Fleur, which makes the four nasty girls jump back in fright. The tan girl bumps into me and turns around, her eyes go wide as she looks up.
I just glare down at her. "She won't do anything, me on the other hand..." I say and continue glaring at her.
"Y-You can't do a-anything to m-me! Don't you k-know who I am?" she says trying to sound smug.
"Nope, and I don't give a damn. Do you know who I am? I'm the Princesses knight and I'm looking after these two," I say to the spoilt brat. I lean down still glaring. "You're going to leave and go home. I won't tolerate you bulling them or anyone else while I'm here," I tell her coldly.
She hesitates, but her so called friends run away. "H-HEY! Get back h-here!" the girl screams at them. She then turns back to me. "I-I'm gonna tell my daddy on you!" she says and starts to run as well.
I just shake my head at them and cancel the barrier. I then hold my hand out to the grumpy looking Fleur which she grabs and I pull her up.
"Thanks..." she says and dusts herself off.
"You're welcome," I reply and turn to Shella. "Are you alright?" I ask her as I help her up.
She starts crying and hugs me, I channel a life element into my right hand and heal the small crack on her elbow. She calms down and gives off a small burp, making Fleur giggle. "I'm fine when you're here..." Shella says. I then place my shield on my back.
"Come on, I'll give you both a push," I tell them and they smile. The other kids come back to the park, happy that the bullies are gone.
We spend another two hours at the park playing with a ball and other games like tag with all the other kids. "Alright, time to head back," I say, getting a lot of 'awwws' from all the kids that decided to join in, I then lift Fleur on my left shoulder and Shella onto my right. They laugh and ironically, told me to 'giddy up' making me chuckle.
With that, I headed back to the castle with a smile on my face and two giggling girls on my shoulders.
Construction Day 5
Over the last Five days, shella has been following me around a lot, watching me train and just playing when she has the chance. She's also gotten bigger and now looks like a teenager. Her hair is now down to the back of her neck and her tail goes down to her thighs. The fin on her head is almost gone and her eyes almost look like a pony's. Her horn and wings have also gotten longer again, though unlike Chrysalis, Shella's horn isn't crooked like hers, just a smooth slightly curved horn. The green carapace like band across her stomach has also changed from green to a deep blue. She's also been asking me to feed her instead of from the crystals, which I didn't mind.
The Hive is progressing nicely, so far the main chamber has been dug out and quite a few gems and crystals have been collected. They're quite high quality, Celestia says it's because of her and Luna's magic they release slowly over the years and that the crystals have been absorbing it.
I've checked the Hive with Shella on the fourth day, the changelings there are also starting to show similar colours to Shella. Their black carapace has turned slightly dark blue as well as the bands around their stomachs to match Shella's. The Changelings have also been given clean clothes to wear instead of the rags they first arrived with. All in all, they look a lot happier here than they did back at the Badlands. Some even joined the royal guard under Shining's watch.
Celestia has been getting more and more frisky with me such as on the second night, she started groping me in her sleep, I just stayed silent since it felt amazing. On the fourth night she rolled on top of me and started kissing me during the night... that was a fun wake up call.
Blueblood and Thraxx have been talking with the nobles to try and better them. They've managed to convince one family so far, though there's at least thirty more to go, but progress is progress.
Construction Day 12
Shella now looks like she's eighteen. Her fin is gone and her eyes look just like a pony's now, a deep blue colour, like a lapis lazuli. Her hair now reaches down to her shoulder blades and her tail down to her knees. Her hips have started to widen and her chest is growing as well. Her horn is now the same length as Luna's and her height reaches up to my neck, not including her horn. Her carapace now has an easily noticeable dark blue tint to it similar to Luna's fur colour.
Her childlike innocence seems to have gone now and she acts more like an adult thanks to Celestia's teachings, she's no longer jumping around and getting over excited. She's still friends with Fleur, but the little filly feels awkward at how fast Shella is growing.
I've also noticed Shella starting to blush slightly and look away when she looks me in the eye and hugs me whenever she can. Kind of reminds me of Luna after we had our first intimate moment together where she got really clingy and affectionate.
Blueblood has got another noble family to follow the old traditions. To be honest, he's getting it done faster than I thought.
Celestia has been getting REALLY touchy lately. She's been groping me whenever she could, even in public, but before she could go any further, she'd calm down and make an excuse to leave. I'm starting to get worried about her.
On the eighth day I was summoned to court for apparently assaulting a filly in the park, it was that tan girl that pushed Fleur. Her father wanted to sue me for 'traumatizing' his daughter, who looked like she was crying her eyes out. In my defence, I just let Celestia see the memory of what happened, Celestia asked the girl if what she saw from my memory was true of not.
The girl started to stutter under Celestia's gaze while her father started to look angry at her. She finally admitted she started it and that I didn't touch her. The father apologised to me and I accepted it. Though I gave the girl a smirk that her father was going to punish her for lying and embarrassing him in front of Celestia.
On the tenth day, a gryphon hunting party raided a town on the border. We lost three guards and they lost two gryphons, but the other four escaped with three ponies... Once I've mastered this shield, I'm going to make them regret attacking my new home and its people.
Right now I'm laying in Celestia's bed reading my spell book waiting for Luna and Celestia to arrive, I'm starting to get the hang of the light element but I still can't stabilise it... at least I haven't blinded myself again yet.
Celestia walks in about an hour later. I look up at her and see her with a half lidded expression, smiling lustfully at me... "Celestia... are you alright? Where's Luna?" I ask her.
She walks over to the bed and slowly starts stripping in front of me. I go wide eyed as she crawls on top of me and puts her hands under my shirt and strokes my chest. "Lulu is doing some last minute checks on the progress of the Hive... as for me, I need your help," she replies.
"A-And what kind of help do you need?" I ask.
"I've just entered my heat, and I want you to give me a foal," she replies into my ear with as much lust as she could.
"I've just entered my heat, and I want you to give me a foal," Celestia says into my ear with as much lust as she could.
She's in heat?.. wait... SHE WANTS A CHILD!?
"You want a child? I know I warned Luna when we had sex the first time... but, am I even compatible with you?" I ask. I just notice her hair and tail are back to their natural solid pink.
She giggles at me seductively, oh damn that sounds sexy. "I don't know... but I'm willing to find out," she tells me and kisses me. I couldn't help but groan as her breasts are squished against my chest. I grab her ass and start kneading the soft flesh beneath her fur. She moans into my mouth as she gets more aggressive by forcing her tongue into my mouth.
Her tongue coils around mine as we exchange saliva with each other. Oh fuck, I'm as hard as steel already... I need to get these clothes off!
Celestia gasps as the tent in my pants rubs against her groin. "Hmmmm, that feels nice," she says and grinds on my lap. "Let's get rid of these clothes shall we?" she says and licks my cheek. Her horn glows and I'm lying naked beneath her. "That's better, I've had to act as the kind motherly ruler for centuries, and now, I want to experience being a mother. I want you to rut me so much that even if we're not compatible, I'd get pregnant anyway," she whispers into my ear and then exhales, her hot breath sending a chill down my spine.
I growl and wrap my arms around her back and grip the base of each wing, she gasps and moans loudly as I start massaging them. She starts to grind my length between her thighs as it rubs against her heat. I then carefully roll her onto her back, making sure I don't bend her wings the wrong way.
Celestia pants heavily as I start thrusting my dick across her clit slowly. Her moans of pleasure is music to my ears and I bring my lips to her right breast and begin licking and sucking. I twirl my tongue around the nipple and pinch it between my teeth while still massaging her wing joints.
She grabs the back of my head and pulls me hard against her breast. I can taste her milk flowing onto my tongue, it's less creamy than Luna's but much sweeter, I greedily drink her milk. I hear her quietly scream as she arches her back and her juices coat my balls and thighs. I slip two fingers down and gather some of her cum. I quickly lick it off my finger and taste her, tastes like vanilla.
I pull back and look at her face, she's looking at me with lust and love. "Hurry, Adrian. *pant* Rut me. *huff* Make me your mare!" she tells me desperately.
I line up my dick with her soaked pussy and gently prod my tip against her making her gasp. "Don't tease me! Just put it in!" she says and I do just that. I thrust forward slowly so she can savour the pleasure, I know I am. Once I'm fully inside, she wraps her legs around my waist and her arms around my neck. I can feel her soft hot walls clenching my cock, fuck that feels good, she's tighter than Luna.
"Oh Adrian... ahhh... please... nggh... rut me... breed me!" she says and I slowly begin thrusting. I latch onto her left breast and begin draining the milk from it making her moan loudly as I continue to rub her wings.
"Yes! Buck me! Buck me so hard I can't walk for days!" she tells me and I increase my speed. She's grunting with every thrust, moaning from every hard suckle to her nipples, gasping from every rough twist of her wing joints. she leans her head back as her eyes roll into the back of her head and her tongue lolls out of her mouth.
I lift my head up and kiss her deeply as I battle with her tongue and run my appendage across her teeth and palate. I feel her run her tongue across my canines and she groans from their sharpness.
I pick up speed again and slam into her with fervour. She leans her head back, screaming as I nibble, lick, and suck on her exposed neck. The sounds of our mating echoes throughout the room with wet slaps and moans of ecstasy.
After a good twenty minutes of passionate sex, I can feel my peak quickly approaching. "Tia... I'm close," I tell her.
It seems she's in such euphoria she barely heard me. "Inside! AAHHHH! CUM INSIDE ME!" she screams as she cums hard, her tail wrapping around me. "ADRIAN! AAAAHHH!" I can feel her vice like grip clamp down on me and pull my dick deep into her. Oh shit, I can't hold it anymore.
"AH FUCK!" I shout as I explode inside her, pumping shot after shot of cum into her eager womb. Celestia is violently shaking against me as her legs and arms hold onto me tightly, her mouth wide open in a silent scream and her eyes roll back all the way. I continue to thrust against her as best as I can to prolong her orgasm.
Her trembling calms down as she tries to catch her breath. "Adrian... *huff* That was... *pant* Wonderful... *huff* Thank you," she says and holds onto me and nuzzles my neck.
"You're welcome, Tia. But we're not done yet," I tell her.
She looks at me confused. "Not done? *huff* Y-You mean you can go again?" she asks me.
"Of course, why? Can't stallions?" I ask her back.
"N-No, they can only last once and only for ten minutes at most... the fact that you lasted... nnnggh... much longer was amazing. Ahh!... In itself," she tells me.
Wow... sucks to be a stallion. "Well then, good thing I'm not a stallion!" I say. I then pull out and turn her onto her hands and knees. She 'Eeeps' and instinctively raises her tail and spreads her legs, I then grip her hips and line myself up with her dripping pussy. Her wings shoot wide open and her tail wraps around my waist as she looks back at me with wide eyes.
I thrust forward hard and hilt her instantly. She raises her head, closes her eyes and screams from the sudden penetration and pushes back against me. "Oh buck me! Ahhh! Nnghh... fill me again my love, fill me to the brim!" she says and I start pounding into her. Her head flops onto her pillow as her ass stays in the air. I lean over her and wrap my arms around her waist where she grabs my hands and entwines her fingers with mine.
I begin to fuck her rapidly as the wet slapping sounds of our frantic lovemaking fill the room. I'm pretty sure any guards and maids can hear her screaming out in bliss if they pass by... if not the whole Castle, but that can be dealt with later, right now I got a Princess to please. I begin to fuck her as fast as I can, thrusting three times every second. Her grip on my hands tighten as well as the erratic squeezing of her vagina.
"A-Adri-ian! NNNGGGH! I-I'm sssoooooooo c-close! AAH! DON'T OOOHH! D-DON'T S-STOP!" she begs me and I start hammering for all I'm worth. She's moaning so hard and constantly, it sounds like she's crying. I can see tears leaking from her eyes as she's gritting her teeth, her pussy is absolutely gushing.
"Oh fuck! Tia, I'm gonna cum!" I tell her.
"YEEESSS! NNGGAAAHH! FILL ME! AH BUCK! OOOOH! BREED ME! CLAIM ME! AAAAAAHHH!" she shouts and cums again even harder this time. I let go and paint her womb with another helping of my cum. Her juices soak my groin and legs but I don't care as she trembles like she's in an earthquake and refuses to let go of my hands. "I LOVE YOU, ADRIAN! AAHHH!" she yells to me, her climax still rocking her body. I keep fucking her until she goes limp.
"Nnngghh... OooOOooOOHhh. I've never... aaahh... felt so goood nnngghh..." she mumbles. Her pussy still clenching and sucking on my dick, trying to extract as much out of me as possible.
I grin and massage her back, earning me more moans from her. "The night is still young and I've got plenty of stamina left. Do you need a break?" I ask her.
I then see her eyes shoot open and her pupils mere pinpricks. She leans back and I fall onto my back with my cock still inside her. She sits up on my lap and begins grinding rapidly to keep me hard. "Ah shit!" I say and grunt from her rough grinding. I grab her waist and start grinding back. She moans deeply and starts bouncing on me.
Her ass slaps against my pelvis over and over, jiggling to my pleasure. I firmly grasp each cheek and squeeze tightly, earning a lustful groan out of her. I begin pulling her down while thrusting up into her to which she starts screaming again. I sit up and start groping her breasts, kneading, twisting and pulling on her nipples. I can feel some milk running down my fingers and then give them a hard squeeze making her scream and cum as milk squirts over the bed.
I pick her up and stand off the bed, I pull out and turn her to face me and lift her up by her ass. She wraps her arms and legs around me as I pin her to the wall and thrust back in. She moans and I start pumping quickly while gripping her ass tightly. "Oooh! O-Once the.. nnggghhh... Hive i-is finnnnaaaahh! Finished... oh buck me... W-Will you m-marr... nnngghhaaaaah!" she says between moans and screams.
Whatever she wanted to say was interrupted as she cums. "YEEEESSS!" she screams and I can't help but cum and flood her again. I can feel our mixed fluids leaking out of her and dripping to the floor. Still inside her, I stumble over to the bed and fall onto my back with her on top of me, my member still buried deeply within her.
I was about to ask her what she said, but she's passed out on top of me. I scoot back and pull the covers over us without pulling out of her. I guess I'll have to ask her in the morning, and only time will tell if she's pregnant.
"Sweet dreams, Tia," I say to her. Feeling exhausted, I join her in the land of dreams. Except my dreams will be filled with the hope of a family.
I wake up with Celestia on top of me and I remember the events of last night making me smile. I gently stroke her hair as she hums in content.
I check the clock on the wall and see it's only ten past five so I just lay there, enjoying Celestia's company. She slowly starts to stir and looks me in the eyes. "Good morning, beautiful," I say and lightly kiss her.
She smiles into the kiss and hums happily. "Thank you for last night, I've never felt better," she says and nuzzles me. I return the affection and sit up. She straddles me and we notice how sticky we are.
I chuckle and kiss her again. "I think we need a bath," I tell her.
"Agreed, and just like my sister, I would like you to scrub my back," she says with a sly smile.
I chuckle and lift her up making her giggle as I carry her into her bathroom and let her stand on her own. She stumbles and has trouble standing as she leans against the sink. "Oh my. I know I said to rut me until I couldn't walk, but I didn't think you'd literally do it," she says with her heavenly giggle.
I turn the taps on and start drawing the bath. Celestia sits down on her toilet and tries to calm her trembling legs, I can't help but feel proud of that.
"Oh! I almost forgot, Nightmare Night is in three days time, will you be joining Luna down in Ponyville?" she asks me.
"I almost forgot about that, but yeah, I'm going with Luna... do I need to dress up or something?" I reply and ask.
"You don't have to, but I think Luna would enjoy it if you did," she tells me.
"Do you know what she's going as?" I ask.
"I was surprised when she told me, she said she's going as Nightmare Moon..." she says and then glares at me. "You wouldn't have anything to do with that would you?" she asks.
I frown and think. I remember her telling me about her banishment and what I told her. "I told her the past is the past and to live for the now, not in the past. I guess she's accepting her mistakes and making the most of what she can," I reply.
Celestia's glare softens to a warm smile. "So you helped Lulu overcome her old fear," she says and shakily gets onto her legs and wobbles over to me where she then gives me a tight hug. "Thank you for that, she really began opening up more since then," she tells me.
"I'm happy it helped, and I meant it, I'd do anything to keep you two happy," I reply and turn the taps off. The water feels perfect and I help Celestia in, she sighs happily from the warm water against her body. I join her once she's in and she leans against me.
"This is perfect," she says and nuzzles me.
I remember that she tried asking me something during our fun last night. "Tia, you were trying to ask me something last night, but you kinda interrupted yourself. What did you want to ask me?" I ask her.
She frowns in thought then goes wide eyed and blushes heavily. "I... erm..." she stutters and looks at me as if to find something. She takes a deep breath and closes her eyes. "After the Hive is completed and everything settles down... would..." she hesitates for a few seconds. "Would you marry me and Luna?" she asks.
I just stare at her for a few seconds as my brain shuts down, did she just propose to me? I blink a few times and look into her eyes. I can see the hope and love in them, I couldn't help but smile and tear up. "I'd be honoured to, my love," I reply.
She squeals and kisses me, I return the kiss and hold her close and after a few seconds I let go.
POV: Celestia
He said yes! I need to tell Luna! 'Lulu? Where are you?' I ask her telepathically with excitement.
'OUCH. Ow, horseapples! Tia? What is the matter?' she asks.
I couldn't help but feel giddy. 'Lulu, he said yes!' I tell her.
I can feel her confusion 'Who said yes to what, sister?'
I take a deep breath 'I proposed to Adrian and he said yes!' I tell her.
"WHAT!" I hear Luna shout in the Royal Canterlot Voice. She doesn't reply but I hear her thundering down the hallway.
"Was that Luna?" Adrian asks, looking towards the door.
Before I could answer, Luna bursts in as she runs over to Adrian and looks him in the eye. "Is it true? Thou wishes to wed us?" she asks with excitement.
Adrian looks confused as to how she knew. "Err, yes?" he replies unsure.
Luna couldn't help but squeal as well and kisses him hard, she then loses her balance and falls into the bath with us. She pokes her head above the water after flailing for a few seconds and gasps. Adrian chuckles and I giggle as Luna grins sheepishly.
"You might as well join us now, sister," I tell her.
Her horn glows and her clothes are teleported away, she then moves to Adrian's right side and leans against him. "We have never been more happy than right now. We thank th... thank you, Adrian," she says surprising me as she nuzzles him. That's the first time since she's returned that she hasn't used old Equestrian.
POV: Adrian Stormsword
Wow, she must be really happy if she dropped her archaic dialect. I couldn't help but smile as they cuddled up to me... wait... if we get married, will that make me a King!? "Erm, not to ruin the mood or anything, but would that make me a King and you both Queens?" I ask.
"Yes... why? Do you not wish to be King?" Celestia replies and asks with a worried tone.
Do I want to be a King? What responsibilities would I have? "I... don't know... what would I do as a King?" I ask.
"Thou will aid us in the ruling of the nation, help with laws and negotiations as well as the requests of the citizens and nobles," Luna tells me.
Shit... not my strong point... I'm a battle-mage. "Would it be possible to let you two sort out the national stuff while I continue with my battle-mage training and being your bodyguard?" I ask.
"Why?" Luna asks.
"I'm not very good with negotiations and such... just look at my interactions with the nobles," I reply.
"Hmmm, tis true thy skills in politics are... lacking. We see no problem of thou staying as our protector," Luna tells me.
"I can agree with that, but you will have to attend some court sessions with us and any important meetings with allied nations," Celestia says.
Hmmm. "I can do that," I reply with a smile.
I help wash both of them as we all laugh and have a little splashing fight. Celestia got her back washed like she asked me to and she just melted under my touch, Luna also wanted one as well. We get out and dry each other off, though Luna got a little too frisky with me. We get dressed and they raise the sun and lower the moon, I then equip my armour and we all head out to do our tasks for the day.
Luna is off to continue helping with the Hive's construction while Celestia is continuing to teach Shella about being royalty. I head off to the Training Grounds to continue practising with my shield.
Construction Day 16 Nightmare Night
I wake up with Luna shaking me vigorously. "Adrian! Wake up, we need thou to try on thine costume for tonight!" she tells me.
I yawn as I look from her to the clock to see it's nearly midday. "Why'd you let me sleep in?" I ask.
"So thou can stay up longer tonight!" she says excitedly.
"And what would I wear to match yours?" I ask her and get out of bed.
She smiles and her horn lights up, she now has black fur and her hair and tail look more mist like, she's also wearing light blue armour that looks sleek yet sinister and her eyes are cat like, similar to the thestrals. She has two incisors and is grinning wickedly with them, she's even grown a few inches.
Holy shit! This is what Nightmare Moon looks like? "So what do you think?" she asks as she starts twirling a finger across my chest. Her voice sounds deeper yet laced with mirthful venom.
"Errr. I'm not sure what to think... not gonna lie, you look rather attractive like this, but what would I wear to match?" I reply and ask.
She smiles warmly, but with her current appearance, she looks smug. "We have asked the armourer to craft thee a suit of armour to match ours," she says. Her horn glows again and I'm wearing a black suit of armour with highlights matching hers, her cutie-mark is also on each pauldron. The armour kinda looks like a dark corrupted version of my knight armour with a few spikes and blades attached.
Okay, this is kinda cool. "So I'm like your corrupted knight or something?" I ask while still looking over the armour. There's even a sword on my hip and a pony skull shaped shield on my back.
"Exactly! We shall swoop in by chariot and announce our presence with much drama and flair!" she says excitedly.
"So when do we leave?" I ask.
"At ten in the evening. Until then, we shall go out for lunch!" she says and pulls me towards the door as her appearance returns to normal and my armour also disappears a well.
She then drags me into the City where we have a nice lunch at the Golden Roast Café.
Nine Hours Later
I'm standing in Luna's room fully decked out in the black armour Luna made for me while she's in her Nightmare Moon getup.
Luna's jumping around like a little girl on her birthday, it's actually kinda creepy when she looks like this. "Tis almost time! We cannot wait!"
Luna told me the purpose of Nightmare Night during our time in the City, it's where children gather sweets and offer some to a statue of Nightmare Moon so she wouldn't eat them instead. They dress up like monsters so that Nightmare Moon might ignore them.
Though Luna was not happy about this at first, but she's now decided to make the most of it.
We waited for forty minutes and planned on what to do. Once ready, we head through the halls that have been decorated a bit with bats, spiders, and pumpkins with weird faces carved into them.
The guards and maids actually look afraid of us, they quickly move out of our way while Luna sexily walks down the halls swaying her hips. Oh god, I'm going to have fantasies about this later, I just know it.
We make our way to the courtyard where a dark blue chariot is waiting for us with two thestrals attached to harnesses. Luna and I walk up and step onto the chariot. "Fly servants! Take us to Ponyville, we have a tribute to collect!" Luna says in character and the two thestrals take off.
We fly for a good ten minutes and I can just feel the smirk on Luna's face. I can see Ponyville coming up with lights and people all over the place.
Luna's horn glows and we're shrouded by black clouds as lightning starts discharging around us, but I don't feel anything. I guess it's all just an illusion.
The people of Ponyville look up at the cloud around us and start panicking. With one final large bolt of Lightning, we exit the cloud where Luna laughs maniacally. "Citizens of Ponyville! We have come for our tribute! Ye have one hour to bring it to us!" she shouts out to the cowering crowd. "Where we may just eat it, instead of thee! HAAAHAHAHAHA!" Wow she's really getting into the role.
As per my part, I draw my sword and shield and channel three arcane elements through the sword giving it a sinister red and black aura around it. The eyes on the shield start glowing red and give off and dark blue mist. I slowly exhale and thanks to an illusion placed on the helmet, an ice cold looking mist comes out of my mouth.
The people scream and scramble to gather as many sweets as they can, or just to get away.
"Luna... don't you think this is going a bit too far? They look beyond terrified..." I whisper to her.
She looks around and looks remorseful. "We think thou art right," she replies.
She returns to her normal form and my armour is replaced with my normal set. I see Twilight and her friends still in their costumes run up to us with angry expressions and wearing necklaces, except for Twilight who has a crown or tiara.
But once they see us back to normal, they just look confused. "Erm... what happened to Nightmare Moon? And that creepy flank Knight?" Rainbow asks.
Twilight walks up to Luna. "Princess? What's going on?" she asks. I snicker, almost losing it seeing her in a old fashioned looking mage’s robe, hat with bells, and a long fake white beard... wait a minute... she's dressed just like the image of the mage in my spellbook.
"Twilight? Just out of curiosity... are you dressed as Starswirl the Bearded?" I ask her.
She gasps and runs up to me. "Finally! Somepony gets it!" she says happily.
"Twilight? We should get back to what just happened don'tcha think?" Applejack says.
Twilight jumps and turns back to Luna. "Right. Princess... why did you look like Nightmare Moon?" she asks.
Luna sighs. "We thought it would be fitting due to the nature of the holiday... but as Adrian said, we may have taken it too far," she replies and hangs her head down in shame. I wrap my right arm around her waist and smile at her.
"Don't worry about it Luna, at least you can say you had the most realistic prank of the night," I try to cheer her up.
She looks back up to me with a small smile. Twilight looks stunned. "Prank? You scared the town half to death for a prank?"
"Don't be mad at her Twilight, she was just trying to fit in and try to accept her past mistakes. If you're going to be mad at anyone then be mad at me for letting her go through with it, I just didn't know what kind of a reaction we would get," I tell her.
Twilight and the others look at me and then sigh. "Fine, but next time... please let us know first," she says with a smile.
"We will Twilight, and we are sorry for the panic we caused," Luna replies.
A young white boy with brown patches on his fur with two toned brown hair dressed as a pirate walks up to Luna. "Princess Luna... could you change back into Nightmare Moon and scare us again? That was fun, scary, but fun!" he says.
Luna raises an eyebrow. "Thou found us scaring thee... fun?" Luna asks.
"Uh-huh!" he replies as other kids gather around as well. Luna looks at me and I just smirk at her.
"Very well," she says and her horn glows. Once again she's in her Nightmare Moon appearance and I'm back in my corrupted knight armour. Luna looks down and grins, showing her fangs at the boy. "So where be our tribute mortal? We art still waiting, or should we just gobble thee up instead?" she asks and starts to reach out for him.
He squeals and starts running off with the other kids to find her some candy. I stand beside Luna with my sword -which I just noticed is blunt and dull- and shield, trying to look as intimidating as I could. The adults, now that they realize it's all for show, have calmed down and started to play along, helping the children to gather their 'tributes' for Nightmare Moon.
I spot a woman I recognize from the Everfree talking to the children, it's Zecora. I almost didn't recognize her with her costume on.
The rest of the night passes by quickly as we play a few games like tossing fake spiders onto a webbed net, pumpkin launching, a haunted house in Applejack's barn and a few other smaller carnival style games.
The children brought a small amount of candy each to 'Nightmare Moon' and her corrupted knight. Though even if each portion was tiny, it all added up and we have two bags full of it and I placed them both on the chariot. The guards that came with us even joined in the festivities.
"Your Princess is pleased with thy tribute! So for another year, thy town shall be spared!" Luna says to the people.
The little boy who first approached Luna thanked her for a fun night and proclaimed her as best Princess, that got Luna smiling widely.
We headed back to Canterlot with our spoils where we stayed up with Celestia in bed telling her what happened while snacking on the candy.
Construction Day 20
Over the last week Shella has completed her transformation and has created her Hive Mind network. She's now as tall as me and looks like she's just over twenty, she even has the same body shape as Celestia. Her hair goes down to her waist and her tail goes down to her ankles. Her fangs have also disappeared, replaced to look like pony teeth. Her wings have also changed from dragonfly like wings to that of a moth, they're light blue with darker blue patterns on them. Celestia tells me she's never seen a changeling like this before. Maybe it's the energy of the life element that's affecting her?
The other changelings are also showing the same change once the Hive Mind was set up. Their wings also became moth like and their teeth flat, they're actually quite happy with the change, it's one less thing to remind them of their old Queen. Their eyes even became pony like.
Shella has also been flirting with me now and then, and I think Celestia has also noticed this, but when Shella flirts with me in front of Celestia, I think I saw her smiling... strange, has Celestia been encouraging her?
Shining has been training me in how to use the shield as more than just a spell foci. I've started to learn how to effectively block and deflect with it, I also continued to practice my aim with it as well. Shining also informs me that his marefriend will be coming back within a week from the cervine homeland.
Blueblood and Thraxx are doing their best to convince more noble families but aren't having any success these last few days.
Fleur Lily still talks and plays with Shella, but it just isn't the same for her anymore.
I went to check on the Hive with Luna on the eighteenth day. The main chamber has been completed along with an Inn just outside the entrance for future visitors or travelling merchants. The living area inside the Hive is about halfway completed with about ten homes already built. It's a mixture of the changelings homes from the Badlands and the houses from Ponyville. Instead of colourful houses, they have black and dark blue homes to match the new colour of their chitin.
I also met Twilight who was 'Studying' the changelings culture here. I saw one changeling woman almost talked to death by Twilight's constant questioning, I teasingly told Twilight to stop torturing the poor woman and she gave me a glare that Luna and I laughed at.
They've also started digging out an area for a market. Celestia, Luna, and I have given the changelings each a thousand bits to help start their economy. Some have even agreed to be farmers to grow crops in the large fields to the left of the entrance to sell to nearby towns since they don't need to eat actual food. Applejack has been by a few times and has been teaching them how to grow some crops like corn, carrots, potatoes, and wheat.
Twilight has even donated some copies of the books she has for their own Library, which they appreciated. She even offered to get them more if they wanted.
I'm heading back to Luna's room for the night. Along the way I spot Shella standing by her room's door looking nervous. "Shella? Are you alright?" I ask her.
"I'm... fine," she replies and looks me in the eyes. "Can I ask you something?" she asks. She sounds a lot more confident and mature like Celestia. Then again she is learning from her.
"Sure, what is it?"
"I've been ready to breed for the last few days, but I've yet to find a mate..." she says. Uh oh, I think I can see where this is going... "I was wondering if you would be my mate," she tells me.
I just stare at her wide eyed. "You want me to be your mate? Why me?" I ask. I'm not going to lie, she's absolutely beautiful now.
"I wouldn't be here right now if it wasn't for you, I'd still be the little starving hatchling back at the Badlands or dead... we all would be. It's your love, or energy that has fed us and made us better. Your compassion that gave us a second chance. You helped give us a home we can live in, not just survive in," she says and places both of her hands on my chest while looking in my eyes while hers tear up. "You're the only one I can think of that I would want as my mate," she tells me.
"B-But what about Celestia and Luna? I won't cheat on them," I tell her.
"You won't have to," I hear Celestia's voice say. I look down the hall and see Celestia and Luna walking towards us. "We've discussed it with Shella already, and have decided to welcome her as the third member of our herd," she tells me.
"Yes, and it'll also be good for pony and changeling relations," Luna says.
Celestia smiles at me. "I've noticed her little crush on you during our lessons and the looks she gives you," she tells me while Shella blushes.
"And you're sure you're fine with this?" I ask them just in case.
"Yes, and since Shella has technically just entered her first heat, or the changeling equivalent at least. We'd like you to mate with her tonight and help her Hive grow," Celestia says.
They want me to impregnate her? "Is that even possible?" I ask.
"There's a very high chance for it. changeling Queens are able to breed with any race," Celestia says.
Before anyone else could say a word, Shella pulls me into her room and pushes me onto her bed.
Terracana Chapter 31.5: The Love of a Changeling (Clop)
I fall back onto Shella's bed and can hear Celestia and Luna giggle as they head back down the hall. Shella is standing beside the bed with a huge blush on her face.
"I'm sorry if this is too sudden, but I don't want anyling else as my mate than you... I love you," she says, still with her heavy blush and holding her hands together.
I sit up on the edge of the bed and pat the quilt beside me, she takes the hint and sits beside me. "I've had a feeling you might of liked me with the way you kept flirting with me last week," I tell her and she looks away. I gently cup her cheek and move her head to look at me. "And I won't say I didn't find it flattering that you would chose me over anyone else... but you sure you're ready for this?" I ask her.
She looks at me with those deep blue eyes of hers. "Yes, I've had this urge to be with you for the last three days, I want to be with you," she says and hugs me.
"But what about your Hive? Don't you need to be there for them?" I ask her.
"No, I can communicate with them using our Hive Mind. Meaning I can stay here with you and the Princesses," she tells me and suddenly kisses me.
I cup her right cheek with my left hand and kiss her back. I won't lie and say I haven't started developing feelings for her over the last two weeks. I'm just glad Luna and Celestia have accepted her as well.
She wraps her arms around my neck as she deepens the kiss, I also wrap my arms around her waist and I notice her moth like wings spreading wide. They look absolutely beautiful. I reach out and gently stroke the edge of one from the base to about mid way making her shiver and moan into my mouth.
"Th-That felt nice, can you do it again please?" she asks and I repeat the action on her other wing earning me more shivers of delight.
"Hmmmm," she hums in content. I can start smelling a musky fragrance coming from her. It smells sweet and she notices me sniffing the air. "Oh, I didn't think you would be able to smell that," she says.
"Smell what?" I ask.
"The pheromones my body is releasing. It's my body's way of letting others know I'm ready to breed, but it should be scentless to anything other than a changeling," she tells me.
"Strange, I can smell it and it smells sweet," I say and lean closer to her and inhale deeply. She smells very nice. "I like it," I tell her.
She smiles and begins to take off her dress but I grab her hand and stop her, getting a confused expression from her. "Allow me," I say.
She blushes as I kneel in front of her and wrap my arms around her as I slowly pull the small zipper on the back of her dress down. I then reach up and pull the straps over her shoulders down and her dress falls to her waist. She's blushing so hard that her neck has started to turn green. I still find it strange that a changeling's blush looks green instead of red or pink... but I guess that's due to their blood being green as well.
I hook my fingers on the back of her dress above her ass and start pulling it down, my hands give her backside a gentle squeeze on the way getting an 'Eep' out of her. I pull the dress down past her knees and then completely off, I then place the dress on a table and turn back to her. She's only wearing a pair of light blue panties and bra.
I wrap my hands behind her again and unclip her bra and pull them off, letting her breasts free and jiggle. Her wings begin twitching and fluttering now and then. I then grip the sides of her panties and pull them down, now that I can see them clearly, their soaked in her arousal. I pull them off and place them and the bra with her dress.
I look back at the naked changeling Queen and smile, the deep blue chitin around her waist has this oily effect when light shines off it. Her nipples are also a deep blue.
I smirk at her and spread my arms. "Would you like your turn now?" I ask her.
She goes wide eyed and nodded quickly, she then stands up and walks over to me. She removes my armour with a glow of her horn and starts lifting my shirt over my head with her hands. She lingers on stroking my chest for a few seconds before pulling my shirt over my head where she then places it on the table next to her dress and then begins unbuttoning my trousers.
She pulls the zipper down, undoes the button and then snakes her hands in to grope my ass while pulling them down. I step out of them once they're at the floor and to my surprise, she bites the hem of my underwear and pulls it down to my knees where she gets them off with her hands.
She's still kneeling in front of me with my erection in her face. I watch as she brings her right hand up and begins to stroke my member with wide eyes. After a few strokes, she extends her tongue and begins licking the head making me moan from the stimulation and gently rub her ears between my thumb and fingers. She hums from the rubbing and takes the head of my dick into her mouth.
I feel her tongue swirling around the head getting me to groan while she still strokes my length with her hand. Her left hand is on my right hip to help her keep her balance as she starts to slowly take me deeper and I silently thank any gods here that her fangs are gone.
She's taking my dick halfway now and moans in delight, she then takes my dick out and looks at me. "You taste delightful!" she tells me and returns to sucking on my cock. She then pushes the whole thing down her throat and gags slightly, I can't help but groan deeply from the feeling.
Once she's used to it, she starts bobbing along the whole length with long slow movements. I continue to rub her ears and she picks up speed and keeps moaning in delight.
I go wide eyed and I can feel her tongue coil around the whole thing from head to base. Holy crap! How long is her tongue? Her tongue then wraps around my balls and begins massaging them. Ooooh shit! I can't hold on anymore! "Shella... nngh. I'm cumming!" I warn her.
She speeds up and when she feels me twitch, she slams my cock deep into her throat and squeezes it tightly. Yup, that'll do it! I grunt and release down her throat with four loads of cum while she gulps it down and moans loudly. After a few seconds, she releases my balls and dick but continues to lick the head for a few seconds as a few more drops come out.
"Hmmm, that was delicious," she says as she looks me in the eyes and smiles.
"Well, now it's my turn," I say and lift her up and lay her on the bed. She's smiling shyly at me with her legs spread as I kneel in front of her between her thighs. I notice that her fluids are not clear like Celestia's or Luna's, but are a light blueish colour. Even the inside of her pussy looks dark blue just like her eyes.
I inhale deeply and almost get hard instantly again, she smells heavenly. I spread her folds apart with my fingers, getting lustful moan from her. I slowly lick her from base to clit, She tastes like... watermelon? I think... whatever, it's sweet and I continue to lap at her flowing slit.
Shella squirms on the bed and grips my hair as pleasure she's never felt before assaults her body. "Nnggh. Adrian... that feels, ooooh, good. Aah. Keep going please," she tells me.
I begin swirling my tongue around her vulva for a few seconds earning a cute moan from her. I then thrust my tongue inside and she nearly screams. I wiggle my tongue and she grips my hair almost painfully while letting out a constant shaky moan. I ignore it and start licking at her walls. She starts trembling and pulls me harder against her.
"I... I think... ahh, nnngghh. I think I'm going to.. oooh, aaahh. CUM!" she shouts and I open my mouth widely. She arches her back and moans as her light blue juices splash onto my tongue. After a few seconds I swallow it and she calms down and starts panting. "That felt... *huff* Amazing!" she tells me and I start crawling up her body, getting a few moans and giggles from her.
I stop at her breasts and give her right one a lick, getting a delightful sigh out of her. I wrap my lips around her nipple and begin sucking, but unlike Celestia or Luna, she doesn't have any milk. A bit disappointing, but understandable since they feed off of love.
I gently stroke her sides with my hands, her chitin feels smooth yet somewhat soft especially around her belly, not as hard as I thought it would be. I switch between breasts for a while to let her recover from her earlier orgasm.
After a few minutes she looks at me with need in her eyes. "I'm ready now... just, please be gentle," she tells me.
I smile and crawl up to her face and kiss her deeply, getting her to wrap her arms around me and moan. I pull back and look down as I grab my member and rub the head against her. I place the tip at her waiting entrance and look back up to her face, I see both excitement and worry in her eyes. I bring my hand back up and gently caress her cheek.
"Are you sure you want this?" I ask her.
"More than anything else," she tells me and wraps her legs around me and pulls me towards her. My dick is shoved inside her and I feel my tip rip through some sort of barrier... I just took her virginity. I look down and see a small flow of green blood leaking out and then look back at her face, she's gritting her teeth with her eyes closed holding back a whimper.
I softly kiss her and rub her stomach gently to help ease her pain. After a minute of waiting, she opens her teary eyes and smiles at me. "I'm ready, but please go slowly," she asks.
I nodded and wrapped my arms around her as I slowly pull out and slide back in. She moans and wraps her arms around me even tighter. I repeat the movement a few more times to help her get used to being penetrated and she starts panting. "Faster..." she tells me.
I pick up the speed a bit and she moans loudly with her legs still around me, giving me full access to her sopping pussy.
She gasps as I start fucking her faster with my hips slapping against her ass repeatedly. She's moaning while borderline screaming now. I feel her fingers dig into my back and I start ramming a bit harder, she's grunting and gasping for breath with every thrust.
"I-I'm goi, nnnggh. Going to CUM! AAAAHHH!" she says and I feel her clench tightly with both her vagina and limbs. I can't hold back and cum with her, she moans long and deeply as my seed fills her womb. Her whole body shakes from the amount of pleasure coursing through her, her arms and legs are trembling as they tighten their grip around me. I kiss her as she comes down from her orgasmic high. "I *huff* I Love, *pant* you, Adrian," she says and hugs me tightly to herself.
"I love you too," I reply and smile at her. "Would you like to join me for lunch tomorrow?" I ask her.
She smiles back at me. "I'd love to," she replies and kisses me again.
I pull out and lay back on the bed where she climbs on top of me and sighs. "I want to keep this feeling forever," she tells me and hugs me.
I smile but then sadly frown. I know alicorns and changeling Queens are immortal or just have very long lifespans from what I know of Celestia and Luna and the Information Thraxx told me... but one day I'll grow old and die... leaving them behind. I look up at the ceiling and let a single tear roll down my cheek. 'I'd do anything to be able to stay with them,' I think to myself as I fall asleep.
Canterlot Statue Garden POV: ?????
A Statue of a misshapen being made from many different creatures begins to glow softly for a few seconds before dispersing.
'Soon I shall be free again. Oh I do hope dear old Celly and wittle Woona are still not mad at me for that prank I played on them,' the being thought. 'It was a harmless prank, how was I supposed to know Celly would take it personally? Note to self, don't mess with her cakes again,' he chuckles at the thought.
'I think I'll take a nap while I wait,' He thinks to himself and slips into unconsciousness.
Construction Day 20 Canterlot Statue Garden POV: ?????
A Statue of a misshapen being made from many different creatures begins to glow softly for a few seconds before dispersing.
'Soon I shall be free again. Oh I do hope dear old Celly and wittle Woona are still not mad at me for that prank I played on them,' the being thought. 'It was a harmless prank, how was I supposed to know Celly would take it personally? Note to self, don't mess with her cakes again,' he chuckles at the thought.
'I think I'll take a nap while I wait,' he thinks to himself and slips into unconsciousness.
Construction Day 21 POV: Adrian Stormsword
I slowly wake up with a weight on my chest so I look down and see Shella sleeping peacefully on me. I was about to smile but notice dark blue and white wings wrapped across her back. I see Luna to my left and Celestia to my right both cuddling up to us. I don't remember them coming in last night. Though, with all of them here, it's really comforting.
I look at the clock on the wall and see it's five forty-two, no doubt we'll all need a bath before we have to go do our own things due to the soiled and sweaty sheets, so I lightly start to shake them awake.
They all groan and slowly wake up. "Good Morning," I say to them.
"Good morning, Adrian," Shella says and nuzzles me. "Thank you for last night, you'd be happy to know I've got three eggs fertilised and growing now," she tells me.
That was quick. "How can you tell?" I ask.
"I can feel the life within them," she replies and sits up. She then places my right hand on her stomach. "Can you feel it?" she asks.
Perhaps I could if I were a changeling. "No, but I'll take your word for it," I reply with a smile. "So how long do the eggs take to hatch?" I ask.
She smiles back. "I'll carry them for a month and then lay them. They'll continue to grow after that for another four months while I feed them some love energy every week. Then they'll hatch and other changelings shall adopt them," she tells me.
"Adopt them? You don't raise them?" I ask.
"I'll raise one or two as my own, but since only Queens can lay eggs, other changelings take an egg or two to raise as their own. Besides, in a month's time, you'll be impregnating me again," she tells me.
I guess that makes sense, as long as we keep one to raise, I'm fine with it. "I understand, will we be keeping one of these three then?" I ask her.
She smiles and nodded. "Yes, although changelings have genders, their genitals are non-functional. Would you prefer to keep a male or a female hatchling?" she replies and asks.
"I'll let you decide," I reply.
Celestia then suddenly lurches and covers her mouth as she quickly gets out of bed and runs into the bathroom. I can hear her retching into the toilet and I immediately wiggle out of bed and make my way to her.
"Tia! Are you alright?" I ask her while rubbing her back.
She throws up again and groans. "I-I'm fine... I must have eaten something that didn't agree with me," she says.
I hear Shella gasp and kneel besides Celestia and place her hand on her stomach. "Celestia... you're pregnant." she tells her.
Celestia looks at her and smiles widely, but it's ruined as she throws up again into the toilet. I just stare blankly at the wall.
Celestia's pregnant? I know she said it was a possibility, but to actually hear it... I'm going to be a father to two or three children...
POV: Luna
Tia's pregnant? I'm going to be an aunt!? I was about to squeal like a little filly, but I see Adrian with a blank expression and then just collapse onto the floor. "ADRIAN!" I yell and shake him.
"Adrian what's wrong?" I ask him and get no reply.
I hear Shella giggling. "He is fine, I believe the information about Celestia being pregnant caused him to pass out," she tells me.
I sigh in relief and cast a spell to wake him up. He groans and opens his eyes.
"I passed out didn't I," he states flatly with a deadpan expression.
"Yes, thou did," I tell him and giggle.
He sighs and gets up and stands behind Tia and hugs her lovingly. "I'm fine now, Adrian. Although I'm not looking forward to more of this in the mornings. I am looking forward to the day where I can hold our foal in my arms," she says and hugs him back.
"Come on ye three, we should wash up before we have to work," I tell them.
Construction Day 30 POV: Adrian Stormsword
Over the last nine days the Hive's housing area has been completed and all the changelings have their own homes. There's also a few empty houses for future families.
More of the market area has been dug out and some shops with small built in homes on the second floors have been built. There's a lot of Crystals in the walls that are giving off light so they can see what they're doing. There's also an empty area for merchants from other towns to set up stalls to sell their own wares to the changelings.
With news that Shella is pregnant with our eggs, all the changelings halted work on everything and started building a nursery for her to lay her eggs in and then for the changelings to care for them.
The people from Ponyville have also visited the changelings and have started to become friends. With the changelings new appearance, they look a lot less threatening, so the ponies aren't as afraid of them. A path has been made from the Hive to Ponyville and plans of having a train station built are in the works as well.
Shella's stomach has started to bulge slightly, but unlike Celestia she isn't effected by morning sickness or cravings. Speaking of cravings, Celestia has been eating a lot of cake and other sweets. Luna had to ban the kitchen staff from obeying Celestia's orders and give her a healthy diet and only one slice of cake a day. Let's just say Celestia wasn't happy with that.
Every morning I get up to help ease Celestia's morning sickness by rubbing her back while she heaves. She's also been getting more emotional. It's not bad right now, but I just know she's going to start throwing things at me soon.
Luna cornered me on the twenty-seventh day and had her way with me for hours, I was very sore after that. I had to rest a whole day just to recover, both Celestia and Shella told her off for being too rough.
Blueblood has another noble family on his side, but it seems a noble family going by the name of Goldrush are trying to get others on their side to keep things the way they are, though Blueblood has high hopes he'll succeed.
Fleur Lily has been assigned a tutor to teach her proper etiquette and general education... she's the same tutor Blueblood had and she is very old... and cranky from what Fleur tells us.
The four changelings that joined the guard have passed the initiation test and are now privates under Shining's command until they pick a specialization.
I've also been getting this weird feeling coming from the Castle Gardens. It's almost like something... or someone is calling out to me. Like I've met them before.
Shining Armour swings his sword at me and I block it with my shield. "That's it! You're getting the hang of it!" he tells me and swings again. I deflect his attack and then charge at him with the shield, I bash right into him and send him on his ass. "Ow... motherbucker," he says rubbing his back.
He's also been teaching me to use the shield as a weapon as well. I've also learnt how to cast a barrier spell onto my shield itself to place a small shield in front of it to reflect magical attacks back at the caster.
I hold my hand out to him and help him up. "You're definitely improving at a good pace, I think you'll be great in just a few more weeks," he tells me.
I was about to reply, but someone called out to him. "Shiny! I'm home!" a woman says. She has pink fur and three colours in her hair, yellow, hot pink, and purple. Her mark is a blue heart shaped crystal with gold on the sides of it. She has purple eyes and an elegant white dress on, what I notice most is that she has both a horn and wings.
"Cadence!" Shining says and jogs over to her. They have a quick hug and then share a quick kiss, I walk over to them after I put the wooden sword I was using back on the rack.
Shining then notices me behind him. "Oh, this is my marefriend Cadence. Cadence, this is sir Adrian Stormsword. The Princesses knight and coltfriend," Shining tells her.
"Coltfriend!?" Cadence yells in shock, making me jump. She immediately grabs my head and pulls me down to her eye level. I stare at her with wide eyes as she looks in mine. I try to look over to Shining for help but Cadence just jerks my head back to her with a glare. After a few minutes of awkward silence she smiles widely. "Oh this is wonderful! Aunty Tia and Luna found somepony to love and love them in turn!" she squeals and hugs me, I just raise an eyebrow at Shining.
"What's going on?" I ask him confused.
"She's just making sure your love for the Princesses and now the Queen is real," he tells me.
"Queen? What Queen?" Cadence asks.
"You've heard news that a changeling Hive is being built at the base of the mountain right?" Shining asks her.
Cadence shakes her head. "Actually no, I haven't. I've just got back and wanted to see you first... why are changelings in Equestria?" she asks sounding worried.
"Thanks to Adrian here, he and the Princesses discovered a way to feed changelings without hurting anypony. After saving the survivors of a Hive in the Badlands who were left for dead by Queen Chrysalis, they were brought here. One of the young fillies there changed into a Queen and is now leading this new Hive. She's also now in Adrian's herd," he tells her.
Cadence just looks stunned at the news that her aunts are in a herd with a changeling Queen. Oh, speak of the devil, here she comes now.
"Adrian!" Shella says with a wave and walks over to us. I can see Cadence looking at her with wide eyes.
"Hello, Shella. Do you need something?" I ask her as she kisses me.
"Celestia want's to know if you want to go out for dinner tonight," she tells me.
"Sure. Sounds like it'll be fun, what time?" I ask.
"In two hours," she tells me.
"Okay, and how's Tia feeling?" I reply and ask.
"She's feeling better, but I think her pregnancy is starting to get to her. I think you'll need to spend more time with her," she replies.
"Hmm, sure. I can spend all day tomorrow with her, how are you feeling?" I ask her and place my right hand on her stomach.
"I'm feeling fine. Only a few more weeks before I start laying them," she tells me. Cadence looks like she's about to pass out.
"Y-You got a-aunty p-p-pregnant!? And h-her as well?" she stutters and points to Shella. "How!? Only somepony with very high magic within them can get an alicorn pregnant! But unlike alicorns, normal ponies gather magic from around them, they don't have any from within!" she says trying to figure it out.
Shining chuckles and pats me on the back. "Well Adrian here has his own magic and I guess it was strong enough to get the Princess pregnant. You should see his kind of magic, it's way stronger than mine. His barrier spell can deflect any spell, but it's not very strong against physical attacks," he tells her.
Cadence then looks from him to me. "Can you show me?" she asks.
"Sure, I don't see why not," I reply and walk over to the target range.
I fire off some beam, spray, and projectile spells as well as some defensive spells.
I hear a gurgle come from behind me, Shella then taps me on my shoulder. "By the way, I'm feeling a bit hungry. Carrying these eggs is draining my energy faster than what I'm used to, can you feed me please," she asks.
"Hmm? Oh sure," I reply and cast a single life element beam at her. The energy flows into her and she hums in satisfaction before she then lets out a small burp.
"Excuse me... thank you, my love," she says and kisses me.
"S-So that's how you've been feeding them? With magic? I thought I felt love energy in that spell... what is its original purpose?" Cadence asks.
"It's a healing beam, the life element to be exact. It heals almost any wound from bruises and cuts, to lacerations and even broken bones. Though it can't regrow or reattach limbs," I tell her. "So with Luna, Celestia, and Crystal Clear's help. We created crystals that continuously give off a mist from the life element that's in them that can feed and heal changelings near them," I tell her.
"So now we have changelings as allies?" she asks.
Shining speaks up. "Yeah, we even have four changelings in the guard now. Over there, see?" he replies and points to the four changelings in guard armour, practising with swords. Each one has their own life wand as well.
"I see," Cadence says and looks at Shella again. "So why does she look so different from Chrysalis' changelings?" she asks.
"She was originally like that, but I think it's because of the energy of my Life element that is most likely changing her and the others to reflect the nature of the element. Instead of a predator like appearance, they now look more friendly. I personally think her wings look very beautiful," I tell Cadence and get a smile from Shella.
Cadence smiles at our display of affection. "Well, it was nice to meet you, Shella. I hope you'll treat my aunties along with sir Adrian well," she tells her. "But now I need to go see aunty Tia and congratulate her!" she says and flies off to the Castle.
Once she's gone I turn to look at Shining. "She sure is a lively one ain't she," I say.
He chuckles. "Oh, you don't know the half of it," he replies.
Two Hours Later
Me, Celestia, Luna, and Shella went out to a fancy restaurant in Canterlot for dinner together. They're all wearing beautiful dresses with their royal regalia as well while I'm in my suit, though I do have my sword as well. Shella also has a dark blue crown that was made for her with a deep blue sapphire on her head. I open the doors for them and hold it open.
"Thank you, my dear," Celestia says and kisses my cheek, followed by Luna and Shella. Celestia walks over to the waiter behind a podium with some kind of ledger or logbook near the doors.
"G-Good afternoon, Princesses," he says and bows down to Celestia and Luna. I don't care that he completely ignores me, but the disgusted look and curled lip he gave Shella made me angry.
"Look at Shella like that again and I'll rip out your eyes," I tell him coldly, even Celestia and Luna look peeved.
"F-Forgive me, Sir," he apologises and bows to me.
I just frown at him. "It's not me you should be saying sorry to," I tell him.
He turns to Shella and bows. "I apologise for my behaviour, ma'am," he says to her.
Shella just waves it off. "It's fine, I understand it will take time for ponies to get used to us," Shella replies. Not really, it's just some people of Canterlot are racist assholes.
Celestia decides to speak up before the man can say anything else. "We'd like a table for four please," she tells him, but the kindness in her tone is barely there.
"O-Of course, Princess. Please follow me," he replies and leads us to a private room. Some of the other customers stare and whisper about us as we pass them, but the one's who make eye contact with me quickly shut up and look away.
We're lead to a room with a table in the centre and eight chairs around it. A vase with some roses sit's in the middle of the table along with plates, cutlery and napkins.
The waiter leaves the room while a woman walks over to us and hands us each a menu. "Here are our menus for today, would you like me to get you any drinks while you decide on what you would like?" she asks us.
At least she's not being rude to Shella. "I would like an iced tea please," Celestia says.
"We would like a Moonlight Cider please," Luna replies,
"I'll just have a mild ale please," I reply.
"I'll have some water please," Shella says.
The waitress bows and leaves the room.
I've learnt over the last two weeks that changelings can still eat solid foods like ponies can. They use the matter for creating cocoons and pods with the goo like material they make within their stomachs, although they don't need to eat food to survive, they can still taste flavours. But a Queen uses the mass to help her eggs grow slightly faster and to coat the eggs with the goo in her womb to strengthen them.
"So how's your day been, Tia?" I ask while looking over the menu.
"Stressful, some of the nobles are still demanding that I no longer court you as you are neither a pony nor nobility. They've even threatened to have me and Luna removed from the throne saying we are being corrupted by you," she tells me and sighs. "And due to my sudden mood swings lately, I may or may not have reacted poorly," she says sheepishly.
"What did you do?" I ask with interest.
She blushes and looks down. "I threw the slice of cake I had at the one who said it in the face... and may have threatened to geld him should he insult you again..." she replies.
I blink a few times and then smile widely, I then snort and burst out laughing. "HAAAHAHHAHAA. Oh! Hehehe, that's funny. I wish I was there to see it. Hehe, what did he do when you said that?" I ask.
She blushes even more. "He... He ran out the door screaming like a little filly," she tells me with a slight blush.
I lose it and fall off the back of my chair as I laugh for a minute or two and I can hear Luna and Shella giggling as well. Once I calm down, I get up and sit back down.
"Oh I really wish I could have seen that..." I say and look to Luna. "What about you Luna? What have you been up to?" I ask her.
"Today is the last day we overlook the Hive's construction. It has been built to a point where the changelings can continue on their own. Though we will send supplies and materials still should they need them," she tells me.
"That's good, I hear Twilight even offered to help set up a Library for them," I say with a Chuckle.
"We have heard that as well. That mare really needs to... what is the term... get laid?" Luna says with a raised brow.
I laugh again while Celestia just sighs and shakes her head. "Lulu, you know that dear Twilight has not got the best track record with stallions... I remember one time she tried to take one of the guards she liked out to the Canterlot Library for a date," Celestia says. "Poor colt fell asleep after five minutes just being there."
That gets me to smile, Twilight really takes her studying and books too far. I wonder how everyone is doing in Ponyville? Maybe I can take Celestia there tomorrow for a visit.
The waitress returns with our drinks and we make our orders. We have a nice time together with no one to disturb us. Once we finished our meals I pay the bill and we head back to the Castle. Though on the way out, no one decided to stare or say anything.
I head to Celestia's room and continue reading my spell book, I'm trying to learn how to cast auras on myself, starting with a life aura. So far it's going well, I can make the aura last a good one or two minutes before it gets unstable.
Luna went with Celestia to finish court for the day while Shella was cuddled up next to me. I've discovered that she likes to sleep naked, something about clothing being uncomfortable for her while she sleeps... not that I'm complaining. Celestia and Luna have even taken to doing the same... and after some, 'encouragement'... me as well.
Right now I have a life aura around me where Shella is absorbing the energy it's giving off. The Life aura slowly heals me and anyone around me as well... that means both friend and foe alike so it's best used while staying back and healing injured soldiers or guards. Shella hums in content as the doors open to the room.
Celestia and Luna both look tired and strip out of their clothes. I put the book on the night stand and lift the quilt up for them where Luna lays on top of me and Celestia snuggles up to my right.
"Good night," I tell them.
"Good night, Adrian," they all reply. Once we're all comfortable we slowly drift off to sleep.
I wake up to the feeling of someone groping me. I look down to see Luna nuzzling against my chest and her hands on my ass while still asleep.
Well... that's a rather pleasant way of waking up, Celestia and Shella then decide to join in as well. So here I am getting touched up by three gorgeous women. What did I do to deserve this? I think to myself with a smile.
So they want to play like that huh? I wrap my legs around Luna and grab Celestia's and Shella's backsides with a hand each and squeeze.
They all 'Eeep' as they wake up and giggle. "Good morning, love. You're a little frisky today," Celestia says cuddles closer to me.
"Me? You three were the ones molesting me in your sleep," I told them. I then feel Luna squeezing my ass.
"Are thee complaining?" Luna asks.
"Nope," I reply with a grin. "So, Tia. What did you have planned for today?" I ask her.
"Mostly court duties, then to continue with the plans to sneak into Aires Peak," she replies. "Why?"
"Would you like to spend the day in Ponyville with me?" I ask her.
She looks at me with surprise and then smiles. "I would love to, but what about court?" she replies and asks.
"Do not worry, Tia. We shall handle court for today. We have noticed how stressed thou art getting lately with thy pregnancy. Take today off with Adrian, thou deserves it," Luna tells her.
Celestia hums happily and kisses my cheek. "Very well. Come on then, let's get dressed and get breakfast. I've been meaning to visit Twilight for a while now," she says and gets out of bed. Luna gets off me and lets me get out as well, although she cuddles up to Shella afterwards.
Thirty minutes later, we're all up and dressed, me armoured, sun and moon changed and sitting in the Dining Hall eating breakfast. Blueblood, Thraxx, and Lily are here as well.
After we've had breakfast and some small talk, Celestia and I head to the courtyard to get a carriage. Though the nobles weren't happy with her leaving without saying anything about it. I just don't think they like dealing with Luna’s no nonsense attitude.
Once in a carriage, we start flying towards Ponyville. Celestia holds onto my right arm along the way as we look out the windows and the landscape below us. We land in front of Twilight's Library where we see her standing outside with a nervous smile and spike next to her.
I help Celestia out of the carriage and walk over to Twilight. "Hello, Twilight. How have you been?" I ask her.
She bows to Celestia and then turns to me. "Oh, you know... good I guess. I've been studying the changelings and I've learnt so much about their culture, but why do they look so different from normal changelings?" she asks.
"I think it has something to do with the fact they're feeding off my life element instead of actual love. Or maybe each Hive's Queen has their own appearance? Hard to say really," I reply. I just had an idea to tease Twilight with. "Oh, by the way, Tia. Do you want to tell Twilight or should I?" I ask and place my left hand on her stomach.
"Tell me what?" Twilight asks looking confused.
I smirk at Celestia who blushes. "You can if you want to," she replies.
"Alright." I walk up to Twilight with a neutral expression and lean down so I'm face to face with her. "Celestia's pregnant," I tell her bluntly.
Twilight stares at me with a blank expression for a few seconds before falling backwards where Spike catches her. I wave my hand in her face yet she doesn't blink. "I think I broke her," I say and snap my fingers in her face a few times while chuckling.
"You could of told her more gently you know," Celestia tells me and lightly cuffs the back of my head.
"You found it funny and you know it," I reply.
She giggles and levitates Twilight into the Library and sets her down on the couch.
We wait for thirty minutes for Twilight to wake up while Spike made us some tea and told us all that's happened since Nightmare Night. Applejack's nearly finished her harvest of apples. Rarity is getting orders for something called hearth's warming eve a few months away. Fluttershy has been looking after a sick bear named Harry. Rainbow has been practising her stunts and weather work. Pinkie planned a few parties and Twilight has been researching the changelings.
"Sounds like everything's peaceful here, I wish we could say the same for Canterlot. The nobles are still being a pain in the ass," I tell him.
The sounds of grumbling coming from Twilight gets our attention. "Huh? Princess?" she asks looking around. She spots us sitting on the two armchairs. "How did I get on the couch?" she asks.
"I told you something and you passed out." I tell her.
"Passed out?.. wait..." she says wide eyed. I see her horn glow and then she squeals. "Princess! How are you pregnant? I thought no pony could get an alicorn pregnant..." she asks and hugs Celestia.
Celestia laughs softly. "I was sceptical at first, but Adrian has a large amount of magic within him, and I wanted a foal of my own after so many years of being alone, but It was more than enough to impregnate me," she tells Twilight with a smile who blushes heavily. No doubt imagining us together in bed.
"I'm so happy for you, Princess. What are you going to name the foal?" Twilight asks.
"We don't know yet. We'll be discussing names later once we find out the gender of our foal first," Celestia replies and to my surprise, walks over to me and sits on my lap with her arms around my neck and starts licking my cheek with a smile... I think she's having one of her emotional moments. At least it's the overly affectionate one and not the I want to tear you apart for doing this to me one.
POV: Twilight Sparkle
Oh my, I've never seen the Princess this affectionate with anypony before. She must really love Adrian to be acting like this.
"I take it you want me to keep the fact you're pregnant a secret right?" I ask.
Adrian chuckles. "I don't mind if you do or not. If anyone doesn't approve, I'll just ignore them," he says but then his tone turns cold. "But should they do something to harm Tia or our unborn child, I'll make sure they'll regret it," he says with a frown.
Whoa, he's very protective of the Princess. "So what are you both here for? Is it just another visit?" I ask them.
His frown fades into a smile as the Princess grabs his head and kisses him hard. I blush deeply and turn away as I hear Celestia moan into the kiss. I see spike looking out of the Kitchen with wide eyes at them.
I quickly get up and walk over to him. "Spike, go see if Rarity needs any help. I'll stay here with the Princess and Adrian." I tell him.
He smiles and nodded as he runs past them and out the door.
I cough into my hand to get their attention. "Erm, Princess. I know you love Adrian, but could you not... erm... get too into it? This is a public Library after all..." I tell them while covering my eyes.
I peek through my fingers to see Celestia looking at me with a heavy blush and she slowly gets off Adrian who has a dopey smile on his face. She then sits back down on the other armchair.
"I'm sorry, Twilight. But I've been having trouble keeping my emotions in check recently," she tells me.
"I understand, Princess. I've read that pregnancy affects a mare's hormones to a degree that it'll affect their behaviour... though I don't think Adrian minded it.” I tell her and point at Adrian, who still looks out of it, making Celestia giggle.
We spend the next three hours talking about the upcoming Sisterhooves Social. An event where sisters work together to complete obstacles and puzzles. Adrian has gotten stronger thanks to my brother's training and I'm told Shella has also gotten pregnant as well. Celestia also tells me Cadence came back yesterday, I'll have to pay her a visit soon.
Our talk is interrupted by screaming coming from the town. "What's going on?" I ask.
We look out the window to see ponies running towards us with fear on their faces.
I notice Adrian's expression looks grim. "Adrian, what's wrong?" I ask him.
"I can feel a lot of arcane magic nearby. The only time I can feel magic like this if it's concentrated to a high degree," he says and heads for the door.
POV: Adrian Stormsword
I rush out the door and draw my sword and shield as I run past the screaming people to see six rotting gryphons chasing the towns folk.
I channel a shield and two life elements and cast a life aura around me, it will heal me while damaging the undead gryphons as well. I then channel three life elements into my sword and swing horizontally as a green crescent beam of energy fans out and gets absorbed into three of them. The life energy makes them falter slightly as some of the arcane magic within them gets purified.
The fourth one tries ramming me and I hold my shield in front of me, but before It hits me, my aura causes some of it's arcane magic to seep out of it. I slide back a few feet once it makes contact with me, but I stay standing upright. I then channel three life elements into my shield and fire a beam point blank at it, the gryphon corpse screeches like nails on a chalkboard as the beam rapidly purifies it's arcane energy.
I then get tackled by another one and roll a few metres away as my life aura is slowly healing the bruises I got from that hit. I turn to see another one rushing at me with its talons out and ready, but before it could hit me, Celestia slams down hard on it making a crater in the ground. She's fully decked out in her armour and moments later, Luna teleports in with her battle gear as well.
"Thanks," I say and stand beside them. My aura starts to get unstable so I cancel it. "Are you sure you should be fighting, Tia?" I ask her.
"I'm fine. Besides, it'll another month or two before I start showing, but I won't stand by and let my ponies get hurt when I can prevent it," she replies.
"Sister... these are the same monstrosities we fought when..." Luna says with worry in her tone.
"I Know, Luna. These are Grogar's foul creations," Celestia says with anger in her voice.
Grogar? That human necromancer they fought a thousand years ago? I look towards the forest and see some people shambling out. Three ponies, a cervine, two minotaurs, two bipedal looking dogs which I'm guessing are the diamond dogs I've read about, and even a young dragon just a foot taller than me.
"We got company coming," I tell them both. Celestia and Luna look towards the incoming group and go wide eyed.
"Tia... those are the ponies that were taken from Whinniesberg..." Luna says.
Wait, they were the ones the gryphons took? But I thought they were eaten...
Celestia charges at two of the gryphon's and swings her sword, but I notice something different about it. The flames are green instead of its normal orange-red hue. I then notice a green crystal on her sword's pommel. Is it one of the life crystals? But I thought they couldn't make them smaller. I'll ask later.
She hits both of them in one attack and the arcane magic seeps out from the green flames, both of the gryphons catch fire and screech from the life altered flames. I also notice Luna's scythe's cold looking mist has a tint of green in it, another crystal like Celestia's sits on the tip of the pole above the blade.
Did they anticipate this? I snap out of it and teleport behind the sixth gryphon and impale the back of its head with my sword. It starts thrashing and I channel a constant flow of life energy through my blade and the black and red energy of its arcane magic starts pouring out at a rapid pace until it drops to the floor lifeless once again.
I pull out my sword as Luna leaps over me and severs another gryphon's head off. The last gryphon just stands there staring at us with its glowing red eyes.
The other undead have made their way over to us and the town's local guards have also arrived. The undead are groaning and snarling at us, but what makes it worse is that the three pony undead are speaking.
"Help us..." the woman asks as she gasps and wheezes raggedly.
"Kill... me..." one of the men begs desperately.
"Fr... *gurgle* Free... us..." The other man moans out in what sounds like agony. I've never heard of undead being able to talk before, or even retain their minds.
I can feel the rage coming from the Princesses at what's become of the ponies. I frown and channel an earth and two life elements through my shield as a rock the size of my fist floats in front the diamond on the shield. "Don't worry, I'll release you from your suffering," I say and charge the spell up a few seconds and fire it at the man in the middle of the three. His head explodes from the impact and the blast of life energy burns the heads of the other two.
I've been practising with making more mines over the last two weeks during my magic training and can now make three of them at once. I teleport behind the woman and make three life mines in front of me. The moment the woman stepped on it they detonated and ripped her apart while healing me.
Celestia attacks a minotaur while Luna engages the dragon and the guards attack the cervine and the diamond dogs. I decapitate the last pony and turn my attention to the other minotaur.
I cast my stone armour spell and coat myself in a two inch thick layer of stone. Even my shield gets coated by a thin layer of it, leaving only the diamond exposed. The minotaur roars at me and starts charging, its heavy weight making it sound like thunder with each step. I channel an earth and two water elements into my sword and swing down making a line of fissures burst from the ground and blast water out. The minotaur gets knocked off his feet and I fire a life beam with two fire elements with it.
The beam hits him in the stomach and he flails about while screeching. He manages to get up and charge at me again, even with me still hitting him with the beam. I make a stone wall between us and then three life mines behind it. The minotaur rams through and steps on a mine. The blast and life energy blows his right leg off, making him easy prey for the guards to finish off.
I see Celestia knock the minotaur she's fighting back, but he gets back up and charges at her with his horns pointed at her. 'She won't recover in time!' I think to myself and teleport right in front of her, I then push her aside and hold my shield up.
I take the full force of the blow and the stone on my chest, left shoulder, and shield shatter. I go flying past Celestia and into a building where my stone armour falls apart. I feel intense pain in my left leg and arm. I try to stand up but I cant move as I'm pinned down by the wall's remains. I'm also feeling light headed... holy crap this hurts.
POV: Celestia
"ADRIAN!" I shout out to him. Some of the guard rush over and start digging him out. I turn to the minotaur who screeches out and turns to me. "YOU WILL SUFFER MY WRATH FOUL CREATURE!" I shout out in the Royal Canterlot Voice. My mane and tail turn into raging infernos and my eyes glow with pure, raw magic.
I teleport my sword back to the Castle and bring out a weapon I have not used for centuries. A warhammer that's as long as I am tall, with a head the size of an anvil. I convert my magic to boost my physical strength so I can swing my hammer like it was a feather. I lift my hammer over my shoulder and get ready to attack... I've really let myself go over the years. After I've had my foal, I'm going to have to start training again with Adrian and Lulu. I don't remember my hammer being this heavy.
The minotaur charges at me and I prepare to swing. Once it's about three metres away, I swing my warhammer with as much force as I can muster and hit the side of its head making his skull shatter and his neck snap from the blow. The force of the strike sends him a good ten metres away back towards the forest.
I turn to see Luna decapitate the dragon while the guards finish off the rest. My mane and tail return to their magical flowing state and my eyes return to normal as well as I dismiss my hammer.
"Adrian..." I say with worry and run over to where he crashed where Luna and I then help levitate the remains off of him. I gasp once I see the state he's in. He's unconscious and his left arm and leg look broken and he has a large gash on the left side of his head.
The guards are using their newly acquired life wands to try and heal Adrian but it's not healing much. I think he'll have to heal himself when he wakes up to repair his limbs. The best we can do for him is get him to the hospital and try to set his bones and patch up his wounds.
I levitate him off the floor with a bit of effort, his resilience to pony magic making it harder for me to carry him. I then start running towards the Hospital to get him the medical attention he needs.
Chapter 34: A Nightmare?... A Vision?... Or Something Else...
Terracana Chapter 34: A Nightmare?... A Vision?... Or Something Else...
POV: Adrian Stormsword
I sit up with a gasp as I look around to find myself back on the road to Reymorah. How did I get back to Terra? Last thing I remember was getting rammed into a building... I even see those two bandits I killed... where's Celestia, Luna and Shella? Did I just imagine or dream it all up? No... I couldn't have... it felt so real.
I stand up and see I'm back in my father's armour, his old longsword by my hip and my stave in my left hand. My pack with my camping gear is on my back and I've still got everything I had before I went to Equestria... that is if I even went there. I open the spell book only to find it's blank.
I put the book in my pack and start walking towards Elysium, the Capital of Reymorah in hopes to find out what's going on. I couldn't of dreamt up a few months worth of memories in just a few hours.
It took me a few hours, which is strange as it should of taken me a few days, but I finally arrived. Though the strange part is, there's no one here. The streets are empty and I've got this feeling I'm being watched.
A fog begins to roll in limiting my vision so I draw my sword and stay on guard. I can hear something being dragged across the floor to my right. I turn to see shadows in the fog limping and then I start to hear pain filled moans and screeches.
I start hearing it all around me now. Shit, whatever they are, I'm surrounded. What the fuck is going on here? I hear something running towards me from the right and see a minotaur that looks like it should be dead. Wait, why is there an undead minotaur here?.. And it's an Equestrian one not a Terran one.
I teleport out of the way and it charges into a house where the wall caves in and the house comes down on top of it. I turn around to see others coming into view: ponies, cervine, gryphons, diamond dogs... even humans, elves, and dwarves... I'll say it again. What the fuck is going on here!?
There must be hundreds of them. I take off down an alley to another street and head towards the Castle with the horde of undead hot on my heels. I place life mines along the way and hear them detonate behind me, no doubt ripping them apart.
Strange thing is, I don't feel my mana draining from casting spells. I stop and then turn around... maybe, just maybe. I channel a single life element with four fire elements and point my stave at the approaching horde. I cast the spell and a beam eight inches wide roars down the street, melting through the oncoming Undead.
I keep the beam going for a few seconds and stop once the horde has been decimated... although I got a couple of buildings in the process as well.
I was never this strong, and my mana is barely even drained. I feel like I could cast spells for hours... I'm so confused right now.
"Adrian..." Huh? Did I just hear someone say my name?
"Adrian... wake... up." There it is again. Wait... Is that Luna?
"Luna!? Is that you!?" I shout out.
"Please, Adrian... wake up!" she tells me again and I can hear crying.
"HAAAAAHAHAHAHAAHAAAA!" a deep cruel voice behind me laughs. "So, you're the King of Equestria? I have to say, you don't look like much," I turn around and see a man cloaked with a black and red robe and hood. I can't see his face but the skin on his hands are pale, almost white. He also has two undead humans standing besides him.
"Who are you?" I demand.
"You've forgotten me already? Now that's just rude. My name is Grogar, the world’s most powerful necromancer," he tells me. He pulls out a staff with a human skull on the top of it off his back and a spell tome foci from his hip. Oh shit...
He channels five arcane elements and fires a beam at me, I counter with five life elements and our beams collide with each other. The force of the explosion knocks me back leaving me dazed for a few seconds as I try to stand up. I'm knocked back down when an arcane infused rock hits me in the chest.
I think it broke a rib or two as I cough up some blood and look towards Grogar, who's still pointing his staff at me.
"I must say, I'm not very impressed with your magic. Even a newborn can do better, haahaha," he taunts and channels five arcane elements again.
"Adrian! Wake up! Please wake up!" I hear Luna call to me again.
I try pointing my stave at him but he fires his beam at me and I scream from the pain. My skin starts to blister and bloat as I can hear him laughing like a maniac. Oh gods, this pain is worse than any hell!
POV: Luna
"Adrian, please wake up," I beg him. He's been unconscious for three days and his face looks pained and he's sweating profusely. He suddenly starts screaming and thrashes about. "ADRIAN!" I shout and try to hold him down.
He manages to throw me off and continues to scream and convulse violently. Where did he get this kind of strength? The door bursts open with Celestia and some Doctors running in.
"Luna! What's going on!?" Tia asks me and tries to hold Adrian down along with the Doctors.
"We don't know! We can't enter his dream. The only way that can be is if his mind is elsewhere or he is having a vision!" I tell her.
POV: Adrian
Just as the pain became unbearable, it suddenly stops. I quickly sit up and look around, I go wide eyed as I can see the stars all around me. Okay... so now I'm in space.
"THE FUCK IS GOING ON!" I yell out in frustration.
"Certainly not the reaction I was expecting to be honest," a male voice says.
I turn to my left to see a man with white fur, a horn, wings, short hair and beard that look like flames, but his eyes, the whites of his eyes look like summer skies with suns for irises.
A woman also stands beside him, her fur is a pitch black with flowing night like hair with a galaxy gently swirling in it. Her eyes look like night skies with moons for irises. They're both wearing elegant looking clothes.
I stare at them stunned. "Who are you?" I ask.
"Oh, forgive us for our poor manners, sir Stormsword. I am Solaris, and this is my wife Galaxia," he tells me.
I stand up and stay silent for a few seconds. "Where am I?" I ask.
Galaxia then speaks up. "You are in a plane between worlds, a form of Limbo if you wish," she tells me.
"Wait... am I dead?" I ask with wide eyes.
"No, our daughters saved your life, but you're in a coma right now and we've managed to pull your mind here," Solaris tells me as he gestures to all around us.
"Daughters? You mean Celestia and Luna? And why bring me here?" I ask surprised that they're Celestia's and Luna's parents.
"Yes, they are our daughters. We have the power to see the future of Equus, but can't change what comes. We believe you've also just seen a possible outcome of the future, where Grogar wins and takes over both Equus and your world of Terra," Galaxia replies. I frown and look down. I saw the future? "But as I said, we cannot interfere with what goes on in Equus, but you're not from Equus. Thus, we can help you," she tells me.
"How?" I ask her.
"With this." She holds her hand out and an orb of white and black light swirl within it.
"What is it?" I ask as I walk over to them.
"This is a portion of our magic and essence. Should you accept this gift, you shall have near limitless magic, or mana as you call it, and you will become ageless, but not immortal nor invincible. You can still be killed like any mortal and fall ill to poison and diseases," she warns me.
She holds it out for me and I frown in thought. At least now I can stay with Tia, Luna, and Shella. "What do you mean by near limitless magic? Will my magic become stronger?" I ask.
"No, we know of your world and it's history. You'll have the power that Legendary mages of old once wielded. The ability to cast magic almost non-stop without tiring. Although you will have to still continue to learn how to use your magic yourself," Solaris tells me. "We also know you wish to stay with our daughters for as long as you can. So we added a bit of our immortality in it, we did it so our daughters stay happy with you," he says.
"How long do I have until what I saw happens?" I ask.
"Five years," Solaris replies.
"Why haven't you tried talking to me before?" I ask.
"We've only managed to bring you here due to your comatose state where your mind is much easier to reach," Galaxia tells me.
I look from them to the orb of light for a few more seconds. I meant what I said to Tia and Luna, I'd do anything to make them happy. Without hesitating any longer, I grab the orb.
POV: Celestia
Adrian has stopped thrashing for the last hour and the pained expression he had is now gone. Luna, Shella, and I are sitting beside him. His leg and arm have been reset but are still badly broken after his thrashing about. We had to strap him down to prevent him from moving again.
"I hope he wakes up soon..." Shella says. She's been crying for the last two hours. She's taken the news of his condition the hardest of all of us.
"I'm sure he'll be fine, he just needs rest," I try to reassure her, but even I have my worries.
I then notice a dim light coming from his chest. "What's that?" Luna asks, pointing at the light.
The light is getting brighter and brighter... I can feel mother's and father's magic coming from it.
'Tia, dost thou feel that? Tis our parents magic!' Luna tells me.
'Yes, I can feel it, but what is happening? I thought they couldn't interact with Equus any more?' I reply.
'Mayhap they are helping Adrian? He technically isn't from Equus!' she says.
We continue to watch until the light dies down.
POV: Adrian Stormsword
"It is done," Solaris says.
"Now the future of Equus is up to you and our daughters, please keep them safe," Galaxia asks.
I look at them both and smile. "I'll do my damned best," I tell them.
They smile in return. "Do say hello to Tia and little Lulu for us, and that we're proud of them won't you?" Galaxia asks me. I nodded and my vision goes white.
I slowly open my eyes and groan in pain from the light stinging them. I then hear three different gasps and feel three people hug me tightly.
"OW! OW OW OW! PAIN!" I shout out and they back off.
"We are sorry, Adrian! We art just happy thou has awoken!" I hear Luna tell me.
I look around and see I'm laying on a bed with wires hooked up to me. I guess I'm back in the Hospital I first arrived in.
"Adrian, you were very badly injured, how are you feeling?" Celestia asks.
I chuckle. "I've been better... how long was I out?" I reply and ask.
"Three days," Luna replies.
My left arm and leg are sore and I can't move them. "Why can't I move my left arm and leg?" I ask.
"They were broken when you crashed into that house. We had to strap you down when you started thrashing about in pain," Celestia tells me.
"Alright, I guess I'd better heal myself," I channel three life elements through my right hand and self cast it. I continuously keep channelling it until my arm, leg and any other wounds I have are healed. The first thing I notice is that I'm not losing almost any mana. I guess what Galaxia and Solaris said was true.
I then look at Luna and Celestia. "Oh, by the way. Solaris and Galaxia say hello and that they're proud of you both," I tell them with a smile.
They go wide eyed and start tearing up. "H-How do you know our parents names?" Celestia asks.
"They brought me to a place they called the plane between worlds and they told me of Equestria's future should it continue the way it was. Grogar is back and they gave me some of their magic and immortality so I can fight against him along with you two," I tell them.
Luna has a hand over her mouth with tears flowing down her face. Celestia also has tears flowing but shakingly reaches out a hand towards me. "I can f-feel their magic in you. D-Does that mean you're immortal now?" she asks.
"No, they said I can still be killed like a mortal, but I'm now ageless," I reply. I try to sit up but I forgot I'm strapped down. "Can you unstrap me please? I'm fine now," I ask.
Celestia's horn glows and I'm free from the straps. I sit up and stretch my limbs and back. A few pops sound out around the room, man that felt good!
Once done, I'm suddenly pounced on by all three of them. They're crying and I just hold all three of them close to me.
"Princess!Princess!" I can hear some woman shouting down the hallway, it sounds like Twilight. The door opens and a panting Twilight walks over to us. "Princess! *gasp* We have a problem! *cough* Rarity's been taken by some diamond dogs out in the quarry outside of town!" she tells us.
After Twilight told us that Rarity was over at the Quarry outside of town to dig up some gems with Spike's help for her work. Spike returned with a few bruises and panicking about how diamond dogs kidnapped Rarity. I've read some books on diamond dogs that they're similar to gryphons, they hunt other races and animals for food and sometimes as slaves to dig up gems for them and then eat them once they can't dig anymore.
"Well I feel better now. So, who's up for some hunting?" I ask and get off the bed.
"But you just got out of a coma! You can't be fit to fight yet!" Shella says.
"I'm completely fine, my healing magic fixed everything. I'm as fit as I'll ever be," I tell her. She looks unsure but nodded. "So where's my gear?" I ask.
Celestia's horn glows and I'm in my equipment. "So what are you planning?" Celestia asks.
"Simple, get in and find Rarity. These diamond dogs have some intelligence. I'll force one to take me to Rarity and I'll beat the crap out of any of them nearby. Then I'll escort her out and back here, but first I'll create a lot of mines and then detonate them from a distance to collapse their tunnels," I reply.
"But diamond dogs are vicious and very loyal to their pack leader. I've never heard of the dogs betraying one before, even under threat of death," Twilight says.
"Then I'll be the first. If used the right way, the arcane element can cause intense pain and make the one effected wish for death," I tell her. I should know after I was hit by that arcane beam in my vision... I'll never get that feeling out of my head. I visibly shudder at the memory.
"Well, we are coming with thee," Luna says. Her horn glows and she's in her armour.
"Sure, I'd welcome the help," I say.
"Then I'm going as well," Celestia says.
"Nope, you're pregnant. It was too risky of you to join in that last fight, what if I didn't push you aside and block that minotaur from hitting you? Our child... foal, could have been killed. No, you're staying here," I tell her.
I see her frown at me. "He's right, Princess, Please stay here," Twilight begs her.
Celestia's frown fades and she sighs. "Fine, but you better come back, the both of you," she says sternly.
"Do not worry, sister. We shall keep his flank out of harm's way," Luna replies. I just look at her with a deadpan expression.
"Alright then, let's get going. The longer we wait, the less time Rarity has!" I say and head for the door.
Twilight and Spike guide us to the spot where Rarity was taken. I see holes in the ground near a small cliff face and a little red wagon sitting near one of the holes with signs of a struggle.
"Down there huh?" I ask.
"That's what spike said," Twilight replies. Spike just nodded rapidly.
"Alright, Twilight. You and Spike head back to Ponyville, Luna and I will handle this," I say and slide down the hole with Luna following behind me.
"Just be careful!" Twilight says behind us.
We slide down and reach the bottom where It's dark and smells foul. I stand still and listen for any noise where I can hear crying to my right down the nearest tunnel. Luna and I share a look and nodded to each other. We start heading down the tunnel, only for three diamond dogs to jump us. Oh by the gods, the foul smell is coming from them. I feel like I'm going to throw up my whole stomach, don't they know how to bathe?
I cast a stone armour spell as rock and gems break away from the tunnel walls and coat my armour. I raise my shield and block one of their crude spears while Luna draws her two silver swords. I bash him back with my shield and Luna swings at another. I channel three fire elements through my shield and burn the downed dog alive.
Luna decapitates the one she's fighting with elegant fluid motions while the last dog looks between us and whimpers. I knock his rusty sword from his hands and bash him to the floor.
I place my foot on his chest and hold my sword to his throat. "You understand me yes?" I ask him.
"Me understand yes," he replies.
"Your people took a white pony with indigo hair from Ponyville. Where is she?" I ask him.
He growls and tries to bite my ankle so I stab him in the shoulder. "Bad boy," I taunt him. "I'll ask again, where is she?"
"Me tell nothing. You die!" he says and struggles.
"Have it your way then," I say and channel a single arcane element through my blade that's still in his shoulder. He cries out in pain as his shoulder starts to blister. "Still don't want to tell me?" I ask him.
He howls in pain and I dig the blade in deeper. "Kill me!" he says.
"I'll kill you when you've told me where she is. Otherwise I'll just start cutting pieces of you off or start burning your flesh. I'll even heal you to do it all over again! You will suffer untold pain unless you tell me where she is!" I yell at him.
"You lie!" he says.
"Fine then..." I say and pull out my sword. I stab him in his right leg I channel a fire element through it and the smell of burning flesh fills the tunnel making him howl out again in pain.
I repeat the process for each of his limbs. He still won't talk? Fine. I spray his foot with water then cold elements. He screams as his foot... or paw... gets coated with solid ice.
"Now tell me where she is or I shatter your paw off!" I tell him. His eyes are wide but he stays silent, Idiot. I slam my shield down on his paw and it shatters as he screams and struggles. "Tell me or I'll take your other limbs in even more painful ways," I tell him.
"Okay! Me tell! She at end of tunnel to alpha! She taken to find gems!" he finally tells me.
"Thank you," I reply and cut his head off. I turn to Luna who looks horrified. "What?" I ask her.
"Did thou have to be so... barbaric?" she asks me.
"These dogs won't show us any mercy. As the books say, they treat ponies as food, not people, and the fact they even enslave others makes them savages themselves," I reply. "If they won't be civil with others, then I'll treat them like the animals they are... Now let's go and get Rarity back," I tell her.
She doesn't say a word as we head down the tunnel. We reach a chamber with some ponies to the left with rusty pickaxes mining the walls, to the right I see Rarity on the ground holding her stomach. "Stupid pony, you find gems or you die!" a big black furred diamond dog tells her.
"Luna, I'm going to fire a rock at the big one. Can you use your telekinesis to pull Rarity over to us?" I ask.
"Yes, but what about the other ponies?" she replies and asks.
"Once Rarity is safe, the dogs will most likely attack us. I'll try to take out as many of them as I can while you get the other ponies," I tell her. I look around and see about thirty dogs around, about twenty of them are in rusty armour and crude weapons.
"Alright, but I'm helping you if you get into trouble," she tells me.
"Okay," I reply.
A scream and someone choking grabs my attention. I look out and see Rarity grasping her throat as blood pours out like a faucet. "Rarity..." I say and my anger spikes.
POV: Luna
This cannot be happening as Rarity struggles for a bit before going limp... she's dead. I can feel a large amount of hate coming from Adrian and notice his eyes are black with red irises again. Just like when he stood up to the Nobles.
He suddenly teleports in front of the diamond dog that killed Rarity and with his bare hand that's covered in a black and red aura, he punches right through the alpha's chest and pulls out his still beating heart, and crushes it within his hand. The wound on his chest has a severe amount of blisters and slight bloating as the dog drops dead and the others howl and charge at Adrian.
He teleports away and I see five red orbs hover around the diamond on his shield. He points it to most of the dogs and lets loose a spray of flames that could be mistaken for a dragon's breath.
In a matter of seconds half of the dogs are reduced to ash. The look of rage and hate on Adrian's face makes me shiver. "ADRIAN! Calm down! This is not who thou are!" I yell to him.
He looks at me with that stare filled with untold rage and I go pale.
POV: Adrian Stormsword
I stare at Luna, I can see fear in her eyes... fear because of me and I try to calm myself down. I take a deep breath and exhale, once calm I turn back to the remaining dogs cowering away from me.
"Leave Equestria and don't come back," I tell them. They yelp and run down a tunnel.
I walk over to Rarity and check her pulse... she has none.
I failed... how can I go back to Ponyville now? There's only one way to save her, but I don't have the mana to cast it... wait. I do now!
"LUNA! QUICKLY! BRING ME MY SPELL BOOK NOW!" I tell her with urgency.
"Why? What art thou planning?" she asks.
"No time to explain, but I think I can save her! Just get me my book!" I tell her. Her horn glows and my book appears in her hand. I quickly take it and look through the pages for the revive spell. I find the page and read the instructions.
Should I fail this spell... it will take my life, but that's a risk I'm willing to take! I channel a life and lightning element into my shield and point it at Rarity and concentrate hard. I mould the life energy as a vessel for her soul to inhabit. After a few seconds of channelling, I can feel a presence within the vessel. This is where it gets difficult as I then pour the lightning element into it and give her soul a positive charge.
Once I'm a hundred percent positive I've got it right. I cast the spell and the Slash wound on her neck closes and a small electrical current then runs through her to jump start her brain and organs. I can see the life in her eyes return and she gasps where I then quickly fire a life beam at her to make sure all of her wounds are healed.
I cancel the beam after a few seconds and collapse onto my ass. That was a lot harder then I thought, no wonder mages needed so much mana. Even with the boost I got from Solaris and Galaxia. It took a lot out of me, or maybe it's just a spell that takes a lot of concentration and practice to get used to.
Rarity coughs and sits up. "Wha... what just happened! I-I'm sure I was just killed," she says while rubbing her throat.
Luna walks over to Rarity and checks her all over. "Thou were killed... but Adrian has brought thee back to life," she says with awe.
I lie down and relax where I can hear the whispers of the other ponies.
"Did he just bring her back to life?"
"Yeah, he even healed her wounds!"
"Is he some sort of god like the Princesses?"
"He must be! Who else can bring back the dead?"
"Wait a minute... we're free now... we can go home!"
They gather around me and start thanking me, I'm too tired to reply and just lie there with my eyes closed. I then feel someone pick me up and see it's Luna.
"Is she okay?" I ask her.
"Yes, she is perfectly fine," she replies. "Thou hast no idea what thou has just done," she then tells me with a worried expression.
My vision starts to blur and I feel dizzy. "I think I need some rest... I feel *yawn* tired," I say and fall asleep.
POV: Luna
Adrian falls asleep as I drape his arm over my shoulder while Rarity still looks like she can't believe what just happened. "Is something the matter, Rarity?" I ask her.
"Oh... erm, no. It's just the experience of hovering over my own body was a bit... jaunting." She starts tearing up. "I started thinking I would never see my little sister again. My parents. My friends. My home... I thought I lost it all," she says and starts crying.
I smile at her. "And yet thou has all that to return to now," I tell her.
She smiles at me and then looks at Adrian. "I do, and it's all thanks to him," she says.
Thirty Minutes Later Ponyville
I place Adrian down still in his armour on Twilight's guest bed. I then place his sword and shield besides him and head down to the others.
When we got back, everypony was worried about Rarity. My sister and I sit on the two armchairs while Rarity and her friends sit around the couch. Shella was called back to her Hive to check on the nursery while we were at the Quarry.
"Rarity, are you sure you're alright. There's blood all over you," Spike asks. "It's not your blood right?"
Rarity looks unsure. "It is," she replies. "the Alpha killed me," she tells them getting gasps from the others. Spike looks like his scales turned pale.
"B-But you're still alive? You're lying!" Rainbow says.
"She ain't lying," Applejack says with wide eyes.
"B-But if you died, how are you still alive?" Fluttershy asks.
"Adrian used his magic to bring her back to life," I tell them.
Pinkie gasps and stares at Rarity. "Does that make you a zombie?" she asks her.
"Good heavens, I hope not!" Rarity says looking a bit green at the thought.
"Nay, Adrian explained it to us once before. The revive spell repairs the fatal wound while putting the victim’s soul back inside their body," I tell them. "It has nothing to do with necromancy."
Rarity sighs in relief. "That explains the warm soothing feeling I got when I saw that green magic in front of his shield. I felt it pull me in and calm me down," she says. "but what about what those other ponies said? About him being a god?" she asks.
"A god?" Tia asks confused. She's been shocked this entire time about Rarity's death and revival.
"That's what the ponies were saying after they saw Adrian revive her," I reply.
She looks deep in thought. "I guess I can understand their reactions. Even we can't bring back somepony who's been killed, and rumours will spread about this. Ponies and even other species will want to ask or take him for this power," Tia says.
"That's true, the nobles will no doubt want to use this for their own ends, and the gryphons won't take this lying down either. An enemy that can bring back their fallen soldiers will be a major threat, we have no doubt that they'll try to get to him as soon as possible," I reply.
'There's also something else, sister,' I tell Tia telepathically.
'What is it, Lulu?' she replies while Twilight and her friends are all talking amongst themselves.
'When Adrian saw Rarity get killed. His anger and hate grew to such a degree, his eyes changed. Black and red, and then he ripped out the Alpha's heart bare-handed with his arcane element within seconds,' I tell her.
Tia goes wide eyed at the information. 'His eyes changed?' she asks.
'Yes, just like when he lashed out at the nobles when he asked to court thee. It was similar to Sombra's,' I tell her.
A loud thud from upstairs gets our attention and we hear something dragging across the floor. The door opens and a yawning Adrian walks down the stairs.
"Good morning," he says. His armour clanking lightly.
"It's the afternoon," Twilight tells him.
"Oh... good afternoon," he corrects himself. "How are you feeling, Rarity?" he asks her.
"Much better, thank you for saving me and the others trapped down there," she replies.
"You're welcome, how did they catch you in the first place?" he asks.
"I was looking for gems with Spike’s help," Rarity says and pats Spike on the head who has a dopey looking smile on his face. "While he was digging up the gems I located, those ruffians knocked Spike away and dragged me down that filthy hole. I swear, I still smell like wet dog," she says with disgust.
"What did you say to make the Alpha kill you?" he asks.
"I just told the brute to find his own gems. I'm a lady and I won't be reduced to forced labour!" she replies and crosses her arms with a huff.
"Yes, but you wouldn't have had your throat cut if you just complied and waited for help to come. Surely you didn't think your friends would just leave you down there. You're lucky I was there at the time, your soul could have passed on. The revive spell only works on those recently killed up to an hour at most," he tells her.
Rarity looks a bit whiter at that. "I'm sorry darling, I should of thought it through instead of letting my vanity take over," Rarity says as she looks down in thought. Adrian just sighs and combs his left hand through his hair.
"It's fine, you're alive and the dogs are gone now. That's all that matters," he says.
"Well be that as it may. I'll have to bring one of the town's guard, or maybe two with me next time just to be safe," she says.
Surprisingly Fluttershy gets up and hugs Adrian. "Thank you for saving Rarity. We don't know what we would have done without her," she tells him.
"No problem, Fluttershy," he replies. "What time is it?" he asks.
"Ten past six, Why?" I tell him and ask.
His stomach then decides to rumble. "I'm hungry," he says with a grin.
We all laugh at his playful attitude and Rarity then speaks up. "I'd be happy to treat you to dinner for saving my life. It's not everyday you can say a knight in shining armour saves you from beyond death itself," she offers.
Adrian looks at me with a raised eyebrow and I just nodded at him. "Well alright then, sure," he replies and holds his arm out.
Rarity smiles but shakes her head. "I need to clean up first, could you wait for an hour and I'll be right back," she says and heads for the door. "I shouldn't be too long," she tells us and leaves the Library.
Adrian then looks back at Tia and me. "I hope her buying me dinner isn't some attempt to date me," he says, making the others giggle and Spike to glare at him.
"Nay, she just wishes to thank thee for saving her life," I tell him. "Besides. She knows Tia, Shella, and us are in a herd with thee."
"Oh, good. You three are a handful as it is," he says playfully.
Tia levitates a book behind his head and lightly bonks him with it and we all share a laugh at that... I stop laughing after a few seconds and look down in thought. What if Adrian gets angry like that again? Will he lose himself to his rage and hate?
After an hour of waiting, Rarity returned clean and in a stunningly beautiful black dress that contrasted her white fur.
"Well darling? How do I look?" she asks.
"To be honest, beautiful," I reply.
She giggles and flutters her eyes. "Thank you. Now come, let us find a nice restaurant to dine at," she says and grabs my left arm and pulls me out of the Library, much to the amusement of the others.
We walk through town with her holding onto my arm... this feels so awkward. We reach a nice looking place called the Silver Platter.
We walk in and everything goes quiet.
"Isn't that the Princesses knight?"
"Yeah! It is! But why's he with Rarity? I thought he was with the Princesses?"
"Maybe he's expanding his herd?"
"But doesn't he already have three Mares? Isn't he just getting greedy now?"
I sigh and find a table with Rarity, who looks oblivious to the comments around us. A waiter greets us and asks for our orders.
"You're paying, so I'll let you decide. Just nothing with grass or hay please," I tell Rarity.
"Hmmm," she hums in thought and looks over the menu. "I'd like two vegetable casseroles with two glasses of dreamvale red wine please," she asks him.
"Very good. I shall be back with your drinks in a moment," he says with a slight bow and walks away.
"So darling, what have you been up to since you were last here?" she asks.
"Well. I've been training and practising my magic using my new shield... erm... I've also practised my sword skills with Twilight's Brother. Blueblood has..." I reply but she interrupts me.
"Blueblood? I don't want to know what that useless Prince is up to. Probably tormenting some poor mare," she says.
"Oh? You haven't heard yet? The Blueblood you met was a changeling impostor. The real Blueblood is actually a nice guy. Over the last month, he's adopted a young filly who was taken by Chrysalis’ changelings as well. He even helped with the funding for Shella's Hive. Right now he's trying to get the nobles to be more... well... noble," I tell her.
"What?" she asks stunned.
"You should meet the real Blueblood. You'd be surprised at how different he is from the impostor you met," I reply.
She looks unsure. "Well, I guess so..." She frowns in thought for a few more seconds. "Alright. I shall meet with him next time I'm in Canterlot, but if he's not as you say he is, I'll turn you into a pincushion," she tells me with a smirk.
I chuckle. "Fair enough," I reply as our food arrives.
During our meal Rarity tells me the same thing Twilight told us when we first arrived in Ponyville three days ago. She also told me why she was at the Quarry. She wanted gems for three dresses she's been hired to make but won't say who they're for. She apparently needed sapphires, diamonds, and topazes specifically. Most of the rest would have been given to Spike to eat.
Once we finish our meals, Rarity pays for it, even though I did offer to pay for mine. She said it was the least she could do for saving her.
"Well, thank you for the meal, Rarity," I say as we exit the restaurant.
"It was my pleasure darling," she replies and sighs. "To be honest, I'm rather envious of the Princesses and Queen Shella... to have such a brave knight who would do anything to protect them and care for them. If you were still single, I would have loved to court you," she says with a sad smile.
I smile back. "Sorry, Rarity, but I'm happy with Tia, Luna, and Shella. I'm afraid that my heart belongs to them and them alone," I tell her.
"I know, but a mare can dream can't she?" she replies.
We head back to the Library where Pinkie has thrown a 'Thank you for saving Rarity' party. We have fun for a few hours and everyone had a good time. Pinkie also threw a pie in my face 'by accident'... was a shame, it was a good pie too.
After the party, we head back to Canterlot. Celestia looks much happier than she was when we first arrived. Less stressed too after all her court duties and my coma.
Two Weeks Later
The last two weeks were quiet. No reports of more undead showing up and the gryphons have stayed away from the borders... it feels like something big is coming. I keep getting this feeling from the Statue Garden, like a presence is waiting there.
Celestia, Luna, and Shella have had some fun with me as well when we had some spare time alone, and Shella's stomach is really big now, just a few more days and she's ready to lay her eggs. I had to be careful when we made love again two night's ago.
We've been spending every afternoon together, just talking, reading, and cuddling in bed.
Celestia's starting to worry everyone with a new craving she's getting, she's been asking the chefs for some cooked fish. The guards and maids are worried that she might be turning into a carnivore... which is just silly. I guess since I can eat meat, our child will be able to as well if she's craving it. She even thinks it tastes good.
I've caught a few fish for Celestia and myself with Shining and the other guards when they went fishing again. I've also gotten my own rod and tackle box to fish with as well.
Word has spread about me bringing Rarity back to life after having her throat cut open. I've had two offers of marriage from two noble families, most likely just because of my new ability. I turned them both down of course, which they said was an insult to their family. Like I care, I'm going to marry Tia, Luna, and Shella. Not some women I know nothing about and who are probably pains in the ass.
Celestia has also told me our wedding will be in just over a month's time. I'm really looking forward to it.
I've been continuing my training and I'm close to using four elements at once, but I still need practice to stabilize it. I'm pretty proficient with my shield now and my sword skills are getting even better. Shining and I are pretty even now.
I'm laying on Luna's bed after a tiring workout in the Gym, Celestia is also laying beside me reading a book. Luna is dealing with court duties while Shella is at the Hive getting ready to lay her eggs. Though I have been invited to witness it.
I yawn and wrap my right arm around Celestia who giggles and cuddles up to me. "I take it your training was tough?" she asks.
"Not really, I think I just over did it a bit," I reply. "What are you reading?" I ask her.
She closes the book and shows me the cover. 'A guide to parenting. How to care for a foal.' "I've seen many foals, but have never cared for one before so I've been reading this book to learn how. I've also been asking some of the staff who've had foals before for advice as well," she tells me.
Huh, maybe I should read it as well. "I guess I should learn to do that as well. I can't let you do all the work raising the foal by yourself," I reply.
For the next two hours we read the book together. Once I feel rested, I bid Celestia goodbye with a kiss and head back out to the Training Grounds to practice my spells some more, but that feeling is pulling at me again. 'Screw it, I'm going to find out what that is. It's been annoying me for weeks,' I think to myself and head to the Statue Garden.
After some looking around, I stand in front of a statue of a creature made from different animals: A long serpent like body. A lion’s paw for it's right arm. A bird's talon for it's left arm. A lizard’s right leg and a goat's left leg. A dragon like tail and a horse like head. It has two mismatched horns and wings and a long snaggletooth. A goatee and bushy eyebrows. The pose its in looks like it was surprised.
The nameplate has moss covering it so I pull the moss off and read the nameplate, Its name is Discord? I frown and look back up at the statue only to go wide eyed and back away a few steps. Cracks start to spread across it and yellow light seeps out of the cracks.
I think I'm in trouble. Small stone chunks start coming off and I can see colour behind it: Brown torso. Yellow talon. Golden paw. Green scaled leg. Tanned goat leg. Red tail. Grey head... Yellow eyes with red irises. Wait... it looks kinda like the guy that gave me the spell book. Same colours, eyes, and the horns he had on his hood.
Once all the stone falls free, it yawns and stretches. "Oooooh boy! You have no idea how stiff you get after a thousand years stuck in the same pose," he says and bends back until he looks at me with his head between his legs. I just stare at him, unsure on what to do. "Not very talkative are you?" he asks.
"Errr, what are you?" I ask.
His legs go over his head and he's floating belly down as if he's laying on the air itself. "Why, I'm a draconequus my human friend. By the way, how's life been treating you since you got here?" he asks me.
"What?" I ask confused.
"Don't you remember my handsome face? I'm the one who brought you here my boy!" he says with his arms spread and I stare at him wide eyed. He brought me here? He then changes shape into the man that gave me the book. "I've been keeping an eye on you since you got here. I must say, hooking up with both Celly, Woona, and a changeling Queen is rather impressive."
I frown and quickly punch him in the face. "If you've been watching me this whole time, then you know of all the trouble and pain I've been through since I've been here!" I yell at him. I then sigh and offer him a hand. "But if it wasn't for you, I'd have never met Tia, Luna, and Shella," I say.
He rubs his cheek and chuckles as he takes my hand and I pull him up. "I guess I deserved that." He snaps his fingers and changes back to his draconequus form. "Oh! I can feel Celly is on her way. Now, do I run and we begin our game of hide and seek, or do I stay and try to reason with her?" he says.
I frown at him. "What were you doing in stone in the first place?" I ask him.
"Oh?" he says with his paw on his chest, looking shocked. "Dear ol' Celly didn't tell you about me? Well if you must know, she had a bit of a sweet tooth when she was younger. She loved her cake. So one time I turned her cake into a giant, but harmless, filly eating monster. It was basically twice her size and tried to eat her instead. It was just a harmless prank. Once it 'ate' her, it would just turn back into a normal cake where she would just climb out." He then sighs. "But it would seem she took that very personally and with wittle Woona's help, sealed me in stone! She never could take a joke." He waved his talon dismissively.
A flash of light blinds me for a second and I look to my right and see Celestia standing there with an angry expression. "Discord! How did you get free!?" she asks him.
"Celly! Even after a thousand years, you're still mad at me? I hold no hard feelings even after you turned me into a lawn ornament," he tells her calmly.
"I almost suffocated in that monstrosity!" she yells at him.
"Yes... well..." Discord says and sighs as his ears go flat. "I may have miscalculated that part..." he tells her and hangs his head. "That was never my intention. Still, sealing me away for a millennia was a tad excessive! I'm just lucky I could still visit my friends and their descendants," he says.
"What?" Celestia asks.
"Even though my body couldn't move. I could still send out an astral projection of myself. Certainly helps to stave off the boredom and insanity!" he replies. "And if you missed what I just told Adrian here, I'm the one who brought him here. You wouldn't have your coltfriend if it wasn't for me," he says.
Celestia looks shocked and looks at me. I just shrug in reply. "I think he's telling the truth, he does resemble the guy who gave me the spell book..." I tell her then look at Discord. "How did you get that book in the first place?" I ask him.
"I felt old Beardy disappear from Equus after Celly stoned me. So I tracked him down after two years to your world. I kept in contact with him as much as I could. He even turned himself into a human to fit in. I was told to give the book to his descendant when I felt the time was right, and with Grogar getting free, I felt it was time and that's when we first met," he tells me.
Celestia frowns at him. "Then why didn't you bring him back?" she accuses him.
"I would have, but it was his decision to stay. He wouldn't tell me why," he replies. He conjures a couch and sits on it.
Wait... this Starswirl is my ancestor? "I'm related to Starswirl?" I ask dumbly.
"That you are Stormy! I was asked to watch over you and your family... but I failed that when I was distracted in Equus by Grogar's release. I wasn't there to protect your parents and you," he says with a sad expression. "After that, I've kept a close eye on you. Remember that time you were captured by bandits? And you broke free? It was I that undid your bonds," he tells me.
So he's been looking out for me? "Why?" I ask him.
"Because Starswirl was one of my oldest friends and I owed a lot to him. Besides, I like to think of myself as your family's weird uncle," he says and sticks his tongue out.
Celestia looks a lot less angry now. "So what do you plan on doing now that you're free?" she asks him.
He pulls the top of his head off by one of his horns and scratches his brain... yeah, that's not nasty at all. "I guess I'll help you protect Equestria from Grogar and maybe even teach Adrian two elements not even Beardy found," he says.
"What elements?" I ask.
"Order and chaos," he replies. "but you need to master both the light and shadow elements first," he tells me.
Chapter 37: Walk in the Light. Step into Shadow Part 1
Terracana Chapter 37: Walk in the Light. Step into Shadow Part 1
POV: Adrian Stormsword
"Order and chaos?" I ask.
"Yes, boring order and delightful chaos! While these two elements are strong on their own, they're remarkably powerful combined. They create balance, one cannot exist without the other," he says and smirks at Celestia. She just folds her arms and frowns at him.
"So what do the elements do on their own?" I ask him.
"Order can make others tell the truth... a bit like a lie detector that is never wrong. It's energy can also purify or destroy 'Evil' supposedly, I just know the way to channel your mana into the element, you'll have to discover what it fully does. Chaos on the other hand can bend reality to your whim," he tells me and conjures a pie out of nowhere and throws it in my face, but then it disappears leaving me as clean as I was before. "Though it is much harder to control than the order element will be," he warns me. "but first!" he then says and claps his hands together. "You'll need to master both the light and shadow elements," he tells me.
"I've started learning the light element," I say and channel one light element through my right hand.
"Well that's a start!" he says and chuckles. "Since it's late, I'll start helping you train tomorrow, but right now you need to get some sleep. I'm not going to go easy on you," he tells me.
"Alright. I'll see you tomorrow then. Uncle," I say with a smirk.
He stares at me for a few seconds and then burst out laughing. He eventually calms down with a smile. "I like the sound of that, uncle Discord! Well then, I'll meet you at the Training Grounds at seven in the morning," he then looks at Celestia. "I also promise never to prank you or wittle Woona ever again," he tells her with a smile. "Arrivederci!" He waves at us and disappears in a puff of pink smoke.
I look at Celestia who seems conflicted. "What's with the face?" I ask her.
She sighs and hugs me tightly. "Although he's never been truly bad... he's still the opposite of what I stand for. Order, peace, harmony. He finds delight in disorder, chaos, and lots of pranks..." she replies. "I can't remember anytime he was serious."
"Well, he brought me here, to you, Luna, and Shella, and he's been watching out for me for years," I tell her. "I think that's pretty serious," I say and hold her tightly.
"Fine, but if he messes with my cake again, I'll send him to the moon," she says and I chuckle.
Training Day 1
I wake up with Celestia and Luna besides me in Luna's room. Shella couldn't join us in bed as she's at the Hive getting ready to lay her eggs in two days. I look at the clock and see it's five fifty-two. I get both Luna and Celestia up and we get dressed and ready for the day.
After breakfast, I give them a kiss goodbye and head to the Training Grounds with my spell book. I see Discord teasing the guards and Shining doesn't look happy about it.
"Would you knock it off already! I'm trying to train the guard here!" Shining yells at him.
Discord, dressed in guards armour and holding a child's wooden toy sword salutes at him. "Sorry, Sir! Won't happen again. Sir!" he says as his helmet then comically tilts to the side. He also has a faint smile on his face.
I couldn't help but chuckle. "Good morning, uncle. Making friends already?" I greet and ask, making him grin.
"I'll never get tired of hearing that!" he says and throws his helmet and sword over his shoulders, which turn into jelly and splats on a guard's face. The rest of his armour turns into butterflies and fly off.
"Uncle!? Discord is your uncle!?" Shining asks me with confusion.
"Sure, he's been looking over my family for a thousand years... I guess that makes him family as well," I tell him.
Shining then frowns at me. "Then please tell your uncle to leave my guards alone. He's interrupting our training!" he tells me.
"Come on, Discord. Let's get started with my training," I tell him.
He chuckles and floats along behind me. "Alright then, we'll continue with the light element since you've started with that one. The light element harnesses light to blind your foes. On it's own you can cast it as a beam to blind or even permanently blind a foe with its intense focused light. A nova to blind all those around you, both friend and foe," he tells me and conjures a couch to sit on. "Mines will look like dim balls of light and when stepped on shall blind anyone nearby who steps on it. As a self cast with a shield element, It will make you glow, lighting up the area around you, useful for exploring dark areas, like caves."
"So it's mainly for incapacitating my foe?" I ask.
"Yup, makes them stumble about like drunks. Quite funny to watch actually," he replies and laughs.
I open my book and refresh my memory on how to form it. Once I've gone over it, I start channelling one light element and focus it in my palm. After a minute to get it stabilized, I face my palm towards a target down the range. I cast the spell and a two inch wide beam instantly hits the target, but nothing is really happening. The beam is hitting the target, there's just no damage or blast of light... It's just a beam.
"Very good! Not bad for your, what is it? Fourth attempt? I remember you blinding yourself the first time," he says with a chuckle.
"You've been watching me all the time? Even with Tia, Luna, and Shella?" I ask him with a raised brow.
"Hmmm?" he hums in confusion. He then goes wide eyed. "Oh by all that is chaotic no! When you got frisky with them I turned my attention elsewhere," he says and pulls his eyes out and throws them away.
I just stare at him for a few seconds. "Don't you need those?" I ask bewildered.
"Na... I've got another pair somewhere," he replies and puts his taloned hand into a pocket... That's actually in his fur on his left hip. He pulls out two new eyes and stuffs them into his eye sockets. "Ah! There we go!" he says and grins. I just smile and shake my head.
For the next two hours I practice stabilizing one element and I'm getting better at it, I only need ten seconds now to channel it.
"Alright. Now I'm going to set up a barrier around you to shield the others from your spells," Discord says and a large shaded dome surrounds me. I can still see through it, though it looks closer to night now. "Now try a nova! And close your eyes when you cast it, or you'll blind yourself!" he tells me.
I channel a light element and close my eyes, I cast it around me and I can see the area around me is bathed in light behind my eyelids. Damn that's bright!
I continue for a few more minutes before it starts hurting my eyes.
"Okay, let's take a break! Your mana might not run out anytime soon, but you'll blind yourself at this rate," Discord tells me as he sits in a lounge chair drinking a glass of chocolate milk. I notice a few of the guards watching us with rapt attention.
After a ten minute break, I spend the next two hours with beams and auras. "Alright my boy! I think that's enough for now. I'm feeling a mite peckish. What say you to some nibbles from the kitchen? Hmm?" he says as his stomach rumbles, making him jiggle and the ground to shake slightly as well.
I chuckle at his antics. "Sure, I'm getting a bit hungry and thirsty myself," I reply and we head back in.
We arrive at the Dining Hall and sit down besides Luna and Celestia where they both give Discord glares. "Oh come now Celly, Woona. Why the sour looks?" Discord asks them.
"Thou art just as annoying as we remember, but we shall tolerate thee for bringing Adrian to us and looking out for him," Luna replies and then points a butter knife at him. "But if thou dare harm or prank anypony again, we'll make sure thou canst never return," she tells him coldly.
"Oh that's just being mean, Woona!" he says with a sad frown.
Luna then growls at him. "And stop calling us by that name!" she yells at him. I just chuckle.
"Oh lighten up, Luna, he's not that bad," I say to her.
She crosses her arms and humphs. I smile and kiss her cheek which makes her frown fade into a smile as well.
We eat lunch and head back out to the Training Grounds where I continue to practice for the rest of the day.
Training Day 3 Lapis Hive
My control over the light element the last two days is progressing well but I still need a lot more training to master it.
Right now I'm in the Hive with Shella besides me in her own bed. I decided to spend the day with her as today's the day she lays her eggs. I look up at the dark blue tinted ceiling of Shella's personal chambers, she doesn't have a Castle or Palace, changeling Queens have their own room near the nursery for when they're ready to lay their eggs.
She mumbles in her sleep as she holds onto me. Her stomach is really big now and I can feel it pressed against me so I gently rub her stomach and she hums in content. After a few minutes she opens her eyes and smiles at me.
"Good morning. Today's the day, are you looking forward to it?" she asks me.
"Yeah, though it's technically not their actual birth, it will be interesting to see them in the eggs," I reply.
We get up and head towards the market where I buy some of the crops they've grown to eat. Not as good as the Castle's breakfast, but I've had worse.
Shella tells me how the Hive is progressing. So far they only have vegetables grown as their wheat is still growing, but they've made a few bits selling what they have grown to Ponyville and Cloudsdale.
After breakfast, Shella and I walk around the Hive greeting the changelings running around getting things done. Now that the Nursery is built, they're continuing work on the market area. Their Library is also coming along well thanks to Twilight's help, it's twice as big as the Library in Ponyville now.
We spend a few hours talking to people around the Hive and I'm thanked a few times still for bringing them here. Shella wobbles slightly and holds onto me. "Are you alright?" I ask her.
"Yes, but it's almost time... I need to get to the Nursery now," she tells me.
I pick her up bridal style and make my way to the Nursery. A few of the changelings follow us, excited about the news. We enter the Nursery where there's a bed and four female changelings whose job is to look after the eggs once they're laid waiting for us. I place Shella on the bed, she's remarkably calm for someone about to lay some large eggs.
"My Queen, please spread your legs and lay back. Take slow deep breaths," the oldest of the four tells her. She does as she's told and spreads her legs while I keep my gaze on her face. "When you feel the first contraction, we need you to push as hard as you can," the nurse says.
Shella relaxes and grunts when the first contraction hits. She pushes and the first egg comes out, it's the size of my head. I get a brief glimpse of it as a nurse takes it to a hole in the wall and places it inside, she then covers the hole with that goo they make within themselves.
Ten minutes pass as I hold her left hand. She lays the last two eggs and pants from the exertion. One of the eggs is taken to another hole while the other is given to Shella. She cradles the egg in her arms and I get a good look at it. Inside, I can see the faint outline of a baby changeling curled up in some dark blue goo. The baby is no bigger than my hand.
"Its so tiny," I say.
"She'll grow at least three times bigger before she's ready to hatch," Shella tells me.
"She? So you decided to keep a girl?" I ask her.
"Oh... did you want a colt?" she replies and asks.
I place my left hand on the egg and the baby shifts slightly. I watch as one of the Nurses brings out one of the four life crystals the Hive was given. This one will be used for feeding the eggs and helping them grow.
"It's fine, I'd love them if they were a boy or girl," I reply and smile at her. She scoots across the bed and lets me on, I lay beside her and cuddle up to her with the egg between us.
"I won't be able to walk for a few hours until I can feel my legs again," she says with a giggle.
"That's fine, I've got nowhere else to be right now." I reply.
"Good, because you're going to impregnate me again in a week," she tells me.
Oh boy...
Training Day 10 One week later
During the last week, Shella returned to the Castle with her egg, she's placed it in Celestia's room until it hatches. Celestia fawned over it as the baby inside slowly grew and moved now and then. I've been feeding Shella, who in turn, fed the egg.
Discord has been on my ass with training every afternoon till dinner time. My skill with the light element is going well I can channel one element effectively now. This is a lot harder than the air element was to learn.
Blueblood has got another noble family on his side while the Goldrush family had one join them as well.
Twilight sent a letter saying she and her friends are coming to meet Blueblood in two weeks time since it's the only time they all have free.
After a nice meal with everyone I head up to Celestia's room and get ready for bed. Celestia, Luna, and Shella said they have to get something first, so I lay on the bed reading up on that parenting book Celestia has.
I'm slightly blinded by a flash of light and rub my eyes. "Tia? Luna? Shella? Is that you?" I ask. I look up and go wide eyed. All three of them are in sexy lingerie. Celestia is wearing a black see through lacy thong and bra. She has stockings going up to the top of her thighs and long gloves that nearly reach her shoulders.
Luna is also wearing a matching set but in white. Shella has a light blue thin thong and a small bra with little bands on her biceps and thighs.
...I have the biggest nose bleed right now.
"I hope you haven't forgotten what I told you back at the Hive. I need you to impregnate me again," Shella says and sways her hips as she walks over to the bed. She crawls on top of me and kisses me deeply. I can feel Celestia and Luna cuddle up to me as well.
...I'm going to need a blood transfusion at this rate.
"I hope you're not too tired from training today... because we'll be spending the next few hours having some fun," Celestia says very lustfully.
Terracana Chapter 37.5: An Awesome Foursome (Clop)
Shella kisses me deeply as she grinds herself on top on me while Celestia and Luna are licking and kissing my neck and shoulders.
Shella then sits up and her horn glows, I'm now completely naked... and have the biggest boner I've ever had. She starts to run my length across the thin fabric of her thong, I can feel the moisture dripping from it.
"I want you to fill me again, Adrian," she says and leans down towards me. She kisses me again and I grab her ass, I then knead her soft chitin and she moans into my mouth.
I move my right hand and grip the side of the thong covering her pussy. I pull it aside and line myself up with her. She gasps as I thrust up into her and we both moan. I almost lose it when Celestia and Luna both start to suckle on Shella's breasts.
She slowly begins bouncing on me and I place my hands on her hips. I assist by thrusting up every time she slides down. She's moaning very loudly now and I can feel her clenching me tightly. Despite laying eggs, she's still as tight as when we first made love, must be a changeling thing.
"Oooh, Adrian! You feel so ahh! So good inside me! Nngghh," she says. Celestia then decides to sit on my face which I happily start to eat her out.
Not to leave Luna out of the fun, I snake my left hand between her legs and begin fingering her pussy. My index and middle fingers slip inside her while my thumb plays with her clit.
All three of them are moaning out in pleasure on top of me. I can hear Celestia making out with Shella while Luna is laying over my chest.
"Yes Adrian! Push thine fingers deeper!" Luna tells me and I comply.
"Ahhhh. Your tongue feels aaahhooohhh wonderful, my love!" Celestia says and wiggles her soft ass on my face, making my tongue go deeper within her.
I can feel Shella squeezing me erratically now she must be close. "OooOooOOOohh I'm so close. Adriaaaaahhn! Buck me harder! NNGGGGGHH. BUCK ME FASTER!" she screams. I thrust into her as fast and hard as I could in my current position, but it's just not enough to give her what she wants.
I gently push Luna and Celestia off of me and they whine in protest.
"Sorry, I really want to give Shella a good pounding," I tell them. "but don't worry, you'll be next," I say and pull out as I move Shella onto her hands and knees.
I spread her legs and line my cock back up with her leaking slit. I push myself in and wrap my arms around her waist. She moans loudly and I begin to hammer away into her as her tail then wraps around my waist as well.
She's now screaming her lungs out as my thrusts push her head into the mattress while her inner walls are sucking and clenching me like crazy. I look to the others and see them masturbating while watching us.
"Yes! Buck me. Ahhh! Fill me with nnngghh with more eggs! Ooohh. I want to bare your hatchlings for the rest of AAHHH! My life!" Shella screams as her walls clamp down hard. "YEEESSS! I'M CUMMING!" she yells and pushes back hard with her ass trembling against me.
"Oh fuck!" I grunt as I cum inside her womb, I keep thrusting until I've emptied my balls into her.
I groan as I pull out of her with an audible pop and she moans from the feeling. I turn to Celestia and go wide eyed when I see Luna laying on top of her, careful not to lay on her stomach though. They're both completely naked and rubbing their pussies together while looking at me with half-lidded eyes.
"Come, Adrian. Rut us," Luna says lustfully.
"Yes, buck us both at the same time!" Celestia tells me.
I waste no time and climb up behind them. I grab Luna's hips and line my cock in between their puffy lips. They're so wet, I easily slip between them and start thrusting between their bodies. My member constantly rubs against their clits as they wiggle and grind against me.
"Damn that feels good," I say and squeeze Luna's ass.
I get a long moan out of her. I then pull back and thrust my dick into Celestia's soaked slit as she screams from the sudden penetration. Luna then silences her by kissing her, oh fuck that's hot.
I thrust a few times before pulling out and lining myself up with Luna's pussy. I push in and get a squeak out of her that turns into a lustful moan. I thrust into her and I can feel her clenching me, trying to keep me inside her.
As I continue to switch between them, Shella has recovered and is now kneeling beside me also naked, kissing me as I fuck both of my Princesses.
After about fifteen more minutes of switching, I finally cum inside Celestia. "Oh buck yes!" she screams as she cums with me, gripping onto Luna tightly as she trembles.
I pull out and Luna looks back at me. "A-Adrian," Luna stutters. "C-Can you buck us in o-our rump?" she asks. She wants me to fuck her in the ass?
"You sure?" I ask as I lightly poke her anus with the tip of my dick.
She moans and wiggles her backside. "Yes! We have witnessed many a ponies dreams of such an action... and we wish to experience it with thee," she tells me.
"Alright, just relax for me," I tell her and start pushing against her asshole. She moans as she tries to relax and her anus spreads around my member as it slowly sinks in easily from the heavy lubrication I got from both their aroused pussies.
I stop about halfway in and pull out until only the head remained inside making her gasp and moan from the sensations. I thrust back in a little deeper and pull back out, I then go deeper with each thrust. I feel Shella move under my legs and begin to eat out Luna's pussy while my testicles are resting on her nose.
Luna screams from the pleasure and starts making out with Celestia again. I notice Shella has also started to switch between Celestia and Luna, licking and sucking at them.
I can feel Luna's rectum squeezing me and massaging my length as I go balls deep. "Damn, Luna. Your ass is so tight!" I tell her.
"Yes! Buck our rump. Nnghh. Spank us!" she begs me. I raise my right hand and slap her right ass cheek firmly getting her to squeal and moan. "Again! Ahhhh, spank us again!" I do so and spank her left cheek.
"Oh buck! We are CUMMING!" Luna screams as her ass clamps down on my dick. I feel her juices splash against my balls and hear Shella's yelp of surprise. I then hear gulping in which can only be Shella drinking Luna's cum. The tightness of her ass and the noises below makes me groan as I unload into her. Luna then moans deeply as she feels my cum fill up her ass.
I pull out and grimace at the mess on my dick, but Shella's horn glows and my cock is cleaned up. She then takes my dick and begins to suck on it making me groan from the sensation. I'm pushed onto my back as all three of them surround my member between their breasts and begin sliding them up and down my length. Celestia is to my right, Luna to my left, and Shella is between my legs.
They all take turns licking the head of my dick while making out with each other. Oh gods I'm so turned on right now, I'm sure I can feel blood dripping out my nose again. I don't think any human has ever been this lucky.
After a good ten minutes of this divine torture, my cock starts twitching. They all pick up their speed, jerking my member off with their tits rapidly. "AH FUCK!" I shout as I cum. My semen showers all three of them and they begin licking each other clean. I watch as they lick each others face and breasts, moaning the the whole time... It got me hard again.
I growl and lunge at Shella once they backed off. She 'Eeps' in surprise as I spread her legs and thrust myself into her pussy. She moans and giggles at my aggressiveness before I start hammering away at her, slapping my groin against hers. She starts panting rapidly and her moans turn into screams. "Don't stop, AHHHH! PLEASE DON'T STOP!" she begs me as I fuck her faster.
She's screaming her lungs out and I abuse her gushing flower as I continuously thrust in and out of her. Celestia and Luna cuddle up besides Shella and all three of them start making out. I watch the display as I grip Shella's ankles and fuck her senseless.
Shella then looks directly at me. "Oh buck yes! I'm so close NNGGHHH! AAHH! Fill me again! PLEASE FILL ME AGAIN!" she yells.
I can feel her vagina sporadically squeezing me like a vice as her fingers claw at my chest. I hold on as long as I can but it's too much as I grunt and squirt rope after rope of cum into her. The feeling of me filling her causes her to cum as well. "BUCK YES!" she shouts and her walls clamp down tightly. It's so tight, I can't even thrust or pull out.
She shakes violently as her climax rips through her body. Luna and Celestia are both rubbing Shella's clit with their fingers, prolonging hers and my orgasms.
After a few more seconds of bliss, she relaxes and I slip out of her. I lay on top of her with my head using her breasts as pillows.
I flip us over so she's resting on top of me where Luna and Celestia cuddle up to us and exhaustion finally catches up with us. One by one we all slowly fall asleep.
Chapter 38: Walk in the Light. Step into Shadow Part 2
Terracana Chapter 38: Walk in the Light. Step into Shadow Part 2
I wake up with a yawn and find myself surrounded by my lovers and I couldn't be happier. I bask in the comfort I'm in for a few minutes, trying to fall back to sleep, until a horn sounds out loudly in the room. We all jump, scared shitless as it echoes throughout the room.
It's Discord in a uniform similar to Shining's captain uniform while blowing into a brass horn.
"WAKE UP MAGGOT! WE GOT SOME TRAINING TO DO!" Discord yells at me sternly.
"It's not even six in the morning yet!" I yell back, I look at the clock and it's not even four in the morning. I groan and pull the blanket over our heads. Celestia, Luna, and Shella look pissed at being so rudely awoken.
Luna scrunches up her nose and snaps. "DISCORD! WHAT DID WE SAY ABOUT THOU PRANKING US!" Luna shouts at him in anger.
"Oh lighten up, now that Adrian here has got a grip on the light element, I want to start his shadow element training. This will be harder as I forgot to mention that if he should screw it up, the shadow energy could corrupt him... similar to what happened to Luna," he says seriously.
That got us all to shut up.
"C-Corrupted?" Luna whimpers with wide eyes as her anger fades and she holds onto me tightly.
"So before we even get started, I suggest you call your little elements of harmony here just in case he does lose control. Hopefully the elements will purify him like they did for Luna and not turn him into a garden gnome... or worse," he tells us while look out the window. I follow his gaze and see the Moon.
I can feel Luna trembling.
"Then simply don't teach him how," Celestia states.
"Not an option, he's going to need every bit of power he can get when he faces against Grogar. Unlike you two who've been sitting on your comfy thrones getting fat," he says and gets a growl from Celestia.
"I AM NOT FAT! I'M PREGNANT!" Celestia yells at him. I look to her stomach under the covers, it's starting to grow rounder and her toned abs are fading, showing that she is indeed pregnant. I wonder how the nobles are going to react to this.
Discord ignores her and continues. "He's been gathering his forces and getting more powerful as well. Even you two will need to start training and getting back into shape," he tells them.
Celestia and Luna frown at him then look at each other. I just lie there between them looking awkward, and I just realised that we're all naked with Discord looking at us. Celestia also seems to notice this. "DISCORD! GET OUT!" she yells and uses her magic to catapult a pillow right in his face. The force actually sends him through the doors.
A couple of guards run down the hall and rush into the room with their weapons drawn while another two are looking over Discord, who has stars spinning around his head, eyes rolling around and tongue hanging out.
The two guards that entered have blushes on their faces and instantly turn around, facing away from us. I can hear Celestia grinding her teeth... uh oh, I think this is going to be one of her emotional outbursts. "ALL OF YOU! GET OUT NOW!" Celestia yells in the Royal Canterlot Voice, making the guards jump and run out the broken door. They then drag the still dazed Discord away with them.
Luna's horn glows and the door repairs itself. "That was certainly an unusual way of waking up," she then says.
"No kidding, I hope he was joking about that corrupted part. I know I have to get stronger... but is it worth risking?" I ask.
"We told thee of our time as Nightmare Moon. We were so angry, we wanted power no matter the source. We turned to dark magic, and it corrupted us, possessing us. We could still see and hear what we were doing, but our actions were not our own," she tells me and starts sobbing.
I gently hug her with my left arm. "It's alright, Luna. Besides... I can always just cancel the spell if something goes wrong," I tell her.
"Do you really have to go through with it?" Shella asks.
"Yes, how long will it take to get Twilight and the others here?" I reply and ask.
Celestia's horn glows and a piece of paper appears with a quill. I watch her as she writes her letter next to me.
Dear Twilight.
I need you and the other element bearers to come to the Castle as soon as you can with your elements ready. Adrian is beginning his shadow element training today and there's a chance it could corrupt him. We need the elements to purify his corruption should this happen.
We will be waiting at the Training Grounds when you arrive.
Princess Celestia.
P.S. I'm looking forward to seeing you again my student.
She rolls it up and ties a red bow with her cutie-mark around it, her horn then glows and the scroll disappears in a flash. Once done, she nuzzles my neck and licks my cheek affectionately.
"So what do we do until Twilight and the gang get here?" I ask.
"We have an idea." Luna says seductively and starts crawling down my body... Oh boy!
Three Hours Later
We're all standing in the Training Grounds waiting for Twilight and her friends. After a shower and a big breakfast, I feel refreshed and ready for what lies ahead. Although our morning fun was very strenuous, I've never felt better.
"Princess!" I hear a voice shout out. I turn around and see Twilight and the others walking over to us. Twilight's wearing a tiara with a purple six pointed star on it. The others have golden necklaces with a gem in the centre: Rarity has a indigo diamond shaped gem. Fluttershy has a pink butterfly shaped gem. Rainbow has a red lightning bolt shaped gem. Applejack has an orange apple shaped gem with a green stem and Pinkie has a light blue balloon shaped gem.
"Good morning, Twilight," Celestia greets her.
"Good morning, Princesses," Twilight replies, bowing to Celestia and Luna. "And good morning to you as well, Shella, Adrian," she says to us.
I smile and wave to them. "Hey, thanks for coming. I just hope you don't need to use them," I tell them.
They all start looking nervous. "Do you have to do this?" Rarity asks.
"Yes, if I want to get stronger, then I have to learn this," I reply.
Discord suddenly pokes out of the right middle pouch on my leggings. "I see the gang's all here!" he says and jumps out and grows back to his normal size.
I chuckle. "I was wondering where you were," I tell him. I also hear Pinkie giggling.
"Just waiting for the rainbow posse to show up," he says and looks at the six women. Fluttershy gives him a cute little wave which he returns and then looks back at me. "Let's get started! To control the shadow energy, you have to force your will over it. It will in turn try to force it's dark energy into you, twisting your morals against you," he tells me.
"Doesn't sound too hard," I say and open my spell book to the shadow element. I didn't feel anything like that when I first tried channelling it.
"I know you tried once before and that was foolish. You should have read the warning Starswirl wrote down about it first," Discord scolded me.
I look in the book and find the warning. Huh... how did I miss that?
"Alright then, so how do I force my will over it?" I ask.
"You'll feel a sort of push against you. With the energy you channel, you push back at it and cast the spell. On its own, it's a spray type spell. All foes caught in the shadow like mist lose their sense of hearing. It's very effective when used with the light element to both blind and deafen your foes. They become practically helpless without these senses," he tells me. "Though the effect only lasts a minute or two."
I look to the book and read the instructions just to be sure. "Alright... here goes nothing," I say and start channelling my mana like I did before, but this time... It feels wrong.
I frown and grunt from the odd sensation. I clench my teeth as I can feel a sort of presence trying to push its way in.
'What do we have here? My my. What a strong and powerful body you have,' a female sounding voice says in my head.
'Who are you?' I demand while trying to push it back.
'That doesn't matter. Just know that I shall put your body to good use,' she says with a malicious giggle. The presence pushes harder against me and I fall to a knee. I can't even cancel the flow of mana anymore!
POV: Luna
Adrian looks to be in pain as he grips his chest with his right hand. His left hand is surrounded by a familiar shadow like mist.
"Adrian? Are thou alright?" I ask him with worry.
"Nggaah! Someone is... Gah... trying to c-control my body!" he replies.
His eyes open and his left one is a turquoise colour with a cat like slit for his pupil... oh no.
"Nightmare Moon! She's trying to posses Adrian!" I yell in fear and my legs give out. She was not destroyed by the elements!?
"WHAT!" the bearers all yell out.
I quickly get back up and put both my hands on the sides of Adrian's head and place my horn on the top of his head. With some effort, I cast a sleeping spell on him and once he's asleep, I enter his dream.
POV: Adrian Stormsword
I'm suddenly in a dark looking forest and I can barely see a few metres ahead of me. I'm still in my armour with my sword and shield at least.
"Oh? This is interesting. It seems my old host has put you to sleep," the voice says. I hear footsteps to my right to see a woman that looks just like what Luna dressed as for Nightmare Night.
"Are you Nightmare Moon?" I ask her with a glare.
She giggles, but it sounds far from friendly. "So you know who I am? I take it poor little Luna told you about me then?" she replies and asks.
So... this is the person responsible for all of Luna's pain and suffering for the last thousand years... I channel an arcane and two fire elements through my shield and without warning, shoot a beam of fire at her. Her eyes widen in surprise and she leaps out of the way. The tips of her right wing's feathers get scorched.
I turn my shield to face her and the beam quickly heads towards her. She flaps her wings and dashes behind a tree. I cancel the spell and channel three earth elements and launch the rock at the tree she's hiding behind. The tree snaps and falls down... but she's not there.
I look around and listen out for her as my perception training with Luna a month ago comes into play. I look around and hold my breath. I can hear footsteps behind me and swing my sword to slash her, but I go wide eyed and pull back just before I hit Luna in the head.
"Luna!? What are you doing here?" I ask her and start looking around again.
"We art here to assist thee in battle against our past sin," she replies. I notice she's in her armour and has her scythe and swords.
"Well well well, if it isn't my old room mate," Nightmare says tauntingly. It sounds like she's all around us.
Luna then growls at her as I hear the flaps of wings above us and look up. Nightmare Moon is flying towards me with a wicked looking spear. It has teeth along the blade that look like it's designed to rip instead of cut. I swing my shield and deflect her attack, I then swing my sword and her horn glows as she teleports away, avoiding my attack.
She reappears to my left and I hold my shield up. I fire a spray of lightning at her and she tries to avoid it, but the lightning is drawn to her spear and armour as she grunts in pain from the electricity coursing through her. Her horn glows and a bubble of magic surrounds her.
"Damn insect! Your body will be mine!" she yells in anger and charges at me, only to be tackled by Luna into a few trees.
"THOU SHALL NOT HARM OUR MATE!" Luna roars in rage. She swings her scythe at Nightmare and barely misses her wings as Nightmare Moon rolls to her left.
"You will not stop me this time you poor excuse of an alicorn!" Nightmare insults Luna and thrusts her spear at Luna. I teleport in front of Luna and block Nightmare's spear with my shield while channelling three fire elements through it. I cast the spell and she's engulfed by my flames.
"GGAAAAAHHH!" she screams and teleports away. She's behind us and looking worse for wear as patches of fur are missing from her body that's exposed from her armour. Her armour is also burnt with black scorch marks on it. "I will make your mind suffer for all eternity once I have claimed your body!" she threatens me.
I smirk at her and get into a defensive stance. Luna's horn glows and she fires a bolt of magic at Nightmare who backhands it into some trees.
'I'd like to see you try that with this!' I think to myself and channel two earth elements with a fire element. I launch the fire infused rock at her and she smirks at it. I guess to her it just looks like a ball of fire.
In arrogance or confidence, she backhands the rock with her left hand. I grin as it detonates and I see blood spray as her hand is blown off. She screams in agony as the armour on her arm is ripped apart and bends into her wound. She drops her spear and grips the stump that's left of her arm. Looks like she lost her hand and half of her forearm.
"DAMN YOU! I WILL GET YOU FOR THIS!" she says and fades away into the shadows.
For the next few minutes we look around for any signs of her, but that feeling of a presence pushing against me is now gone.
"It would seem she has fled," Luna says, looking around still.
"I think so, I don't feel her magic pressing against me anymore," I reply.
Luna then grabs my head and roughly kisses me. "Do not frighten us like that again!" she says and starts sobbing.
I give her a sad smile as I pull her into a tight hug. "It's alright, Luna. She's gone and I'm fine," I tell her and stroke her hair.
"We thought we almost lost thee to the same monster who took us," she says and holds me tightly.
"It'll take more than a cranky evil bitch to bring me down... but thank you for the help," I reply and kiss her.
She smiles into the kiss and her horn starts glowing. "We shall see thee in the waking world," she tells me and my vision fades to white.
Chapter 39: Walk in the Light. Step into Shadow Part 3
Terracana Chapter 39: Walk in the Light. Step into Shadow Part 3
My vision returns and I'm being held by Luna, my face is being smothered by her chest.
"Adrian? Are you alright?" Shella asks.
"Yeah... I'm fine," I reply in a muffled tone. I lean back with my eyes closed and rub them. I then look at my left hand and see a black orb orbiting it, a shadow element.
The others gasp once I look in their direction. "What's wrong?" I ask confused.
"Your eyes are black and red with a black mist coming out of them..." Twilight says in shock.
I raise my right brow and look at Luna. She's wide eyed and her horn glows, a small mirror floats in front of me and I look at myself.
The whites of my eyes are black and my irises are red instead of my natural blue, a black mist like shadow is leaking out of the sides, making me look quite evil.
I rub my eyes again and look in the mirror, still the same. I look at the element in my hand and cancel it. Once it's gone, my eyes return to normal.
"So channelling the shadow element changes my eyes?" I wonder to myself with a frown.
"It would seem so," Luna says and hugs me to her chest again.
"How is Nightmare Moon still alive? I thought we busted her flank with the elements when we saved Princess Luna?" Rainbow asks.
"Maybe the elements only separated them from each other?" Twilight replies.
"Then how has she been around without anypony noticing?" Applejack asks.
Luna frowns in thought. "We do not know, we're sure we would have felt her presence if that were the case. She must have been hiding within somepony else," she replies and then looks at the six women and her gaze lands on Rarity.
Rarity looks confused. "What?" she asks.
"We can feel a faint trace of her dark magic in thee. Tis faint, but tis there," Luna tells her.
"Wha... how? I didn't feel anything," she says with worry.
"Maybe it was when I revived her? Maybe she snuck in when I put Rarity's soul back into her body?" I theorise.
"Tis possible, she could have kept herself weak beforehand so we could not sense her nearby, and once she entered Rarity, she began recovering her magic," Luna says.
Rarity mumbles incoherently for a few seconds before fainting. "Whoa Nelly!" Applejack says and grabs Rarity before she hit the floor.
"I think we better wait until she wakes up before we continue with the training. We don't know if Nightmare Moon is still nearby," Twilight says.
I sigh. "Alright, I guess I'll continue with my melee training," I say and look around. "Where's Shining Armour?" I ask.
"Oh!" Celestia says. "He took the day off to visit his parents, along with Cadence," she replies and looks at Twilight. "You can go and visit them if you want as well," she tells her. Celestia then gives me an affectionate nuzzle.
"I think I will, it's been awhile since I last saw my parents. Would you girls like to meet them?" Twilight replies to Celestia and asks her friends. They all agree and say their goodbyes, leaving me, Celestia, Luna, Shella, and Discord alone.
"Well. Until they come back, we'll have to postpone the shadow training. I think I'll go visit an old friend's resting place while we wait. Toodles!" Discord says and vanishes in a puff of pink smoke.
I then turn to look at Luna. "Okay. Luna, do you want to spar with me?" I ask her.
She smiles excitedly at me. "Very well, we could use the extra practice as well," she replies.
I notice a guard making his way over to Celestia. "Princess, the nobles and citizens are wondering why court is not open yet. What should I tell them?" He asks her.
I hear Celestia sigh. "Tell them I shall be there shortly," she replies.
"Yes, your majesty," he says and salutes before he then heads back to the Castle.
Celestia hugs me tightly and won't let go. "To be honest. I really can't be bothered to deal with the nobles right now," she says.
"Hmmm, alright then, I'll go with you. I'm in the mood for a laugh," I tell her.
Celestia smiles widely. "I would like that," she tells me.
"But, what about our spar?" Luna says with a pout.
"We can have a match later today, let's get court out of the way and then we can spar. Okay?" I reply.
She crosses her arms with a pout but nodded. We all head into the Castle and towards the Throne Room where I open the doors for them and get a thank you from them. I notice four thrones instead of two now.
I raise an eyebrow at that. We walk over to the thrones as the people in line watch us. Luna sits on the far left throne. Celestia sits on the second right one. Shella sits on the far right one, leaving the one between Celestia and Luna for me. I sit down and immediately the nobles start throwing a fit.
"What is he doing sitting on a throne? He's just a knight. We thought that throne was for Princess Mi Amore Cadenza!" One of the nobles shouts out.
I look at him with a neutral expression. Though Luna decides to speak up. "Thou wilt show thy future king respect!" Luna shouts out in the Royal Canterlot Voice. She then clamps her hands over her mouth, I'm guessing she wasn't supposed to tell anyone about that yet.
I look to Celestia who just sighs.
"Future king? You're marrying him?" Another noble asks, but this time, in a friendly tone. Must be one of the families Blueblood has won over.
Celestia takes a deep breath and exhales. "Yes, we are to be wed in a month's time," she tells them.
The people start bombarding Celestia with questions and demands.
"What day is the wedding!?"
"How could you degrade yourself for that savage!?"
"Who will be invited!?"
"You'd let somepony who isn't even a pony become king!?"
More and more questions are shouted at us and I just facepalm and groan. "What is with most of you nobles and your nasty attitudes? Are those canes of yours lodged that far up your asses?" I ask irritated. I get a few laughs from the citizens and some of the nicer nobles. The others just glare at me. "What? It isn't my fault you're always grouchy," I tell them and lean my elbow on the throne's armrest with my head on my fist.
"This is completely unacceptable!" A woman with deep golden coloured fur says with a frown. She has light blonde hair and green eyes. The mark on her hand is a pile of gold bullion.
"And you are?" I ask her.
She humphs at me with a glare. "I am Mrs Goldrush the sixth of the Goldrush noble family, and I will not approve of this union.," she replies.
"Why?" I simply ask with a raised brow.
She raises her head slightly, as if to look down on me. Hard to do when I'm elevated on a higher platform. "You are not royalty nor nobility and your rank was given to you without any formal experience in the guard. You have no manners what so ever and you have defiled the Princesses innocence," she tells me.
I frown at her as the last thing she said struck a nerve. I stand up and look down at her. "Defiled? How so? I love them with all my heart and would do anything to keep them happy and safe," I tell her. Getting happy smiles from my lovers. "From what I can see, they're a lot happier than you are."
Her glare hardens. "They are no longer pure, how can we follow a mare who gives into such primal urges. Especially to a creature not of this world," she says with a smirk and I go wide eyed. How did she know I'm not from Equus? She begins to laugh. "Are you wondering how I know? I know everything that's been happening which involves you. I even know you have gotten the Princess pregnant," she says as if it wasn't a big deal.
The other people in the room gasp and start talking amongst themselves. I look back at Celestia to see her confident expression turn to one of worry so I walk over to her and give her a kiss. Her eyes widen and then slowly close as she returns it. All the talking in the room instantly ceased.
"Let them say whatever they want, it doesn't change a thing," I tell Celestia and then turn back to Goldrush. "And? That just means we have a breach of security in the Castle, and as the Princesses knight, I shall find this breach and bring him or her before the Princesses, where we'll extract any information they might have," I glare right back at her.
Her smirk is gone as she frowns. "Who said anything about spies? Rumours are quick to spread throughout Canterlot," she says and heads for the doors.
The room watches in silence until she has left. "So, she's the one trying to keep things the way they are with the nobles now..." I say to myself.
"Yes, she is the head of one of the most influential noble families in Canterlot," Luna tells me.
"So what happens when a noble family objects to a Princess getting married?" I ask.
Celestia looks upset. "They can call a vote to see if they approve or disapprove of the union... If more than half agree, we can be wed. If more than half disagree, you would be exiled from Canterlot," she tells me.
I stare at her like as if she was joking. "They can really do that?" I ask her.
"I'm afraid so. After three hundred years when Luna was banished, the nobles used my depression to trick me into signing some laws. This was one of them. It was their attempt to make it so one of their heirs could become King," she tells me.
Luna looks absolutely furious. "They did WHAT!" she shouts.
Celestia looks even more upset but I just smirk and hug her. "I'd like to see them try. As I said, if they want me gone, they'll have to use force. I'm marrying you three and there's nothing they can say or do to stop me." I tell them. I then get a wicked grin. "And not only me, but Discord as well, and I'd love to see what he'd do to them," I say and chuckle.
"Tis true, Discord does have a soft spot for thee. Seeing thou in trouble, we doubt he would sit by and do nothing," Luna says.
"Exactly! So don't worry about the nobles, I bet they're just jealous," I tell her as I sit back on my throne.
Celestia smiles and gets up. She walks over to me and sits side saddle on my lap and kisses me. "Thank you," she says.
I look back at the people in line, I actually forgot they were there. I smile seeing most of their faces with a smile of their own, though some of the nobles left the line and the room.
Training Day 23
Thirteen days have gone by since my near possession by Nightmare Moon and I've been practising with the light and shadow elements every day since then. I can even barely channel four elements together now, though I still need more practice. I'm really looking forward to being able to fly instead of just gliding.
I can now cast a shadow spray, aura, nova, and mines. I'm still trying to work on a wall, which will create a mist in front of me that will deafen any who enter. As for the light element I can cast a beam, aura, nova, and mines as well.
Luna and I had our sparring matches and she beat me eight times while I won twice. I'm getting better, but I think I might have the advantage if I used my magic. Even after our sparring matches, Luna has been training with me every morning after. Celestia even wanted to join in, but I told her no, not until after she's had the baby.
After a few days, Luna showed me some sort of newspaper. The Canterlot Times, or something. On the front page is me standing in front of Celestia with a frown towards Goldrush. The headline was 'Equestria's knight to wed the Princesses.' and below it was an article about Celestia being pregnant.
The article said that this would be the first time in over a thousand years an alicorn has gotten pregnant and that the citizens are looking forward to the birth of a new Prince or Princess. Though some noble families see it as a impurity, a stain in the royal bloodline.
There's even an article about me reviving Rarity in it. 'Is our very own knight a god who can bring back the dead?' I just rolled my eyes at that.
Blueblood has got another two families on his side while Goldrush has three others. At this rate, there might be a war between the families.
Shella's and Celestia's stomachs have gotten bigger. I notice Celestia rubbing her belly affectionately now and then, even talking to it. It makes me smile every time.
Twilight and her friends stayed for a few days until I got the hang of channelling the shadow element. Discord confirmed that I'm in no danger of possession anymore as my body apparently developed a sort of immunity to the dark influences, but they'll be back tomorrow to meet Blueblood.
I've been talking with Cadence a few times. She's still really giddy about Celestia, Luna, Shella, and I getting married. She even went as far as to plan everything for us. I even ask Shining to be my best man... but Cadence has been acting strange around me lately.
Discord has been pulling little pranks on the guards, maids, and the nobles that are on Goldrush's side. Though he was scolded for the guards and maids, nothing was said about the nobles.
Training Day 24
After Breakfast. Twilight and her friends arrive for their meeting with Blueblood. We're sitting in a lounge room the Princesses use when they need to relax from court duties.
"So what you girls been up to since we last saw each other?" I ask them.
"Well, I've been getting a lot of reporters asking me about if you bringing me back from the dead was a hoax or real," Rarity says. "but little Spikey Wikey drove them away for me," she says while patting Spike on his head. He has a large dopey looking smile on his face.
"I've finally perfected the portal to Terra and we can set it up after the royal wedding. It would be much easier to meet your King if you are a King yourself," Twilight tells me.
"Tis true that being royalty would aid us in getting an audience with thy King... what is thy King's name?" Luna says and asks.
"Oh, his name is Vortigan Llywelyn and he's the twelfth King of Reymorah. I've heard nothing but good things about him," I reply.
"What is he like?" Celestia asks.
"I've never met him, but I've heard about his deeds. He personally helps take out dangerous bandit groups and monsters from attacking villages and towns. He's a powerful mage from what I've heard. He lets those that work in the Castle live there with their own rooms. He even has a carnival set up every month for the people to relax and have fun at, he even attends it like anyone else and asks to be treated just like any other," I tell her.
"He sounds like a merciful ruler," Shella says with a smile.
"On the contrary. Orcs have attacked Reymorah many times in the past, and he's been at the front lines of those battles every time. It's said he's like a demon when he's fighting, he leaves none that threaten Reymorah alive," I tell her.
They all look at me with wide eyes. "He goes into battle with his guards?" Luna asks.
"We call them many things. The arcanists, who specialize in offensive magic and use mostly robes, staffs, and wands."
"The juggernauts, who specialize in very heavy armour and battle shields. Battle shields are just as tall as their wielders and have either blades or spikes on the front, and they use two at the same time. They're the front line defenders and break through enemy defences by ramming into them."
"The marksman are mainly comprised of dwarves and elves, but some humans join them as well. They use rifles, bows, crossbows, pistols, and bowguns. They're experts at long range combat with projectile weapons."
"The lancers. A squad of horseback soldiers who wield a shield, lance, and plate armour. Their job is to flank enemy forces with the speed of their mounts and take the enemy by surprise." This gets them to raise an eyebrow at me but say nothing.
"The engineers build, operate, and maintain the siege weapons and city defences. They mostly comprise of dwarves and humans."
"The infantry, who use medium armour with any variety of melee weapons. They're quick on their feet and strike hard. They mostly comprise of humans who don't have any magic or not very proficient with it."
"The clerics, who specialize in healing and defensive magic. They're mostly humans, but some elves have their own forms of healing spells as well. They use robes or light chainmail with wands, foci, tomes, and staves for spell casting and maces or short swords for self defence.
"Then the battle-mages like me. They use half-plate or chainmail armour and use either a mace or longsword with a stave, foci, or shield. They specialize in both melee and all around magic. Though I apparently am more proficient with my magic than they are. I'm guessing that has something to do with the powerful mage Starswirl being my ancestor," I tell them.
I swear I heard a plate smash. We all look at Twilight as her hair starts splitting out all over the place, a shocked expression on her face. "Y-Y-You're a d-descendant of thee Starswirl the Bearded!?" she shrieks.
I rub my ears and shake my head. "That's what Discord told me... where is Discord by the way?" I ask.
As if hearing me, he appears in a puff of smoke, floating above us. "You rang?" he asks with a grin.
"H-Hello Discord," Fluttershy says with a smile and a wave making her friends look at her strangely.
"Oh! There you are Flutters. I was wondering where you were when I couldn't find you at your cottage," he replies to her.
Rainbow glares at him. "What's that supposed to mean!?" she yells at him, flying right up to his face.
Discord places a hand on his chest and looks offended. "Why I never! I simply visit dear Fluttershy for afternoon tea now and then. She's simply a delight to converse with, doesn't hurt she finds me fascinating as well," he tells her.
We look at Fluttershy who hides behind her hair. "I-I'm sorry! I just haven't met anything like him before, and he's made from so many different animals..." she says.
Rainbow was about to say something, but the door opens and Blueblood, Lily, and Thraxx walk in. "Hey, Thraxx! How you been?" I ask him.
He looks just like the other changelings from the Lapis Hive as well now. "Doing good. I've been feeding the changelings in the Dungeons over the past month. The four who impersonated the guards are starting to change like us and they want to join the Lapis Hive. They've already been disconnected from the Jade Shell Hive mind," he says.
"Can they be trusted?" I ask him.
"Yes, the fact they're changing alone means they've already dedicated themselves to our Hive. A changeling cannot alter their natural appearance without magic, and since they have inhibitors to block their magic, the change is natural. They've never been so full before, they believe Queen Chrysalis's methods are wrong now," he replies.
"That's good, how long till the change is complete?" I ask.
"Another week at most," he tells me.
"Alright. Hello, Blueblood. I hope the nobles haven't been too much of a pain in the ass for you," I reply and then ask Blueblood.
He chuckles lightly. "Oh most certainly, sir Adrian. They surely are a stubborn lot, but I am trying my best to convince them," he replies. He then looks over at Twilight and her friends. "Ah these must be the friends you told me of." He looks at them and stops at Rarity, he walks over to her and bows. "You must be Lady Rarity. I am deeply sorry for whatever my imposter has done to you, if there is anything I can do to compensate you, please do not hesitate to ask," he tells her.
Rarity looks stunned. "I... thank you. I must say, you are much more pleasant to talk to then your imposter ever was," she replies and smiles.
"I am happy to hear that, my lady. Would you like to join me and Lily for lunch today?" he asks her and I notice Spike frown at him.
"Lily? The filly I have heard you adopted?" she asks him.
"Yes," he replies and steps aside as Lily was hiding behind him. "The is Fleur Lily, and until we can find her parents, I have taken it upon myself to care for her," Blueblood replies.
Rarity looks at the young girl and smiles. "Hello, Lily. I'm Rarity. It is nice to meet you," she says and holds her hand out.
Lily looks at it for a few seconds before shaking it. "Hi," she quietly replies.
Rarity then looks back at Blueblood. "I would be delighted to join you for lunch," she tells him.
"Wow, he isn't a dick like his imposter was at the Gala," Rainbow says bluntly.
"RAINBOW!" Applejack yells. "Where are yer manners! That's no way ta speak ta royalty!" she scolds Rainbow.
"What?" Rainbow asks as if nothing happened.
Blueblood just laughs. "I am pleased I'm not a 'dick' as you put it," he says.
Rainbow just grins. "I like him already," she says and laughs. Applejack just sighs and shakes her head.
We all chat for an hour, talking about the last week. It seems Rarity and Blueblood are hitting it off swimmingly, much to Spike's ire.
Twilight finally returned from her shock and bombarded me with questions. Like what Starswirl was like, what happened to him, and about his feats in Human history.
Discord took over and explained for me. Twilight was hanging on his every word, though she was scolding him for some playful names he used to describe him now and then.
I leave the room to stretch my legs and take a walk around the Castle. As I walk down a hallway, I see Cadence and Shining walking hand in hand.
Cadence then spots me and smiles. "Adrian! Can we talk with you for a minute?" she asks.
I raise a brow. "Sure, what do you need?" I reply and ask.
"Shining and I have talked with my aunties and Shella about something serious..." she says and blushes.
Why is she blushing. "And?" I ask.
"Shining and I want a foal, but since he can't get me pregnant and nopony else can. We want you to impregnate me when I next go into heat," she tells me.
I go slack jawed and stare at the both of them. I then look at Shining. "And you're just okay with this?" I ask him.
"Not really. We've been trying to have a foal for a year now, but it's never worked. Cadence has always wanted a foal but is cursed to never bare one. Until you came along and got Princess Celestia pregnant that is. With your help, Cadence can finally have her wish," he says.
I look back to Cadence with a raised brow. "And you're sure you're alright with this as well? What about Tia, Luna, and Shella? Will they be okay with it?" I ask her.
"As I've said, I have talked it over with them and they've agreed. I've wanted a foal for the last thirty years, but no pony is able to give me one. You're my only hope to have one," she tells me, tears forming in her eyes.
I look between them for a minute or two and sigh. "Alright, I'll help," I tell them.
Cadence walks up to me and hugs me tightly. "Thank you. I'll go into heat in a week or two. We'll tell you when it starts," Cadence says and we say our goodbyes.
Once they're gone, I head back to the lounge. I'll talk to Celestia, Luna, and Shella about this later.
Seven Hours Later
After everyone said their goodbyes Celestia, Luna, Shella, and I head back to Luna's room for the night. We all strip off our clothes and cuddle up together.
"So..." I say getting their attention. "Cadence and Shining had a talk with me," I tell them.
"What about?" Celestia asks.
"Me helping Cadence get a foal," I reply.
"Oh. So she finally asked you then?" she asks.
"Finally? How long was she planning this?" I ask.
"Ever since she found out I was pregnant," she says. I slip a hand down and stroke her stomach making her hum in content and rest her head on my right shoulder.
"And you're all okay with this?" I ask just to be sure.
"We are. Luna and I know the fear of never baring foals, and if you can help her have one of her own, then we don't see why not. Who knows... Maybe in a hundred years or so, she'll join our herd. Finding a mate to share eternity with is near impossible, yet here you are," she replies and nuzzles me.
I lean my head back onto my pillow and look up at the ceiling. That's true, Shining won't live forever. I kiss them all goodnight and we all fall asleep.
Training day 32
After eight days of intense training with Discord and Luna. I now have full control over a single light and shadow element. I'll continue to practice until I can safely use three or four at once.
Blueblood and Rarity have been getting together over the last week. Rarity really seems to be infatuated with the real Blueblood it seems as he's been treating her like a Princess, and she's loving it.
Discord told me once I've gotten better with the light and shadow elements, he'll start teaching me the order and chaos ones, but that won't be until after the wedding and our trip to Terra.
Goldrush has been causing an uproar within the noble families, trying to get the wedding cancelled. Bitch doesn't know who she's dealing with. I've told Discord about it and he's agreed to help make sure the wedding goes through.
I've also noticed Discord and Fluttershy getting more than just friendly. He's even spending more time in his Human like form around her.
After lunch, Celestia, Luna, and I are having a workout in the Gym with Shella sitting at the sidelines. Her rather big belly preventing her from joining in.
I step off the treadmill and wipe my brow. The door suddenly bursts open with a red faced Cadence looking around. She spots me and runs at me in a sprint. SHIT!
She tackles me to the floor and is panting hard. "Cadence! What the hell has gotten into you!?" I ask shocked at her behaviour.
"I'm in heat, and I want a foal!" she tells me and without warning, kisses me.
I go wide eyed and look at the others. They're giggling at me and leave the room, but not before locking the doors.
Cadence pulls back with lust in her eyes. "You, me, foal, NOW!" she says and her horn glows.
Cadence's horn glows and my armour and clothes are stripped from me. Her beautiful purple dress is also removed, but instead of teleporting it off, she slowly pulls it up, revealing her light pink fur from the top of her thighs, stomach, and chest. She's wearing long see through shoulder length gloves and thigh long stockings.
Her panties... she isn't even wearing panties. Has she been walking around with no underwear? She doesn't even have a bra on!
Her breasts bounce around as they're freed from her dress. Her pussy is leaking onto my crotch and I'm sure I have another nosebleed. She lets down her multi-toned hair and tail where they flow freely over her shoulders and chest.
"I am at the peak of my heat, Adrian. I want you to fill me as many times as you can to ensure I am with foal," she tells me and leans down. She grabs my head and kisses me deeply, I can feel her tongue pressing against my lips. Shining, Celestia, Luna, and Shella all said this was okay.
I open my mouth and return the kiss. Our tongues coil around each other and she moans as she starts grinding against me. I reach around her back and start massaging her wing joints. Her wings snap out to the sides and she gives me a long deep moan into my mouth.
She then pulls back gasping for air. "Oh by Luna's stars. That feels amaaaaaazing, nnnggh," she says and dives back into my mouth. I remove my left hand from her wing and bring it up to her horn. I'm curious to see if it's sensitive or not.
I start stroking it and she gasps. "Oh! Aaah... yes, s-stroke my horn!" she tells me. I wrap my hand around it and begin to slowly stroke it up and down making her go cross eyed as she looks up as best she can to watch. "Ngggh. That feels s-so good... go faster!" she tells me.
I grip it a little tighter and begin moving faster. Her eyes close as she grinds on my member faster, my groin is soaked now.
I remove my hand, getting a whine of protest from her. I grip her head and pull her down. I begin to lick along her horn and she gives a small cry of pleasure. I smile as I continue to lick and kiss her horn leaving small trails of saliva to drip down it. She's squirming on top of me and I can feel my dick slide between her ass cheeks as she's hotdogging me.
I wrap my lips around the base of her horn and start licking and sucking up and down the length. She starts to constantly moan and licks the sweat off my chest while rocking her hips back and fourth.
"Your s-sweat tastes s-so salty," she says and continues licking me. I see her horn faintly start to glow and then begin increasing. A small orb of magic begins forming at the tip and her eyes roll up into her head. "Don't stop, Adrian! I'm so close!" she begs me.
I pick up my pace and she's practically screaming now. I watch as the orb gets bigger until Cadence finally bursts. "YEEESSS!" she screams as I feel my dick get drenched. She trembles on top of me as the orb starts shooting small sparks on the wall behind me.
"OH, ADRIAN! Ngghh..." she says and goes limp on me. She's huffing and panting deeply. "Ahhh... it's been ohh, awhile since I-I've had an h-horngasm," she tells me.
Horngasm huh? I'll have to remember that for Tia and the others. She sits up and reaches behind her. She grips my cock and begins to lightly stroke it. "I think I'm sufficiently wet enough for the main event. I want you to cum in me as many times as you can, Adrian," she tells me with a heavy blush.
I nodded vigorously and she lines me up with her leaking snatch. She presses down on the head and moans as she teases me by rubbing my head around her vulva. After a few seconds of teasing, she takes my cock to the hilt in one go.
"AAAAAHHHHHHH!" she screams and clenches my member tightly. She collapses on my chest and I wrap my arms around her. She looks up at me with lust in her eyes. I grip the back of her head and begin kissing her as I start thrusting slowly up into her.
She moans and begins to raise and lower herself in time with my thrusts. "Y-You feel so d-different from Shiny," she says and sits up straight. She begins to bounce on me faster as I grip her hips.
"Is that a nggh, good thing?" I ask her.
"Y-You don't have a f-flare ohhh! That c-can sometimes nnngh, tug painfully when a s-stallion cums," she replies. "Ah! Adrian, buck me faster!" she tells me.
I grip her hips tighter and start thrusting up faster into her. She screams as I fuck her as fast as I could. "Damn Cadence, you're so tight," I say as I continue to thrust into her gushing pussy.
After a good ten minutes she begins to clench my dick erratically. "Oh! OH! Adrian! I'm going to cum! Buck me! BUCK ME AS HARD AS YOU CAN!" she screams.
I grunt as I push her onto her back and wrap my arms behind her. She moans as I grip her wings and begin hammering as hard and as fast as I could. Her eyes roll back, tongue lolling out and screaming the whole time.
"Shit! Cadence... hnnghh, I'm cumming!" I tell her.
"YES! INSIDE! CUM INSIDE! GGAAAAAHAHHHHHH!" she yells at me. I can feel her clamp down and scream at the top of her lungs. She's shaking like she's caught in an earthquake. Her juices splash all over my groin and I lose it.
"Argh!" I grunt as I fire shot after shot of my seed deep into her while she moans and cums again as I fill her.
"Yeeeeeesss. Put a foal in me, Adrian!" she says and grinds against me, getting every drop she can get. I finish squirting and pull out. She gets on her knees and begins licking my dick. She sucks out the last bit of cum and swallows it. "Wow, even your seed tastes salty. Shiny's is a bit bitter," she tells me and starts sucking on it again.
I groan as I get hard again. "Fuck... you're good at that," I tell her and she giggles. Once I'm stiffer than a steel rod again, she lets go and turns around, bends over, and moves her tail to the side. I get a full view of her cum dripping pussy which is still slightly spread open.
"Buck me again and fill me to the brim," she tells me. I move up behind her and rub my dick against her. She moans and spreads her legs wider and her tail higher. I slowly slip my member into her and she gives off a deep lustful moan. She pushes back against me and my hips slap against hers.
"Oh, Cadence. Shining is a very lucky guy," I tell her and begin to fuck her. She doesn't reply, instead she pants and moans with every thrust while she thrusts her hips back in time with mine. I wrap my arms around her and begin fondling her breasts. They're not as big as Celestia's, but they're firm and soft. I grope them earning cute little gasps and moans out of her.
She turns her head around and catches my lips. We make out with each other as I thrust faster into her. "Adrian... Shiny has never lasted this long before!" she says and grunts with clenched teeth as she grips my dick tighter. "I love Shiny very much, but I kinda w-wish I met you first!" she says and her front half collapses. I hope she's just saying that because of her lust and heat.
I continue to pound her while playing with her nipples. "I'm close! Don't stop, please! Make me cum again!" she begs and begins to thrust back faster and harder. I lean back and grip her waist and begin to really let her have it. She starts screaming again as her fluids are freely flowing down her inner thighs.
"Oh Celestia! I'm cumming! C-Cum with me, Adrian!" she tells me and clamps down on my dick. I groan from how tight she feels and cum inside her again. "AAAAAHHHHHH!" she screams and I can feel her silky insides massage my cock.
She shakes as she rides out her orgasm while I massage her hips and she moans. She wobbles slightly as I slip out and she turns around and kisses me. We make out for a while as she calms down from her recent climax but I get hard again from the rough tongue play.
"That felt wonderful, but I want more. Please give me more," she begs. I lift her up and impale her on my dick. She gasps as I start sucking on her right breast and milk flows into my mouth. Her milk is really creamy and sweet. I'm ashamed to admit, she tastes better than Celestia and Luna. "Yes! Drink my milk. You'll n-need your energy for the n-next few hours! Nnngh," she tells me.
I walk over to the wall and press her against it. "Oh my! S-Shiny has never d-done this before!" she says and I can feel her grip my dick tightly. I begin thrusting in and out at a steady pace as I drink from her tits which I lick, suck, and nibble on her nipples. She's thrashing her head side to side as I grope her ass. "More! I want more! Buck me till I'm numb!" she tells me.
Wow, even Celestia and Luna weren't this aggressive during their heats.
I slip my left index finger under her tail and begin playing with her anus. "Wha!?" she cries out in surprise and moans deeply. "Shiny has never touched me there either," she says and gasps as I slip a finger into her ass. I wiggle it around a bit which is enough to make her cum. "Ah buck me! That f-feels so g-good!" she tells me and shudders in ecstasy.
I continue thrusting into her and her orgasm keeps going. I can feel her essence dripping off my balls as she releases more cum than the others. I start to frantically thrust into her, my peak approaching as I finger her ass faster. She kisses me as I reach my limit and flood her womb again with my cum. She squeals and cums again as she deep throats me with her tongue, holy crap! I didn't know their tongues were this long! I thought it was just a changeling thing!
I groan into her mouth and slide down onto my knees. I'm panting along with her sitting on my lap while she's resting her head against mine. "Auntie Tia and Luna are so *pant* Lucky to have you," she says and licks my cheek. "I-If I wasn't *huff* with Shiny. I'd join y-your herd in a h-heartbeat," she tells me and kisses me. "Maybe someday I w-will. Celestia told me *moan* a-about how you no longer a-age," she says and nuzzles me.
I'm feeling very conflicted. Is she falling in love with me? But what about Shining? I don't want to betray his trust...
"Cadence... I'm not going to lie, you are beautiful and kind, a very lovely woman, but I can't betray Shining's trust. He's my friend, maybe some day we can try, but I won't hurt Shining," I tell her.
She smiles and kisses me again. "That's okay, we have all the time in the world," she replies. "but right now. I want you to fill me some more!" she says and starts grinding against me. Oh crap, she's insatiable!
I pick her up again and she wraps her arms and legs around me. I walk over to the Gym's showers and step inside. I turn them on and lean her against the shower's wall. The water cascades down her hair and fur making her look very appealing, oh gods she looks so sexy. I have to try this with the others as well.
She moans as I begin thrusting again. She starts to lick and nibble on my neck and ears as I grip her left ass cheek and right thigh. Her breasts are pressed to my chest and rub against me as I thrust in and out of her, I can even feel her hard nipples against mine. She's moaning loudly and begging me to go faster. I have to be careful not to slip on the wet floor.
Her wet fur rubbing against my skin feels heavenly and I hold her tightly to me as I start slapping my hips with hers. She begins screaming again and I thrust one last time before cumming into her. Her screams are cut off as she kisses me with vigour, running her tongue all over my teeth and tongue.
Her juices flow out and mix with the water from the shower and she now looks exhausted. "T-Thank you. You don't know h-how much this m-means to me *huff*." she tells me as I let her stand up, but her legs give out and I gently lower her to the shower floor making her giggle. "I can't f-feel my legs... not even shiny has done that to me," she says with a smile.
"Come on, I'll help clean you up," I reply and start washing her hair. She hums in content as we wash each other down.
Once clean, dried, and dressed. I carry her out bridal style and head towards hers and Shining's room.
After helping Cadence with her request. I carry her bridal style down the hall to hers and Shining's room where she opens the door with her magic and I gently place her on the bed.
"Thank you. I mean it, thank you so much. I've been waiting so long to have a foal of my own," she tells me and rubs her stomach. "I don't think I'll be walking anytime soon," she says with a giggle.
"You're welcome, just get some rest. Do you want to tell Shining it's done or should I?" I ask her.
"I will. You just go back to your herd mates. *yawn* I'll just take a nap," she says and falls asleep. I smile and pull the blanket over her.
I then leave and head for the Throne Room. The guards open the doors for me and I thank them. The room goes quiet as I make my way through and sit on my throne. "Hello, Luna, Tia. Where's Shella?" I ask them.
"She's in my room getting some rest. Her time to lay her eggs is getting closer," Celestia tells me.
"I see. Alright, so what are you two up to?" I ask.
"As thou can see, aiding the citizens," Luna replies.
"Ah, okay," I say and listen on.
"Princess. The pegasi have been slacking in their jobs, I've ask them many times but they just keep saying they'll get right on it. My crops are drying out and I haven't had a decent downpour for weeks. If nothing is done, my entire harvest will be lost," an earth pony man says.
"I see, I shall have an order for a downpour scheduled for you within two days," Celestia tells him.
The man smiles and bows. "Thank you, Princess Celestia," he says and walks out the room. Celestia then writes something in some kind of book.
She closes the book and looks at the line of people. "Next," she says.
Seven Days Later
Cadence had her talk with Shining and he's happy for her, I'm just glad he doesn't resent me or worse. He still trains with me in the mornings, same friendly attitude as before.
I finally can channel four elements at once now. I tried flying for the first time... face planted the ground pretty badly, but after a few more attempts, I got the hang of it. It's so much different from gliding, I had to mentally control the air wings.
Shella checked to see if Cadence was pregnant, she is. I've never heard anyone squeal so loudly, not even when we mated did she squeal like that. Cadence thanked me over and over again... even kissed me right in front of Shining and the others. That was awkward.
The wedding is set to go in two days, I'm both excited and nervous. Nervous about getting married, being a King, and what Goldrush might pull, but I won't let it get to me.
I wake up in the Lapis Hive with Shella besides me. It's time for her to lay her next clutch of eggs. The egg back in Canterlot is growing very well and it seems Shella miscalculated the gestation time. The eggs she previously laid are nearly ready to hatch. She was guessing with the time it took Chrysalis to lay and hatch eggs, but she wasn't getting a constant flow of love or life energy like Shella's eggs are, they're growing at a faster rate.
Our daughter is close to being born, and I can't wait!
I turn to see Shella still asleep and smiling while she's holding onto me, I kiss her forehead and her eyes flutter open. "Adrian?" she asks.
"Yeah, it's me," I reply and stroke her hair.
She hums in content and we lay there for ten minutes. "I think I'm close to laying my eggs. Can you help me to the nursery?" she asks me.
"I'd be happy to," I reply and lift her up. I carry her to the nursery where the same Nurses are waiting for her. I look over at the sealed holes in the wall where the other two eggs were placed and can see a faint blue glow coming from them.
I place Shella on the bed and we wait for an hour before the first contractions start and again the Nurse asks her to spread her legs and begin pushing.
After thirty minutes of grunting and straining. Three new eggs come out and are placed within the holes in the walls. I then stay by her side until she's able to walk again. After about forty minutes, the first two eggs she laid are pulsing with blue light.
"They're hatching!" A Nurse says excitedly.
Shella then goes wide eyed. "The egg in Celestia's room will be hatching as well! Quickly! We need to get back to the Castle now!" Shella tells me with urgency.
I quickly pick her up and head out the door. As much as I would like to watch them hatch, I have a daughter waiting for me back at the Castle. A carriage pulled by four changelings quickly flies off and takes us to Canterlot.
Once we arrive, I carry Shella up to Celestia's room. The door to her room is already open and we enter to see Celestia, Luna, Cadence, and Shining standing there with worried expressions.
"Shella, what's happening?" Celestia asks her with concern.
"She's getting ready to hatch," she replies with a smile.
I watch as Shella transfers love energy from herself to the egg. It starts to pulse faster and the top of the egg opens up like a flower. Shella reaches in and gently pulls the baby out and after a few seconds, the baby starts crying. She looks like Shella, a small amount of hair on her head and the beginning of a tail. She doesn't have any wings yet, I guess they grow out later. A little horn is also on her head.
Shella wipes the baby down and wraps her in a blanket. The baby stops crying and then she starts giggling and holding her little hands out. I didn't realize it, but I have tears running down my face. Then it hits me, I'm a father now. I kneel down beside Shella and she holds my daughter out to me. I carefully hold her in my arms and smile as she's smiling up at me and giggling.
"She's beautiful," I say. My tears flowing freely.
"She's adorable!" Cadence says and holds a finger out to her. The baby reaches out and grips Cadence's finger which makes the pink alicorn squeal. "Oh! I just can't wait until my own foal is born!" she says and then hugs Shining.
I hold her for a little longer and then hold her out for Celestia who takes the baby and starts fawning over her. "What will you name her?" she asks us and starts making kissy faces at the baby.
"Mavis" I reply.
"Mavis?" Luna asks as Celestia hands her the baby.
"It means joy," I tell them.
"Mavis... I like it," Shella says. Luna then hands Mavis back to her. "Hello, Mavis," she says nuzzling the giggling baby.
"Shella, why does she have hair? I thought only Queens have hair?" I ask her.
"That's because she's a Princess. She'll naturally grow into a Queen and when she comes of age. She'll help me increase the hive with her own mate," she tells me.
"How long will that be?" I ask.
"Longer than what happened to me. I was forced into becoming a Queen, she'll grow just like any foal," she says.
I pick up Shella and place her on the bed and cuddle up beside her with Mavis between us. "Awwww, that's so cute!" Cadence says and her horn glows. A camera appears and she takes a picture of us with it. "I'll get this developed and give it to you when it's done," she tells us.
I smile and look back at Mavis. I couldn't be any happier right now.
Three Days Later
I'm standing by an alter sweating bullets as I gulp and adjust the collar on my shirt for the twentieth time. I'm wearing a new suit made for me. A white tuxedo with a dark blue dress shirt and white tie.
"You'll be fine, just relax. You look like you're about to faint," Shining tells me and chuckles.
"Easy for you to say, you ain't the one getting married!" I reply and he chuckles again. I notice Discord standing by the door in a black tuxedo and wearing black glasses. He also has a wire going from a pocket on the jacket to around his ear. He's looking around and sometimes talks into his left wrist, well he did say he would be head of security for the wedding. Thraxx is next to him also in a similar outfit.
Cadence is standing behind the altar in her elegant purple dress with a smile on her face. Mavis is in a crib next to her looking around at everyone, babbling and giggling. I can see a few women looking at her with smiles. Only those who supported the wedding were allowed in. Fortunately, the nobles voted in our favour. fifty-six percent to forty-four percent. Goldrush was not happy about that.
Fluttershy is here with a choir of songbirds. They're beautifully chirping and singing along with the music being played by Octavia, Lyra, and their orchestra.
Twilight and the others are in the front row. From left to right is Twilight, Spike, Rainbow, Applejack, Pinkie, Rarity, and Blueblood.
The doors to the Throne room open up and Celestia, Luna, and Shella walk in. My eyes widen at how beautiful they all look.
Celestia's hair and tail are their natural pink tied back and braided, she's wearing a white and gold dress that trails behind her with floral and sun patterns decorating it along with topazes inlaid to it. Despite her pregnancy showing, she's still a vision of beauty.
Luna's hair is its light blue colour and done similar to Celestia's. She's wearing a silver dress with star constellations and diamonds inlaid as the stars themselves.
Shella's hair is brushed and flowing behind her. She's wearing a white dress that contrasts with her dark blue chitin and has light blue trimming and floral patterns decorating it with sapphires inlaid.
Each of them have a veil over their faces and I can barely make out tears behind Celestia's and Luna's while Shella simply has a wide smile.
They make their way to the altar where Cadence is barely restraining her joy and I can't stop staring at them. My knees get weak which threaten to make me collapse, but I stay standing.
I move in front of the altar with all three of them standing in front of me and I smile at them, getting smiles in return. Now that they're closer, I can see Celestia is trying really hard to not burst out crying.
Cadence then speaks up. "We are gathered here today to bare witness to the union of Adrian Stormsword, Princess Celestia, Princess Luna, and Queen Shella. Where they shall be united under matrimony and love. If there are any who object to this union, speak now or forever hold your peace," she says.
I hear a commotion outside and notice Discord with a finger next to his ear. He then sticks his head through the Throne Room's doors like they're not physically there. He then snaps his fingers and it's suddenly quiet again.
After a minute of silence, Cadence resumes.
"Sir Adrian Stormsword. Do you take Princess Celestia, Princess Luna, and Queen Shella to be your loving wives?" she asks me.
I look at each of them in the eyes. "Till the end of time and beyond," I reply.
"Princess Celestia. Do you take Adrian Stormsword to be your loving husband?" Celestia couldn't take it anymore and starts crying.
"I-I do," she says. I can hear some of the people in the pews crying as well, especially Rarity.
"Princess Luna. Do you take Adrian Stormsword to be your loving husband?" Cadence asks Luna next.
"I do," Luna replies and sniffles.
"Queen Shella. Do you take Adrian Stormsword to be your loving husband?"
"I do," Shella replies with a wide smile.
"Then as a Princess of Equestria. I name you husband and wives, the new King and Queens of Equestria... You may kiss the brides," Cadence says.
I stand in front of Celestia and lift her veil as I stare into her eyes and lean forward.
The sounds of glass shattering gets our attention and as if on instinct, Celestia's horn glows and my tuxedo is replaced with my weapons and armour. Four people in black clothing and skull themed masks smash through the stain glass windows, armed with cutlasses or falchions.
Celestia can't fight as it will risk the baby. Luna is in her armour and Shella is cradling Mavis and running towards some guards.
My eyes widen in disbelief, I was just about to finally marry the women I love... and these people attack us when we were so close, and now they're threatening us and my children! I'm beyond angry.
I channel four earth elements and rip the altar off the floor which I then aim it at the closest assailant. I charge up the spell as fast as I can and release the marble chunk with a roar of rage.
The altar is launched with such force that the first assailant is ripped apart from the impact and bits and pieces of him shower the room as I turn my attention onto the next one. I ignore the altar getting embedded into the wall as I channel a lightning, arcane, and a fire element and cast the haste spell on myself.
I dash forward and before he could even react. I cut off both of his arms and impale him between his eyes through his mask with my fire infused sword. He gurgles as his eyes pop from the heat and his flesh and fur burn. My four element spells are nearly two times stronger than my three element ones are.
I pull out my sword and turn to another. I see Luna looking absolutely pissed as she impales the third assailant with her scythe to the floor through his stomach. Her horn glows and to my surprise, Luna rips his head off along with his spine with her own battle cry. I can just see the anger in her eyes.
I turn to Discord who seems to be holding the door shut. "DISCORD! TRY AND TAKE ONE OF THEM ALIVE!" I shout to him.
"WILL DO!" he shouts back and snaps his fingers. A small cage appears and strangely, the bars wrap themselves like a net around the last assailant in the room.
He squirms, but can't move or speak.
I look around and see a fifth one I didn't notice before about to ambush Celestia. I teleport behind her and block the assailants cutlass with my shield, I then slam my shield in his face and knock him to the ground. Celestia gasps as I stand over the Assailant and cast a barrier around us and point my shield at him. I then fire a beam of four arcane elements at him.
He screams as his body bloats grotesquely and then bursts as blood and guts splatter all over the interior of the barrier, my legs are covered as well, but my shield spared my torso and face.
I cancel the barrier and the blood and gore that covered it falls to the floor. I then hold my shield over my head to prevent it covering me.
I look around one last time to see if there are any others. I stand near Celestia listening for anything else as the people here are whimpering and hiding behind the pews.
Discord has a strange long black box thing in his hand with electricity on the end of it and he pokes an assailant trying to get in the front door with it as he spasms. Small lines of smoke coming off the assailant as he drops to the floor unmoving.
After ten minutes of checking and looking around, Discord, Celestia, Luna, and I are standing around the tied up assailant Discord caught.
"So who wants the honour?" I ask. I pull off his mask to find it's a zebrican.
Celestia grabs the guy's hair roughly and glares at him face to face. "You dare to interrupt a day I've been waiting centuries for," she says coldly. Her horn glows and after a few seconds she gasps. "Goldrush and several other nobles hired them to assassinate us," she says with wide eyes, dropping the man who slams face first onto the floor. "My own ponies want me dead..." she says as she drops to her knees in disbelief.
I frown deeply at the information and Shining also seems extremely pissed. "GUARDS! Search the city for the traitor Goldrush for attempted murder of the royal family. She is to be taken alive for interrogation, but if she resists, lethal force is permitted! And take this piece of filth to the Dungeons!" he yells out and the guards follow his order.
Luna uses her magic to levitate the altar back into place and remove the blood and gore from it.
"Adrian, please calm down, thou art letting thine anger get the better of thee again," Luna tells me.
I take a deep breath and exhale slowly. Once I calm down, I walk over to Celestia who's on her knees crying and hug her. "It's going to be fine. We're okay, the children are okay, the assassins are dead and Goldrush will be brought to us and she'll get what's coming to her for this. Please... don't cry anymore," I tell her. Watching her cry is breaking my heart.
"I'm sorry. It's just... none of my ponies have ever wanted me d-dead before," she says.
I smile sadly at her. "Shall we continue where we left off?" I ask her and lift her veil. After a few seconds of looking in each others eyes, she smiles and we kiss each other.
The people are no longer hiding and are now clapping in applause. Luna is back in her dress and I lift her veil as we share a deep kiss and she smiles, more applause greet us.
And finally, I lift Shella's veil. She's holding Mavis in her arms as we kiss each other.
Cadence then speaks up. "Long live the King and Queens of Equestria!" she says.
The crowd cheer for us and Cadence places a golden crown upon my head.
I stand back up and face the crowd, but they gasp as my armour starts glowing a fiery orange and a bright flash blinds me. I blink a few times and I can see again. I look down and see I'm in golden armour with both Celestia's and Luna's marks on the pauldrons. Unlike my knight's armour, this is full plate armour and it's light as a feather with my crown sitting on top of the helmet.
"F-Father's armour..." Luna says as she places a hand on the chest plate.
"How?" Celestia asks also staring at the armour. My sword and Shield then start glowing as well, but the only change is the colours. While the blade is still the same. the hilt is now golden, same with the shield.
A scroll appears in front of me and I catch it which I then unroll and read it aloud.
"Adrian Stormsword. We congratulate you on your coronation as King and we thank you for protecting our daughters and grand foals from harm. As a wedding gift, I have bestowed my old armour to you. It shall protect you from any fire based magic and is extremely durable. My wife has also gifted your sword and shield with the same durability as well. I'm afraid this is the last time we can aid you. Just sending these gifts has drained us considerably and will take nearly ten years to recover from," I say and continue reading.
"To our daughters. We are so proud of you and are very happy you have found a worthy mate. Treasure him closely and keep each other safe and happy. We shall continue to watch over you and pray for a prosperous future. We love you with all our hearts."
"Your loving parents, Solaris and Galaxia," I finish.
Celestia and Luna are now hugging each other and crying their eyes out. I kneel down in front of them and hand them the letter.
"Here, you can keep it to remember them by," I tell them.
"*sniff* Thank you," Celestia says and they both look at it.
"Tis father's *sniff* handwriting..." Luna says.
I leave them to look at it and walk over to Shella. "Are you and Mavis alright?" I ask with concern.
"We're fine, though she's a little frightened at the moment," she tells me.
I look at my daughter and see she's sniffling, but unharmed. I smile and stroke her cheek with my right thumb. "That's good, no one was hurt."
"Adrian! We need your help! A guard was killed during the attack!" Shining yells from the front door.
I look in their direction to see them dragging a guard with a sword through his chest. I walk over to them and frown. Well, at least I'm going to get more practice with the revive spell.
I pull the sword out and hold my shield in front of the guard. I channel a life element and mould it into a vessel. I concentrate and can feel a presence in the vessel. I then channel a lightning element and give the soul a positive charge. Once done, I push the vessel into the body and the lightning element jump starts his organs.
The wound heals until it closes and I cast a life beam to make sure. He gasps as he takes a lung full of air and coughs.
I then fall to a knee as I forgot this was exhausting to cast. I can hear gasps and talking around me as the guard looks around with a panicked expression. "W-What happened?" he asks.
Shining just stares wide eyed. "A-Adrian... no, our King, revived you," he says and looks at me.
My stomach decides to ruin the moment and rumbles. "Damn, I'm hungry," I say and lie on my back.
Twilight runs over to me with wide eyes. "Oh my gosh! That was some powerful magic I felt," she says excitedly.
I just groan as my stomach rumbles again. "Does this mean it's time for the reception!?" Pinkie yells with excitement.
The guard I revived walks up to me with a smile. "Thank you so much for saving me, your Majesty," he says with a bow.
Wow... that's going to take some getting use to being called that. "It's alright. I'm glad I was able to pull it off again," I reply.
He bows again and looks at his chest to see the hole where the sword went through in his chestplate. I hear him gulp loudly as he walks away poking at it as the guards crowd around him asking him what it was like being dead and such.
"Come on come on! It's time to PARTY!" Pinkie says and heads for the door leaving some guards to clean up the mess and remains of the assassins.
I hold both Celestia's and Luna's hands as we head to the Dining Hall while Shella is in front of me holding Mavis in her arms.
I was about to open the door to the Hall when two guards do it for me... going to have to get used to that as well. There are many more tables set up each with a different variety of food and drink, I look to my left and see a still steaming pie and my stomach growls at the sight as I walk over there. Since I'm still holding Celestia's and Luna's hands, I unwittingly drag them along with me.
They let go of my hands and I begin cutting us each a slice. I then give them their plates and we head to the main table where I sit down with my wives beside me... I'm never going to get tired of that. I'm finally married... I wonder what my parents would think of what I've accomplished so far.
Twilight and her friends join us with their own food and Twilight assaults me with questions.
"Adrian... was that the same spell you used on Rarity?" she asks.
"Yes, it was just as exhausting as last time. I'll have to practice with it some more to get used to it... but I don't want people dying for me just to get better at it so I don't know how I'm going to do that," I reply.
Shining and Cadence join us with their own plates. "You could use that assassin we just caught," Shining says as if it wasn't a big deal.
I raise an eyebrow at him. "That's not a bad idea... but it's also too cruel. Would you like to be killed over and over again? He may have been hired to kill us, but I won't torture someone like that. I'm not below causing harm and healing them repeatedly to get any information I need... Luna's seen me do it before in the diamond dog Burrow, but killing them over and over just for practice. No, just no," I tell him.
Luna nodded with a sigh. "Tis true, we needed to know of Rarity's location and the diamond dog was adamant in not telling us, but after Adrian's... persuasion," she says with a shudder. "He told us what we wanted and Adrian gave him a swift death," she tells him.
"Besides," I say. "there's a risk with the revive spell. Should I fail casting it properly... it'll take my life," I tell them, getting gasps.
"S-So you risked your own life to save mine?" Rarity says with wide eyes.
I smiled and gave her a small nod. "Yes, I couldn't live with myself should I have failed to bring you back to your friends," I tell her.
She smiles back and I see tears forming in her eyes. "And I thank you for that, 'your Majesty'," she says with a smirk.
"Argh," I groan and bump my head on the table, my crown rolling off slightly. "I'm never going to get used to that you know," I tell her as she and the others laugh.
I turn my head to the side and see Blueblood walk in with Lily. He walks over to us after getting himself and Lily some food and then sits next to Rarity, I smile as I watch them share a quick kiss.
"So I see you two are going steady now," I say as I sit back up and put my crown back on.
"Oh yes, Blueblood has been the perfect gentlecolt," Rarity says and cuddles up to him.
I was about to reply, but the sound of glass breaking makes me look to my right with my grip on my sword. I see Spike with a look of anger and crushed glass in his grip.
"Spike? Are you alright?" Twilight asks him with concern.
He growls and heads for the door. "I'm fine," he hisses and leaves.
"What's the matter with him?" Rainbow asks.
Twilight sighs. "I think he's still upset that Rarity is courting Prince Blueblood. I was hoping he would break out of his infatuation soon, but I think he still believes he has a chance with Rarity," she says.
"I do feel bad for Spike, but he's simply too young. As much of a gentlecolt as he is, I see him as nothing more than a dear friend," Rarity says with her own sigh.
After a minute of silence Rainbow speaks up. "So what are you going to do as King?" she asks me.
"Well, due to Goldrush's attempt to kill us, we're going to be changing a few laws I think," I reply and look at Celestia, Luna, and Shella.
"We agree, we think we have let the nobles get out of hand for long enough. Tis time to put our hoof down on the matter," Luna says with conviction.
"Yes, I've let them have their way for far too long. It is time to set them straight," Celestia says.
"Whoa!" I hear Pinkie yelp as she trips. A large piece of cake she was carrying flies into the air and comes back down towards her, but instead of a shocked expression, she smiles widely and spreads her arms. The cake hit's her in the face and she... moans... then as if by some defiance of logic, her tongue wipes her whole face clean.
The others giggle at her antics, but I just stare at her with a blank expression. Twilight notices my look and giggles at me. "It's Pinkie being Pinkie, just go with it. I've tried figuring out how she does it... I almost went mad in the process," she tells me with a shudder.
I then look back at Pinkie as she's back on her feet and skipping over to the drinks table. I just shake my head. 'Just ignore it, it's healthier for you,' I think to myself.
"So where are you going to go for the honeymoon?" Cadence asks with a smile.
"I'd like to go to some place quiet, just the five of us. No responsibilities, no duties, no worries. Just us and a quiet countryside cottage," I reply.
Celestia rubs her stomach with a smile on her face. "That sounds lovely. There's a nice area of countryside near Hoofington," she says.
"Sounds great, when should we go?" I ask.
"We think it best after we meet thy King of Reymorah," Luna says.
"True, the sooner we meet him, the sooner we can set up an alliance," I reply.
"Well, the portal spell is ready to go, but who's going to go with you, Adrian?" Twilight asks.
"We shall accompany him along with several other guards," Luna replies. "Adrain, how does royalty greet royalty in your world?" she asks me.
"I'm not sure to be honest. I guess just look dignified and be respectful," I reply. I finish off my pie and get up for a drink. "Do you want any drinks?" I ask my wives.
"I'll have some apple juice, my love," Celestia replies.
"We would like some starlight wine please," Luna says.
"Just water for me thank you," Shella says.
POV: Celestia
My husband gets up and goes to get us the drinks we asked for... my husband, I'm so happy I finally have a mate I can love and be with for the rest of my life. However long it is.
"Princess? Are you alright? You're crying," Twilight asks me.
I smile as I place the tips of my fingers across my cheek. She's right, I'm crying, but they're tears of joy and happiness.
"I am fine, Twilight. I'm just happier than I've ever been right now," I reply with a warm smile and my hands on my growing stomach.
'We know just how thou feel, sister,' Luna tells me. I look at her and see her trying to hold back tears of her own. 'We finally have a mate who loves us for us. Not our position, past, or power,' she says.
'And our parents are proud of us and him. I think he deserves a treat tonight don't you?' I ask her.
'We do, Tia. And we do believe Shella needs his help again does she not?' she replies with a smirk.
I smile even wider. Apart from the attack, gryphons, and Grogar's eventual return, our life is just perfect right now.
POV: Adrian Stormsword
I carry the drinks back on a tray and take my seat as I hand out their drinks to them. I got myself a cold cider from applejack's farm.
They all thank me and take a few sips. I look around and watch as the guests are enjoying themselves; Lyra and the orchestra are playing more music and the guests are dancing, eating, or talking.
"Congratulations, sir Adrian on your marriage, or should I say, your Majesty," I hear someone say with a chuckle. I look to my left and see Fancy Pants with his wife Fleur De Lis.
"Fancy! Fleur! It's good of you to come but please, just call me Adrian. You're my friends after all," I reply.
"I'm honoured, my friend. So how have you been lately? We really should get together for tea again soon," he says.
"That would be nice, and I've been good. Despite that earlier attack, I'm the happiest man alive," I say and give my wives a smile.
"That is wonderful. Also, Fancy and I will support any changes for the nobles you decide to do. Because of Goldrush's betrayal, the nobility have lost their credibility. I do believe you could strip us of our titles and we wouldn't have the right to object," Fleur says.
"Do not worry, we shall not strip you of your titles, but laws will be enforced to prevent this kind of behaviour from now on," Celestia replies.
As they talk I look down in thought, what will the nobles do when these laws come into effect? And what of Goldrush and any others that had a hand in the attack? Speaking of others.
"Tia, who were the assassins who attacked us?" I ask her.
Everyone else stops talking and listens intently.
"They were part of an underground assassin clan from Neighpon. They are hired with pure gold to take out any target. Goldrush must have spent a small fortune to have them attack us, if I couldn't see memories, we'd have never gotten them to talk... not even with your methods," she tells me.
"Do you know who the other noble families are that helped Goldrush with this attack?" I ask her again.
"No, the assassin only met with Goldrush and only she knows who else is involved," she replies.
"Then all we can do is wait for her to be caught?" I ask.
"Yes, but something good did come of this," she says.
"And that is, sister?" Luna asks.
"I know the location of the Black Hoof Clan's hideout," she says with a smirk. "but for now we'll wait for a few months and let them think they're safe. Then after our honeymoon, we can launch an attack on them," she tells us.
Sounds like a plan... but I'm worried about the gryphons. Why haven't we heard anything from them for a while? And what has Grogar been planning?
Five Hours Later
After we talked about what's going to happen later. We get up and together, cut the wedding cake Pinkie made for us. It had little figurines of us standing on the top with happy smiles on them.
We toast for a brighter future for Equestria and the guests shower us with cheers and well wishes.
I dance with each of my wives and even my daughter Mavis while having the time of my life. Nothing could bring me down right now.
The party dies down and the guests head home. The maids clean up the mess and I stay behind to help, which surprised them that their new King would help with the cleaning.
Before Twilight left, she said she wanted to do some... tests with me later about my magic. I got a weird feeling about that.
Discord was surprisingly gone for the whole reception. I even tried calling for him, only to get no answer. I wonder what he's up to.
Celestia, Luna, Shella, and I head up to a new room made for all of us and it's larger than both Celestia's and Luna's rooms combined. There's one large walk in closet for all of our clothes and a large bathroom with a bath big enough to fit us all comfortably. A large bed is in the middle of the room that could fit ten people on it easy.
Their old rooms are converted into guests rooms since this is our bedroom now.
To the left of the bed are four desks, one for each of us; brushes, makeup, combs, perfumes and colognes, mirrors, and other grooming utensils are on them.
To the far left is a door leading to a children's room where Shella places Mavis into the crib and gently rocks and sings her to sleep. She has a beautiful singing voice.
To the right is a doorway to the balcony where Luna and Celestia step outside as they raise the moon and lower the sun. Once done, they come back in and smile seductively at me. I've been with them long enough to know what that means.
They slowly remove their dresses and underwear in front of me and they both sway their hips as they walk over to me.
"Tis time to consummate our marriage, our love," Luna says to me.
My arousal rises as they both press against me. "Let us spend our first night as a married herd in blissful passion," Celestia says huskily.
I can feel my nose dripping as Shella walks in naked as well.
I begin to remove Adrian's armour piece by piece with Luna's and Shella's help. I notice Adrian also has some blood trickling out his nose slowly so I levitate a handkerchief from his desk and wipe his nose clean.
"You really should stop getting so many nose bleeds, my love," I tell him with a giggle.
"I can't help it when I'm surrounded by the most beautiful women in any world," he replies.
I've been called beautiful by so many ponies in the past, but only Adrian's has ever sounded so lovingly genuine.
"Thou art such a silver tongued stallion," Luna says and licks his cheek.
Shella pulls the last piece of armour off and we all remove his clothes. Once he's naked, I take his hand and gently pull him towards the bed with a sway in my hips.
He follows behind me and he gently lowers me onto the bed as he leans over and kisses me. I return the embrace and rub our tongues together making me moan into the kiss and coil my tongue with his. I'm intoxicated by his touch, scent, and the endless love he shows for us. I want to be his mare forever.
He slowly crawls down my body, kissing and licking at my neck as I lean my head back, giving him full access. I can feel him nibbling me now and I moan from the sensual nips. He continues down to my breasts and kisses the areas around my nipples. I look down and watch as he takes my right nipple into his mouth and begins to suckle gently.
I moan again as I can feel my milk flowing out of my breast and I place my right hand on the back of his head. "Hmmmm, keep going, Adrian. Drink as much as you mmmm, want," I tell him.
I gasp as he switches breasts and I feel his right hand between my thighs. He slowly circles my vulva with his fingers while his thumb is rubbing my clitoris making me squeal from the pleasure.
"Yes. Mmmm, more. Give me more..." I groan as he presses harder against my marehood. I'm panting from the stimulation and lift his head from my breast to my face where I kiss him deeply and he returns it. I can taste my own milk on his tongue.
His hand leaves my marehood and he shifts position. He continues crawling down my body as he strokes my pregnant belly with his hands and lips. Small kisses and licks join in and I sigh happily as he spends a minute just caressing my stomach before going down again.
I feel his hot breath against my sex and shudder with a moan. I look down and barely see his eyes over my belly, I then feel his tongue lash out at me without warning and I squeal as he flicks my clit with it. I squirm as he begins licking all over and thrusts it within me, I wrap my thighs around his head and stroke his hair as he slowly licks me as the minutes pass by.
"Yes... nnnggh. Make me cum aahhhh! Make m-me cum, Adrian! Oooohh," I beg of him. He picks up his pace and I can feel my peak approaching as his tongue is hitting all the right spots, "Adrian! I-I'm cumming!" I tell him and he wraps his lips around my clitoris and begins suckling and licking. "AAAAAHHH!" I scream as I feel my inner walls tighten and my arousal squirts out onto his face. I tremble as I ride my orgasm and he continues to assault my marehood with his skilled tongue, prolonging my climax.
Once I calm down, I feel him crawl back up my body and spread my legs as he rubs the tip of his stallionhood against me.
"I love you all so much," he tells me.
"I love you too, my love," I reply. I hear moans to my right and see Shella and Luna kissing as they both use their fingers to pleasure each other.
My attention is brought back to Adrian as I feel his rounded tip push against me. I gasp as my marehood spreads for him and welcomes him inside its embrace making me give off a low deep moan as the head pops in and the rest slowly sinks into me. I can feel every bump and pulsing throb of his stallionhood against my soaked insides.
"Make love to me, Adrian. Make me your mare for all eternity," I tell him and he grunts as he pulls out and slowly pushes back in. I gasp and pant from the sensation of him sliding in me and I clench my muscles as he leaves then relax as he returns deep within me.
He kisses me slowly and passionately as he thrusts himself into my core with gentle yet firm movements. I feel so loved and wanted right now as tears slowly stream down my face, I wrap my arms around him pulling him close to me never wanting to let him go.
He pushes into me deeply as our groins rub together, he then wiggles his hips in a circular motion, making me gasp and moan from the intense pleasure. I can feel him against my clitoris as he grinds against me and I can't take the pleasure anymore making me scream. "YEEEESS! Fill m-me up, Adrian!" I beg him as I cum. My fluids splash out with great intensity, coating his testicles.
He starts to buck me again and picks up his pace as I can feel him throbbing more inside me.
"Nggah! FUCK!" he says with a grunt and I can feel his essence filling me up, it's warm and sticky and I love it. I hold him tightly to me with my arms and legs and I scream out my pleasure for him, not caring if the world can hear me. I love Adrian so much.
He continues to thrust making me quiver and scream longer as I cum again. By my sun, I've never felt so good in my entire life!
He begins to slow down and we bask in our afterglows as I nuzzle him affectionately which he returns.
"P-Please never leave us," I tell him.
He smiles at me which makes my heart flutter. "Never, I'll always be here for you," he replies and I start sobbing happily into his chest.
POV: Luna
I moan as Shella pulls her fingers out from my dripping marehood. I hear Tia crying and I watch as Adrian pulls out of her and hugs her for awhile, he then leans back against the headboard of the bed so I crawl my way over to him and sit on his lap. I cup his face in my hands and kiss him slowly and lovingly as I can feel his hands on my rump and he begins massaging them making me moan happily into our kiss.
I pull back and gasp as I feel his left hand slide under my tail, I moan lightly as he circles my anus with his fingers. To my surprise and delight I feel his tongue running up the length of my horn, stallions have always been too embarrassed to do this. They say it's too much like a blowjob to do it, but here Adrian is, licking and kissing my horn and enjoying it.
I groan in approval as I begin rubbing my marehood over his member, getting a grunt out of him in return. I begin licking his neck, tasting his salty sweat, it's like he's a living salt lick and we have him all to ourselves. I feel his right hand grip my horn and I moan deeply as he begins to jerk it.
A dark blue orb of my magic begins forming at the tip and I go cross eyed from the pleasure in both my groin and head. I can't take it anymore and scream in bliss as my magic squirts out all over the wall and slowly dissipates. My marehood overflows and coats his groin with my cum.
I continue to grind against him and I must have leaned too far forward as I felt his stallionhood slip inside me as I slide back down. I scream again from the sudden penetration and just sit there basking in the pleasure coursing through my body. Adrian is massaging my wing joints with his right hand as he suckles on my left breast as well.
I shudder from all the different types of stimulation. My horn still feels good after my horngasm, his finger is playing with my anus, his hand is twisting my wing joints. his mouth is licking, sucking, and nibbling my nipples, and his cock buried deep within me. I couldn't help but cum again.
I grind on him as I ride the small orgasm. "That was quick," he tells me with a chuckle.
I groan in both pleasure and irritation. "S-Shut up. We c-can't help that if thou f-feel so good," I tell him and moan again as I start to slowly bounce on his lap, feeling every inch of his cock sliding in and out of me. I savour the feeling and moan deeply.
I look down and stare into his eyes and kiss him. "A-Adrian, nnghh. When we go into h-heat, ahhhh! Again. Wilt t-thou give us a foal!? Oohh aaah," I ask him.
"Of course. I would love nnnghh, love to have a child with you L-Luna," he replies. I smile and kiss him again as I push my tongue into his mouth and explore everywhere. I almost thrust my tongue down his throat, but I pull back and coil it around his instead. I groan breathlessly as we exchange saliva.
I feel his left finger slip into my rump and squeal from the sudden anal penetration. He wiggles it around and I moan as I bounce faster on his member. My marehood is leaking so much, it feels like a river is flowing out of me, he then latches back onto my breasts and swirls his tongue around my nipples. I feel bad that since I'm neither in heat or pregnant, I'm not producing milk for him. I actually want him to drink my milk and it's frustrating me.
I wrap my arms around his neck and nibble on his left ear making him groan and pull his finger out of my anus, he then grabs my rump with both his hands and thrusts up into me with tender loving care. I start panting heavily and I feel his stallionhood pulsing and throbbing making my arousal build as I anticipate his hot seed splashing within me.
The thought alone was enough to tip me over the edge and I cum hard. "OH BUCK! AAAAHH! CUM INSIDE US ADRIAN! FILL OUR WOMB WITH THY SEED!" I shout as I clamp down on his member, pulling it deep and milking it for all it's worth.
"Oh fuck me!" he yells and I feel his dick throbbing like crazy. Glob after glob of his warm cum fills my womb and I nearly pass out from the intense orgasm ripping through my body. I tremble violently as I hold onto Adrian like a lifeline. I can feel my juices gushing out onto him and I groan in ecstasy.
After a few long seconds of bliss I go limp against him and breath heavily. "We t-thank thee... Thank you, Adrian," I tell him. slipping out of the royal we. "We... I love you so much," I say and nuzzle him.
He returns the nuzzle with a smile and kisses me. "And I love you too," he replies.
I smile and carefully get off him, as much as I want to stay there, Shella still needs to have her turn with him.
POV: Shella
I sit beside Celestia and wait patiently for Luna and Adrian to finish. I watch as Luna moans as she gets off of him. I stare transfixed as his penis slides out, soaked in both Luna's and Celestia's mixed fluids. I crawl over and smile at him.
"I hope you still have plenty of stamina left," I say kneeling in front of his groin.
"I've still got plenty to go around," he replies with a grin.
I engulf his member in my mouth and give a long hard suck as I can taste Celestia and Luna mixed with his taste as well. I moan deeply, which vibrates through his penis making him grunt and rub my ears as I hum happily. I pull back and swirl my tongue over the head and poke his urethra a few times.
He gasps as I make my tongue thinner and slip it into his dick about a centimetre. He stares wide eyed at me and groans. I take his member back into my mouth and slide down it. My tongue also goes down further into his penis by an inch or two. I made sure it wasn't too girthy as to cause pain. I've read a few books saying this can be very stimulating for a male changeling back at the Hive, so it should work on him as well.
"Holy s-shit... that feels so w-weird," he says but continues to rub my ears.
I pull myself off him and give him a worried expression. "Are you okay? I didn't hurt you did I?" I ask him. I notice Celestia and Luna staring at Adrian's penis with heavy blushes.
"N-No, I just w-wasn't expecting that. It did feel kinda good though," he replies.
I smile and put his member back into my mouth and slip my tongue back in as well. I gently caressed the inside with my tongue while sucking and sliding my lips over his penis. He groans and grips my hair tightly which makes me groan from the rough treatment and start fingering myself.
I continue to pleasure him and myself for about another six minutes as Celestia and Luna are cuddled up to Adrain and making out with him. I then bring my soaked hand up to his balls and begin to fondle them.
"Ah shit. I'm g-going to cum!" he says. I pull my tongue out, change it back to normal and wrap it around his whole length. I squeeze his penis tightly and bob my head up and down it fast, also taking the head into my throat. He grunts and I can taste his semen flooding my mouth and throat which I gulp down as fast as I can and slowly slide him out of my mouth. I sigh and lick my lips.
"You taste so good, did you enjoy it?" I ask him.
He nodded lazily. "Where did you *pant* learn to do that?" he asks me.
"I learnt it in a book back at the Hive," I reply.
"Well, that was certainly *huff* a new experience. One I'll be looking forward to again," he says.
I grin and get on my knees and bend over for him. This has to be my favourite position since the last time we made love, the feeling of his arms around me makes me feel safe. I lift my tail to my left side and spread my legs exposing myself to him.
"Breed me again, Adrian. Fill me with more eggs," I tell him as seductively as I can.
He gets up and kneels behind me. I look over my shoulder and gasp as he starts using his tongue on me making me moan as he licks around my vulva and clit. I squirm in pleasure, but he's holding my hips in place.
"You still taste like watermelons," he says. I taste like what?
"I t-taste like waterm-melon?" I ask, my mind barely coherent at the moment.
"Uh-huh, and it's delicious," he replies and digs right back in as I groan from the strong muscle invading me. I gasp and pant as I can feel myself leaking more for him to drink up. I feel so good right now and I want more.
I moan constantly as he continuously lavishes my marehood. I can feel my orgasm rising quickly and clench my eyes shut. "Adrian! D-Don't stop, I'm almost t-there! Keep going!" I beg him.
I feel my marehood twitching and begin secreting more fluids that Adrian drinks up. My moans turn into screams as he licks my clit over and over. He then starts to suck on it and that's when I cum, I shudder violently as I spray my juices over his face.
In my orgasmic haze, I see Celestia and Luna licking Adrian's face clean.
"Thou art right, she does taste like watermelon!" Luna says and continues to lick him.
I shudder as I then feel both their tongues lapping at my marehood and after a few seconds, I feel something press against me, making me moan. I can feel Adrian's stallionhood push against my folds and slowly part them. I quiver in ecstasy as he slides into my twitching pussy.
I moan and rub my cheek against the mattress, my wings are spread to my sides and fluttering involuntarily. He pushes until his hips press against mine and I groan. I then start grinding myself against him and he returns the gesture. I can feel his shaft rubbing all over my inner walls and I love it as his balls stroke against my clit, adding to the pleasure.
"Oh, Adrian... Nggghhaah. Breed me again. Please, fill me up with eggs. I want y-your aaaahh! S-Seed deep within me!" I beg him and squirm against him.
He groans and starts pulling out. Celestia and Luna are hugging and kissing Adrian as he ruts me. I can feel Adrian grip my flanks and squeeze tightly as he thrusts his cock deeply. I moan and thrust my hips back in time with his thrusts where the small flare just behind the head of his dick is rubbing all the right spots making my eyes roll back.
In and out, in and out. I can't see anything but feel the pleasure he's inflicting upon me. I want more, I need more as I start to slam my hips back against him. I scream as he begins to hammer into me and I love it. He then leans over me and embraces me with his arms around my waist. That feeling of being safe in his embrace returning.
I drool onto the blanket as I can hear the squelching of our genitals slapping over and over. My mind is going numb with lust and all I care about right now is Adrian and his sperm filling me.
"H-Hurry, AAAAAAdrian. F-Fill me! Nnnngghh oh buck me. Fill m-me up! Please!" I beg him and begin panting wildly. I can't stop moaning and he ruts me faster. I feel my peak reaching and it feels so good.
"Oh, Shella. I love you so much. I'm nnngguhh. Gonna cum!" he says and his penis throbs hard.
"YES! Inside me. OHHH! CUM INSIDE ME! AHHHHHH!" I scream and cum. I squeeze my muscles down hard and massage his member, coaxing out his life giving seed. I feel my ovaries release not three, but five eggs in response to the amount of sperm flooding my womb.
"OOooOOoooooOOhhh. Keeeeeep bucking meeee," I beg as tears flow down my face. My climax is so strong, I feel like I could pass out any second now.
He's still thrusting into me and I start crying in utter bliss as I never want this to end, but unfortunately, my orgasm dies down and I go limp on the mattress, gasping for air. His penis slips out of me with a wet and arousing pop, I groan and moan as the afterglow floods my mind and body. I feel just perfect right now.
POV: Adrian Stormsword
After satisfying them all. I lie back onto the bed and pull Shella on top of me. Celestia cuddles up to my right and Luna to my left.
Luna's horn glows and the blanket is pulled over us and they all sigh in content as they wrap their arms around me.
"That was the best rut we've had thus far," Luna says and smiles into my neck.
"I agree. I feel better than ever," Celestia says and licks my cheek.
"I can't wait till next month so we can do that again," Shella says. Which is true as I have to be careful when I make love to her when she's carrying her eggs.
"I love you all so much and I'll always be here for you," I tell them.
"We love you too. We'll stay by your side forever, my love," Celestia replies for them.
I hold them all close to me and sigh with a happy smile as we fall asleep.
POV: Cadence
Shiny and I are laying in bed with heavy blushes on our faces. For the last hour we heard both of my aunts, Shella, and Adrian making love down the hall.
Memories of him rutting me in the Gym resurface and I moan. The multiple orgasms and new experiences he gave me flooding my mind.
"Cadence? Are you alright?" Shiny asks me with concern.
"I-I'm fine," I reply and rub my thighs together. I need release and I need it now as I turn to Shiny and growl at him.
He goes wide eyed and I roll on top of him and rip his clothes off. I'm going to have some fun of my own.
I wake up feeling sweaty and sticky as memories of last night fill my mind making me smile. I'm married and I'm a father, life couldn't get better. Well... maybe without the looming threat of a necromancer and oversized feline turkeys over our heads...
I yawn and notice my hands are groping Celestia's and Luna's backsides making them moan and cuddle closer to me. I lift my hands up and wrap them around their backs as they hum in content and I feel Luna kiss my cheek.
"Good morning, our love," she says with a smile.
I return the smile. "Good morning," I reply. I look at the clock and see it's six-thirty. Whoops, we overslept.
"We better get up. I think people might wonder why the sun isn't up yet," I tell her.
She looks confused and looks at the clock. She then gasps and shuffles out of bed.
Celestia and Shella mumble as they wake up from the disturbance. "What's the matter Luna?" Celestia asks her.
"We overslept!" she replies.
"What!?" Celestia says surprised as she looks at the clock and gasps as well. She gets out of bed and they both make their way to the balcony.
"Don't you need to cover up first? Unless you plan to stand outside naked for all of Canterlot to see," I tell them with a chuckle.
They both squeal and their horns glow as robe's cover their bodies and they then walk out and stand on the balcony. They raise and lower the sun and moon then come back in and sit on the bed.
"Why didn't the maids wake us?" Luna asks.
"I don't know, but I'll find out later. For now though, you and Adrian need to get ready for your trip to Terra, but first we need a bath." Celestia says and sniffs the air.
"Sounds fun," I say with a wiggle of my eye brows.
"Oh be quiet you. You had plenty of fun with us last night, I still feel sore from the pounding you gave me," Shella says and struggles to stand.
I chuckle and pick her up bridal style as I follow Celestia and Luna into the bathroom and we all get cleaned up.
One Hour Later
We're all sitting in the Dining Hall eating breakfast. The doors open and a perky Cadence skips into the Hall with a smile on her face. I go wide eyed at the zombie of Shining Armour following in behind her.
They both sit down with Shining across from me. "The fuck happened to you?" I ask him.
"Cadence... horny... hours of sex... dehydration," he mumbles as he faceplants the table.
I look at Cadence who's smiling widely while talking with Celestia... and they're shamelessly taking about the sex they both had last night.
"Where did she... *groan* Learn all that from?" Shining asks. "I didn't even know she was into horn play."
I have an awkward expression on my face. Shining looks at me and groans again. "You taught her them didn't you," he accuses me and sighs. "You have no idea of the hell I went through,"
"Oh come on, it couldn't of been that bad," I tell him.
"She made me blow three times in a row and used magic to hold off my orgasms... without any breaks... We stallions need at least ten to twenty minutes to recover!" he replies before collapsing again.
"Really? Then yeah that's my fault. I can go three to five times before needing rest and can last for ten to twenty minutes before blowing," I tell him.
"Really? Damn, you lucky bugger. Stallions would kill to be able to do that," he says with a chuckle. "No wonder Cadence expected me to keep up... you're making me feel inadequate compared to you," he says .
"That wasn't my intention," I tell him.
"I know... but alicorns have higher stamina than a normal mare. Just like stallions, mares need to rest after they orgasm, unless they're in heat, but alicorns have magic within them that I guess helps with their stamina or sex drive... To be honest, I was having trouble keeping up with Cadence ever since we got together, and it's just getting harder," he tells me with a sad frown. "And now you've raised her expectations of me... I'm not going to survive her needs," he says with a sigh.
I frown and look at Cadence who's laughing with Celestia and Luna while her cheeks are red.
"Explains why I thought she was insatiable," I say.
"Don't remind me," he says and frowns. "Can I speak to you in private?" he asks.
I raise an eyebrow at him but nodded as we stand up and head for the door.
"Shiny? Where are you going?" Cadence asks him.
"Oh err. Adrian and I are heading to the Barracks to get the team heading to Terra with him ready," he replies.
"Ah, okay. Just be back before lunch alright," she tells him.
"Of course. I'll see you later, honey," he waves to her and we leave. We walk down the hallways and he sighs. "I knew I was biting off more than I could chew when I first courted her, but she's so kind and caring and the way she and Twily used to play and read together... I fell in love with her," he tells me.
"So what's the problem then? She loves you just as much, if not more," I reply.
"That may be true, but she's an immortal alicorn. I'll grow old and die one day while she'll still be here, not ageing a day. No doubt morning me for months or even years once I'm gone. I don't think that would be fair to her. My lifetime would just be a drop in the ocean compared to hers." he says sadly. I can see tears forming in his eyes.
I don't like what he's getting at. "So what are you going to do about it?" I ask him.
He sighs and looks at me with a serious expression. "I want you to love her in my place. I've seen how you care for the Princ... the Queens, treating them as mares and equals. You could keep her happy for far longer than I ever could," he says.
I sigh and frown sadly at him. "I'll be honest with you. She said she'd love to join our herd if she wasn't with you when we... you know, but she also showed she loves you dearly as she kept mentioning you as well," I tell him.
He frowns and looks down. "I know she does, but I'm thinking about the long term here. You can make her happier than I could, I just want her to be as happy as she can be," he says and closes his eyes.
"Do you really mean that?" I hear Cadence say behind us. Oh crap, how much did she hear?
"Cadence!? W-What are you doing here?" he asks her in surprise.
"I wanted to join you, I haven't seen Spitfire and Bright Mind for awhile and wanted to catch up with them... but I heard you talking about me and, well... Shiny, do you really think I wouldn't be happy with you?" she asks him.
Shining frowns sadly. "You're an immortal. One day I'll die leaving you and the foal without a father... you'd be happier with Adrian," he says, tears slowly falling down his face.
Cadence walks over to him and, to my surprise, slaps him across his face and then kisses him deeply. "You may not be immortal like me or Adrian, but I love you all the same... It might take me awhile to come to terms when you pass, but I'll treasure every moment I'll have with you forever," she tells him.
Shining silently cries as he hugs her tightly. "I'm sorry... I just want you to be happy," he replies.
She smiles and hugs him back. "I know you do, but I am happy with you, Shiny. I have been for the past year. I'll admit Adrian is... more skilled in the bedroom than you are," she says with a blush. Yup, this just got awkward. "but I want you by my side until that day comes," she tells him.
Shining smiles and chuckles. "Alright. I'll do my best to keep you happy," he says. "You go on ahead, we'll catch up to you, I still have something to ask Adrian," he tells her.
"Okay, don't take too long," she replies and kisses him again.
Cadence waves goodbye and heads to the Barracks. "Adrian... I still meant what I said. Just, this time. When I'm gone... please take care of her for me," he asks.
I smile and place my left hand on his shoulder. "Sure, but that's not for a long while yet. Just enjoy the time you have with her." I reply.
"Thanks. Now then, shall we get going, your Majesty," he says teasingly.
I groan and lightly punch his shoulder. "Don't get started with that. You're my friend, just call me Adrian," I tell him and chuckle.
"No can do, your Highness. I'm on duty right now, meaning I have to address you by your royal title," he says and smirks.
"You're doing this on purpose aren't you?" I ask and glare at him.
"I have no idea what you're talking about, my King," he says and starts walking ahead of me.
I sigh with a shake my head and follow behind him. I'll get him back for that later.
We arrive at the Barracks where Bright Mind, Spitfire, Hammer Strike, two changeling guards and a unicorn guard are waiting for us.
"Alright, you six have been selected to go and protect King Adrian and Queen Luna while they go to Adrian's home world and meet with the King there," Shining tells them.
"And who is this King we're meeting?" Spitfire asks.
"His name is Vortigan Llywelyn, the twelfth King of Reymorah," I reply.
"That's him. King Adrian and Queen Luna will try to gain an audience with him to discuss a possible alliance and aid against the gryphons," Shining says. Oh that's right, they don't know about Grogar yet.
"So we just gotta protect their flanks while they're there basically?" Hammer asks.
"Basically? Yes, as we don't know how they'll react to a new race. So I want our best protecting our King and Queen," Shining replies.
"Alright. I wonder how good human guards are in a brawl?" Hammer wonders to himself.
"I haven't seen the soldiers in action myself, but I've heard the stories about them," I tell him.
"Well, whatever. We'll find out once we get there. Oy, Spits, how's that new bow working out for ya by the way?" he asks Spitfire.
Spitfire pulls the bow on her back off and holds it up. The limbs look like pegasi wings and there's a red ruby on the front above the grip. She doesn't have a quiver or arrows on her.
"Not too shabby. I gotta hand it to the horn heads over at the research department," she says.
Wait... isn't that the ruby from the Elven bow I found in that dragon hoard? "Can I see that for a second?" I ask.
"Hmm? Oh, errr, sure," she replies and holds it out.
I take it and look closely at the gem. Yup, I feel elven magic in it. I pull the string back and an arrow of fire forms, but instead of taking mana from me, I see wisps of magic pulled from the air to form the arrow. I slowly move the string back and the arrow disperses.
"I see they altered how the gem works," I say and hand it back to her.
"Huh? Altered?" she asks confused and looking at the gem.
"Yes, that gem was originally from an elven bow that had four gems with elemental alignments bound to them. They draw the mana from the wielder to form an arrow depending on the gem currently activated. By the looks of it, they only gave your bow the fire ruby gem and altered it to gather mana, or magic from the air," I tell her.
"Hmmm, so they didn't think of it themselves... that's just lazy," she says and laughs.
"Yes yes. That's good and all, but I need you to get ready for when the portal is opened. Here's a list of gear and provisions you'll need," Shining says and hands them all a list. "Oh and, Bright Mind. I want you to observe the magic on Terra while you're there. See if anything could be adapted with ours," he tells her.
"Yes sir," she replies. She's always way too serious.
"Good, meet back here with your gear in four hours, dismissed," Shining says and the others leave to get their things.
"Well then, I'd better get my stuff ready as well," I say and head for the door.
"Sure, I'll see you in four hours then," Shining says and we part ways.
Four Hours Later
Luna, Celestia, Shella with Mavis, the guards, and I are standing in the Crystal Caves under Canterlot. Twilight is here with piles of papers and notebooks.
"You sure you know what you're doing, Twilight?" I ask her with worry. She's wearing what looks like a traveller's robe.
She turns from her book and glares at me. "I've tested the spell already, although they were no bigger than my hand, they were successful connections. I just need to make the portal big enough for us all to fit through," she replies.
Wait... us? "What do you mean us? You're coming along?" I ask her.
"Uh-huh. I'm so excited to study a new world and types of magic!" she says and squeals. I guess that explains all the notebooks.
I then turn to face Luna. "Is she allowed to come with us? Isn't she needed for those elements of harmony things?" I ask her.
"Yes, but she's one of the smartest mares in Equestria when it comes to magic, and with Bright Mind's aid, they'll learn how Terra's magic works," she replies.
I sigh. "Fine," I say and face Twilight. "Just stay close to us. Terra is a much more dangerous place than Equestria is. Think of it as an entire planet like the Everfree Forest," I tell her.
Her eyes go wide but she nodded. "Alright. Now then, let's get this portal open!" she replies and her horn starts glowing. "I've managed to anchor the portal's location to the same spot you came from," she says.
Purple energy starts swirling in front of her in a golden frame that's standing in the middle of the cave. Nearly a hundred guards are surrounding it as a precaution in case something unfriendly comes through.
The energy latches onto the frame and begins to stabilize. The purple colour is replaced with what looks like a forest with a dirt road ahead. It's the road I was on to the Capital.
"And done! It's safe to go through now," Twilight says and puts on her backpack filled with no doubt writing utensils and books.
I check my gear over once more to make sure I have everything. Armour check. Weapons, sword, shield and stave check. Camping gear check. Crown check. Rations check.
I lose my trail of thought as a puff of pink smoke blinds me making me cough as I swipe my hands in front of me to blow the smoke away.
Discord is standing in front of me wearing a flower pattern shirt, shorts, sandals, black glasses and two cases in his hands.
"Discord? Where have you been?" I ask him.
"Hmmm? Oh! I've been in Terra getting a surprise ready for you," he tells me.
"What surprise?" I ask.
"Ah ah ah, it wouldn't be a surprise if I told you," he says and then turns into his human form. He's equipped in guard armour again, but this time, his weapon is a rather lethal looking halberd.
"Alright, I take it you're coming with us then," I ask him.
"Yup! Someone has to make sure my favourite nephew remains in one piece, who better than his wacky uncle!" he says and pats me on the back.
To be honest, I feel better that Discord's coming with us. "Thanks. Well then, are we all ready?" I ask the others.
Bright Mind, Spitfire, Hammer Strike, the two changelings Chitain and Chameleon, and a unicorn mare named Blade Dancer, are checking over their gear. Once done, they confirm they're ready.
Celestia and Shella then walk up to me with concerned expressions. "Please be safe and look out for each other," Celestia tells me.
I smile and give her a kiss. "Don't worry, I'll watch over them and keep them out of trouble," I reply.
Shella hugs me with Mavis between us giggling. "Stay safe, we'll wait for your return," she tells me.
"We'll get this done as fast as possible," I tell her and then turn to Twilight. "How long will the portal be open for?" I ask her.
"A few hours, but we're bringing another frame with us so we can make a portal home that connects to this one," she replies, pointing to the gold frame bundled up on Hammer's back.
"Fair enough. Well then let's get going," I say and walk through the portal.
I step out the other side just fine. Didn't feel a thing, it was just like stepping out the front door of your house. The others follow behind and Twilight gasps. "I can feel a lot of magic in the air! Nearly three times more than Equus has!" she says. Her horn glows and she levitates a notebook out of her bag... only for it to be launched into the air. "Oh my! It's making my magic even stronger!" she says and looks up at the sky as the book flaps around as it falls back down.
"Well that's a good thing right? It means your spells are stronger to help protect us if need be," I tell her.
"Tis true, we can feel the magic around us. Tis pure and rich," Luna says looking at the area around us.
I look around and spot the boulder I sat on when I first opened the spell book. I walk over to it with everyone behind me.
"Here's where I got pulled from Terra," I say. I look to the left down the road and see two dark red stained spots. "That must be the blood stains from the two bandits I told you I killed," I tell them.
I hear Twilight gulp from that. "I was actually hoping you were lying about that," she says.
"Nope. On the roads you have to be extremely careful as it's kill or be killed since bandits like to ambush people," I tell her. I look around to make sure no one else is nearby. "Alright then, let's get going. It'll take us about two or three days to reach Elysium," I tell them and we begin our trek down the road.
We walk down the road towards Elysium where Twilight and Bright Mind are discussing the potency of the magic in the air while trying a few spells to test their new strength.
"So... what shall we do once we arrive at the City Gates?" Luna asks me.
"We'll approach the gate guards, tell them who we are and ask for an escort to the Castle. There we'll request an audience with the King and negotiate for an alliance," I reply.
"Sounds simple enough, but what if they get aggressive?" Hammer asks.
"Then we leave without fighting, we don't want to get on their bad side," I tell him.
He grumbles but nodded.
We continue walking for a few hours with nothing of interest happening, Luna takes in the sights around us while Twilight and Bright Mind continue their discussion about magic. We then pass a dense area of Forest and hear laughing to our left.
"What's this? Mutant horses or something?" a man in ragged looking leather armour holding a pair of chipped daggers says.
"Maybe some elves tried fusing people with animals again... it's not the first time they've done that," another man in a tattered robe holding a staff says.
"Maybe we can sell them for a lot of gold? I've never seen anything like em before," a tall dark skinned man in rusty chain armour says to the other bandits.
"And just look at all the stuff they have. That one even has gold armour!" More men start showing up, at least ten of them in total.
"And who in Tartarus are you maggots?" Hammer asks them.
"Oh! It talks!" one of them taunts.
"We're now your new masters. Just come along quietly and we'll only hurt you a little," the big guy in chain armour says and they all laugh.
"You dare threaten our King and Queen," Bright Mind says, getting her gem wand ready.
"Oooh you hear that fellas? We's got royalty before us," a short man with a bow says mockingly.
The visor on my helmet is down and covering my face so I guess they think I'm a pony as well. I draw my sword and channel a shield and three air elements and cast the air wings spell on myself. Two wings of flowing air appear on my back and I hover three metres into the air.
"We are on our way to see King Vortigan Llywelyn. Leave while you still have your lives or we'll be forced to kill you," I threaten them.
They're all now staring at me with wide eyes, even our guards are staring at me. Luna joins me in the air and has her scythe at the ready.
Spitfire draws her bow and the fire arrow forms almost instantly while Hammer Strike holds his massive hammer with a grin on his face.
The two changelings, Chitain and Chameleon, to our surprise, change into large dark blue Equestrian manticores still wearing armour and growl menacingly at the bandits.
The unicorn Blade Dancer is a skilled swordswoman. She has two longswords on her hips and six more on her back. She draws the two on her hips with her hands and her horn glows, levitating the other six around her like a shield. Okay, that's cool.
Twilight hides behind Bright Mind but has a gem wand of her own with her. Discord is looking bored and is leaning on his halberd half-asleep.
"So, what will it be? Stay and die, or leave and live?" I ask them.
Their cocky attitudes are gone and they look hesitant to attack. the short one with the bow then panics and fires an arrow at me. I simply raise my shield and block it.
Spitfire reacts and fires her arrow at the short guy where the arrow hits and detonates as his head and half his torso are blown off.
The rest of them go into a frenzy and charge us with crazed looks. So they're just a bunch of thugs with no skills or training of their own.
Hammer grins and pulls his hammer back as the bandit with the daggers leaps at him and Hammer swings his oversized hammer. The bandit is hit right in the ribs and an audible series of cracks and snaps are heard as the bandit is launched back a good twenty metres.
Hammer just stares at where the bandit lands and then at his hammer. I can see a grin spread on his face as he rushes another bandit with a battle cry. "I LOVE MY JOB!" he yells as he slams another bandit into a tree.
Blade Dancer is fighting three of them at once parrying with her eight swords. She moves like a leaf in the wind and cuts the bandits to her left and right in the chest causing them to cry out in pain and drop their weapons. She then points all eight swords to the bandit in front of her and thrusts all of them into his chest as she then twists and pulls the swords and Blood sprays out the wounds.
She then finishes the other two off by decapitating them with two swords each like a pair of scissors .
The staff wielding bandit fires a weak fire beam at me and a shield forms in front of me. Bright Mind's horn is glowing and she then points her wand at the staff bandit as she fires off a bolt of magic that detonates on impact. His staff is broken in half and he has a scorch mark around the area it detonated.
Luna and I continue to hover in the air and I cast a shield around us and boost it to full strength. Twilight's horn glows and a bandit is frozen in place and can't seem to barely move. Spitfire then takes the opportunity to shoot him with another arrow and he gets blown in half.
The two changelings roar and charge at two bandits and pounce on them. They scream as they're torn apart and stabbed with their tails.
The last one in the chainmail armour is staring wide eyed at the carnage that just befell his allies.
I notice Discord still looking bored as he hasn't moved or said anything since we got here.
"Discord, have some fun with him," I say to him.
"Oooooh! Finally! You're going to love this," he teleports next to the bandit and pulls a curtain over him. The bandit struggles and I can hear him scream... which starts getting higher in pitch.
Discord then pulls the curtain away revealing a blonde haired woman with rather big breasts and wide hips. The chainmail armour has been reduced to some sort of bikini.
The bandit looks down and grabs onto his... her, breasts. She then faints on the spot and I raise an eyebrow.
Hammer laughs loudly while Luna just sighs. "Thou and thy pranks..." she says.
"Oh lighten up. I think she'll be just fine with her new lease on life," he says and rejoins us.
I chuckle and Luna glares at me. "Please do not encourage him!" she tells me.
"Sorry," I reply. I then turn back to Discord. "So where is this surprise you said you had for me?" I ask him.
"Oh, it's waiting at Elysium for you. I think you'll want to both hug me and punch me when you see it," he replies making me give him a confused expression.
I can hear Twilight and Bright Mind talk about how their magic was able to effect humans when I was resistant to it in Equestria.
"Maybe it's because of Terra's magic? It's made you stronger thus, able to effect a human? Try lifting me up," I tell them.
Twilight's horn glows and I'm lifted off the ground by a foot. She strains a bit and puts me down.
"You're right, it's still difficult, but your resistance isn't as strong now," she says and starts writing in a notebook again.
"Alright, Hammer, Bright Mind. I need you to pile the corpses so I can burn them. I don't want them starting to rot and spread any diseases," I tell them.
"Yes sir," they say and quickly pile the bodies.
I set them ablaze with four fire elements and after the fire goes on for a few minutes, we then continue down the road.
Seven Hours Later
The sun starts to set and Luna even tried to raise the moon and started to panic when she said she couldn't connect to it. I had to remind her that it wasn't her moon which got her to blush and sigh.
We then step off the road and into a small clearing to the right.
Hammer and Twilight set up three tents and I set up my two person one. Chitain, Chameleon and Hammer share a tent while Twilight and Bright Mind share one and Blade Dancer and Spitfire share the other. Luna and I use my tent and Discord just lies on a pink cloud with an umbrella over it and a blanket over himself.
Hammer Strike and Blade Dancer have agreed to take the first watch for the night and are standing outside.
I'm laying on the mat with Luna cuddled up beside me, we're both wearing nightwear this time as we don't want to be caught naked by the others. After sleeping nude over the last month... wearing clothes to bed is rather uncomfortable now.
"I miss Tia and Shella already, it just doesn't feel the same without them with us," I say, missing the feeling of them all cuddled up to me.
"We agree, we have grown to enjoy their presence with us, but it won't be for long. We just have to get King Vortigan to agree to the alliance and set up a portal connecting our two Castles. Then we can go home and be with our herd mates again," she tells me.
I smile as she nuzzles into my neck and I try to fall asleep but a few growls from outside gets my attention. I get up and look outside to see two pairs of glowing eyes staring at us. Uh-oh, these are Terran manticores.
I draw my sword and shield and get out the tent. I cast a stone armour spell on myself and have a two inch thick layer of stone covering me. Holy shit this is heavy.
"Errr, my king... what is that? It kinda looks like a manticore... Just more vicious looking... and with horns..." Hammer asks me with his Hammer at the ready.
"It's a Terran manticore, and yes, its a lot more vicious than an Equestrian one," I tell him. Its got a more balanced torso shape instead of a large front and tiny backside. Its teeth and claws look sharper and its eyes more crueller looking as well. Its wings are larger and its tail longer, not to mention the horns as well.
They start to stalk and circle around us.
"What do we do?" Blade Dancer asks keeping her eyes on the right one while Hammer watches the left.
"You and I will take the one on the right while Hammer and Luna take the one on the left. Just be careful, killing them one on one is very hard to do, but if you work together, you'll have a better chance," I tell them. Should be a good pairing with one magic user and a melee user combination. "Just don't let it get you with it's tail, we don't have any anti-venom to counter its poison," I warn them.
"Alright, this should be an interesting battle!" Hammer says and gets ready.
I channel two light elements and get ready. "Dancer, I'm going to blind it as Terran Manticores can't handle bright light."
"By your order, my King," she replies. Arg... I'm really not going to get used to that.
I cast the beam and aim at the manticore's eyes. It roars in pain and I keep the beam focused on it.
Dancer then runs towards it and raises her swords. She swings the ones in her hands and cuts off its front right leg while her other swords cut off it's right wing and tail.
I cancel the beam and channel an arcane and three lightning elements. "Dancer get back!" I tell her. She leaps back and I cast the Lightning beam now that the manticore has lost its mobility. The beam hits and it spasms on the ground. I keep it going for a few seconds and then cancel it.
The manticore lies unmoving so I turn around and see Luna impale the other in the skull with her scythe. It seems to have had it's back smashed in, no doubt Hammer's work.
"What's going on!?" Twilight yells as her head pops out of her tent.
"Oh not much, just killed a couple of manticores," I reply calmly.
"Manticores?" she asks and looks at the corpses. "Wow! They look so different from Equestrian manticores!" she says and pulls out a notebook and starts scribbling in it.
I cancel my stone armour spell and yawn as the stone breaks away. "Yup. Now while you have fun with that, I'm going back to bed. Good night," I tell them as Luna and I return to our tent. I put my sword and shield away and get under the blanket with Luna beside me.
After waking up and eating breakfast, I then strip the manticores of anything I could find useful. I take their horns and some teeth. I extract some of their poison and put them in vials. I skin them, much to the disgust of the others where I explained to them that manticore hide sells for quite a bit of gold and that we might need to get our hands on some Terran currency. Also I guess my old habits for earning a bit of extra coin are coming back to me.
We continue down the path for three hours with no problems. Twilight is going over her notes on the manticores and comparing them to Equestria's breed. Hammer and Dancer also traded shifts with Chitain and Chameleon during the night.
Spitfire is flying above us as our lookout while we all walk down the road. "Princess!... Oh er, I mean, Queen Luna! There's some sort of carriage heading our way!" she calls down to us. In the distance is what appears to be a horse drawn carriage... this will certainly be interesting.
After ten minutes of walking, the carriage is now in front of us and we step aside to let it pass. Luna and the others stare slack jawed at the two large horses pulling the carriage. They're both mares, one is white, the other light brown with white patches on its muzzle and hooves.
The driver in turn stares at us with his own dumbstruck expression.
"Was that a pony?" Twilight asks confused.
"No, that was a horse," I reply.
"Why was she tied up in... bondage equipment and had her vision reduced?" she asks again with tinted cheeks.
Oh gods, ponies consider that sexual?... Now I kind of want to see Celestia, Luna, and Shella in something like that... I shake my head to clear my thoughts of such images.
"No, it's just a harness to pull the carriage. The blinders are to keep the horse going straight and the reins are for steering the horse," I tell her.
"Isn't that slavery!?" she asks disgusted.
"They aren't sapient, Twilight. They can't talk, read, or write. They can't even show facial expressions or emotions, but we keep them well fed, groomed, clean, and sheltered in stables. I know this as I was sometimes made to shovel horse manure out of my home town's stable between my magic and swordsmanship lessons," I tell her. The smell alone was enough to be considered torture.
"I see," she says, still looking at the carriage we passed.
"Don't worry, I'll make sure no one will treat you like that, you're an intelligent woman. If they treat you any less, I'll punch them in the face for you," I tell her getting a smile from her. "Come on, we still have at least another day of walking ahead of us," I tell them and continue down the road.
Five Hours Later
We're sitting by the side of the road eating our lunch. We have enough supplies to last us a week, but I also brought some of the gold and gems from the hoard I got from that dragon in the Everfree Forest with me for trading if need be.
"I don't think we're that much farther now. I saw what looked like a Castle surrounded by buildings and a tall, thick stone wall while flying," Spitfire says, pointing towards the direction of Elysium.
"That would be Elysium. We could probably make it before night fall if we pick up the pace." I say as I finish my lunch and stand up to stretch. I then sit back down next to Luna and wrap my arm around her waist. "So what do you think of Terra so far?" I ask her.
"Tis very beautiful. Though we never thought it would be this... exotic," she says, watching an animal in the distance. It's a tall herbivore like bird that eats fruits and seeds. It can't fly, but it has long legs to run fast and can carry heavy loads. It's feathers are a dark red with white patterns on its wings feather tips.
"That's a Plane Runner. People use them for travelling long distances or to carry packs too heavy for carrying themselves long distances... I've always wanted one as a child. Would have been nice for when I was travelling a lot before arriving in Equestria," I tell her.
"Then why not just tame it?" she asks.
"It's too wild and we don't have time, maybe I could get one at Elysium as they're easy to care for as well. You just need to spend time with them, feed them plenty of fruits, seeds, and water as well as give them the materials to build their own nests, clean up their mess and they'll be loyal to you," I reply.
"I see. Then we could find thee one before we return home," she says.
"Sounds goo..." I start to reply, but the sound of a girl screaming gets our attention.
Spitfire is already in the air looking around. "There's a filly over there being chased by some sort of large wolf," she tells us.
"Might be a dire wolf, come on!" I say and we follow Spitfire to the location.
A little girl no older than twelve is running from a wolf that's quickly gaining on her.
I teleport between them and cast a stone wall spell where the wolf leaps at me, only to smash face first into the wall. I cast a haste spell on myself and grab the girl and run back to the others.
"Spitfire! Shoot it!" I tell her.
She aims her bow at the stunned wolf and fires as a small explosion takes off the wolf's head and it goes limp. I can hear growling as more show up.
"Drive them back or kill them! They should flee once they start losing some of their numbers," I tell the others.
Hammer Strike leaps into the air and slams his hammer down onto one of the wolves, instantly killing it.
Bright Mind fires a barrage of magic bolts at another, filling it with holes.
One leaps at Twilight who panics and unwittingly, launches the wolf with her magic into the air. Well holy shit, that wolf isn't coming back down for awhile.
Luna has her dual swords out and is carving into one of the larger wolves.
I channel four air elements into my sword and swing it vertically down. A blade of razor sharp air quickly hurtles towards a wolf and slices it in half.
Spitfire is taking more shots at the wolves towards the back.
Blade Dancer is fighting two wolves at once and cutting them up really good.
The two changelings after watching them for awhile turn into manticores again, but this time, they're the Terran breed. Looks like they got an upgrade.
They rip through the wolves who flee at the sight of stronger predators. The changelings roar in victory and then shift back into their natural forms. Seeing armoured Terran manticores was pretty cool actually.
"I'm going to admit it, but I'm kinda jealous of changelings now," Hammer says.
Chitain and Chameleon chuckle as I turn towards the girl.
"Are you alright?" I ask her.
She's shaking in fear and is looking at Luna with wide eyes.
"Hello, little one, are thou hurt?" Luna asks her.
The girl shakes her head.
"Was there anyone else with you?" I ask her.
She slowly nodded. "Mama and Papa," she says and sniffles. "T-They told me to r-run while they distracted t-the wolves," she tells me.
"And where are they?" I ask her. She points to the left towards some trees. "Can you take us there? We'll keep you safe," I ask.
She nodded and we follow her. After a few minutes of searching... we found her parents... or at least what's left of them.
The girl starts crying her eyes out as Luna tries to comfort her.
I kneel down and examine the corpses. Too much damage to revive them, missing limbs, organs on the floor. I see a pendant on the woman's corpse and take it off. I open it to see a picture of the family. I frown sadly and use a single water element to wash the blood off it before I turn back to the girl and hand it to her.
"Here, you should have this," I tell her.
She takes it and looks at the picture. She starts crying again and cuddles up to Luna.
I gather the pieces of her parents and place twigs and bits of dead wood around them. I then use a fire element to set it on fire and hang my head in respect, it must have been a brutal choice to sacrifice themselves for their daughter.
After a minute, I turn back to the girl. "What's your name?" I ask her.
"Jasmine," she replies, her eyes are bloodshot from her crying.
"Do you have any other family nearby?" I ask her.
She nodded. "I h-have an *hic* uncle in the C-City," she tells me.
"Alright, that's where we're heading, we'll take you there okay?" I tell her.
She nodded and clung onto Luna. I smile sadly and we make our way to the road again.
We walk for an hour and the girl has calmed down now but still upset.
"You're a pretty horsey," Jasmine says to Luna as she plays with Luna's flowing hair.
Luna goes wide eyed and I chuckle. "We art a pony, and we thank thee for the compliment," Luna replies with a smile.
"You talk funny," the girl says with a little giggle. At least she isn't depressed as much anymore.
"Thou finds our speech amusing?" Luna asks with a raised brow.
"Uh-huh," Jasmine replies. "Where did you come from? I never seen people like you before."
"We come from a land called Equestria. I am Queen Luna," she says and the points to me. "And he is my Husband, King Adrian."
I lift my helmet's visor up and smile at Jasmine.
"But he doesn't look like you," she says.
"I was sent to Equestria from here, where I met Luna and we fell in love," I tell her.
"Oh," Jasmine says and returns to playing with Luna's hair.
It was now night fall but the City was still about half a day's travel away. We had dinner and set up camp where the changelings took the first watch tonight.
Jasmine is sleeping with us in the tent and is cuddling up to Luna.
"You're soft," she says to Luna.
Luna smiles and wraps her arms around the girl while I spoon up behind Luna and wrap my arms around her.
"Good night," I say to them.
"Good night," they reply.
I yawn and slowly drift off to sleep.
I wake up alone in the tent and look around; Luna's armour is still here so she must be nearby. I exit the tent and stretch my arms and legs.
Luna is sitting next to Jasmine and is brushing her hair. I smile as I walk over and sit next to them. "Good morning," I say and kiss Luna on her cheek.
"Good morning, our love. Did thou sleep well?" she asks me.
"As well as one can next to a beautiful woman," I reply, making her giggle.
The others start to wake up as Hammer and Dancer must have swapped places with Chitain and Chameleon at some point during the night.
"That is good," Luna says and continues to brush Jasmines hair.
I return to the tent and get all my gear on. I then place Luna's stuff to the side and pack up the tent as the others also pack up theirs and we all eat a quick breakfast.
Once we're all ready to go, we head down the road and the City comes into view.
We walk for a few hours, greeting a few passersby who were shocked to see a new race walking to Elysium.
We finally arrived at the large sturdy wooden gate reinforced with steel plating sitting in a grand stone archway with a guardhouse to the right where two guards watch us like hawks.
"State your business," one of them says warily.
"I am King Adrian Stormsword of Equestria, and this is my wife Queen Luna. We have come seeking an audience with King Vortigan Llywelyn for an alliance between our two worlds," I tell them as Luna and I bow slightly.
"King? Equestria? Wait... worlds? Are you pulling some kind of joke?" a guard asks.
"Nay, we wish to request the aid of thy King," Luna replies.
They look at each other for a second before speaking. "Go get the Captain. I don't know what we should do in this situation," the right guard says to the other.
Argh. 'This is going to take awhile,' I think to myself.
Chapter 44: Meeting the King and Discord's Surprise!
Terracana Chapter 44: Meeting the King and Discord's Surprise!
We stand by the gate waiting for the Captain to arrive while the guard still here is giving us odd looks.
"So what do we do now?" Hammer asks.
"We just wait until they let us in," I reply.
Discord then claps his hands together getting our attention. "Well, while you wait for them to pull their thumbs out of their posteriors. I'm going to get that surprise for you ready," he tells me.
"Alright, but it better not be a prank, we're here for Equestria's sake after all," I tell him.
"Oh don't worry, you're going to love it. Ta ta!" he replies, snaps his fingers and disappears in a puff of pink smoke.
Thirty Minutes Later
Finally the Captain has arrived and looks us over.
"So you're the supposed royalty who wants to see the King..." he says. He's about five foot eight tall with a short beard and a scar across his right cheek.
"Yes, Captain. I am King Adrian Stormsword, and this is my wife Queen Luna," I introduce us.
"Alright. Now my next Question is, what are you? I've never seen or heard of your race before," he asks.
Luna replies. "We art ponies, or Equestrians while Chitain and Chameleon here are changelings. We come from the lands of Equestria on the world Equus," she tells him.
"Equus? Wait, world? Never heard of it, sounds like you're just making this all up to be honest," he says.
I frown at him. "I was sent to Equestria by some kind of portal spell. I met the people there and over the last four or so months, befriended them and even found love," I tell him and look at Luna.
"Wait a minute, you were sent there? You a human?" he asks with a raised brow.
I nodded and lift the visor on my helmet. "I was on my way to Elysium when I was pulled to their world where now an old necromancer named Grogar is rising to power again. We're here to ask for aid and to create an alliance between our worlds," I tell him.
"Grogar... I think I've heard that name before in a history book... and how did you get back here?" he asks.
"Through a portal Twilight here created," I reply and tap Twilight on her shoulder as she blushes from the attention.
"Alright fine. I'll escort you to the Castle and see if the King will see you, but cause any trouble and you will be thrown straight into the Dungeons," he says and orders the gate open.
I sigh in relief and we follow him inside, I recognize this street from my vision. People of all races stare at us; dwarves, elves, humans, and even some aquarians walking around on legs made of water.
"Oh my gosh, are they the other races you told us about?" Twilight asks as she looks at them.
"Yes, although I doubt we'll meet any of the kitsune people here," I reply.
I notice some of the elves looking at us with mixed expressions, and some look a bit unsettling. Luna and I are surrounded by our guards as we follow the Captain.
"By the way, what is your name, Captain?" I ask him.
"Theo Dryton," he replies.
"Why was the gate closed? I thought it's always open," I ask.
"Orcs attacked recently and it's just a precaution for now," he tells me.
"I see, are the attacks getting worse?" I ask with a frown.
"Yes, they even seem to have gotten hold of some strong monsters to fight for them. How they're taming them I have no idea," he tells me.
"What kinds of monsters?" Twilight asks.
"Class one to class four," he replies.
"Class? I take it the higher the number the more dangerous the monster?" she asks again.
"Correct. They've somehow gotten dire wolves to obey them, along with shadow bats, gnolls, even some manticores. Worst ones though are the deathmaws which are large reptilian beasts with strong jaws and sharp teeth, very quick as well despite their size," he replies.
"And you've been fighting them all off?" Hammer asks.
"Yes, but not without casualties. We lost just over two hundred of our soldiers in the last attack," Theo tells him.
I can just hear hushed whispers from the people around us.
"What are they?"
"Do some of them have wings?"
"Two of them look like insects."
"What do you think they're here for?"
"Well two of them are wearing crowns, maybe they’re royalty?"
"Mama! Look at the pretty horse!"
"Are those horns!?"
I tune out the rest and focus on where we're going.
After a ten minute walk we arrive at the Castle gates. "Open the gate!" Theo yells. The gate slowly opens and we enter where the guards giving us more odd looks. Theo leads us to a room with many comfy looking chairs and couches. "Please wait here while I let the King know of your presence," Theo tells us,
"Very well," Luna replies.
Theo leaves and closes the door behind him. Twilight and Bright Mind are looking through the bookshelf for something to read.
Dancer and Hammer stand guard by the door. Chitain and Chameleon stand by the windows while Luna and I are on the couch. Spitfire looks like she fell asleep on the chair next to us while Jasmine is also asleep on Luna's lap.
"So what shall we do with Jasmine?" Luna asks.
"Once we've met the King and got what we have to say out of the way, we can then look for her relatives," I reply and pat Jasmine on her head. She mumbles and cuddles closer to Luna.
After Twenty minutes of waiting Theo returns and says the King will see us. We get up and wake Spitfire and Jasmine. We then follow Theo down the hall and into a grand looking Throne Room, not as big as Canterlot Castle, but it does have more decorating it.
Sitting upon the left throne is a man in his forties with greying hair and tidy short beard. He has a crown similar to mine and is wearing a deep purple robe with white fur along his neck. Scars are dotted across his face, no doubt from all the battles I've heard he's fought in. A large battleaxe is also resting on a rack next to his throne.
On the throne next to him is a woman of the same age as long greying blonde hair flows down her back and chest. A beautiful powder blue dress hugs her body and a silver tiara sits upon her head.
"Greetings! So you are these royals who wish to speak with me? May I have your names?" the King asks.
I bow to him and the others follow. "I am King Adrian Stormsword, descendant of the mage Starswirl the Bearded," I reply.
"And we art Queen Luna, Queen of the night and dreams," Luna replies.
"It is a pleasure to meet you. I am King Vortigan Llywelyn," he says.
"And I am Queen Alyssa Llywelyn," the woman next him says.
"A pleasure, your Majesties," I say and stand up straight.
"So I'm told you require aid against a necromancer? And it's Grogar no less," he asks.
"Yes, he's recently escaped his imprisonment from Tartarus and is raising an army of the dead where we've already fought some of them. Equestrian magic is not very effective against the undead and it seems one of our nation's enemies, the gryphons, has been getting help from Grogar in the form of anti-magic shields and barriers. So far I'm the only one able to nullify the barriers with my magic at the moment, though and I can't be everywhere at once," I tell him.
"I see, and how do you propose we aid you? We already have our hands full with the orcs," he tells me.
"We wish to form an alliance with Reymorah. We have the means to set up a permanent portal between our worlds with us," I say.
"So you would aid us against the orcs in return?" he asks.
"Yes, we would lend you aid in any attacks you come under. Equestria has a policy of never attacking another race or nation unless provoked. We're at war with the gryphons because despite our attempts at peace, they still hunt us for sport and food," I tell him.
The Queen gasps. "They eat you?" she asks disgusted.
"Yes, they see us as nothing more than livestock. My wives and I have already repelled two attacks on our Castle and us within the last two months," I tell them.
"Wives?" the king asks with a raised brow.
"I know what you're thinking. Equestria's male to female ratio is three women to every man. So men can have around three to five women as lovers. I adapted to their culture and I am happily married to Queen Luna, Queen Celestia, and Queen Shella," I tell him and wrap my right arm around Luna's waist.
"Ah. That would make sense..." he says but a voice cuts him off.
"Who let these animals in here!?" an old fat looking man says.
"Mr Thornston, please show respect to our guests," Vortigan tells the man. I glare at the man at calling my wife and friends animals.
"Insult my wife and people again and I shall remove your tongue," I threaten him.
"Oh? You dare threaten the most powerful noble family in the Kingdom? I can have you thrown out of the City in an instant," he sneers.
I channel a shield and three air elements and cast the air wings spell. I hover into the air glaring down at him to look more intimidating, I then channel a single shadow element where my eyes turn black and red with the black mist leaking out of the visor.
"I would. Anyone who insults or threatens those I care for will answer to me," I tell him. My voice now sounds distorted, that didn't happen last time.
He cowers back a few steps. "You filthy beast. I'll have you chained in the Dungeons for this!" he threatens me. I lift my visor and glare at him and he gasps. "Y-You're human!? You would reduce yourself to wed an animal!?" he says disgusted.
That's it.
I cast the shadow element I'm channelling and shroud him in a mist. He panics as he goes deaf and I charge up my mana and blast him back with a gust of air.
He rolls a few times before getting up and flees out the door. Vortigan's soldiers then surround us with their weapons pointing at us. Shit... I let my anger get the better of me again.
I sigh and slowly land back on the floor, I then cancel my wings and turn back to the King.
"I apologise for my behaviour," I bow to him.
He sits there while eyeing me before he then bursts out laughing, confusing his guards and us.
"It's alright. The nobles believe they run the Kingdom, and to be honest it's almost true. Laws made by my great great great grandfather to allow the nobles to have a say in the countries workings has gotten out of hand. That was the first time I've seen Mr Thornston so afraid in years!" he tells me and laughs again.
I remove my helmet and hand it to Twilight to hold for me.
"Thank you for your mercy King Vortigan. I've had issues with our nobility as well. Some even hired assassins to kill me and my wives on our wedding a few days ago," I tell him.
His eyes widen at that. "I see, we've been having the same problem. Attacks on myself are few, but mostly against my wife and son. It does seem giving them power and status is more of a curse than a blessing. The nobles used to be an honourable lot, helping the Kingdom flourish, but the descendants that inherit their wealth and status grow in thinking that they deserve it, not earned it," he tells me with a sigh.
"Just like ours. Though once we return, we're setting up new laws whether they like it or not, although we do have the support of half of them," I reply.
"Maybe we should do that as well?" King Vortigan says to Queen Alyssa.
"Perhaps, but that may cause distrust among the citizens," she replies to him.
"Well, we can discuss that later. Would you and your guard care to join us for lunch?" he asks.
I smile and bow again. "We would be honoured," I reply.
"Oh and just call me Vortigan, I've never really liked using titles anyway," he says and walks to a side door. The stories I've heard of his kindness don't give him justice.
"Then please call me Adrian, and I know what you mean, I'm still getting used to mine. It just feels strange people bowing to me and calling me your Majesty, your Highness, or my King," I tell him.
He chuckles and we enter the room.
Three Hours Later.
Over the last few hours we told Vortigan and Alyssa about Equestria. They were fascinated with pony magic as Twilight demonstrated some for them; levitation, conjuration, teleporting objects and many more.
They seemed sceptical about Luna and Celestia raising and lowering the Sun and Moon, but after telling them that I've witnessed it myself, they seemed more open to the Idea. I even told them that if the portal is allowed to be set up, they could come and witness it themselves.
They told me of events that have transpired since I've been gone. Orcs attacked the City a week ago and repairs have just finished, and that the orcs are getting stronger.
The aquarians have found a lost city that has sunk into the Ocean around three thousand years ago and have salvaged quite a few relics from it.
The kitsune have actually started to venture out from their homeland as more and more have been seen around.
The dwarves are working on a prototype of a train where Luna told them of the ones Equestria has and offered to give them blueprints of them to aid in theirs. The King was grateful and offered a large sum of gold for it. I accepted as we may need some Terran currency in the future.
I was slightly hesitant, but I told him of the Equestrian airships. He was intrigued by them and wondered if they could be altered for dwarven engineering, he said they would make for great defences and safer travel for traders over long distances. Luna offered to give him blueprints for the smaller designs in exchange for some mages willing to come to Equestria who can cast the nullify spell, saying they would be a great help against the gryphons defences and allowing our guards to have a better chance at fighting back. I also asked if we could get some designs for rifles and scatter guns. I remember their barrier defences weren't as good against physical attacks.
He agreed and has lead us to a secure room underground. We told him how we set up our portal and he agreed it would be much safer in a strong secluded area in case something that shouldn't get through does.
Twilight sets up the frame and casts her portal spell again on it. After a few minutes of waiting the portal stabilizes and I see the Crystal Caverns under Canterlot.
"There, I've connected the two portal frames together," she tells us while panting. "The only way the portal will fail now is if the frame is damaged or destroyed," she says.
"Wonderful! Adrian, I look forward to seeing this world of yours later, but right now I do believe we have an alliance to form. If you would follow me to my office, we can write up terms and trade agreements," Vortigan says.
"Sounds good," I reply. "Spitfire, go back to Canterlot and tell Celestia the portal is up," I tell her. She salutes and walks through the portal. We head back up where Luna and I sit with Vortigan and Alyssa in his office while our guards and Jasmine wait outside.
After about ten minutes writing and signing up a treaty, I hear a faint voice. "MY KING!KING VORTIGAN!" the voice shouts from outside the door. The door bursts open with a panicked looking man panting for breath. "My king! Prince Kain has been killed! Someone has infiltrated his room and murdered him!" the man says and falls to his knees gasping for breath.
Queen Alyssa starts breaking down and crying while Vortigan looks beyond angry.
"WHAT!" he yells and heads for the door.
"Luna, stay here and try to comfort Alyssa, tell her I'm going to try and revive her son," I tell Luna and she nodded.
"Just be careful," she tells me and kisses me.
"I will," I reply and a follow the King.
I arrive at a room where Vortigan is on his knees, staring at a boy around nine years old on the bed... with a dagger in his chest, there's also a note attached to the dagger.
"Vortigan," I say, getting his attention. "With your permission, I'd like to try and revive your son," I ask him.
"R-Revive him? You can cast such a powerful spell?" he asks, hope in his tone.
"I've only done it twice, but yes, I can," I reply.
"Then please, I ask not as a King, but as a father, please bring my boy back to me," he asks.
"I'll try," I tell him and stand beside the bed. I pull the dagger out and hand it to him with the note which he takes and watches me.
I hold my shield in front of me and concentrate. "Please don't disrupt me. If I fail this, it will kill me," I tell him.
He nodded and left the room and closed the door, I'm guessing to prevent anyone entering until I'm done.
I prepare the revive spell and create the vessel. It fluctuates a few times, but I get it stable. I then feel a presence in the vessel and charge it. I cast the spell and the boy's body begins healing as the lightning element courses through him and he gasps.
He coughs and starts crying where the door opens and a wide eyed Vortigan is looking at his son. Tears stream down his face as he walks in and hugs the boy.
"Thank the gods you're alive," he says and holds the boy tightly.
"Daddy! I w-was so scared! S-Some strange *sniff* man climbed t-through the window a-and hurt me!" the boy says.
"It's alright now, you're safe," Vortigan tells his son.
I walk over to the window while panting from casting the spell. I nearly slipped up when forming the vessel. I look around and notice a rope connected to the balcony and it goes all the way down to the ground. That's got to be at least a thirty metre drop.
Vortigan then gets my attention. "Thank you, thank you so much. If there's anything I can get you. Please, don't hesitate to ask," he tells me.
"It's alright *pant* I'm just glad I could *huff* help," I reply.
"I'll have some water brought to my office for you," Vortigan says and carries his son back to the office where Alyssa squeezes the life out of him.
"By the way Vortigan, what was written on that note," I ask him and drink some water as Luna clings onto me.
He frowns and pulls the note out of a pocket. "It was a threat to vacate the throne or next would be my wife... I still don't know how an assassin could get in as I've increased patrols around the Castle and grounds," he says.
"It could be a guard? We've had infiltrators in our ranks before, but not since our new allies joined us who can detect their own kind," I tell him.
"Our own guard?" he says and frowns. "If that is true, then my family isn't safe here anymore..." Vortigan says.
"They are welcome to stay in Canterlot if thou wishes. We would keep them safe and comfortable," Luna offers.
"Thank you for the offer, but I'm not comfortable with sending them to an unknown world just yet," he replies.
"We understand, but we shall leave the offer open should thou ever need it," she tells him.
Vortigan bows to Luna. "Thank you. Now if you don't mind, we have a treaty to finish," he says and we complete the treaty.
Once finished, Vortigan speaks up. "Right then, I've got an investigation to conduct. You're free to wander the Castle and City if you'd like, but I must get going if I'm to find the assassin," he says.
"Alright, we'll be back later tonight, I still have to find Jasmines relatives," I reply.
"Jasmine? The little girl that is with you?" he asks.
"Yes, we saved her from a pack of dire wolves on our way here... but her parents weren't as lucky," I tell him.
"I see, then I wish you luck with that. Would you like an escort to guide you through the City?" he asks.
"That would be nice, thank you," I reply.
We've been walking through the City for ten minutes looking for Jasmine's Uncle's house, but I start getting worried as we walk through a rather run down looking area of the City.
"You sure your uncle Lives here?" I ask her.
"Uh-huh... but he's not very nice," she tells me.
I frown and stop in front of a house that has seen better days as I knock on the door and we wait. I hear the door creak open and Jasmine grips my hand tightly.
A rather scruffy man who has a bit of a pudgy belly just glares at me, a bottle of some alcohol in his hand. I can smell his breath through my helmet.
"What do yooo *hic* want," he says.
I just stare at him and look behind him to see his house is a mess. Am I really going to let Jasmine live in here? I look back at the girl who is gripping my hand like if she let go she'd die. Even the City guard escorting us looks disgusted at the man.
"Well? What do ya wa-*hic*-ant ya, bastard," he says then spots Jasmine. "What's mah broother's brat doin' ere?" he asks with a belch
Yup, not leaving her here. "Sorry, I think we got the wrong house," I reply and start walking away.
"Waa? What are ya? Some stuu-*hic*-pid shit?" the man yells at us and grumbles.
"Where are we going?" Jasmine asks confused.
"I'm not going to leave you with that bum," I tell her.
"But I don't know anyone else," she says.
"Then thou art welcome to live with us," Luna says, I guess she agrees with me not leaving her here.
"R-Really?" Jasmines asks as her eyes beginning to moisten.
I raise my visor and nodded with a smile.
Her lower lip starts quivering and she clings onto Luna and sobs.
We wander around the City for an hour. I managed to trade in some gold and gems for about four-hundred gold coins and bought Jasmine a stuffed bear and new clothes. I bought Twilight some books on magic that she was ecstatic getting while I also got something for everyone else as well.
Hammer got a dwarven lightning rune and had it attached to his hammer. Now when he hits something, a discharge of lightning will go off, but it needs a few seconds to recharge with every use.
Dancer's was expensive, but with her skills and style, I thought it was okay. She got eight well made katana swords; light, durable, and perfect for speedy attacks. She thanked me with more emotion than I've seen of her since we've been here... she's just like Twilight with her books, jumping around and hugging all eight swords to her chest.
Chitain and Chameleon got a sword each that matched each other, broadswords with a wide hand guard that could be held with one or two hands.
Bright Mind got nearly the same as Twilight, some books on the magic of Terra and a few rune gems and crystals infused with elements.
I got a special scoped rifle for Spitfire with three hundred bullets for her. It would be better than her bow as a pegasus can just sit on a cloud and make for an effective sniper.
I have about one-hundred gold left and entered a jewellery store. I want to get some rings for my wives.
After a few minutes of looking around I find some nice looking rings: One has a topaz in the shape of a sun on a gold ring. Another has a diamond crescent moon on a silver ring, and the last one I like has a sapphire shaped butterfly on a silver ring. The sun one is ten gold, and the other two are eight gold.
While Luna and Jasmine are looking at the necklaces, I purchase the rings and hide them in my pack. A special surprise for my wives when we get home.
"Find anything you like?" I ask them.
"Not really, we have many rings and necklaces back at the Castle," Luna says.
I smile. "Oh well, then shall we head back to the Castle?" I ask.
"Very well, we should let our sister know of our success. Besides, we wish to know more of this world," she replies.
We head back to the Castle where I see Discord waiting by the Gates.
"Discord! Where have you been?" I ask him.
"I went and got your surprise ready," he says in a surprisingly soft tone.
"Alright then, where is it?" I ask.
He steps aside and two people walk out of the Castle's doors. My eyes widen and tears begin to flow down my face...
Standing in front of me is none other then my mother and father.
"H-How... I t-thought you d-died years ago!" I stutter with wide eyes, not believing what I'm seeing.
"I might have lied when I said I couldn't make it in time to save your parents... I did make it in time. They were both badly wounded, but." He sighs and looks sad. "They know of Starswirl’s prophecy that his tenth descendant is destined to save Equestria... They told me to take them to Elysium where you would think the bandits killed them and took them away and they told me that after you turned twenty, to give you that spell book," he tells me.
What?.. My parents were alive this whole time! And they planned this!?
"W-Why... why couldn't you just tell me!" I shout at them.
"Because we knew this would make you want to get stronger, to avenge us," mother tells me. "To make you strong enough for when you went to Equestria," she says with tears on her own face.
I frown at them. They did this just because of some prophecy?
"We're very sorry that we did that to you, but uncle Discord had a point. The fate of an entire world meant more than just our happiness," father says.
I'll beat up Discord later. Right now, I'm just glad to have my parents back as I run forward and hug them both tightly.
"I missed you both so much..." I tell them, trying to hold back my sobs.
"We missed you as well, it was so hard letting you go," mom tells me. "Please forgive us," she asks.
"I forgive you... Just never do it again..." I reply.
"Never again," dad tells me.
I hold on to them for a bit longer and then let them go.
"I have a lot to tell you both," I say.
"And we can't wait to hear it," mom replies.
Luna is waiting patiently for us with Jasmine, that gives me an idea.
"Mom, dad. Would you like to come back to Equestria with us? You can live in the Castle." I ask and tell them.
They look from me to each other. "That sounds lovely, but we would be able to return right? We have friends we've made in our years here," Mom replies.
I smile. "Sure, by the way, this is one of my wives, Luna," I say and gesture Luna to come over. "Luna, these are Maria and Lenson. My mother and father"
"Wives? You're married and to more than one woman?" dad asks me shocked.
"Yeah, Discord didn't tell you?" I reply and ask while glaring at Discord.
"What? Where's the surprise if I did that? I was looking forward to their reactions. Why don't you tell them the other surprise?" he replies.
Other surprise?.. Oh. I give him the stink eye before looking back at my parents. "Oh yes... I have a daughter and another child on the way," I tell them. "You're grandparents," mom's eyes widen and she squeals.
"I'm a grandmother!? Where is the little one? What's her name?" she asks.
"Mavis, and she's with her mother Shella in Canterlot at the moment. We were heading back to tell Tia and Shella about our success with the alliance with Reymorah," I tell them. "Want to go with us and see her?" I ask.
"Oh yes! I can't wait!" mom says excitedly.
We walk back into the Castle and down to the portal where Luna and mom are talking together with Luna telling her what's been happening and how we met.
Mom gasps when Luna told her of when I got eaten by a dragon and survived. Dad was very proud of me.
She then told them how I am now King of their Nation and dad chuckles. He said 'Don't you be expecting me to bow or treat you any different just because you're a King now,' making me smile. I didn't want them to, they're my parents after all.
Mom and dad were upset they couldn't be there for my wedding, but I told them we had pictures of it they could look at while we tell them how it went.
On the way, we found King Vortigan and told him we were heading back to Equestria to show my parents Canterlot. I told him he could send someone through to ask a guard to get us if needed and he also said we can do the same.
We arrive at the portal and I walk through first. My parents enter next followed by Hammer, Twilight, Bright Mind, Dancer, Chitain, Chameleon, Jasmine, and Luna.
"Welcome back, your Majesties," a guard salutes to us.
"Thank you. Is Celestia in the Throne room?" I ask him.
"Yes, my King. She's been eagerly awaiting your return," he replies.
"Alright, thanks," I say and head towards the exit.
Mom looks around at all the colourful crystals in the walls. "They're beautiful," she says.
"They are. These are the Crystal Caverns, the crystals here grow over time due to the high concentration of magic here," Luna tells her.
"They grow?" dad asks.
"Yes. Tis where we get all our crystals from," she replies.
The guards leave to report back to Shining and we head up to the Throne Room. People give my mom, dad, and Jasmine some confused looks, similar to how the people of Reymorah looked at us.
The guards at the doors open them for us and we enter to see Celestia and Shella on their thrones. Shella is cooing at Mavis in her arms while Celestia looks tired.
Celestia then looks up from the piece of paper she's reading and spots me. A smile spreads on her face as she rushes over to me and hugs me with a deep kiss.
"I missed you so much! Welcome home, my love," she says between kisses.
"Thanks, I missed you both too," I say as Luna and Shella join the hug where I give Shella a big kiss as well.
I let go and face my parents. "Celestia, Shella. I'd like you to meet my parents. Maria and Lenson Stormsword," I tell my wives.
Celestia gasps. "But you told us they were killed," she says confused.
"That's what I thought, but Discord managed to save them and they asked him not to tell me," I tell her and pout at Discord.
"Why would you do that?" Shella asks my parents.
They explain why to Celestia and Shella. I notice my mom looking at Mavis with barely restrained glee.
"Oh yeah," I say and hold my arms out to take Mavis, I then turn to my mom with my daughter. "Mom, this is your granddaughter Mavis," I tell her.
Mom holds Mavis in her arms and tears are running down her cheek. "She's adorable!" she says and starts to tickle Mavis.
Mavis giggles and dad holds a finger out to her where Mavis grabs his finger and he smiles. "I suddenly feel so old," he says.
I smile, happy to have my parents back. I look at Discord and punch him on his shoulder. "That's for keeping quiet about my parents." I then hug him. "And this is for saving them."
He rubs his shoulder with a smile. "No problem... Now that that's over, I believe you have some family bonding to do," he says and disappears in a puff of smoke.
I turn back to see my dad holding Mavis while mom has her hand on Celestia's stomach. I'm glad they're getting along well with each other.
POV: Discord
I warp to an isolated place on Terra, an oasis in a blasted and cursed land. The place of Grogar's first attack on the world with his army of undead where Starswirl gave his live in banishing him. Unfortunately, he was banished to Equus.
I sit in front of Beardy's grave in a small cave with sunlight streaming in through a small hole in the ceiling that shines on his resting place. His hat, tattered but still in one piece resting on top of the tombstone, preserved by my magic.
"Hey, Swirly. Adrian is doing well. He's married both Celly and Lulu, even a nice changeling Queen," I say to the grave.
"I hope I've done everything you've told me to do, all I can do now is help him get stronger and prepared for the horror that's surely awaiting him," I say, remembering the battles Beardy had against the undead.
I sit there in silence for a few seconds. I then conjure a mana lily and place it in front of the tombstone, a large deep blue flower with small wisps of magic floating around the stamen.
"I need to get some things from your old lab. I'm sure they'll help Adrian in his training, like they did for you," I say and stand up.
I head to the exit when a light breeze blows past me, making the bells on the hat jingle slightly. I smile and then warp away.
POV: Adrian Stormsword Four Hours Later
Luna went back to Elysium with some guards and the small airship designs. She returned an hour later with twenty mages who knew the nullify spell and ten crates of rifles, scatterguns, and ammunition.
The rifles are made for long range precision and fire round shot. They're loaded in two parts. The powder charge chamber and in front of it a round shot. The hammer ignites the charge and launches the shot down the barrel at around five-hundred and fifty miles an hour.
The scatterguns fire pepper shot that spray an area in front of the gunner. It's loaded with a small paper ball filled with small ball bearings in it. The powder charge ignition burns the paper away and launches the ball bearings out in a tight cone.
These should be effective against the gryphons, we just need to start training guards in their use and teach the blacksmith and alchemists on how to make the shot and charges.
Jasmine has been playing with Lily under Thraxx's watch. I think they're going to be great friends.
Celestia, Shella, and my parents are currently talking to each other and having a good time in the lounge while I've been sitting on my throne presiding over my first court session for the last hour or so.
"Your Majesty. My family and I are having trouble with a den of diamond dogs near our farm. The local guards can't find the den and the dogs keep killing our cows. I ask you send somepony to hunt them down or chase them off as If this keeps up, I won't be able to keep my dairy production on schedule," a light brown furred man in a simple farmers attire tells me.
I pull out the notebook Celestia uses to write down notes and orders and I write down his name and about his issue to bring it up with Shining about how best to deal with it.
"I'll talk with the Captain of the Guard and put together a team to track and remove the dogs," I tell him.
He bows and smiles. "Thank you, your Majesty," he replies and leaves the line.
'Bloody hell this is boring... how do Tia and Luna do this nearly everyday?' I think to myself.
After a few more people plead their cases, Luna walks into the room and I smile as I stand up and stretch my limbs.
"Hello, our love. We take it thou art sufficiently bored?" she asks.
"You have no idea," I reply and chuckle.
She giggles. "Thou will get used to it. Go see the others and relax, we shall take over now," she tells me.
"Thanks. Oh! By the way, I got a present for you, Tia, and Shella later," I tell her and give her a kiss as I walk past her towards the doors.
"We shall be looking forward to it," she says and sits on her throne. I leave the room and head to the lounge.
I enter the room and my mom smiles at me. "Adrian! I'm so proud of what you've accomplished in your time here," she says while rocking Mavis in her arms.
"Not only have you saved royalty, but married them as well?" dad says and chuckles. "Not even my years as a guard were as interesting as your short time here," he tells me.
"Thanks. That reminds me, wait here, I'll be right back," I tell him and head up to my bedroom.
I was about to get dad's armour but I notice that hand mirror I found in the Everfree Castle Ruins on my table. I walk over to it and look it over. It doesn't look like it's been altered, there's also a note on the table.
Dear Adrian.
The researchers couldn't find anyway to activate the mirror with any form of Equestrian magic.
So we've decided to let you have it as we believe only Terran magic can activate it.
Yours forever, Luna.
Huh, I remember how I got it to work last time and try again. I think of Luna and see her sitting on her throne talking to the people. I then think of Celestia and see her in the lounge with Shella and my parents.
I wonder who else I can find.
I try to think of Discord... only to see a sign saying 'Dizcord waz 'ere' scribbled on it. Odd.
Hmmm. It's a long shot, but I try to think of Solaris and Galaxia... and to my surprise, I see them. They seem to be sitting together with a picnic spread around them. They're sitting under a tree on a small hill that begins to fade out the further it goes.
"Solaris! Can you hear me?" I ask him. I was able to talk to Celestia the first time so I should be able to here as well.
"Gah! Who's there?" he says after a little jump, spilling the drink he was holding on his lap.
I then mentally tell the mirror to get closer. "It's me, Adrian," I reply as the mirror moves in front of them.
"Adrian? How are you talking to us? No magic in Equestria is powerful enough to do so," he asks confused, but a smile is on their faces.
"Good thing I'm not using Equestrian magic then. This is elven magic being powered by my mana and I guess your magic as well," I reply.
Suddenly, Galaxia's eyes light up. "Adrain? Could you let us talk to our daughters?" she asks with hope.
I go wide eyed as I just realized what this means... Celestia and Luna can finally talk to their parents!
"Sure, I'll call you back," I say and put the mirror in my pack. I collect my father's old armour and sword and bring them back to the lounge. "Here you go, I kept them in the best condition I could," I tell him.
His eyes widen and he smiles. "My old armour and sword. Discord told us you began using it when it could fit you," he says and puts his old armour on. "Still fits like a glove," he says walking around in it.
"It's yours again if you want it, I kind of got an upgrade," I say, motioning to my golden armour. I then pull the mirror out of my pack.
"Why do you have that mirror?" Celestia asks.
"You'll see, but I need you to get Luna here. I have a surprise you will both just love," I tell her.
She looks sceptical, but closes her eyes and after a few seconds she opens them again. "I've just asked her to come. What is this surprise?" she asks.
"I'm not saying until Luna arrives, you both need to be here for it," I tell her.
Mom and dad talk with each other as dad checks over his old armour. Shella and Celestia are cuddled up to me after Celestia teleports my armour away. Luna then walks in after about ten minutes with a confused expression.
"What is so important that we had to cancel court?" she asks.
"Shella, could you let Luna sit beside me please?" I ask her.
"Okay," she replies and sits next to mom who immediately takes Mavis into her arms and drowns the baby in affection.
"Right then, I have just discovered something you will both be very grateful for," I say and think of Solaris.
The mirror swirls and shows the two alicorns still sitting down on their picnic area. Celestia and Luna both gasp as tears spill from their eyes.
"Mother? Father?" they say together.
Galaxia also starts tearing up. "My precious little fillies," she says with a hand over her mouth.
"How is this possible? Thou can not interact with Equus anymore..." Luna says with disbelief.
"This is elven magic remember? Nothing to do with Equus," I tell them.
"S-So we can talk to our parents whenever we want?" Celestia asks.
"If they're fine with it, there may be times they want to be alone," I reply with a waggle of my eyebrows.
"That's really mature," mom says and shakes her head at me. I just lean back and allow Celestia and Luna to talk with their parents.
"Well my daughters. Care to fill us in on what's been happening? While we can watch over you, we do not do so all the time," Solaris asks and tells them.
Two Hours Later
After a tearful talk between them, Celestia and Luna say goodbye to their parents and promise to talk tomorrow. We then lead my parents to Luna's old room for them to stay in.
"Goodnight, we'll see you in the morning," I say to them.
Mom smiles and kisses my cheek. "Goodnight, and please, try to keep the noise down," she says with a shit eating grin.
I roll my eyes and smile. "No promises," I reply.
"Goodnight, son. It's really good to have you back, we both missed you everyday since that bandit attack," dad tells me.
"Me too, I'm just glad you're both alive," I reply.
He smiles at me and closes the door. As we walk away I can here mom gasp. "This room is beautiful! It's like we're outside!" she says and I see Luna smile at that.
We head to our room where Shella puts Mavis in her crib. We then get undressed and we cuddle up in bed, I missed this over the last two nights.
"Today has been a good day; I find my parents alive, you can now talk to yours, we have an alliance with Reymorah, and new weapons to fight the gryphons with along with mages to help," I say.
"Yes, and tomorrow we shall return to Terra to learn as much as we can about these orcs we may have to help fight. We shall also bring information about gryphons and what we know of Grogar for the King to look over," Luna says.
"Looks like we'll all be busy for the next few weeks," Celestia says and nuzzles her head into my neck.
"Oh before I forget, Luna can you open my pack and pull out the three small boxes please," I ask her since I'm pinned to the bed right now.
She does as I ask and three little boxes float above us. I've written their names on each box.
"Open them," I tell them.
They each levitate their own boxes and open them. They gasp and smile as they pull the rings out.
"They're beautiful," Celestia says as they all put them on.
"Thank you. They're lovely," Shella says and licks my cheek.
"We shall have to find thee something in return," Luna says as she and Celestia kiss my cheeks.
I smile and hold them all close as we fall asleep, yes, I missed this very much.
My parents have been settling in well, they returned to Reymorah a couple of times to visit their friends and my dad has even made friends with Shining when he practised his swordsmanship again after a few years of not holding a sword. Mom has been cuddling Mavis every chance she got and the little baby girl has been enjoying all the affection and attention she was getting.
Celestia and Luna have me use the mirror after lunch every day to talk to their parents. I smile every time at the happiness radiating from them both, even Shella told me she can just taste the love coming off them.
I also discussed with Shining the matter of that farmer's Diamond Dog problem. He put together a tracking team of eight earth ponies, three pegasi, three unicorns, two thestrals for locating scents and a changeling to sense their emotions. They also all had their own life wands to heal any wounds they might receive from the fight.
Discord has been setting something up in a building he's constructing behind the Barracks. I asked him what it was, but he told me no peeking and to go play with the other kids... cute.
We made trips back to Elysium as well, learning what we can about the orcs and what they have. Seem's like they finally have someone with brains mobilizing them, orcs were never this clever when it came to tactics. We also gave Vortigan books about gryphons and what they're like. He was surprised when we told him they're almost twice our size.
I even gave Vortigan a copy of the air element and I asked him not to give it to anyone else. As much as it would help their soldiers, if it got out and bandits managed to use it... So just after five days of practice, Vortigan has gotten pretty good at it. He's not a skilled mage himself for nothing, I've even taught him how to use them without getting a mouthful of dirt. Let's just say the people of Elysium were more than surprised to see their King flying over the City, he said he never felt so young in years.
The assassin has also been caught, but refuses to talk. It was a member of his guard as we thought and Luna offered to read his memories and discover who hired him. To say Vortigan was shocked to discover his own brother was behind it enraged him. Right now, his brother Orthos was supposed to be at the elves Capital renewing a trade agreement.
The next day he found out that Orthos never even arrived at the Capital and has gone missing.
Jasmine has settled in well and my parents have taken it upon themselves to raise her. Jasmine's still depressed that her parents are gone, but we're doing the best we can to keep her happy. She's taken Celestia's old room now with an entire corner of the room filled with stuffed animals that she could hide herself under.
Shining's been having a hard time with Cadence's increasing sexual drive. He's even asked me to help relieve her the next time a big one hits her. To be honest, it both worried and excited me. I told him I would help only if it got too out of hand.
Gryphons have been sighted near the border towns again, but with the new mages help, their attacks have been foiled repeatedly and while the guards took some injuries, the mages healed their wounds quickly.
The guards have been learning how to use the new rifles and scatterguns we got, while the alchemists and blacksmiths have been learning to make the shot and powder charges. The scientists and magic researchers have disassembled a rifle and scattergun in an attempt to hybridize them with magic.
Spitfire got her custom scoped rifle and was drooling over it, I showed her how to use it and gave her the ammunition for it. For the last four days she's been at the new firing range practising with it. She still has her bow in case she needs something with a bit more... boom, as she called it.
We've been getting reports of Goldrush being sighted in Trottingham, but after a few days of searching, she was gone. I can't wait to get my hands on her.
New laws pertaining the nobles have come into effect; they no longer have a say in who royalty may court or marry, they no longer have any decisions that involve the security of the Nation, they can keep their titles, but their influence with us is just the same as a common citizen. A couple of the families were verbally upset with this, but most have agreed to it due to the shame and damage Goldrush caused.
Blueblood has gone to Ponyville with Rarity for the next week. He said something about treating her like the lady she is...
I'm in the Gym working out in a pair of shorts and what Luna called a tank top. I'm lifting weights and I can hear some strange noises coming from down the hallway, I put the weights back on the rack and lean my head out the door. Down the hall I can hear voices coming from a maids supply closet that's nearby.
I walk over to it and hear moaning and gasps coming from inside it. I raise an eyebrow and open the door.
My eyes widen at the scene before me as a maid is bent over a table with a guard having sex with her.
They stop with looks of dread while heavily panting and blushes on their faces as we stare at each other.
After a few seconds I slowly close the door. Well, that was not what I was expecting to see today. I walk back to the Gym and pass a young looking earth pony maid who has a blush on her face and a slight sway to her hips. Her tail is also sweeping left and right at a fast rate and I can smell a sweet scent in the air.
Her fur is a powder blue and her hair is a light yellow. She has the standard black and white maid uniform on where the skirt goes down to her shins. Her mark is a pile of blankets with different colours.
She looks at me and bites her lower lip... wait a minute. She's acting just like Luna and Celestia when they were in heat... Oh crap.
She smiles and starts walking over to me. "Greetings, my King," she says with half lidded eyes. "Do you need anything? Or would you like me to help you relax?" she asks and presses her breasts together between her arms.
"N-No thank you, I'm f-fine," I stutter. I think she's trying to seduce me!
"Oh, but I'm sure there's something I could help you with. Maybe a massage after that workout you've just had?" she says and places her hands on my stomach. I try to back way and she pins me to the wall, how she's this strong when she only comes up to my chest is surprising. I notice the smell of my sweat is heavy as she buries her nose into my chest and breathes in deeply. Okay this just got too awkward.
"I'm good, but thanks for the offer. I, erm. Need to get going," I tell her and manage to slip out of her grip. I see her frown sadly and rub her thighs together. Oh gods this and the smell is arousing me badly.
I quickly head back to my room and take a cold shower. Once done, I put on my armour and weapons and head down for dinner. The halls were mostly abandoned on the way there.
I enter the Dining Hall to see only Celestia, Luna, and Shella there. My parents, Jasmine, and Lily are nowhere in sight.
"Where is everyone?" I ask.
"Most of the staff and guards have taken the week off due to the start of the fall heat season. Your parents have also returned to Elysium with Jasmine and Fleur Lily for the week," Celestia tells me.
"Heat Season?" I ask and sit next to Luna.
"It's a time when mares go into heat and look for a mate to breed with. Very few mares can control their urges, but most give in to the lust and find the first available stallion they find. Most mares lock themselves in their homes and wait it out," Luna replies while nuzzling Mavis.
"So that explains the maid that tried to help me 'relax'," I say.
Celestia giggles. "That is not surprising. You are a powerful male and a King, mares will want to find the strongest stallion to breed with. It's more instinctual than a conscious choice," she tells me.
"So should I just stay in our room for the week then? I'd hate to think what would happen if I get caught. That maid had a surprisingly strong grip on me. I had to carefully slip away from her before she did anything," I say.
"We too would be in heat right now, but ours was triggered early due to finally having a mate we love," Luna says.
"So what would happen if I'm caught? I don't want to use force and hurt anyone to get away. And I don't want to risk teleporting in a panic and appear inside someone or a wall," I ask.
"Then you would have no choice but to mate with them, being in heat is an uncomfortable experience for a mare, our libido increases, our aggression increases and our bodies feel hot to a point it feels like we're on fire. The constant musky scent we release that even bathing can't remove. Only by mating or waiting out the week will it pass," Celestia tells me.
Damn, that sounds like it would drive anyone mad. "Hmmm, I'll have to be careful then. I'll probably spend the week in our room reading my spell book and practice with the light and shadow elements some more," I say and order a cooked bass. Celestia also orders another one for herself. "So what's going on with the gryphons?" I ask.
"They have tried raiding some of our border towns again. They were very surprised when they ran into our new mages," Luna replies.
I grin. "Bet they weren't expecting more of my kind here to kick their asses," I say.
"Certainly not, and we cannot wait until the guard have finished their training with these new 'guns' we now have," she tells me.
"We'll have to ask one of the guards to take a picture of it," I reply and chuckle.
Two Days Later
I spent the last two days in my room, learning more from the spell book. I can now channel two light elements safely.
My stomach rumbles, signalling that it's time for lunch. I leave the room in only a comfortable shirt, trousers, and shoes. I walk down the halls and hear someone crying. I open a door to a guest room to see the same maid that tried to seduce me curled up on the bed... With her hand weakly rubbing between her legs.
"Make it stop... please make it stop!" she cries. The room smells thick with her musk as she writhes on the bed.
She looks towards the door and spots me and her eyes go wide... Aw crap.
She gasps and pulls her hand away and with surprising speed, gets up and charges at me.
"Bugger me!" I yell and bolt down the hallway, the maid hot on my heels. Oh gods she's fast!
I turn a corner and run past an older maid who is carrying some linens and she yelps as she barely dodges me. Seconds later the younger maid turns the corner still right behind me with an expression of pure lust, drool dripping down her chin. The older maid giggles at us and goes back to her work.
I run down another hallway and run past a guard in the main lobby. 'I hope she turns her attention to him,' I think to myself but to my dismay, she runs right past him straight for me! I yelp and continue to my destination of Celestia's Office as court is cancelled for the week. I make it to the room and shut the door behind me making Celestia look up from the papers she's reading with a confused expression.
"Adrian? What's the matter?" she asks.
I open my mouth to answer, but the door starts to budge as the maid bashes against it. "That maid from before is chasing me!" I quickly tell her.
Celestia giggles at me. "She must be at the peak of her heat for her to forget this is even my Office. I'm afraid she won't stop chasing you until you mate with her, or until her heat dies down," she tells me.
I frown at her. "You're sounding really calm about this!" I accuse her.
"Why shouldn't I be? It's just a natural part of a mares life. Normal ponies can't control themselves at their peaks most of the time. Her mind is clouded with the desire to breed right now. She's probably extremely uncomfortable if she's trying this hard to get to you and judging from how aggressive she's being, it must be her first heat too," she tells me.
The banging dies down and the maid begins crying again getting me to frown sadly at her pitiful wails. "So what should I do about it?" I ask as I have no idea what I should do.
"I can cast a spell on her to make her infertile for the week. Then you can help relieve her of her heat and her mind shall be clear again," she tells me. Wait... she wants me to have sex with her?
"Are you messing with me right now or something?" I ask her with a very confused expression on my face.
She sighs and makes her way over to me. "Adrian. I have been alive for over a millennia as every year I had to endure two heat seasons alone and with my subjects ideals of me staying pure back then, I know the pain and torment of not being able to relieve myself of my heat. Our first time together was the first time I've ever been relieved of the torment," she tells me softly.
A ponies heat is really that bad? I sigh and look down. "And you'll be totally fine with it?" I ask her.
"Yes, as long as she doesn't get pregnant, it'll be fine. We have developed spells and medicine to prevent pregnancies just for this reason, and to prevent overpopulation," she tells me. "Usually the maids without a mate will find one of the guards to relieve themselves with the aid of the spell or the medicine. She may have done that if she didn't see you," she says.
The maid's crying seems to be getting worse behind the door. I sigh again in defeat. "Alright, fine. Just know I'm not comfortable with this at all. She won't be joining our herd right?" I tell and ask her.
Celestia giggles at me. "No, she won't. All you'll be doing is relieving her of her discomfort," she replies.
I groan and move away from the door. Celestia opens it and the maid instantly looks up at me. She then lunges, only for Celestia to catch her in her magic.
"Silky," Celestia says getting the maid's attention. "Do you have a mate of your own?" she asks her.
The maid shakily shakes her head. "N-No, Queen Celestia... I-I don't," she replies, just realizing where she is.
Celestia smiles warmly at her. "Is this your first heat?" she asks.
The maid nodded. "Y-Yes," she says squirming and reaching out to me.
"Adrian has agreed to help you so long as you have the infertility spell put on you," Celestia tells her.
"Y-Yes! Please! J-Just make it go away!" she begs, still reaching out for me. I notice a wet patch on the skirt of her uniform, I'm feeling really uncomfortable right now.
Celestia's horn glows and so does the maid's stomach area. Once it fades away, Celestia gently puts her down and with nothing holding her back, she tackles me to the floor.
"Ooof!" I grunt as she grips me tightly. The maid grabs my head and kisses me roughly as I just lay there stunned.
"I'll leave you two to it then, please treat her gently, my love," she says as she locks the door and teleports away.
I regain my senses and quickly grip the maid's wrists. I sit up and hold her still, even as she squirms to get back on me.
"Listen. Can you calm down for a minute please," I ask her.
Despite her groan of protest she settles down, but I can feel her rocking on my lap.
"Okay first, what's your name?" I ask her.
"S-Silk Sheets," she tells me.
"How old are you?" I ask.
"E-Eighteen and a-a half," she says. At least she's only two years younger than me.
"Are you a virgin?" I ask next. She blushes even harder and nodded. "And you can't hold out until the end of the week?" I ask.
"N-No, i-it hurts. P-Please make it s-stop," she begs me, tears falling down her cheeks. I sigh and let go of her left wrist and wipe her cheek with my thumb.
"Alright. Just try to calm down okay?" I tell her. She takes a few deep breaths and sits on me patiently. "Alright then. You just relax and I'll do all the work alright?" I tell her.
I wrap my arms around her back and carefully pull the zipper on her uniform down. I may not be comfortable with this, but it doesn't mean I won't make her first time as pleasurable as possible.
Once the zipper is down, I pull her dress down her arms and down to her waist. I unclip her bra and put it aside. Her breasts are just bigger than my fists and I fondle both with the palms of my hands.
She moans and wraps her arms around my chest. The size difference between her and Celestia is staggering, she's a full foot shorter than me. I lift her up slightly and latch my lips onto her right nipple getting a gasp from her as I suckle and nibble on it. Milk begins to flow into my mouth, though it's got a sweet taste, it isn't as good as Celestia's, Luna's, or even Cadence's.
I switch to her other breast and suck, lick, nibble and pull on it. She's moaning and groaning as her fingers dig into my back. With one last hard suck, I lie her on her back and pull the rest of her dress down off her legs. She's panting hard and looking up at me with the heaviest blush I've ever seen.
I wrap my fingers around the bands of her white panties and slowly pull them down as a strand of her arousal stretches from her pussy to the panties the further down I pull them.
I place the panties with her bra and uniform and spread her legs. I lean in and take a deep breath through my nose, she smells like peaches. I extend my tongue and lick her pussy from base to clit making her moan as she wraps her legs around my head and grips my hair. "More! Please, more!" she begs.
I start licking around her vulva and her clit as she gasps and squirms while I continue to stimulate her. Her juices are sweet and tangy as I lap up at her flowing flower. She moans loudly as I thrust my tongue inside and swirl it around making her legs tremble and her grip tightens as I eat her out.
"I... I think aaah, I'm g-going to c-cum! Nnggh!" she says and starts to constantly moan and gasp.
I feel her pussy twitching and after another minute of licking, sucking, and thrusting, she cums and floods my mouth with her juices. "OOOOOHH! YES! MMMmmmm," she yells as I gulp it down and lick what's left on her puffy lips.
She's breathing heavily and I remove my clothes. Once naked, I crawl up her body as she looks me in the eyes and grabs my head, she pulls me down and kisses me as her tongue invades my mouth. Our tongues curl around each other as we exchange saliva making us both moan into the kiss as I start rubbing my member across her clit and she groans into my mouth.
I pull back and look her in the eyes. "Are you sure you want to do this? As it's your first time, it might hurt at first," I ask her.
"Y-Yes. Please make t-the pain go a-away!" she begs and wraps her legs around my waist.
I smile warmly at her. "Alright, just try to relax and I'll do all the work," I tell her as I grip my dick and rub the head against her entrance. She bites her lower lip with a nervous expression as I then begin to push against her and her lips spread as my head pops in. She gasps and moans as I push another two inches in until I hit her hymen. "Okay, this is the part that will hurt. I'll push in and then let you get used to the feelin alright?" I tell her.
Not able to talk at the moment, she just nodded at me. I wrap my arms around the back of her neck, allowing her to use them as cushions and with a strong thrust, I take her virginity.
She screams and I can feel fluid trickle down my testicles. I stroke her hair and lightly kiss her to help calm her down. Her inner walls are clamping down tightly on me, almost painfully. I should have guessed she would be a lot more tighter than Celestia, Luna, and Shella due to her size. I can feel my tip kissing her cervix as tears are falling from her eyes and she clenches them shut and grits her teeth.
After a good couple of minutes reassuring her that it's fine with words of encouragement, kisses, and gentle strokes. She opens her eyes and pants heavily. "I-I'm okay n-now, nngh," she tells me and rests her head on my arms.
I smile and kiss her as I slowly pull out and push back in gently. She gasps into the kiss which turns into a lustfully deep moan as her insides are pulling and squeezing my member tightly, if she wasn't so wet, it would probably be impossible to move. I can feel every bump inside her as I slide in and out.
She wraps her arms around my neck and hungrily makes out with me. She begins to try and thrust her hips back at me, but not having much success. "Faster! Ahhh, please rut me faster!" she begs me and I pick up my pace.
She's constantly moaning and groaning as we continue to make love on the floor. I grunt as she begins to squeeze harder and I can feel her pussy gushing her juices on my crotch. "AAAAAHHH! SO G-GOOD!" she screams as she cums. I hold on and try to keep thrusting, she's not making it easy with the death grip she has on my dick.
She relaxes and I slow my thrusting. She's panting as her orgasm still flows through her shuddering body. I then kiss her softly and she moans. Her hands wander down to my sides and she begins stroking my hips. "More... please rut me some more," she begs as her pussy massages my length.
"Alright," I reply and pull out. She moans in displeasure as I sit up and lift her up. I then turn her around so she's facing away from me and I slowly lower her on my lap as my cock slips inside her warm wet flower again. She moans deeply as my tip hits her cervix and she begins grinding on my lap.
I wrap my arms around her chest and begin fondling her breasts. "Y-Yes. It feels so g-gooood. I... Aaahh! I want more!" she says blissfully.
I smile as I grip her hips and lift her up. She gasps and moans as I pull her back down and spear her on my cock. She begins to tremble as I start kissing and nibbling her neck. She leans her head away giving me better access to her soft fur covered neck and shoulder.
Her soft plush ass is slapping against my groin every time I pull her down and I can feel her arousal just dripping off my balls. I look at her face and it's a picture of utter bliss, eyes rolled back and her tongue hanging out. I let go of her hips and after a few seconds, she begins to bounce herself on my lap.
I then return my hands to her breasts and grope them, pinching her nipples and giving them light twists and tugs.
"Ooohh, aaaaah. I feel so gooood. Nnnggh, aaah. Oh buck me. NNNGGH! BUCK ME HARDER! AAAAAAHHH!" she screams as she bounces faster and slams herself down on me.
I can feel my peak approaching and lightly bite her neck causing her to scream as she cums on my lap. "YYEEEEESSS! FILL ME UP! BREED ME!" she yells.
I grunt as her walls clamp down and pull me all the way to her cervix. I wrap my arms around her waist and hold her down to my groin as blast after blast of my semen floods her womb and she shakes violently on me. A constant moan leaving her mouth. I turn her head to me and kiss her deeply. She returns the kiss as our tongues coil around each other.
She then goes limp and leans back against me, panting for breath.
"T-That, ooooh. That was wonderful. I d-didn't think sex w-was this goooood," she says rubbing her stomach, I can feel her rubbing where the head of my dick is. "C-Can you buck me a-again please... I-I want more," she asks.
Good gods, are all women here sex addicts when in heat? "Sure, I got more energy in me," I say and lift her up and lie her on her back on Celestia's desk. I grip her ankles and line myself up with her dripping snatch while she begins to play with her breasts as I thrust into her.
She throws her head back and moans loudly throughout the room. She's panting rapidly as I begin thrusting in and out at a fast rate. She lowers a hand and begins circling her clit with her middle and index fingers.
"Y-You feel so big! Aaaahh. Nnnggh. Fill me again! I waaaahhh, nnnghh, want it!" she begs me, lust clouding her mind.
I feel her ass jiggle with every thrust and her breasts follow along with the impact. She's now biting on her left index finger and moaning up a storm. I lean over her and kiss her as I continue to thrust into her. Her vagina is flexing and massaging me as if this was her last moments alive.
"I-I'm close. Make m-meeee cum! Please make me cum! OoooOOooohhh" she groans and wraps her arms around me again.
After a few more thrusts, she screams and cums again. I keep thrusting and she bites onto my neck as she squirms under me. Her fluids giving me another coating on my crotch.
I lift her up as she still shudders in orgasm. I then pin her to the wall and start thrusting up into her. She clings onto me tightly with her arms and legs as my hands hold her up by each ass cheek. I grope and fondle her backside every time I pull her up.
She hungrily dives her tongue into my mouth as I slap my hips into her over and over again. She then starts to lick the sweat off my neck and chest, what is with pony women and licking my sweat? I'll have to ask Celestia later.
I pull her hard against me and start grinding her pussy on my dick in circular motions. She groans deeply and shudders. "Please d-don't stop. Cum insiiiiide me again! Breed me please!" she begs and grinds back, gods is she turning me on right now.
After a few more minutes of thrusting and grinding I can feel myself getting close to blowing. "Silk, I'm going to cum," I whisper into her ear.
She gasps and I feel her pussy grip me tightly as she screams and cums hard. "YEEES! INSIDE! FILL ME! BREED ME! CLAIM ME!" she shouts and I cum with her, pumping load after load of my cum into her. Her eyes roll back and go unfocused, a constant scream coming out of her.
After a minute of delightful pleasure, we calm down and I sit on one of the couches in the room with Silk still on my lap and my dick buried deep within her.
She's panting and has a smile on her face. "T-Thank you... I feel much better n-now," she tells me. Her eyes then widen in shock. "Oh Celestia! I just forced myself on the King!" she says and tries to get off.
I quickly wrap my arms around her and keep her pressed to my chest. "It's fine, Silk. You couldn't control your urges. I'm fine, and Celestia let you have sex with me. She told me how bad it is for women here when they go into heat. I'm glad I could help relieve you of yours," I tell her.
She calms downs and leans into my chest. "Thank you, your Majesty," she replies.
I smile and stroke her hair. "Please, just call me Adrian," I tell her.
She looks up at me and has a happy smile on her face. "Okay, your Ma... A-Adrian," she says and leans up to my face. I cup her left cheek in my left hand and kiss her gently.
She returns her head to my chest and just lays there. After a few minutes I can hear light snoring coming from her. I smile wider and lie back on the couch as the peace and quiet along with the physical exertion was enough to lull me to sleep as well.
Two Hours Later
I'm awoken by the sounds of giggling and open my eyes. The first thing I see is Silk still asleep on my chest. I look to the right and see Celestia, Luna, and Shella all giggling at me.
"We take it thou gave her a good time?" Luna asks.
I look back at Silk and she still has that happy smile on her face. "I would think so, judging by the smile on her face," I reply.
"Hmmm, Adrian," Silk mumbles and holds me tighter. I hope she's just dreaming and that didn't mean anything.
"We shall take her and help her get cleaned up," Celestia says and levitates Silk off me. I grunt as my dick is still inside her as it slips out. Celestia and the others blush as Silk quietly moans as well.
I then rub my eyes and look around the room. The floor, desk and wall have stains and puddles on them... Whoops.
"Sorry about the mess," I say as I stand up and stretch. I notice Shella staring at my dick and lick her lips. "I'll just go and clean myself up. I'll meet you back in our room," I say and get dressed in my clothes. Once clothed, I head out the door and to my room where I wash myself in the shower and put on clean clothes.
After helping Silk Sheets with her heat, I went to my room and took a shower. Once clean, I lay on the bed and start reading my spell book. I might of missed lunch, but I ain't going back out there for the rest of the week that's for sure.
After an hour of reading and practice the door opens with Celestia, Luna, and Shella with Mavis in her arms.
"Hello, I take it Silk is doing better now?" I ask.
"Why don't you ask her yourself?" Celestia replies and steps aside.
I see Silk standing by the door with a light blush. "I'm fine, your Majesty. And t-thank you for helping me," she says.
"It's alright, and I said you can call me Adrian," I tell her.
"Oh, right, sorry. Erm..." she stutters for a bit and I raise an eyebrow.
"She wishes to be your personal maid," Luna says bluntly.
I look at Silk wide eyed. I help her with her heat and now she want's to be my personal maid? "Why?" I ask.
"She want's to thank you for helping her when nopony else would," Celestia tells me.
I sigh. "Alright, what would she do as my maid?" I ask and sit on the edge of the bed.
"She'll run errands for you, bring you any meals, clean our room and anything else you may ask within reason," she tells me.
I don't see a problem with that, she could bring me my meals while I hide in our room until the end of the heat season. "Alright then," I say and look at Silk. "Could you bring me something to eat then since you stopped me from getting lunch earlier," I ask her with a smile.
She blushes harder and nodded. "W-What would you like me to g-get?" she asks.
"A salad with no hay or flowers, a piece of crumb cake and a cup of earl-grey tea please," I reply.
"I-I'll be back in a few m-minutes," she says and leaves.
The others all look at me once she's gone. "What's the real reason she wants to be my maid," I ask them with a deadpan expression.
Celestia just sighs. "We believe she's developed feelings for you. To a mare's instincts, a strong stallion, or in your case a large male, means she'll be well protected and since you helped her in an intimate way, and from what we heard very well performed, she's subconsciously picked you as her mate it seems," she tells me calmly.
I frown. "I thought you said she wouldn't be joining our herd... That this was just me helping to relieve her discomfort," I say.
"True, but I forgot to take into account that she is young and was a virgin. A mare’s first time can cloud their minds and imprint the pony who mates with them in their mind," she tells me.
Great, so now I'm going to have Silk following me around everywhere probably. "So what's going to happen then?" I ask.
"We'll figure that out after we see where this goes," she tells me and lays on the bed beside me... wonderful... these ponies and their openness about sex and relationships are going to be the death of me...
Luna then cuddles up on my left side and smiles. I put my book away as I can't read it with them watching as well. Shella sits on the bed with Mavis giggling at her.
Ten minutes of Celestia reassuring me it will all be fine later. Silk returns with a tray with my food on it. I smile as she places it on my lap where Celestia and Luna begin to feed me with it. Despite the matter with Silk right now, life is going good.
One Week Later
Silk has kept to her word and has answered my every beck and call... which was mainly just bringing me food as I holed myself up in my bedroom. She's also good at massages when she offered to give me one, she's almost as good as those twins from the Ponyville Spa, though she was much more thorough with my backside than they were.
Heat season has come and gone, which meant my parents, Jasmine, and Lily have come back from Elysium. Lily had a lot of fun seeing new things and meeting new races.
Celestia and Luna have talked with their parents some more and they're as happy as can be. They've also kept me company over the week I was hiding now and then.
I can now channel two shadow elements at once now. It seems the effect on my eyes increases as well as the distorted tone of my voice with it, but other then that, no nasty side effects... I wonder where Nightmare Moon has wandered off to. I can only hope she's far away from us right now.
Shella's just a few days away from laying her eggs and mom was stunned to learn I've technically had nine children with her, but Shella told her why and mom accepted it.
Celestia's stomach is now noticeable for all to see and she's taken to wearing shirts as her dresses can no longer fit over her stomach. Her hormones are also playing up more as she's now at the stage of throwing things at me. I had to dodge a cup as she was crying saying that I made her fat... After ten minutes of calming her down, her mood switched and she dragged me off the our bedroom where I was subjected to three hours of making love to her.
I also asked Celestia why she and the others liked to lick my sweat off me. She says it tastes salty, and in which can make them kinda drunk if they have too much of it. I guess ponies just like the taste of salt.
POV: Silk Sheets
I wake up in my bed in the maid's quarters. I yawn and smile, remembering the feeling of Adrian helping me during my first heat. He was so strong yet gentle, and he made me feel so good when all he had to do was relieve me. Yet he brought me over five times and filled me twice... every day since then I've wanted him to hold me in those strong arms again, making me feel safe and wanted. I've never had a coltfriend before, I was always too shy to ask anypony to court me.
I was so happy when he let me massage him. To be able to feel those strong muscles in my hands and the thought of helping him relax brings a smile to my face.
I shake my head, knowing that can't have him. He's married to the Queens and I would be just getting in the way, as long as I can just stay near him I'll be happy.
I get up and take a shower, I then brush my mane, tail, and my teeth. Once clean, I put on my maid uniform and head to the kitchen to bring Adrian and the Queens breakfast.
"Good morning, Cream Cake. How are you today?" I greet the head chef. The other cooks aren't here yet as it's Cream who makes breakfast for Adrian and the Queens.
She looks up from the counter she's at and smiles at me. "I'm doing well. I've heard tale that you've gotten lucky during the heat season... That a certain King helped to relieve you?" she replies and smirks making me blush and stutter. "Oh relax, from what I heard, any mare would've loved to be in your position. The other maids could hear your cries of pleasure throughout the whole Castle and for nearly an hour they said," she teases me.
I look down in embarrassment, was I really that loud? But those memories flood my thoughts again and I smile.
She giggles at me. "Oh? It was that good that you can't get it out of your mind?" she teases me again.
I sigh with a smile. "It was wonderful," I say. "I've never felt so good before, and he was so loving and gentle... I'd do anything to feel it again," I tell her.
"I bet you would. Maybe if you just ask, the King would indulge you?" she says and giggles.
I stare at her wide eyed. "Do you think so?" I ask her.
"Maybe? Then again he is married to two alicorns and a changeling Queen... You'll just have to ask and see. Maybe he can relieve you again during the spring heat," she replies. "Now I take it you're here to bring them their breakfast?" she asks.
I nodded. "Yes, is it ready yet?" I reply and ask.
"It is, it's over there on the trolley," she tells me.
"Thanks, Cream. I'll see you when it's time for lunch," I say and push the trolley out the room.
"Don't forget to ask him! You won't know until you do!" she shouts back at me.
I blush again and make my way to Adrian's room. Should I ask him? Or would I be asking for too much?
POV: Adrian Stormsword
I yawn and hold my wives closer to me. I look at the clock and see it's five forty in the morning so I shake my wives awake and they grumble in protest.
"Come on you lazy bums, time to get up," I tell them and shake them harder.
"Enough of thy shaking, we are up," Luna mumbles and sits up.
"*Yawn* Do we have to get up? I'm rather comfortable right here," Celestia tells me.
"Five more minutes," Shella mumbles. She's laying on her back as she can't lie on her stomach, her head is using my stomach as a pillow.
"Well, you have twenty minutes to get dressed and raise and lower the Sun and Moon," I tell them. Shella sits up and rubs her eyes. I roll over Luna, making her giggle and pinch my ass.
I stand up and stretch my arms and legs as a knock on the door gets my attention. I walk over and open the doors to see it's Silk with our breakfast.
"I've brought you your breakfas..." she trails off and looks down with a bright blush. I follow her gaze and see why. I'm so comfortable sleeping nude with my wives that I forgot that I'm naked right now.
"Oh, erm. One moment please," I tell her and close the door. The others giggle at me and I give them a playful glare. I quickly get dressed and open the doors again. "Come in, thanks for bringing us breakfast again," I say to her.
"Y-You’re welcome," she replies with a heavy blush.
Celestia and the others seem to not mind being naked in front of Silk. They make their way to the closet and get dressed.
"How are you this morning?" I ask Silk.
"Oh, erm. I-I'm doing good," she says and stands by the doors. The others return and we begin eating breakfast. Celestia is wearing a pink shirt and a pair of her gym shorts, Luna is wearing her black and silver trimmed dress, and Shella is wearing a light blue dress with floral patterns on it.
Once we finish, my wives say goodbye as they head out to do their own things. Luna is holding court, Celestia is working through paperwork in her Office, and Shella is heading to the Hive to prepare for laying her eggs.
I stay behind to equip my armour and bring my spell book to the Training Grounds for some more practice. I really want to be able to cast five elements at once so I can get stronger.
"A-Adrian? Can I a-ask you something?" Silk asks me.
I look at her and raise an eyebrow. "What is it?" I reply.
She gulps, takes a deep breath and looks around as if debating to ask me or not. "I-If I asked, would you r-rut me again? I keep r-remembering our time t-together... a-and I want to e-experience it again. You make me f-feel safe when I'm near y-you," she tells me with closed eyes, her face completely flushed red.
I just stare at her and sigh. I bloody knew it! "I don't know. I'm still trying to adjust to having multiple partners, and the fact Celestia let us have sex at all as well. Look, it's not that I don't like you. You're beautiful and a hard worker, I'm not sure about all this myself. If anything, you'll have to ask Celestia about it," I tell her. She looks a little upset but didn't say anything. I walk over to her and give her a gentle hug, making her squeak. "You've been very helpful over the last week. If anything, I consider you a friend. So show me a smile, I'll need you to bring me refreshments while I continue my training today alright?" I tell her to cheer her up.
She smiles and looks up at me. "Okay, but, if w-we could... would you?" she asks.
Oh gods that pleading look she's giving me is breaking my heart. "If the others are fine with it... then sure," I reply and sigh again. I swear the women here will be the death of me in a year or two.
She smiles brightly and follows me to the Training Grounds.
Three Hours Later
I practice channelling five life elements, since it won't hurt me should it fail. It's the safest method of learning to channelling more elements.
So far I'm getting used to it, but it's still destabilizing after a few seconds of trying to hold it. Silk has brought me some bottles of water and happily watches me practice.
I was about to resume when a guard runs up to me. "Your Majesty! King Vortigan is here and he needs your help. Orcs are attacking Elysium and he's requested our aid," he tells me.
Orcs are attacking again? "Take me to him now," I say to the guard and then turn to Silk. "Silk, could you clean up my room for me? I'll probably be gone for awhile, so could you also help Celestia with anything she needs?" I ask her.
"Okay, Adrian." She bows and heads towards the Castle. She's gotten a lot more comfortable calling me by name now.
"Let's go," I tell the guard and he salutes. We head to the Throne Room where Vortigan is waiting with Luna. "What's going on?" I ask him.
"Adrian. Orcs are attacking Elysium again, this time with a bigger force. They've never attacked this quickly again after their last attack..." he tells me.
"How many are there?" I ask.
"Around thirty-thousand... and that's just the orcs. They've also got about two-thousand beasts with them, even ogres," he tells me.
Shit, ogres? "Really? Hmmm, do you have any of those airships built yet?" I ask him.
"No, our researchers are still looking at the plans and figuring out how they work. They're impressed by what they can see so far," he replies.
"Damn. Luna, is there a way we can send some of ours to Elysium?" I ask her.
"Nay, we do not have a portal big enough to send them through," she tells me.
"Could Twilight make one? Or could you make a bigger one?" I ask.
She looks thoughtful for a few seconds. "Tis possible. Twilight did leave us with the instructions but it may take us some time," she tells me.
"Vortigan, how long until the orcs arrive," I ask him.
"A day at most," he tells me.
"Alright. We'll gather what guards we can spare and help with the defence," I say.
Luna then speaks up. "Thou should take Captain Shining Armour with thee as well. He can erect a shield over thy City to protect it for some time," she tells us.
I just stare at her. "He can do that?" I ask stunned.
"Yes, did he not tell thee?" she replies.
I just shake my head.
"That would be a great advantage. How long would this shield last?" Vortigan asks.
"Until his horn starts to strain from the constant use, or something stronger breaks through the shield and judging from the amount of magic in Terra's atmosphere, it will be three times stronger than normal," Luna tells him.
"Perfect. We've already got cannons, marksmen, and mages on the walls with ground troops and siege engines at the ready. Anything you could offer would be welcomed," he replies.
"And once we have found a way to bring our airships, we shall join thee in battle," Luna says.
"Thank you," Vortigan says. "I'll leave some soldiers near the portal to direct where your guards need to go. I shall be waiting for you in my Throne Room," he tells us and leaves the room with his guards.
"Luna, can you get started on that portal right now?" I ask her.
"Yes, but I think we will only be able to bring the sloops with us," she says.
"That's fine. Having air support will be a great advantage," I tell her. Though I would love to have the galleon to join us.
"I'll go gather the Captains and get the guards ready, see you in Elysium!" I tell her and head to the Barracks.
Two Hours Later
I've gathered Hammer Strike and one-hundred of his guards, thirty of them using the scatterguns. Spitfire with one-hundred of her guards, fifty of them armed with rifles and the rest with bows or spears. Bright Mind with one-hundred unicorns. Dark Wing with fifty thestrals and Shining Armour with four-hundred guards of mixed race, including five changelings.
In total, seven-hundred and fifty guards. It took an hour to get them through the portal and set up to defend Elysium.
The unicorns are on the wall ready to fire their spells and have set up newly developed crystal cannons that fire crystal balls infused with magic that detonate on impact. They got the idea after seeing the crystal I tried infusing with the fire element go off.
The pegasi have set up clouds to shoot from all over the field where the orcs are coming from, that made all the Terrans stare in awe as they flew around pushing and reforming the clouds.
The earth ponies are with the foot soldiers to protect the walls and stop the orcs from getting in. The juggernauts at the front lines are nearly twice the size of the ponies.
Reymorah has seven-thousand ground troops and five-thousand ranged and magic troops on the walls. The rest of their army is out in the Kingdom protecting its citizen from bandits and up to class eight monsters.
Me, Vortigan, Shining, the other Captains, and Reymorah's own Captains and generals are around a table with a map of Elysium and it's defences.
"So how are we going to do this?" I ask.
"I'll have the juggernauts protecting the front lines and blocking the orcs advances. We'll have your's and our squads of scattergunners behind them shooting between their shields," Vortigan says, pointing to the front of the walls we will be defending. "Your pegasi snipers shall take out targets of opportunity and keep an eye out for any orcs that look like they're giving commands."
"My shield can last for five hours before my horn starts to give out," Shining tells us.
"Then we better do as much damage to the orcs as we can. Their last attack was only ten-thousand strong. How they gathered this many in only two weeks..." Vortigan says with a frown as trails off.
We discuss the rest of the plan and wait for the orcs to arrive.
Next Day, 2:37 PM
Vortigan and I are standing on the walls overlooking the battlefield as I can see the orc army marching towards us. Oh shit, that's a lot more than I thought it would look like. The ogres are like small houses.
"All soldiers! Prepare for battle!" Vortigan yells out.
A roar of determination sounds out over the field as the troops prepare for the upcoming fight.
"I hope Luna gets that portal open soon," I say to myself.
Horns start sounding out from the orcs and they begin charging us. Airships or not, looks like we'll have to fight without them.
Vortigan is standing tall and wearing some really strong and elegant looking armour. His left gauntlet looks bigger though with a blood ruby embedded into it. I guess that's what he uses as his foci. "CANNONS, OPEN FIRE!" Vortigan yells out.
At that signal, Shining's pinkish purple barrier forms around the City, leaving the wall exposed. Apparently, we wouldn't be able to shoot out from inside it, just like a shield element barrier.
The thunderous symphony of blasts from the cannons drowns out the orcs war cries as orcs are blown apart left and right. The crystal cannons showing more power than a normal one.
"Sunfire shell loading!" a unicorn shouts out.
'Sunfire shell?' I ask myself confused.
A long cannon is being loaded with a strange looking projectile. It looks like a cannon ball, but made of some kind of glass or crystal and has fire swirling inside it. They close the hatch and aim the cannon.
"Fire in the hole!" another unicorn shouts and pulls a cord connected to the cannon.
The cannon recoils heavily as braces and gears grind loudly in an attempt to keep it in place and absorb the shock. I watch as the shell flies into the mass of orcs.
It detonates and I have to shield my eyes as the blast is so bright it's like looking at the sun itself... Well I guess I know why they're called sunfire shells now.
As the light dies down, I look at the crater that's left in the ground. That blast must have taken at least a hundred orcs with it.
"By the gods... did ya see that?" a dwarf says in awe.
"With how bright it was, I doubt even a blind man could miss it," an elf replies to him while rubbing his eyes.
The orcs are now about half way across the field. Although the cannons have taken out hundreds of them, it barely looks like a dent.
"MARKSMEN! OPEN FIRE!" Vortigan yells out another order again.
The soldiers with rifles begin shooting into the oncoming horde and the orcs at the front are dropping like flies against the hail of gunfire.
Explosions in the ground go off from the mines the mages hid under the dirt while we prepared for the battle. Orcs are sent into each other as they're ripped apart by the elemental blasts.
"Sunfire shell loading!" the unicorn shouts again.
This time I hold my arm over my eyes to shield them. "Fire in the hole!" he yells as the loud roar of the cannon firing alerts us to brace ourselves.
The ground shakes a bit as this one hit a bit closer. Though the effect was still the same, a crater in the ground and around a hundred dead orcs.
"INCOMING!" a soldier yells and I look up.
A boulder the size of a gryphon slams into the sunfire cannon and rips it off the wall. Fortunately, a unicorn teleported the remaining shells away before he was hit as well. Saving us from a massive detonation no doubt.
'Holy shit that was close,' I think to myself as I look out at what could have thrown that. I see four ogres, each with boulders in their hands. 'The hell? They're using ogres as siege engines?'
"CANNONS! CONCENTRATE FIRE ON THE OGRES!" Vortigan yells out.
The cannons all focus on the ogres and open fire as more boulders hurtle towards us and take out three cannons and one crystal cannon along with ten soldiers and guards. Most of the cannon balls hit their marks and two of the ogres go down, the other two only showing some wounds.
"ARCANISTS! FIRE PROJECTILE SPELLS AT THE ORCS!" Voritgan orders and the mages on the walls begin to channel earth elements fused with others as rocks piled along the walls as ammunition float at the tips of their staffs. They charge their spells and launch the fire, cold, arcane, and ice infused rocks at the orcs.
The pegasi in the clouds are firing at the orcs below while the orcs are trying to fire arrows up at them, but they're not reaching them. The arrows even come back down, hitting their own allies.
The orcs are now within melee distance of the ground troops. "JUGGERNAUTS! REPEL THEM! CLERICS! KEEP THEM STANDING!" Vortigan yells down to the troops.
A chorus of highly motivated cries echo out and the juggernauts ram into the orc attackers as their large shields slam into the orcs, impaling and slashing at them. The Scattergunners then take shots through the gaps between each juggernauts, peppering the orcs with holes.
The orcs then try to go around the juggernauts in an attempt to flank them. "LANCERS AND BATTLE-MAGES! DEFEND THE LEFT AND RIGHT FLANKS!" Vortigan orders.
Men in plate armour and lances gallop on their horses towards the sides and run down the orcs that get too close while the battle-mages fire off beams at the orcs that manage to slip through.
So far the battle is going well, we've only suffered about fifty casualties. A juggernaut is then blown back by a boulder slamming into him and he's not getting back up. Orcs start to stream through the gap and begin attacking the Scattergunners. I guess this is where I join in.
I cast my air wings spell and fly above near the gap, I then cast a fire beam in between the two juggernauts still standing and maintain the beam. The orcs keep trying to push through, even as they're burnt to death. Scattergunners quickly converge on the gap and fire into the orcs.
A screeching above us gets my attention as shadow bats with orc archers riding them are heading towards the pegasi in the clouds.
"PEGASI! CONCENTRATE FIRE ON THE SHADOW BATS!" I yell up at them.
They all start firing at the bats and they begin to drop, but the bats also managed to get a few of the pegasi as well. I fly up and channel four lightning elements and cast it at a group of bats in front of me. The lightning courses through them and chains to others nearby.
"Fall back and take out the rest from the walls! Once it's clear return here!" I Order them. They salute and fly off to the walls and I turn back to the horde of orcs, only to see a boulder coming towards me. "SHIT!" I yell and try to move away, but since I'm not using a four air element aura, the wings aren't moving fast enough and I get hit in the back.
I grunt from the hit and start spiralling out of control towards the ground where I manage to set into a glide and ram into some orcs. I Quickly get up and cast a lightning nova around me, the orcs nearby tense up as the electricity paralyses them and chains out to others.
I then channel four earth elements and cast a quake spell. The ground breaks apart around me and stalagmites spear the orcs near me.
A dire wolf leaps over the orcs and lunges at me. I raise my shield and block the attack but stumble back a few feet. I draw my sword and channel four cold elements into it and stab the wolf in its face. The wound is frozen over and so is the blood in it's head. After a second I pull out my sword and turn my attention on the orcs surrounding me.
An orc lunges at me with a spear and I lean out of the way. Another orc throws an axe at me and I drop onto my back to dodge it, the axe continues and embeds itself into an orc aiming a crude looking crossbow at me. I teleport myself back onto my feet and cast a stone armour spell on myself.
I look around and the orcs are all grinning at me. I need to get out of here! I was about to teleport away when someone yelling above me gets my attention. I look up and see Vortigan slam down onto some orcs with his battleaxe and air wings on his back. Unlike mine, his are twice as big as his are the full four element version.
He casts an air nova and blades of air spin around us, tearing the orcs into pieces.
I cast a fire spray spell and hose down the orcs rushing me while Vortigan does the same behind me.
"We need to get back to the walls!" Vortigan tells me.
"I can't fly as fast as you can!" I tell him and cut down an orc swinging a hammer at me.
"Then cast the two element air wings and I'll pull you along!" he tells me.
I guess that could work. I drop my stone armour and cast the fast gliding two air element wings spell. Vortigan grabs the back of my chest plate and lifts me up. We head back to the walls where the fighting is intensifying. Gnolls and manticores are now attacking the defences and the juggernauts are having trouble holding them off.
The Infantry are cutting down any that are making it past the juggernauts though while protecting the Clerics healing them from harm.
I take this chance to heal myself from the blow I took, no doubt I have a nasty looking bruise on my back and a possible fracture. My armour probably has a big dent in it as well.
Two deafening roars echo throughout the battlefield and I look up to see two deathmaws charging at the juggernauts... They'll be crushed under the mighty beasts.
The deathmaws are large reptile dinosaur type monsters as big as the ogres. They have small arms, practically useless, but their strong legs help them chase down their prey. They have a long tail with spines on the end for smashing into their foe and a large powerful jaw able to bend steel. Long razor sharp teeth line their jaws that can rip flesh in an instant and they have two long horns coming out of their head for spearing something just as big as them... class eight monsters.
"Damn, they've brought the deathmaws this time," Vortigan mutters.
I would blind and deafen them with the light and shadow elements, but they mainly hunt by scent... the loss of these senses wouldn't matter to them.
We land on the walls and Vortigan yells out. "FOCUS FIRE ON THE DEATHMAWS! BRING THEM DOWN!"
The cannons aim at them and fire. The shots hit, but cause little injury. They have tougher hides than the dragon I fought!
"Can't anything bring them down?" a soldier asks with worry in his tone.
The deathmaws keep getting closer and it would be a matter of minutes before they hit the juggernauts. A dark blue light from above blinds me for a second as a swirling vortex appears above the battlefield. The Equestrian galleon airship comes through along with four sloops.
"By the gods! What are those?" a dwarf shouts in surprise.
I just grin widely seeing Luna on the galleon's deck. "Reinforcements," I say as the large ballistas on the deck both fire at a deathmaw each. The harpoons pierce their tough hide and pin them to the ground, The thunderous roar of the galleon's fifty cannons going off rips the horde below to pieces. It seems they replaced all the cannons with those crystal cannons.
"Are those the airships you told me about?" Vortigan asks, staring at the ships.
"Yeah, I'm so glad Luna came through!" I reply and recast my wings and fly up to the galleon.
I land on the deck and see Luna with sweat matting the fur on her forehead and panting slightly. "Luna!" I say and hug her.
She returns the hug and smiles at me. "We managed to make the portal bigger than we thought. How goes the battle?" she asks.
"Good now that you're here. You just took out two class eight monsters easily, they would've torn through the juggernauts like paper," I reply and look over the side of the ship as the cannons are still firing down at the horde.
"That is good to hear. The magic required to open such a large portal was too much for ourself to cast, so Tia and Shella aided us in supplying the magic while we cast it. It was quite taxing and we require a moment to recover," she tells me and sits down.
"Alright. I'm going to look around from up here to see if I can spot any commanders among the orcs," I tell her and look around the battlefield.
The juggernauts are holding strong thanks to the constant healing from the Clerics, bloody hell they can take a beating, even the one I thought was killed by that boulder is now back on his feet. The marksmen are firing their bullets, arrows, and bolts into the mass of the orc horde, dropping them quickly. Though they are taking a few losses themselves from the orcs arrows and bolts.
The two ogres that survived the hits they took are back on their feet and throwing boulders at the walls again. We're losing a lot of cannons now.
I then turn to one to the crew. "Tell the gunners to aim for the ogres!" I order him. He salutes and heads below deck.
Seconds later the ship turns with the port side facing the ogres. The cannons fire and rip into the left ogre, blowing it to bits... Holy crap these crystal cannons pack a mean punch when fired as a group.
The other ogre spots us and throws a boulder at us. "INCOMING!" I yell and brace for impact.
The boulder hits the underside of the ship and wood splinters off. I then hear screams that get fainter, I think some of the crew fell off from the hole now in the ship. I frown and channel four earth elements and break off a piece of the boulder lodged into the ship, it hovers in front of my shield and I charge it up. Once strong enough, I fire it off towards the ogre.
The ogre was about to throw another, but the rock slams into its elbow and it drops the boulder... damn, I was aiming for its head. Still, it gave the gunners enough time to fire off another volley and rip the ogre apart.
Screeches fill the sky again as shadow bats swarm towards the airships. If they puncture the balloons, the ships will go down and we'll lose the advantage!
I fly above the galleon and fire a lightning beam at the approaching swarm of bats. I keep the beam on them for a few seconds before they begin to fall. Our pegasi snipers are now on the decks firing at them. A loud bang and rushing air to my left gets my attention. One of the sloops balloons has burst and the crew is abandoning ship. The pegasi carrying the unicorn and earth ponies to the other ships.
The ship goes down and explodes on the horde below... at least it took out what looks like five-hundred of them at least.
The snipers and I take down the last of the bats and I sigh in relief, which is short lived as a shadow passes over us. I look up and go wide eyed. They have a mother fucking wyvern!? A class ten monster!
"LUNA! WE GOT A PROBLEM!" I shout and head back to the deck.
"What is it?" she asks as she stands up.
I was about to reply, but a sloop to my right explodes as the wyvern rams right through it. "That!" I tell her. "Luna, does this ship have anything strong enough to hurt it?" I ask her.
She nodded. "Maybe, there is a sunfire cannon in the bow of the ship," she tells me.
"Alright, I'll get its attention and cast a lightning beam at it to keep it in place while you get the cannon ready and blast it!" I tell her and another sloop gets destroyed, Dammit!
"Okay, just be careful," she says and kisses me.
I smile and fly ahead of the ship and fire a lightning beam at the wyvern, well... I got it's attention now. It screeches and charges at me which I teleport to the right and just avoid it.
I risk channelling an arcane and four lightning elements and fire the strongest beam I can manage. I can feel a backlash of electricity shocking me slightly but I grunt through the pain. I hit the wyvern and its movements are slowed, but not stopped. Oh shit.
It comes back at me and I fear this might be it for me. A second much stronger beam of lightning hits the wyvern from my left. I look to see Vortigan hovering beside me. "Thought you could use a hand," he says.
"Thanks!" I reply. "LUNA NOW!" I shout back to the ship.
After a few seconds, the sunfire cannon fires.
The shot hits the wyvern in the chest and its wings, head, and legs fly off in different directions before I was blinded by the flash.
I blink my eyes a few times and head back to the galleon. "Nice shot, Luna," I say.
"No problem," she replies with a wide smile.
All we have left is a damaged galleon and a single sloop. Things could be worse. I look back down to the battlefield and see the horde down to half their original numbers.
I look around and see some sort of tent near the back of the horde. I take a spyglass from one of the crew and look at it more closely. I can see a human standing in front of it shouting at the orcs, who are running around with scrolls in their hands.
"Vortigan! There's a human out there," I tell him and hold the spyglass out for him.
He takes it and looks, but he then lowers it with a look of anger on his face. "It's my brother."
"I know he disappeared and even had my son killed... but to join the orcs and attack his own people?" he says surprisingly calm. "He's gone too far. He is no longer my brother and must be put down," he says and frowns.
I look back out towards the tent and sigh. "We could just fire a sunfire shell at him from here," I tell him.
"No, I want to know why he's done this," Vortigan replies. "I'm going down there, would you assist me?" he asks me.
I nodded to him. "Sure, but what will we do about all the orcs around him?" I ask. I noticed a few brute orcs protecting Orthos.
"Can you have your ship blast the area around the tent and have your snipers pick off any orcs close to him?" he asks.
"Sounds simple enough," I reply.
We give the crew and snipers their orders and begin the attack. I use my fast gliding wings while Luna and Vortigan fly beside me. We get halfway there when the cannons and rifles open fire. The orcs are blown away and any left standing are picked off by the snipers.
We land in front of Orthos where Vortigan casts a large shield barrier around us. It will help prevent Orthos leaving while keeping the orcs out.
"Ah brother. Soooo good to see you again..." Orthos says sarcastically.
"Orthos, why have you done this. Why did you try to kill my son?" Vortigan asks him.
"Try? I was told he was killed," he says unhappily.
"He was, but I revived him," I tell him and grip my sword tighter.
He looks at me with a frown. "You? And just who are you exactly?" he asks me.
"You don't need to know," I reply. If he doesn't know who I am, I'm not about to give him that information.
Orthos scoffs at me. "No matter, I shall take Reymorah for myself as it's rightful King. You, brother, have always been father's favourite. It should have been me to take his place! I am the eldest!" he yells at Vortigan and draws a grim looking staff. It has a human skull on the tip of it and I can just feel the arcane energy oozing from it.
"Now rise my loyal servants!" he shouts as the dead orcs inside the barrier come back to life as undead. He's a necromancer!?
Vortigan looks disgusted. "You would fall so low as to use necromancy!? Then there is no hope to save what was once my brother," he says and raises his battleaxe and brings it down on one of the still rising orcs. I follow along and decapitate another with the air element in my blade while Luna also impales the skull of an orc with her scythe.
While Vortigan is distracted, I notice Orthos channelling arcane elements into his staff and point it at Vortigan. I cast a shield element on my shield, giving it a barrier in front of it and teleport between Vortigan and Orthos just as he fires.
The beam hits my shield and since my shield is facing right at Orthos, the beam's energy feeds back to him and knocks him on his back. "GAH!" he yelps and starts to get back up. I then channel two lightning elements and spray him with it making him spasm on the ground as the electricity paralyses him.
Vortigan channels two water elements and sprays Orthos with it before channelling four cold elements to freeze him, but Orthos teleports away to the other side of the barrier to avoid it.
"Don't think just because there's more of you that you can defeat me!" Orthos yells and channels five arcane elements. I cast a barrier in front of us and Orthos casts an arcane nova. The barrier deflects the nova and Vortigan launches a rock through the barrier, shattering it and hitting Orthos in his right arm.
"GAAAAAHHH!" Orthos yells and drops his staff as his arm breaks with an audible snap.
Vortigan walks over and grabs Orthos by the collar of his robe. "Who put you up to this!? I know you wouldn't be able to pull this off on your own!" he asks his brother.
Orthos just laughs and spits on Vortigan's face. "The Master will cleanse this world and that of your new allies. He promised me eternal life and Reymorah if I can kill you, dear brother," Orthos says and chuckles.
"Queen Luna. Could you perform the same spell you used on the assassin we caught?" Vortigan asks her.
"We can try," she replies and walks over to Orthos and holds her hand out to him, but just before she made contact she pulls back. "His mind is protected by dark magic. We cannot get close without feedback or possible damage to our mind," she tells us.
"Hahahahaaa! The Master protects me even now," he says smugly.
"Then let us see him protect you from this," Vortigan says and raises his battleaxe above his head.
A loud gurgle of a roar echoes throughout the battlefield and heavy quakes shake the ground making it hard to keep our balance.
"It finally arrived!" Orthos says with a grin. He pulls out some kind of crystal and it starts glowing. "If I can't have Reymorah, then I'll just let it burn!" he says and vanishes in a flash of light, that was elven portal magic...
"Dammit!" Vortigan says. "I should have just let you blast him," he says to us and sighs. He then looks towards the west, I follow his gaze and almost shit myself. A giant, and not just any giant. An undead giant fades into sight and is stomping its way over to Elysium. It must have had some kind of invisibility or illusion spell on it.
"Erm... how do we deal with that?" I ask. The giant is at least three times bigger than an ogre!
"We need to head back to the walls," Vortigan says and lowers the barrier. We then quickly fly back up to the galleon, more like I get dragged again by Vortigan.
We touch down on the deck and I turn to Luna. "Luna, can we shoot it with the sunfire cannon?" I ask her.
She looks down with a frown. "We are afraid not. The cannon's braces came off from its last shot. They were damaged by that boulder that hit the ship," she tells me.
"Bugger," I mutter and look back at the giant. It's taking long strides and is getting closer to the city. "Then how do we kill it? It can't feel pain. The only way to stop it is destroy the brain or purge the arcane energy from it, and that would take too long," I tell them.
"We could try and cripple its legs, stop its movement so we can then concentrate on killing it," Vortigan suggests.
"That could work, but how will we damage its legs? My spells aren't strong enough to damage something that big," I tell him.
He frowns and looks at the giant. A puff of pink smoke next to me makes me jump in surprise. "SHIT!" I yell startled as Discord comes into view as the smoke dissipates.
"Oh keep your knickers on you big baby. I've been watching the battle while trying to get a hold of a few relics from Swirlys lab. I managed to get two of them," he tells me and holds out two orbs. One green and the other red.
"What are they," I ask.
He grins widely. "They are manifestations of the Elemental Aspects," he tells me.
"Manifestations?" I ask confused.
"Yup, each element has an aspect that represents it. Kind of like how Twilight and her girl gang represent the elements of harmony," he replies. "and here's the kicker. I'm the Aspect of Chaos," he tells me with a grin so wide, you'd think his head was split in half.
I stare at him wide eyed and then back at the orbs. "I take it these are the aspects of life and fire?" I ask him.
"Correct, I was going to teach you how to make a contract with the aspects, Just like ol' Beardy did, but I think you don't exactly have the time for that now," he says and holds the life orb out to me. "You're going to have to ask Mother Gaia very nicely to help you here," he tells me.
I look back at the giant and it's half way across the battlefield already, trampling orcs without care as it closes in on the City. I turn back to the orb and frown.
'Fuck it,' I think to myself.
I sheath my sword, then I reach out and grip the orb in my right hand. My vision turns green, blinding me for a few seconds and when it returns, I'm standing in a beautiful lush forest full of life. A small pond is in front of me encircled by trees of many kinds. Animals are roaming freely and flowers of many colours surround the pond.
The pond ripples and a woman whose skin looks like tree bark with vines for hair rises out of the water. She's wearing a dress made of leaves and a headdress of flowers. She hovers above the water eyeing me curiously.
"You feel familiar," she says in a soft warm tone. "What is your name?" she asks.
I shake my head and approach the edge of the pond. "My name is Adrian Stormsword ma'am," I reply with a bow.
"Hmmmm. I've heard rumours of you from the Aspects of light and shadow," she says, floating towards me. She places her right hand under my chin and lifts my head slightly, looking me in the eyes. "Your magic feels similar to that of Starswirl," she tells me.
"He's my ancestor," I tell her.
She then pulls her hand away. "I see. So what has his descendant come to me for?" she asks me.
"Elysium is under attack from an army of orcs and the battle was going well until an undead giant arrived. We don't have the means to take it down and Discord said I should ask you for help," I tell her.
"Discord? So, he has offered you my life orb has he? And why should I aid you? I have no contract with you. I was bonded to Starswirl, not his offspring," she tells me.
"I want to protect Reymorah. To stop any more senseless death and bloodshed," I tell her.
"And what does that have to do with me? What do I get in return?" she asks.
"What do you want?" I ask her back.
She steps onto the edge of the pond and flowers bloom around her feet. She cups my face in her left hand and smiles. "I want you to restore the land that Grogar destroyed when he first attacked and where Starswirl gave his life to protect this world. I want you to use my power to return life to the Dread Wastes and revive the Moonglade Forest," she tells me.
I look her in the eyes and smile. "I would be honoured to do that for you. I'm interested in seeing where Starswirl saved the world myself," I tell her.
She smiles back and giggles. "Then with that promise as our contract, I bind myself to you, Adrian Stormsword," she says and surprises me by kissing me.
I go wide eyed and my vision goes green again.
POV: Luna
For the last two minutes Adrian's eyes have been closed as he holds the orb tightly.
"Is he alright, Discord?" I ask him.
"Oh he's fine. He's just talking to Mother Gaia at the moment," he tells me.
"Who is this Mother Gaia?" I ask him.
Vortigan speaks up. "She's said to be the embodiment of life itself. The mother of all life in the world and the one who keeps it in balance, but I never thought the aspects were real," he tells me.
"Pretty much what he said. She's the most kind hearted aspect out of the lot of us and I doubt she would turn Adrian down," Discord says.
I frown with worry and look back at Adrian, only to gasp as his eyes are now open with a green light in them. The orb then sinks into the palm of his hand as vines start to spread out from behind his neck and cover most of his body with white flowers blooming on them as a crown of roses and thorns sits upon his head. He turns to look at the giant and he casts his wings spell. Without a word, he flies off and stops in front of the giant.
He glows brightly as a pulse of green energy expands from him, covering nearly the whole battlefield. I feel my fatigue fade away and energy flow through me but the giant stops when the energy hit it.
Adrian holds out his right arm and faces his palm at the giant. His eyes glow brighter and radiate a green mist as a large beam of green magic from his hand slams into the giant. The giant roars in agony as a red and black sickly looking aura leaks from the massive creature.
The giant swings at Adrian with its right arm and Adrian holds up his left arm to block it. Thick bark in the shape of a shield forms twice his size and stops the giant's attack making Adrian move only about a metre from the impact.
"By the gods, where is he getting this power from?" Vortigan asks in awe.
"Mother Gaia has given him her power in exchange for something, it's how we form a contract with a mortal... though Adrian isn't exactly a mortal anymore," Discord replies.
"He's not mortal?" Vortigan asks with shock.
"He no longer ages. He can still be killed like a mortal, but time no longer has its grip on him," Discord tells him.
I ignore them and concentrate on the battle as Adrian brings his right arm back and bark grows around it. It grows to the size of a large tree in the shape of a fist. He then thrusts his arm forward and punches the giant right in its jaw. The bark shatters and a blast of green mist engulfs the giant, making it roar again as more black and red coloured energy escapes.
The giant stumbles and falls onto it's back, making the ground quake violently. Adrian flies up and faces both his palms down at the monster. After a few seconds of charging up energy, he unleashes a huge beam at least two metres wide down at the floundering behemoth. It impacts the giant in its chest and a crater forms under the brute from the force.
Black and red energy flows out of the giant like a raging river and I notice Adrian's eyes start to flicker and get duller as the beam starts to shrink in size while the white flowers on the vines begin to wilt and fall off. After a few more seconds the giant stops moving and the beam gives out. The vines on his body drop off him and he starts descending. His wings begin flickering before fading away and he drops like a rock.
"ADRIAN!" I shout out and bolt towards him as fast as I can. When I'm close enough, I teleport under him and catch him.
I grunt from the impact and flap my wings as hard as I can to slow our decent. I manage to level out and sigh in relief. I look at Adrian and lift the visor on his helmet to see him asleep. I smile seeing he's alright and head back up to the ship.
I place Adrian down gently and take his helmet off. I then stroke his hair with his head on my lap, he looks so peaceful right now.
Vortigan looks at Adrian for a few seconds and then at me. "Queen Luna, if not for Adrian's and your aid. My Kingdom would have fallen today. Whenever you require our aid against these gryphons of yours, know that we shall answer the call," he tells me with a bow.
"We thank thee, King Vortigan. When the time comes, we shall look forward to having thy aid in battle," I reply. "but for now, let us return to thy Castle so Adrian may rest," I say to him.
"Very well, I'll have a royal guest room prepared for you both," he tells me.
I order the crew to take us back to the Castle and stay by Adrian's side as I frown deep in thought. 'If Adrian can make contracts with all these Aspects... would he become so powerful as to be seen as a true God? Our ponies see our sister and us as goddesses as we can raise and lower the sun and moon, and we have no where near the power Adrian just showed,' I think to myself. I stroke his hair lovingly while looking at his sleeping face. 'What would happen should he use that power in anger?' I ask myself with worry.
I sigh and look out towards the approaching Castle.
'We'll worry about that later. Right now we should rest and aid Elysium in the aftermath,' I think to myself as the battle below still rages on.
I groan feeling sore all over and I can feel something pressed into my sides and stomach. I open my eyes to see I'm in a dark room. I notice Celestia to my right, Luna to my left, and Shella on my stomach.
'Am I back in Canterlot?' I think to myself.
I then look around the room and although it's very nice looking, it isn't our room. I see a clock with a swinging pendulum below it on the wall, It's three past one.
I close my eyes and try to remember how I got here. I remember Discord and something about aspects, a green orb, a woman named Mother Gaia, immense power flowing through me, fighting an undead giant and beating it... then blank. I guess I passed out.
I can feel an itch on my left hand. I lift it up behind Luna and look at the back of my hand. The green orb swirling with life energy is embedded into my skin. It pulses for a few seconds and I feel calmer.
'You handled my power well for someone who has never fused with an aspect before,' I hear the voice of Gaia say in my mind.
'Gaia? What happened?' I ask her.
'The sudden surge of power without any formal training overwhelmed you. I am surprised you kept your mind and lasted as long as you did, very impressive. It seems I have chosen a worthy mortal as my vessel,' she tells me.
'Vessel? Can you take control of my body!?' I ask with alarm.
'Only if you allow me to. We aspects can only take over should you give us permission or pass out and are still in danger of injury or death,' she replies.
That's not disturbing at all... 'So you can't take over even if you tried?' I ask just to confirm.
She giggles lightly 'Correct. Unless you say so, or are in mortal danger, we cannot move you,' she tells me.
I sigh in relief. 'So, how long have I been out for?' I ask her.
'Three days. You burned through a lot of your mana in that last beam you did, wasted most of it as well. You'll need to practice with my power if you wish to master it and not be so wasteful with your mana,' she tells me.
I stay silent for a few seconds before asking another question. 'Why did you kiss me?' I ask her. It really threw me for a loop.
She hums softly. 'It's just how I prefer to transfer my power to the one I'm binding with... I believe it to be more, personal,' she replies.
I'm pretty sure I'm blushing slightly. 'Alright... what was the Moonglade Forest like?' I ask to change the subject, making her laugh gently.
'It was once a rich and lush forest with many forms of life living within. It was also where I once called home,' she tells me.
I frown sadly. 'So how would I restore it? Flood the area with life energy?' I ask.
'Basically, yes. I shall channel my essence through you while you power the spell. I shall then regrow the Forest with your help, but that is not for a long while yet as you have to master my power first,' she tells me.
'So where are you now?' I ask her.
'Within the orb that now rests on your hand,' she tells me.
'So you've been alone for a thousand years?'
'No, I can still talk to the other aspects. I'm guessing Discord will try to get you to make a contract with Infernus, the aspect of fire.'
I yawn and hold my wives closer to me. 'Alright, I'm going to get some more rest. Thank you for helping us,' I tell her.
She giggles again. 'You're welcome. I did the same for Starswirl when he first asked me for help,' she replies.
Her presence seems to have faded away and I feel myself give in to slumber.
5:36 AM
I yawn as I stretch my limbs. Luna, Shella, and Celestia all groan and cling onto me. I feel my back and joints pop from being so stiff.
I notice Shella's stomach is back to normal, meaning she must have laid her eggs. I lightly shake them and they all slowly wake up.
Luna is the first to see me and I smile at her. "Adrian!" she says and kisses me. "Are thou feeling well?" she asks me.
"I feel fine. Just a bit sore," I reply and sit up.
"Mmmm... Adrian? ADRIAN!" Celestia shouts and grips me in a hug. I can feel my ribs cracking I think.
"Tia... *Gasp* Need... air! *Gasp*" I wheeze out.
She lets go and grabs my head and kisses me roughly. "Don't you ever scare us like that again!" she scolds me and then goes back to sucking the air out of my lungs and into hers.
After a minute of suffocating me she lets go and rests her head on my right shoulder.
"I'm glad to see you're alright," Shella says as she sits in front of me and yawns. I see we're all wearing our nightwear.
I smile at her and give her a kiss. "So what have I missed while I was out?" I ask.
"I've laid my five eggs," Shella tells me. She gets up and picks up Mavis from a crib next to the bed.
"Wait... five?" I ask.
She smiles and nodded. "Just shows how well you performed that night," she says and giggles.
"What about the battle?" I ask.
"It lasted for another three hours before the orcs retreated," Luna tells me.
"What were the casualties?"
"The Terrans lost one-thousand two-hundred and eight soldiers. We lost two-hundred and five of our guards, and seventy-one have been crippled," she tells me with a sad frown.
I sigh and hug her with my left arm. "There will always be losses in a war, there's no avoiding it," I tell her.
"True. They will be given a place to rest in the Royal Guard Cemetery unless their families wish to bury them elsewhere," she replies.
After a few seconds of silence, I speak up. "So what's happening now?" I ask them.
"We have been helping to repair the walls, filling the craters in the land, and clearing the dead. We're also repairing the E.A.F Nightingale and salvaging what's left of the three downed sloops," she tells me.
"I see. Well I better get up and move around a bit, I feel like my joints are made of stone." I reply. Luna pulls me up onto my feet and I smile at her. "Thanks," I say and begin to walk around the room. Damn, my whole body feels so sore.
My stomach then decides to let me know I haven't eaten in days with a very loud rumble.
My wives giggle at me. "Somepony's hungry," Celestia teases.
I grin at her. "Very. Maybe you could sate my hunger hmm?" I say and lick my lips at her.
She blushes and smiles wickedly. She pulls her nightgown off and exposes her chest to me. "Well then. Come and get your breakfast," she says, shaking her chest at me.
Oh boy, I was only being playful with her... then again, that does sound rather tasty right now.
Ten Minutes Later
After breakfast, We get dressed and head down to get some solid food, Celestia told me we'll have to do that again in a few days as she said it relieved the soreness in her breasts that she's been feeling lately. They lead me to the Dining Hall where Vortigan, his wife, and their son are eating their breakfasts.
"Ah, Adrian! It's good to see you up and about," Vortigan says to me.
I sluggishly walk my way over to the table and sit down with Celestia and Shella besides me and Luna next to Alyssa. "Glad to be up, if I slept any longer, I don't think I would be able to move my legs," I reply with a chuckle.
I look at the food spread out on the table. Salad, pancakes, muffins, toast... is that bacon? My mouth waters as I pick a few pieces of bacon, some toast with butter, a muffin, a bit of salad, and a glass of water.
Luna looks a bit uneasy while Shella doesn't seem to mind, but Celestia, I notice her staring at the bacon on my plate and I can see a thin trail of drool sliding down her chin. I smile and cut a piece off and hold my fork up to her.
Her eyes follow it and with a bit of hesitation, she bites it. She begins chewing it and moans. "That is surprisingly good," she says and takes a couple for herself, along with a fair amount of the salad, a muffin, and some water.
Luna looks a bit squeamish as she takes some pancakes and salad with a glass of juice.
"Can you feed me please, dear?" Shella asks me with loving eyes.
Vortigan raises an eyebrow at that. "Sure," I reply and face my left palm at her. I cast a healing beam at her and the green energy flows into her and Mavis. She sighs with a smile and leans onto me.
"What was that about?" Vortigan asks.
"Changelings don't need food like we do, they can eat it to produce a substance inside their stomachs, but they feed on love energy, or now more commonly, life energy to nourish themselves," I tell him.
"I see. So how have they been surviving until you arrived?" he asks.
"Very barely. Shella's old Queen named Chrysalis, kidnapped people and drained them of their love to feed herself and barely any for her people. A changeling that's starving will have holes all over their body. As you can see, Shella has no holes and is well fed," I reply and kiss Shella on her cheek, making her smile.
"Interesting. So you offered them a food source for their loyalty?" he asks.
"We just offered them a chance at a better life. It was their choice if they wanted to join Equestria or not," I tell him. "Has there been any sign of Orthos?" I ask him.
He shakes his head. "None, and we can't trace where he warped to," he tells me.
I frown and eat the rest of my breakfast. I want to know who this Master of his is.
Two Hours Later
I'm standing on the walls overlooking the field where the battle took place. The undead giant is still there, but is slowly being cut into pieces and carted away. Looks like it will take a week to get rid of all of it. There's patches of bare dirt where the craters caused by the sunfire shells went off.
Most of the bodies have been cleared, but many of the orc bodies remain, along with body parts. The three wrecks of the airships lay on the ground with ponies and dwarves taking them apart.
So many died, there's no way I could have revived them all anyway. The threat of the gryphons, Grogar, and now this Master? I'm going to have to up my training a bit.
I hear footsteps to my left and look to see Luna walking towards me. She stands beside me and leans her head on my left shoulder. "We have not seen such a sight since before we sealed Grogar away," she tells me with a sad tone.
I sigh and lean my head on hers. "And I don't think it will be the last," I tell her. I hold her right hand with my left and our fingers entwine with each other.
"We just want to live peacefully with thee and our herd," she tells me.
"I know, I want that as well, but before we can do that, Grogar needs to be dealt with first," I reply.
She sighs and grips my hand tighter. "We watched you as you defeated that behemoth," she tells me and looks at the giant's corpse. "Were thou in control of thyself?" she asks me.
I remember that my actions were my own, but it felt like someone was guiding me as well. "I think so. I remember fighting it, but it felt like Gaia was guiding me as well," I reply.
'Correct, I was transferring my knowledge to you during the fight,' Gaia tells me.
"You know, you listening in and able to talk to me in my mind isn't creepy at all... and I'm supposed to have fourteen of you in there?" I ask her aloud.
"Who are thou talking to?" Luna asks confused.
I hold my left hand up to her while she's still holding it. "Mother Gaia. She's in the orb on my hand," I tell her.
"Thou can speak with her?" she asks me.
"Yes," I reply.
'Do not worry. Since my home was destroyed, I had to seal myself into the orb. The others are linked to theirs and you will be able to talk to them as long as you touch their orbs with the tips of your fingers, and should they wish to speak to you, their orbs will pulse with a faint light which you just have to touch to respond,' she tells me. 'You'll be able to tell if I'm listening as my orb will light up, like it is now.'
I look at the orb and it is indeed lit up.
"I see, that's good to know. I don't think I could handle all of you talking in my head all the time," I say.
Luna giggles at me. "Thou look like thou have lost thy mind and are talking to imaginary friends,"she tells me.
I lightly bump her hip with mine and chuckle. "You have another voice in your head and try not to mumble to yourself," I tell her and she frowns sadly.
"We have... she wasn't exactly the best pony to be friends with..." she says and sighs.
Oh yeah, Nightmare Moon. "I'm sorry. I didn't mean to bring up bad memories," I tell her and squeeze her hand lightly.
She looks at me and smiles. "Tis alright... she no longer has any power over us, and we have also wounded her terribly," she replies.
"Come on, let's head back to Canterlot. I want to relax for a few days with you lot and then get back to training so I can get stronger," I tell her.
We head back into the Castle to get Celestia and Shella so we can head back home.
My wives and I get up and get ready for the day. Mom has agreed to look after Mavis while me and my wives go out to the Spa in Canterlot.
We made arrangements to have the Spa all to ourselves for three hours today as they have no previous appointments for the next three days. I could really use a massage right now.
Silk Sheets was worried about me over the last few days I was out. I assured her that I was fine and she went about her chores feeling a bit better.
After breakfast, we head out into Canterlot towards the Spa in a carriage. I wanted to walk there with them but my body is still too sore to move around too much.
Luna and Shella sit besides me on the seat while Celestia sits on my lap nuzzling my cheek with a happy smile of her face. They've been really clingy since the battle.
The carriage comes to a stop and for once, they help me off the carriage... I grumble quietly, I really enjoy doing that for them myself.
We walk into the building and are greeted by three middle aged looking women. "Your Majesties! Welcome back to the Canterlot Oasis Spa... We see you've brought the King with you this time," the middle women greets us with a smile. She's a unicorn with sapphire blue fur and silvery white hair. Her eyes are a greenish gold colour.
The woman on the right is a pegasus with crimson red fur and orange hair. Her eyes are a deep blue.
The last woman is an earth pony with light green fur and light pink hair. Her eyes are a light purple colour.
Each of them has their hair done up into a bun with sticks crossed in them. They're wearing white dresses that hug their bodies nicely, showing their curves.
"We have and we need you to help loosen him up, he's very sore after the battle he's just been through," Celestia replies.
"Battle? We've heard nothing about any battles," the red woman says.
"We would think not, as it happened on another world," Luna tells her.
"A-Another world?" the light green woman asks stunned.
"Yes, Adrian's homeworld," Luna replies.
They stare at me for a few seconds and I raise an eyebrow at them.
"Oh! Where are our manners," the blue woman says. "My name is Shimmer Hooves. I take care of our customers hooves, fingernails, and horns." she tells me.
"My name is Firm Hands. I manage the massage tables and the saunas," the light green woman says.
"And I'm Scarlet Incense, I manage our supplies and get the baths and oils ready for our customers," the red woman tells me.
I bow slightly to them. "A pleasure to meet you ladies. My name is Adrian Stormsword, and for today, I place myself into your care," I tell them.
"Oh my, he's such a gentlecolt! Just like you told us, Celestia," Scarlet says. Firm Hands is smiling widely at me.
"Oh he is, I couldn't have asked for a better mate," Celestia replies and kisses my right cheek, making the women giggle. "Where is Golden Scroll? I thought he would be here today?" she asks them.
"Our husband has been called to Manehatten to sort out a mess at our Spa there. Apparently, one of our workers was caught rutting in the supply closet with a customer for some extra bits..." Shimmer Hooves tells her with a shake of her head.
"I see..." Celestia says.
Shimmer Hooves then claps her hands together. "But enough about us. What can we do for you, your Majesties?" she asks us.
"We'd like the full treatment please," Luna replies.
"Excellent, please follow us," Scarlet says and we follow them into the Spa. It's a lot bigger than Ponyville's Spa. Ten massage tables. ten mud baths, twenty lounge chairs, five vanity mirror desks, three saunas, male and female shower rooms, five hot tubs, and a door to a large pool.
"Please enter the Changing Rooms and pick a stall to change in, robes and towels of different sizes are available to choose from. When ready, please return here," Firm Hands tells us.
My wives go into the women's Changing Room and I walk over to the men's Changing Room. Before I could enter though, Celestia grabs my hand and pulls me into the woman's instead.
The spa women giggle and wait for us. Celestia drags me into a stall with her name on it and closes the door where she begins to undress and I blush. Once only down to her panties, she begins to take my clothes off with her hands while giggling softly. She undoes my shoelaces and pulls my shoes off one at a time with her magic. She then pulls down my trousers and then hugs me with a kiss.
She then trails the tips of her right fingers across the scar on my chest. "Can you help me put my robe on, my love?" she asks and turns around, showing me her curvy hips and backside. I tear my eyes away and look on the wall, a white robe with a golden trim and a cursive C embroidered on the left side of the chest hangs on a hook. I pick it up off the wall and open it up. I place it on her back where she slips her arms into the sleeves. I wrap my arms around her waist and lightly tie the belt around her pregnant stomach.
"Thank you," she says and takes a large white Towel off the wall and wraps it around my waist. "While Shella and Luna have their massage first, would you care to join me in the sauna?" she whispers to me seductively and licks my neck.
The way she said that makes me think of only one outcome to this...
She opens the door and drags me out. I'm pretty sure I'm close to having a nose bleed again.
We all then walk back into the Spa area. "We'll like to use the sauna while my sister and Shella have their massages first," Celestia tells them.
They all stare wide eyed at me, or at the scar on my chest I think. Firm Hands shakes her head and looks at Celestia. "Certainly, Celestia. Please follow me," she replies and leads us to the first sauna.
Celestia then leans towards Firm's ear. "Please make sure we're not disturbed for at least half an hour," she whispers to her.
Firm blushes and nodded quickly. "Of course, Celestia. I'll let my herd mates know as well," she replies and heads back to the others.
Celestia opens the door with her magic and pulls me inside. There's comfortable looking padded benches along the walls with a device in the middle, it's nothing like the Ponyville Spa one was. Celestia turns a dial on the machine and steam begins to come out of it.
She pushes me onto a bench and then unwraps her belt as her robe slips down her body and onto the floor. She pulls my towel away and straddles my lap with half lidded eyes, her stomach pressing into mine. "I've been feeling very... stressed, over the three days you've been asleep from worry and court duties, and I need you to help me relieve it," she tells me and starts kissing me. "Now you just relax and let me do the work," she says and starts trailing down.
Oh... there's that nose bleed.
POV: Luna
I watch as Tia takes Adrian into the sauna with a lustful expression. I can take a guess at what they'll be up to.
"My Queens, please follow us to the massage tables," Firm Hands tells us. I share a glance with Shella and she giggles.
We remove our robes and lay on top of a table each on our stomachs. Scarlet gets my favourite oil and hands it to Firm Hands who rubs it into her hands. She then starts to knead my shoulders and I sigh, that feels so good... I should get Adrian to learn how to do this.
"How did the King get that scar on his chest? Was it from the battle you mentioned?" Firm asks me.
"Nay, he received it months ago from some bandits who captured him," I reply. No need to go into detail about it though.
"I see," she says and continues the massage.
She moves down after a minute and massages around my wing joints. Firm Hands is one of the few ponies Tia and I allow to touch us there. I hum in content as the stress from the last three days just melts away. She then moves onto my waist and lower back as I let myself go limp from the relaxing massage.
I lazily glance at Shella to see her eyes rolled back and her wings fluttering as Scarlet massages her. I don't think she's ever had a professional massage before.
"Oh my, your skin feels so soft, I thought it would feel much harder," Scarlet says.
Shella tries to reply, but all that comes out is a garbled response with a moan as Scarlet starts on her lower back.
Firm then begins to massage my arms and I barely put enough effort into holding it up for her.
In the corner of my eye, I notice Shimmer walk over to the sauna. "It's been thirty minutes already," I hear her say to herself.
She opens the door and our ears are greeted with the sounds of wet slapping and Tia's moans as Shimmer quickly closes the door with a heavy blush. I just giggle and relax into the table as Firm starts on my other arm.
Shella seems to be coming back to her senses. "I can feel and taste the love coming from them," she mutters with a dopey smile.
I close my eyes and smile as well, just letting my worries float away.
POV: Adrian Stormsword Twenty Minutes Later
Celestia and I step out of the sauna with our Towel and robe back on, using each other to keep ourselves balanced and upright. I think we got way too into that than we should have, I feel sore again.
I see Luna and Shella on a couple of lounge chairs as Firm and Scarlet guide us over to the tables. I notice they have light blushes on their faces... crap, I hope they didn't hear us. Luna and Shella then make their ways over to the second sauna.
Firm helps me up onto a table and removes my towel while Scarlet removes Celestia's robe and helps her onto some sort of half table half chair thing. Her chest rests against the forty-five degree angle table while she sits on a soft looking chair.
"What kind of table is that?" I ask.
"It's a massage table for pregnant mares. It's more comfortable for them and they don't put pressure onto their stomachs," Firm Hands tells me.
"Oh," I reply and groan as she begins on my shoulders. It hurts at first, but then dissolves into relief as my muscles mould into her hands like an artisan with clay.
"Wow. Your muscles are so tense, what did you fight? An ursa minor?" Firm asks as she squeezes my shoulders a bit harder.
I groan again. "How big is that?" I mumble.
"Just bigger than a small two story house," she tells me.
"Then what I fought was at least three times bigger," I reply and sigh.
She gasps. "You fought an ursa major!?" she asks with shock.
"No... Hmmmm, it was an undead giant," I tell her and roll my shoulders a little, they're already feeling better.
"Undead? You mean like a Zombie from those foal comics?" she asks.
"I guess so, a walking rotting corpse under the control of someone else. With some help, I had to pour all I had just to bring it down. It's why I'm in the state I am now," I tell her. I feel myself getting sleepy under the expert touch of Firm's hands. The last thing I hear is Celestia humming and giggling as I fall asleep.
Thirty Minutes Later
I'm gently awoken by Firm Hands as she lightly shakes me. "I have finished your massage, my King." she tells me.
I yawn and sit up on the side of the table as I stretch my arms and arch my back. I feel a few joints pop and groan in relief, the soreness almost gone.
"Thank you, I feel much better now," I reply and stand up. "So what's next?" I ask.
"You can relax on the chairs or take a dip in the hot tubs while we prepare the mud baths," Scarlet replies.
I notice Luna and Shella are out of the sauna now. A dip in a hot tub sounds good. "I'll take that dip," I say and walk over to the first bubbling tub.
"We've lowered the temperature so the heat won't affect Celestia's foal," Scarlet tells us.
I step into it and it's pleasantly warm. Luna, Shella, and Celestia get in and lean against my sides while Shella leans on my chest.
I sigh and let the bubbles do their thing as I relax with my wives cuddling up to me.
I wrap my arms around Celestia and Luna while stroking Celestia's stomach gently.
Two Hours Later
After a couple of hours. I feel refreshed and much better than before.
"Thank you for the wonderful time girls," Celestia says to the Spa women.
"You're welcome, your Majesties. Would you like to pay now or put it on your tab?" Shimmer asks.
Celestia's horn glows and a small pouch appears in her hand. "Now would be good," she replies and hands them the pouch. "Keep the change, think of it as a tip," she says and heads for the door. "We'll see you next time, and do say hello to Golden Scroll for us," she tells them.
"Thank you, Celestia. We will, you have a wonderful day now," Shimmer replies and they wave goodbye.
"So, what do you want to do?" I ask them as we get back into the carriage.
"We're starting to feel a bit hungry. Shall we visit the Golden Roast?" Luna replies and asks.
"Sounds good. I could do with a slice of cheesecake," Celestia says and licks her lips.
Luna tells the guards pulling the carriage to go to the Café and after a five minute trip, we arrive.
I help them off the carriage and we head inside. Once again Mocha is facing away from us making a drink for another customer.
It seems they installed a bell above the door as it rings out when we entered. "Just a moment please!" Mocha says. She turns around and hands the drink to the customer. "Here's your drink, sir," she says and looks our way. "Adrian! And your Majesties! Welcome back, it's been awhile," she says.
"Yes it has. How have you been?" I ask her.
"Oh, you know, business has been good. So what can I get for you today?" she replies and asks.
"I'll have an earl grey tea with a slice of apple pie and a blueberry muffin please," I order.
"Sure, and what would the Queens like?" she asks them.
They order a fruit salad with some tea. Celestia has a slice of cheesecake, Luna gets a few cookies and shella asks me for some of my love. She says the life energy is nice and all, but love tastes like the most sweetest chocolate when directed at the changeling themselves. As long as she only takes a little, it won't affect me negatively.
We talk for ten minutes while eating our lunch. Celestia said she went to the medical wing two days ago for a check up... and she has told me we'll be having a healthy earth pony boy. Although, he has a high amount of magic in him like an alicorn, but with my kind of magic signature.
I smile, I'm going to have a son? And he'll have my kind of magic? I so can't wait to start teaching him about Terran magic when he's older.
Shella told me that she'll need me to impregnate her again tonight, and that after this lot of eggs, she'll take a month to rest from laying. She then kisses me and I can feel something flow out from me and into her. After a couple of seconds she pulls back with a large blush on her face and half lidded eyes.
Luna says she's joining me in my training starting tomorrow. I smile, looking forward to it. I still need to prove I can match her in melee combat.
I pay the bill and we head to the Opera House next. For the next two hours we listen to music and enjoy each other's company. I see Lyra and Octavia playing again and wave down at them. Lyra spots me and waves back mid song and the conductor scolds her, she yelps and gets back to playing. We laugh a little at that.
After the concert. We leave and head back towards the castle, but Luna spots something out the window of the carriage that grabs her attention and makes her smile. A building with strange box like objects with sticks and buttons in front of a large pane of glass fill the interior.
We get out and I walk up to one of the box things. "What's this," I ask as I wiggle the stick. The glass lights up with the word pong written across it.
"Tis a game to entertain!" Luna says and sits on the left seat. "We have learnt of these during our return. We had little else to do for the first few months, we discovered these during a walk through the City and began to enjoy them. Come, sit. We shall show thee how it works," she tells me. I sit beside her and see we both have a stick and three buttons each. "This game is one of the more simpler ones. Thou use thy stick to move thy paddle up and down," she tells me and moves the stick. "The first button starts the game when both players press them, the second button uses any power ups thou gets, and the third button just makes thee surrender."
She pulls out a bit and puts it into a slot on the machine. The screen changes with a square line near the edge of the glass, two zeros are at the top of the glass with two vertical lines on each side of the screen inside the box. A vertical line splits the middle of the box as well.
"The aim of this game is to bounce the ball back at thy opponent's side and get it past them. The ball will get faster and faster with each bounce," she says. "If the ball hits a power up after thou bounced it back, thou will get the power up. We shall let thee figure out which does which," she tells me with a giggle.
We both press the first button and a number in the middle counts down from three and the game starts. The ball heads towards my paddle and I bounce it back. Luna raises hers up slightly as she hits the ball on the lower half of her paddle making it bounce down to my side. Huh so hitting it at an angle alters the direction the ball goes.
I lower my paddle and hit the ball halfway on the top half of my paddle, the ball bounces back to her side on the top of the screen. She bounces it down and the ball gets a bit faster. We continue to bat it back and forth and my ball hits a power up. It looks like a ball with a few arrows pointing up behind it.
I press my second button and the ball's speed picks up, Luna gasps and quickly moves her paddle, barely hitting the ball with the top of it. I raise an eyebrow as the ball starts to bounce off the top and bottom of the box towards my side. With the angle it's at, it will be hard to hit it back.
I adjust my paddle to where I think the ball will go and hit it with the lower half, the ball bounces back and she returns it. For another minute we continue and the ball is moving quiet fast now, but unfortunately for me, Luna seems to be better at this and the ball goes past my paddle.
"Huzzah!" she says and giggles. I smile and press the ready button.
We play a few more rounds where she won four and I won one. I look around at the other machines and notice each one has a different game on them.
"That was pretty fun. I'll have to come back and see what else is here sometime," I tell them.
"Yes, we will return and we shall defeat thee again!" Luna says with a grin. I smile seeing how happy she is right now.
Celestia and Shella were watching us with smiles of their own. "As amusing as that was to watch, we should be heading back to the Castle now," Celestia tells me.
I get up off my chair and we get back in the carriage. After a short trip, we're back at the Castle where we thank the guards for lugging us about.
Nine PM, Adrian's Room
After Dinner, we spent some time in the Castle's Garden just talking and planning on what we're going to do next. Celestia is going to meet Vortigan and discuss trade agreements between Reymorah and Equestria. Luna will be training with me in a couple of days after I've rested some more while Shella will look after Mavis and take over court for her first time.
Shella and I head back to our room where Celestia and Luna have given us some alone time.
"So... are you ready?" Shella asks me as she strips out of her dress.
I chuckle and take my clothes off as well. "Ready as I'll ever be," I reply.
She takes my hand and pulls me towards the bed. Just before we reach the bed, the doors open with a blushing Cadence.
"Cadence? What's the matter?" I ask her.
"Shiny's away in Reymorah right now looking over their weapons and armour and I need somepony to relieve me... You're the only one I would ask to help me," she tells me while rubbing her thighs together.
I look to Shella who just smiles warmly. "I don't mind," she says.
I look back to Cadence and see her smile as she walks in and closes the door, she then drops her nightgown and walks towards me with a sway in her step.
She gently pushes me onto the bed and gets on top of me. "I know you're still recovering from the battle with those orcs, so just lay back and let us do all the work," she tells me.
Cadence sits on top of me and she's only wearing her white bra and panties. She grinds on my growing erection as she unclips her bra and throws it across the room while she moans as my member rubs against her thinly covered pussy.
"Hmmmm... I've been looking forward to this again... Aaah, Shiny just c-can't keep up with my needs..." she tells me.
I frown slightly, have I damaged their relationship? I couldn't help but groan as she rubs her soaked panties across the head of my dick. I notice her stomach is just starting to bulge slightly, in another month's time, she'll be around Celestia's size.
She leans forward and kisses me gently. I hesitate at first, my thoughts still thinking about how I'm getting in between Shining and her.
She pulls back and sadly frowns at me. "What's the matter?" she asks and stops her grinding.
"What about Shining? I know he said we could do this if it got too bad... but I just see myself getting in both of your ways," I reply.
She looks down still with her sad frown. "I know... I've... every time we make love... I can't stop thinking of you, how you held me, pleasured me, was so kind and passionate. I could even feel some love in it... I... I think I'm falling in love with you..." she tells me and starts crying. "I keep telling myself it's just my h-hormones playing tricks on me... but the more I t-think about it, the more I know it's true! The way you treat my aunts, like they're just mares and not royalty... like y-you do with me... a-and what you said about us... t-that he'll be gone a-and I'll be left behind...." she sniffles and looks up at me. "But you'll still be here... and I w-wouldn't be left a-alone..." she says and cries loudly into my chest. "I'm so c-confused!"
Shella sits beside us and rubs Cadence's lower back. I frown and wrap her in a hug. "Cadence... I'm not sure what to tell you. If you decide to stay with Shining until the end, I'll help you as much as I can along the way, but if you can't bare the thought of outliving him... maybe you should let him find someone else? You can both still be friends right?" I tell her and wipe the tears from her cheeks.
Her lower lip quivers and she lunges at me, kissing me roughly. I return the kiss this time and massage her wing joints, tears still leak from her eyes as she moans.
She resumes her grinding and her horn glows, her panties are now gone and my head rubs against her clit. She gasps and shoves her tongue into my mouth, we swap a heavy amount saliva as our tongues wrap around each other over and over again. I then feel Shella grip my member and lift it towards Cadence's slit.
Cadence moans deeply as Shella rubs it against her puffy lips. Cadence grunts and thrusts her hips back, my member spreads her vulva apart and slips into her warm, tight, wet pussy. She breathes a shaky breath into my mouth as she sinks lower and lower onto my cock.
She pants and gasps as she adjusts to my size. "I've missed this so much..." she says and squirms on top of me. "and I hate myself for it," she tells me and kisses me again as tears still flow down her face.
Her hips begin to rise and my member slips out of her with only the head remaining inside, she then slams her hips down and takes my whole length back in. She moans deeply and repeats the motion over and over again.
She sits up and places her hands onto my stomach and begins bouncing as fast as she can.
"Ahhhh... Ngggh, aaaahh. I love and h-hate NNNGGHH! This so much!" she says and slams herself onto my lap hard. She then grinds her hips in circular motions and we both moan from the sensation.
I place my hands on her backside and she starts bouncing again. Shella lays beside my head and kisses me as I grope Cadence's soft ass.
Her breathing picks up and her insides are clenching erratically. She starts to moan loudly and more often as she rides my dick as fast as she can. Her eyes roll back and she grits her teeth while her wings are spread out to her sides widely and shaking.
"Oh buck me! Aahhh. I'm going to CUM! NNNGGHH FILL ME, ADRIAN! AAAAHHHH!" she screams as she clamps down hard on my cock and sprays my groin with her cum.
I continue to weakly thrust up into her and after a few seconds, I let go and flood her insides with my seed. "Nnnngggaah!" I grunt as I pump load after load into her.
Her legs give out and her groin mashes against mine with her clit rubbing against me. She starts trembling as she cums again from the stimulation and collapses on top of me.
We both pant as we come down from our orgasms. "T-Thank you. I... I n-needed that," she tells me and kisses me gently. I wrap my arms around her and hold her close.
Whatever she decides to do about Shining, I'll be there to help her.
A moan beside me gets my attention and I look to see Shella fingering herself. "Adrian... I really need you to impregnate me right now..." she tells me and gently rolls Cadence to my left side. She then begins licking my member clean and coating it in her saliva.
I'm rock hard again and she straddles me, she uses her magic to guide my length towards her pussy and slowly slides down it. I feel every bump on the way as she sits on my lap.
"Hmmmmm, you always feel so good inside of me, my love," she says and starts to slowly rise and fall. I sigh from the pleasure and stroke her thighs lovingly.
Shella starts purring as her wings start to rise and flicker slightly. Her purring is causing her to vibrate slightly and I can feel it on my dick. She then starts to pulsate her inner walls around my member, massaging it gently.
"Where did you, nnngh. Learn to do that?" I ask her.
She giggles which devolves into a deep moan as she grinds herself on me. "I've asked, mmmmm, a few of the females at the hive for aaaahh, advice," she tells me. Her purring increases and I groan from the feeling as her pussy starts to grip me tightly and she begins to pick up speed.
I sit up and wrap my arms around her waist, she giggles again as I start to suck on her breasts. Her arms wrap around my head and holds me to her chest. I lick, nibble ,and suck on her nipples as she rides my cock.
She forces me to let go and stands up on her knees as she turns herself around. I wrap my arms around her again and pull her down onto my dick, she moans deeply and starts purring again. I slip my right hand down her stomach to her clit and she screams as I begin rubbing it in circles, making her bounce on me faster.
It seems Cadence has recovered and is kneeling beside me as she lifts her left breast towards my face, milk slowly dripping out of the nipple. I turn my head towards her and latch onto her breast, she moans as I drink her milk.
"Oh, Adrian. Mmmm, yes, give me ahhh, your seed... Fill me with Nnnghh, eggs again," Shella begs me.
Shella repeatedly slaps her ass against me and I rub her clit faster, she then screams her lungs out as she cums. Her pussy is massaging my member over and over making me grunt as it tips me over the edge and I fill her womb with my semen. She moans continuously as she grinds on my lap and I keep unloading into her.
After a few seconds she flops to our right and my dick slips out of her, she rests on the bed as she pants and moans weakly.
I let go of Cadence's breast and lay behind her and lift up her right leg. She gasps as I prod around with my member and rub it against her leaking snatch.
"Don't t-tease me, Adrian... p-put it in me," she begs me and moans.
I angle my cock higher and thrust into her, she gasps and sighs as she presses her ass against me. I twist her so her chest is facing me and I start suckling on her right breast. She wraps her right arm around the back of my head and drapes her arm over my right shoulder. I greedily drink her milk some more as I begin rocking in and out of her pussy.
She moans loudly as I thrust into her soaking slit harder while she lifts her right arm and grips my hair.
"Buck me, Adrian! I w-want you to claim me! AHHHH! Make m-me your mare! Make me c-cum!" she tells me.
I grope her left breast with my left hand and use my right to rub her clit. She screams and cums hard, her juices splash on the bed, but I don't stop.
"OH BUCK! D-DON'T STOP! NNNGGGHH! D-DON'T STOP RUTTING ME. AAAAAAHH! RUT ME TILL I'M NUMB! NNNGGAAAAAAAAAH!" she screams as I thrust faster into her. Her eyes roll back and her tongue lolls out, saliva dripping off her tongue as tears form in her eyes.
I pick up speed and really begin ramming into her, her screaming is constant now as her pussy is overflowing with her juices.
"I'M C-CUMMING AGAIN! OH, ADRIAN! AAAAHHAAH! CUM INSIDE ME, HURRY! NNGGGHH! AAAHH! FILL ME UP AGAIN!" she begs as she shakes uncontrollably.
I grunt with every thrust as I slap my hips against her ass.
"BUUUUUUUUUUCK! AAAAAAAAAAHHH! Cadence yells as she cums. She's trembling and pulls my head to hers, we kiss roughly and I lunge my tongue into her mouth and she begins to suck on it. I groan as I cum as well, filling her already occupied tunnel and I can feel some of my semen spilling out of her.
I hold onto her tightly as she rides out her climax, she gasps and moans into my mouth as I thrust lazily into her now and then.
She slowly comes down from her euphoria with a dopey smile on her face. She moans as I pull out of her and I turn my attention to Shella, who's now on her hands and knees again. I think that has to be her favourite position as she gets me to do her that way nearly every time we have sex, or maybe it's a submissive thing?
"I want you to pump more of your seed into me," she tells me and wiggles her ass at me. "I want you to hold me tightly as you buck me senseless," she begs me and lifts her tail up.
I crawl over to her and kneel behind her, her tail lifts up higher and I rub my tip against her, she hums and wiggles back at me. I push my member into her and sigh, she moans and presses back until her ass is mashed into my groin, her wings fluttering at her sides. I lean over her and wrap my arms around her stomach, I then raise my arms to her breasts and fondle them.
She gasps and squirms under me so I pull back and thrust back in. "Mmmmmm, yes, more!" she says and thrusts back at me.
I pinch her nipples between my fingers and she moans happily. I pick up my pace and slap my hips into her, her ass jiggles a little and she leans her head down on the mattress and groans.
"Deeper, nnnggh. Shove it right into me, gaaah!" she begs and I fuck her harder, shoving my dick into her as deep as I can. "Yeeeeesss, more, aaaahh, buck me moooore!" she tells me. I can feel her gripping me tightly as I ram into her over and over again. She's really leaking a lot as the squelching noise gets louder and louder.
I bring my left hand down and play with her clit again getting her to scream as she clenches hard. I thrust into her and hold my position until she relaxes a bit, I can't move an inch.
"Gaaaahh! Nnnnngggh, oh buck me! More... rub my clit some more!" she tells me and I begin circling it. I can feel her pussy excreting more and more of her fluids as they drip off my balls.
Her breathing gets louder as I fuck her fast and hard, she's starting to scream as her vagina squeezes me now and then.
"Adrian... AAAAHHH! I-I'm sooooo cloooOOOSE! KEEP GOING! DON'T NNNGGAAAAHHHH! D-DON'T STOP!" she screams at me and she grits her teeth as she starts gushing on my groin, her pussy is vibrating and massaging me like never before.
"OH FUCK!" I grunt and cum. I unload into her again and her moans pick up as I fill her while I keep thrusting to prolong our orgasms, she trembles as her legs try to kick out but she's pinned under me.
Once we calm down, I pull out and lay back on the bed, Shella and Cadence crawl over me to and cuddle up beside me. I watch Cadence as she has an conflicted expression but before I could say anything, she closes her eyes and falls asleep.
I sigh and hold them both closer, we'll discuss it in detail tomorrow. I then yawn and drift off to sleep myself.
I feel someone holding me tightly as I wake up. I open my eyes to see Cadence to my right with her arms and right wing wrapped around me.
I then remember her confession last night. She said she was falling in love with me... I sigh and frown. I knew something like this was going to happen. It was only me helping her have her own child. I didn't expect her to react like this.
She shuffles slightly and grips me tighter, a sad expression on her face.
"Cadence?" I ask her and shake her slightly.
She mumbles and blinks her eyes open. "Adrian?" she asks and looks around. Her expression deepens as she looks back at me. She lies her head on my chest and sniffles a little. "What am I going to do?" she asks me quietly.
I rub her side gently with my right hand. "We're going to have to talk to Shining about this. Leaving it bottled up is just going to make matters worse," I tell her.
She then starts sobbing onto my chest. "B-But I don't know what to tell him... I love him... but I l-love you too," she replies.
I'm not sure what to tell him as well. 'Oh hey, Shining. How's your day been so far? Me? I just found out Cadence loves me! Isn't that great!' I think sarcastically to myself.
"I want t-to stay with him... but I w-want to be with you as well... I'm so c-confused," she tells me and continues to sob on me.
Shella slowly wakes up and stares at us. "What's the matter?" she asks.
"Cadence doesn't know what she's going to do about how she feels about me and Shining..." I tell her.
"How do you feel about them?" Shella asks her.
"I've known Shiny s-since he was a colt... we've only been t-together for seventeen months... b-but I've enjoyed m-my time with him... He makes me smile, laugh and feel loved, but Adrian treats me j-just like any other *hic* mare. Not some prize or symbol of status, he doesn't even boast h-how he's married both Celestia a-and *sniff* Luna, and you... I've had h-hundreds *hic* of marriage proposals over the years... and *sniff* I still get them now and then," she tells us.
"I treat them as equals because that's how I would like to be treated in return. I don't see titles or status. I see the person underneath them," I reply.
"And t-that's what I *hic* like about you, and w-when I'm near you *Sniff* I feel safe. More so than with Shiny," she tells me.
She feels safer with me? Is that what Celestia meant when she said mares want strong mates? Is it instinctual? I look at the clock and see it's eight in the morning. "I think we should get up and go for a bath. We can find Shining and get this sorted out after we've had breakfast," I tell them and pick Cadence up as I get off the bed.
She yelps and wraps her arms around my neck. She hums softly and buries her cheek into my neck. We enter the bathroom and Shella turns the taps on. I continue to hold Cadence until the bath is ready. Once drawn, I place Cadence into the tub and climb in after her, Shella joins in on my right side and we scrub each other down.
Once clean and dressed, we head down to the Dining Hall and order a quick breakfast of pancakes. Cadence eats hers quietly, I guess she's not looking forward to our talk with Shining.
After we finish breakfast, I ask a guard if they know where Shining is. He tells me he returned this morning and is at the Barracks. I thank him and make my way out with Shella and Cadence.
We walk into the Barracks and I knock on Shining's door. "Come in!" he shouts from inside. I open the door and let Shella and Cadence inside first, I then enter behind them and shut the door. "Cady!" he smiles warmly at her. He then looks at us. "Adrian, Shella. Do you need something? I've been going over these new forging techniques the dwarves use in their metalwork all morning," he says and shows us some papers with the dwarven forging process on it.
I look over to Cadence who looks terrified. I sigh and guide her to a seat. "You, Cadence, and I have something we need to discuss," I tell him.
"Is something wrong?" he asks.
"You could say that," I reply and nudge Cadence lightly.
She sputters and whines as tears start forming in her eyes. Shining gets up and walks around his desk towards her. "Honey? Are you alright?" he asks her. I saw her cringe when he called her 'Honey'.
"I... I-I..." She looks at me sadly and I give her an encouraging smile. She smiles faintly and looks back at Shining. "I... I'm in love with Adrian," she tells him and closes her eyes tightly. "b-but I love you as well... I don't know what to do anymore!" she yells and starts crying into Shining's chest.
Shining looks at Cadence with a worried expression. He looks at me and I can only give him a sad smile. He turns back to Cadence and sighs. "I know," he tells her.
I raise an eyebrow at that. Cadence looks up at him with a tear stained face. "Y-You knew? How?" she asks him in surprise.
"Well... the last two times we made love... You called out his name. I don't think you even noticed," he tells her. I look stunned as he said that. He kept quiet about it and never mentioned it to her?
"I... I did?" she asks horrified.
Shining nodded. "Yes, but I don't hold it against you," he replies and sighs. "I had a feeling this would happen. Ever since your heat, you've slowly been falling for him. I notice it whenever he walked by, you would stare at him. You talked about him a lot and even asked me about him and how he's doing in his training," he says.
Cadence frowns. "Oh Celestia, you're right... I have..." she says and covers her mouth with her hands. "I've been fawning over Adrian i-in front of you," she mumbles and begins to cry into her hands.
"It's alright, Cadence," Shining says as he hugs her. "Adrian is a great stallion, any mare would love to be with him. He's strong, kind, caring, and makes a great punching bag," he tells her.
I just chuckle quietly at his final part about me.
"B-But what do we do? I don't know w-what to do now! I want to stay with both of you. I-I'm good at helping others w-with relationships, but I've never dealt with t-this kind of problem before!" she cries out.
Shining strokes her hair gently. "Remember what Adrian and I talked about in the hallway where you caught us?" he asks her. She nodded at him and sniffles. "Then be with Adrian... I've always known trying to be with you would be a huge challenge. At first, I thought I could make it work, but over the time we've been together, I just can't keep up with you, Cadence. Our little... 'Fun' times together leaves me beyond exhausted, I can't even train or do my job properly because I feel so sore and tired most of the time," he tells her.
Cadence looks upset at that. "B-But I love you, Shiny..." she mutters.
Shining cups her chin in his right hand and gently makes her look at him. "I love you as well, but I want you to be as happy as you can be... As much as I want to, I can't give that to you. Adrian was the one to give you your foal, not me. He can satisfy you ten times over more than I could, and as much as I hate to admit it, he's stronger than me and can protect you better than I ever could... I watched as he took down a monster taller than a fully grown dragon and win without so much as a scratch during the battle at Elysium," he tells her.
Cadence is crying non-stop at this point. She's hugging him tightly as he rubs her lower back. "B-But I don't want t-to leave you," she mumbles into his chest.
"I won't be going anywhere, Cadence. We can still be friends and hang out with each other like when I was a colt, right?" he reassures her.
She looks up at him with red puffy eyes and a quivering lip. "P-Promise?" she asks him. The tone in her voice is heart breaking.
He smiles warmly at her. "I Pinkie promise. Cross my heart, hope to fly, stick a cupcake in my eyeoOWCH!" he yelps as he pokes himself in the eye.
Cadence giggles a little but frowns sadly. She leans up and kisses Shining slightly and pulls back. "I'll always l-love you, Shiny," she tells him.
"I love you too, Cady," he replies.
She begins to sob again but stands up and walks over to the door. "I... I need to b-be alone for *sniff* awhile," she says and leaves.
Shella gets up and follows her. "I'll go comfort her," she says and leaves.
I stare at the door for a few seconds until I hear sniffling to my right. I turn to see Shining trying to hold back his tears. "Shining, you alright?" I ask worried.
He wipes his tears away and looks at me sadly. "Y-Yeah, remember what I asked you?" he asks me. I nodded. "Make sure she stays happy for as long as you can... give her what I can't," he tells me.
I walk over to him and give him a sideways hug and pat his shoulder. "I'll do the best I can... I'm sorry this happened. I never wanted to come between you two." I tell him.
He sighs. "I knew this was a possibility. I'm upset, don't get me wrong... I love her, but in the end... I'll just leave her behind and she may never find love again, her happiness means more to me than mine. This way, she can be with somepony she loves and not worry about time taking him away from her," he tells me.
I frown sadly. "Still, for what it's worth, I'm sorry... How about we go out for a drink tonight? My treat," I ask him.
He chuckles lightly. "Sure, I could use a drink after this," he replies.
"Alright, what time do you want to go?" I ask him.
"Around six after dinner sounds good," he tells me.
"Okay, I'll see you then. I got to ask Celestia a few things," I reply and head for the door.
I open it and Shining speaks up. "Listen, I don't hold this against you. Just... treat her well, okay?" he tells me.
"I will, I'll see you later alright?" I reply.
"Yeah, see ya later," he says and I head out to find Celestia.
But as I leave, I can barely hear Shining trying not to breakdown.
POV: Cadence
I'm laying in one of the guest room's beds since my room reminds me too much of Shiny. I cry into the pillow as my conflicting emotions war against each other inside me.
I hear the door open and close as hoofsteps make their way closer to me. I look up and see Shella with a sad smile on her face.
"Shella... *sniff* Do I really j-just leave Shiny to b-be with Adrian?" I ask her.
She sits on the bed and rubs my shoulder. "I don't know the answer to that. You love Adrian correct?" she asks me. I nodded in reply. "You feel Adrian can keep you safe right?" she asks again.
"Y-Yes," I stutter my reply.
"And Shining did say you could still be friends," she says and I nodded again.
"A changeling Queen's first reason to find a mate is so he can protect her and her eggs while she's pregnant with them, though that is mostly done through mind control. This was only the second reason I wanted to be with Adrian. He saved my Hive from starvation, he even fed and healed me when we first met when I was still just a hatchling. He didn't have to do that, he told me the reason why he was there, he could have just left or even killed me, but he didn't, he showed me kindness when there was so little," she tells me and smiles with her eyes closed. "As I grew and matured into a Queen, I felt an emotion we changelings only felt with other changelings, I began to fall in love with him. The male who saved and protected me from my old Queen who drained me and left me for dead. He could have left with Luna and the others that day... but he begged Luna to take me with them," she says and looks at me.
"He helped a complete stranger and a race who were seen as monsters," she tells me and spreads her arms and wings. "Look what he has done for me, for my Hive. He's given us a free source of food, a safe place to call home, and a new appearance. I love him with all my heart and I will spend the rest of my days by his side," she tells me with a bright smile.
I smile back at her. Adrian did all that for somepony he didn't even know, and I know I would have done the same. I wipe my eyes and hug her. "Thank you," I say to her.
She hugs me back. "You're welcome. As far as I see it, you're already a part of our herd," she tells me.
I begin sobbing again and hold her tightly. She just sits there stroking my mane.
POV: Adrian Stormsword
After twenty minutes of searching, I found Celestia and Luna taking a break from court playing chess in their Lounge Room. The white pieces look like the day guard and the black pieces look like the night guard... Must be a new chess set they got.
"Tia, Luna. I need to talk to you," I tell them.
"If this is about Cadence last night, we know," Celestia replies with a giggle. "Check," she says to Luna who groans.
"Then this makes it a little simpler. Cadence told me she loves me. Shining, Cadence, and I just had a talk about it... and they've just broke up," I tell them bluntly.
They both gasp. "Cadence has broken up with Shining Armour? We did not think it was possible..." Luna says and takes the rook threatening her king.
"I believe I'm to blame for that. As I said, Cadence has been falling in love with me since her heat and I think she wants to join our herd," I tell them and sit on the couch.
"I see," Celestia says and moves her queen across the board. "Checkmate," she says and gets up, she walks over to the couch and sits to my right.
Luna sighs and flicks her king on it's side. She then makes her way over and sits to my left.
"And what dost thou think of it?" Luna asks me.
"I don't want to bring them apart, but what Shining told me just makes sense," I reply.
"And what did he say?" Celestia asks.
I just hold my hands out to them. "Why don't you see for yourselves?" I reply.
They both take my hands and close their eyes as their horns glow. After a few minutes, they open their eyes with sad expressions.
"He does have a point. Lulu and I never looked for a mate for that same reason. Losing Luna was extremely painful and I lost my will to love anypony intimately after that. I only felt close to that when I was teaching Twilight, and when Luna returned to me, I was the happiest mare in the world. Until our wedding day that is," she tells me.
"Then what made you give me a chance before Solaris and Galaxia made me ageless?" I ask them.
"Over the centuries, ponies just wanted to marry me for my status or wealth. I saw your past, your personality. You didn't care if I was a Princess or a Beggar, you saw me for me. So I wanted to give you a chance, I was so surprised when you were the one to ask me. It's usually the mare who ask the stallion out," she tells me with a giggle.
I chuckle along with her. I then look to Luna. "We may have... fallen for thee a little too quickly we admit, but thou were the first pon... person, to treat me so kindly since my return. Tho... you saw me as the lonely, hurt mare I was. You 'hung out' with me as the foals say nowadays, when you didn't have to. You kept me company in the evenings and watched my stars with me," she tells me and kisses me. "I just had to have you with me," she says, dropping her archaic speech and leans her head on my shoulder.
I wrap my arms around them and hug them closely. "Thank you. You both are the reason I live and fight now. I don't know what I'd do if I lost you or Shella," I tell them.
"What about Cadence?" Celestia asks me.
I smile. "If she does join our herd, I still need to take her out on a proper date," I reply, making them giggle.
"You can do that tomorrow," Luna says.
I just sigh and hold them close. As complicated as my life seems to have gotten, I wouldn't change it for the world.
10:00 PM
After dinner, Shining and I went to a bar he and some of the guard visit now and then. As I promised, I paid for all of our drinks.
I kept myself limited to three drinks while he got himself drunk. He kept making me promise to treat Cadence like the Princess that she is and to give her all the love she deserves, or he'd geld me. I had to look up what that meant when we got back to the Castle... I made sure to keep that promise burned into my head once I found out.
We even played a game called darts. The rules were simple enough, but even drunk he still beat me... His aim didn't suffer at all.
After two hours of drinking. I helped him back to the Barracks where the guards took him to what they called the 'What did I do last night?' room. Apparently, coming back drunk was not uncommon for the guards and they knew how to deal with the after effects the next morning.
I returned to the Castle and decided to work out in the gym for an hour before bed.
I step out of the shower while drying myself off, I worked up quite the sweat. I leave the room in my gym shorts, tank top, and sandals and head down the hallway towards my room where I open the door and walk in. I see Celestia, Luna, and Shella all on the bed waiting for me. I smile, undress and join them in bed. They cuddle up to me but I notice Shella lying on top of my right side and partially on Celestia. I frown and was about to ask why when the toilet in the bathroom flushes.
I look to the bathroom door and see Cadence walk in naked with a heavy blush on her face... Ah, that's why.
She stands there looking away cutely for a few seconds as I lift the covers for her. "Come on, Cadence." I tell her.
She shuffles on her hooves for a few seconds before slowly walking over to the bed. She yelps as a golden glow surrounds her and places her next to Shella on top of me.
Cadence looks at me with a nervous expression. I smile and lean forward and kiss her. She closes her eyes and leans into the kiss.
I pull back and continue to smile at her. "Goodnight, Cadence," I tell her.
She smiles back. "Goodnight, Adrian," she replies and rests her head on my chest with a small smile on her lips.
"Goodnight, girls," I say to the others.
"Goodnight, Adrian," they reply and we all bask in each other's company as we fall asleep.
I wake up to see Celestia, Luna, Shella, and now Cadence all cuddled up to me. I sigh and just relax.
After about seven minutes, Celestia and Luna slowly wake up. Celestia hums happily and nuzzles me. "Good morning, love," she says.
"Good morning," I reply and turn my head to kiss her.
She smiles into the kiss and then looks towards Cadence. "You should take Cadence out into Canterlot and show her a good time today. She's probably still upset about Shining Armour. This will help take her mind off it for awhile," she tells me.
I look back at Cadence and see her smiling peacefully in her sleep. I frown with a sad smile. I never intended to take her from Shining, but that's just how it happened. I just hope Shining can find someone else.
"Tis alright, Adrian. We shall help Cadence adjust. Thou just concentrate on making her happy, like thou does for us. Besides, tomorrow we have training to resume," Luna tells me and kisses my left cheek.
"Alright... what are Cadence's likes and dislikes?" I ask them.
"She likes those over the top romance novels and plays and loves to be around foals. She used to be a foalsitter, Twilight was the last foal she looked after before she took up her duties as a Princess. She doesn't have many dislikes. She doesn't like spicy food or strong alcoholic drinks, and she's not a fan of anything violent. Like those games Lulu seems to enjoy," Celestia replies. Luna giggles and pokes her tongue out at Celestia.
Hmmm, I could do the same thing I did with Celestia, only take her out to a baby store as well to look at the things there. That might cheer her up.
"Okay, I think I have an idea on what to do," I tell them. I look to the clock to see it's only five thirty.
Cadence begins to awaken after a few minutes of us just cuddling each other. "Hmmmm, this is nice," she mumbles and snuggles herself deeper into us.
I smile and arch my back, getting a few pops from it. "Come on, time to get up," I say, getting groans of protest in response.
"Don't want to," Shella says and licks my neck.
"Well we need to get ready for the day and only twenty minutes to do so," I tell them.
They sigh and grumble as we all get out of bed. Once dressed and our hairs brushed down from the bed head we got, Shella gets Mavis from her crib and we head down to the Dining Hall.
"Good morning, Adrian, your Majesties," Silk Sheets greets us with a bow.
"Good morning, Silk. How are you today?" I ask her.
She smiles at me. "I'm good thank you," she replies. "Is there anything you need me to do?" she then asks.
"Could you tidy up our room please, and after that, could you help Celestia, Luna, or Shella with anything they might need. I'll be out most of the day," I reply.
"Of course, Adrian," she says and follows us.
We enter the Dining Hall and take our seats. We order our breakfasts and Shella gets me to feed her and Mavis some of my love. Mavis giggles as I lightly stroke her cheek and a pink mist like energy flows slowly from my fingers into her. I smile as I kiss Shella and the same happens to her. I then cast a life beam at her to feed her the rest.
"Where are my parents?" I ask.
"They've gone back to Elysium to visit some of their friends. They took Jasmine with them," Celestia replies.
"Oh." Guess I've been so preoccupied lately I didn't notice.
"So what are you doing today that'll have you out most of the day?" Cadence asks.
I smile at her. "I'm taking you out on a date," I tell her.
Her eyes widen and she chokes lightly on the piece of toast she was chewing. "*Cough cough* What?" she asks after her coughing fit dies down.
"I'm taking you out on a date in Canterlot. If you're joining our herd, I want to get to know more about you," I tell her.
She blushes and smiles. "I'd love to," she replies.
We talk while we eat breakfast. Celestia will be going back to the Aries Peak assault plans, Luna will be planning out our training program, Shella will be taking court for a few hours where Luna will take over later and Silk will be helping Celestia with anything she needs.
I tell Celestia and Luna that I'll use the mirror tonight so they can talk to their parents. They haven't been able to talk to them in awhile due to me being out and the latest drama.
We finish breakfast and Cadence and I return to our room. We get changed into something more formal for our date. I wear my black suit from Luna with my sword and a pouch of three hundred bits. She wears a pale pink dress with long white gloves.
She stands in front of me with a nervous smile. "I feel like a little filly again," she tells me.
"Is that a good or bad thing?" I ask her.
"Good... I haven't felt this nervous in years," she replies, but her expression turns sad. "It reminds me of how Shiny first dated me. He tried so hard to make me happy... ended up muzzle first into a street lamp and I had to levitate him home," she tells me with a light giggle.
I chuckle at the image of that. "I bet he was embarrassed," I say.
"Oh he was, he was red faced for the rest of the day... and that's not from the bump," she tells me.
"Well then, I promise to look where I'm going. So, are you ready?" I ask her.
She checks over her dress and nodded. "Yes," she replies.
I hold out my left arm for her and she hooks her right arm around it. We walk out the room and head to the courtyard, getting some strange looks from the guards and maids we pass. We get a carriage and a couple of guards to pull it and make our way into the City.
First, we'll just take a stroll around the city and talk.
"So, Cadence. Where were you born?" I ask her.
"Oh, I was born in Cloudsdale. My family was just an average one. Not wealthy, but not poor. My mother and father ran a small general store in the City. I helped out when I wasn't in school or doing homework. I helped the ponies in my school who were having relationship issues and found I enjoyed it and got my cutie-mark. When I turned twenty, I opened up my own place where I offered advice and ideas to help others, I didn't make a lot of bits from it, but I loved my work all the same," she tells me. "It was when I turned twenty-five that I became an alicorn. Celestia was there explaining how the magic of Equus chose me as the Princess of Love... though I think I've failed in that lately," she says and sighs.
I squeeze her hand reassuringly. "From all I've heard of you, you're doing a great job," I tell her.
She smiles and squeezes my hand back. "Thank you," she replies. "What about you? Where were you born?" she asks.
"I was born in a small town called Elerune. My mother was a seamstress while my father was a member of the town guard. I was still in school myself back then, but just a little over six years ago bandits attacked the town. I saw my parents... I guess injured is what I now know is the truth, were saved by Discord and I only just met them again," I tell her.
"I've met your parents. They're very nice people," she tells me.
"Thank you. I've missed them over the years, but I'm glad to have them back," I reply with a smile.
"You should treasure them for as long as you can. I remember the day my parents died. They both passed away together in their sleep, We found them on their couch holding onto each other with smiles on their faces," she tells me with a sad smile.
"Sounds like a peaceful way to go," I reply.
"It does, but I just hope I won't have to experience it for a very long time," she says and leans against me. "So, where are we going?" she asks.
"We're going to the park first so we can walk around and get to know each other better. Then we'll go to a Café me and the others go to. Then we can do whatever you want, and after that, the next place you'll have to wait for and at the end, a nice romantic dinner," I tell her.
She smiles. "Sounds lovely," she replies.
I tell the guards pulling to take us to the park. We sit quietly and after five minutes, we arrive and the guards open the door for us.
I get out first and then hold my hand out for Cadence. She giggles and takes my hand and steps off the carriage.
I then look back at the guards. "We'll be back in an hour or so," I tell them.
They saluted and sat on a nearby bench. I hold my left arm out for Cadence and she hooks her right arm around it.
"Celestia tells me you used to babysit kids. What made you start that?" I ask her as we walk through the park.
"You mean foalsit?" she asks. I nodded. "Well, it was after I became an alicorn. I was told I'd never have my own foal unless it was with a male alicorn... which there isn't any. So I decided to foalsit, I love foals and their happy playful nature. I guess it was just the closest thing I could have to a foal at the time," she replies and then strokes her stomach. "but thanks to you, I can finally have my own," she tells me.
"I'm glad I could help. You're a kind and caring woman, I have no doubt you'll be a wonderful mother," I tell her.
She hums and leans her head on my shoulder. "Thank you. I just can't wait till I can hold the foal in my arms," she says. "What have you been doing before you came here?" she asks me.
"I travelled Reymorah doing any job I could find. Helping to clear out bandits, bodyguard, escort, healing, and anything else I could help with. I was also hunting the bandits that attacked my home, but I'll have to ask Discord what happened to them as I never found them," I reply.
"So you were like a mercenary?" she asks.
"Eh, kind of, but I didn't hurt anyone innocent or those who didn't deserve it," I reply. "What were your parents like?" I ask her.
She has a sad smile on her face. "They were very kind and tried to give me everything I wanted, which wasn't much as I was happy with my life back then, but when my business started to get financial trouble, they gave me some bits to pay my bills. As I said, I didn't earn much, but I loved my work. They kept telling me to keep at it and enjoy what I did," she tells me. "What were yours like?" she asks in return.
"My dad was strict, but still caring. He wanted me to join the guard when I grew up and we had little practice sessions in our backyard. My mom made clothing, blankets, table cloths, pillow cases, anything with cloth really. When we found out I had a gift for magic, she got me a beginners wand and I started learning the life element. I was twelve back then, I only had under two years of practice before the bandits attacked," I tell her.
"What happened to your parents?" she asks.
I sigh with a sad smile. "Dad was teaching me some new stances with a sword when they came. There were quite a lot of them for a bandit group, thirty I think. Dad told me to hide in the basement and lock it from the inside. I climbed some boxes and watched through a small window as my parents were stabbed and then dragged off. I was down there for two days crying before someone found me," I tell her.
She hugs me tightly. "I'm sorry you had to go through that," she tells me.
"It's fine, my parents are alive, I couldn't ask for more," I reply and hug her back.
We walk for a while longer and I can hear people talking.
"Is that Princess Cadenza?"
"Yeah, it is. What's she doing with the King?"
"Is she part of his herd? I thought she was with the Captain."
I see a couple sitting under a tree talking about us. Cadence looks nervous now. "Maybe we should head back..." she says.
"Ignore them. If they want to speculate, let them. It doesn't change anything," I tell her. After a few more minutes walking through the park, I speak up. "Come on. Let's go back to the carriage and head to the café. I'd like you to meet Mocha," I say to her.
She nodded and we head back to the carriage where the guards stand up and bow. "Welcome back, your Majesties," they say.
"Thank you, can you take us to the Golden Roast Café please? I'll even treat you to anything you want there," I tell them.
They grin at each other and grab the bar at the front of the carriage as I help Cadence into it. We sit down and the carriage starts moving.
After ten minutes, we arrive and enter the Café. The bell goes off and Mocha looks at us. "Adrian!.. Oh hello, Princess." Mocha greets us and bows.
"Good morning, Mocha. At least you didn't trip this time," I tease her.
She blushes slightly. "Hush you... So what can I get for you today?" she asks.
"I'd like my usual please," I reply.
"I'd like a piece of strawberry cake, a cup of jasmine tea and a small fruit salad please," Cadence says.
I look back to the two guards. "What would you two like?" I ask them.
They both ask for a sandwich, a muffin, and a coffee.
"That'll be thirty bits please," Mocha says and I hand over the coins. "Thanks, take a seat and I'll bring it over to you," she tells us and we head over to two tables. Cadence and I sit at one while the guards talk to each other at another one.
"She's nice," Cadence says.
"She can be a bit clumsy at times. Trips over herself when she's surprised or startled," I reply with a chuckle. "but very friendly."
"So what happened on Terra? I know there was a battle, but no pony told me any details," she asks me.
I tell her how the battle went and what happened, minus the gory details. "I then managed to bring down the giant and that's when I passed out. Woke up three days later," I finish.
She frowns sadly. "That sounds terrible, why would anypony want to hurt their own family?" she says.
"Those who think they're superior, stronger, or just like violence. Or for resources, position, and land. There are many things people kill over..." I reply, this isn't a good discussion for a date, time to change topic. "What do you plan to name your child when it's born?" I ask her.
"Well, a foal's name is usually given to them when they're born. Something to do with the magic of harmony," she tells me.
I frown confused. "So you just make up a name when they're born?" I ask.
"Not really, the name just comes to both parents. We're still not sure why that is," she replies.
"Huh... Well, what ever their name is, I'm sure your child will be as beautiful as their mother," I say.
She smiles and blushes slightly. "Our daughter you mean," she tells me.
"Daughter?" I ask with surprise.
"MmmHmmm. I went for a check up two days ago. It's an earth pony filly, with alicorn magic but the same kind of magic as you... Just like Tia's foal," she tells me.
So I have two daughters and a son? I wonder what Luna will have. I smile at Cadence and squeeze her hand.
Our food arrives and we thank Mocha. We dig in as Cadence tells me what she's been doing the last three days. She's been talking with Celestia about their pregnancies and what their babies will look like. Fur, eye, and hair colours. Celestia gave her advice on what to expect in the next few weeks from her own pregnancy.
"I see," I say and finish my tea. "Well then, if you're ready. Shall we go?" I ask and stand next to her holding my hand out.
She takes my hand and I help her up. "Thank you," she says.
I head over to the counter and give Mocha twenty bits as a tip. She thanks me and the guards follow us out.
We get in the carriage and I ask her where she would like to go. "I'd like to go see a play," she tells me.
The guards take us to the Theater where we're taken to the royal box where we sit down and wait for the play to start, it's some kind of romance and action thing. Something about an ex-guard turning bandit and the love between said bandit and a noble woman.
The actors take their place on a set that looks like a forest. A small carriage with bags and chests on the roof is pulled along with some noble looking unicorn woman in it. They're ambushed by some people in green tunics or leather like armour with swords and bows.
They defeat the guards by knocking them out as the earth pony leader named Silver Shield opens the carriage door.
"Please don't kill me," the woman begs him as the men take the bags and chests off the carriage.
Silver just chuckles. "Perish the thought, m'lady," he says and holds her hand. He slips off her middle ring and lightly kisses the back of her hand. "A gentlecolt such as myself would never harm such a beautiful rose," he tells her.
She blushes as he smiles at her before leaving her with the rest of her valuables still on her.
Silver and his men run off into the forest with their pilfered goods as the woman watches them leave, still with a blush on her face.
Three Hours Later
Silver runs past the guards in a mansion trying to catch him. He parries and dodges their swords with his own, laughing at them.
The noble woman named Eloquence is chasing after them. "Stop! Please don't hurt him!" she shouts.
The guards corner Silver at the end of a hallway with only a window. "We got you now scum," a guard says to him.
Eloquence slips past them and hugs Silver. "Take me with you," she says to him.
"Are you sure, m'lady?" he asks her.
"Yes, I love you," she replies and they kiss each other.
"M'lady! Step away from him!" a guard tells her.
Silver just grins. "Hold on tight," he tells her and then jumps out the window.
She screams as they fall and seconds later, two pegasi catch them and they fly off towards the forest.
The last scene shows Eloquence wearing a similar outfit to the bandits and shows them robbing another carriage together with smiles on their faces.
The curtains close and I frown... that was certainly not the ending I was expecting.
Cadence sighs. "It's so romantic that she would give up her nobility just to be with him," she says.
"I was expecting them to... you know... settle down, start a family. Not her becoming a bandit as well," I tell her.
"I guess the director wanted to do something different," she says and stretches her limbs. "So... what's next?" she asks.
"I'm going to take you to somewhere I think you'd like," I tell her.
We leave the Theater and I walk up to the guards and whisper to them to take us to the baby store, they nodded and I help Cadence into the carriage. People watch our carriage go by as Cadence leans against me while looking out the window.
I notice she has a sad smile. "Is something wrong?" I ask her.
She sighs and looks at me. "Just remembering the time Shiny took me out," she replies.
"I'm sorry about Shining, I really didn't mean to break you two apart," I tell her.
"We knew this could happen... auntie Tia told me they didn't find a mate because they would just out live them... but I wanted to find love, I wanted it so badly... I'm the alicorn of Love and I found it hard to find it myself," she says and looks me in the eyes. "I just hope I have this time," she tells me.
I give her a light kiss. "Don't worry, I'll try to make you and the others as happy as I can," I tell her.
The carriage stops and I help her out. She gasps when she sees the store. "Why are we here?" she asks.
"I'm going to pay for anything you want to get for our daughter," I reply.
She smiles widely and pulls me into the store. For the next hour she looks around and gets a pink crib, a few different pink full body outfits she called a onesie, and some toys to start with.
I paid for them and loaded them into the carriage. For our next stop, we head to a fancy restaurant called 'The Golden Bell'. Canterlot sure likes stores with Golden in it's name. I open the door for her and we both enter. Everyone inside stops what they're doing and stares at us as a waiter quickly makes his way over to us.
"Your Majesties, welcome to The Golden Bell. We have an empty private table if you want it," he tells us with a bow.
"Yes please," I reply.
He leads us into the back with all eyes still on us. We enter the room with a circular table with four chairs around it. I pull a chair out for Cadence and she thanks me.
"Here are your menus," the waiter says and hands them to us. We look through them and pick our meals. "I will be back with your order in a few minutes," he tells us and leaves.
We chat while we wait for our food and she sighs. "I've just thought about what Twilight will think of us..." she says.
Oh yeah, Twilight is Shining's sister... I'm not looking forward to that conversation.
"We'll deal with that when the time comes... right now, let's just enjoy ourselves," I tell her.
Our food arrives and we chat while we eat. "What are you doing tomorrow?" she asks me.
"I'll begin my training with Luna and to harness Mother Gaia's power," I reply.
"Who is Mother Gaia?" she asks confused.
I show her the back of my left hand. "She's the aspect of the life element and she's in this orb on my hand," I reply.
She looks surprised. "How did she get in there?" she asks and I tell her what Gaia told me. "I see. So when you master her power, you're going to help regrow her forest?" she asks.
"That's the plan, but I got a feeling Grogar will be needing to be taken out before hand," I tell her and finish my meal. "Ahhh, that was good," I say.
I wait a few minutes sipping my cider while she finishes hers.
She puts down her fork and looks at me with worry. "Adrian... I need to tell you something," she says.
"What?" I ask with a raised brow.
"I've started getting these cravings for... meat... like auntie Tia," she tells me nervously.
"I see, and have you talked to Tia about it?" I ask her.
"No... not yet. I wanted to get your opinion first," she replies.
"Well as far as what I've seen from Tia, it's not harmful to you. I could catch some fish later and you can try some. Since I can eat meat, I'm guessing our children will be able to as well," I tell her.
She looks a bit queasy at that. "Do I have to?" she asks.
I give her a sad smile. "Most likely. I need a source of protein to stay healthy. So I think the ba... foals, will need it too," I reply.
She rubs her stomach and sighs. "Alright, I'll try it. If it helps keep our foal healthy," she tells me.
I lean over and hold her hand. "You'll be fine. Come on, let's pay for the meal and head back to the Castle," I tell her and we get up. We head back into the main room where everyone stares at us again. I pay for the meal with a tip and we go back to the Castle.
The guards drop us off in the courtyard and then take the carriage away after we thank them and I take Cadence's baby stuff out of it.
Cadence then turns to me and smiles. "Thank you for the date, it was fun," she tells me.
"You're welcome. I'll take these up to the baby room," I say and lift the box with the crib in it over my shoulder. "What are you going to do now?" I ask her.
"I'll probably go and keep auntie Tia company," she tells me and kisses me.
I return the kiss and smile. "Alright, If any of you need me. I'll be in our room talking to Mother Gaia," I tell her and make my way to the Castle doors.
"Okay. I'll see you tonight," she says.
I head up to our room and place the box in the baby room, along with the toys and clothes. Once placed, I return to the bedroom and lay on the bed.
I then tap the life orb on my hand. 'Gaia, what would I have to expect when I start training to control your power?' I ask her.
The orb lights up in response. 'It will be similar to how you channel your elements, except it will be much more intense and you'll need to focus a lot more, and this time, I won't be guiding you like I did against the giant,' she tells me.
Hmmm, doesn't sound too hard. I'm guessing it might just take time and practice.
'Thanks. I can't wait to get started,' I reply.
'If you thought it's going to be easy, think again. Starswirl took six months just to master my power,and mine is the safest to learn,' she tells me.
Well... bugger.
Two Hours Later
The others enter the bedroom looking tired, After Shella put Mavis in her crib, they cuddle up to me and Celestia levitates the mirror over to us. I smile and open the connection to Solaris and Galaxia.
They congratulate Cadence on joining the herd and she blushes. She was also excited to meet Celestia and Luna's parents for the first time as well.
After a good thirty minutes of just idle chit chat, they say their goodnights and Celestia puts the mirror in a safe box they had placed in the room to keep it safe and hidden. I would too if it was the only method of contacting my parents... Although we could just get another mirror from Terra if we had to.
Once we were all settled down, we all slowly fall asleep.
Terracana Chapter 54: The Power of an Aspect Part 1
Aspect Training Day 1
After waking up and getting ready for the day. Celestia sent a letter to Twilight and her friends to see if they would like to come and watch. Knowing Twilight, she wouldn't miss this chance to see a new kind of magic.
We all head out to the Training Grounds after breakfast. I'm in my armour, minus the helmet, standing in an open area with everyone else a good ten metres away. Cadence looks nervous standing next to Twilight, who has a notebook and quill ready.
Shining Armour is also here but over with the other guards and doing his best not to look our way...
Discord is also here grinning like an idiot, with some kind of giant white hand clenched shut on his right hand with '#1' on the index finger that's pointing up and waving a little flag with 'Go Adrian Go' written on it with his left... He even has a shirt with my face on it...
I ignore him and tap the orb on the back of my hand. 'Okay, Gaia. What's the first thing I do?' I ask her.
I yelp as she appears in front of me. "First, I will connect my power to you, in which you shall take on your aspect form, just like when you fought the giant. You will then feel my mana flowing into you," she tells me. I just stare at her with wide eyes. "Ah yes, this is just an astral projection of myself. While I can use my power myself in this form, it is only one-tenth of my full power, but channelled through you, it brings out it's full potential," she tells me.
"She's right," Discord says. "Even my power was greatly reduced in my astral form. It's why I was mostly only able to watch over you and intervene when necessary," he tells me.
"Alright. So what do I do once you channel your mana into me?" I ask Gaia.
"Once you have taken your aspect form, you will need to gather both your's and my mana and mix them together. Once done, you just need to cast the spell like you normally would for the life element. Once you have gotten used to this, I shall then teach you how to grow plants and control them," she tells me.
"Okay... let's do this," I say and close my eyes.
"I'm now channelling my mana. Don't resist it, just let it flow within you," she tells me and I feel her mana pushing against me. I tense up and frown, this feels strange. "You need to relax," she tells me.
I take a deep breath and exhale slowly a few times, I feel myself relax and calm down. I can feel something on the back of my neck moving and I open my eyes to see vines crawl over my armour with white flowers on them. I then feel something wrap around the top of my head, I reach up and feel flowers overlapping my crown.
I look around and everything looks different. I can see the energy of the world around me, in the plants and birds flying by, in the people around me. My wives and Cadence all have the strongest glow around them followed by Twilight. I notice Twilight writing in her book with wide eyes.
"Whoa..." I mutter. I notice my voice has a slight echo sound to it.
"Good, you now have access to my power. You need to gather mana from both of us and mould it into your hand or chest. From your hand, you can cast beams, projectiles, or waves. A wave is like a wall that pushes outwards from you and looks like an ocean wave. From your chest, you can cast it as a nova, or a self cast," she tells me.
I look at my right hand and flex my fingers a couple of times. I close my eyes and gather some of my mana into my hand. I then feel for Gaia's mana for a few minutes to get used to having it there. I frown and try to gather some of it.
"Don't force it, take your time and get used to the feeling," she tells me.
I stop and just keep feeling it within me. I sit down on the ground and spend thirty minutes just getting used to it, feeling and pulling at it to test it's limits. Twilight asks what's happening but is shushed instantly.
Once I feel comfortable enough, I gather my mana again and some of Gaia's slowly. I then try to merge them both like I would with two elements. I can feel them mix, but it quickly breaks apart and a visible mist of green mana expels from my hand and fades into the air.
"Not bad for a first attempt, try again," Gaia tells me with an encouraging tone.
I gather the mana again and mix them. I continue trying over the next hour, some stabilising longer than others.
After the fortieth try, I finally I get it stable. "Good," Gaia says. "Aim at one of the targets over there," she tells me while pointing to a target board down the spell range. "To fire it as a projectile you need to just release the mana outward without channelling anymore into it." She tells me.
I aim my palm at the target and release the mana. My arm recoils from the force as a ball of green energy with a thin trail soars down the range and hits the fourth ring and explodes in a mist.
"Very good," she says and smiles. "Now try a beam. To form a beam, do the same as a projectile, but just keep pouring mana into the spell," she tells me.
I merge the mana together again and aim at the target. I release the spell and pour more mana into it. It lasts for a few seconds before breaking apart again.
"Not bad. You did better than Starswirl did on his first try, but you need to practice merging our mana together some more. For the next two hours, I want you to practice mixing our mana together," she tells me.
I sit down and begin practising. Twilight walks over and starts asking Gaia questions like what she is, how old she is, what can her magic do and so on. I also notice one of the flowers on the vines is starting to wilt.
Two Hours Later
After a couple of hours more of practising to mix our mana together, I can now keep them together for a good five seconds. Not much but it's a start and I still got plenty of time to get better at it.
"Alright, Adrian. We'll stop for today, if you haven't noticed, the white flowers on your vines represent my mana," she tells me. I look to see eighteen out of twenty of them are wilted. "When all the flowers wilt. I can no longer help you and must rest. The reason I'm almost out already is because you still wasted a lot of mine and your mana while merging them," she informs me.
"I see. So how would I go about not wasting it?" I ask her.
"We shall begin that lesson tomorrow, but right now, don't you and Queen Luna have a 'date' to attend," she tells me and giggles.
Date? What date?.. Oh, does she mean our training session together?
I smile at her. "Ah yes, thank you for reminding me," I reply. The vines begin retracting to the back of my neck, but it doesn't feel like it's going inside me. Like there's some kind of portal there.
I feel Gaia's mana is now gone. "Thank you for the lesson, Gaia. I'm looking forward to tomorrow's as well," I say to her, my tone back to normal.
"You're welcome, now I must go and rest. I shall see you tomorrow, Adrian," she tells me a fades away. The orb on my hand turns dull.
I then turn to Luna "Are you ready for our training, Luna?" I ask her.
She smiles and nodded. "We are, but first, we will have lunch and then kick thy flank across the dirt," she replies.
I laugh and we head inside for lunch.
After lunch, Luna did as she said and kicked my ass in training, but I'm getting better and getting more hits on her as well.
"That was good, Adrian. Thou art getting better," Luna tells me.
"Thanks, but I think that'll be all for today before I lose feeling in my legs," I reply and cast a healing spell on myself. Luna bashed the shit out of my thighs and shins, despite the armour.
"ADRIAN!" I hear Twilight yell at me with anger in her tone.
I look towards the Castle and see her stomping towards me with a deep frown and glaring at me with Cadence trying to stop her... Ah shit.
"How could you break Cadence and my Brother apart!" she yells at me. Ignoring Cadence's pleas.
I look to Luna who shrugs and then back at Twilight. "That was actually their choice, Twilight. Shining thought Cadence would be better off with someone who could stay by her side after she admitted she loves me. It wasn't my intention to break them up, but that's just what happened," I tell her.
"But they love each other!" she yells again.
Cadence places her hand on Twilight's shoulder. "Twilight, I do love Shiny... but, I'm scared of the day he will die and I'll remain... I'm scared of never loving again... or choosing to follow Shiny into the afterlife from the depression... Adrian is a kind, caring, and gentle person. He's given me what I've been waiting thirty years for," she tells her and places her hands on her stomach.
Twilight frowns with a pout. "But... what about Shiny? I noticed him looking at you sadly a few times during Adrian's training," she says.
"I know, but we've agreed to remain friends... I do miss being with him, and we both knew this could happen. Even after the warnings auntie Tia gave me," Cadence replies.
Twilight sighs and looks back and walks up to me as she glares at me with a frown again. She looks more adorable than scary when she only comes up to my chest. "You better look after Cadence like your life depended on it then!" she tells me.
"Don't worry, Twilight. I'll treat her just like I do the others," I tell her.
"Good," she says and sighs. "Sorry about shouting at you... it was just seeing Shiny not his usual self that set me off," she tells me.
"I'll see if Shining wants to go out for a drink in a few days, maybe some fishing," I reply. "but right now, I've worked up an appetite," I say and my stomach rumbles. "Are you going to join us, Twilight?" I ask her.
They giggle at me and she nodded, we then head back inside.
Aspect Training Day 30
Over the last month, I've been practising with merging mine and Gaia's mana. I can now hold it for a good twenty seconds before It breaks apart.
I'm also getting better with mana efficiency and not wasting as much anymore... but not good enough yet according to Gaia.
Twilight and the others went back to Ponyville three weeks ago. Blueblood and Fleur have also been taking trips to Ponyville to visit Rarity.
Shella just laid her eggs two days ago. She's also told me the hatchlings back at the Hive have found families and are growing up well. She's now taking a break from laying eggs for at least a month now.
There's been another attack from the gryphons. This time with a larger group of twenty, but thanks to the mages we got from Terra, they were taken out with only two losses.
We've also got reports of undead along the borders of the Badlands. We've sent some mages with earth pony guards to protect them and pegasi snipers to check the area and take down any they see. Even letters from the minotaurs and cervine were arriving with news of undead attacking them as well. A meeting with all the Alliance leaders will be held in Canterlot within two weeks.
I took Shining out with some other guards for a fishing trip. He was feeling a bit depressed, and I don't blame him, but apparently, he and Silk Sheets bumped into each other and knocked each other over, Silk was on top of Shining and found herself straddling him by accident. She told me she was so embarrassed from it, but he was very polite and even apologised to her. During our fishing, Shining told me she was actually rather cute and would like to see her again. I told him if he likes her, then go and just talk to her.
I brought back some fish for Celestia, Cadence, and I. At dinner, Cadence looked at the cooked fish with a cringe and took a tiny bit with her fork and hesitantly ate it. After chewing it for a bit, her expression softened and her eyes widened. She said it was surprisingly tasty and ate the rest.
Luna and I trained together every evening at the Training Grounds and in the Gym where Celestia and Cadence joined us for a light workout as well.
Cadence is getting used to sleeping with us as she and Celestia now sleep to my left and right to keep pressure off their stomachs. Shella and Luna take turns sleeping on top of me while the other cuddles up to Celestia or Cadence.
Cadence has started to have her morning sickness. I was surprised it took so long before she started feeling it, but I helped her every morning by rubbing her back which she appreciated.
I've taken my wives and Cadence out on another date and we all did one thing they each wanted to do. We all had a pleasant time and grew closer together.
We wake up and we go through our morning routine. A new desk has been added to the room for Cadence to brush her hair at and keep her grooming utensils on.
Shella gets Mavis and I greet my giggling daughter. Her hair is growing longer and so is her horn. Once we're all ready, I head back out with Luna for more aspect training.
Gaia and I are in an open area and continuing to practise with merging mana and mana efficiency. I'm sitting on the ground with my eyes closed and feeling the two manas within me.
Halfway through, I hear someone running towards us. "My Queen. Undead are attacking the border town of Whinniesberg," the voice of a female tells Luna.
I open my eyes and see a guard holding a scroll out to Luna. She takes the scroll and opens it up.
She reads it and frowns. "We see, prepare the two remaining airships and gather as many of the Terran mages as you can get on board," she tells her.
"So we're going to defend the town?" I ask her. That echoing tone still present.
"Yes, and with thy new power, thou shalt be effective in protecting the town from the undead," she replies.
Terracana Chapter 55: The Power of an Aspect Part 2
It took about an hour to gather enough mages and guards together, but now we're flying towards Whinniesberg, I hope we make it in time. The Galleon has been repaired since the orc battle on Terra.
The flight only took an hour or so at full speed. I can see the town and hear the screams from up here. There's a human down there firing beams of life energy at the five hundred or so undead attacking the town with some guards protecting her, but they're completely outnumbered. I can also see some people being eaten by the swarm.
Not waiting for the ship to land, I cast my fast gliding wings and jump over the side. Luna follows behind me along with ten pegasi snipers.
I land beside the mage who yelps from my sudden appearance. "Oh bloody hell! Don't scare me like that! I'm shitting myself enough as it is!" she yells at me and fires another life beam into the advancing swarm.
"Sorry, but we're here to help," I reply and face my right palm at the swarm.
She looks at me strangely due to the echo in my voice. "Well thanks! I'll welcome all the help I can get!" she says.
I channel mine and Gaia's mana into my hand and start firing off bolt after bolt of life energy at the undead.
Arcane energy violently blasts out of the undead when hit, also blowing off their limbs and chunks of flesh. What has me worried is that there are some Terran races amongst them.
I fire off a beam and slowly sweep it across the front of the swarm. Their screeches echo throughout the town as they begin dropping to the ground.
'Focus, Adrian. You're wasting mana again. Relax and cast your spells slowly,' Gaia tells me.
'Alright,' I reply.
I gather the mana slowly this time cast bolt after bolt at them. The pegasi snipers are shooting at their heads from the air.
"We must admit, these guns are so much more effective than a bow or crossbow," Luna says as she watches the snipers.
Over the next hour, I just kept shooting bolts and beams into the swarm as we're being pushed back slowly. Though, with as many of them as there are, they're getting closer.
'You'll have to use a wave. Remember, gather mana in both of your hands and then just push it out in front of you.' Gaia tells me.
I do as she says and gather the mana in both of my hands. Once I've gathered a significant amount, I push the mana out. The energy expands and rolls down the road towards the swarm like an ocean wave.
It hits the swarm and the gods awful noise they let out as it washes over fifty of them deafens us. I open my eyes once it died down and look at the swarm. Only half of the original horde remain, but from the training this morning and the mana I've pumped out so far, only three of the twenty flowers are left.
More grotesque noises sound out around us as undead pour out from the alleyways and surround us.
"Oh shit. What do we do?" the mage asks with fear in her tone. I can see the staff in her hands shaking.
I can hear the sounds of life magic being cast to our left and see the ten mages we brought with us trying to carve their way through to us, but they're moving slowly, even with the guards protecting them.
'You're going to have to use the rest of my mana and cast a large nova, but there is a chance you'll be hurt doing it as you are not yet accustomed to using so much power,' Gaia tells me.
'I haven't done a nova that big before... even during our training and the one I did in Terra was with your help,' I reply.
'You have no choice. You either cast a nova, or you get overwhelmed. I don't have the mana to assist you right now, and there's a high chance you will pass out or worse if I try,' she tells me firmly.
I look to Luna who's firing bolts of her own magic at the swarm. 'Fine,' I reply and gather as much mana into my chest as I can. Once I gathered it, I release the mana with a shout and a blast of life energy engulfs the area around us for a good twenty metres. I can feel a strain in my chest and cry out in pain as the vines wilt and drop off.
I kneel on the floor and grasp my head as a large headache begins to start. Luna is instantly beside me.
"Adrian! Are thou alright?" she asks.
I look up at her. "I'm fine... just a headache," I tell her.
I glance around to see only a few of the undead still moving, but the guards and mages are making quick work of them.
"Hahahahahahaaa. So, you are the one interfering with my plans," a voice that sounds like they've got water in their throat to our right says.
I look to see an undead pony man grinning at me with blood dripping out of his mouth. Most of his flesh on the floor and arcane energy leaking out of him. "Who are you?" I ask.
"I am Grogar Vilethorn, and you have been causing trouble for me as of late. If I wasn't so drained from my escape from that infernal stone prison those two wenches put me in, I would have dealt with you myself. You may have defended Elysium from destruction for now, but it won't be standing for much longer," he replies and glares at Luna. "I shall take great pleasure in turning you and your sister's corpses into my loyal servants," he says with a chuckle that sounds more like he's choking.
Luna glares angrily at him. "We defeated thee before! We shall do it again!" she tells him.
"My power was weakened by that damned mage Starswirl when I was banished here, and I only had a small army of undead back then little girl. This time, not even you, your sister, that mismatched abomination, or that child will stop me now," he says, pointing at me when he said child. "Both Terra and this world shall fall before me!" he says and the undead man just drops to the floor unmoving.
I glare at the body while Luna holds me up. I feel like jelly right now.
The other mages and guards arrive and surround us. I lazily look around and see just a few undead shambling towards us with various wounds and missing limbs.
I start to feel light headed and my vision begins to blur. I'm also panting lightly.
'Adrian, don't use anymore of your mana. Casting that nova has left your mana in a state of flux. If you should try to cast a spell now... it could tear you apart,' Gaia warns me.
Well shit. 'And how do I fix it?' I ask her.
'You can't, you'll have to wait until I've recovered enough mana and I'll repair the damage. So just get some rest and let your body relax, it will calm the fluctuation down,' she tells me.
I sigh and close my eyes. 'Alright, thank you,' I reply and fall asleep.
POV: Luna
Adrian goes limp in my arms and I begin to panic, but I sigh and calm down once I hear and feel him still breathing.
'Thank our stars, he's just sleeping,' I think to myself and teleport his armour back to the ship. I then lift him up and we walk back to the ship as the guards and mages stay behind and comb the town for any more undead.
I place Adrian on the bed in our cabin and tuck him in the sheets, he's just sleeping peacefully.
I smile and kiss his forehead. "Rest well, our love," I say to him and head back out to the town.
I help the town with clearing the dead and keeping watch as the mages use their life elements to heal the wounded.
After a few hours, I have dinner and then check up on Adrian. He's still asleep and I just snuggle up beside him and get some sleep myself.
The Next Morning
I wake up next to Adrian who is still sleeping. The clean up is going well and I've requested supplies and builders from Canterlot to repair the town. I've also told my herd mates what has happened.
For the next six hours, we clean up the roads of debris and corpses. Sixty-two ponies died and two-hundred more injured during the attack. Grogar will pay for this pointless massacre once we get our hands on him! And this time, we won't just simply seal him away.
I checked up on Adrian every hour, only to find him still asleep. I'm starting to get worried about him. I head up to our cabin and lay beside him, I then place my arms around him and rest my horn on his head. I channel my magic and enter his dream.
I open my eyes to see a lush looking forest with a pond in the middle as wildlife is running around carefree and ignoring me.
I see Adrian laying on the grass with Mother Gaia kneeling beside him. Her hands are glowing green above his chest.
"There, the fluctuations have ceased. You should be able to cast your spells again with no ill effects," she tells him.
"Thank you, Gaia," he replies and sits up. He stretches his arms and then stands up.
"You're welcome. Just take the next couple of days to rest as you will most likely feel weak when you wake up," she tells him.
"Alright," he says with a smile. I can feel him start to rouse, so I exit his dream.
POV: Adrian
I yawn as I wake up. I slowly raise my right hand and channel a single life element into it. Feels just fine, but I feel like I've ran for hours non-stop.
"Adrian, art thou feeling well?" I hear Luna ask me.
I look to my left and see her hugging me. "I'm fine, I just feel tired," I reply and she nuzzles me.
"That's good, thou hast been asleep for a whole day. We were getting worried," she tells me.
I smile and kiss her lightly. "I'm sorry for making you worry," I tell her.
"Thou art fine now, tis all that matters," she says and cuddles up to me.
I sigh and hug her closely. "How is the town?" I ask.
"A lot of ponies died and many more injured, but the town is being repaired as we speak," she tells me with a sad tone.
"I see," I say and frown.
So Grogar is truly out there and getting stronger by the day, and he said Elysium has only escaped destruction for now... does he plan to attack it again? I'll have to warn Vortigan... perhaps I should visit him and see how he's doing lately... wait, does this make him the master Orthos mentioned? It would make sense, only a large group of necromancers could raise a giant, but he may be able to do it by himself.
Luna and I just lay here for some time, enjoying each other's company. After a while, we get up and head out for lunch. Luna helps me up and lets me lean against her as I don't trust my legs just yet.
The Next Day / 6:15 PM
The supplies Luna called for have arrived along with the builders. My muscles still ache, but I can now walk on my own just fine now. I've just been reading a book about zebrican magic while laying on the bed. I wonder if it's true that they can speak with the dead...
The door opens and Luna walks in with a sigh. "You okay?" I ask her.
She smiles at me and flops onto the bed with her head on my lap. "We art fine. Just a lot of organising had to be done, but we are done here now and the rest can be managed on its own. We have left six of the mages and some of the guards here just in case any more undead are still here or arrive," she tells me.
"So we can go back to the Castle now?" I ask.
She giggles. "Yes, we can go home now," she says and gets up. "We shall inform the helmspony to depart," she leaves the room and I go back to reading.
A few minutes later, she returns and cuddles up to me. I put the book down and return the affection.
One hour and forty minutes later
We arrive at the Castle and dock the ship. Luna and I head back to our room where Celestia, Shella, and Cadence are all waiting for us sitting on the bed. I can hear Mavis babbling to herself in her room. I smile and walk over to them and lay on the bed. I'm then swarmed by them as they all start massaging me.
"What brought this on then?" I ask them with a relaxed smile.
"Luna told us of what you did to protect Whinniesberg from the undead. This is just our thanks for risking your own life to protect our ponies," Celestia replies and then slaps me lightly on the forehead. "And that's for making us worried sick about you afterwards," she tells me.
I chuckle as lean up and kiss her softly. "I'm sorry about that, but Gaia told me it was either that, or... all of us die," I tell her.
"Well. It turned out for the best, but it doesn't mean I can't worry for our mate," she replies and sits on my lap. Her horn glows and her clothing is gone. "and I want to feel the touch of my mate," she says seductively and licks her lips at me.
The others also remove their clothing and for the next few hours, they all took turns having their way with me.
Training Day 31
I've rested for two days where my parents said they were proud of me saving the town, but I could see the relief in their eyes at my safe return. They've also adopted Jasmine during the last two weeks, she goes everywhere with them and they treat her like a daughter... I guess that would make her my little sister now.
Gaia told me once I'm rested that we'll begin my training for growing and controlling plants, and the first was growing them. With her help, I'll even be able to alter the structure of a seed to change what it'll grow as but she said that isn't for a long while yet.
I went to the archives to look for a book on flowers. I spent three hours looking and found what I was looking for, a book on rare or extinct flowers. I'm planning to grow a rare flower each for my wives and Cadence. I can't wait to see the look on Luna's face when I give her an extinct Moon Lily, a Solar Rose for Celestia, a Sapphire Orchid for Shella and a Passion Tulip for Cadence.
After washing up and breakfast eaten, I feel normal again, so I'm now standing in the field in my aspect form near the Training Grounds to begin the next lesson in my life aspect training.
Gaia is floating a foot off the floor to my left. "Today, we shall begin your training in the control of plant life, but first we shall start with simply growing a flower," she tells me. She presses a seed into the soil and places her hand on the ground. It glows with a faint green aura and a sunflower sprouts out of the dirt and grows as tall as me.
She then turns to me and holds her hand out, on her palm are some seeds. "Take these and plant one. Once done, you simply need to pour our mana into the seed and help it grow," she tells me.
I do as she told me and press a seed into the dirt. I then place my right hand on the ground just in front of it. I gather both our mana and mix them together. Once done, I pour it into the ground and to the seed.
The sunflower begins to grow, but half way through, it starts to wilt and dry out.
"Can you tell me what you did wrong?" Gaia asks me.
I frown and look at my right palm, I flex my fingers in thought. What did I do wrong? "Did I use too much mana?" I ask.
She smiles and nodded. "Correct. The amount of mana you used would be required to grow a small tree. You basicly grew the flower too fast and it died. Try using only a fifth of what you just did and pour the mana in slowly," she tells me.
I repeat the steps and place my palm in front of the planted seed. I pour only a portion of the mana I did before and the plant starts to grow slowly. It took me a whole minute, but now the sunflower is standing tall and healthy. I hear the gasps of my lovers as they watch from a few metres away.
"Much better, simply growing plants is the easy part. Making them move is the true test, but first, I want you to grow each and every one of those seeds in your hand for practice," she tells me.
Terracana Chapter 56: The Power of an Aspect Part 3
I spent the next two hours growing the sunflower seeds one by one. I wilted two of them, but I think I'm getting the hang of it.
"Very good," Gaia says. "Now that you know how to grow them, you now have to learn how to move them," she tells me.
"And how do I do that?" I ask.
"Sit in front of one of the flowers and close your eyes. Try to feel the life force of the flower," she tells me and holds her right hand out to a sunflower. To our surprise, it uprooted itself and began 'walking' on it's thick roots. It walked over to Celestia who was staring at it with wide eyes. Using its two leaves like arms, it bowed to her.
Jasmine and my parents laugh as Celestia returned the bow with a small one of her own and an amused expression. The flower then turns around and walks back to the spot it grew from and replants itself.
"Feeling for it's connection is the hardest part. It took Starswirl two long months to find the connection, it then took him four more months mastering it," Gaia tells me.
I sigh and get right to it.
Training Day 37
Over the last week, I've been practising with feeling for the flowers life force. With very very little progress. Although I can see it, I just can't feel it. I've also been practising more with mana efficiency and casting. Luna and I have been training with each other some more in the evenings and I'm getting better with my sword and shield.
Shining has finally asked Silk if she would like to join him for lunch. She blushed and stuttered a few times, but with some conflicting emotions as she looked back at me, I nodded at her with a smile. She agreed and they went together into the city. I don't know how it went, but by the happy smile on Shining's face, I can guess it went well.
I visited Vortigan and his family for dinner at his Castle with my lovers. He tells me Orthos has been sighted leaving the borders of Reymorah, but all traces of him have been lost, as if he just up and vanished.
The Lapis Hive has grown some more and even some ponies have moved in with them. Shella's hatchlings have also been adopted by other changelings and are growing nicely... but we've been told some of Chrysalis's changelings have been sensed nearby faintly before disappearing. We've sent some more guards down there to beef up their security.
Cadence and Celestia's stomachs are getting noticeably bigger, Celestia more so, and people are gossiping about it. Some are excited and can't wait to see the royal foals, while others just don't care or hate the thought.
Mom, dad, and Jasmine are heading back to Terra to meet some friends and catch up with their work. Mom still makes clothing, which she and Rarity have been talking to each other about, trading ideas and designs. Dad just helps around her shop and does the heavy lifting, accounting, and stock checks.
Ponyville has been peaceful and quiet, though a couple of changelings have moved to live there. A life crystal has also been set up in Ponyville, under heavy guard though.
Shella has also been getting bigger. She tells me she's carrying six eggs this time, and that something strange has happened that should be impossible... one of them is a Princess, just like Mavis. She told me that shouldn't be possible as a Queen can only lay one princess egg every one hundred years. Celestia believes it's the magic that's within me that may be the cause, or the fact that she's so well fed, it might be speeding up the process as she has a lot more energy than Chrysalis does.
After a tiring day of training and little progress with the plant control. We just get into bed and fall asleep in each others embrace.
I open my eyes and notice my lovers are gone. I'm also not in our room anymore. I sit up and look around, I'm in some sort of ancient looking hall. Moss and vines cover and hang from the worn stone walls and ceiling, a pool of clear still water is in the middle of the room and I'm wearing my casual clothes as well.
A snort to my left gets my attention. I look up to see a towering being covered in flames with only two bright eyes on it's face. It has no legs but a small trail of flames as it hovers above the floor. Its hair looks like the flames you would see on a campfire and It's arms are also folded across its broad chest, just staring at me.
"So this is the mortal we must make a contract with?" It asks in a deep male voice.
I only just notice Gaia standing next to him. "Yes, you've been watching him and with the looming threat to both his and our world, you know we must," she replies to him.
"Yes, I know of who threatens us, but why must we choose this weak child? He is nothing like his ancestor," the being of flame says.
I frown slightly at that. I'm still learning dammit!
"That may be true," Gaia says. Gee, thanks. "but he hasn't had the practice and training Starswirl had," she tells him.
Whilst they argue with each other, I look around and notice a few more entities looking at me. There are three others.
One looks like a woman made of pure clear water, she's wearing a dress that looks like it's made from seaweed and seashells, and her hair looks like a flowing river that fades away at the end.
The next looks like a golem made of stone and earth, two diamonds for eyes with moss growing on the top of it's shoulders and head. Vines hang from it's face, making it look like a beard.
And the last one, my eyes almost pop out of my head. It looks like skeleton in a tattered black robe holding a very morbid looking scythe. The pole is made of four arms, one holding the next, the fourth arm is holding a skull with a blade coming out of the mouth. It's eyes are also glowing a familiar red and black.
I then look back to the still arguing Gaia and fire being. "Where am I?" I ask with confusion.
Gaia turns from the living flame and looks at me. "You are in the Hall of the Aspects... spiritually of course," she replies.
"Okay... and why am I here?" I ask.
The flame being speaks up. "Those gathered wish to see your quality ourselves. The others either don't care or are busy right now," he replies.
"Alright... what do I have to do?" I ask and stand up.
"For my test. I wish to see if you can handle my power before any training or practice. If you can keep yourself from dying, I'll accept a contract with you," he tells me.
Gaia sighs. "Infernus, why must you always use the most dangerous test of them all?" she asks him with a glare.
"Simple, I shall not aid those I deem unworthy. Unlike you who would settle for a promise that may never come to pass," he replies to her.
They start arguing again, but my attention is pulled to the being now standing beside me. I look up to see the robed skeleton just staring at me.
"You certainly have great potential young one," he tells me in a cold emotionless voice. Just the tone of it gives me chills.
"Erm... thank you," I reply.
"I am the Arcane Aspect. Arcanum Mortis," he tells me and holds out a bony hand.
I take his hand and shake it. "Adrian Stormsword," I reply.
He chuckles, but there's no emotion behind it... very creepy. "We all know who you are, descendant of Starswirl," he says.
"So why are you here?" I ask.
He looks at the still arguing Aspects. "I simply wish to correct a mistake I've made. Before I even met Starswirl, I was contracted to another... Grogar," he tells me. I go wide eyed and he sighs. "Yes, I am responsible for the monster that now plagues Terra and Equus."
"Why?" I ask.
"He wanted to understand why such an element as mine exists. I too wished to know why such a dark and tainted energy such as my own existed. So I made a contract with him, to work together to discover why. As the years went on, his mind began changing. Warping into a twisted and power hungry being. He found a way to stop his own heart and grant himself immortality... undeath. This broke our contract and I was forced to cast him aside, but he got away before I could end his madness," he tells me, again with no emotion what so ever.
I frown in thought. "Just because your element can raise the dead, doesn't mean it's tainted. It's how someone uses it. I use the arcane element to protect those I care for, to put down those who would cause them harm," I tell him.
He laughs. "Word for word, Starswirl told me the exact same thing," he tells me.
I chuckle slightly. "Well I mean it, I'm guessing it was Grogar who gave your element the name, element of death?" I ask him.
He looks down and nodded. "Yes, because soon after he escaped, he began experiments on corpses and brought them back as mindless slaves to his will, and he still to this day holds a portion of my power. It is why I'm in this form," he tells me.
"So if we kill Grogar, you'd get your power back and turn back to your original form?" I ask him.
"Correct," he replies.
"Adrian," the voice of Infernus says and I look at him. "Are you willing to go through my test?" he asks while Gaia looks upset and is glaring at Infernus.
After a few seconds of thought, I give my answer. "Yes. If I am to stand a chance against Grogar and his undead army, I'll need as much help as I can get," I reply.
He unfolds his arms and hold his right hand out to me. "Very well. If you survive my power, then I shall make a contract with you, but to do so, you need my orb which Discord has," he tells me.
I look at his hand as I then hold out my right hand which he grabs and I can feel a burning heat flare up inside my chest. I grunt in discomfort and fall to my knees. I see my hands burst into flames as well as my feet and shoulders.
I clutch my chest as the burning sensation grows. It feels like my insides are melting. I groan in pain as it continues to spread through my body, as well as the flames covering me. The pain gets too intense and I scream from what feels like my flesh starting to melt.
"Adrian, please hold on! You're almost there!" I barely hear Gaia tell me.
I fall onto my side and curl up into a ball. This feels just as painful as the time I was shot by Grogar in that vision I had.
Just as I was about to give up from the intense pain, it stopped. I go limp on the floor and breath heavily, trembling from the aftershock.
Gaia kneels beside me but keeps her hands away. "Adrian? Are you alright?" she asks with worry.
I open my eyes and look at her. Well that's different, I can see her face but it's in different colours of yellow and orange. I look to Infernus and see bright white and yellow colours. Looking around the hall, I see black, deep blues, and cyan colours. I guess I can see the heat everything gives off.
"I'm fine... bloody hell that hurt," I reply and look at myself. I'm covered head to toe in flames but my clothes are still in one piece at least.
Infernus then moves beside me. "You survived... as promised, after you finish your training with Gaia, I shall make a contract with you," he tells me and holds a hand out.
I take his hand and he pulls me up. The flames covering me dissipate and the heat inside me fades away.
"Where is this mortal I am to...YOU!" a female voice echoes loudly through the hall. I turn around and see none other than Nightmare Moon staring at me. Her wounds are gone and her hand is back.
I glare at her and channel four arcane elements into my right hand.
"WAIT!" Gaia yells and stands in front of me.
"Gaia move! That bitch hurt Luna and tried to posses me!" I tell her.
"That maybe true, but you'll need her help as well!" she replies.
"Her help? Why would I need or want her help?" I ask, still glaring at Nightmare Moon.
"Because she is the Shadow Aspect," Gaia tells me.
What?.. I look at Gaia with wide eyes.
"Her real name is Umbra," she says.
My glare turns to a frown and I look back at Nightmar... Umbra. "That still doesn't excuse her from trying to posses me! And what she did to Luna!" I shout out.
To my surprise, Umbra looks away with a sad frown. "I did what I must to survive. I was sent along with Lux and Discord to Equus when Starswirl gave his life to banish Grogar. I needed a place to gather mana, and the mana on the planet was too weak to sustain me, and the only source I found after months of searching came from Luna and her sister. At first, I only stayed within her to survive, slowly feeding off a tiny portion of her mana," she tells me and looks me in the eyes.
"That was the time she was getting depressed and angry at her sister. I chose then to offer her a contract to help her make her nights better with my power. She accepted and that's when I made a mistake, her anger and magic overwhelmed me, and the result is what you see now. It altered my form, and my mind. I still feel her pain and anger," she says. "She wanted my power not to make her night better, but to make it eternal."
My frown is gone and I'm staring at her slack jawed. So she didn't corrupt Luna? It was the other way around?
I shake my head and frown again. "And how do I know you aren't just making this up?" I ask her.
"Aspects are bound by a law Adrian. We cannot harm, alter, or kill anyone unless they break our contracts," Gaia tells me.
"Then why did you try to posses me?" I ask Umbra.
"I was still feeling the negative emotions from Luna, even after we were separated. I was dying, slowly without a source to feed from. Then I felt someone using my shadow element. So I hid inside a woman and suggested to her we go to where the source was coming from. After awhile, I found you, training to use my element, and with Luna's anger and my own at what she did to me. I was going to use you to feed and to punish her," she tells me.
"I managed to get enough mana from you before you forced me to retreat to come back here. Where the others helped to restore my mind," she says and walks over to me. I just notice that instead of her blue armour, she's wearing a dark blue dress that looks like a shadowy mist.
"I am sorry for the pain I have caused, but just like any mortal, we too fear death," she tells me and holds her hand out.
I just stare at her for awhile and sigh. "Fine, but you're going to have to earn my trust," I tell her and shake her hand.
"Thank you. I shall offer you my contract as repayment for my actions towards you, once Discord gets my orb, I shall help you to learn using my power," she tells me.
"Wait, you said two others were sent with you. I know Discord, but where is this Lux?" I ask.
Umbra sighs. "He resides in Celestia," she tells me.
I go wide eyed, but the hall starts to blur and I feel dizzy.
Gaia places her hand on my shoulder. "You are waking up, we shall continue this the next time you sleep," she tells me and everything fades away.
Terracana Chapter 57: The Power of an Aspect Part 4
I wake up to the sounds of my lovers yelling at me.
"ADRIAN! WAKE UP!" Celestia yells right in my ear.
"Gah!" I yelp and rub the inside of my ear.
"Adrian! Are thou alright?" Luna asks me. "We could not enter thy dream and thou were screaming," she then tells me.
Shella and Cadence both look worried as well.
"I'm fine," I reply and lift my left hand up. "Gaia took me to meet some of the other aspects," I tell her. I then frown with a sigh. "I need to talk to both you and Tia alone," I tell Luna. "Could you give us a moment please," I ask as I look at both Cadence and Shella.
They look at each other and nodded. "Alright," Cadence replies and they both go into the baby room.
"Tia, can you place a soundproof ward in the room please," I ask her.
She looks scared now but does as I ask. "What's the matter?" she asks in almost a whisper.
"First, Luna. I met Nightmare Moon again," I tell her and she gasps.
"Are thou alright? She didn't harm thee did she?" she asks.
"No, but there's something you need to know and tell me. She didn't corrupt you did she," I say more as a statement than a question.
She frowns. "To be honest, we don't fully remember what happened. We remember being angry, and she offered me power. In my sadness and anger, I accepted. Then it's all a blur from there. We remember fighting Tia... her tears... then going in and out of consciousness over the years on the moon... and then our mind was clear when the elements freed us."
"I see. Well, you actually corrupted her. She is the Shadow Aspect and her name is Umbra. She offered you a contract to help you make your nights better, but your anger turned that into a lust for eternal night," I tell her.
Her eyes widen and tears start to roll down her cheeks. "Thou mean we are the one at fault?" she asks with a hand over her mouth.
I hug her to my chest. "You didn't know what would happen, but when I get her orb... will you talk with her? The other Aspects have freed her from her corruption. She's actually quite nice and feels guilty about what she has done... to both you and me," I tell her and stroke her hair.
She starts crying into my chest and hugs me back. I then look to Celestia.
"Tia... are you going to tell me or do you not know?" I ask her.
"Know what?" she asks with genuine confusion.
"You have an Aspect within you," I tell her.
Her eyes widen. "What?" she ask again, but this time, in disbelief.
"Umbra told me she went into Luna to survive, and that Lux, the Light Aspect, did the same with you," I tell her.
'It is true,' a voice in my head says. Seems Luna and Celestia heard it as well.
A small orb of light leaves Celestia's chest and forms into a man made of pure white energy. His face only shows two eyes that are a bright golden colour and he seems to be wearing some kind of toga.
"Greetings. I am Lux, the Aspect of Light," he says with a bow. I feel the covers pulled over us with a dark blue glow. "I apologise if I have embarrassed you, but I believe you would like answers," he says.
Celestia is the first to speak up. "Y-You have been inside me all this time?" she asks.
He nodded in reply. "Yes, you and your sister were the only strong sources of mana able to sustain us. Your planet just simply doesn't have the mana we need to survive, but I have kept myself hidden deep within you and only taken enough to keep me alive. I made sure not to interfere with your life, but I have been giving you advice subconsciously after your sister was banished to keep you from doing something you would regret, and I have used your mana to contact the other Aspects from time to time," he tells her.
"Is that why I felt weaker now and then? You were syphoning my magic?" she asks with a slight frown.
"Correct, and I do apologise for that, but both Umbra and I are now bound to this world and Umbra is slowly starving again without a source of mana to feed from. The mana she took from you Adrian will only last her a few more months," he tells us.
"Then why doesn't she come here and let me feed her?" I ask.
"You would allow her?" he asks surprised.
I nodded but Luna speaks up. "We shall," she says with determination.
I look at her with wide eyes. "Are you sure?" I ask.
"Yes, we are to blame for her corruption... we would like to help her," she replies.
I look back to Lux whose eyes are closed. "Very well, I shall contact her. Please get dressed as she shall be here within the hour," he tells us and turns back into a ball of light. Celestia frowns again as she watches the ball slowly going back into her chest.
"All these years... I thought it was a magical fluctuation that was causing my magic to falter every year..." she says.
"Are you alright, Tia?" I ask her.
She sighs and looks at me. "I will be. I just need time to take this all in..." she replies and kisses me.
I smile into the kiss. "Come on, we need to get ready for when Umbra arrives," I tell them.
One Hour Ten Minutes Later
We are all dressed and had breakfast brought up to us. We're sitting on the bed waiting for Umbra while I comb Cadence's hair. She hums happily while holding Mavis in her arms. Luna is massaging my shoulders while Celestia is braiding Shella's hair.
My lovers all yelp as Lux appears out of Celestia again. "She is here," he tells us.
A shadow in the corner moves into the middle of the room and forms into Umbra.
I can feel Luna's hands shaking on my shoulders. I put down the brush in my hand and place my hand on hers. Her trembling calms down but isn't gone.
"Hello, Umbra," I greet her.
She looks up at me with a faint smile. "Greetings, Adrian," she then looks at Luna. "Hello, Luna," she says to my scared wife.
I turn around and pull Luna onto my lap and hug her tightly. "Luna, she's not going to hurt you," I tell her.
"H-Hello, U-U-Umbra," she finally replies.
"I understand if you're still afraid of me," Umbra says and hangs her head. "but I meant you no harm... I just wanted to help make your nights better. I always preferred the night time over day," she says and looks at Celestia. "No offence," she says to her.
Celestia, to my surprise, giggles. "None taken," she replies and continues to braid Shella's hair... I thought she would be furious at Umbra for what she had to do to her sister.
"We... we're sorry for w-what we did to thee," Luna says, still gripping onto me.
"And I forgive you, if you'll forgive me," she replies.
Luna looks into her eyes for a few seconds, and smiles. "We do," she then gets up off my lap and walks over to Umbra and hugs her.
Umbra looks stunned, but then smiles and returns the hug.
I just had a thought. "Umbra, Lux. Can you make a contract with anyone?" I ask them.
They look at each other and nodded. "If they have the will, mana, and strength to wield our power, then yes," Lux replies. "Why?" he then asks.
"I know I won't be able to master all the aspects in time. I was thinking maybe others could learn to harness them," I reply.
"You do not wish to learn them yourself?" Umbra asks confused.
"If I had the time, but we don't. Grogar will be attacking in just over four years. How long did it take for Starswirl to master them all?" I reply and ask.
Lux looks up in thought. "About twenty years," he tells me.
"Exactly... I don't have that much time, and it would be better to have multiple aspects fighting at once whereas I'll only be able to use one at a time. It just makes more sense," I tell them.
"Are you sure? Once an aspect makes a contract, they cannot make another unless it is broken or the one with the contract dies," Umbra tells me.
"Yes, I'm sure. I don't need all that power anyway, I have my friends and lovers to help me," I reply with a smile. My girls all return the smile.
"Very well then, but who shall you have make contracts with us?" Lux asks.
"Why not you and Celestia? Same with Umbra and Luna?" I tell them. They stare at each other and then at me. "What? It makes sense. Luna is the alicorn of the night, the night represents shadows. Celestia is the alicorn of the day, and day represents light. Plus you know each other already," I say.
"He speaks the truth," Lux says with a hand on his chin. "I have grown accustomed to Celestia's mana, and with her mindset."
"I feel the same. While we were... on the moon," Umbra says and hugs Luna again. "I grew accustomed to hers as well," she says.
"Great, that means you can help me when the battle finally comes," I tell them with a grin.
Luna and Celestia smile back at me. "Do you know any others who would accept?" Lux asks.
"Maybe. Shining might go well with the Shield Aspect. His barrier and shield spells are the strongest of the guards here, and maybe Vortigan could help us, he's taken a liking to the air element I taught him," I reply.
"I'm afraid only beings with their own mana can harness an Aspects power, as they'll need their own to mix with ours," Lux tells me.
Well damn. "Wait. Starswirl turned himself into a human, could we turn ponies into humans as well?" I ask.
"It's possible, you wish to turn Shining Armour into a human so he can harness his own magic?" Celestia replies and asks.
"It's worth a try if he agrees," I reply, but right now we need their orbs. "Discord!" I shout out to get his attention.
With a poof of pink smoke, he's standing by the door with a pair of tight pink looking underwear. "Adrian, what can I help you with my boy!" he asks cheerfully.
I raise an eyebrow at him. "What are you wearing?" I ask. He also has some goggles and a tube next to his mouth going up past his horns.
"I was just about to go snorkelling when you called." He then notices Umbra and Lux. "Ah, hello my dear. I see you've patched things up with wittle Woona," he says with a smile.
"We said to stop calling us that!" Luna tells him.
Discord chuckles and looks at Lux. "And finally out and about Luxy hmmm?"
"That I am, Discord. Still causing trouble for others I can see," he replies.
"Oh you know me, always one for a laugh," he then looks back at me. "So what do you need, Adrian?"
"I need you to get Umbra's and Lux's orbs," I tell him.
He raises his eyebrows. "Oh, you wish to master their powers next?" he asks.
"No. Tia and Luna are," I reply.
His jaw disconnects from his head and drops to the floor. His tongue then drops down, sticks to his jaw and reels it back up where it reconnects. He then looks at Luna and Celestia. "Are you two serious?" he asks them.
After a few seconds looking at each other, Celestia replies. "Yes, this will help us protect our ponies and we will be able to fight by Adrian's side," she tells him.
"Well then... alright. Be back in a few!" he says as the floor opens up like a trap door and he falls through, the door then closes behind him. I couldn't help but chuckle.
For the next two hours Lux and Umbra explained what will happen. Their contract will consist of allowing them to reside in and feed off the two sisters while they will offer their power in exchange.
I sat on the bed with Mavis sitting between Shella, Cadence, and I. She was looking around at us giggling while patting her hands on the covers. We then tickled and began playing with her. I grabbed my daughter and gave her some raspberries on her tummy. She squealed and slapped her little hand on my head, which made Cadence want a turn. We then gave the giggling baby back to her mother who then began to feed her some energy.
Discord finally returns with an orb in each hand. One is a bright white with a light shining within it, the other is black with a shroud of shadowy mist around it. He gave them to Celestia and Luna who held them in their hands.
Lux is standing in front of Celestia. "Queen Celestia, I make a contract with you. For keeping me alive and well from now till death take you, I shall offer you my power whenever you need it. Do you accept these terms?" Lux asks her.
Celestia looks at the orb and then back to Lux. "I accept your terms," she replies.
The orb then sinks into her left palm and then reappears on the back of her left hand, in the middle of her sun cutie-mark.
"It is done, we are now bound. Whenever you are ready, I shall help train you in using my power," He tells her.
"Thank you," she replies and touches the orb, which is glowing.
"When I am resting within you, just tap the orb and speak in your mind and I shall answer. When I need to talk to you, the orb will pulse with a faint light and you just have to tap it to hear me. but if it is urgent I will speak to you directly,"
I then look to Luna and Umbra. "Queen Luna, I make a contract with you. For keeping me alive and well from now till death take you, I shall offer you my power whenever you need it. Do you accept these terms?" she asks the same thing as Lux did.
Luna shakes a little and takes a deep breath. "W-We accept t-thy terms," she replies with a stutter.
The orb does the same with her and appears on the back of her left hand, in the crescent of her moon mark.
"It is done, we are now bound," Umbra says. Luna gulps and looks scared as Umbra also tells her how to contact her.
I smile at Luna and she seems to calm down. "Well then, shall we all start practising?" I ask. I'm looking forward to seeing what their aspect forms will look like.
POV: Celestia
We're all standing in the field at the Training Grounds with each of our aspects in front of us.
"Celestia, I shall now pour my mana into you. Do not resist or fight against it, just relax and embrace it," Lux tells me.
I relax and then feel a different yet familiar magic flow into me, I don't resist and let it mix with my own. It feels comfortable.
"Good, you have now received your aspect form," he tells me and I look at my arms. A faint light is radiating from me and my flesh looks more like pure magic in physical form, I summon a mirror and look at myself. My eyes are pure white and shining brightly. My mane and tail are pure white and flowing in all directions. I panic a bit as my wings are gone, but I then notice I'm floating a foot off the ground. I look around and notice that even looking at the sun doesn't hurt my eyes. I also see no shadows, as if everything was being bathed in light from all angles.
"This is incredible," I mutter to myself. My voice sounds like a mix between my own and Lux's.
If Lux had a mouth, I'm sure he would be smiling right now. "Now we shall begin with mixing our mana together, just as Adrian was taught," he tells me.
POV: Luna
I look at Tia with wide eyes. I can feel the power she's giving off.
"Now it is your turn, Luna," Umbra tells me.
I then begin to panic. What if I turn into Nightmare Moon again?
It seems Umbra noticed what I'm thinking. "You shall be fine, Luna. Nightmare Moon was a result of your emotions corrupting us together, as long as you relax and don't fight it you will have complete control," she tells me.
I nodded and take a few breaths to calm down.
"I will now begin to pour my mana into you. Accept it and make it your own," she says and I can feel her magic flow into me.
At first, I try to push it away, but I force myself to relax and let it in. I sigh as it feels nothing like before. It's calming and soothing.
I watch as my arms change from a deep blue to a pitch black. My fur seems to turn into a shadow like mist, I move my arms and a faint, short trail of shadow is left in its wake. I look around just as Tia did and notice all the shadows around me. I can see what lies within them, nothing being hidden from me.
I also summon a mirror and look at myself. My hair and tail are similar to Tia's now that they move freely around me and look like a void that would drain all light around them. I also notice I can consciously move them a little, as if they were extra limbs. My eyes are a silvery colour, like moonlight. It's a bit creepy seeing no pupils in them and the dark blue almost black mist seeping out the sides.
I still have my wings, but they look like a thestrals and made of shadows.
"Well done, Luna. How do you feel?" Umbra asks me.
I look at her and smile. "We feel... great," I reply. My voice sounds like a whisper, as if it was meant to be quiet. I also notice I'm not making any noise as I move.
POV: Adrian Stormsword
I smile as I watch them, they look stunning in their aspect forms. Celestia looks graceful, she even still has her pregnant stomach while Luna looks scarily awesome.
I notice the guards looking on with awe at their Queens. I even see Shining with wide eyes. I'll have to ask if he'll become a human to master the Shield Aspect later.
They both begin their training in mixing their mana while I resume my attempt at plant control.
Terracana Chapter 58: The Power of an Aspect Part 5
Two hours... two bloody hours was all it took for Celestia and Luna to figure out how to mix their manas perfectly...
I sit in front of the flowers grumbling to myself as I continue to focus on the flowers life force. I yawn and feel a bonk to the back of my head. "Focus, Adrian," Gaia scolds me.
"Argh," I groan with a slight echo. "I'm trying, I just can't seem to find it," I reply.
"That's okay, there's no need to rush," she tells me.
I'm then blinded by a light to my right. I rub my eyes and see Celestia firing small bolts of white light down the target range. At least she got her wish to train with us, as it's not strenuous physical activity. The small balls of light cause a bright flash on impact, but what confuses me is the scorch marks left on the target, with no visible smoke or fire. Maybe that's because of her own magic as the alicorn of the Sun?
I look to Luna who holds her arm out and four tendrils of shadow extend out and wrap around a practice dummy. I hear her grunt and pull her arm back as the dummy is crushed and ripped out of the ground... Wow, at least I know that when the fight does come I won't be facing it alone.
I then get bashed on the head again. "What did I say about focus?" Gaia tells me with a sly grin.
I just grumble again and resume my own training.
POV: Celestia
So much power... is this how Adrian feels during his training? I feel like I can take on every single gryphon by myself.
"Very good, Celestia. My element, while mostly is used for general light and blinding, can also cause severe damage with UV radiation when a lot of mana is used. Similar to how if you stay out in the sun too long, you begin to burn. Now, I want you to try and cast a beam. Fortunately, an aspects power doesn't just require a human's method to casting, but how our... host, casts spells. To cast a beam, all you have to do is gather our mana and instead of a single push, you keep the flow open," Lux tells me.
"Alright," I reply and take a deep breath.
I hold my right hand out a gather our magic together, I then release the energy and keep the flow of magic going. A bright white beam hits the target instantly and very slowly, starts to burn through the target... No, burn isn't quite right, It looks more like it's vaporising. No smoke, no burning smell, no flames.
After about ten seconds, the beam goes through and continues to hit the cliff face, where it starts to vaporise through it. I stop the flow and just stare wide eyed.
"Very good. Adrian was right that we would make a strong pair. It seems you're also accustomed to my mana as well from me all these centuries to be learning this fast," Lux informs me. "For now though, I want you to continue with bolts and beams just to make sure you're used to my power," he tells me.
I nodded and fire another beam at a new target.
POV: Luna
I pull back my hand and crush another dummy. This power, it feels so similar to when I turned into Nightmare Moon, but I have full control this time. I look to my right hand and can feel the shadows around it. I think I understand how Adrian felt when he fought that undead giant.
"Excellent, Luna. You're a natural at this," Umbra tells me.
I don't know if it shows, but I think I'm blushing. "We thank thee. This feels so familiar, yet instead of fear, we feel... comfort, like an old friend hast returned," I reply as I flex my fingers and feel our magic flow together as one.
"As it should have been all those centuries ago," she says. I can only smile in reply. "I want you to continue to practice with the tendrils until you can fully control them at will," she tells me.
I smile wider and nodded. This is surprisingly a lot more fun then I thought it would be!
POV: Cadence
This is amazing! I can feel so much magic coming from both Tia and Luna. I kinda wish I could help them, but I know nothing about how to fight. I can't stand the sight of blood or hurting anypony.
I notice Adrian getting frustrated and lay down on the grass with his arms spread out. I walk over to him and sit beside him.
"Are you okay, Adrian?" I ask him.
He opens his eyes, that faint green glow of magic in them. "Oh, hi, Cadence. Yeah... I'm fine. Just feeling a bit jealous at how quick they're learning and I'm stuck with trying to move a flower..." he replies with a chuckle. His voice sounds nice with that echo to it.
He looks at my stomach and puts his right hand on it. "I can see her you know," he tells me and rubs my stomach.
"What?" I ask confused.
"While in this form I can see all the life around me, and I can see our daughter growing inside you," he replies.
I go wide eyed and pout. "That's not fair!" I whine playfully. I would like to see my foal myself.
He chuckles again and smiles at me. "She's growing strong. I can only see her life force, but I know she'll be just as beautiful as her mother," he tells me.
I smile and blush as I lean down and kiss him. I squeak as I feel his tongue caress mine and I couldn't help the slight moan that escapes my throat. I lay on my left side and rest my head on his chest and look in his eyes. I'm glad he's not wearing his armour right now, the rise and fall of his breathing along with his heartbeat and the sweet scent of the flowers on him is very comforting. He then places his right hand on mine, just lazily stroking my fingers.
After a few peaceful minutes, his eyes then slowly widen and a grin is on his face. "What?" I ask with confusion.
"I think I understand it now," he says and gently lifts me off him as he sits up.
He looks at the sunflowers and I just watch quietly. He points his left hand at them and has a look of concentration. After about ten seconds, a flower begins to shake and starts to... dance? The stem waves back and forth while the leaves rise up and down. The flower on the top leans to the left and right.
I giggle as it looks adorable.
I see sweat roll down his face and I couldn't resist as I lick it off. I don't know why, but his sweat tastes so salty and delicious.
That seems to have broke his concentration as he blushes, the flower then jumps out of the ground and lays on the grass.
I giggle again and kiss his cheek. "Sorry," I say.
"It's alright. At least I've figured it out now," he replies with a smile.
POV: Adrian Stormsword
"And what was it?" Cadence asks me.
"Before, I was trying to force it to move, but after some thought, I just tried to ask it. It's not an inanimate object, it's still a living thing," I reply.
Gaia sits down to my left. "Correct. All life has a will of it's own, from the mightiest of beasts to a single blade of grass," she tells me and giggles. "It took Starswirl two months to figure that out, always thought with a scientific mind instead of a more open one," she says as she makes the uprooted sunflower get up and and re-root itself.
"You could have just told me," I glare at her, still with my smile.
She puts on an innocent smile. "And would you have really learned anything from that?" she asks.
I sigh, she has a point. I now have a greater respect for all forms of life. "No, I might not have. So I take it I just continue to practice this now?" I reply and ask.
"Yes. Once you can make at least six sunflowers move at once, we shall then move onto bigger plants, like vines and small trees," she replies.
Well, no time like the present. Cadence cuddles up beside me and hooks her left arm around my right. I lean my head against hers as I hold my left hand out and continue to practice.
Thirty Minutes Later
I'm making another flower dance for Cadence as she watches with a smile. I then notice Silk Sheets come out with a trolley with bottles of water on it. She hands them out to Celestia and Luna, but stops at Shining and kisses his cheek as she gives him one. I smile seeing her find a man of her own and Shining looking less depressed.
After a minute or two of talking, she brings the trolley over to us and hands us both a bottle.
"I see you and Shining are getting along rather well," I say to her.
She blushes with a smile. "Oh yes. He's been very kind and gentle with me," she says but her smile fades into a sad frown. "I'll be honest, but I kinda wanted to be with you... Especially after, you know, but I think that was more of a crush than love," she sighs and looks back at Shining. "But I think I'm falling in love with him," she says with a wide smile.
Cadence smiles as well. "Please make him as happy as you can," she asks her.
"I know how much he means to you, Princess. I just hope I can make him just as happy as you did," she replies.
"I'm sure you will. Thank you for the water," Cadence says and starts taking sips from her bottle.
Silk sheets bows and delivers the rest of the bottles to the guards and then talks some more with Shining.
I yawn and take a few gulps from my bottle. I put the cap back on and was about to start practising again but I feel something land on my head, it feels like a bird's talons.
I tilt my head up slightly and look up and see a red bird with an orange neck and yellow beak look back down at me with pure white eyes.
'Is its feathers on fire?' I think to myself.
The bird tilts its head and squawks at me. I raise an eyebrow at it while Cadence laughs.
"Philomena!" I hear Celestia shout out.
I turn to Celestia with a confused expression. "Who's Philomena?" I ask, as the bird stays perfectly on my head.
Celestia hovers over to us and holds her arm out as her aspect form fades away. The bird jumps off my head and lands on her arm.
"I've been worried sick about you young lady!" she scolds the bird.
The bird -I'm guessing is Philomena- looks upset but nuzzles Celestia. She then squawks a few times at her.
"I see, did you find them?" she asks Philomena.
Philomena hangs her head and lets out a pitiful squawk.
"What's going on?" I ask.
"Just before you arrived in Equus, Philomena's egg was stolen from her nest. She knows who took it and has been pursuing them, but she's lost them. I've even sent guards to hunt them down," Celestia says with a sad tone.
I frown. "Why would anyone steal her egg?" I ask.
"Philomena is a phoenix, a very rare and magical bird. When they die, their bodies burst into flames and they're reborn from the ashes. It's very rare for a phoenix to lay an egg. Most ponies and other races want them for their healing properties as a phoenix's egg can cure almost any ailment, but they only lay them once every thousand years," she tells me.
Gaia floats over to Philomena and strokes her. The bird coos and nuzzles her hand.
"I believe I can help with that," Gaia says.
"How?" I ask.
"I can feel all life on the planet, finding another with a piece of her unique life force from her offspring will be easy," she tells us.
"Then let's go and get it back!" I say as I stand up.
POV: Celestia
We all get on a carriage, except for Shella and Cadence who stayed behind, and follow Gaia's directions. I teleported Adrian's weapons and armour on to him before we left. After about an hour of flying, we arrive at a rather run down warehouse in the city of Manehatten with forty guards with us.
"Her egg is in there," Gaia tells us.
My anger at these criminals stealing one of my oldest friend's egg rises, she's been waiting centuries for her own foal just as I have. I step out of the carriage and tap the orb on my hand.
'Lux, please lend me your power. I wish to teach these heartless animals a lesson,' I ask him. This will make a good test for my new abilities.
'Very well, but please do not give in to your anger and hate. You saw what that did to your sister and Umbra,' he replies.
He's right, I take a few breaths to calm down as I can feel his magic flow into me. I begin to hover above the ground as I feel my wings recede into my back. I open my eyes and stare at the large metal door.
'Celestia, if you channel our mana throughout your entire body you'll be able to just go through the door as you vaporise it, as well as vaporise anything else physical that can't handle the heat coming in contact with you,' Lux tells me.
'Thank you,' I reply. I then turn to the guards. "I want twenty guards to surround the building and capture any who try to escape. If they resist with killing intent, you have permission to defend yourselves. The rest of you will follow behind me and capture any inside, but their leader is mine," I tell them.
They all salute and silently surround the building. There will be no escape from the ground or air.
I turn to Luna to see her already in her aspect form. "Luna, can you help the guard out here please?" I ask her.
"Of course, sister," she replies in a whisper like tone. She flaps her wings to join the pegasi in the air, but it's rather unnerving that she made no sound what so ever.
"Adrian, I want you to find the egg with Gaia's help and be ready to heal any wounds the guards may receive," I tell him.
"Alright," he replies with a nod.
I turn back to the door and gather our magic and let it flow throughout me where I can feel a heat building up as my body glows brighter. I start to move forward with the guards and Adrian following behind me.
POV: Adrian Stormsword
I watch as Celestia just floats into the door and it just evaporates around her. Wow, that must be some heat she's giving off. I hear shouting and yelling from within as the guard and I follow behind her.
'Adrian, the egg is upstairs in that room. Please hurry, now that we're closer, I can feel it is dying,' Gaia tells me.
My eyes go wide and I look to the right to see a set of metal stairs leading to the room overlooking the warehouse. I can see the life force of a small round object... and it's very dim.
'Got it,' I reply and make my way to the stairs.
"No pony move! You're all under arrest for theft!" a guard shouts out.
"BUCK! IT'S THE GUARDS! EVERYPONY SPLIT!" one of the people yells out.
A loud squawk echoes through the room as Philomena soars in and latches her talons onto a man's face and to my surprise, flames spew out of her mouth and scorch him. He screams in pain and tries to pull her off, but her talons have dug deep into him, I'm glad she didn't do that to my scalp.
A dark green furred man runs down the stairs holding the dying egg. I draw my sword and cut him off.
"Outta my way!" he yells at me and pulls out a small one handed crossbow.
He pulls the trigger and I raise my shield. The small bolt bounces off and I thrust my sword into his leg.
"GAAAAAHHH!" he screams. In his pain, the egg rolls out of his hand and over the railing. I breath in sharply and drop my sword as I dive off the side. I grab it and slam my back onto the floor hard. 'Oh shit, I'm going to feel that in the morning. No, wait... I'm feeling it now,' I think to myself sarcastically as I sit up while ignoring the pain. Not one of my brightest ideas.
'At least you saved the egg, hold it in both hands and don't move, I'll try to keep it alive.' Gaia tells me.
I can feel her mana flow through my hands and into the egg as a green mist surrounds it. I then feel something land on my head. It must be Philomena as I look up and see a worried expression on her face.
As Gaia does her thing, I look at Celestia. She's got the leader cornered and has a really pissed off expression on her face.
"What do you have to say for yourself?" she asks him.
"I'm sorry! I won't ever do it again!" the man begs pitifully.
She lifts her arm up and I see a ball of light form above her hand. "How would you feel if someone took your foal from you!" she yells at him.
Uh-oh, I think she's having one of her emotional outbursts again.
"It's just a stupid bird's egg!" he replies... aw shit.
"Just an egg?" she asks, her right eye twitching. "That bird you took it from has been my friend for hundreds of years! She's been waiting centuries to lay her own and you just Insult her and call it just an egg!" she yells at him.
I want to go over there and try to calm her down, but I can't move without disrupting Gaia.
"Please don't hurt me!" he begs her and cringes.
Her face forms a scowl with gritted teeth. Well, nothing will save him now.
"RrraaAAHHH!" Celestia cries out as she slams the ball of light onto him. I then hear a scream that sounds more like it belongs to a little girl.
Once the bright flash dies down, I look at the man... Oh gods that's nasty. The front half of his skin and muscle have been vaporised, exposing his organs and bones. I can even see the insides of his eyes and brain.
I hear a guard throw up and another pass out.
Celestia is breathing heavily and drops to the floor as her aspect form fades away. Her wings sprout back out and she sighs.
She then drops to the floor and begins crying with her face in her hands.
'Gaia, how much longer?' I ask her. I want to go over to Celestia and comfort her before she really starts to break down.
'Almost there... and done!' she replies and the mana flow stops. I look at the egg and see its life force much brighter. I then get up and walk over to Celestia.
"Tia, it's alright. The egg is safe and healthy," I tell her and hold the egg out to her.
She lowers her hands and takes the egg. I hold my arm out next to it and let Philomena sit on my arm. The phoenix nuzzles Celestia who just smiles back.
"My Queen, all the criminals have been detained," a guard tells her with a salute.
She sniffles and I wipe the tears from her eyes. "Thank you. Let's go back to the Castle... I need to lie down," she replies and I help her up. Philomena moves onto her shoulder and keeps nuzzling her.
As we walk out to the exit, I look back at what's left of the corpse. 'If that was just a basic spell... then what is the true power of an aspect?' I think to myself.
After retrieving the egg, Celestia gave it back to Philomena who then took it back to her nest.
Celestia then began crying again, calling herself a monster for what she did to the leader of the criminals.
Luna teleports my armour off me and I took Celestia to our room while Cadence, Luna, and Shella went to attend court and give me some time alone to calm her down.
We enter our room and I close the door. "I've never lost my temper that badly before..." she tells me with a sniffle. She then glares at me and I think I'm not going to like what's coming. "This is all your fault! You did this to me! I've never had this much trouble keeping my anger in check before!" she yells at me and slaps me on the face hard enough to make me stumble back a metre or two.
I wince from the stinging pain. "Ow..." I grumble as I rub my sore cheek.
Celestia gasps and immediately crushes me in a bone breaking hug. "I'm so sorry! I didn't mean it! Please don't hate me!" she begs and finally breaks down, crying into my chest.
I lift her up and carry her over to the bed and gently lay her down on it. I lay beside her and stroke her hair lovingly.
"It's alright, I don't hate you. I love you and the others more than anything in the world. You all mean everything to me, you know that," I tell her.
She's still crying with the left side of her face buried in the crook of my neck.
"I... *sniff* I know... it's just... *sniff* I feel so unstable... *sniff* since m-my pregnancy," she replies. "And I've b-been feeling more stressed as well... you constantly *sniff* getting h-hurt and making m-me worry," she says.
I sigh and nuzzle her. After so long of them doing it to me, I just find it natural to return the affection now. "I'm sorry about that. I am trying my best not to worry you, but I would die to keep you lot safe. I really don't want to do that as that would mean leaving you, but I would still do it if I had no other choice," I reply.
She remains quiet for a few minutes. She then looks up at me with tear stained eyes. "Would you... would you please make love to me, Adrian," she asks me. "To hold and love me."
I smile warmly at her and give her a soft but deep kiss. Her eyes close as she melts into the kiss and returns it.
I pull back and cup her left cheek with my right hand. "Of course, Tia. I'll love and stay by you forever," I reply and slowly pull her shirt up over her head.
A smile and a light blush adorns her tear stained face, her eyes never leaving mine. She does the same for me and pulls my shirt off with her magic.
I then unclip her bra and toss it over the side of the bed. Her breasts have gotten quite large since they haven't been milked in a month so I gently wrap my lips over her right nipple and begin to lightly suckle her milk out.
A quiet gasp and soft moan leaves her breathless as I drain her breast. She gently presses the back of my head against her soft bosom. "Yes... I love you so much," she tells me.
I softly knead her left breast with my right hand, eliciting small cries of pleasure from her. After a few minutes of drinking her milk I switch breasts and look up at her. Her face is even more flushed now and she's staring at me while biting her bottom lip, oh gods is that turning me on.
I start suckling again and begin groping her right breast, she wraps her legs around my waist and starts panting. "That feels so good... Mmmmm," she says while stroking my hair.
I pinch and nibble her nipples, getting some squeaks and moans out of her. I can start smelling her arousal in the air and I growl with lust.
Once I've drained her dry, I slowly make my way down and plant soft kisses over her stomach. Her moans are laced with her heavenly giggles.
I sit up and grip the sides of both her loose shorts and panties. I slowly pull them down while digging my fingernails across the sides of her thighs.
She squirms and I grin seeing her getting so worked up as her horn glows and the rest of my clothes are gone. I throw her shorts and panties to the side and crawl up her legs giving small kisses and licks to her inner thighs.
She moans and grips my hair tightly, pulling me closer to her leaking pussy. My nose barely touches her and I breath in deeply, the same sweet smelling vanilla scent.
I extend my tongue and slowly lick from base to clit making her squeal and grip my hair painfully. I ignore the pain and start circling her vulva slowly which gets her to grunt in frustration and forces my face into her snatch.
So she wants to play rough? Fine.
I pull back and take a deep breath and shove my face as hard as I can against her. She gasps loudly and then screams at the top of her lungs as I rasberry as hard as I can into her pussy. "OH BUCK ME! GGAAAAHHHHH!" she screams.
I watch as her eyes roll up and drool flows out of her mouth and down her chin. Her legs spasm uncontrollably as a copious amount of her cum floods my mouth which I latch onto her pussy and gulp down as much as I can.
After a few seconds she calms down and releases her thighs grip on my head.
"That... *gasp* felt w-wonderful. *huff*" she says breathlessly.
I climb up the rest of her body and kiss her deeply. She moans into the kiss as her tongue invades my mouth.
I lift her legs up and spread them and poke around with my dick in an attempt to penetrate her. Her horn glows and I feel a slight tingle around my cock as the tip finds its mark.
After kissing for a bit longer. I push my hips forward slowly and sink into her warm, wet folds. She moans into my mouth and I keep pushing until my groin rubs against hers and she shudders.
"Oh, my love, aaaaahh. Make love to me! Mmmmm. I'm yours forever," she tells me as her arms and legs wrap around my neck and waist.
I rest my forehead against hers and smile as I look into her eyes. "And I'm yours, Tia," I reply and begin pulling back.
She hisses in pleasure and sighs as I push back in. "Yes... I need this so badly," she says and wiggles her hips and grinds against me.
I begin a slow rhythm, sliding in and out as gently and lovingly as I could where her eyes close as she loses herself in her euphoria. Her hands trail down my chest as her fingers follow my scar. She then strokes my sides and licks the sweat off my neck.
Being curious, I return the gesture and lick hers. Her sweat tastes a bit bitter... but surprisingly pleasant.
We continue to make love with more passion than lust. For the last twenty minutes I've fucked her gently with kisses, tender caresses, and words of love. She's already had two orgasms and seems to be approaching her third.
"Faster... Ahhh, I'm close! Oooohh, make m-me cum again! Aaahh... fill me!" she tells me. I pick up my pace and she moans deeply. "That's it, nngghh, keep g-going!" she grunts and starts thrusting her hips back at me.
I make sure not to ram into her so I don't harm her or our child. I then feel her fingers dig into my sides as she starts to clench and squeeze my cock.
I couldn't take it any more and release my load into her as the pleasure sends me over the edge. "Gah! Nggghh," I grunt as rope after rope of semen coats her silky walls.
She gasps sharply and screams as her orgasm rips through her body. "YEEEESSSSS! AAARRGH!" Her vagina grips me like a vice and starts massaging my dick, milking it for every drop it could get out of me while her fluids drench my already soaked balls and thighs thoroughly.
She trembles as I continue to thrust gently for her pleasure. She then starts panting as she comes down from her orgasmic high. She tugs me onto my side and I slip out of her pussy.
"T-Thank you. *pant* I feel m-much *gasp* better now," she tells me and cuddles up to me.
I smile and hold her against me, basking in our afterglow and the feeling of her soft fur on my skin.
I hum a tune my mom used to sing me to sleep with when I was six.
Celestia hums happily as she listens to the tune. "Please stay with me," she mumbles as her breathing slows down and she falls asleep.
I lean down and kiss her cheek. "Always," I reply and continue to hum the tune and stroke her hair until sleep takes me as well.
After retrieving the egg, Celestia gave it back to Philomena who then took it back to her nest.
Celestia then began crying again, calling herself a monster for what she did to the leader of the criminals.
Luna teleports my armour off me and I took Celestia to our room while Cadence, Luna, and Shella went to attend court and give me some time alone to calm her down.
We enter our room and I close the door. "I've never lost my temper that badly before..." she tells me with a sniffle. She then glares at me and I think I'm not going to like what's coming. "This is all your fault! You did this to me! I've never had this much trouble keeping my anger in check before!" she yells at me and slaps me on the face hard enough to make me stumble back a metre or two.
I wince from the stinging pain. "Ow..." I grumble as I rub my sore cheek.
Celestia gasps and immediately crushes me in a bone breaking hug. "I'm so sorry! I didn't mean it! Please don't hate me!" she begs and finally breaks down, crying into my chest.
I lift her up and carry her over to the bed and gently lay her down on it. I lay beside her and stroke her hair lovingly.
"It's alright, I don't hate you. I love you and the others more than anything in the world. You all mean everything to me, you know that," I tell her.
She's still crying with the left side of her face buried in the crook of my neck.
"I... *sniff* I know... it's just... *sniff* I feel so unstable... *sniff* since m-my pregnancy," she replies. "And I've b-been feeling more stressed as well... you constantly *sniff* getting h-hurt and making m-me worry," she says.
I sigh and nuzzle her. After so long of them doing it to me, I just find it natural to return the affection now. "I'm sorry about that. I am trying my best not to worry you, but I would die to keep you lot safe. I really don't want to do that as that would mean leaving you, but I would still do it if I had no other choice," I reply.
She then asks me to make love to her and for the next thirty minutes, I gave her what she wanted and she felt much better.
I smile and hold her against me, basking in our afterglow and the feeling of her soft fur on my skin.
I hum a tune my mom used to sing me to sleep with when I was six.
Celestia hums happily as she listens to the tune. "Please stay with me," she mumbles as her breathing slows down and she falls asleep.
I kiss her cheek. "Always," I reply and continue to hum the tune and stroke her hair until sleep takes me as well.
I wake up next to a smiling Celestia. I stroke her hair out of her face and rub my thumb lightly across her cheek. She hums happily and slowly wakes up.
Her eyes flutter open and she smiles at me, cuddling as close as she can to me. "Good morning, my love," she says.
I look to the clock on the wall and see it's only ten PM. "Actually, It's evening," I tell her. Celestia's stomach rumbles and she blushes.
I chuckle warmly and pick her up off the bed as we need a wash before heading out to eat. I carry her into our bathroom and draw a bath for us. Once ready, I help her in and she leans against me with conflicting emotions on her face.
"Adrian... am I still beautiful? I feel like I'm getting fat," she asks me.
I gently rub her pregnant stomach. "You're as beautiful as the day we first met," I reply and kiss her.
She sighs happily and we just enjoy each other's company.
Ten Days Later
Winter is coming and snow is falling all over Equestria as pegasi are flying around getting clouds in place where the snow starts to settle and lay.
My parents returned seven days ago and have bought me a gift. A young male Planes Runner, and a rare white one at that. Once I found out how much it cost them, which was like eighty percent of their savings. I gave them two thousand gold coins worth of gems from my hoard to keep them comfortable. Mom tried to object, but I wouldn't budge, at least she can now get that extension to her shop that she wanted.
I've had a stable built for him near the Gardens and named him Keanu. He's still too young to ride, but he should be able in a year or two. I visited him daily to get him used to me.
Jasmine has also started calling me her brother which brings a smile to my face every time. She was ecstatic to find out that she's technically a princess now then.
Twilight and her friends visited again and we had to literally drag Fluttershy away from Keanu as she fawned over the young bird.
They were also surprised when they wanted to watch me train again, only to see Celestia and Luna in their own aspect forms.
Twilight was bombarding Celestia and Luna with questions as to what it was like, how they feel when in the forms, what kind of magic they now have... that sort of thing. Twilight looked like she ate too much sugar when Lux came out and gave her a thorough explanation.
Although when Umbra came out, The girls were startled with a shout of "NIGHTMARE MOON!" and Twilight summoned their elements. Before anyone could explain, they fired a wide beam of magic with a rainbow hue at her.
I saw Umbra's eyes widen in fear as the beam hit her. I heard Luna shout out her name and began panicking.
After a few seconds the light dies down and on the floor was a human shaped woman whose body looks like it's made completely of black shadows, still with her dark blue shadow like dress.
Lux helped her up and she was dumbfounded, as were the girls.
Umbra, after a few minutes recomposing herself actually thanked and hugged the girls for returning her to her original form. The elements only repaired the damage caused when she was forcefully torn away from Luna. Celestia theorised that Umbra might have been fully restored if the elements continued longer that fateful night of her return.
The girls listened to Umbra's story of what happened and after that, they apologised to her. Umbra just smiled and thanked them again.
They watched our training for two more days and then went back to Ponyville, except for Twilight and Spike who remained so she could study the aspects. She and Lux got on very well as he answered all her questions and inquires.
I'm told that in two weeks time something called Hearth's Warming Eve will start. A holiday about the founding of Equestria where family and friends get together and enjoy each other's company. I'll have to find some gifts for my lovers before then.
The four imprisoned changelings who impersonated Blueblood's guards have been released and inducted to the Lapis Hive. They've even told us the location of Chrysalis' main Hive, deep within the Everfree Forest, why am I not surprised it's in there. Chitain and Chameleon were also sent with more guards to protect Ponyville. The two changeling guards will act as detectors to sense any changelings not of the Lapis Hive nearby.
Shella went back to her Hive for a few days to see how everything is going personally, although she's told through the Hive Mind that everything is going better than ever.
At the end, Twilight and Spike went home, but said they'll be back to visit her parents for Hearth's Warming Eve.
Two Weeks Later
For the most part, each day has been quiet as we all trained together. In the mornings, Celestia, Luna, Cadence, Shella, or I will take turns in Court, helping the people with problems or conflicts. Although a few completely stupid people just wasted my time.
Why would two brothers need royalty to settle a dispute of who gets their mother’s heirloom? I asked if there was a will and if it said who the item now belonged to where they both blushed as they most likely forgot about it. They apologised for wasting my time and left, though still arguing with each other. I just rolled my eyes and sighed.
Celestia and Luna have gotten very good with their new magic. Celestia can vaporise her targets slightly faster and Luna has learnt to be one with the very shadows themselves, completely undetectable. Even with her perception training, I couldn't find her.
Their magic control is also high, most likely due to them using magic for thousands of years compared to my measly six.
I've also had some alone time with my other lovers, helping to relieve their stress and relax. Although I only impregnated Shella last night.
I managed to get some meats brought over from Terra. Cadence tried her first piece of bacon with hesitation, she instantly loved the taste and has a couple of pieces with breakfast, same for myself and Celestia. In exchange we sent Vortigan some fruit and vegetable seeds that they've never seen before.
Pomegranates were one of them, along with something called an eggplant and many others.
Blueblood and Rarity have been getting much closer with each other over the last two months, and just two days ago, Blueblood finally proposed to her.
From what I heard, the whole of Ponyville heard her squeal and shout 'Yes!' The wedding is planned a month after Hearth's Warming Eve.
The orcs on Terra also seem to be acting strange. A single orc female walked up to the Elysium gates in nothing but a ragged loincloth and bra. No weapons, no armour, just herself and a letter from the Warlord Chief of the orcs, Grom'Thak Tar.
The letter said the Chief would like to meet Vortigan, and that he himself would come unarmed and alone to Elysium to meet him. The female orc named Or'Gra was to deliver his reply. She told him how Orthos was the one to promise their people a better future if they helped to take over Reymorah, but that changed when Orthos abandoned them. They even had to kill all the beasts under their control as they went wild when Orthos left.
So three days after Hearth's Warming Eve, there'll be a meeting in Elysium, and We've been invited to attend since we helped fight against them, thus we had a say in it as well since we suffered losses during the battle.
I also got Gaia to help me with those rare flowers I wanted, I may know how to grow flowers now, I just don't know how to alter the seeds to get the flower I want myself. I was hoping to learn that sooner, but I guess this is good enough.
I wake up with my lovers around me. Celestia to my right, Cadence to my left, Luna on top of me and Shella cuddled up to Cadence's back.
Today is Hearth's Warming Eve and Luna told me they have a surprise ready for me. We all get up and get ready for the day and we're now having breakfast in the Dining Hall.
"We hope thou art looking forward to our gifts," Luna says to me.
I swallow my mouthful of bacon and turn to her. "Of course, but being here with all of you is a gift in itself," I reply, looking to everyone gathered.
Celestia, Cadence, Shella, Luna, my parents, Jasmine, Shining Armour, and Silk Sheets are all gathered here. They smile at me and Luna giggles as she kisses my right cheek. Blueblood is still down in Ponyville with Rarity.
I feed Shella to which she feeds Mavis. Today we're just going to relax as there's no court or training.
"So, how have you and Silk been doing?" I ask Shining.
He chuckles and holds silk's hand. She's clearly nervous sitting at the table with us. "Pretty well actually. We've learnt a lot about each other and Twilight likes her as well," he replies.
I smile at that. "That's great. What are your plans for today?" I ask.
"We're going to meet mine and her parents at my folks place along with Twilight and Spike," he tells me.
"Sounds nice," I say and finish off my breakfast.
Cadence then speaks up. "Adrian... would you accompany me to the Orphanage today?" she asks me.
I look to the others who smile and nod. I look back at Cadence and smile at her. "Sure, what are you planning on doing?" I reply and ask.
"I visit and play with the foals whenever I have free time. It makes them so happy," she tells me.
I chuckle. "Well then, I think I have an idea to make them even happier," I say and get up.
She looks confused as I hold my hand out to her where she takes it and I help her up. I then give my wives a kiss each. "We'll be back in a few hours," I tell them.
"Tis alright, have fun," Luna replies.
I lead Cadence out and head to the vault. After talking to the treasurer, I withdraw a thousand bits from my hoard and carry the bag over my left shoulder. Good thing the coins are light and small.
"What are the bits for?" she asks.
"I'm going to buy a bunch of toys for the kids. A Hearth's Warming Eve gift for them if you will, and whatever is left will go towards the upkeep of the place," I reply.
"Really?" she asks with wide eyes and a smile.
"Yes, let's go so you can pick the toys out," I tell her.
She squeals and hugs me tightly, then we get a carriage and head into the city. Over the next hour, Cadence gets dolls, building blocks, doll houses, soft swords that look like they're made of pillows, story books, board games, wooden trains, blankets with different themes, and many other toys.
In total, it cost four hundred and sixty-three bits. We cart our haul to the Orphanage where the guards help to carry it. Cadence knocks on the door of the old looking building and an elderly pale cream coloured woman with white hair tied into a bun greets us.
"Princess! It's so good to see you again. The foals will be so happy," she says and then looks behind her. "What's all this?" she asks.
"Gifts for the foals," Cadence replies.
"You didn't have to do this," the woman says.
Cadence smiles and steps aside, allowing the woman to see me. "I didn't, Adrian did," she tells her.
The woman's eyes widen. "Your Majesty!" she says and bows.
I chuckle. "Please, no need to bow," I tell her.
She looks back up at me. "Thank you, my name is Loving Care. The foals will love these," she says and lets us in.
We walk in with the guards carrying the toys behind us. We're lead to a room with twenty kids playing with each other but they stop and look at us.
"CADENCE!" they all yell and swarm her.
"Hello, little ones," she says and kneels down to them.
"What are we going to play today," a little girl asks.
"I'm sorry, but I can't play with you as I don't want to strain myself," she tells them.
They all 'awww' In disappointment but then they look at me.
"Who's that?" a chubby little boy asks.
"He's my coltfriend, and the King of Equestria," she tells him.
"The King?" they ask.
I walk over to them and kneel beside Cadence. "Hello, it's nice to meet you all," I say to them.
"Why are you here?" a girl asks.
"Cadence asked me to come, but I thought I'd bring you presents," I reply. "Can you put the boxes down over there please?" I ask the guards.
"Of course, your Majesty," they reply. I know I keep telling them to stop that, but it's apparently part of their job and looks more professional.
They put the boxes down in between us and the children.
I then open the boxes and look back at the kids. "These are all for you," I tell them. "Enjoy."
The shouts of their happiness and laughter make me smile. I then turn to Loving Care and give her the bag with the rest of the bits in it. "This is for you and the Orphanage," I tell her.
She opens it and gasps. "I... I don't know what to say... thank you," she replies and surprisingly hugs me. "Not many donate to us anymore. The last three donations were two from Princess Cadence, and one from Sir Fancy Pants," she says.
I return the hug. "You're welcome. If you need anything else, I'd be happy to help," I tell her.
I hear a door open and someone walking in. "Mom! I'm back! I got the medicine you need," a female voice says. A yellow woman with short multi-hue green hair, pink eyes, and wearing casual clothes walks in the room. She looks at us and the guards. "What's going on?" she asks.
"Hello, Sunny Smiles," Cadence says.
"Cadence!" Sunny says with a big smile and hugs her.
I notice Sunny has her left arm in a sling. Whilst Cadence and sunny chat I walk over to Loving Care.
"What's the medicine for?" I ask her.
"I have a poor heart condition and the medicine helps keep my blood pressure down. It happened a week ago as I went out to get groceries for the foals. A construction site I was passing collapsed and a piece of jagged steel barely punctured my heart where I almost died that day. I was taken to the hospital where they operated on me, but the best they could do was close the hole. It's really thin now and if my blood pressure goes too high, the thin layer of muscle might burst," she tells me.
Sounds like a simple laceration, easy to heal.
"Would you like me to heal your heart for you?" I ask her.
She looks at me surprised. "You can do that?" she asks.
"Sure, do you want me to?" I offer.
"I would like that very much," she replies.
I hold my right hand out to her and cast a single life element healing beam. Since the wound is on the heart, I think it's best to heal it slowly.
Everyone watched as the beam slowly flowed into her. After a few minutes I stop the beam.
"There, all better," I tell her.
She takes a deep breath and smiles. "It doesn't hurt to breath deeply anymore."
"Good, that also means you don't need that medicine anymore, but I suggest going to the hospital for a check up anyway," I tell her. I then turn to Sunny. "Would you like me to heal your arm for you as well?" I ask her.
She looks at her arm then back at me and bows. "Yes please," she replies.
I cast another beam on her and heal her arm. She goes wide eyed as she takes the sling off and moves her arm about, I then cancel the beam.
"It's as good as new, thanks," she says.
"You're welcome," I reply.
For the next hour, we have tea and I'm dragged into a game with the kids. I played the part of a greedy dragon keeping the girls prisoner while the boys used the blankets like armour and the pillow swords to battle me.
I was then defeated in an epic battle where eleven kids were lightly bashing me on the floor with their 'swords'.
"Curse you brave knights! You have slain me!" I say and play dead, complete with my tongue hanging out with a dramatic last breath.
"Our heroes!" the girls say giggling uncontrollably. Using the other blankets as dresses.
Cadence and Sunny giggle, while Loving Care just smiles at us.
One of the boys puts his hoof on my chest holding his sword out above his head. "Fear not fair maidens! For we shall protect thee!" he says proudly.
I grin and sit up and wrap my arms around him. "Foolish knight! You think me defeated so easily!" I say trying to sound smug. He yelps and I grin. "Feel the power of my flames!" I say and tickle his sides.
He bursts out laughing while trying to get me to let go. I chuckle and let him go where he lies on his back while panting.
I turn to the others with a shit eating grin. "Which one of you wishes to get eaten next?" I say to them.
They scream as I chase them around the room, stomping and roaring.
"Come on, Adrian. I think it's time we head back to the Castle," Cadence tells me.
A collection of 'awwws' ring out as the kids look sad.
I chuckle and stand up. "Don't worry kids, I'll visit again. I haven't had this much fun since I was a child," I tell them.
They perk up and say goodbye as they raid the boxes for the rest of the toys.
We're standing by the door where Care and Sunny thank us for the toys, bits, playing with the kids, and healing their injuries.
We then get on the carriage and head back to the Castle.
"Those toys and bits will help them a lot, and that was very nice of you to play with them, you're really good with foals," Cadence says.
I chuckle and wrap my left arm around her waist. "Just reliving my own six year old childhood. No cares or worries and just having some fun."
She giggles and leans against me. "You're going to make a great father," she tells me.
I smile and rest my head atop hers.
We return to the Castle and have some lunch. Until dinner time, we all lounge in Celestia and Luna's personal lounge, gathered around the fireplace just talking with each other. I had a few chess matches with them and lost each one, oh well.
Celestia and Cadence are having a chess match while I'm sitting in the middle of the couch with Luna to my right and Shella to my left. I'm holding Mavis in my arms and talking to her, she's been babbling a lot lately.
"Mavis. Say, Daddy. Daaaaddyyyyy," I tell her.
"Baba didy!" she replies.
"No no no. Daddy. Dad dy, daaaaddyyyy," I say again.
She giggles and reaches out to me, I lean forward where she starts squeezing my cheeks. "Dada! Daddy!" she yells and laughs while slapping my cheeks.
My smile is a mile wide. "She said daddy!" I say and nuzzle my Daughter, making her try to push me away.
"Such a joyous moment!" Luna says and tickles Mavis.
I hand her back to Shella who then feeds her some energy.
"Ooooh. I just can't wait for my own bundle of joy to be born!" Cadence says and accidentally knocks the chess board off the table in her excitement. "AHH!" she yelps as the noise startles her.
The others giggle and I smirk where I just watch as they all chat with each other. Before I came here, I never thought I'd find someone to love with all my travelling and eventual study at the academy, but here I am, with four lovers, a daughter and three more on the way. Plus another when spring comes by.
"I think we should have some fun with Adrian tonight, as another gift to him," I barely hear Cadence say. I see them all huddled together with her back towards me.
I look at Cadence with a raised eyebrow. It seems she hasn't noticed I heard that as I quietly get up and creep up behind her.
I wrap my arms around her stomach and kiss her cheek. She 'eeps' and then giggles.
"Maybe I'm up for a little fun later as well," I tell her and lower my hands and grope the front of her thighs making her gasp and moan lightly.
I step away and gently spank her backside. I can hear her panting as I sit back down and chuckle.
We later head to dinner where they tease me about tonight and the things they're going to do to me.
After dinner, we return to our room where they get me to sit in the middle of our large bed after Mavis was put in her crib. They all sit in front of me with a small box each.
"These are our gifts to you," Celestia says and gives me hers.
I open the box to see a necklace with a heart shaped pendant and their marks on it, though it seems it has some kind of black trim on it that looks organic. I open it up to see a picture with all of us together. Me standing in the middle, Celestia to my right, Luna to my left, Shella next to Luna and Cadence next to Celestia with Mavis in my arms. This was taken just over a month ago.
"Since Shella doesn't have a Cutie-Mark, she gave us a small piece of her chitin to add to the pendant," Luna says.
I smile at them and put the necklace on. "Thank you, I'll keep it on always," I tell them.
Luna then hands me hers. I open it to see two bracelets made of gold with a diamond on each one. I take them out and put them on.
"They're very nice," I say.
"We got them from Terra. They're the latest in what they called mana foci, should thou find thyself without thy weapon or shield, these should increase thy magic a bit," she tells me.
My brow rises, impressive. "These will come in handy then, thank you," I reply.
Shella then gives me hers. I open the box and inside is a black ring with the same organic look as the pendant. In the centre is the life element icon.
"This is for everything you've done for me and my Hive. I had the ring made from a piece of my Chitin and the emblem is an emerald from Terra with a life element infused to it, should you get hurt and can't heal yourself. Just press on the emerald and it should heal you a bit... though it only has one use." She tells me.
I put the ring on my left ring finger and smile. "Thank you, Shella. What part of your chitin did it come from?" I reply and ask.
"Just from my left forearm. I used the large life crystal in the research academy to heal myself afterwards," she tells me.
She hurt herself just to make me this? I smile and lean over and kiss her deeply.
She moans into the kiss as I let some of my love flow into her before I pull away and smile. "Thank you very much. I'll treasure it always,"
Finally Cadence gives me hers. I open it and pull out a crystal perfectly cut and made to look like the photo in the pendant. It's only three inches tall but the detail is so life like.
"I spent the last month making this," she tells me.
I turn it around in my grasp, my smile never fading. "It's beautiful. Thank you, Cadence," I give them each a kiss and then get a box out from under the bed.
"And I have something for you four as well." I tell them I place it in front of them and lift the lid off. They gasp as Luna takes hers first.
Her hand is trembling as she holds the once extinct Moon Lily up. A silver flower that glows like moonlight.
"A-Adrian... where didst thou find this? These became extinct during our banishment," she asks me quietly.
I chuckle. "I didn't find them. With Gaia's help, we grew them," I reply.
Celestia holds her Solar Rose. It's a rose that looks like it's giving off heat and is a deep orange colour.
"These are only found it Saddle Arabia... and they're so rare that it's illegal to pick them..." she tells me and sniffs the flower.
Shella examines her Sapphire Orchid. Six deep blue little flowers on the end of the stem.
"It's beautiful," she says.
Cadence hasn't picked hers up yet.
"Cadence, what's wrong?" I ask her.
"Erm... well it's not that I don't like it... it's just... errr. A Passion Tulip's pollen can act as an aphrodisiac to ponies. It's the reason they're called 'Passion' Tulips," she tells me. The flower is bright pink and the petals are shaped like hearts.
Oh... "Why wasn't that mentioned in the book I found it in?" I ask.
"The flower became extinct over five hundred years ago from over harvesting. Ponies used it a lot for... sexual activities to the point they were all gone so it was left out of the books on what it did," she replies.
"Huh, so it didn't effect me because I'm human?" I ask.
"Most likely, yes," Celestia replies.
"I see. Well then, I also got you this Cadence," I say and pull out a golden ring with a heart shaped aquamarine gem embedded into it.
She smiles and puts the ring on. "Thank you, Adrian. It's lovely," she says and then looks at the Passion Tulip with half lidded eyes.
Uh-oh...
She picks it up and takes a deep breath through her nose. She then moans and passes the flower to the others.
She levitates the box and the other flowers off the bed and onto the nightstand. She pushes me onto my back as she climbs onto me and kisses me deeply.
"Hmmm. I feel like I could go all night long..." she whispers to me.
Hearth's Warming Eve has come and gone and that night was strenuous to say the least. That Passion Tulip really kept them going...
The effects of the Tulip also continued for the next day as it slowly wore off making them much more affectionate and heavy cuddle bugs. I'm not complaining though, the attention was nice.
For the last three days, we've been training and practising with our aspects. I can finally control four of the sunflowers at once, just two more to go.
I've also been spending three hours a day with Keanu, getting him used to my presence.
We've all got up, dressed and had breakfast. Luna and I are waiting near the portal for Vortigan to arrive and let us know when this meeting starts.
After a few minutes he walks through and greets us. "Adrian, Luna," he says with a slight bow which we return. "It's good to see you again."
"Likewise, Vortigan. So, are the preparations for this Warlord ready?" I ask him.
"Yes, a conference room has been set up and is perfect for our discussion, but we'll also have a few guests with us as well. King Ivan Bronzebeard of the dwarves. King Sylvaan of the elves. Tide Priestess Hisana of the aquarians, and even Empress Jin'lee of the kitsune," he tells us.
"We see. It would be good to meet the other leaders of thine world," Luna replies.
"I have told them about you as well, and they all look forward to meeting you," he says.
"Great, has the Warlord arrived yet?" I ask.
"Not yet, but scouts have reported that he's been spotted heading to Elysum, alone and unarmed as he said he would be. It's estimated that he'll be here within the hour,"
"Okay, should we head to the Conference Room now or wait for his arrival?" I ask Vortigan.
"You can go now if you wish. I have a room prepared for you both as well," he tells us.
"Thank you. What do you say Luna? Wait in the conference room or wait in our room?" I ask her.
She smiles and holds my hand. "We wouldn't mind waiting in our room," she replies.
"Very well then, I'll have a servant take you to your chambers and then tell you when the meeting is about to start," he says.
We walk through the portal and a maid leads us to our room. We spent about forty minutes talking and cuddling each other on the bed until a maid told us it was time. We follow her to the Conference Room where a dwarf with plate armour and a long braided orange beard and an aquarian with a dress that looks more like something for a ceremony are sitting at a large round table. There's a large pot of clear water next to the Priestess, probably for her water legs spell.
They look at Luna with surprised expressions. "He weren't kiddin' when he said she looks like a horse," the dwarf says.
I frown at him while Luna just smiles. "We art a pony actually. Our name is Queen Luna, but thou may just call us Luna," she replies.
The dwarf looks a bit embarrassed. "My apologies lass, I meant no disrespect. I'm King Ivan Bronzebeard, and ya'll can just call me Ivan," he tells us.
The aquarian speaks up next. "And I am Tide Priestess Hisana. It is my duty to guide my people to a prosperous future," she tells us.
"Tis a pleasure to meet thee both," Luna replies.
We take a seat next to each other and wait for the others to arrive. About five minutes later after some small talk, a very old looking elf with a nature themed robe walks in with a crown of golden leaves.
"Took ye sweet time didn't ye?" Ivan tells him.
"I believe I am on time dwarf," the elf replies with a calm tone. He then spots Luna and raises an eyebrow. "And are you the Equestrian Queen I've heard of?" he asks her.
"We are. Our name is Luna," she replies with a slight bow.
"Hmmm, intriguing that another beast race has shown itself. We believed the Kitsune to be the only ones, orcs and aquarians a close second," the elf says.
Seems Luna didn't like being referred to as a beast. "We are ponies, not wild animals. Call us a beast again and we shall make thee live thy worst nightmares," Luna threatens him.
"And she has a bite to her. Forgive my poor choice of words my dear, I am King Sylvaan," he replies with a bow of his own.
I just roll my eyes. 'Elves, always think they're better,' I think to myself.
He then looks at me. "And are you King Adrian? The one who stopped the undead giant?" he asks me.
"I am," I reply.
"Impressive, I look forward to seeing where you go in the future," he says and takes a seat.
Next to arrive is a small four foot tall white furred bipedal fox girl with an orange and white furred male kitsune in armour just standing beside her. 'Is she the kitsune Empress? She looks way too young to rule a nation.'. "Um, hello?" she asks timidly. Oh gods, she's like a younger Fluttershy.
"Yer Just in time, lass. Take a seat, we're just waitin' on Vortigan and Warlord Grom'Thak Tar now," Ivan tells her.
"Oh erm, okay, thank you," she replies and takes a seat next to Ivan. "M-My name in Jin'lee. I-It's nice to meet you all, and this i-is my Guardian, Kienmon," she says with a low bow. In doing so, she accidentally hits her head on the hard stone table. She yips in a high pitch and starts sniffling while rubbing her forehead.
"Here, let me help," I say and point my right hand at her. I cast a single life element and heal her bruise.
She stops her whimpering and smiles at me. "T-Thank you," she tells me.
"You're welcome. I'm Adrian Stormsword," I reply.
"And our name is Luna Stormsword. Tis a pleasure to meet you Jin'lee," Luna says making me smile when she used my surname herself.
The others also tell her their names. As we wait, I notice Sylvaan glancing at Jin'lee and Luna with a look of curiosity.
"Sylvaan, why do you keep staring at Jin'lee and my wife," I ask him with a neutral expression.
"My apologises, we all know the kitsune are the results of elves trying to fuse elven blood with an animal to give us enhanced senses four-hundred years ago. The project was abandoned after the kitsune were... born, if you will. Tell me my dear, are you the result of such a project as well?" he asks Luna.
"Most certainly not, we art over a millennia old, thus we pre-date thy... experiments," she replies.
"So your race is only a thousand years old?" he asks her.
"Thou misunderstand. I am over a millennia old," she tells him, having to slip out of her archaic speech.
The others look at her with wide eyes. "Ye mean to tell us yer immortal, lass?" Ivan asks.
"We are. As are my sister, niece, herd sister, and husband," she replies.
Ivan then looks to me. "Yer an immortal too?" he asks me with even more surprise.
"Kind of. I'm ageless, not immortal," I reply. I really wish Luna didn't mention that as Sylvaan now has this unnerving glint in his eyes.
"And how did that come about?" Sylvaan asks.
I just glance at him. "I'm not sure myself, I was in a coma when it happened," I reply. I'm not going to tell him that, the look he's giving us is just disturbing.
It seems he's not happy with that answer, but any reply he has is cut off as Vortigan and a large pale green orc with a long white twin braided beard enters behind him wearing nothing but a loincloth. He has scars all over his body, most likely from all the battles he's been in.
"I see we're all here, then let us get started," Vortigan says and sits in his ornate chair. Grom'Thak Tar takes the seat between me and Vortigan. "Thank you all for coming, as this meeting will most likely affect how the orcs will live from now on," he tells us.
Grom'Thak Tar then speaks up. "I have come to firstly apologise," he says in a deep voice and bows, he speaks better than I thought an orc would... "I know a simple apology won't bring back those killed by us, I only did what I believed was best for my people. Our lands are dying and we do not know why as crops and livestock cannot live or grow there anymore. Orthos offered me a way to save my people... but in the end, he led us to near extinction," he tells us.
"And what do ye want us to do about it? It's not like we can just heal the dirt itself," Ivan replies.
"I would have to agree with King Bronzebeard, not even the Aspect of Life can bring back the dead, I believe that would go for the very planet itself," Sylvaan says.
I can feel Gaia's orb pulsing so I tap it and she speaks. 'He's wrong. While they can't heal the land, we can,' she tells me.
'You mean like how I'm going to help you regrow the Moonglade Forest?' I ask her.
'Yes, but on a much smaller scale. It sounds like their land is slowly being poisoned with arcane energies, while Moonglade was bathed in it.'
'I see. Should you come out and tell them? I think the elf will get a nasty shock after what he just said about you,' I say to her.
Grom and Ivan seem to be arguing about why we should even help after all the pain and misery the orcs caused.
'That might be for the best,' she tells me and creates her astral projection.
The others all shut up and stare at her as she hovers beside me.
"Ladies and Gentlemen, may I introduce you to Mother Gaia. The Aspect of Life," I announce. I look at Sylvaan and notice he instantly bows to her. I knew the elves treated her like a goddess, but not to the point of total worship.
"My lady, I am blessed to be in your presence," Sylvaan says.
Gaia just looks at him. "You are still on my bad side, Sylvaan. I still haven't forgiven you for the cruelty you inflicted to the animals you used in your experiments, no one has the right to toy with another's life so maliciously," she tells him.
Sylvaan looks visibly hurt by that as Gaia then turns to the others . "I believe the lands of Orgrim have been poisoned with arcane energies. It is most likely that Orthos poisoned your homeland in order to make his proposal look much more favourable to you," she says to Grom.
"Then we were betrayed from the very start?" he asks with disbelief.
"I believe so, but I believe I can repair the damage with Adrian's help," she replies.
"And what can a single human do to help? We elves have more mana and understanding in nature than any human ever could," Sylvaan says in a smug like tone.
I stand up and close my eyes. I can feel Gaia's mana flow through me and my aspect form takes shape. I open my eyes to the stunned looks of everyone but Luna.
"Adrian is my avatar and he holds a near limitless supply of mana," Gaia tells him.
Sylvaan looks rather angry but says nothing.
"And what do we get in return for helpin' yer lands?" Ivan asks Grom.
"Nothing," I say. Getting odd looks from both the statement and the echo in my voice. "Only that they join our alliance, and come to our aid as we shall theirs," I tell them.
Grom stands up and holds his hand out to me. "We would be honoured to join your alliance. All I ask is you save my lands and people," he says.
I shake his hand. "Very well. Shall we go now before the land gets any worse?" I ask him.
"I would appreciate it," Grom replies.
"You can take one of our prototype airships, it would get you there quicker," Vortigan tells me.
"You already have airships built?" I ask.
"Yes but only three small ones," he replies.
"Still, it's better than walking, thank you," I tell him.
Sylvaan stands up and heads for the door. "While you all may welcome the orcs. I for one shall not allow their kind within Vaylen's borders," he tells us and leaves, but not before shooting me a nasty look.
"Always such a pleasure talkin' ta him," Ivan says.
I just shake my head. "By the way, Ivan. How are those train blueprints Luna gave you working out?" I ask as I drop my aspect form.
"Oh aye, they're a big help. We had a couple o' problems with our design that we just couldn't figure out, but with those blueprints we discovered the problem. Should be able to start building the prototype in about three months," he replies.
"Great, I take it the first track will be to link Elysium with Stonehaven?" I ask.
"Aye, but that won't be for many months or even years," he replies.
"Well then," says Vortigan. "I believe that is all. While I am, admittedly, still upset about your attacks on my City. I can see why you did so, I too have been betrayed by my own brother Orthos," Vortigan tells Grom.
"I see. In any case, If there is anything we can do for you, just ask. It's the least I can do," Grom replies.
"Just come back here once you're done so we can all discuss terms and agreements," Vortigan tells him.
We say our goodbyes and a guard leads us to where the airships are located. Just outside the Castle is a new tower with platforms coming out of it with three small sloop style airships, though the engines and such have a more dwarven style to them.
We're lead to the first ship and we board it after the Captain receives a letter from the guard.
"We really flying to Orgrim?" one of the crew's dwarfs asks.
"By order of King Vortigan it seems," the human Captain of the ship replies. "Alright, hop on board, should only take us two days if the wind is with us. Four if not," he tells us.
Wait, four days!? I groan and get on board with Luna and Grom.
It's been two days since we took off from Elysium where Luna and I have been talking to Grom about his homeland.
The orcs are surprisingly cultured. While their architecture mostly consists of huts and log buildings, they have a large library with the history of their lands and achievements. Very few orcs can also communicate with the elementals of fire, water, air, and earth. They are the village shamans who protect the land. The only reason they weren't at the battle of Elysium, is because there are only four of them left.
The orcs are mostly a warrior race who find death in battle to be the highest of honours. Lately, they're being attacked by a race of low intelligence called the croconaw, kind of like Equus' diamond dogs. They live in swampy terrain and are hunched bipedal reptile like people, but they make even the diamond dogs sound like they speak fluent Terran in comparison. Their homes are nothing more than crudely made mud and grass huts, they don't even have any form of clothing or literature.
Grom also tells us to stay beside him as the guards will attack anything not an orc.
The next day
Luna, Grom, and I stand on the deck and watch as the orc city of Yar'grith gets ever closer, fortunately the wind was in our favour. While it looks big, it's built mainly of logs and loose stone. The land surrounding it looks all dried up and withered.
The ship lands a mile away so not to have their warriors attack us. The crew extends the gang plank and we get off.
"Wait here for our return, we are not sure how long this shall take. We will remain in telepathic communication with thee, Captain," Luna tells the Captain.
"Alright, still getting used to that by the way," he replies and scratches his head. When Luna first did it, the Captain almost shit himself. Was amusing at least.
Once set, we start the walk to Yar'grith.
"Once we get to the gates. I need you both to remain silent until I can spread word that you are guests. Also, stay on your guard. Some orcs have developed a hate for humans after Orthos's betrayal," Grom tells us.
Wonderful.
After some time of walking, we arrive at the large log gates.
Grom yells something in orcish at the gates where an orc looks over the wall and nodded at him. The gates slowly open enough to let us in. I keep my mana flowing through my hands just in case I need to quickly defend Luna and myself.
I look around and see lots of huts around us, some with signs above the doors written in orcish and some images representing what they do or sell. I notice some of the orcs are baring their teeth at us, me specifically.
A male orc walks over with a furious expression and starts arguing with Grom in orcish. I share a look with Luna and just wait.
Grom sighs and turns back to us. "It would appear that you must undergo the Grim'mak Tou if you wish to earn the people's respect," he tells me.
I frown at him. "And what's that?" I ask.
"A battle to the death with our strongest warrior," he says seriously.
I stare at him shocked. "What?" I ask dumbly.
"It's an ancient tradition. It's a way for an outsider to be recognised as a warrior and welcomed amongst us," he tells me.
"Do I have to kill him, or can I just defeat him with a knockout or incapacitate him?" I ask.
"I'm afraid not, it's kill or be killed. Should you do that, it would be a great dishonour to the warrior as you would deny them an honourable death," he replies.
I frown at him. "Then what would happen should I decline participating in this fight?" I ask him.
"Then you would be seen as a coward and exiled from our lands," he tells me.
I smirk and huff. "Then I would rather be seen as a coward then needlessly take a life for no reason. If I'm to be exiled, then let us get on with healing your lands already like I promised," I reply and turn to head back to the gates.
The orc that argued with Grom growls at me. "You insult us by refusing the Grim'mak Tou?" he says to me.
I look over my shoulder at him. "It is my choice to accept it or not, I refuse to kill anyone without a solid reason," I tell him.
He snorts at me. "Just like all humans, cowards," he says.
"No, I just value life. What would happen if I killed the Warrior? What of their family? Friends? I just don't see the point in a senseless fight," I tell him with a frown.
"You dare speak ill of our traditions like that you puny human!?" he shouts at me and draws his right fist back to punch me.
I channel a teleport spell into my left hand while channelling a large amount of mana in my right. He thrusts his fist at me and I teleport to his right and I throw a punch of my own with my right hand into his ribs. I release the mana I gathered and with the aid of the bracelet, send out a blast of air on impact that sends him through a building.
I wish I brought my armour with me. I doubt Luna could teleport it from another world to me.
I stand in a fighting stance waiting for him to come back out. He groans and pushes the logs off of himself and yells in rage. He then charges at me with an axe that he must have picked up within the building.
I cast a three element stone armour spell covering myself in a thick two inch layer of stone. Just as he reaches me, I hold my left arm up and the axe hits the stone, making me grunt from the force and chipping the stone. I repeat the same punch and send him back through the hole.
"Grom, you better get him to stop. I said I only kill when I have to. Right now, he's getting close to giving me a reason to," I tell him and channel four water elements in my left hand.
"I cannot as this is a fight between you two. Besides, he is our strongest warrior and this is your Grim'mak Tou test," he replies.
Wait, what? Oh you son of a bitch!
I turn back to see the orc rush out of the hole holding a bigger axe now and throws the smaller one at me.
I bash the axe away with my right forearm where Luna catches it with her magic and I thrust my left hand out and release my spell. A forceful spray of water hits the orc, sending him sliding across the floor and into a wall. This time though, the wall held. I continue to spray him for a few seconds and then cancel it. I don't want to drown him after all.
I groan in frustration as he gets back up and runs at me again, this is getting old fast. He swings his axe at me and I use my stone covered arms to deflect his attacks.
My arms are starting to get sore so I channel a single lightning element and cast it at him for only a second. The electricity is drawn to him and the water around him, shocking him.
He tenses up and then drops to his knees as the battle axe drops from his grip and he then collapses onto his chest, twitching now and then as small sparks of static dance off of him.
"That should keep him down this time," I say and turn to Grom. "As I said, I refuse to kill him needlessly," I say and walk back over to Luna.
I hear a grunt from the orc as he picks up his axe. "If you won't kill me in combat, then I shall give you a reason to!" he says and hurls the large axe straight at Luna with surprising speed and force.
"LUNA!" I shout out and teleport in front of her. The axe impacts my back and I can feel the stone break away and the axe embed itself into my left shoulder blade. "GAAAAAHHH!" I scream out in pain. I grit my teeth as my expression then turns to anger and rage.
Bastard wants to die that badly? Then so be it. No one attacks my wife and lives to regret it!
POV: Luna
I cover my muzzle with my hands as I look at the large axe buried into Adrian's shoulder. "Adrian! Thou needs to heal thyself now!" I tell him with fear, but gasp as his eyes open and turn black and red again with a black mist seeping out the sides of his eyes.
His stone armour drops off and he takes on his life aspect form, but this time, instead of the vines I'm used to seeing, he's covered in what looks like a suit of very thick bark like armour. Leaves then come out of the wooden helmet like a flowing mane. The axe is pushed out of his back and the wound heals instantly. Two spikes come out of each of his elbows at least two feet long and with very lethal looking tips. Even the tips of his fingers look more like claws now.
He turns back to the orc and roars his anger to the sky before charging at him, the sound of his distorted roar is enough to give even our guards nightmares. The orc now has a look of fear on his face and before he could even react Adrian digs his left clawed fingers into the orc's left shoulder and with his right hand, he grasps the orc's left wrist and pulls his arm clean off. Blood splatters all over Adrian's bark like armour and the ground from the orc's shoulder.
"GRRAAAHH!" the orc shouts in agony. I stop myself from throwing up as Adrian then uses the arm like a club and slams it into the orc's head.
The orc stumbles and grunts in pain as he clutches the stump that used to be his arm. Vines then extend from Adrian's arm and ensnare the orc as he then pulls his arm back, sending the orc over his head and slamming him into the ground where the sounds of bones breaking fill my ears.
I've never seen Adrian this aggressive, cruel, or angry before!
Adrian stands over the orc who's coughing up a large amount of blood. "Any last words?" he asks the orc in a calm, neutral tone while holding one of his elbow spikes above the orc's chest. His voice doesn't have it's usual echo, but a cruel and distorted tone.
The orc only grins at him.
"So be it," Adrian says and thrusts the spike through the orc's heart.
The orc has an expression of pain before he goes limp and his eyes close as death takes him.
Adrian then pulls the spike out and walks over to Grom'Thak Tar. "I hope you're happy, because I'm ashamed and disgusted. There was no honour in this," he tells him in a cold tone that sent shivers down my spine and wings.
He walks over to a clearing and digs his fingers into the ground as a green mist engulfs him and flows into the earth. Grass and flowers start to grow all around him slowly and begins to expand away from him. He stays like this for an hour before pulling his fingers out and the bark armour breaks away from him. No pony went near him or said a word the whole time, whether or not from respect or fear, I'm not sure.
He pants heavily and starts wobbling so I run over to him and catch him before he fell. "It's done..." he says and looks at me. "Let's get out of here. I don't want to stay here any longer," he tells me before passing out, a single tear rolling down his right cheek.
Grom then walks over to us. "I am sorry about this, but it is tradition and must be honoured," he tells me.
I frown at him. "That may be so for ye orcs, but Adrian isn't an orc and has his own morals and beliefs. Thou shouldn't force thy traditions on others who do not wish to participate. You have most likely lost his respect, as well as ours. He has healed thy lands as we agreed, we shall now take our leave. We will wait for thee to return to the ship," I tell him with a hint of anger, making him at least wince slightly.
I pick up Adrian and take flight away from the city. Tears begin to fall from my eyes as I hold him close to me, under all that anger and rage, I saw the shame and hurt he was feeling.
I look at the land that Adrian and Gaia has healed. From a once barren wasteland, to fertile green plains with plants and saplings growing everywhere.
'Captain, we have done what we came to do. Prepare to take off once the the orc Chieftain returns,' I tell the Captain telepathically.
'GAH! Bloody hell! Queen Luna? Please excuse my choice of words, you just startled me is all. The ship is ready to go at your command already,' he replies.
'We thank thee, we shall be arriving shortly,' I tell him.
'Understood ma'am.'
After a few minutes of flying, I land on the deck and head into our cabin. I place Adrian down on our bed and kiss his forehead. "Rest well, our love. We shall be here when thou awakens," I tell him and walk out the door to wait for Grom'Thak Tar.
POV: Adrian Stormsword
I open my eyes to Gaia's little forest pond and see her sitting by the water.
"Hello, Gaia," I greet her as I stand up.
"Hello, Adrian. It seems you have gained our combative form," she tells me. "I only wish it was under better circumstances."
"Combat form?" I ask her.
"The form you are used to is more for magic and energy based abilities. The form you just used is our more physical side of combat. Using plants and bark to inflict damage," she replies.
"I see. So do I just think of what form I want to take to use it?" I ask her.
"Correct. I was planning to ease you into it, but your emotions evoked it early. Please take better care from now on, you almost lost yourself and me to your rage. We could have ended up just like Luna and Umbra did," she warns me.
I sigh and sit next to her. "I'm sorry, but I just got so angry at being forced to fight and then have Luna put in danger because of it," I reply.
She then wraps her right arm around my back. "It is not your fault. The orcs have been isolated from the other races for so long, they hold on to their beliefs tightly and are not used to another's point of view," she says. "Now get some rest, you'll need it after the strain we went through healing the land," she tells me and my vision fades to black.
I wake up in the soft feathery embrace of my wife making me smile and lean into her, but my smile fades as memories of the fight I was forced into fills my mind. Is honour really worth that much to die over? I would rather be called a coward and shunned then take a life for so called honour and acceptance.
Luna stirs beside me and I gently stroke her back. "Hmmmm, that feels nice," she says. "Are thou feeling better?" she asks me.
I sigh. "A bit, I still feel bad about taking a life that didn't have to die, but the moment he threw that axe at you... I just couldn't bring myself to care about it anymore..." I tell her.
Luna gently kisses me and smiles. "Thou art still our kind and loving husband, and we know thou did it to protect us," she tells me.
I return the kiss with one of my own. "So, I take it Grom is on board again?" I ask her.
She frowns slightly at that. "Yes, he still needs to talk with Vortigan about trade and agreements," she replies. "Once we return home, we shall all go on our honeymoon together for the week," she says.
"But what about court? Your duties?" I ask her.
She rolls her eyes at me. "Pfft, we don't see why our subjects need us to deal with every single little squabble for them. Court used to be for important matters of state and international affairs," she replies with a shake of her head. "They can live for a week without us. Besides, Prince Blueblood can take over court for us... Now thou be silent and rest, we have not had our fill of cuddles yet," she says and holds me tighter against her.
I just chuckle with a smile. "Alright," I reply to which she just 'shhhh's' me.
We returned to Elysium after four days of travel as the wind was against us this time and Luna and I kept away from the Warchief for the rest of the trip. When we arrived, Grom went off to discuss things with Vortigan, but this time wearing a robe made from fur and leather. Luna and I just head back to the portal and return to Equestria after bidding goodbye to the others.
Once home, we head to the Throne Room where we find Celestia, Cadence, and Shella with Mavis on the thrones.
"Adrian!" Cadence says and quickly makes her way over to us. "We missed you so much!" she says and grips me in a hug with a kiss.
I pull back and smile at her. "I missed you all as well. So how have things been while we were away?" I ask her.
Celestia gets up and walks over to us. "Nothing much, the only major point of concern is a small group of undead spotted near the Badlands borders," she tells me.
"I see. Well, the orcs are now part of the alliance... but at a cost," I say with a frown.
"Cost?" Shella asks.
Luna speaks up for me. "Adrian was forced to fight due to one of the orc's traditions... he had to kill their strongest warrior but he refused. He had no choice though when the orc threw an axe at us," she tells them.
"They what?" Cadence asks stunned.
I wave a hand dismissively. "Don't worry about it. It's over now and I'd rather forget about it," I reply.
"Yes. It... it was not a battle of Honour as the orcs saw it," Luna says.
"Can you show us?" Celestia asks Luna.
I wait for a few minutes while Luna shares the memory of the fight with the others.
Cadence gasps and covers her mouth. "How can they be so barbaric?" she says.
"I agree, how is there Honour in attacking somepony not even part of such a fight?" Celestia says with a frown.
Shella looks at me with wide eyes. "What was that form you took? I've never seen you like that before!" she asks me.
"It was Gaia's physical combat form... makes me wonder if the other aspects have other forms as well," I reply.
Luna then claps her hands together and gets our attention. "Enough about that for now. We are to start packing this instant!" she says a with a smile.
"Pack? For what?" Cadence asks her.
"Why, for our Honeymoon of course. Now that things have calmed down, we are to head out to Adrian's Condo near Haywaii," Luna replies.
'My what and where now?' I think to myself confused with a raised brow. "What's a Condo and when did I get one?" I ask her.
She has a look of surprise as she blushes. "Erm... we may have used some of thy hoard to purchase thee a small Condo near Haywaii for our Honeymoon two weeks ago..." she replies while looking down.
"And how much did it cost?" I ask.
She's silent for a few seconds before answering. "Ten-thousand bits..." she tells me.
"And how much do I have left?" I ask her.
She looks at me with a sheepish smile. "Fifty three-thousand and six-hundred bits..." she replies.
I smile and shake my head. "And why didn't you ask me first? I don't pinch your coppers and spend them without permission," I playfully tell her. I was expecting to have much less than that to be honest.
"We art sorry, we would have bought it ourselves... but our bits go towards the kingdom’s funding," she tells me.
I walk over to her and hug her. "It's alright, just let me know first next time," I tell her. "Okay then. While you do the packing, I have something to ask Shining. I'll see you in about an hour," I tell them.
"Alright. We shall wait for thee in our room," Luna replies.
I give each of them a kiss goodbye and head towards the Barracks.
I walk in and stand in front of Shining's office. I was about to knock but I can hear Silk giggling and Shining chuckle inside.
"You naughty stallion, what if somepony finds us?" Silk says to him.
"I've given the guard an hour break so we have a while before they return," he replies and I hear Silk yelp and giggle.
I raise an eyebrow and smirk. I've been meaning to try out the shadow element aura for awhile now. I cast the aura on myself and grip the door handle. I twist it and open the door where it doesn't make a single sound. I open the door and lean against the door frame with a raised brow at the scene before me.
Shining is sitting in his chair with Silk sitting on his lap... I can only see the bottom of her back and up, and she's only wearing a bra.
I drop the aura and cough loudly. Silk screams in fright, causing Shining's chair to fall backwards. I couldn't help but chuckle.
"Sorry, was I interrupting anything?" I ask teasingly.
I see Silk's head pop up over the desk. "Adrian! I-I-I can e-explain!" she says with a stutter.
"No need. I can see clearly what was going on, and I would have left and come back later if it wasn't life changingly important," I reply.
She now looks confused as she puts her maid uniform back on as shining stands up and puts his chair back under the desk. "Adrian? When did you get back? And what's so important?" he asks me.
I walk in and close the door, I then take a seat on the chair in front of his desk. "Me and my... herd mates... feels strange saying that. Anyway, we're about to go on our Honeymoon, and I just remembered something I was supposed to ask you," I tell him with a serious expression.
"And what is that?" he asks with a worried look.
"I'm looking for others to make contracts with some of the other Aspects. I wanted you to make one with the Shield Aspect... but you need your own pool of mana to do so... so here's my life changing question... Will you lose your unicorn way of magic and become human to be the avatar of the shield element," I ask him.
He goes wide eyed and slack jawed. It takes him nearly a minute to recover. "You want me to turn into a human? And make a contract with one of these aspects?" he asks me.
"It's your choice, I won't force you to. I just thought you would be a perfect match for the Shield Aspect because of your affinity for shield spells. Starswirl turned himself into a human as well, mostly to fit in my world, but he was able to make contracts with the aspects because of it," I tell him.
He looks down in thought and then to Silk, he then looks back at me. "So I would have the same kind of magic you use?" he asks me.
I nodded at him. "Correct, you'll lose the spells you know as a unicorn, but gain the magic of the elements as well as your own inner source of mana," I reply.
Silk looks at me and shining with wide eyes. "He'll be like you?" she asks.
"Yes, he may even grow a foot or two taller as well," I reply.
Shining sits on his chair and runs a hand through his hair. "Wow... that's a lot to take in..." he says.
"You can decide now or wait for us to return from our Honeymoon," I tell him.
"And this would make my shield spells stronger?" he asks.
"It may take you a few months to get used to using the mana within you and the elements instead of gathering it with your horn... but yes. It will make you much stronger and possibly resistant to unicorn magic as well," I tell him and then smirk. "I could even teach you how to use the air element to fly."
His eyebrows raise at that. "I'll be able to fly like you do?" he asks with a hint of excitement.
"Yup, it may take you a year or two before then, but one day, sure,"
He frowns in thought and smiles. "Alright, I'll do it," he then looks at Silk. "You don't mind if I become a human do you?" he asks her.
I see her cheeks flush red and she shakes her head. "No no no. I don't mind... I even like the idea," she replies with a sly smile. I think I know why.
"So, when do we do it?" he asks me.
"Now if you want. While we're gone, you can have one of the human mages begin training you until I get back," I tell him.
"Alright. I take it the Queens will be the ones casting the spell then?" he asks and stands up.
"Yeah. Well then, if you're sure you're ready for this, let's get going. The sooner it's done, the sooner you can start practising," I reply.
They wait in the Throne Room while I go find my lovers. I told them what was happening and Shining's decision to become a human.
They were shocked, Cadence more so, but nodded and agreed.
So here we are, the Throne Room has been emptied except for a few guards with Celestia and Luna on either side of Shining Armour. Shella with Mavis, Cadence, Silk, and I stand off to the side and out of the way. After doing a thorough scan on me for biology data and my magic signature for their spell, their horns start to glow and they begin.
"Are you sure you wish to do this, Captain Shining Armour," Celestia asks him.
"Yes, your Majesty. If it will help me protect Equestria better, then I am willing to do this," he replies.
A small smile adorns Celestia's face. "Very well. Please remain as still as possible. You may feel a bit of discomfort, but there should be no pain," she tells him.
Shining is encased in a cocoon of golden and dark blue magic. I can see his outline within and his horn starts receding. His legs change from a pony shape to a human’s and his hooves start stretching out into feet with toes. An extra finger grows out of his hands and the hard tips fold back into fingernails, his ears shrink as they go down the side of his head and his muzzle shrinks to a nose. The hairs on his tail drop off as the small bump left recedes into him. He even grows a foot and a half taller.
The process took about thirty minutes to complete. Once done, the magic fades away, leaving a dizzy looking human with two-toned blue hair and pale skin.
"Whoa... anypony get the number of that carriage?" he asks and wobbles slightly where Celestia and Luna help keep him upright. No doubt his sense of balance is now off.
Silk rushes over to him and stares at him wide eyed. Shining is now only a couple inches shorter than I am. Silk only stands up to the middle of his chest. Fortunately, his uniform seems to have changed to fit his new shape and height... though he has no shoes. Guess I'll lend him a pair of mine with some socks for now.
I look at the back of his hands and notice his marks are gone.
"How do thou feel?" Luna asks him.
He looks around and is stunned that he can look at Luna without having to look up. "Taller," he replies.
"I'd say," Silk says with her hands on his abdomen and a large blush on her face.
"So now what?" Shining asks as he gets used to standing on his new legs.
I look at Luna. "Are there any human mages at the barracks?" I ask her.
"Yes, three I believe," she replies.
I then look back at Shining. "Then go ask them to help you get used to your new magic. Start with the basics in what the elements are and how to access your mana. Then when you're ready, begin with practising with the life element," I tell him.
"Alright, sounds like a plan," he replies and looks at his hands and gasps. "Where are my cutie-marks?" he asks with a worried expression.
"You're a human now and humans don't have cutie-marks," I reply.
He's silent for a few seconds. "Feels like I just lost a part of me," he says sadly.
I pat his shoulder with a smile. "Don't worry. You can always have it emblazoned into your armour or shield. I take it you're going to be a battle-mage like me?" I ask him.
He sighs and nodded. "Yeah. I was already skilled with magic and a sword, makes sense to me," he replies.
"Then have a design for a sword and a shield drawn up and I'll have the best smiths in Elysium make them for you," I tell him.
He smiles and shakes my hand. "Alright, I'm actually looking forward to this!" he says and takes a step towards the doors... but ends up tripping and almost face plants the marble floor, if it wasn't for the three alicorns all catching him with their magic at the same time.
Cadence looks like she's struggling to hold him. "What? I can barely keep a grip on him!" she says.
"Not surprising, humans are resistant to pony magic. Alicorns are the only ones who can just affect us, but your magic will be stronger in Terra," I tell her.
"I see," she replies as Shining uses Silk to keep his balance.
"But before he starts training, he needs to get used to his new legs it seems," I say.
"I'll help him!" Silk says happily and helps him walk towards the exit.
I chuckle and turn to the others. "Now that that's out of the way, I'll start teaching him what I know when we get back... So, how are we getting there?" I ask them.
"We shall take our personal airship, tis small, light, and fast. It can carry at most eight ponies, but we know how to operate it by ourself," Luna tells me.
"Alright, so how long will it take to get there?" I ask.
"About a couple of days, maybe less if the winds are with us," Celestia replies.
I smile and turn to grab some of the bags they packed. "Let's get going then! I'm looking forward to some relaxation after all that's happened!" I say, only to be lifted into the air slightly.
"Hold on there, Mister. You aren't going anywhere until you've had a bath," Cadence says with a bit of strain.
I take a whiff of myself and grimace. I guess that's true, the airship to Orgrim didn't have any bathtubs. "Okay then if you'll put me down, I'll go wash myself quickly," I tell them.
They all look at each other and then grin at me. Uh-oh.
An Hour Later
Over the last hour, the others put me in our bathtub and joined me. They surrounded me and washed every inch of me clean.
Mavis was seated in a special chair in the corner of the tub where she happily splashed in the water with giggles and baby babbles while watching us.
Once we were all clean, dried and dressed, we told my parents and Blueblood of where we were going and that he had to attend to the court while we were gone. We then head out to the Docks and I see a hanger I didn't notice previously. Its large metal door opens up and a small airship, half the size of a sloop, is wheeled out and put in the middle of a clearing. The hull is a mix of deep blue and silver with Luna's mark on the sides. The balloon is white with Celestia's golden sun on it and the figurehead is made to look like their mother, Galaxia.
Despite it's size, it looks rather cosy.
"So that's your personal airship?" I ask them while watching the balloon inflate and rise.
"Yes, so let us board and be on our way!" Luna says excitedly.
We wait for a few minutes until the balloon is ready, we then place our bags in the main cabin. Inside is a large bed at the back, a desk and chair with parchment, ink, and quills and a door to a small one person bathtub and toilet to the left. A big wardrobe and vanity mirror to the right, and lastly, a sink like bowl with a shimmering pool of crystal clear water in it at the centre of the room.
Below deck is a kitchen and storeroom as well as six hammocks for any crew on board. On the deck are two small swivel cannons near the front.
"Wow, this looks nice," I say and lay on the bed.
"We are glad thou likes it. We haven't used this vessel in... I think just a month before thine arrival," she tells me.
"I see," I say and get back up.
I follow them out and Luna's horn begins to glow as ropes are pulled loose and some are tightened. She stands behind the wheel and pulls on a lever where I feel the ship's engine come alive as we start to ascend and begin moving forward.
Ten minutes later, we're gently flying to the south east. "Adrian!?" Luna calls out to me.
I look to her from the port side railing. "Yeah!?" I shout back.
"Would thou like to learn how to fly the airship!?" she asks me.
I grin and nodded as I make way over to her while Celestia, Shella, Mavis, and Cadence are lounging on some chairs while talking with each other.
I stand beside Luna as she tells me how to operate the vessel. "And then thou pulls this lever to lower the landing braces," she finishes.
"Alright, that doesn't sound too hard," I reply and take the wheel.
I push the throttle forward slightly and the ship picks up speed. I turn the ship a bit to the left and then back to the right. A compass to the left of the wheel telling me which way we're going and a few gauges showing speed, height and fuel.
"That's it, thou art doing fine," Luna tells me. "Next stop, Haywaii!" she then says bouncing on the spot.
Flying the small airship was rather fun. Luna told me if I was going off course and after awhile, she took back the wheel.
"That was fun," I say and look around. We've been flying for about four hours now I think and we're just about to reach the Ocean.
"Tis rather enjoyable, and thou did well for thine first time," Luna tells me.
I look to the right and see a beach with a nearby woodland area. I squint as I see something making the trees rustle a little.
"Luna... what's causing that?" I ask her while pointing to the trees.
"Hmmm?" she hums and looks. "We art not sure, could be a large beast," she says.
After a few seconds a head pops up over the tree line. Well, she's right, it's large... but it's a red dragon. Though this one is only half the size of the one I killed in that cave in the Everfree.
"Err, Luna... can this thing go faster?" I ask her as the dragon looks up at us.
"We art afraid not..." she tells me while also staring at the dragon.
"Maybe he'll ignore us?" Cadence says now looking over the side as well.
The dragon roars and then takes flight... straight towards us. "Not likely," I reply.
Luna's horn glows and I'm in my armour with my sword and shield.
The dragon comes to a stop in front of us. "What do we have here? I was just hunting for lunch and now it just shows up for me," he says wickedly. "Oh! And it's three alicorns, two changelings and..." he says before trailing off. "So... you're the Creature who killed Dracalian and took his hoard?" he says to me.
I just remain silent, how did he find that out?
"Where is his hoard?" the lizard asks me with a stern stare.
"You don't need to know," I tell him with a frown, my shield pointing right at him.
"Oh but I do. I'll need to know it's location, for when I kill you, I can claim it as my own!" he replies and snorts a bit of fire.
"Unless you want to end up like the last dragon that threatened me and those I care for. I suggest you leave, now," I warn him darkly, which just makes him laugh.
Luna and Celestia take on their aspect forms and the dragon looks surprised. I then take on my aspect's combat form, which covers my shield with a layer of bark and my sword to be wrapped up in an ivy like plant with thorns.
I cast my air wings spell but the result is different. Two bark limbs sprout off the back of my bark covered shoulders and long leaves in the shape of feathers grow from the limbs. 'Well, that's new.' I think to myself while looking at the new limbs.
'Depending on our form, spells may have a different effect. The air wings in our magic form stayed the same due to the nature of that form. This time it's more physical due to the nature of this form, but in both forms, you cannot cast fire or arcane based spells. Also, the ivy on your sword contains a potent paralysis extract that gets into the wounds caused by the thorns,' Gaia tells me.
'Huh, learn something new everyday,' I think and look at the sword.
"Shella, Cadence. Go inside the Cabin, we'll teach this pest a lesson," I tell them.
They quickly nodded and head towards the back.
"You think changing your appearance will help you? If anything, you've made yourself more flammable!" the dragon roars and breaths fire at me. I cast a shield spell in front of us and the fire gets deflected.
Celestia then casts a thin beam of light at the dragon's right eye. The UV rays quickly burn through his retina, blinding the eye.
The dragon roars in pain as Luna silently flies up behind him and grabs his head. "Thou shalt suffer for attacking our herd," she whispers to him and shrouds his head in a shadowy mist, deafening him to all sound. It also appears that the mist is slightly constricting his head, if the expression of pain on his face is any indication.
The dragon seems to panic now with only one good eye left and no hearing or speech. He doesn't seem as dangerous as the last dragon I fought, Just a lot more boastful... or would it be prideful?
After a thorough examination of the corpse Celestia brought back from the Everfree, a weakness in their scales was discovered. When they get wet and then electrified they expand and have a high chance of breaking off. leaving the soft muscle beneath exposed. She said it explained why no Dragon was ever seen out or flying during a storm.
I cast a water spray at him on his chest and then a spray of lightning. He convulses and his wings lock up as he plummets to the ground. He can't even roar due to Luna's shadow spell. His scales flake off his chest as he falls, until he finally hits the ground.
I look up after smelling something burning. Shit... the balloon caught fire. "We need to land Quickly!" I tell the others and Luna teleports back to the wheel. She pulls a lever and we rapidly descend to the ocean below. Just a few metres above the water, the balloon pops with a loud bang followed by a rush of air as it deflates.
The airship now turned ship splashes into the ocean and floats there, fortunately the water from the sea put the fire out as well. Celestia and I land on the deck where the cabin door opens and the others come out where Mavis is now crying her eyes out. I look back to the dragon to see it angry and looking at us, the mist around his head now gone.
"You will pay for this humiliation!" he roars at us.
So... he's going to continue threatening us, even in his current condition? "I'll be right back," I tell my lovers.
"What are thou going to do?" Luna asks me, barely above a whisper.
"End a threat," I reply coldly and take flight over the dragon.
"If you think I'm done, think again!" the dragon shouts and breaths fire at me.
I easily avoid the attack, It would seem he lost his depth perception when Celestia blinded his eye.
I charge at him and slam my shield into the side of his head making him stumble but doesn't go down. I then move to his exposed chest and thrust my sword into the muscle.
"Arrrghh!" he roars in pain. I quickly pull it back out and get some distance between us. Now let's see if this ivy extract does its thing.
"That all you got? I barely felt that," he says and spreads his wings. He flaps them and lifts off the ground... only to fall seconds later. "What!?" he says confused.
"What's the matter? Where's all that bravado?" I ask him.
The dragon then collapses onto his claws as his legs give out. "What did you do to me?" he demands.
"I paralysed you," I reply. "You thought you could attack us and not suffer any consequences? If it was just me you attacked, I might have let you live after a solid beating, but you put my family in danger and made my daughter cry..." I tell him coldly as he falls limp to the ground. "From what my wives and history books have told me. You dragons are an arrogant lot who think they're top of the food chain and more powerful than any other race," I say and walk up to him but stay two metres away.
"That's because no other creature can stand up to us! Everything is ours for the taking!" he shouts at me and tries to get up.
I frown and thrust my sword into his remaining eye. I pull back as he swipes at me with a roar, the tips of his claws ripping off the bark on my shield.
"Not anymore," I tell him as he thrashes on the ground.
He wildly swings his claws, legs, and tail randomly in an attempt to hit me. I just take to the air again as I cast four earth elements and rip a large rock out of the ground. I then feel Gaia's mana flow out to the rock floating in front of my shield as bark starts to form around it, turning into a spear like tip.
'I can feel anger coming from you. Why?' I ask Gaia.
'He has no regard for the lives of others. I have no love or respect for those who think they have a right to decide if they can just take life whenever they want or think of them as property,' she replies.
'Alright,' I say and aim for his exposed chest.
"WHEN I GET MY CLAWS ON YOU! I WILL RIP YOU LIMB FROM LIMB! THEN I'LL DEVOUR YOUR WHORES SLOWLY! STARTING WITH THE HATCHLING!" the dragon roars at me.
My eyes widen at what he just called my lovers and threatened to do to them and my children. I can also feel Gaia's anger rise as well as her magic fills the rock some more, making the point longer and sharper looking. I then grunt in pain as I add a fifth element, an ice element. Small spikes of ice protrude the bark tip now as my left arm feels cold due to the extra strain.
I wait and charge the spell fully as he rolls onto his back while clutching his face. Now that I think about it, I can't let him live. He could tell other dragons which might bring them to Equestria looking for revenge, or to remove us as a threat to their position.
I see my opening and cast my spell.
The bark covered rock launches at him and quickly impales his exposed chest. He roars in agony and the ice expands as six long spires of ice come out of his sides and back.
He coughs up blood for a few seconds before going limp. I grunt in twisted satisfaction as he bleeds out over the shore. After a few seconds of looking at the corpse, I flap my wings and head back to the ship.
POV: Luna
I frown sadly as Adrian flies back to the ship. Tia and I dropped our aspect forms when he launched his attack, but when the dragon insulted us. Adrian's eyes turn black and red again...
He lands on the deck and drops his form. He sighs and looks back at the corpse. "Could you and Tia drag it into the ocean? Let the depths claim his remains. It'll also stop any other dragons that might fly over see one of it's kin dead in Equestrian borders," he asks me and Tia.
Tia and I look at each other before looking back at him. "Alright... are thou okay?" I ask him.
He smiles weakly and nodded. "Yeah. I just need a lie down, I've got a bit of a headache," he tells me and walks into the cabin.
"I'm going to keep him company... he looked a little tense," Cadence tells us and enters the cabin as well. Shella is sitting on one of the lounge chairs trying to calm Mavis down.
I sigh and look at Tia. "Come, sister. Let us do as our mate said, hiding the corpse would be a wise decision," I say to her.
"I agree. Let's get it over with so we can all figure out on what to do next," she replies and we take to the air.
It didn't take long to tie some large boulders to the corpse and levitate it into the ocean where it was stained slightly red.
Once done. Tia, Shella, and I enter the cabin where Adrian is sitting up on the bed out of his armour with Cadence giving him a shoulder massage behind him.
"How art thou feeling, our love?" I ask him.
His smile looks warmer and bigger now. "Much better. I'm just getting tired of all these threats and people attacking us, can't we go for at least half a year without something trying to maul, maim, stab, eat, and or blast us to kingdom come?" he asks and sighs.
I giggle slightly and sit to his left while Celestia takes his right and Shella sits right in front of him holding little Mavis out to him.
Adrian smiles as the little filly holds her arms out to her father. He picks her up and nuzzles her gently, getting happy babbling out of her.
"And how’s my little girl aye? Is she happy now? Did the big mean lizard scare her?" he asks her in a cute tone.
"Ahaaahaha Daddy! Hehe dada!" Mavis replies to him and pulls on his hair.
"Ow! Oh? So you want to play do you?" he says and blows a raspberry on her tummy. The little filly squeals happily and tries to push him away. The sight makes me smile and I actually cannot wait for spring to arrive so I can get ready to have my own foal. "Luna," Adrian says looking at me. "What do we do now? Are we stranded in the ocean?" he asks me.
"Nay. The propellers are designed to work in water as well. We'll just continue to our destination by sea while we repair the balloon," I tell him.
He sighs in relief. "I see. Well I wouldn't be any help there, I can't sew to save my life," he says with a chuckle.
I lean over and kiss him. "Worry not, love. As Cadence and Tia are quite adept with a needle," I tell him with a smile. "but we now shall return to the wheel and make sure we stay on course," I say and get up.
"Alright, I'm just going to take a nap and hope this headache goes away," he replies and hands Mavis back to Shella.
I walk to the door and open it, but turn back to look at Adrian. "Could thou let us speak to our parents tonight?" I ask him.
"Sure, anytime," he replies.
I smile wider and head up to the wheel and alter our course for Haywaii.
POV: Adrian Stormsword. One Hour, Twenty-Eight Minutes Later
I yawn as I wake up from my nap. Celestia and Cadence are cuddled up beside me sleeping peacefully while Shella is sitting on a couch with Mavis on her lap and trying to teach her new words. I'm guessing Luna is still at the wheel.
The gentle rocking of the ship makes me yawn and lulls me back to sleep.
I'm suddenly awoken by the boat shaking violently. "The hell was that?" I say and notice Celestia not beside me anymore. Cadence wakes up screaming and clinging onto me.
"What was that? Are we under attack again!?" she asks.
I just groan and untangle myself from Cadence. "Stay here with Shella, I'll go see what it is," I tell her and head for the door. I don't have time to put my armour back on, but I do take my sword and shield.
I step outside to see it's almost sunset. "Tia! Luna! What's going on!?" I call out to them. The ship then shakes again.
"Adrian! We're being rammed by a bull shark!" Luna tells me. I run over to her and look over the railings as a large shadow passes under us. It looks like a fish half the size of our ship but with long horns like a minotaur.
"Has the ship suffered any damage?" I ask.
"Not yet, but it's only a matter of time before the protection spell on the hull breaks," Celestia tells me.
The ship shakes again and the shark comes back into view. I frown and point my shield at the shark as I then cast four lightning elements and spray the water near the shark. It spasms for a few seconds before going limp, I'm so not in the mood for this shit... it's supposed to be our honeymoon for crying out loud!
The shark's corpse surfaces and floats there. It's got brown scales with a large set of razor sharp teeth and two bull horns on the sides of its head. We packed a lot of fruit and veg for our trip... but my stomach rumbles at the thought of frying up the shark.
"You got any rope?" I ask them.
"Rope? Why would thou need rope?" Luna asks.
I grin and look at her. "I'm going to haul that shark on board and cook it," I reply.
She looks at me a bit queasy. "Well... we could just levitate it out of the water," she tells me.
Oh... yeah. "Alright," I say and watch her lift it out of the water and carefully place it on the deck. I waste no time in stabbing it in the head just to make sure it's dead.
"So... who's up for a fish fry?" I ask.
"I'd like some please," Celestia replies.
Luna looks even more unwell. "No, that is okay. We art fine," she says.
"Cadence! You want some cooked fish!?" I call back towards the cabin.
The door opens and she pokes her head out. "Erm... sure. I've been getting a bit of a craving for some... meat... again," she says. Although she said she likes the taste of fish and bacon, I still think she doesn't like the idea of needing to eat it for her baby.
"Okay, I'll gut and prepare this then. Tia, can you levitate it up over the side of the railing?" I ask Celestia.
"I'd be happy to help," she replies and lifts the shark up with her magic.
For the next ten minutes I gut and clean the large fish. I even cut the horns off for trophies.
"Alright, can you make it spin around on its side?" I ask her next.
The fish starts spinning and I channel a single fire element in my right hand and spray the fish slowly with the flames.
The smell of the fish makes my mouth water as Cadence brings out a container and a large kitchen knife. It took about ten minutes to cook the fish well and Celestia places it on a table in the middle of the deck.
"Thanks. Now then, let's carve this sucker up!" I say and start cutting strips from it. I fill the container with a good eighty-six strips and throw the bones overboard. "Take as much as you'd like, should last a couple of days," I say and put three strips on a plate and begin eating.
Celestia, Cadence, and even Shella take a piece each and begin eating as well. "We still find it disturbing that ye can eat that without throwing up or even gagging," Luna says, sipping on a glass of water.
"Changelings can break down both plants and meat to make the gel in our stomach. As long as it is biological, it can be converted," Shella tells her and takes another bite of her fish.
I raise and eyebrow at Luna. "Why? It's not a sapient creature. It can't talk, read, write, or even express emotions. I think your view of eating meat has been tainted because of the gryphons, dragons, and diamond dogs eating other sentient races," I say to her.
She frowns in thought. "Perhaps, but it is still a disturbing thought, eating the flesh of a once living creature," she says and shakes her head.
"Then what about plants? Gaia told me they are alive and can feel pain just like us. I can only control plants because I found out I have to ask them to move, but I think their intelligence is very basic and primitive at best. What do they feel as you pick or eat them? Are they still alive for long after you've picked them?" I ask her.
Luna looks wide eye. "We have never thought of it that way before," she says.
I cut a very small piece of fish and hold it out to her. "The fact that Celestia and Cadence can digest meat without any nasty side effects means you ponies can eat meat. I believe you're omnivores like us humans and you just don't realise it. I think that your teeth are flat from centuries of not eating it. The Thestrals have teeth more akin to a human's I've noticed," I tell her.
"But there are no sentient omnivorous species on Equus," Cadence says.
"Then how do you explain that you can eat meat without it making you ill?" I ask her.
She opens her mouth, only to shut it when she can't think of an answer.
Luna looks conflicted as she looks at the tiny piece of fish on the end of my fork. I wait for a good minute before she reaches out and hesitantly takes the fork. She cringes a bit and quickly opens her mouth and puts the fish in. She pulls the fork out and slowly chews while trying not to think about it.
Her chewing slows down and her eyes slowly open. She then swallows the fish and licks her lips. "That was... surprisingly delicious..." she says with a frown.
"See? If you couldn't digest meat, I don't think you would even like the taste of it," I tell her and hold out a plate with a strip on it for her.
Luna then takes it from me. "But if we start eating meat... what would our subjects think? The guards and kitchen staff alone are sworn to secrecy about Tia and Cadence eating fish and this bacon for their foals..." she says looking at the plate.
"It's up to you if you wish to eat it or not, I'm not going to force you to change your ways," I reply and finish off my second strip.
She sighs and cuts off a bigger piece this time. She chews it slowly again, just this time without the cringe on her face. "We shall start to eat it if it will help prepare us for when we bare our foal..." she says after swallowing.
I just smile and pat her thigh. "It'll be fine, we could always have it brought up to the privacy of our room by Silk Sheets," I tell her.
She smiles in return and we all resume eating. Once we've all had our fill, we head back into the cabin. Cadence said she'll take first watch at the wheel while I let Celestia and Luna talk to their parents.
I'm sitting on the bed with Mavis in my lap and both Celestia and Luna to my sides, Shella is sitting next to Celestia and gently stroking her pregnant stomach. Luna's horn glows and the mirror is now on the bed where she then levitates it over to me and I grip the handle. I channel my mana into it and the mirror shows Galaxia and Solaris in a rather intimate position.
"Oh my," Celestia says while I just cover Mavis's eyes, unfortunately I couldn't look away myself.
Galaxia is sitting on top of Solaris naked with her back to us. "Huh!?" she yelps and turns around to face us.
I blush as I get a full view of her rather impressive chest. Luna's hand then slaps itself in front of my eyes to block my view.
"By the heavens!" Galaxia says as I hear magic being cast. Luna removes her hand and I see Galaxia dressed with a heavy blush. "Hello, my little fillies," she says while Solaris doesn't look embarrassed at all.
"Hello, mother," Celestia replies with a giggle. "Did we catch you at a bad time?" she asks her mother.
"Oh no, it's alright. We were just, erm. Spending some quality time together," Galaxia replies. "but enough about us. How are you doing?" she asks us. Mavis giggles and holds her hands out to the mirror. "Hello, little one. How is our granddaughter today?" Galaxia asks the baby changeling.
Since Shella is married to their daughters, She's considered their daughter as well and Mavis is technically their granddaughter. I'm also their son, which is weird having two god like alicorns as parents in laws.
For the next hour we talk to Solaris and Galaxia about what's going on and where we're going.
"So... the dragons are getting bolder. You may need to put on a show of force if they continue to edge deeper and deeper into Equestria," Solaris says.
"I'm still learning to control Gaia's power, but once I've done that, I'll be learning some of the others as well," I reply.
They smile at me and look to their daughters. "And how has your training been progressing?" he asks them.
"Very well, father. Lux and Umbra are good teachers and wonderful friends," Celestia replies.
"That is good to hear, we wish you the best of luck and hope to see you after your Honeymoon," he tells us.
Galaxia then giggles. "Just go easy on Adrian at night. He might start having trouble if you all ravish him every night," she teases.
"MOOOOOM!" Luna and Celestia squeak out making me chuckle.
Solaris then looks at me. "Take care of them son, make us proud," he tells me. I couldn't help but smile.
"Heh, don't worry dad. I'll look after them," I reply with a smirk.
He returns it and looks at Galaxia with a grin. "Now then... where were we?" he says and rolls on top of her.
I cut my mana flow just as Galaxia giggles. "Well... that wasn't awkward at all..." I say as Luna magic's the mirror away.
Celestia giggles as Shella takes Mavis and puts her into a crib next to the bed. "I believe we should get some rest. You're taking the next watch, my love," she tells me and cuddles up to me.
I hold her and Luna close as Shella climbs on and spoons up to Celestia's back. After a quick yawn I fall asleep in their embrace.
I'm sitting on the deck watching the waves as I keep watch for anything hostile and to stay on course. I was awoken by Cadence three hours after our talk with Solaris and Galaxia. I've been looking out at both the watery ocean and the starlit skies for I think two hours now. I yawn and take a sip of water from the bottle I have with me.
So far, thankfully, it's been pretty quiet. A few dolphins started jumping over the waves alongside the ship, but other than that, nothing exciting, which I'm glad for. I had enough excitement yesterday.
Another hour passes and I head back below to let Luna know it's her turn. She grumbles as I wake her up but she plods off nonetheless.
I get back in bed where Celestia and Shella cuddle up to me with Cadence hugging Shella from behind. With another yawn I fall back to sleep.
The Next Morning 5:13am
After getting up and at least washing my face and brushing my teeth in the on board restroom where Celestia and Luna are raising and lowering the sun and moon. We're all sitting on the deck eating breakfast, which consists of some fruits, veg and some of the fish from yesterday.
"Hey, Luna. how long will it take us to get there without the balloon?" I ask her.
She swallows her mouthful of carrots and looks at me. "It would take a week or more, but we should have the balloon repaired within a few hours," she replies.
"Alright, so what shall I do while that's being done?" I ask.
"You can give me a lovely shoulder massage while we work on the balloon," Celestia suggests with a smile.
I smile and nodded. "Sure, I'd be happy to," I reply.
"What about me? I'll be repairing the balloon too," Cadence says with a pout.
"I'll give you one as well," I tell her with an amused smirk.
She smiles and we finish breakfast.
I'm now sitting behind Celestia as she hums happily while she and Cadence patch up the damaged balloon. Shella is sitting on a lounge chair playing with Mavis and Luna is at the wheel.
"That feels wonderful," Celestia says and sighs as I rub her shoulders.
I chuckle and continue to squeeze the tension out of her muscles. After a few minutes, I lower my hands and squeeze her waist, getting her to yelp and her wings to extend which slap me in the face.
The others laugh and I spit out a small feather with a grin.
Celestia looks at me with a mock glare. "I'll remember that," she tells me.
I get up and make my way over to Cadence and start rubbing her shoulders. "Hmmmm, a bit harder please," she tells me. I add more force to it and she sighs.
For the next hour I give Cadence, Shella, and Luna a massage as well and it takes another forty minutes before the balloon is repaired. I watch as Celestia and Luna hook it up and re-inflate it. Luna then goes back to the wheel and pushes a lever forward and the ship lifts up out of the water. We slowly ascend and soon, we're back in the air.
"Huzzah! Now it should take no more than a day to reach our destination!" Luna says with a smile.
The Next Day
After the balloon was fixed and we were back in the air. The rest of the day went by pleasantly with them telling me what Haywaii was like. I took the last watch last night and here I am sitting at the wheel. I see three armed gryphons nearby that start to fly closer with some rather vulgar choice of words.
I stand up and frown at them. "Come on you useless cubs! It's hunting time!" one of them shouts out to the other two as they get even closer.
I hold my shield out and charge up four ice elements and aim at them. "We'll see who's hunting who," I say to myself and cast the spell.
Twelve shards of ice soar towards them and make them stop. One of the gryphons gets hit in the shoulder and another gets hit in its left hind leg. They squawk and quickly fall back. "Clucking hell! It's one of those new blasted creatures from Equestria! Let's get out of here!" one of them says and they fly away.
Shaking my head at their cowardice, I sit back at the wheel and drink some more water.
The cabin door opens a few minutes later and Luna steps out with a yawn. She looks up at me and smiles. "Good morning, Adrian. Was there any trouble?" she asks me.
"Not really, three gryphons tried to get close, but I scared them off," I reply and look around, clear skies in all directions. I then notice an island approaching. "Is that Haywaii?" I ask her and point to said island.
She turns and looks at the island. "Yes. Just about an hour more of flight and we shall arrive!" she says excitedly. She's been looking forward to visiting this place since her return from the moon after hearing about it. She stands beside me and hooks her left arm around my right and leans her head on my right shoulder. "We cannot wait to take a shower with thee," she says huskily into my ear.
A shiver of anticipation runs up my spine and I smile at her. "Oh really? And what do you plan to do during said shower?" I ask her and squeeze her left hand.
"Well," she says and licks my ear. "We plan to have thee scrub us down thoroughly before thou shalt ta..." she's cut off as Celestia and Cadence come out the cabin.
"Hold that thought." I tell her and look down over the wheel. "Mornin' my loves. Sleep well?" I ask them.
Celestia looks up at me with a warm smile. "Very, but I would like to bathe soon, I'm starting to smell a bit ripe," she says. I'm not going to complain, their natural scents are actually quite pleasant to me.
"Then you'll get your wish soon. Haywaii is just over there," I tell her.
She looks at the island and sighs. "Thank the heavens. I'm going to stretch my wings for a few minutes, care to join me?" she asks and spreads her wings.
I step aside, allowing Luna to take the wheel. "I'd love to," I reply and make my way beside her. I then cast my air wings spell and flap them a bit. I really wish I could use the full four air elements instead of three.
Celestia jumps overboard and flies alongside the airship. I then follow her and flap my wings. It seems I can just keep up with the ship at full speed. "So what were you and Lulu talking about?" she asks beside me.
I smirk and glance at her. "Oh not much. Just something about taking a shower together and scrubbing her down thoroughly," I reply.
She blushes but smiles. "Oh did she? Well then. Just make sure to leave some hot water for the rest of us," she tells me.
I chuckle and look ahead. "Oh don't worry. I think the whole room will stay a bit steamy by the end of it," I say.
She giggles and we continue to fly for a good five minutes. Celestia then slowly veers back towards the airship and lands on the deck with me close behind.
The next hour is spent just relaxing as we approach Haywaii. I'm now looking over the railings down at the island below us. I can see a small town and the resort Celestia told me about. Ahead of us near the beach is a moderately sized solitary building with a landing platform next to it. I'm guessing that's my Condo.
"Only a few more minutes and we can settle in!" Luna says excitedly with barely any restraint.
The ship comes to a stop upon the platform and we head up to the condo's front door. "Wow, nice place," I say and look around. The doors look like they're made of mahogany and the windows have intricate patterns on them. The building is a creamy colour and has two floors.
I open the doors with a key Luna gives me and I look around. We're in some kind of lobby with a set of stairs in front of us going up to the second floor. To the right is a lounge and to the left looks like a bar kitchen combo.
To the sides of the stairs look like doors heading further into the building. Up the stairs splits into two directions, left and right. A large chandelier hangs above us in the lobby.
Furniture decorates the lobby with side tables and a coat rack near the front door. Paintings hang on the walls and an empty shelf to hold things next to them.
All in all, it's a nice looking place. The sounds of the ocean waves and wildlife is relaxing as well.
"Come! Let us wash and then head into town to stock up the pantry!" Luna says and grabs my hand and starts dragging me up the stairs.
We enter a white bathroom with a clean tiled floor. There's a toilet and sink with a mirror above it to the right and a large tub with a shower head above it and a curtain in front of it to the left.
Once the door is closed, Luna instantly begins to strip me by hand. I can't help but smirk as she pulls my shirt off and fumbles with my trousers.
"What's got you so frisky?" I ask her.
She stops fiddling with the button and looks at me. "All that talk about having our own foal yesterday has gotten us aroused, and we wish to be relieved. As is thy job as the stallion of the herd, and in turn, we are also here to help relieve thee would thou asks us," she tells me and goes back to the button.
If I wanted sex at any time, they would do it? "So wait. If I wanted to have sex but you weren't in the mood, you'd still do it?" I ask her.
She finally gets the button undone and pulls my trousers down. "Yes, if it would keep thee happy, we or our herd sisters would do so," she tells me as she removes my underwear as well.
I frown at that. I don't mind having some fun with them now and then, but not if they're not in the mood to do so as well. The thought of using them just to bust a nut leaves me feeling sick. "That seems a bit... selfish... I wouldn't feel comfortable unless you were fully willing and want to do so as well," I tell her.
"Thou would only mate with us if we wished for it as well?" she asks surprised.
"Yeah... please don't tell me stallions force themselves on their lovers," I say to her.
"It works both ways. Should a mare require satisfaction, the stallion is expected to fulfil her needs. Should the stallion seek release, the mare is to aid him in his desire," she tells me.
I just look at her stunned. "So... what. You'd want me to satisfy you even if I'm not in the mood for it myself?" I ask her.
"Is that not how human relationships work?" she asks and stands up to be eye level with me.
"No. For one, human woman are always in a heat like state, meaning they can get pregnant at any time, and two, both partners must want to have sex before engaging in intercourse," I reply.
She frowns and looks me in the eyes. "And do thee still wish to mate with us right now?" she asks with a worried expression.
I sigh and smile at her. "Sure, but we're all going to have a talk about this together. I'm not going to be used as a sex toy for you and I certainly won't force myself on any of you."
She returns the smile and nodded. "We can agree with that, but back to the matter at hand. Thou still needs to strip us of our garments," she tells me and traces my chest scar with a finger.
I grin and lift her shirt off.
Thirty-Four Minutes Later
After a good scrubbing and pleasurable time, we're both clean and dressed in fresh clothes. I explore the rest of the condo with Luna while the others take a shower as well.
The bedroom is large and has a bed big enough to fit six or seven people on it. There's a large walk in closet to the right and a smaller private bathroom to the left as well. There's one long vanity mirror that looks like three people can sit comfortably in front of it. There's also a double door leading to a balcony with a breathtaking view of the ocean and beach.
Across the hall is a room for Mavis with a crib, toys, and stuffed animals everywhere.
Across from the bathroom is a big cleaning supply closet.
The door to the left of the stairs leads to an indoor swimming pool that heads out into a large well kept garden that has many kinds of flowers and sculptured bushes, there's a pathway that leads around the garden with some benches along it.
The door to the right leads to a laundry room with washing machines and dryers. This world's technology still fascinates me... I wonder what Vortigan would think of all this? Maybe I should tell him about it and see what he thinks.
The lounge has a hole in the floor about half a metre deep with one long couch going around the whole thing, a small set of stairs on the side is there to help anyone get in and out. A cabinet next to the left wall holds little knick-knacks like decorative cups and plates or little figurines.
There's a table with magazines on it to the right and a large fireplace on the wall ahead of us.
The bar has a few bottles of alcohol behind it with some small glasses for shots, wine, and pints. To the right is a kitchen with shiny counter tops, an oven and a sink. There's also lots of cooking utensils like knives, forks, spoons, and others as well.
"You picked a really nice place, Luna," I tell her as we sit in the couch pit waiting for the others.
"It took awhile to find it, but we think it was worth the effort searching," she replies.
"Yeah, and to think it's mine... Well then, what would you like to do while we wait for the others?" I ask her.
She gets up and sits on my lap facing me. "We wish to cuddle up with our mate and just relax," she tells me with a kiss and then leans her head on my shoulder.
I smile and wrap my arms around her while gently stroking her hair and lower back. She hums happily as we wait for the others to show up. "We love thee so much," she tells me and hugs me tightly. "Thou has been the best thing to ever happen to us and Tia... Promise us you'll never leave..." she asks me.
I pull her back and look her in the eyes. "I love you all too, I promise with all my heart and soul that I'll never leave any of you," I tell her and kiss her deeply.
"Oh my... wasn't your time in the shower enough?" Cadence asks behind me with a giggle.
I break away and lean my head back to look at her. "A little cuddling and love isn't a problem," I say and smirk. "Would you like some?" I tease her.
Instead of blushing or being embarrassed, she nodded vigorously and took Luna's place on my lap and kissed me with just as much passion as Luna. She hums happily and then leans against me in a tight hug. Luna sits to my left also leaning on me.
A few minutes later, Shella arrives with Mavis and sits to my right. We all sit in silence, except for Mavis who is babbling away.
Celestia joins us shortly and after about ten minutes of just enjoying each others presence, we get up and get ready to head towards town.
"So do we have everything we need?" I ask them.
Celestia checks her bag. "Yes, I have my bits," she replies.
Cadence has three large bags with her. "I'm ready and I can't wait to find me some nice clothes!" she says happily.
Luna is standing beside Celestia with her own bag. "We are ready, our love," she says.
Shella smiles at me with Mavis in her arms. "I'm ready," she tells me.
I'm carrying four bags for them as well as a pouch with five-hundred bits. "Alright then, let's go!" I say and Luna opens the doors for us. We leave and she locks the Condo up before we head off into town.
Once the door was locked, we all head down the path towards the town, which is about a mile away.
"Why'd you pick a place so far from the town?" I ask Luna.
"We wished to have our privacy, if we bought a Condo in or near Ponilulu, ponies would keep hounding us, and let's not forget the paparazzi. We remember when we returned to Canterlot after we were returned from the moon... One pegasi even had the gall to take a picture of us in our chamber whilst we slept from our balcony doors," she tells me.
"Huh... I guess so... so what do you lot plan on getting in town?" I ask them.
Celestia smiles and holds my left hand. "I'm planning to get myself some nice loose and comfortable clothes. The ones I've brought with me are starting to get a little tight around my stomach," she replies.
Luna is actually skipping down the road. "We are getting an arcade machine or two to bring back for the Condo," she tells me. Oh yeah, she likes those game machine things... we still haven't gone back to that arcade place yet.
Cadence wraps her left arm around my right. "I'm going to find myself a nice bikini for when we go to the beach tomorrow," she says.
Shella is behind me with Mavis in her arms. "I'm not sure what to get... changelings have never really... had a chance to just shop for fun," she tells us.
The others gasp and Luna gives her a big hug. "Don't worry, Shella. We'll help thou find something thee would like," she tells her.
I blush a bit as I watch Shella give Luna a kiss on her lips. "Thank you, Luna. I'm looking forward to it," Damn. I keep forgetting that we're all married together and not just them to me.
It took us a few minutes of walking, but we arrive at the seaside town. It looks really nice, brick buildings with tiled roofing sit just beyond the beach with a market further in. A large building sits in the middle of town, I'm guessing it might be the town hall.
The people in the streets bow down to us with nervous expressions as we walk by. We nodded back to them as we make our way to the market place.
We enter a large circular plaza with shops around it. Stalls are set up in the middle with various foods, clothes, souvenirs and other items.
Cadence squeals as she sees a clothing store and starts dragging me over to it. I just chuckle at her enthusiasm.
I open the door for them and let them in first, they thank me as they pass by. I close the door behind me and look around. Dressing rooms are at the back to the right and lines of racks and tables with various types of clothing fill the store. It appears the male stuff is to the right and the female stuff is to the left.
"Here, hold Mavis while we help Shella find something nice!" Cadence says and hands Mavis to me.
I take my daughter and smile. "Alright, I'll wait over there then," I reply and point to some chairs next to the changing rooms.
They wander off looking at all the clothes and I sit down in a chair that's right in front of the changing rooms. The others then come back with a pile of clothes in their arms. They enter the changing rooms and give me seductive smiles before closing the curtains.
I can hear them changing while I play with Mavis. The baby changeling giggles as she tries to grab my right hand as I wave it in front of her.
The curtains then open which results in me having a nose bleed again. Celestia is wearing a golden coloured bikini that hugs her chest tightly, only covering the bottom half of her breasts and the thong looks really thin. Her beautiful pregnant stomach is out for all to see.
Cadence is wearing a pale pink bikini that has white lacy parts on the edges of the top and bottom, it’s also got a few red hearts on it as well.
Shella is wearing a white V shaped bikini, the sides of her chest are exposed and it really stands out from her black and deep blue chitin. She's blushing up a storm as well. Just like Celestia and Cadence, her pregnant stomach is on display as well.
Luna is wearing a black bikini where the top wraps around her chest with no straps going over her shoulders. The bottom has three straps on the sides connecting at the back, showing off her backside fully.
I just stare wide eyed and hold Mavis a bit away from me so I don't start dripping blood on her.
Luna giggles at me. "So... we take it thou likes what thou sees?" she asks me with half lidded eyes and twirls around. I just nodded quickly.
"I'll never get tired of flustering him like that," Celestia says as they close the curtains again.
One of the people working here was kind enough to give me some tissues so I could wipe my nose.
Over the next hour, they try on different clothes. Shirts, shorts, loose trousers, even some arousing underwear. Despite it being still winter back home, it's like summer here.
They finally pick what they like and pay for the new clothes and swimsuits, I also get myself some new clothes as well. Mainly shirts and shorts as pony trousers aren’t the right shape for my legs.
We exit the store and I'm carrying two filled bags. "I can't remember the last time I just went shopping for myself," Celestia says with a smile. She's wearing a light pink shirt that fits over her stomach loosely and a pair of what she calls 'Denim Shorts' showing off half of her thighs.
Cadence is wearing a white shirt with a pink heart on the front and a pair of loose looking powder blue trousers.
Luna is wearing the same clothes we arrived in still and Shella is wearing a loose shirt with butterflies on the bottom right of it. She's also wearing a skirt that goes down to her shins.
I'm wearing a white shirt that Luna made me get with the word Stud on the front and a pair of black shorts.
"That was fun. Where shall we go next?" Cadence asks. I notice people staring at us with mixed looks, some look away while others look... Sad? Regretful?
I shake my head and look at my lovers. "How about something to eat and drink," I suggest.
Cadence blushes when her stomach rumbles loudly. We all laugh a bit and she lightly slaps my arm. "It's not funny, I'm eating for two here!" she tells me.
"I know, so where to?" I reply and ask.
Celestia points across the plaza. "How about there? Looks like a nice little Café." She says.
It's a small place but looks nice, tables and chairs are set up out front and a board with the menu on it by the door.
I look around one more time but something seems off to me... where are the town's guards? I haven't seen a single one since we arrived, and shouldn't there be a human mage or two here as well?
I'll worry about it after lunch, no point thinking over an empty stomach. We enter the Café and the woman behind the counter smiles nervously at us. "W-Welcome, your Majesties! W-What can I g-get for you?" she asks with a stutter. Something doesn't feel right here.
"Please, there is no need to be formal with us. We're here just to enjoy ourselves during our stay here," Celestia replies.
The woman laughs nervously. "O-Of course... What c-can I get for you?" she asks again.
I frown and look around, there's no one else in the Café. I look out the front window and see that the plaza is now empty... I feel a shiver go up my spine.
"Luna... does something feel off to you?" I ask her.
She frowns and follows my gaze out the front. "Now that thou mentioned it... Tis way too quiet..." she replies.
I look back at the woman behind the counter who begins to sweat profusely. "I'm sorry!" she says and runs out the back.
I frown and channel four lightning elements into my right hand which gets amplified by my bracelet.
"What's going on?" Cadence asks looking worried.
"I don't know... but I got a bad feeling about this," I reply. I can hear shuffling outside and metal clanging together.
"They're inside right?" a male voice asks quietly.
"Shut your beak fool! We don't want them to know we're here before we attack!" a another male voice replies.
Beak? Does that mean there's gryphons here? I change into my magic aspect form which makes the others worried. I look to my right and see three faint life force outlines of gryphons behind the wall. To my left are four more.
"I know that! If we do this right, we'll be eating alicorn tonight! And that human magic user earlier was quite tasty as well." the first male replies.
That explains why there are no guards or mages around.
"But that magic she used that disabled our enchantments was a real pain in the feathers," the other male says.
I frown as I cast the nullify spell to disable their barriers and switch to my physical form. I'm not sure why they've left the people alone and only killed the guards... but I'll make them suffer for their deaths.
I walk over to the wall on my right and point the spike on my right elbow at the wall. "What was that!?" a timid female voice asks. I then thrust it through and get rewarded with a squelch as I impale one of the gryphons in the head.
The others squawk in surprise. "What the cluck is that!" the female yells. I pull the spike back in and thrust my left arm through the hole I made and grab one of the gryphons by the throat. "Gurk!" the female gryphon chokes and I grunt as I pull her through the thin wall.
I then throw the gryphon at Luna's hooves. "Keep her restrained... I got some questions for her later. You and Tia keep Cadence, Shella, and Mavis safe," I tell her.
"Alright," she replies as she and Celestia take on their aspect forms. Her horn glows and the gryphon is pinned to the floor by shadowy tendrils.
I turn back and glare at the third gryphon who's looking at me shocked. I point my right palm at him and cast the four lightning elements I had channelled. The purple electricity sprays out and hits him. He roars in pain as he spasms on the floor. After a few seconds, I stop and he's just twitching on the floor while smoke rises from his corpse.
"Venna! What happened?" a female gryphon behind the other wall shouts as they look through the front window.
I quickly channel four Ice elements and aim at the group of gryphons staring at us. I cast the spell and the twelve spikes of ice soar at the gryphons. Four spikes hit the first one, impaling his left eye, throat and chest. Three more hit the second one in her right cheek, left arm and to the right of her chest. Two spikes find their place in the third gryphon's neck.
The fourth gryphon used one of its allies as a shield while the other spikes missed and went past them into the street and other buildings. The hit gryphons drop the to floor and writhe in pain as their cries echo throughout the plaza. I slowly walk towards the last gryphon who backs away from me with wide eyes.
"It would seem that our message of 'back off' wasn't clear enough when we upped our defences," I say to him in a distorted tone.
He looks at his fallen allies and then back to me while shaking violently. "S-Stay away from me you freak!" he tells me while backing away some more.
"Oh? And what of the guards you murdered here? Would you spare them if they asked you to?" I ask him coldly. He doesn't reply and takes off into the air. I quickly thrust my right hand out where three vines extend and wrap around him. "And where the fuck do you think you're going?" I ask and pull him down into the stone plaza ground with a loud thud.
I drag him into the café where Luna has the female gryphon tied up tightly. "So what are thou going to do with them?" Luna asks in that whisper like voice. Mavis is crying her eyes out in Shella's arms, making me even angrier.
I dump the male gryphon in front of the female gryphon. "I'm going to ask her some questions," I reply and crouch down in front of her. "How long have you been here?" I ask her.
She glares at me but remains silent as blood slowly trickles down her face. I must have slammed her head into the wall when I pulled her through quite hard.
I growl lightly. "Not going to tell me? Alright then, how about this? You tell me what I want to know, and your friend here remains unharmed," I tell her.
"Thou art going to use thy extreme methods again aren't thee..." Luna says with a barely visible cringe.
"Yes. Tia, take Cadence and Shella into the back room... I don't want them to see this," I ask her.
"A-Alright..." she replies and they go into the back kitchen.
I look back at the gryphon who now looks slightly worried. "I'll ask one more time. How long have you been here?" I ask her.
She remains silent as the male gryphon tries to break free. After a few seconds of silence, I stand up and grab one of the male’s wings and forcefully extend it. I grip the sides of the middle joint and twist it as hard as I can. The gryphon grunts in pain, then screams as the joint snaps with a loud crack.
I let go and look back at the female. "How long have you been here?" I ask her again.
She's staring wide eyed at me but doesn't reply. I grip the wing again and this time pull hard at the broken joint. After a few seconds of straining, the gryphon squawks as I rip half of his wing off. Luna cringes but doesn't do anything.
"TWO WEEKS!" the female gryphon shouts out, fear heavy in her eyes.
"And why have you only killed the guards and not the civilians?" I ask her next.
She shakes on the floor but again, doesn't answer. "You'll get nothing from us!" the male says.
I frown and look at Luna. "Luna, can you teleport my sword here?" I ask her.
She nodded and her horn glows. I then catch my sword from the air and draw the blade. The thorns and ivy grow over it and I stab the male gryphon in his right ass cheek. He hisses in pain but goes completely limp with a panicked expression, I guess the extract works faster on smaller creatures.
I then grasp what's left of his wing and cut it off at the shoulder joint and drop the wing in front of her. The male screams again but can't move a muscle.
"W-We were told to make t-this town into a livestock farm, since i-it was so far out from E-Equestria... W-We killed all those who resisted a-and told the others to do as we say..." she tells me.
Livestock farm!? I growl angrily, but refrain from harming them further... yet.
"Livestock!?... We are not animals thou can just hunt! Because of thy actions today, thou shall be placed in the dungeons where thou shall never see the light of day again savage beast!" Luna tells her with malice.
I look at the female gryphon again. "Tell me. Why do you kill and eat other sentient races?" I ask her. I want to hear their point of view directly.
The male is the one to reply. "We are the superior species, it is our right to do so!" he says.
I channel three ice elements into my sword and stab the male in the right arm. He cries out in pain as his arm freezes over. I then raise my left foot and bring it down on his arm. The sound of ice shattering rings out throughout the café. He stares at the stump that's left and starts to breath heavily.
"Doesn't look like it from my point of view, and I didn't ask you," I say and look back at the female. "Well?"
Tears are now leaking out of her eyes. "The great Sphinx God h-himself has told us that this world is o-ours by right. That everything is ours to d-do as we see fit," she replies.
Sphinx God? "Is this god of yours responsible for your magical barriers?" I ask her.
"Don't tell him anything!" the male threatens her.
I quickly silence him with a bark covered boot to the face, right into his right eye which pops from the blow. He screeches loudly but can't even squirm due to the extract coursing through his veins.
"YES! He's the one who gave us the power to resist magic!" she tells me. I hear the sound of liquid hitting the floor. I look behind the female to see she's pissing herself.
"Are there any more gryphons in the area?" I ask.
"No," the male replies with a grunt.
Now that the female is so scared of me, I don't need the male anymore. I lift my sword up to his neck and slit his throat open. He gasps as his left eye rolls up. After a few seconds of weak twitching, he dies. I look back at the female who looks on the verge of fainting. Tears and snot running down her face freely.
"Yes! T-There's a camp to the s-south in the jungle," she tells me.
"How many?" I ask her.
"Eight!.. P-Please don't hurt me!" she begs and breaks down into a sobbing mess. I notice she's smaller than the others by a good two feet.
"How old are you?" I ask her.
She looks up at me with red puffy eyes. "F-Fifteen..." she tells me.
Bloody hell... they brought a teen here to hunt people?.. And I just mutilated one of her own in front of her. I thought she was a lot older than that... I sigh and cancel my aspect form and sheath my sword.
I then kneel down in front of her. "Listen, as long as you tell us what we want to know, you won't be harmed. You'll be treated well and given a safe place to stay, okay?" I tell her in a calm tone.
She only nodded and looks away. I look to Luna with a tired expression. "Keep an eye on her, I'm going to take a look around from the air to see if anymore are nearby," I tell her.
"Okay, stay safe," she replies.
I smile at her and leave the Café. I cast my air wings and take to the air. I look around and don't see any more nearby, but I do see their camp off in the distance. People start to leave their homes and cautiously approach the Café. "Is it over?" one of them asks.
"Are the gryphons dead?" another asks.
"We're free?"
"We're safe now?"
"Look! The King! He's alright!"
I land in front of the Café and the people gather around. "Oh thank you so much, your Majesty!" an elderly woman says.
The woman from the Café walks up to me looking at the floor. "I'm so sorry, I didn't have a choice," she tells me and sniffles a bit.
I place my right hand on her left shoulder. "It's alright. They're gone and we're fine," I reply.
"Thank you so much for saving our town... The gryphons came without warning during the night and killed all the guards. They told us if anypony tried to leave, they'd kill everypony," a man tells me.
"Well, it's not over yet. There's still eight more out there and I need to hunt them down. The Queens will keep you safe while I find the rest," I tell them.
"Thank you, we'll do whatever the Queens ask of us," the elderly woman says and bows.
I nodded and enter the Café. "Luna, I need my armour and shield," I tell her.
"What are thou planning to do?" she asks as she teleports my gear to me.
"I'm going to hunt down these bastards and make them regret ever stepping foot in Equestria," I reply. The gryphon then starts crying.
"Why are you crying?" I ask her.
"You're going to kill my father aren't you," she says.
I frown in thought. "Yes, I am. Him and the others attacked those I protect and love. They sealed their fate when they spilled innocent blood," I tell her.
She buries her head into her arms and cries harder. "What's your name," I ask her.
She tries to calm down a bit."V-Venna," she replies.
"I'll mention your name and see if your father will surrender. If he doesn't, I will kill him," I tell her and put my armour on.
"Should we come with thee?" Luna asks.
I nodded to her. "Alright, I could use some help," I reply.
Celestia and the others return, but Cadence looks nauseous at the sight of the male Gryphon. "Tia. You, Cadence, and Shella look after the town. Luna and I are going to hunt some gryphons," I tell them and Luna is in her armour.
"Do you have to go now?" Cadence asks.
"Yes, while they still don't know what happened, we'll catch them at their camp before they come to the town and put the people in danger," I reply.
"Alright, please come back if it gets too rough... though from the mess here, I don't think it will be too much of a problem," Celestia tells us.
"Sure, keep each other safe. I'll be back soon," I reply. Luna and I exit where I then cast my fast gliding wings where Luna grabs the back of my chest plate, activates her aspect form and flies towards the south.
We land near some trees without a sound thanks to Luna's aspect abilities. We creep up to the small encampment while Luna keeps her left hand on my right shoulder to make me soundless as well. I see six gryphons talking to each other around a campfire, another is by the stream with a fishing net and the eighth is relieving himself behind a bush.
I motion for Luna to let go of my shoulder so I could talk to her. "Luna, don't attack until I cast the nullify spell. I need to find out which one is Venna's father first," I tell her.
She nodded to me and I take on my life combat form. I channel the elements for the spell and we step out and I whistle loudly, getting their attention.
I cast the spell which shatters their enchantments. "Good afternoon gents! Which one of you would be the father of a gryphon named Venna?" I ask with a frown and draw my sword.
"Good afternoon gents! Which one of you would be the father of a gryphon named Venna?" I ask with a frown and draw my sword.
They get into a pouncing stance and glare at us. One of them walks forward with a scowl. "That would be me," he says. He's about a foot taller than the others and has a scar across his left eye, which is closed. He's different from the others, he has black fur and grey feathers with black tips on his head, his beak is also black. "Where is my daughter," he demands.
"You're in no position to demand anything, but I will tell you she is alive and unharmed and I don't plan on harming her. I told her I'd bring you back alive for her... so surrender peacefully and you won't be killed," I tell him.
One of the other gryphons steps up beside the black one and laughs. "Oh? We out number you easily so what's stopping us from just killing you?" he asks with a grin. Huh... didn't know a beak could bend like that.
"I killed the other six that were with Venna in a matter of seconds as your barriers and shields are useless against me. I've disabled all of yours already," I reply.
He looks shocked and looks at the bracers on his arms. 'So, the bracers on their arms are the source of their barriers,' I think to myself.
"You're one of those humans!" he says. I guess they wouldn't recognise me since my armour is hidden beneath the bark.
"Not just any human," I reply and stand up straight. "I am Adrian Stormsword, King of Equestria, and you've killed our people in cold blood. I've come to spill yours," I tell him.
'Hold out your sword and I shall bestow you with your combat form's weapon,' Gaia tells me.
'Weapon?' I ask.
I hold my sword out to my right and the bark on my hand extends and covers the hilt. The hilt extends to a two handed grip size and the hand guard looks like a vine with a rose on each end. The blade is one long thorn with a surprisingly sharp looking edge. I can also see a sticky substance along the blade.
'This is your weapon. The blade is as strong as steel and secretes the same extract as the ivy that covers your sword. The roses contain a pollen that is released when picked. The pollen will cause anyone around you to fall asleep, but you cannot channel any elements into the sword while it is in this form,' she tells me.
'Nice,' I reply and lift it up. It weighs just a bit more than my sword.
I look back to the gryphons and point my sword at them. "Those who wish to die step forward. Those who wish to surrender, drop your bracers, armour, and put your... talons behind your heads. Those who wish to flee... you won't get very far," I tell them. Luna summons her scythe and spreads her shadowy wings wide to intimidate them.
I cast my air wings spell and those bark and leaf feather wings sprout out. The gryphons glare at me but Venna's father has his eyes closed.
"I surrender," he says.
"Hagriff! You're surrendering to this inferior creature!?" the gryphon next to him asks stunned.
The black gryphon sighs and turns to face the male that accused him. "I know when I'm outmatched. Should we fight, we will die... and I don't want to leave my daughter in their talons alone," he says and strips himself of his gear and places his talons on the back of his head.
"Fine, talon yourself over to them, but I won't let pathetic creatures like them take me!" the gryphon beside him says and pounces at me.
I channel elements for a teleport spell and teleport two metres above myself right before the gryphon lands where I was. I land on his back like I would riding a horse and swing my sword into the side of his head.
The top half of his head comes off with a spray of blood as he then drops to the floor lifeless.
I get off and slowly turn to the others. "That's one, who's next?" I ask them coldly.
One of the females takes off into the air and starts to fly away from us. Luna holds her left arm out and four black shadowy tendrils shoot out with great speed and wrap around the fleeing gryphon. She pulls her arm back and the tendrils go taut, cutting through her as body parts and organs fall to the ground with a splat.
"That's two," I tell them.
Two of the other males snarl at us before roaring out in anger and fly at us. I fire a lightning spray from my shield at the left one while Luna throws her scythe at the right. My spray hits and his wings lock up, making him face plant the dirt with a heavy thud and tumble harshly to a stop in front of me. Blood then begins to pool around his head.
Luna's scythe impales the other gryphon in his left shoulder, causing him to cry out and crash into the ground. The scythe digs deeper into him and the tip comes out his stomach. She then pulls the scythe out with her magic and it rips out of the gryphon's chest.
"Four," I say. There's two females, a male, and Hagriff left. "Anyone else want to throw their life away?" I ask them.
The two females look at each other and split up. One flies to our right and the other to our left as the male flies up and dives down at us. "Luna, stand next to me," I tell her.
"Okay," she replies and we stand back to back.
The gryphons are just about to hit us and I cast a shield barrier around us. They hit the barrier and it cracks heavily as they bounce off. The shield shatters and I stab one of the females in her spine while Luna crushes the male with her shadow abilities.
The second female gryphon gets back up and looks between her dead allies and us. She then looks back at the black gryphon with a pleading expression.
He just shakes his head at her.
She turns back to face me. "Will you surrender, or join the others?" I ask her.
She hangs her head and removes her gear.
I stand in front of the two gryphons. "Now then, as long as you comply, you shall not be harmed. You will be held in a cell and under watch until transport arrives to take us back to Canterlot where you'll be placed in the Dungeon for murdering the guards. You'll be treated fairly and fed well while there," I tell them.
"And how would you feed us? We don't eat plants like your kind," the female asks with malice.
"I can eat both vegetation and meat. I can bring you some fish that I catch back. I can also have meat imported as well so it won't be an issue," I reply. I then turn to Luna. "I'll keep an eye on them, you have a look around the camp for anything important," I tell her.
POV: Luna
"Alright, we shalt not take long," I reply to him and start looking around the camp.
I grit my teeth in anger when I find a pile of bones behind a tent... there's twenty pony skulls and a human one. I guess I found the missing guards.
Two of the large tents only contains sleeping mats, but the third contains a letter on a desk written in the gryphons native language.
Hagirff, since the arrival of these new creatures in Equestria called humans and their weapons, we've had to change our plans. You and your group are to capture the pony town of Ponilulu marked on your map at night and when transport arrives in three weeks, load half of the ponies onto the boat to bring back for the Sphinx God. Only kill their warriors and not the weak prey.
After that, you'll begin the breeding program detailed below to breed the ponies as a stable livestock.
Also, if you can recover some of these new weapons, send them back to us along with the ponies when the boat arrives.
We hope you have great success in your task.
~Orphious~
I frown at the letter and crumble it in my grip. 'Tartarus damned buzzards! Ye shalt regret this,' I think to myself and keep looking around.
I find three rifles and two scatterguns in the corner with ammo pouches next to them. I pick them up and teleport them to Adrian's Condo. After a few more minutes of searching, I find nothing else of importance.
I leave the tent and walk over to Adrian. It would seem he has used some vines to tie both gryphons wings down and their fore and hind legs together, far enough to allow them enough space to walk. "We found a letter inside, a transport will be here soon to pick up half the town's population to bring back to their so called god as well as turn this town into nothing more than a place to breed ponies. They were also ordered to bring back some of our guns for study as well," I tell him.
"A transport?" he asks and turns to Hagriff. "When will this transport arrive?" he asks him.
Hagriff sighs. "In three days," he replies.
"And how many gryphons will be on board?" Adrian asks.
"Fifty at most," the gryphon says.
"Hmmmm, and what shore will they land on?" Adrian asks him next.
"Just further south from here there's a small shore where they will arrive at," Hagriff tells him.
Adrian hums in thought. "Alright then, start walking towards the town, and no sudden movements or I'll put you both down without a second thought," he tells them.
The gryphons nodded and started slowly walking towards town, we're about halfway there when Adrian asks a question devoid of emotion. "What did you do with the guards and the human mage here? The gryphons that attacked us in town mentioned they ate the human before I killed them," he asks the gryphons.
Hagriff sighs. "The others ate the human and your guards while my daughter and I ate the fish we catch near the river... contrary to what you may believe, not all of us eat the other races, though there are not many who think like us. I for one can't condone it, you'd think we would learn that by the dragons hunting us as well..." he replies. "but ever since the Sphinx God arrived, the dragons have not been able to hunt us anymore due to his magic... and our people have been getting more arrogant since they've had their first taste of dragon meat," he says. The gryphoness growls at Hagriff in disgust.
The gryphons have been able to kill dragons? This doesn't sound good.
'Sounds to me like they're using human magic mixed with elven magic to create these enchantments... It also sounds like they've made some elemental based weapons if they're able to kill a dragon,' Umbra suddenly tells me.
Her sudden explanation makes me jump a bit. 'Should we tell Adrian and our sister this then?' I ask her.
'Not yet, I would wait until you read the gryphons memories before we tell them. This is only a theory after all,' she replies.
"If you don't condone it so much, why are you here turning one of our towns into a meat farm?" Adrian asks, bringing me out of my thoughts.
Hagriff frowns deeply. "I don't have a say in the matter. You do as you're told or face death, that is the law of the Sphinx God," he tells Adrian.
"When did this god of thee's first arrive?" I ask.
"Eight months ago as he descended from the heavens and wiped out any who opposed him. Including half of the council and replaced them with those of his choosing," he tells me.
The gryphoness growls at Hagriff again. "Will you keep your beak shut! You've told them too much as it is!" she tells him.
"And? We'll be killed even if we escape back to Gryphonia. We failed our task and you know how the Sphinx God deals with failure. I'm now looking out for my daughter and doing what is necessary to keep her safe and alive, I don't hold onto pointless pride like you and the featherheads back at the peaks. It's a fast way of getting yourself killed," he tells her coldly making her frown and look away.
After a few seconds of silence, Adrian speaks up. "If you had the choice to get away from this so called god safely... would you take it?" he asks Hagriff with curiosity.
The gryphon chuckles a bit. "Certainly. I sometimes wish I was one of the few lucky enough to be an Equestrian Citizen. Remember when I said there are few of us that can't condone eating intelligent races?" he asks Adrian, who nodded in reply. "Ninety percent of them live in Equestria. Which is no more than a hundred. There's only ten of us in Gryphonia that I know of who think as I do, Including my daughter," he tells him.
"What if we offered you citizenship for what you can tell us about Gryphonia and what you know of this Sphinx God. Of course you'll still serve time in the Dungeons for your part in the attack and murder of our guards," Adrian says. He's right, if we offer them a safe haven, they'll tell us what we wish to know. This will help us for when it is time to attack Aries Peak and their Council.
Hagriff looks at Adrian with wide eyes. "Do you mean that?" he asks surprised.
Adrian nodded at him. "Yes, but as I said, you will still serve time for what you have done, but during that time, you will be treated fairly and kindly," he replies.
The gryphon looks down in thought, I see him smile and look back at him. "I accept your offer. I'll tell you all I know if it means my daughter will be safe," he tells Adrian.
The gryphoness snarls and clumsily tackles Hagriff. "TRAITOR! I WILL KILL YOU BEFORE YOU CAN TELL THEM ANYTHING!" she yells and digs her talons into his neck, piercing his throat.
I use my magic to quickly levitate her off him with some effort, even without their new barriers they're still resistant to pony magic like a human is, and throw her into a nearby tree where she is knocked out. Adrian stands over Hagriff who is grasping his neck, choking as blood flows out. He quickly casts a healing beam at him and the wound in his throat closes as he gasps for air.
Adrian then turns to me. "Luna, can you hog-tie her and wake her up, I then want you to drag her along the ground all the way back to Ponilulu for attacking an Equestrian Citizen," he tells me.
I smile slightly. "Alright, our love," I reply and create some bindings and tie up the gryphoness tightly. I think his methods are starting to rub off on me... should I be worried about that?
POV: Adrian Stormsword
Hagriff stands back up and frowns at the unconscious gryphon. "Thank you for healing me," he tells me.
"Sure, I still need you alive. And I meant what I said, you tell us what you know and you and your daughter will be Equestrian Citizens," I reply.
Luna finishes tying the female gryphon up and starts slapping her face to wake her up. The gryphoness growls and tries to bite Luna, only to be slapped in the back of the head and faceplant the dirt. Luna's horn then glows as she pulls on the bindings and drags her across the ground face first. The gryphoness hisses in pain and struggles against her bonds.
"Alright then, let's keep moving, we have a boat to prepare for," I say and we continue back to Ponilulu.
We arrive in town where the population cheers at our return. I ask them where the guards Barracks are located and place the gryphons in separate cells, but I allow Hagriff to hug his daughter before placing her in a cell across from his. I ask ten ponies to keep an eye on them and to rotate shifts until new guards can arrive in a couple of days. I also gave them the guns we recovered and gave them a quick run down of how they worked so they could at least defend themselves in case the gryphons got out.
It's now late in the evening and the Town is throwing a party for us for its liberation. The Plaza has been cleared of stalls as tables of food and drinks are laid out for anyone who wants to partake in the festivities. A Large table with five chairs has been set up in the centre for my lovers and I.
Many of the townsfolk came up to our table and thanked us for helping them. I lost track of how many times I said 'You're welcome' to them.
It was a fun time as I danced with my wives, Cadence, and even Mavis in my arms. Stories were told and laughs were shared.
I asked Luna to retrieve what was left of the bull shark we caught earlier so I can give it to the gryphons to eat.
Once the party calmed down. I flew back to the camp and retrieved the remains of the guards Luna told me she found. I brought them back where they were given a proper burial. There was no way to tell who's bones belonged to who, so we did our best to make a memorial where we laid all the remains together in peace. Luna and Celestia levitated a large boulder into town and with their magic, carved it into the shape of two proud guards standing tall, one a stallion and the other a mare.
A plaque was embedded into the base of the memorial with all the names of the guards that were in the Barracks, including the human mage named Sarah Kallian. We recovered her staff which will be sent back to Terra and to her family.
Celestia and Luna both raise and lower the moon while I spend the next few hours scouting the south shore. It's a small beach, but big enough for a boat to anchor nearby. The right side leads to a steep hill while a reef is to the left, along with a path leading to a nearby forest or jungle. Behind me is an open area with the camp not too far away.
The river near the camp goes out a mile before reaching a mountain where a lake rests on top. It was quite the sight and I'll have to bring the others here as well as it looks like a nice place for a picnic.
I return to town and join the others before we head back to my Condo. "Well, today has been an eye opener," I say.
Celestia kisses me on the cheek. "Very. Hopefully, we'll learn something about this god of theirs and about the area in general to plan our attack. I'll also send out some letters asking our allies to aid us in the coming battle as per the agreement to our alliance," she tells me and heads up the stairs. "I'm going to have a bath and then head to bed," she tells us.
"Alright," I reply. I feel someone grab my arm and I see Cadence pull me towards the stairs. "Luna had her fun with you earlier, now I want a turn," she tells me... that reminds me, we're going to have to have our talk about the wanting sex whenever they feel like it thing tonight.
I chuckle and let her pull me along where I hear Luna and Shella giggle behind me as I'm dragged away. Cadence pulls me into our bedroom and instantly undresses as her horn glows, removing my clothes as well.
I roll my eyes and quickly scoop her up when she removes her last piece of clothing making her squeal and giggle playfully. I carefully place her on the bed and kiss her, she smiles up at me with half lidded eyes. "Show me a good time," she says seductively.
Three Days Later
The last two days have been quiet. I've had my talk with my lovers and although disappointed that I won't have sex with them when I'm not in the mood, they agreed to my terms that they don't have to if they're not in the mood either.
The gryphons have been behaving well, except for the female named Olvera, she's tried her best to break out of her bonds, leaving claw marks along the floor and walls where she's tried to cut at them. Luna even had to force feed her when she refused to eat the fish I caught at the river for them. She said she'd only eat if someone put their hand in her beak... A punch to the gut from me and showing the wing remains of the gryphon I mutilated at the Café shut her up.
Hagriff and Venna have been allowed to spend time together for a couple of hours a day, they've also been given books to read and Venna asked for some art stuff, we've given her some paper and pencils to draw with. Turns out she's quite the artist, she has drawn what Aries Peak looks like and other locations at her father's request, even a portrait of this so called Sphinx God. He has the body of a large gryphon... but the face is closer to that of a Human, just covered in fur. Venna was also surprised to find out that she and Hagriff will be Equestrian Citizens after they've served some time in the Canterlot Dungeons.
Celestia sent a letter back to Canterlot on the night after we captured Hagriff with her magic to get a sloop airship with nearly a hundred pony guards and ten human mages to come and get ready for the gryphons transport ship.
Yesterday, Shella asked me to mate with her to which I agreed. She was a lot more submissive than usual during it though... not sure why, I'll have to ask her later. The ship with the guards also arrived and landed near the town. Out of sight from the shore where the gryphons will be arriving. The guards have set up watch around town and brought a newly developed crystal enchanted to detect nearby gryphons... Problem is, the crystal is HUGE and it only made a loud noise at best when a gryphon is detected. The cells containing our prisoners was shielded to prevent the crystal going off at their presence. It had to be placed in the centre of the market plaza as it is five times bigger than the life crystal I charged in Canterlot.
Right now, I'm relaxing in the couch pit in our Condo with Mavis in my lap, Shella to my left and Celestia to my right. I tickle my daughter and get squeals of laughter in return, making me smile.
"Just watching you playing with Mavis makes me want to have our foal soon... the waiting is almost unbearable," Celestia says.
I chuckle and look at her. "How long do alicorn pregnancies last?" I ask her.
"Just over six months. Our magic allows the foal to grow at a faster rate than a normal mare would carry," she tells me.
I raise my eyebrows up. "Wait... so you should be giving birth in a few weeks time?" I ask her.
She smiles and nodded. "Yes, in about three weeks roughly," she replies.
I place my right hand on her stomach and feel our son kick a little, I smile wider and look back at her. "I can't wait. I bet you're looking forward to finally being a mother," I tell her.
"Very, there have been no male alicorns since my father had to separate himself with my mother from Equus to protect us from a major threat millennia ago... and there are no other beings that contain magic within them or even be compatible enough to breed with us... I believe you were able to due to your magic and lineage... being the descendant of a powerful unicorn turned human may have left some pony DNA within you," she tells me.
I might have pony DNA in me? "Does that mean I could learn pony magic somehow?" I ask with interest, the thought of at least learning how to levitate things sounds intriguing.
"I don't know, we'll have to see when we return to Canterlot and run some tests on your blood," she tells me.
Even if I can't learn pony magic the thought of having some pony DNA in me makes me smile a little, I guess it makes me closer to the ponies of this world a bit more than I thought.
We spend another thirteen minutes or so just chatting and enjoying each others company. Mavis has finally called Shella 'Mama' which made her very happy. Luna is in the Kitchen making herself something to eat while Cadence is upstairs taking a nap.
A knock on the door gets our attention and Luna opens it. "Your Majesty!" a guard says with a salute. "A boat is approaching from the south shore ten miles out with gryphons flying beside it. What are your orders?" he tells her and asks.
"Get the guard and airship ready for battle and hide in the forest nearby the shore to ambush them. We'll enact the plan to capture one of them for information," she replies.
"At once, your Highness!" he says and flies back to town.
"So it's time?" I ask and hand Mavis back to Shella.
"Yes, and as planned, Tia, Shella, and Cadence will defend the town with thirty of the guards while we shall ambush the gryphons with the remainder of the Guards, human mages, and airship," Luna says.
I get up and stand beside her. Her horn glows and I'm in my gear. "Alright then, let's get there quickly so I and the other mages can set up defences," I say and we all head to town to get ready for the upcoming battle.
We set up around the small shore waiting for the gryphons to arrive, thirty of us stand in the open; including me and Luna, while the rest lie in ambush in the nearby jungle.
About two hours later, the ship stops and forty gryphons fly over to the shore.
"What's this?" the lead gryphon asks while eating what looks like a freshly severed pony arm.
I remain silent and so do the others.
"Hagriff!? Where are ya you old buzzard!" he yells out with a mouthful looking around.
"He and his companions have been dealt with and the town is back under Equestrian control. You will surrender yourselves or face death," I tell him. I then notice a pony woman gagged and tied up behind him held by two gryphons, but the worst part? She's got the same coat colour as the arm he's eating which she is missing as she silently cries.
My anger rises, not only have they taken more of our people from elsewhere, but he has the audacity to mutilate and eat them alive in front of us!
'Gaia, can I change the shape of the bark on my combat form?' I ask my aspect.
'With enough mana and practice yes, but if I were to be in control, I can take on the form of my champion. You'll only be able to watch as I take control while you power the form with your mana, but as we've never done this before, it could collapse at anytime,' she replies with her own hint of anger.
After staring at us for a while, the gryphon laughs. "You what? Don't make me laugh! Pathetic little ponies like you killed one of our best hunters? Now tell me where he is or I'll kill you all here right now," he demands.
'Do it, show them the futility of their actions here,' I tell Gaia.
'Very well,' she says and I begin channelling my mana to her.
"Luna, Gaia is taking over, I want you to get to their ship with our airship and rescue anyone else on board while taking out any who resist. When Gaia has taken over, signal the others to attack," I tell her.
"Alright, Adrian. Please be careful," she tells me.
'I am ready, Adrian,' Gaia says.
I turn back towards the gryphons who are glaring at us. 'Do it,' I reply.
Bark grows around me and my height increases to that of a small house, the bark on my arms extends to long thick trunks with long fingers and the same with my legs.
The transformation only takes a minute, but once it was done, I towered over the stunned gryphons.
POV: Luna
'By our stars, he's a giant!' I think to myself as I look up at him.
'He has allowed Gaia control and she has released her champion's form. It shall not last long as it drains a significant amount of mana to keep stable,' Umbra tells me.
'Can we do that?' I ask in reply.
'We could, but I don't think you would be ready to allow me total control again are you?' she asks me.
I shudder as memories of Nightmare Moon briefly flash across my mind.
'No... no we art not...' I reply with sadness in my tone.
'It's alright, it'll take time, but we are now friends. I have entrusted you with my life, and I hope that one day, you can do the same,' she tells me.
I smile faintly. 'We thank thee, Umbra,' I reply.
Adrian's eyes glow a bright orange as his right arm rises up and quickly slams down onto the gryphons, the leader manages to avoid it while dropping the mare's arm, the two gryphons beside him weren't as lucky as they get crushed.
The human mages with us all cast their nullify spells shattering their barriers and I teleport behind the gryphons holding the injured mare, I swing my scythe and decapitate the right one while my blade lodges itself into the skull of the left.
I wrap my left arm around the mare and teleport us back over to the mages where they begin healing her wound.
Adrian, or I guess Gaia is trying to kill the leader while the gryphons begin to panic due to his sheer size.
I raise my right arm up and cast a green flare spell, signalling the airship and the hidden guards to attack.
"We require ye all to aid Adrian in the battle here, do not let any of them escape!" I order the guards and mages who cry out and charge into the fight.
Rifles and scatterguns go off as they fire into the gryphons, some of the shots kill while most just wound them. The airship flies overhead and I fly up onto the deck.
"Helmspony, set course for the sea vessel, we are to rescue any prisoners on board while slaying all of it's crew," I order her.
"Yes, your Majesty!" she replies and heads straight for the boat.
POV: Gaia
In all my years I have never met such a despicable race as these gryphons! I understand the need of predators hunting to survive, but to mutilate and eat another while they still live? I shall not stand for this cruelty.
The leader is evading all of my attempts to grasp him, I hold both of my arms out and launch a barrage of vines from my palms which entwine some of the other gryphons he uses as shields. I raise my arms up and slam the five gryphons I have caught into the ground which results in a cacophony of broken bones and fleshy squelches.
'Adrian, increase your mana flow, the form is destabilizing,' I warn him.
'Alright,' he replies with a grunt and the flow of his mana increases.
"You will suffer for the atrocities you have committed against life here today, gryphon," I rumble out in a low tone befitting my champion.
I can actually see and feel the fear behind his eyes, he will find that with Adrian, the Queens, we Aspects and with the alliance of Terra, they will come to regret their barbaric choices.
I lunge out my right arm and he attempts to flee, I reach out with my vines again and just grasp his hind legs. I reel him in and hold him in front of my face.
"Please spare me!" he begs. He has the nerve to beg for his life after he took that woman's arm?
"And what of the female's arm you severed and devoured in front of her? Did you listen to her cries for mercy?" I question him.
He now has a look of realization as to what I am about to do, I grasp his right arm and rip it straight off as his cries of pain and anguish I ignore.
"Now you know the pain and torment you have wrought, but do not worry, I shall end your cruelty," I say and crush him within my grip.
His bones shatter and his flesh mangles together as his blood flows between my champion’s fingers.
'Gaia, I can't give you anymore... I'm done,' Adrian tells me with a strained voice.
'You have done well, let your friends and lovers take it from here, you need to rest,' I reply and cancel my champion’s form which kneels slowly and breaks away, revealing Adrian coming out of the back.
POV: Human Mage, Jandal Etirion
We arrive at the vessel which is quite large, a frigate most likely.
"Pegasi! Carry the unicorns, earth ponies, and human mages down so they may neutralize the gryphons defences, ye shall then eliminate all resistance ye encounters and secure the vessel. Once secured, turn the boat towards the Ponilulu docks!" the pony Queen exclaims.
I've only been in this world for three weeks, but so far, it has been a wonder to see and meet the ponies who live here.
A pegasi woman grips me around the waist from behind and I look back at her, she has deep green fur and bright blue eyes, her hair is blonde with a white stripe going through it. Her name is jade wing, she's been very friendly towards me on the way here and back at the pony Capital.
She winks at me with a smile. "Hold onto your pants, Jandal, we're going in hot," she tells me.
I gulp and grip my staff tightly. "Ready when you are, Jade," I reply.
"Go!" the Queen orders us and Jade jumps overboard.
I feel my gut turn as we plummet down to the ship where there are several gryphons waiting for us and I channel the elements necessary for the nullify spell. Twenty of us land on the deck and four other mages along with myself cast our spells.
The barriers these gryphons use shatter and I cast an arcane beam at the closest one near us. He bloats and blisters until his chest bursts open.
"Woo! Nice one, Jandal!" Jade cheers me on making me smile. I can see why their King stayed with these ponies, they're much more energetic and kinder than most Terrans are.
She draws her rifle off her back and gives me a grin. "Let's keep going and show these tossers what for!" she says nudging me forward, I regret ever swearing in front of her, she's picked up a lot of my bad habits.
The other guards fight the gryphons on the deck as we head down below with four others. The hallways are wide enough for two people to walk side by side due to how big the gryphons are.
"So do we split up looking for the captives?" I ask.
"Stay in pairs of twos, watch each other's backs," a unicorn officer tells us.
"Yes sir!" Jade replies and drags me off into the ship.
I keep three water elements ready to blast back anyone who might jump us. So far, two gryphons attempted to ambush us but I blasted one away and then zapped him with a lightning element while Jade shot the other in the head.
"This is going easier than I thou... Urk!" she says behind me and then chokes.
I turn around and see her looking down at her stomach where a spear is coming out from the back.
She touches the bloody tip and looks at her hand and then at me. "Jandal?" she asks scared and collapses as her legs give out from under her.
With wide eyes I look behind her to she the gryphon she shot is back up with a smirk, but how? She shot him in the head... Unless the bullet curved around his skull.
I growl and charge up an arcane with two fire elements and cast the beam at him, he screams in pain as I burn a hole right through him in my anger.
Once the gryphon hit the floor, I focus on Jade who is coughing up a lot of blood. "Hold on Jade! I'll help you!" I tell her and with a wince, pull the spear out of her.
She cries out in pain and I quickly cast a life beam at her, the wound slowly closes but she's lost a lot of blood. She's breathing shallow but she's alive, she looks at me with a faint smile and beckons me over with a finger.
I lean down and she grabs the back of my head and forces me to kiss her. "That's in case I don't get a second chance again," she tells me quietly. "Thank you... what do you say about going on a date when we get back home?" she asks me with a small smile.
I just kneel there surprised, I shake my head and return the smile. "Sure, I'd love to," I reply with a chuckle and pick her up. "First I'm getting you back on the airship," I tell her and carry her back the way we came.
POV: Luna
I watch as the guards and mages search the vessel. So far, we've found twenty-three ponies down below.
"Medic!" one of the human mages calls out carrying one of the pegasi guards.
I look on worried but a small smile graces my lips as the pegasus leans into the human's chest with her own smile.
"What has happened?" I ask them.
"She was run through with a spear, I closed the wound but she's lost a lot of blood," he informs me.
"Very well," I say and turn to two of the other pegasi guards. "Carry these two back on board the Kestrel and tend to her condition," I order them and they salute.
After they're lifted up, I look back to the shore and see Adrian crush a gryphon in his bark covered grip. He then kneels down and the bark around him falls apart.
'Please be safe.'
POV: Adrian Stormsword
I pull myself out of the torso of the husk left behind, I then stumble and fall to the ground with a light thud. A couple of the guards help me up and place my arms over their shoulders, I can't move my arms or legs and I feel exhausted, I ain't doing that again anytime soon...
"Are you alright, my King?" a unicorn man asks me.
"I'm fine... I need to rest... I can't move," I reply.
"Take his Majesty back to the town, we can deal with the rest of these pests," he tells the guards holding me up.
"Yes, sir!" they reply and gently carry me away.
I look over my shoulder and see the gryphons going down quickly thanks to the guns the guards are using and the mage's spells. We've lost a few guards to them as well, but I knew it was unavoidable, at least the wounded can still be healed.
Looking over my shoulder one last time, I see the airship next to the gryphon boat and smile, knowing Luna has it covered. My eyes grow heavy as I fall asleep from my lack of mana.
POV: Celestia
We can hear the fighting from here, the gunfire and explosions from spells going off in the distance. I see three ponies approaching the town but realize one of them is our mate.
"Adrian! Is he alright?" I ask the two guards carrying him.
"Yes, your Majesty. He is just tired after what we witnessed him do," she replies.
"What did he do? Will you show me?" I ask her.
"Of course, my Queen," she replies and holds her hand out.
I hold her hand and cast the memory reading spell. I only read the specific memory of his transformation and gasp.
'Ah yes, the champion form,' Lux tells me.
'What is that?' I ask him.
'It is the form of our chosen champions, it is when we take control and our chosen mortal channels their mana into us to fuel the form. We then follow your commands, but the form doesn't last long, mostly minutes at a time and once it is done, the host will be extremely tired,' he explains.
'I see,' I reply. "Please place him on the bed, we'll take care of him," I order the guards.
"Yes, my Queen," they reply and carefully put him on the bed in a house a family has let us use during the battle.
Once on the bed, I carefully remove his armour and lay beside him, he's sleeping so peacefully despite the battle still going on.
Cadence and Shella sit on the side of the bed with worried expressions. "I hope Luna is okay," Cadence says.
"I'm sure she is, I can feel her and she's just fine," I reply.
'How goes the battle, sister? Adrian is back in town and is asleep from magic exhaustion,' I ask Luna and inform her.
'We have taken their vessel which is on its way to the docks with pony captives on board. Prepare a relief team for them, we are heading back to shore and into battle,' she replies.
'Alright, stay on guard and show those animals no mercy,' I tell her.
'With pleasure,' she replies grimly.
After talking to her, I order some guards to prepare relief teams before cuddling up to my husband and await for my sister to return.
POV: Luna
I fly back to the battle on the shore where some of our guard has fallen while more than half of the gryphons have been slain. I land in the middle of four gryphons and draw my swords, I then spin around slicing into each one, taking wings and limbs.
A gryphon attempts to pounce on me from behind, but I avoid him by teleporting behind him and plunge both blades into his spine. I rip both swords out with a splash of blood following them.
I face another and levitate her into the air with a grunt and throw her into another where four guards finish them while they're entangled.
The battle starts to die down as the last few gryphons fight to the bitter end, I guess we were lucky that Hagriff surrendered to us then.
I order the guards and mages to pile the bodies and burn them, while collecting our dead to be brought back to Canterlot. I'm afraid Adrian is in no condition to revive any of them, and to be honest, I don't like it when he does as he risks his own life in the process.
I return to the town and find my herd mates and husband lying on a bed together that barely holds them.
'We have returned, Tia. Victory is ours!' I tell her telepathically.
She cracks an eye open slightly and looks at me with a relieved smile.
'Lulu, I'm so glad you're safe, how did the battle go?' she asks me.
'As well as we could have hoped, we lost a few guards, but all the gryphons have been dealt with,' I answer.
'I guess that's the best we could have asked for, Adrian has been asleep the whole time since he arrived,' she informs me.
'From what we saw him do, he needs it. We shall go and wash ourselves before returning, we have a lot to do still,' I tell her.
The Next Morning POV: Adrian Stormsword
I yawn as I open my eyes, I look around, but find my vision blocked as I have my four lovers pressed up to me tightly. I smile faintly as I try to hold them closer, except Cadence and Celestia both have my arms trapped against their chests.
I decide to wait for them to wake up... but the urge to use the bathroom wins.
"Erm... girls? I need to use the bathroom," I tell them and shake myself lightly.
They all mumble in protest and cuddle up even closer, if that is even possible.
"Come on! I really need to use the bathroom..." I whine at them.
"Arg... fine! We shall get up," Luna complains and rolls off the bed with a light thud. "Ow..."
I chuckle quietly as Cadence then gets up and Celestia let's go, I quickly get off the bed but realize I don't know where I am.
"Where's the bathroom?" I ask and start fidgeting in place.
"Second door," Celestia covers her mouth as she yawns. "to the right," she tells me.
"Thanks!" I reply and get out quickly.
After a good five minutes to relieve myself and wash up, I head downstairs where the others are now up.
"So, how did the battle go? I take it since we're all here that we won?" I ask them as the family that owns this house is making us breakfast.
"It went well, we suffered fifteen deaths, and twenty more lost some limbs, but the gryphons were all slain," Luna replies.
"I see. I suppose that's better than what it could have been... what about the boat?" I ask.
"It is in the docks and is currently being searched for documentation, it will then be dismantled and the resources given to the town," Celestia tells me.
"Alright, anything important found so far?" I ask as the family's mother hands me a plate with some scrambled eggs, toast, fruits, and a glass of nice cold water. "Thank you," I smile at her and she nodded back to me.
"Not yet, but the Captain's quarters are still being searched," Luna replies and takes a bite of her breakfast.
"Ah, so I take it we're waiting here until something is found?" I inquire.
"For four more days, Shella will lay her eggs in ten days time so we'll need to leave before four days to get home in time," Cadence says and burps quietly. "Excuse me," she excuses herself with a light blush.
"So, what are we going to do while we wait?" I ask them.
Celestia smiles as I feed Shella and Mavis with some of my love and life element. "Nothing, we've had enough excitement for a few days, we're just going to go back to the Condo and relax," my Queen of the Sun tells me.
"Sounds good to me, my mana still needs to recover from yesterday," I reply and after breakfast, we head back to the Condo.
These last few days have been very relaxing, true to Celestia's word, we did nothing but enjoy each other's company.
We went into town a few times for lunch and dinner, we received many gifts of thanks from the townsfolk ranging from flowers to little souvenirs.
The female gryphon Olvera managed to worm her way out of her bonds and tried to attack the guards near her cell, she was gunned down instantly and didn't stand a chance. Her body was cremated as the townsfolk didn't want her buried nearby.
Celestia and I made love two days ago on the bed and she was a lot more aggressive than usual, I think it's because she's so close to giving birth.
The gryphon ship has been searched and a few logbooks have been found detailing its voyage over here, they apparently raided another small town before they could send word to us, the rescued prisoners confirmed this as they were from that town.
The moment we return Celestia is going to finalize the attack plans on Aries Peak and I'll begin my training with the Fire Aspect Infernus.
Once we've all had our fun, we return to our little airship with the airship that arrived with guards as an escort back. The two remaining gryphons were locked in the brig for the journey home.
We're flying back over the ocean and after a day's travel, we reach the mainland where we killed the dragon.
"Before we return, we should take the hoard of the dragon we slain here as we have a bigger ship to transport it now," Luna says to all of us while pointing to the sloop.
"What? But we don't even know where his lair is..." I reply looking at her with a raised eyebrow.
"We read his mind when we used our power to deafen him," she replies.
Huh... not bad. "Nice, so where is it?" I ask.
She points towards the forest where it first appeared. "There's a cave in the forest that leads underground similar to the one we camped in, in the Everfree Forest," she tells me.
"Alright then, how big is the hoard?" Celestia asks.
"Only a quarter of the size of the one we retrieved in the Everfree," Luna replies to her sister.
"Hmmm, it should fit on the airship then... Very well, Luna. Please inform the Kestrel to land and we'll follow behind you," Celestia tells her.
"Of course," Luna says and flies off to the sloop.
I take over the wheel and gently land the small airship next to the sloop on the nearby beach.
Three hours later
We retrieved all the valuables and loaded them into the sloop's cargo hold, I found a few decent gems that will be great for Shining's new sword and Shield I'll have made for him, Celestia is even letting me use another branch from the rosewood tree for the shield like mine.
Once loaded and secured, we take off again and head back to Canterlot.
The next morning
I yawn and wake up with my lovers beside me on the bed as a night guard took the wheel last night, we all get up and get ready for the day. We should be nearing Canterlot in a few hours.
I'm sitting at the table on the deck with the others eating breakfast.
"So, Luna, what are you going to do once we get back?" I ask her.
She swallows her bite of the banana she's eating and looks at me. "We will be continuing our training with Umbra when we are not in court or with thee." she tells me.
"Fair enough, I'll most likely be doing the same thing but with Infernus," I say and smile. "I wonder what uncle Discord's been up to... Haven't heard from him in a while," I wonder out loud to myself.
"Most likely tormenting some poor pony with his pranks," Celestia says, she then hisses in pain and rubs her stomach. “The little one is kicking a lot more often now,” she tells us.
Luna then goes wide eyed and chokes on her drink. "You alright, Luna?" I ask her with worry.
She coughs a few times and has a look of horror. "We just realised... If Discord is uncle to Adrian, then that means he is now uncle to us..." she says and Celestia looks horrified as well.
"Is that bad? I personally find him funny," Shella says while Cadence is playing with Mavis on her lap.
"You haven't known him back when we were just fillies, he constantly pulled pranks and annoyed everypony around him... Though I must admit he has calmed down quite a bit since then," Celestia replies.
"Well, I just hope he's behaving himself," I say and finish my breakfast.
Two hours and thirteen minutes later
We land back at the Canterlot docks where Shining and Silk are waiting for us.
"Welcome back, your Majesties," they say and bow.
"I keep telling you to stop that, Shining," I playfully scold him.
He looks back up and smirks. "And I told you, I'm on duty," he replies.
"Any news since our leave, Captain?" Celestia asks him.
He looks at her and frowns. "Do you want the good news first or the bad?" he asks her.
"The good please," she says.
"Well, with Discord's help, we tracked down Goldrush to the border of Equestria and Gryphonia. We believe she was trying to take refuge with the gryphons in exchange for information about Equestria. She's in the dungeon right now tied up and muzzled so she can't kill herself," he tells us.
I smirk and chuckle. "Finally, this also means we can weed out the others who sided with her," I say. "What's the bad news?" I then ask.
"Chrysalis' changelings attacked Ponyville yesterday and almost abducted Fluttershy from her cottage, if it wasn't for Chitain and Chameleon detecting them so quickly we might have lost her. We've managed to repel them from the town with no foalnappings, but there were several injuries that the human mages have healed," he replies.
I frown and think, Chrysalis is finally making her move... "It would be best to organise the guard and fortify Ponyville," I say to the others.
"We've already begun building a wall between the Everfree and the town along with more guards and an expansion to the Barracks. We even had Fluttershy’s cottage moved closer to the town," Shining tells me.
"Good, I want changeling guards on the wall at all times to sense Chrysalis' changelings at any time," I tell him.
He nodded and pulls out a notepad and writes it down.
"So, how's the new body working for you?" I ask him.
Silk giggles and kisses Shining on his cheek. "It's been wonderful," she says with half lidded eyes at him.
He looks up and chuckles nervously. "It was rough at first, but after a few hours of practice I got used to the new height and legs... having toes was kinda creepy at first, but I can use a single life element now," he tells me.
I chuckle as well and we all head inside, after a few minutes walking and chatting with the others, I hear a grunt beside me.
"Argh!" Celestia grunts in pain and the sound of liquid splashing fills the hall.
I look down and see a puddle of fluids underneath her. 'Oh shit... her water just broke...'
"Oh no, the foal! It's early!" Celestia says with panic and wobbles on her legs.
I quickly pick her up bridal style and head into the Castle as fast as I can, I jog slowly down the halls towards the medical wing where Celestia is gripping my shirt tightly and screaming in pain. Her cries spur me on faster and we reach our destination.
"I need a Doctor now! My wife is having her foal!" I shout out and the medical staff scramble.
A chair with wheels is brought in and I place Celestia down in it, a nurse pushes her to an empty room and I help my wife up onto the bed.
"My Queen, I need you to spread your legs, take deep breaths and push," A female Doctor says and stands in between Celestia's thighs, she then removes Celestia's underwear and holds her hands in place ready for the foal.
Celestia takes a few deep breaths and then grunts painfully as she pushes. "RRAAAAGGHHH!" she screams and I grip her hand, she squeezes hard but I ignore the pain. She then looks at me with a glare. "I'M GOING TO KILL YOU FOR DOING THIS TO ME!" she yells at me and pushes again.
I smile and lightly kiss her. "You can do whatever you want to me later, but right now you need to bring our son into the world. Come on, Tia, push!" I encourage her.
She grits her teeth and clenches her eyes shut. "RRRRAAAAAGGGHH!" After a long thirty or so minutes and with a final scream the sounds of a baby crying fills the room.
Celestia then sighs in relief and is gasping for breath.
The nurses clean our son off and wrap him in a blanket and carefully gives him to Celestia.
Celestia's pain gives way to joy as she looks down at our foal, he has grey fur and dark brown hair. Celestia sobs happily as she holds him and looks at him.
"He's beautiful," she says and nuzzles the newborn. The nurses are cleaning around Celestia's thighs with warm water and towels while the Doctor is scanning Celestia with spells.
His crying calms down and he opens his eyes, they're a deep purple colour.
"What will we name him?" I ask Celestia as she continues to sob happily.
She stays silent for a few seconds before looking at me. "Valiant, Valiant Stormsword," she tells me.
I smile and couldn't hold my own tears of joy back anymore and kiss her deeply, I pull back and stroke her cheek. "It's perfect," I say and look at my son.
He's look up at us with wide eyes before looking around the room while making cute baby noises.
There's a knock at the door and Luna's head pops through the slightly opened door. "Tia? Are thou alright?" she asks with worry.
The nurses finish cleaning and cover Celestia's lower half with a blanket.
"We're fine, Lulu. Come meet your nephew," Celestia replies and Luna walks in followed by the others.
The others fawn over our son and Cadence once again gets her camera out and takes a picture of Celestia, Valiant, and I together.
Shella then walks over with Mavis. "Mavis, say hello to you new brother," she says and holds the baby changeling closer to Valiant.
Mavis reaches out and lightly bops him on the nose which makes him start crying again, his sudden noise then sets Mavis off as well.
Celestia then hands me my son and I hold him to my chest, I shush him quietly and rock him back and forth.
Three hours and forty-two minutes later
We're now back in our room where Celestia is laying down on the bed with Valiant in her arms, Cadence, Luna, and my parents have been making a fuss over him the whole time and I've never seen Celestia look more happy or proud.
Lunch was brought up to us as Celestia is having trouble walking at the moment.
Discord is even here and gushing over the foal as well, even conjured a little blue butterfly that landed on Valiant's nose making him giggle.
"So, Tia. How does it feel to be a mother?" I ask laying down beside her with Valiant between us.
"Better than I imagined," she replies and nuzzles Valiant for the hundredth time.
Cadence is sitting on the bed cradling her own belly with a smile of her own. "With both Mavis and now Valiant, I'm even more excited for my own foal to arrive!" she says giddily.
"And she'll be just as beautiful as her mother," I tell her and she blushes. She leans over and gives me a kiss and cuddles up to my other side.
"Argh, gag me with a spoon, I'll leave you lovebirds to yourselves," Discord says and looks at me. "The building I was making for you is ready and we'll begin your Fire Aspect training in there tomorrow," he tells me and vanishes in a puff of pink clouds.
After about twenty minutes, I get up and ask Luna a question. "Luna, while Tia rests here, would you come with me to the Dungeons? We have a certain someone waiting for us,"
She frowns and nodded. "We agree, it would be best if we find out who was involved with the attempt on our lives during our wedding and flush them out," she replies.
"Let me know who they are," Celestia asks us. "I want to know which of these sorry bastards wanted to kill us and our son," she tells us with a scowl that could peel the bark right off a tree.
"You know I will," I reply and we leave.
We arrive at the Dungeon with Shining Armour and a few guards, we walk down the stone stairs and come to a cold cell with steel bars. Inside is Goldrush looking dirty and bound.
"So, we meet again," I say and Shining opens the door for us. We step in and Luna has the most hateful expression I've ever seen.
Goldrush mumbles through her gag but it's just gibberish.
"No need to talk, we have nothing to say to a traitor like thee," Luna says and places her hand on Goldrush's head. After a few seconds, she lets go. "Silver Vase, Shining Jewel, Scroll Minder, and Golden Blossom. These four Nobles along with Goldrush are hereby wanted for treason and will be arrested for trial for the attempted assassination of the royal family," Luna states coldly and walks out the cell.
I glare one more time at Goldrush who looks terrified. "Don't worry, this isn't the last time we’ll see each other just yet," I tell her with disgust.
She starts sobbing and I leave the cell with Luna.
We return to our room and tell the others what we learnt. Luna also shared what she saw from Goldrush's memories with Celestia as well.
"Scroll Minder? B-But he's been a loyal friend for years..." Celestia says heartbroken that her keeper of the Archives wanted us dead.
"We know, Tia. We art just as shocked to learn of this as thou art," Luna replies.
I frown. "We'll have to set up four squads of guards and take each of them into custody simultaneously, preferably each led by a Captain," I say.
"Agreed, We'll have Shining Armour, Hammer Strike, Spitfire, and Bright Mind each command a squad and at seven tonight, arrest the traitors," Celestia replies.
6:56 Pm
We've had dinner where after I used the mirror to contact Solaris and Galaxia about their new grandson, Galaxia was very happy but sad that she couldn’t hold him in her arms. I’m going to have to find a way to bring them back, if this mirror can connect to them, then maybe elven magic can make a portal long enough to get them through, I’ll have to talk with Vortigan about this later.
Luna and Cadence are residing over court, Celestia is still in bed breastfeeding our son with Shella there as well as my mother.
I'm in the Barracks with the four squads gathered and ready to go.
"You have your orders, our scouts have found the traitors locations and are keeping an eye on them, your goal is to arrest them quickly before they can get away and place them in the dungeon for trial," I tell them.
Ever since the attack at the wedding, the guards have been itching to find out who was behind it.
"If they resist, force is authorised. But we want them alive, death is too good for them," I say and they all salute.
"Yes, your Majesty!" they all say.
"I'm counting on you all, good luck and bring those bastards back," I tell them with a nod.
Adrian went back to his room where Celestia is and each squad left to find their targets.
My target is Scroll Minder at the Archives, we walk down the halls trying to be as casual as possible. Once we reach our location I enter with two of my unicorn guards.
Scroll looks up from the book he is reading and smiles gently, he's an old unicorn stallion in his sixties with green fur, a grey mane, tail and beard. He's also wearing an old royal guard robe from when he used to be in the guard.
"Captain Shining Armour, what can this old stallion do for you today?" he asks me.
"I'd like you to help me find a book about the royal guards history," I reply.
He looks confused and tilts his head. "Why would you need that? I thought you already knew all about it," he asks.
"It's not for me," I reply and nod to the two guards. One of them quickly pulls out an anti-magic ring and places it on Scroll's horn, the second guard uses his magic to force Scroll’s arms behind his back.
"W-What's going on here!?" Scroll Minder demands.
"You are under arrest for the attempted murder of the royal family, you have the right to remain silent, anything you say can and will be used against you," I tell him, my previous cheerful expression now one of anger.
"What? I have done no such thing! I have faithfully served Queen Celestia for decades!" he shouts out as a few ponies watch from the reading area.
'Only Queen Celestia huh?' "Well then, you have nothing to worry about do you?" I reply and then face the guards. "Take him to the dungeon and muzzle him," I order them.
They salute and take him away. 'I hope the others get their targets just as easily,' I think to myself before following the guards.
POV: Hammer Strike
My guards and I are in the alleyway across from Golden Blossom's manor, I snarl at the overly decorated building, I never understood why the nobles think it necessary to spend so much on looks and useless junk when it could be used to help others...
'Bah, it doesn't matter, we're here for Golden Blossom, nothing more,' I think and turn to my guards.
"Where is Golden?" I ask the thestral scout who is keeping an eye on our target.
"She's in her study, Sir," she replies and tells me the location, third floor sixth room to the right.
"Alright, team one will head to the back of the manor and enter from there and detain any of the staff they see. Team Two will surround the building to prevent anypony escaping, I want the pegasi in the air to keep watch and team three is with me, we'll go through the front and head to the study. Got it?" I tell them.
"Yes, Sir!" they reply.
I nodded and order them to begin.
Team one quietly circles around the manor and gets into position while team two surrounds the building. Once in place, we move forward and with my hammer, I bash the ornate and expensive looking door down.
A couple of maids scream from the sudden noise and my guards detain them, I make my way through the manor and reach the study. I kick the door in and two of my guards wielding scatterguns move in and points them at Golden Blossom.
"Aaaahh! Captain Hammer Strike!? What is the meaning of this!" she demands looking furious. She's a middle aged earth pony mare with golden fur and an orange coloured mane and tail. She's wearing a fancy red dress as well.
"Oh not much," I say and step into the room. "You're just under arrest for the attempted assassination of the King and Queens," I reply coldly. She starts stuttering and begins looking around. "I wouldn't try anything stupid if I were you, place your hands behind your head and get on your knees, now," I tell her.
She starts to panic and looks at the open window, she then runs towards it and jumps out. 'Damn she desperate, we're on the third floor and I don't think she realized she doesn't have wings,' I think and shake my head as her screams echo outside.
Just seconds later a pegasi guard catches her and she's arrested.
"Well then fellas, let's as they say, 'clean house'," I tell my guards and we continue to round up the staff.
POV: Bright Mind
Shining Jewel is having dinner at an expensive restaurant with her husband. She's a light pink twenty-eight year old unicorn with a light blue mane and tail with a light pink stripe going through them. She's wearing a white dinner dress.
"Alright ponies, we go in, arrest Shining Jewel and we leave. Understood?" I tell them. I'm not going to take any back talk or resistance from her or her husband.
"Yes, ma'am!" they reply.
"Good, let's go," I say and we head inside.
I use my magic to place an anti-magic ring on her horn while she wasn't looking and then fold her arms behind her back.
"OW! W-What's happening!?" she screams in fear and confusion.
"What is the meaning of this outrage!?" her husband demands but he's restrained by my guards.
"Shining Jewel, you are under arrest for the attempted assassination of the royal family, you have the right to remain silent, anything you say can and will be used against you," I tell her and grab her by her tied up wrists.
"What!? My wife would never do such a thing!" the husband yells.
"We have evidence of her and four others who hired the assassins, she will stand trial for her treason," I reply. "If you continue to get in our way, you'll be charged for obstructing the guard," I warn him.
He frowns at me. "I will be speaking to the Queens about this! I'll have you fired by the end of the week!" he threatens me.
I don't answer and take Shining Jewel away.
POV: Spitfire
Our target is a pegasi noble by the name of Silver Vase, a forty-three year old white furred stallion with a light blue mane and tail with two silver stripes through it. He owns a company who specialize in vases, pots, and other decorative containers.
We're heading to a cloud manor just above Canterlot, most noble pegasi live in Cloudsdale, but his company headquarters is in Canterlot so he had it built here.
Me and a mix of twenty pegasi and thestrals fly up to the cloud manor and quietly hover underneath it.
"Okay fillies, our scout says he's in his bath right now, but we're going to give him an unpleasant surprise! So, three of you will come with me to arrest Silver Vase and the rest of you detain his servants, and to make things interesting! We're going through the bathroom window!" I tell them.
I hear a few sighs but that only makes me smirk.
"Alright then! On my mark, three, two, one, go!" I count down and we all swarm the manor.
The other guards burst through the windows and begin their job, me and three others dive through the bathroom window where a rather feminine scream shouts out.
It's Silver Vase squealing in his bath at us.
"By Celestia! What in Tartarus are you doing in my bathroom!?" he shouts at us.
"By order of the King and Queens you are under arrest for the attempted murder of the very ones who told us to grab your flank... So you can come quietly or we drag you back buck naked," I tell him with my rifle pointing right at him.
And there's my smirk as his eyes go wide and he starts looking around in panic.
"I have no idea what you are talking about! Now leave before I file a complaint with the guard!" he tells us. Fortunately the bath bubbles are covering him up, I don't want to see a shrivelled up old geezers junk.
"Then by all means do so, but good luck with that in the Dungeons," I reply and turn to the stallions with me. "Get him out, dried and dressed," I order them.
"Yes ma'am," they reply and drag his flank out and hand him a towel.
A guard enters the bathroom through the door and salutes to me. "Ma'am, all the servants have been rounded up," he tells me.
"Good work, let’s get this piece of trash outta here," I reply and glare at Silver Vase.
POV: Adrian Stormsword Four hours later.
I'm standing in the Dungeon looking at the people who wanted me and my lovers dead, they're all tied up and muzzled.
"My King, the trial is scheduled to take place in two days," a guard tells me.
"Thank you, I want all their homes searched for any more evidence about their involvement with the Black Hoof Clan and Goldrush," I order the guard.
"Yes, Sir. I'll inform Captain Shining Armour immediately," he replies and runs off.
I glare at the nobles one more time noticing looks of horror before heading back up to my bedroom.
I open the door to see Celestia with the most happy smile I've ever seen on her while nuzzling our newborn son. Luna and Cadence have finished up court for the day and are sitting on the bed. Shella is holding Mavis and mom, dad, and Jasmine have gone back to their guest rooms.
"Well, they're all caught and a trial will be held in two days time," I tell them and sit next to Cadence.
"That's good to hear, Shining Armour already found evidence against Goldrush at her manor, letters from the Black Hoof Clan and a bank notice of bits she withdrew as part of the payment," Celestia tells me, her smile fading slightly.
"At least we don't have to worry about them now, all that's left to worry about is the gryphons, Chrysalis, the Black Hoof Clan ,and Grogar... Maybe the dragons as well, if that red dragon heard about the one I killed, who's to say the others haven't as well," I reply. "I'm thinking if we can get Chrysalis' changelings to convert to the Lapis Hive, she'd be too weak and powerless to attack us, we already have four of her changelings converted, and with the promise of a constant supply of food, safety, and a kind Queen leading them, they wouldn't think twice."
Shella hums in thought. "That is possible, changelings follow a Queen who can provide for them and can keep up a steady flow of hatchlings. They most likely follow her since she was the only Queen around until I became one. I doubt her main Hive even knows I exist yet as she'd not want them to know. She probably told the Hive that Equestria destroyed my old home and are keeping the changelings from there as prisoners or slaves," she tells us with a sad expression at the end.
"So we just need to go to her Hive with a few of our changelings, a life crystal and show them what we can offer that Chrysalis can't?" I reply and ask.
"Yes, but there may be a few changelings that will be completely loyal to her, a Queen has the power to... to wipe the mind from a drone and make them completely obedient, it's a slow and very painful process," she tells us while looking away. “She’d likely have a few personal guard drones like that.”
I get up and walk around the bed to her, I lift her chin up with my right hand to look at me. "Hey, you are nothing like Chrysalis. I know you would never do that to any changeling in your hive. You're a kind and caring Queen, you're my wife and I love you. Nothing will change that," I tell her and give her a small amount of my love to her with a kiss.
She smiles as our lips part. "Thank you," she says.
"So, we take it we shall attempt to locate Chrysalis' Hive after the trial?" Luna asks.
"It will have to be after Blueblood's and Rarity's wedding in nine days. I still need to recover from giving birth and-" Celestia says but is cut off as Valiant starts crying. "Shhh, shhhh. It's okay, mommy's here, are you hungry?" she asks the newborn.
Celestia then removes her dress and begins to breastfeed Valiant. "As I was saying, I still need to go over the plans for Aries Peak, I believe it is almost ready. I have the route planned, we just need to discuss who is going, any targets worth going for from Hagriff, how we’ll attack, and with what," she tells us.
"We can discuss that all later, right now I think we should get some sleep and prepare for the trial," I reply.
Luna takes Valiant and places him in his new cot next to Mavis, we then all cuddle up and fall asleep in each other's embrace.
Two days later The day of the Trial
Over the last two days, I held court on the first day while Luna and Shella took the second. We got a lot of anger and complaints about us arresting the nobles from their friends and family, we told them that they're welcome to come to the trial and find out why they were arrested.
Discord has told me that the building he made for me behind the Barracks is ready for my training with Infernus, meaning that it's heavily warded against fire.
Celestia had stayed in bed on the first day with Valiant and Mavis and started walking around on the second, the maids were all fawning over him as Celestia walked by with him in her arms.
Celestia and Luna did a magical scan on Valiant and it's as we thought, he may look like an earth pony but he has an alicorn mana pool in him with my kind of magic. He'll also have the same teeth as I do, so he'll have the same diet as me. Other than that he is a perfectly healthy and happy baby boy.
My parents returned to Elysium with Jasmine and we received news that the orcs have agreed to trade with Reymorah.
On the second day I spent most of my time with Celestia and Valiant, and mostly to help Celestia walk around while her legs recover.
Throne Room 5pm Start of the Trial
My wives and I are sitting on our thrones as benches and chairs have been set up for the witnesses to sit at the sides of the throne room. Cadence is in our room with Mavis and Valiant while Discord is watching over them for protection.
The five nobles who tried to have us killed are in shackles with anti-magic rings on for the unicorns and wing restraints for the pegasus Silver Vase. Even that assassin we captured is here as well shackled and muzzled.
"We are gathered here today for the trial of Goldrush, Silver Vase, Shining Jewel, Scroll Minder, and Golden Blossom on the charges of attempted murder of the royal family and treason. Also we have one of the assassins named Banowa who is charged for attempting to assassinate the royal family and many other killings he’s taken part of," Shining Armour says aloud. "Mrs. Goldrush, step up to the stand," he orders the now clean woman. They all had baths and a decent meal before arriving.
Celestia glares down at the broken looking woman with a look that could melt steel as Goldrush steps up to the stand in the middle of the room.
Shining holds up a folder with several pieces of paper inside and opens it up. "Goldrush, we have evidence of you and your associates dealing with an assassin organisation with the intent of killing Queen Celestia and her unborn foal, Queen Luna, and Queen Shella and her foal Mavis as well as King Adrian. We have records of bank statements detailing the amounts from each of your accounts that total up to the sum paid to the assassins. We even have letters to and from you and the organisation specifying the time and place. That along with the memories the Queens have seen of your involvement has put you in a tight spot," he says, the people in the seats are silent with shock.
Shining then walks up to her and asks her the big question. "With all that said, how do you plead?"
"With all that said, how do you plead?" Shining Armour asks Goldrush.
Goldrush sighs and looks up at us with a defeated expression. "Guilty," she replies.
The people in the witness seats start mumbling to each other while the other four nobles look at her with disbelieving expressions.
"And why did you attempt to assassinate them?" Shining then asks her.
Goldrush then looks directly at me. "Because the Princesses were tainted by that savage who pretends to be a King. I've seen the reports and pictures of how he fights and how he sees the nobility. He's a monster who could turn on us at anytime and destroy everything Equestria has worked hard to build. I even know he's gotten the Princesses to eat meat," she says.
Luna glares at her harshly, I think she would like nothing better than to go down there and rip her apart. The witnesses all go silent again and look at Celestia and Luna with wide eyes.
"Really?" Celestia calmly asks. "Because so far Adrian has done nothing but help our nation, he brought together the ponies and the changelings in peace under our fellow herdmate Queen Shella. He's helped to make a treaty between Equestria and his world who we've aided and they'll aid us when we need it. He's also protected me, Luna, Cadence, Shella, and innocent civilians from the gryphons and undead and he's improved our guards arsenal and medical abilities. He’s more than earned his place by our side as our mate and husband," she tells her. "As for the meat, yes we ate fish and meats from Adrian's home world, Cadence and I needed it for our foals to grow healthily as they possess his omnivorous diet and we've also discovered that ponies are omnivorous as well," she tells Goldrush.
Hushed whispers spread throughout the witnesses.
Shining then speaks up again. "So you believed just because the Queens fell in love and married somepony not of noble birth or even a pony, you decided that they all had to die? And what would happen should your plan have succeeded? Who would guide the sun and moon? Who would keep the nation going and keep our allies friendly?" he asks her.
Goldrush closes her eyes and hangs her head. "We had a selection of unicorns who would move the sun and moon using a special magic amplifier... We then would have the nobility run the nation as a government," she replies emotionless.
I huff in irritation. "If you're willing to kill royalty, what would stop you lot from stabbing each other in the backs? From what I've seen from you so called nobles is nothing but chi... foalish behaviour. Wanting nothing but wealth and power," I say to them.
Goldrush finally glares at me. "And what of you? You're now King of Equestria. You have the most wealth and power out of us all," she growls at me.
I raise an eyebrow at her. "I don't decide how the nation is run, I've left that to Tia and Luna, my role is to protect Equestria and my wives with my magic. My wealth is only around fifty-thousand bits which I got from a dragon's hoard and I've only spent a couple thousand of those bits on toys and donations for the Canterlot Orphanage, on lunch out in the city, or for gifts for my wives. I won't and never will use the treasury's funding for my own gain," I reply.
Her glare turns to one of surprise. "Y-You didn't become King just for power?" she asks confused.
"No, I didn't even want to be King. I only became a King just so I could marry the women I love. The women you put in danger because of your stupid beliefs and pride," I tell her.
Her glare is now back and she snarls at me. "Princess Celestia was a shining example of purity, untainted by greed or lust, a goddess we all looked up to. Then you came along and corrupted her with carnal desires and made her bare an abomination of a goddess and a savage, you even brought that insect into the Castle!" she says looking at Shella who now looks upset.
Celestia's calm expression finally snaps and she stands up and takes on her Aspect form. "What did you just call my son and herdmate?" she asks angrily, her voice sounding like hers and Lux's together while floating down to Goldrush.
Goldrush’s eyes go wide and her pupils mere pinpricks. "I-I-I..." she stammers.
"I may be an immortal being, but I still have desires and feelings like any other mare. Just because I'm an alicorn, does that mean I can't have a relationship with anypony I wish? Can I not find love? That only nobles or high ranking military officials have the right to even court us? The nobility took advantage of my depression after I had to banish my sister to make that ridiculous law, which I hereby now abolish!" Celestia tells her with malice. A scroll that I suspect contains that law appears in front of her and she burns it to ashes.
Goldrush looks like she's about to faint from the anger focused on her. "I've waited centuries to have my own family, to bear my own foal that the average pony could never give me. I find a mate who not only can give me that family, but who also cares for who I am and is willing to put himself in harm's way just to keep us all safe," Celestia then grips Goldrush by the collar of her dress and lifts her off the floor. "You had the audacity to not only try to kill me, but my sister, husband, herdmate, her foal, and my unborn son... I have all the reason to enact a punishment I have not used for over seven-hundred years. Hanging at the gallows!" she yells at her.
The witnesses gasp as Silver Vase then chose right there to faint while the other three start shaking in fear. The assassin just looks bored and resigned to his fate.
I stand up and walk over to Celestia and hold her left hand, she looks at me and I shake my head. "As much as I want them to suffer for what they've done, we don't want to be just like them. I suggest life imprisonment and stripped of their titles and assets, their families will keep their wealth after a heavy fine but also lose their nobility," I recommend to her.
Celestia drops to the floor and her aspect form fades, she sighs and lets go of Goldrush who collapses onto the marble floor with a fearful expression.
"You're right, I was blinded by my anger," she replies and looks back at Goldrush. "Do you have anything else to say?" she asks her coldly.
Goldrush just looks up at Celestia and shakes her head. Celestia and I then return to our thrones as Goldrush is put back next to the others.
The other four nobles all pleaded not guilty and said they were coerced into following Goldrush's plan or she'd bankrupt them.
We knew that was a lie as Celestia and Luna read their memories while they slept, they were promised positions in the new government if they chipped in on the assassin's payment. We even found documentation detailing when and where the assassination would take place and bank statements of the amount they withdrew for the payments.
Except for Shining Jewel who was actually manipulated, she was asked to invest five-thousand bits for a new type of invention that would revolutionise the world and she would receive a percentage of the profits. Unfortunately those bits went into paying for the assassination attempt, she was released and freed from all charges, she returned to her husband's side with an expression of disgust at Goldrush for conning her like that.
They were all sentenced to life imprisonment, the loss of their nobility and a fine of ten-thousand bits each which will be added to the treasury for Equestria. Goldrush also had to pay Shining Jewel five-thousand bits plus another five-thousand to repay the con she pulled on her.
Banowa the assassin though. "Banowa, step up to the stand," Shining orders him and he slowly walks up to it and glares at us. "How do you plead?" Shining asks him.
Banowa looks at Shining for a second before grinning behind his muzzle and somehow slips out of his shackles and grasps Shining's sword, he then punches Shining in the face while drawing the sword.
The witnesses panic as the assassin throws the sword at me which I quickly cast a shield spell in front of us. The blade penetrates the shield and gets stuck just an inch away from my face which I stare at cross eyed.
The assassin scowls and makes a break for it towards the windows.
Celestia and Luna's horns glow as the assassin reaches the window but he suddenly slams into the floor as if something heavy was just dropped on him.
He struggles in an attempt to break free but is lifted into the air and held in front of us. "I think it's safe to say the gallows will still be used today," Celestia says coldly as he's restrained again but this time with golden and dark blue chains.
"Does anypony object to the ruling of this trial?" Shining asks the crowd.
None of the other nobles came to their defence and some even looked disgusted at them.
The nobles and the assassin, minus Shining Jewel, are taken back down to the Dungeon where they'll spend the rest of their lives and Banowa will be executed tomorrow.
The witnesses are escorted out by the guards and my wives and I go and get Cadence, Discord and our children and then head down to the Dining Hall for dinner.
"Now that, that has been sorted, we take it thou shalt begin thy Fire Aspect training?" Luna asks me.
"Yeah, starting tomorrow," I reply and take a sip of my drink.
"I'll be taking court tomorrow while Luna continues her training as well," Celestia says while breastfeeding Valiant.
"So what will we do about these Black Hoof assassins? Do we just destroy their base of operations along with their leaders or do we capture them?" I ask.
"No, we were lucky we even managed to capture Banowa at all. The Black Hoof's have been known to take their own lives before letting themselves be taken. We know they have an artificial tooth filled with a potent poison capable of killing them within seconds, Discord managed to restrain Banowa fully including a muzzle to prevent him from biting down on it and we removed it," Celestia replies.
"I see, so a total wipeout then?" I ask her.
"Correct, we shall burn their base to the ground and eliminate any of the assassins there... including the foals," she says.
We all look at her stunned. "What?" Cadence says in shock.
Celestia sighs and nodded. "The foals are born and raised there to kill, they're trained the moment the can hold a weapon and train day in and day out. That's what I've seen from Banowa's memories," she replies. "but any newborns can still be spared as they have not begun the training and mental conditioning the others will have." she tells us.
I frown in thought. "Is it possible to wipe the memories of their training?" I ask.
"Yes, but that is forbidden magic. Reading memories is one thing, but altering or removing them is something we don't touch," Celestia tells me.
"Alright... I guess the best thing we can do is make it quick and painless," I reply and sigh.
We finish up dinner and head up to our room to relax for the rest of the day.
I awaken to the sound of my son crying and wiggle my way out of the death grip my lovers have on me. I then look at the clock to see it's only three in the morning and yawn as I put on a robe and trudge over to the baby room.
Valiant's crying triggers Mavis who also starts crying having been woken up as well.
I pick up Valiant and then Mavis in each arm. "Shhh, it's okay, daddy's here," I tell them softly.
Walking over to a couch, I sit down and gently rock them in my arms. I then hum to them the lullaby my mother used to sing to me as a child and after a few minutes they're both back to sleep and snuggle into my chest.
"It's nice to know my mate is good with foals," Celestia says quietly at the doorway.
I smile as she walks over and takes Valiant and sits beside me. "To be honest so am I, I understand that changeling foals need very little care compared to a human or pony one, but I'm still going to do the best I can for them," I reply and give her a kiss.
She giggles happily and leans her head on my shoulder. "I've been waiting so long for this, and now that it's here, I'm the happiest mare in the world," she tells me.
After a few minutes of silence we return Mavis and her brother back to their cribs and go back to bed where the others cuddle up to us again.
I'm awoken this time by Celestia and Luna getting out of bed to raise the sun and lower the moon, I yawn and pull Cadence and Shella closer to my sides with my now freed arms. They hum in content and burrow their faces into my neck.
Five minutes later Celestia speaks up. "It's time to get up, my loves," she tells us.
"Ten more minutes..." Cadence mumbles and breathes in my scent deeply.
"I'm afraid not, you need to look after the foals with Shella while I'm in court and Luna and Adrian are training," Celestia tells her.
"Argh... fine," she groans and gets out of bed reluctantly.
Shella yawns and follows along while I stretch my limbs getting several pops and cracks. I get up as well while Celestia and Shella get our foals and then we all hop into our large bath and wash each other down as the foals splash in their shallow seats having fun.
"Daddy!" Mavis says and holds her arms out at me while opening and closing her fingers. "Up up!" she then tells me.
I smile and lift her out of her seat and hold her to my chest as I nuzzle her, I then let a small amount of my love flow into her and feed her.
She burps and giggles while lightly slapping my cheeks with both her hands. I chuckle and then lean over to Shella and give her a deep kiss, I let her feed off of my love while she coils her long tongue around mine and she moans happily.
I place Mavis back into her seat and we finish up washing ourselves.
We then all went to the Dining Hall for breakfast and then after giving Cadence and Shella a kiss and gentle hug each, Celestia, Luna, and I leave the room.
Celestia then goes off to the throne room while Luna and I head out to the back of the Barracks. We stand in front of a large warehouse like building with Discord grinning like a bandit in front of the door.
"Adrian! Welcome to your new training grounds!" he says and throws confetti and balloons from his hands.
I chuckle and walk over to him. "So, what's in there?" I ask him.
"Nothing!" he replies cheerfully.
"Nothing?" I ask confused. How will nothing help me train?
"I'll be with you during your training and I'll just conjure everything we'll need for you. So right now it's just an empty building that can take a beating without getting destroyed... I know just how destructive Infernus' power can be," he replies and opens the door. "Now get your rump in there and we can get started."
I smile and walk in as Luna follows behind me.
True to his word there's nothing in here, just one big empty space.
Discord then holds out a red orb to me with a small flame inside it. "Now then, here is Infernus' orb. Just don't panic if you suddenly burst into flames, that's normal," he tells me.
I take the orb in my right hand and then I hear Infernus' voice. 'So it is time? As I promised, you survived my test thus our contract is simple, as long as you stay strong my power will be yours,' he tells me.
"Agreed," I reply and the orb sinks into my hand.
"That was fast..." Discord says with confusion.
The orb -now the size of a marble- is on the back of my right hand. Flames start to form from it and flows up my arm and covers the rest of me.
I feel my legs go numb so I look down to see they're gone, and in their place is a jet of flame that is making me hover above the ground. My hair turns into flames and flows upwards in a gentle breeze. I can also feel my mouth is gone along with my nose. My vision also changes to see the heat of everything around me.
Luna is staring at me with wide eyes.
After a few minutes of silence Discord speaks up. "Well don't just float there, move around and get used to the new form," he tells me.
I look down at the jet of flames below my waist and then at Discord. "How? I can't feel my legs and I don't know how to move like this," I tell him. My voice sounds like a mix of mine and Infernus' deep one.
"Oh... Well then ask fireboy how to, he does it all the time," he tells me.
'I will get him back for that later, for now I shall teach you what you can and can't do in my magic combat form,' Infernus tells me. 'Firstly how to move... to move I just have to lean my upper body in the direction I wish to go, try it,' he then instructs me.
I do as he says and lean forward slightly, my body then begins to move forward at a walking pace. I lean a little more and pick up speed.
'Good, leaning back will move you back and leaning left and right will make you strafe, to turn you just twist your upper body by the waist,' Infernus the tells me.
"Alright," I reply and twist my upper body to the right, I slowly start to turn and I then twist more making me turn faster.
"Well, that was easier than I thought," I say aloud and practice moving around the building.
"This is certainly going well, I guess all that aspect training with Gaia is paying off already," Discord says.
"Hmmm, Can I hover higher?" I ask Infernus.
'Yes, You just need to pour more mana into the flames below you to push you higher, though you could just use your air wings spell,' he replies.
I cast the air wings and two dragon like wings made of fire spread out. I hear the sound of feathers rustle with a strong flap, I turn to see Luna with a blush and her wings spread wide.
'The fire on me can't hurt others right?' I ask him.
'Only if you wish it to,' he tells me.
I hover over to Luna and hold my hand out to her. "I take it you like what you see?" I tease her.
She hesitantly reaches out and takes my hand. "Tis warm," she says as she strokes my hand where the flames dance around her fingers. She then decides to give me a hug and she smiles. "Thou would make winter nights warmer," she tells me.
"Maybe, but I don't trust myself not to burn everything around me just yet," I reply.
'If you are done with your nonsense can we continue? Terra and I have a volcano to erupt later,' Infernus asks in an irritated tone.
'Alright, alright. So what do you want me to do next?' I ask him as Luna lets go of me and once again has control of her wings.
'My power is used for destruction, plain and simple. You cannot use the water, ice, or cold elements while in your fire aspect forms. You will be focusing on sprays, projectiles, and beams for now,' he replies.
'Okay, so do you want me to try sprays first?' I ask.
'That'll be a start. Unlike Gaia, my mana doesn't just flow like a river but like the flames of a dragon's breath. It is strong and forceful, and thus you will need to force it out when you cast your spells,' Infernus instructs me.
'Well, let's try it then,' I reply and gather his and my mana together.
Unlike Gaia which was smooth and free flowing, Infernus' mana is raging and pushing against me. I merge the mana into my right hand and aim it down the other end of the building. After a few seconds I force it out like if I was blowing on a blowpipe.
Flames spew out and reach up to four metres away and spreads four metres wide. The heat is intense as the flames look bright white to me. After five or six seconds I cancel the flow and the floor is scorched black.
'Very good, once you have mastered mixing our mana together, you'll be able to reach distances of up to ten metres,' he tells me.
'Bloody hell... what would the beam look like?' I ask in awe.
'Try one now so I can compare,' he replies.
I gather the mana again and cast the spell in the form of a beam. The beam is one foot in diameter and reaches all the way to the back wall.
"Okay stop stop stop!" Discord quickly says.
I cancel the beam and look at him. "What's wrong?" I ask.
He just points to the wall I hit. I look and see a hole just started to form. "I didn't think you'd be this strong... I guess that's to be expected since you do possess Starswirl's magic and some alicorn magic from Solaris and Galaxia. I'll need to reinforce the walls some more..." he tells me.
"Oh, sorry," I apologise to him.
"Nah," he says waving his talon arm dismissively. "I can fix it up no problem, but try to tone it down for now until I can beef it up some more," he tells me and uses his magic to fix the hole.
'Until Discord fixes his mistake, I want you to get used to moving and flying in this form. And by the way, that beam you did was small, once mastered it will reach up to five feet in diameter,' he tells me and I go wide eyed.
I then shake my head and turn to the others. "Alright, I'm just going to get used to moving around for now," I say and practise moving about. I also notice Luna with her wings spread again and a heavy blush and half lidded eyes on her face. 'I'm starting to think Luna has a fetish for displays of power,' I think to myself with a internal smirk.
Seven hours later
I can now move around decently but I feel I can do better, I'll just have to continue practising.
Luna also practised with Umbra to improve her abilities as well while Discord was working on reinforcing the walls some more.
We stopped for a quick lunch and told the others of our progress before heading back to continue.
Once I feel tired we decide to stop for the day, besides, the execution of Banowa will begin in just twenty minutes.
We all gather in the dungeon except for Cadence who couldn't bare to watch so she's looking after the foals, there's an old looking hanging gallows set up, though it appears to be made from iron and not wood. Banowa is standing on a stool with the noose around his neck.
Celestia then speaks up. "Do you have any last words?" she asks him with a frown on her face.
Shining removes Banowa's muzzle and he glares down at her. "Do not think my clan will be so easily taken down. I shall enjoy watching you fall from the afterlife," he says in a thick deep voice and just simply closes his eyes, waiting for the end.
I don't know why but the way he said that puts me on edge.
Celestia's frown deepens but she then nodded to Shining who pulls a lever and the platform under Banowa falls, a loud snap is heard as his neck breaks, instantly killing him.
I just stare at the assassin for a few minutes trying to figure out the meaning behind his words.
My thoughts are disturbed as Luna shakes me gently. "Are thou alright, our love?" she asks me with concern.
I shake my head and look at her. "I'm fine, it's just what he said that's bothering me," I reply and nuzzle her.
We all head out and left the guards to dispose of the body. I go back to the training grounds to practice with casting mines some more before dinner is ready while the others head back to our room to play with the foals or to relax.
Luna didn't show up for dinner and the others were strangely quiet about it. After dinner I head back to our room to read some more of my spellbook, I open the door and go wide eyed at the scene before me... Luna is laying on the bed tied up with a gag in her mouth, three anti-magic rings are on her horn and her wings covered up in a cloth sheet so she couldn't move them, she's also naked and looking at me with lust in her eyes.
I see a note on the bed beside her so I walk over and pick it up.
Dear husband.
Luna has been having this fantasy of hers for a while now and wishes to play it out with you.
She wants you to use her in anyway you desire, she wishes you to be her master and she your obedient servant. I did not expect her to be this worked up but after seeing her memories of your new form... I can see why. Please be gentle with her though.
The safe word will be blueberries.
Have fun and we'll all be up at ten.
Love, Celestia.
P.S I'll be looking forward to our next rut now that I'm fit enough again.
I look from the note to Luna and see her smiling at me with lust. I smirk back and toss the note aside before getting undressed myself.
After undressing, I walk over to Luna and take out the gag.
"Before we start, are you sure you want this? And what brought this on as well?" I ask her.
Luna looks at me with lust in her eyes. "As we have told thee before, we have witnessed many a pony's dreams, we are curious as to this submissive roleplay and thy new form of power has made us excited," she replies. "We want thou to use us as thou sees fit, but we trust thee not to harm us."
I raise an eyebrow at her. "So you want to be my servant or slave for the next couple of hours?" I ask.
She nodded and grins lecherously. "Indeed we do... Master," she says as her pussy starts to leak slowly.
"I take you know the safe word?" I ask her next.
"We do, Master. Tis blueberries," she replies.
I grin back and grip the back of her head with my left hand. "Then suck your Master's cock so he's ready to ravish his property," I tell her and pull her head towards my stiffening member.
She obediently opens her mouth and takes my cock inside, she moans as her tongue swirls around the tip before swallowing more of it with gentle sucking sounds.
I groan from the stimulation from her tongue and mouth as she takes my growing member deeper inside.
She can't really move much so I push and pull her slowly at first as I begin to face fuck her. She groans and then breathes deeply through her nose.
She's slobbering all over my cock now as it hits the back of her throat, she gags for a moment and tries to pull away.
"Swallow my cock all the way slave and I may just reward you," I tell her. Luna's eyes widen as she contemplates it but then obeys and swallows my cock down her throat. "Good girl, obedient slaves get rewarded," I say and begin to trace her labia with my fingers.
Luna moans lightly which sends vibrations through my cock making me grunt in pleasure.
I pull out of her throat and slowly slide back in, she moans again and sucks harder. I slip a finger inside her pussy as it tries to pull it in deeper.
I keep the pace up for a good few minutes before pulling out where she looks at me confused. "Master why did-" she says but I cut her off with a hard spank to her ass.
"Slave's shouldn't talk unless told to," I tell her.
She immediately shuts her mouth as I slowly roll her onto her back and straddle her stomach with my erection sandwiched between her breasts.
I grope both of her soft mounds and grind them against my cock, she moans from the stimulation as I pinch and twist her nipples.
The tip of my member pokes out the top of her cleavage and I smirk at her. "Lick it," I tell her.
She obeys and starts to lap at my tip every time it pokes out. I groan from the feeling of her soft fur and tongue assaulting my dick.
I then start to rock back and forth and begin fucking her tits while squeezing them tightly. Luna moans in approval and starts to kiss and suck on the tip when she can.
After a few more minutes I feel my peak approaching, so I shove my cock into her mouth and cum. Her eyes go wide but she swallows every last drop with a lustful moan.
I sigh and get off of her, I look at her pussy and see it's absolutely soaked. "Very good slave, and as promised, your reward," I say and flip her over so her chest is on the bed with her ass in the air, both her legs are tied together making her vulva push together tightly.
I lean down and lick her labia in circles getting a gasp out of her, I then slowly knead her ass and she moans happily.
She squirms a little in my hold but I press on and lick her from clit to just below her anus. She moans even louder and then shouts out as I stick my tongue inside.
She wiggles about in pleasure as I assault her inner walls. "Master, aaah!" she says and moans as I lick a specific spot.
Her wings try to extend but they're being kept shut by the cloth wrapped around them.
"Please, mmmm, please go faster, Master," she begs me.
I stop and pull out which makes her whine in need, I then slap her ass firmly which makes her hiss in pain. "A slave doesn't tell her master what to do," I reply with a strict tone.
"F-Forgive us, Master!" she says panting for breath as her pussy continues to leak.
"Very well, slave. But any further disobedient behaviour will result with you being punished," I tell her and she remains silent.
I feel ready to go again so I kneel behind her and rub the tip of my dick against her swollen sex. She groans from the touch and I thrust inside her to the hilt without warning, damn she's so tight with her legs squashed together.
She gasps and then screams as pleasure fills her body, I then pull out and line up with her anus.
Luna goes wide eyed as I slowly thrust into her ass, getting a low moan out of her.
I push forward an inch before pulling back, only to press forward again going deeper each time.
After a few minutes of thrusting, I'm fully inside her.
She's panting heavily and pushes back against me, I then begin a slow rhythm of rocking in and out of her tight ass.
"Nnnnggh, oooh, aaaah! Nnnuugh... yes, aaahh!" Luna moans and gasps as I fuck her rectum.
I grip her ass tightly as I thrust harder and faster, her moans turn to screams as she cums, coating my balls in her juices, but I don't slow down nor stop as I continue to plough into her anus.
I slap her left ass cheek more gently this time getting a pleasurable yelp from her, I then feel the build up of my orgasm and slam myself into her repeatedly.
She starts screaming again from the rough fucking and I blow my load into her ass, she shudders as my cum fills her rectum and groans as I slowly pull out.
"Good slave," I tell her while panting. "Now wait here and don't move, I need to clean myself up before we can continue," I tell her and slap her right ass cheek getting a moan of pleasure out of her.
I get off the bed and walk into the bathroom where I quickly wash my dick off and then return to the bed. Luna is squirming and looking at me with lust in her eyes.
"Now then slave, I will remove your leg bindings and you shall pleasure me until I say so." I tell her and untie the leg straps.
Luna doesn't speak but nodded quickly as she sits up and I lie down on the bed. She moves herself onto me and straddles my lap, she grinds her wet pussy across my half erect cock making me grunt and slowly get hard again.
She moans and groans as my dick rubs against her clit, she then lifts herself up and presses the tip of my now fully erect cock against her soaked slit. I grasp her hips and pull her down, spearing her on my dick.
She gasps as her groin meets mine, making her grind furiously against me. I reach up and grasp both her breasts and knead them roughly, she moans with closed eyes at the treatment and begins to bounce on my lap.
I place my left hand on her hip while my right goes down to her clit and rubs it in small circles. Luna screams from the sudden rush of pleasure and picks up her pace, she only lasts for a couple of minutes before she cums and clenches on my cock. I grunt and wait until she's done.
She pants and gasps for breath but I don't let her relax as I begin to thrust up into her, she goes wide eyed and clenches her teeth with a hiss as I assault her oversensitive pussy.
After a few minutes I sit up and wrap my arms around her and massage her wing joints, I then latch onto her right breast and start to suckle and bite on her nipple. She shudders violently as she cums again.
I then kiss her sloppily as her tongue wrestles with mine and I continue to twist her wing joints. She moans as I slowly lower her onto her back and she spreads her legs wide, I waste no time in ramming into her over and over again, the sounds of wet slapping and Luna's cries of bliss echoing throughout the room.
I thrust into her for a good ten minutes and can feel my peak approaching. "I'm cumming my nnngh, my obedient cocksleeve. I'm going to nnnggh, fill your pussy with my cum," I tell her as my cock starts throbbing.
"Yes, Master! Cum inside us! AAAAHH! Breed us! We art thou broodmare! NNNGGH! FILL US WITH THY FOALS!" she screams at me and after a few more thrusts we both cum together.
She screams her lungs out and I grunt with each spurt that fills her womb. After a few more seconds of bliss we bask in our afterglows with me using Luna's breasts as pillows.
"We thank thee, Master," she tells me in between her panting, gasps, and moans.
I slowly get up and pull out, I then untie the rest of her. "So what brought this on then?" I ask her as I remove her arm bindings.
"After thine training today we just couldn't get the image of thee with so much power and magic out of our head... We felt so aroused and we needed thee badly..." she tells me as I remove the cloth from her wings to which she stretches them, getting a few pops from her joints.
"I see, well it was certainly interesting," I reply and she cuddles up next to me.
"Tis a shame we are not in heat, we meant what we said about breeding us, we want thy foal greatly..." she tells me and kisses me.
I return the kiss and then pull back. "How much longer until the spring heat begins?" I ask her.
"In less than a month, we will be bucking like rabbits when the time comes and thou shalt not leave until we are sufficiently filled," she replies and tells me with a giggle.
I chuckle along with her and hold her close as we both drift off to sleep.
I slowly wake up to the feeling of being snuggled by my lovers who have me in quite the grip, I can barely move as I yawn.
Celestia stirs and lifts her head off her pillow before looking me in the eyes. "Good morning, Adrian," she says to me with a bright smile.
"Good morning," I reply. "what time is it?" I then ask her as I can't see the clock from my angle.
"Five forty-three," she replies with a yawn of her own. "Luna and I need to get up to raise the sun and lower the moon," she tells me and carefully slips out of bed.
Shella gently slides down to my right replacing Celestia's position and then proceeds to wrap her arms around me and buries her muzzle into my hair.
Celestia giggles at the display of affection before quickly checking on the foals, then returning to wake up Luna.
She gently shakes Luna's shoulder getting a groan in response. "Five more minutes, our love... We still feel sore from last night's fun..." she mumbles before gripping me even tighter.
I grin at the blush Celestia is sporting while Cadence is quietly giggling.
Celestia shakes Luna again but more firmly this time. "Lulu, you need to lower the Moon now. We can go back to bed once it's done since it is Saturday," she tells her sister.
Luna yawns and grumbles as she gets out of bed but has trouble standing. Celestia giggles as she helps her sister over to the balcony after they put their robes on. After a minute or two, they return and slip back into bed, Luna cuddling up behind Cadence while Celestia cuddles Shella.
Once we're all comfortable, we all fall back to sleep.
Two hours and twelve minutes later
I blink my eyes open and yawn, I can hear Valiant crying and with no one on top of me, I slip out of Cadence and Shella's grips and head into the baby room.
I smile down at Mavis and Valiant before picking them both up with an arm each. I then sit down on the couch and gently rock them back and forth while humming a lullaby.
Shella and Celestia then walk in along with Luna who is still walking funny and Cadence who yawns while rubbing her eyes.
Celestia sits to my right while Shella to my left, they both take their foals and begin to feed them.
"So what are we doing today?" I ask them as Cadence then sits on my lap while Luna sits next to Celestia.
"Well thanks to you we have the weekends off while Blueblood takes over court for us, I would like to see this new form of yours," Celestia replies while lightly tapping Valiant's back to burp him.
"So would I," Cadence says.
"And me as well, I would like to see what got Luna so excited," Shella replies.
"Alright then, so after breakfast we'll head to Discord’s training room," I tell them.
We all then take a bath, brush our teeth and hair and get dressed before heading down to the dining hall.
After breakfast, we all walk to our new training room where Discord is wearing a bright orange reflective vest and a yellow half helmet while using a hammer to hit nails into a wall.
"Good morning, uncle," I say to him.
Discord looks of at us with a mouth full of nails and grins, he then looks back to the wall and spits each nail into their places before hitting each one quickly with the hammer.
"Adrian! Just in time too, I've finished beefing up the place so it should be able to withstand your power now," he replies and gives me a hug.
I then notice he's missing some fur on his lower back. "What happened to your back?" I ask him.
"Hmmm?" he hums and looks behind him. "Oh! Old Hothead didn't like what I called him yesterday so he tried to fry me, only managed to get my back before he got several pies to the face," he replies with a grin.
"I see..." I say with a raised brow.
"Well enough about me, let's get you in here and get back to training," he tells me and walks through the wall into the building like a ghost.
I chuckle and open the main door and let the others in first.
Cadence chuckles and kisses me. "Such a gentlecolt," she says before walking inside. The others follow and I then enter myself.
"Right then, flame up and get to it," Discord tells me.
I channel mine and Infernus' mana and take on my magic fire aspect form. I look over my new form and wonder what the physical form would look like. I also hear a few gasps and another pair of wings spread.
I look back to see Celestia with stiff wings this time with Luna spitting out a few small white feathers.
'Lava, my physical form uses lava for it's body,' Infernus informs me.
'Good Morning, Infernus. So what will I be doing today?' I greet and ask him.
'If that idiot Discord has fixed his mistake, we can practice with attacks again. Try another beam at the wall,' he replies and tells me.
I hold out my right hand and channel our mana into it, I then fire a beam into the wall for a few seconds and then stop. The wall is scorched but other than that, it's fine.
"Well, good to know my work wasn't a waste of time then, now I'll conjure some targets and you blast them, sounds fun right?" Discord says and snaps his taloned fingers.
Four targets that look like transparent gryphons stand by the wall I just scorched.
"Why gryphons?" I ask my uncle.
"Well, we're on bad terms with them correct? So, why not?" he replies.
I shrug and look back at the four snarling constructs and aim my right hand at the far left one, I gather mine and Infernus' mana and then release it as a beam. The beam burns through the gryphon with ease and I then sweep my hand to the right, the beam burns through the other three quickly decapitating them before the constructs fade away.
I look down to my hand with wide eyes. 'That's stronger than I thought,' I think to myself.
'I am also known as the Aspect of Destruction, and I am one of the most powerful of the Aspects,' Infernus tells me.
I look at the flames that have replaced my legs and frown, Infernus said I had to pour more mana into it to go higher without the air wings spell.
I concentrate and pour mana into the flames, only to launch myself into the ceiling. The sound of me hitting the ceiling with a dull thud echoes throughout the empty room, but I feel no pain as I slowly drop back down to the ground.
"That could have gone better..." I mumble to myself.
I can hear giggling behind me but I ignore them.
'We'll work on your hovering skills later, right now I want you to try a projectile spell using an earth element with my fire,' Infernus instructs me next.
'Alright,' I reply and channel a single earth element mixed with Infernus' fire. A rock the size of my head comes out of the ground leaving a hole in the stone floor, Discord groans and patches up the floor and then makes a pile of rocks appear next to me.
"Please don't pull the place apart, quite literally," Discord tells me.
"Sorry," I reply and aim at a newly conjured gryphon.
I release the spell and the molten rock soars towards the middle gryphon and detonates on impact, the building shakes mildly from the blast making the others yelp in surprise. The floor and wall are scorched black from the heat alone while small holes in the walls near the roof are venting the smoke outside.
I look back to see all of them with their wings spread and blushes on their faces. I start laughing as Discord is standing behind them with his wings spread and blinking rapidly at me with both of his hands under his chin.
Luna looks behind her and frowns at him followed by a telekinetic slap to the back of his head. The door then opens with my mom, dad, and Jasmine looking inside with confused expressions.
"Erm, we're looking for Adrian," Mom says looking right at me.
Jasmine is staring at me and runs up over to me. "You look cool, what are you?" she asks me.
I chuckle and ruffle up her hair. "Thanks," I reply and look up to my parents. "I'm here, mom," I tell my mother.
"Adrian!?" she yells and runs over and tries to put me out, making me chuckle again.
"Mom I'm fine, this is my Fire Aspect's magic form," I tell her.
She sighs and relaxes. "So you're training with a new aspect now?" she asks me.
"Correct, Infernus the Fire Aspect," I reply.
'As touching as this is, we need to continue your training,' Infernus tells me impatiently.
"Okay okay," I say aloud, getting confused looks from the others. "Oh, Infernus told me to continue my training," I tell them.
"I see," she replies and then spots Mavis in Shella’s arms and Valiant in Celestia’s arms.
"Oh my grandbabies!" Mom squeals. "May I hold him?" she asks Celestia.
Celestia smiles and holds Valiant out to her. Mom smiles widely and fawns over the giggling foal.
After a few minutes of mom and dad fussing over their grandkids, mom hands Valiant back to Celestia and dad gives Mavis back to Shella.
"Oh! Right, we just came to tell you that we're heading back home for the week, we'll see you later, my dear," Mom tells me.
I would smile if I still had my mouth. "Alright, I'll be here training for a while then," I reply.
After saying goodbye, my parents and my new little sister leave the building.
"Cadence, would you mind holding Valiant for a while? I'd like to get some practise with Lux myself," Celestia asks the pink alicorn.
"I don't mind," she replies with a smile and takes him into her arms.
"Here, you and Shella can rest on this," Discord says and snaps his fingers.
A large bed appears in the corner near the door. "Thank you, Discord," Cadence says and lies down with Valiant.
"Alright then, let's get back to training," I say and prepare another flame coated rock.
Five days later
We got news from Twilight saying Spike has disappeared four days ago, the whole town searched for him but found nothing.
Celestia, Luna, and I have been practising more with our aspects over the last five days together in Discord’s training room. I’ve gotten better at controlling the three basic attacks and have started on working on my hovering skills.
Shella laid her eggs yesterday and then rested for Rarity's and Blueblood's wedding today. The Princess egg Shella laid last time is close to hatching, she needs to feed it some more energy since she couldn't while we were on our honeymoon but it'll only be a few more days before Valiant and Mavis get a new little sister.
I'm in my golden coloured armour while my wives and Cadence are in beautiful dresses, I'm going to have to have another wedding for Cadence later, but this time it’ll be a small one and only with friends, don't want another interruption like the first one.
Celestia is standing behind the altar with Luna and Cadence beside her, Shella and I are standing off to the side of them just to observe.
Blueblood is in a black tuxedo with a white rose in the chest pocket.
Twilight and her four other friends are sitting in the front row on the right side waiting for their unicorn friend to come down the aisle.
Music begins playing as the three fillies known as the Cutie-Mark Crusaders walk down the aisle throwing rose petals on the floor from the baskets they're carrying.
The ballroom doors open up and in walks Rarity wearing a beautifully made wedding dress she's made herself. It has large lacy shoulder coverings with deep purple floral patterns on them as well as on the lower half of the dress. Her face is also covered by a veil.
She walks down the aisle barely holding back tears, she then stands beside Blueblood who is smiling warmly at her.
Celestia smiles at them and looks towards the people who were invited. "Dearly beloved, we are gathered here today to bare witness to the union of Prince Blueblood and Miss Rarity Belle, where they shall be united under matrimony and love. If there are any who object to this union, speak now or forever hold your peace," she says.
The doors open up and everyone looks stunned at who's standing there. Spike is standing there looking just as tall as an adult stallion with long spines coming off his head and back, he's wearing a pair of thick looking trousers and a frown on his face.
"I object!" he shouts out getting gasps from everyone present.
"I object!" Spike shouts out getting gasps from everyone present.
"Spike! Where have you been!" Twilight yells at him with a worried expression on her face.
Spike just frowns and starts walking down the aisle, he's really muscular now and is starting to look more like a dragon than the small chubby looking kid he was since I last saw him.
"I've been in the Everfree Forest, I couldn't take it anymore that the mare I love is with another stallion... So I left to do some thinking," he replies and then spreads a pair of impressive wings which are on par with Celestia's before furling them to his back again.
Rarity stares at him wide eyed with a sad expression.
"And what do you plan to do now?" I ask him.
He stops mid way down the aisle and looks up at me.
"I originally planned to have a duel with Blueblood for Rarity's hand... but I know that even if I win she wouldn't just be with me," he replies and frowns. "So I've decided that I should just say goodbye and... find one of my own kind to be with," he says and turns around to head back out.
"What?" Twilight barely says before scrambling out of her seat and running over to him. She then hugs him around his waist and starts to lightly sob into his back. "B-But what about me? Our parents? Shiny? Our friends? Don't they mean anything?" she asks him.
He sighs and looks at her over his shoulder. "Yes, but remaining in Ponyville is too painful for me right now," he replies and looks back at the door.
"Then we'll move back to Canterlot... I don't want you to go, you're my brother!" Twilight tells him and holds on tighter.
"And do what? Just sit here feeling sorry for myself?" he asks the purple unicorn.
"I don't know, but I love you, Spike. We all do, you're family," she replies and sniffles a few times.
Spike turns around and hugs Twilight back. "I know, Twilight, but I was tired of being treated like a foal all the time... I never got to go with you on your adventures with the others and no matter how much I helped Rarity or tried to show her my affection she'd just think I was being a kind little foal," he says to her and lets go.
Twilight frowns sadly at Spike. "I'm sorry, but I didn't want you getting hurt," she replies.
"And I didn't want you getting hurt either yet I couldn't just tell you to stay..." he tells her and looks back up to Rarity. "I hope you have a happy life with Blueblood, Rarity," he says before turning around and heading for the door.
"Spike!" Rarity calls out and walks as fast as she can in her dress towards him.
Spike turns around and waits for her to reach him. Rarity looks him in the eyes and smiles. "I'm sorry I couldn't return your feelings, but you we're like a little brother to all of us. It would mean the world to me if you'd stay in Ponyville and still be our friend," she tells him.
Spike has a sad expression and strokes her cheek with a finger. "I want to, but I need some time to myself," he replies and walks towards the door.
"Wait!" I call out to him. He stops and turns to face me. "Could you wait for a minute, I want to talk to you," I tell him.
He sighs but nodded before leaving the room.
I look back to Celestia and smile at her. "Continue with the wedding, I'll go talk to him," I tell her.
She returns the smile and nodded. "Alright," she replies.
I turn to the door and pat Twilight on her shoulder as I pass by her. She heads back to her seat while I leave the room where Spike is leaning against the wall with his arms crossed.
"First off, what happened to you?" I ask him while gesturing to his body.
"When I was in the Everfree I couldn't find any gems to eat, I was attacked by a manticore two days after I found a cave to think about things and about my life in Ponyville..." he replies and sighs. "I ran from the manticore and tripped over a tree root, I crawled away from it but my back hit a tree trunk," he says with a frown. "I was about to call for help but the manticore rose its claw and was about to attack me, I panicked and breathed out my flames all over it and set it on fire. After a few seconds it stopped moving and after a few minutes the fire died down. I walked over to it and poked it a few times to see if it was still alive, but the smell..." he tells me and cringes.
"You ate it didn't you?" I ask him.
"Yes... something just compelled me and I, found it tasted good... The next day I found out I grew bigger over night and I was still growing, I went out to look for more gems but found a couple left on the cave floor," he replies.
"I think I know what cave you're talking about, Luna and I camped in a cave while we trained there," I say with a hand on my chin. "Have you never eaten meat before?" I ask him.
He shakes his head at me. "No, I've lived off some fruits and hay along with gems," he replies.
"Well, you're most likely an omnivore like me then, able to eat both, which is strange as dragons are carnivores..." I say with a frown, the books I read on dragons says they only eat meat.
"That would be because of Twilight's magic when she hatched me, it altered me genetically or something and it's why my flames have magic in it as well," he tells me.
Huh... so he's a hybrid. "And what will you do now?" I ask him.
"I don't know," he replies and sags against the wall. "I was planning to pack up and head out to the dragon lands... learn more about myself and my own kind," he tells me.
"Well I wouldn't recommend it, the two dragons I've met so far we're aggressive and very hostile while they tried to eat us, I had no choice but to kill them to protect myself and my herd," I reply.
He looks at me with wide eyes before looking down at the floor. "So what do you suggest? I don't think I can stand staying in Ponyville anymore, I still love Rarity and seeing her with Blueblood just makes my blood boil," he says dejectedly.
I hum in thought. "Didn't you used to live here with Twilight?" I ask him. He just looks at me and nodded. "You could stay here in the castle again then," I offer him.
"You mean I'll have my own room?" he asks perking up slightly.
"Sure, I don't see why not, perhaps you could even have a job here," I reply.
He hums in thought for a few seconds as he looks at the floor before looking back at me. "What kind of job? The only thing I'm good at is being an assistant to Twilight or Library work," he tells me.
"That's up to what you want to do, I personally think you'd make a great guard being a magical dragon and all that. Maybe you could even learn to tap into your magic using spells instead of with just your flames?" I suggest to the depressed young dragon.
"I'll think about it, but right now I think I want to be alone," he replies with a sigh.
"Sure, would you like me to take you to your own room?" I offer.
That got him to smile slightly. "Okay," he says and pushes off the wall.
We walk down the halls to the living quarters passing a few guards or maids along the way. We reach a door just a bit down from my herd's room. "You can have this room if you want," I tell him and gesture to the door.
He opens the door and walks in while looking around, it's just a basic room with a desk, bed, table, chair and a closet.
"You might want to find some stuff to decorate it later, I'll even give you some bits to get things you want for it," I say and wait by the door.
"Thanks, I'll see you tomorrow after I've cleared my head," he tells me and sits on the edge of the bed.
"Alright, I'll let Twilight know you're fine and just want to be alone for now," I reply.
"Thanks, Adrian..." he says and leans back onto the bed.
I smile and close the door before heading back to the throne room.
The wedding carried on without any more interruptions, Blueblood and Rarity are now married with Lily living with them and after the reception, went back to Ponyville with all her friends. Except Twilight who remained to make sure Spike is alright and is currently staying in her old tower she had before she went to Ponyville. I told her that Spike is fine and just wanted some alone time to think.
The Princess egg Shella laid just over a month ago is getting ready to hatch in a couple of days time, we're all excited to greet the newest member of our family.
For the rest of the afternoon I did some exercising in the Gym with my lovers before we went to bed after dinner.
The next day
I yawn as I slowly begin to wake up with Cadence to my left drooling slightly on my neck, Luna is on top of me while Shella is to my right. Celestia is missing but I can hear her in the baby room talking to Mavis and Valiant.
After a few more minutes of comfortable silence and my lovers snuggling closer, Celestia walks back in with each of our children in her arms.
"Good morning," I say to her getting a smile in return.
"Good morning, my love," she replies and sits on the edge of the bed. She then shakes Shella gently with her magic getting the changeling to slowly open her eyes.
"Huh?" she mumbles and looks at me. "Good morning," she says and leans in to kiss me.
I return the kiss and smile at her. "Good Morning," I reply.
"Mama!" Mavis says holding her little arms out towards Shella.
The sight makes me grin as Shella takes her daughter from Celestia and begins to feed her while Celestia is breastfeeding Valiant.
After our morning routine and Silk Sheets bringing us our breakfast, we head our separate ways for the day. Celestia is attending court with Valiant while Luna is going to go train some more with Umbra at the Training Grounds. Shella is off to the Hive to make sure everything is going well and to see for herself the traffic of other races that are starting to visit the Hive, and Cadence is heading to the medical wing for a check up as she's just less than a month away from giving birth to our daughter.
I'm walking down the hall to see if Spike is doing better now. I knock on his door and get a muffled 'come in', at least he didn't leave during the night.
I open the door and see Spike face down on a pillow with his tail and wings hanging off the sides of his bed making me chuckle at the sight as I walk in.
"Good Morning, Spike. Have you had breakfast yet?" I ask him.
He lifts his head slowly and looks back at me. "No... I've not been hungry for a couple of days actually after eating that manticore," he replies and yawns.
"I see, well maybe it's because you're a reptile and your digestion is slower than a pony or human," I say with a guess.
"I guess so, so what are you doing today?" he asks me as he sits up on the edge of the bed.
"I'm going to continue with my Fire Aspect training today." I reply.
"Fire Aspect?" he asks confused.
"Didn't Twilight tell you about the aspects?" I ask him.
He thinks for a few seconds before his eyes widen. "Oh yeah, but I usually just tune her out when she starts lecturing about something, I swear her lecturing has sleeping magic in it..." he replies and stretches his limbs.
I chuckle and sit beside him. "So, have you thought about what you're going to do?" I ask him.
He sighs and looks at his hands. "I don't know, I'll probably help out at the Archives for now. Joining the guard sounds cool, but I just don't think I'm ready for something like that... Besides, I don't think Twilight would like that," he replies and chuckles.
"Huh, well there's a vacant spot as keeper of the Archives if you're interested," I offer him.
"What? What happened to Scroll Minder?" he asks confused.
I frown and sigh. "He and three others were the ones who attempted to assassinate us on our wedding day, so he's in the Dungeons for the rest of his life for it," I reply.
"Oh... Twilight and I have known him for a few years while she was learning under Celestia... to think he'd do that," he says a bit sad.
I frown sadly at him and place my left hand on his shoulder. "Well the offer is there if you want it, with pay as well of course," I tell him.
He smiles a little and looks at me. "Alright, I can do that. Did Twilight go back to Ponyville?" he asks.
"No, she spent the night in her old room, she wants to talk to you," I reply and stand up. "I'm going to head out and continue my training, you're welcome to wait a few days before you decide anything. Maybe go and see Twilight and talk with her," I suggest and walk over to the door.
"Thanks, Adrian," he replies and looks out the window.
I sigh and close the door before heading out to Discord’s Training Room.
Five Hours Later
'Put more force into it, you're being too soft!' Infernus tells me as I cast another fire beam at the targets Discord conjures.
I force more mana into the beam making it widen slightly, after a few seconds I cancel the beam and pant heavily.
'Better, but you need more practice, we'll take a break so you can rest and then continue,' he says and I drop my Aspect form.
"Well, you're definitely improving my boy!" Discord says waving that 'Go Adrian Go!' flag again with my parents and Jasmine next to him as they watch, they wanted to see what my training was like for themselves.
"Thanks, but I've got a long way to go yet," I reply as my mom walks over to me with a bottle of water.
"Here, you need to keep yourself hydrated," she tells me and holds it out to me.
"Thanks, mom," I say and take the bottle. I pop the cap off and take a big gulp of the cold refreshing liquid, I then sigh and stretch my limbs. "I'm going to go and check on Keanu, be back in a bit," I tell them.
"Alright, son. We'll wait here with uncle Discord for you," Dad replies and starts talking with Discord about stuff on Terra.
I leave the building and head over to the stable built for Keanu and walk up to the growing planes runner.
"Hey, Keanu. How are you today?" I ask him as he tilts his head at me and chirps.
I grab a handful of sugar grass seeds and hold them out to him. He perks up at the sight of the treat and walks over and then starts to slowly peck them out of my palm.
I smile and stroke his long neck while he eats his treat.
I've been visiting him nearly every day before lunch and he's gotten friendly around me and the stable boy we hired named Hay Seed to look after him when I can't.
Hay Seed is off to the side cleaning out the old straw in the stable with new fresh straw while I feed Keanu with some proper feed as well.
"So are you happy here? I heard Fluttershy visited you again, you like her don't you," I say to him.
He chirps happily and resumes eating his lunch.
"He sure does," Hay Seed says from inside. "He practically hugs her with his long neck every time he sees her," he tells me.
"I see, it's good that you made a friend," I say to Keanu as I then spend the next forty minutes just playing with him.
I return back to the Training Room where I resume my Fire Aspect magic form.
'We will work on your fire spray some more now, and remember to force the mana out,' Infernus tells me.
'Got it,' I reply and begin gathering the mana for a fire spray.
I open my eyes slowly and yawn as the pretty colours of my room greet me, I can hear my brother making noises as he sucks on his thumb while looking up at the ceiling where pretty clouds go by, I wonder how that works? Did my mamas catch them and bring them in?
I hear the door open and my white mama walks in with a smile on her face, I reach out to her wanting her to pick me up.
She smiles wider and picks me up out of my bed and then walks over to my brother picking him up as well. She then walks over to the couch and sits us on her legs and starts making noises at us.
My brother giggles when white mama starts to nuzzle him before turning to me and doing the same, her fur is so soft, I wonder why my mommy and I don't have fur?
After some time of her playing with us, she stands up and heads towards the door. I see my mommy with both blue and pink mommy laying on a big bed together with daddy.
White mommy makes some noises to daddy who makes some noise back to her, she then sits on the bed and I watch as her horn starts glowing with a pretty gold colour. I hear my mommy groan as she's shaken lightly by the gold glow, after a few more attempts she gets up and pushes her face to daddy's.
I'm feeling hungry so I reach out my hands to her. "Mama!" I say which makes daddy smile big, mommy takes me from white mommy and starts feeding me.
It tastes so good and I burp quietly.
After my mamas and daddy do their things, mommy takes me out of the building and down the mountain in a flying box again.
I giggle as the box bounces around a bit when it lands in front of the home of others that look like me and mommy.
Mommy gets out of the box and walks over to others as they make noises to each other. I look around and see a big tall thing with brown fur and two long pointy things on its head walking through the doors leading inside the mountain.
One of the others like mommy starts to tickle me making me laugh as I try to push their hands away. I then blow a raspberry at them and giggle.
Mommy then walks inside and heads to the room where three others like me are playing together in a small pen. Mommy gently places me inside and starts making noises to the other one her size in the room.
The ones like me giggle and one of them rolls a ball over to me. I smile and grab the ball and then roll it to another who then rolls it to the one next to me.
I'm not sure how long we were playing but it's a lot of fun, but mommy returns and picks me up.
The others seem a bit sad but I wave at them and they wave back.
Mommy walks down a hall to a room with a desk and chair with paper that has these strange markings on them, I wonder what they mean, maybe mommy can teach me!
Mommy places me on a small bed in the corner and starts making this very nice and relaxing noise, my eyes slowly shut as I yawn and fall asleep.
Five hours and thirteen minutes later
I wake up to my mother quickly picking me up out of my bed, the sudden movement makes me cry as mommy looks scared.
Two others that look like mommy open the door and make firm noises, then something big, hairy, and mean looking with sharp nails and teeth swipes away the one making noises to mommy.
The other pushes a long thin black thing into the hairy thing's head and then checks on the one who was knocked to the floor.
I'm trembling at the sounds and noises all around us as mommy holds me tightly. She then follows the one with the black thing and leads us to a shiny room before a click sounds out from the door. There are ten others like mommy with long black things and large round disks on their left arm surrounding us.
Where's daddy? I want my daddy!
Back in Canterlot POV: Valiant
Mama is sitting on her big golden chair with a line of others who are talking to her. I ignore them as some of them are mean looking and suck on my thumb while looking around.
Mama suddenly makes a loud noise which makes the one in front of the line cower back but the noise scares me and I start crying. Mama starts rocking me in her arms and makes soothing noises making me feel safe again and I calm down.
The one in front of the line quickly bows and then makes his way out of the room, I'm sniffling as the room goes silent for a while until one of the ones in the shiny stuff with a long pole in his hand runs over to us, he then talks to mama who gasps and talks back.
Her horn glows and after a bright light we're now in another room with the big orange thing I saw before floating in the air. It turns around and looks at mama with wide eyes before a pair of large orange wings appear on its back and takes off out of the room.
Mama passes me to daddy's mama and then takes off after the orange thing.
I whine wanting my mama back as daddy's mama makes soothing noises to me.
Back in the Hive POV: Mavis
There's loud bangs coming from the door as scary noises sound throughout the room. Mommy holds me tighter as the door begins to crack.
The room then seems to be getting warmer as the noises outside change from scary to fearful. I grip mommy as tightly as I can as the door is finally broken down and one of those hairy things leaps at mommy, but an orange hand quickly grabs its tail and pulls it out of the room and around the corner where a bad smell starts to flow into the room followed by smoke.
Then that big orange thing I've seen at home comes in and makes noises to mommy who nodded. White mommy then enters the room and then makes noises to mommy and the orange thing.
The orange thing nodded to white mama and leaves the room where bright orange lights and heat fade down the hallway followed by more of that fearful sounds.
White mommy then hugs mommy and makes quiet noises to her.
POV: Adrian Stormsword
How did diamond dogs get here undetected? And how did they find out about the crystal and gem storage room that the changelings have once they dig them up?
Another diamond dog thrusts a rusty spear at me which harmlessly passes through me, I reach out and wrap my hand around his throat where the sound of sizzling flesh and his cries of pain echo throughout the halls, after a few seconds I burn through his neck and his head rolls off.
I continue down the hall where seven diamond dogs are attacking two changelings and three unicorn pony guards who are protecting the door to the storage room.
"Clear the hall!" I yell out to them.
The unicorns horns glow and they along with the two changelings teleport behind me.
I channel a lot of mana into my hands and force it out violently, spraying flames down the hall where every inch is scorched black and the dogs are engulfed entirely. I hold the spray for ten seconds before stopping, revealing piles of ash and half melted armour in the dog's place.
"How many are left?" I ask the changelings.
One of the changelings closes his eyes and frowns for a few seconds. "The Queen tells us there are five left, and that's not all, some of Chrysalis' changelings are with them and they tried to steal the life crystals," he replies.
"Did they take any of them?" I ask him. I hope not, if she got hold of one then she'd be strong enough to attack us without much worry. Shella's magic is really strong thanks to my love and the life crystals, but she doesn't really know how to use it, maybe we should teach her some protective spells.
What troubles me more is how did Chrysalis' changelings get in undetected...
"Did you sense Chrysalis' changelings before the attack?" I ask them.
"No, the only way that could happen is if they were disconnected from their Hive mind... It's how we detect other changelings as their link conflicts with ours," he replies.
So Chrysalis disconnected them just to infiltrate? But where do the diamond dogs come in? "Try and capture a changeling or diamond dog so we can interrogate them, I want to know how they got in and how they knew where the storage area is," I tell them.
"Yes, my King!" they reply and head off into the Hive.
I frown and look back at the ashes of the diamond dogs, that armour looks just like the ones from the dogs who took Rarity.
POV: Mavis
Mommy and white mommy are talking to each other while the others are surrounding us with the long black things pointed at the doorway. White mommy's horn glows as a pretty gold wall is now in place of the door.
After a while daddy walks through the door and I hold my hands out to him. "Daddy!" I say to him and he smiles at me.
He picks me up and hugs me to his chest. Now I feel safer with daddy here.
Daddy starts talking to both mamas and they reply to him. I yawn, tired from all that's going on and fall asleep in his arms.
Back in Canterlot One hour later POV: Valiant
Daddy's mama is playing with me by rolling a ball to me which I pick up and throw back at her a short distance.
She says something in a happy tone and I giggle as she rolls the ball back to me.
Daddy and all my mamas walk into the room and I look up at them, but daddy doesn't look that happy as he talks to the long funny looking thing floating in the air.
Pink mama picks me up and stands next to furless mama who's holding my sister.
They talk to each other but pink mama starts to nuzzle me and I hug her face.
Six hours and twenty-three minutes later
I yawn after mama fed me, she's holding me in her arms and making a relax noise that's making me sleepy. We head through our home and into our bedroom where she puts me in my bed with my sister in hers.
She nuzzles me before the room goes dark and she closes the door, after a while my eyes close and I fall asleep.
POV: Adrian Stormsword
"So what do we plan to do about these infiltrators?" I ask my lovers as Celestia walks back into the room.
"The fact that they knew where the storage area was as well as the locations of the crystals worries me. My guess is they used the disconnected changelings to change into ponies visiting the Hive and gather information over time..." Shella replies.
"If that's true we may need to find a new way to detect her changelings or to find her Hive and either convince them to join us or kill Chrysalis and destroy her Hive," I say with a frown.
"We can discuss this tomorrow, we managed to take a diamond dog captive but the changelings either fought to the death or killed themselves to prevent capture," Luna tells us and cuddles up beside me.
"Alright, I want to know where these diamond dogs come in mostly, they looked like the same ones who took Rarity," I reply as the others get settled as well.
Once we're all comfortable we fall into a restless sleep.
I wake up the next morning and frown as I remember yesterday's events.
First thing we're going to do is go down to the Dungeon where Celestia or Luna will read the memory of the diamond dog we caught. Then once we find out where the rest of the dogs are hiding I'll flush them out.
I did warn them not to return and now they'll regret not listening to me.
After we all get up, Silk bringing our breakfast, and go through our morning routine, Luna handles the court while Shella returns to her Hive to assess the damage under heavy guard and Cadence is in our room looking after the foals where Discord is watching over them.
Celestia accompanies me down to the Dungeon where the dog is muzzled and tied up in a cell.
I glare at the beast that attempted to harm my wife and foal with barely restrained anger. Celestia walks up to the dog with an angry expression of her own and roughly grips its head while closing her eyes as her horn glows. After a few seconds she lets go and turns to me.
"They're hiding in Ghastly Gorge where a total of two-hundred and sixteen dogs are living. Apparently the brother of the Alpha you killed wants revenge and was offered assistance by Chrysalis, they get gems and revenge and she gets the life crystals..." my wife tells me.
"I see. I guess I better head over there and remove this threat before Chrysalis can use them again," I reply and head out the door.
"I'm coming with you. Shella is also my wife and they threatened not only her but our foal as well," she tells me and I smile.
"Alright, I'm not going to stop you since you're not carrying our foal anymore," I reply as we walk to the barracks.
Once we arrive Celestia's horn glows and I'm in my armour with my weapons as well. We walk inside where we find Shining working on forms for new recruits in his office.
"Captain," Celestia greets him as we walk in.
"Queen Celestia, how may I assist you today?" he asks.
"We need you to gather two-hundred guards for an assault on Ghastly Gorge," she replies.
"What? Is this about the attack on Queen Shella's Hive?" he asks with a raised brow.
"Correct, we know the location of the diamond dogs that attacked the Hive and are mounting an assault on them. So please gather the guard and direct them to the airship docks," she tells him.
"Of course your majesty," he replies and heads outside where the sound of a bell rings out followed by the sound of footsteps and talking as the guard gather outside.
After about half an hour of informing them what is happening, Hammer Strike along with two-hundred guards of mixed types are standing on the deck of the galleon E.A.F Nightingale.
We're now en route to Ghastly Gorge which is just outside the Everfree forest. The diamond dog den is at the bottom so we'll have to land and then get there by foot.
"So how do you want to do this, Tia?" I ask my wife.
"You'll take your fire aspect form and send in a gout of flames to clear the entrance, I'll then enter and send a bright flash down the tunnels to keep it illuminated for an hour giving our guards light to fight in. We'll head down to the Alpha's lair and kill him while our guards comb the den and eliminate any who resist," she replies looking out towards the Everfree.
"Alright, do you want to deliver the finishing blow or shall I?" I ask her. I don't mind either way but if she want's to then I'll let her.
"I'd like to. It's time I stop being lenient with these beasts and show I won't tolerate their aggression anymore," she replies with a frown.
"Very well. I'll watch your back while you put him in his place," I say and look over at the Everfree as well.
Twenty-four minutes later
We arrive at the top of Ghastly Gorge and I look down the cliff side. That's a pretty high drop, the unicorns can teleport down with an earth pony while the rest of us can fly down.
"Be careful, there are quarry eels in the walls," a guard warns the others as I notice holes in the the cliff side.
I take on my fire aspect form and cast my air wings spell and fly down to the closest hole. I look inside and two little orbs reflecting the light from my flames stare back at me. Without warning a large red eel with purple fins and white dots along its body lunges forward and opens its jaw, I try to fly away but it was quicker than it looked and engulfs me in its maw.
"ADRIAN!" I hear the muffled cry of Celestia shout at me.
I frown and gather Infernus and my mana in my chest and build it up. After a few seconds I violently release it with a roar as a nova and a large amount of flames bursts out and expands quickly, the head of the eel heats up and explodes after it couldn't handle the pressure anymore.
I fly out and back up to Celestia. "Well, that was an experience... I was hoping not to repeat that incident with the dragon..." I say and chuckle.
"That wasn't funny!" Celestia tells me and frowns.
"Sorry, but I guess I'll clear a path down and the rest of you can follow," I reply and head back down.
After a few minutes of repeating the same thing, I've killed about seven eels and reached the bottom of the gorge.
The others start making their way down and now we're walking up to the entrance to the den.
"Okay, let's go over this once more. I go first and clear the entrance, Celestia then lights up the cave and then the guard will swarm the den and clear it out while Tia and I head for the Alpha. That about it?" I ask.
"Pretty much," Hammer replies with a shrug.
"Let's get this going then," I say and float over to the entrance.
Gathering the mana for the spray, I hold both hands forward and release the spell sending a large torrent of flames down the tunnel. The sounds of panic and pain echo throughout the den almost drown out the sound of my flames.
After a good fifteen or so seconds I cut the flow and step aside for Celestia. She Gathers her mana and then touches the floor sending a line of light down the tunnel which then splits once it hits a fork. After a few seconds she stops and motions the guards to advance.
The guard roar out and charge in as they start swarming the den.
Celestia takes the lead and I follow behind her as she knows the way to the Alpha's lair. The tunnel is well lit but not due to Celestia's spell, our aspect forms are providing all the light we need.
Three dogs try to ambush us but a blast of light from Celestia blinds them, fortunately I can't be blinded in this form, all I see is a bright white flash before my vision returns instantly.
I cast a fire beam to the left dog melting through its armour then out through its back. Celestia reaches out as chains made of light extend from her palm and wrap the right dog before squeezing hard making its bones snap, armour shatter, and its innards crushed.
The middle one recovers and thrusts its spear at me which passes through harmlessly and also set the shaft of the spear on fire.
The dog yelps and lets go as the flames travelled down the shaft and almost caught its paw.
Celestia conjures a spear of her own made of light and throws it like a javelin into the dog's head. Once they were taken care off we continue down the tunnels killing all the dogs that blocked our path.
We passed a few females along with their children in side rooms, these may be low intelligence carnivores, but the expression of fear is still a sentient response and I won't go so low as to kill unarmed bystanders. Celestia gets some of the guards that followed behind us to take them away.
We finally reach the Alpha's lair and I'm given the honour of knocking, so I gather my mana and prepare to cast a nova as I charge at the shoddy but thick looking wood and stone door. Once I make contact with the door, I release the spell causing it to crumble forward as I barrel through it and come to a stop in a large cavern.
To my left looks like a group of females in rags and what appears to be poorly made collars around their necks, but what angers me is it's not just diamond dog females, there's also a cervine and three ponies as well.
To my right is a pile of gems and precious stones that would be worth quite the bit with some guard dogs around it who are now pointing their spears at me.
And ahead of me is the Alpha sitting on a stone throne with a female dog between his legs and a paw on the back of her head. I can faintly hear her sniffing, clearly not wanting to do this act. Not only that, but there's a pile of bones next to the throne that resemble a pony.
"Who be you!? Mutts! Kill it!" he quickly recovers from his shock and barks out the order.
I glare to my right and create two blades made of flames in each hand and hold them out to my sides.
"I am Adrian Stormsword! King of Equestria! And you have made the mistake of attacking my wife, foal, and people even after the warning I gave you to never return! I am here for your flea bitten head, mongrel!" I roar out in anger as Infurnus responds to my rage and floods me with his mana making the flames on my body whip about wildly and the temperature to increase.
The dogs that charge at me stop and back away from the heat. I then cast my air wings again and spread the draconic like wings of flame wide adding to the intimidation factor.
"You will drop your weapons and surrender if you wish to remain alive!" I warn them as Celestia and twenty guards enter behind me.
The dogs after some hesitation do so and drop their crude weapons and whimper. I turn back to the Alpha who hasn't even released the female he's still forcing himself on.
POV: Celestia
Adrian's eyes then shine brightly as black flames pour out the sides. "Release her immediately," he threatens the Alpha in a low tone who worryingly doesn't look afraid.
"Stupid monster, I am Alpha here! You die soon!" the filthy beast replies and then grunts as he defiles the poor female in his grip.
Thinking quickly I launch a ball of light in his face and blind him causing him to let go of the female with a yelp which I take advantage of and pull her away with my levitation spell.
I then place her with the other females who try to comfort the crying dog, even the ponies and cervine attempt to help sooth her.
The Alpha in a fit of rage reaches behind his stone throne and pulls out two warhammers that frankly look way too well crafted to be made by a diamond dog.
Adrian's eyes widen as he looks at the weapons. "Those are elven enchantments!" he exclaims with surprise.
"What? But how is that possible?" I ask him.
"I don't know, but I'm betting it's Grogar's doing..." he replies and gets into an attack stance.
The Alpha gets up off his throne and lumbers his way over to Adrian. "You pay for killing brother, will have ya head on stick!" the Alpha growls out and then swings the blue hammer at Adrian.
Adrian leans away from the weapon but it just clips him resulting in a hiss of steam and a cry of pain from him. "AARRGGH!" the flames on his right hip are extinguished for a few seconds before reforming.
"Creature who gave these warn me of ya power," the snarling beast says to my mate.
"Really? Well then, I'll just have to kill you quickly!" Adrian replies and lunges forward with his right fireblade.
The dog swings the red hammer and Adrian's fire blade is absorbed into the orange aura. The mutt then swings the blue hammer again hitting Adrian in the left arm, and to my horror his arm is ripped off with a blast of steam. "AAAAARRGGH!" he yells in pain and backs off.
"Yes, creature warn me of ya forms and give way to beat them," the dog taunts and laughs.
I clench my fists and get ready to attack but Adrian starts laughing in between pained grunts. "And? There's one thing he forgot to mention," he replies and dismisses his fire aspect form, thankfully his arm is still there.
Adrian then gathers what looks like four lightning elements into his right hand and then holds it out at the Alpha.
"And that be?" the dog asks with a snarl.
"I KNOW MORE THAN JUST THE FIRE AND LIFE ELEMENTS!" Adrian yells and casts his spell.
The spray of purple lightning arcs out of his palm and heads straight for the head of the blue hammer. The moment the electricity connects the dog howls in agony as the high voltage courses through his body and making him unable to drop the weapons.
After about eight seconds Adrian stops and the mutt collapses to the ground with thin trails of smoke coming off his body.
"He's all yours, Tia," my husband tells me and starts healing himself as I can see blood coming off the armour on his hip and left arm, the same areas he was hit by the blue hammer.
I float over to the mutt and glare at him. "You are hereby sentenced to death for the attempted assassination of my herdmate and foal," I inform him sternly and begin channelling magic into my right hand.
The mutt coughs and glares up at me. "Stupid pony, it too late," he replies with a sadistic grin.
I frown and grip him by the scruff of his neck and lift him up. "What do you mean by that!?" I demand.
"Pony town should be burnt now," he tells me with a pained grin.
My eyes widen at his words. Could Ponyville be under attack right now? Before he could say another word I quickly read his mind for information but it's protected by another one of those mental barriers like Blueblood's imposter had.
After getting Adrian to remove it, I read his memories and find that he was visited by an undead puppet and given the hammers, he was nothing but a pawn in an attempt to kill Adrian. I then thrust my left hand into the dog's chest and rip out his heart, just as Adrian did to the last Alpha.
I then drop the corpse and head over to Adrian. "I believe Ponyville may be in danger!" I tell him and turn to the guards. "Get these diamond dogs and any other captives they have onto the Nightingale and take them back to Canterlot," I order them and they all salute before rounding up the females and surrendered guard dogs.
The ponies and cervine are thankful and so were the diamond dog females. I don't think any of them were treated kindly at all.
Adrian and I head back up and fly back towards Ponyville, when we arrive my eyes begin to tear up. Chrysalis' changelings are attacking the town and everything is burning as I see guards and changelings alike dead in the streets, though I don't see any of the town’s ponies bodies among them.
I hope they evacuated in time and the elements are alright...
I scowl as we see Ponyville burning to the ground before us. I draw my sword and ready my shield as Celestia summons her greatsword.
Chrysalis' changelings are running through the streets fighting what little of the Ponyville guard remain. We land beside four guards who are surrounded and I channel four fire elements and release a spray of flames in and arc in front of me, burning three changelings.
Our arrival seems to boost the guards morale and they charge at the changelings with fire in their eyes.
Celestia grasps four of them in her magic, levitating them off the ground and then crushes them with her telekinesis resulting in a gory mess of blood, shattered carapace, and internal organs.
I've only just noticed Celestia's mane and tail are now raging infernos and her eyes are giving off flames as well. She then charges into a group of the invaders and cleaves five of them with her sword which is also now covered in flames.
I evade a swing from a changeling sword and reply with a thrust to his face right between his eyes.
The invader goes down and I turn my attention to the next. While my mana is still plentiful, I'm getting tired from constantly using it, but thanks to all my training I can still keep going for another hour or two at most.
Celestia stops after she cuts down three more and then looks to her left, I follow her gaze and stare wide eyed at the filly laying on the ground in a puddle of her own blood with wide glazed over eyes. She has a sword buried deep into her blood stained chest, her fur is orange, her hair is a purple colour and she has small wings on her back. Beside her lay a man and a woman who are trying to reach out to the filly.
"RRRRAAAAAAWWWWWRRRRGGGHHH!" Celestia cries out in rage and extends her left hand at a group of ten changelings. She lifts them up and then forces them into each other, but she doesn't stop as she continues to push them together. Their cries of pain echo throughout the burning town as they're crushed against each other.
With a final squeeze of her hand, they're crushed into the size and shape of a small boulder with a resounding squelch.
"Guards! Cover me while I try to save the filly!" I yell out and run over to the young girl as the guards surround me and repel a few changelings who attack us.
I place my hand on her arm and sigh, she's still warm. Unfortunately the other two aren't.
I quickly prepare the revive spell and reach out to her soul, I can only feel hers nearby meaning the others have passed on already. I place her soul into the vessel and charge it, I then cast the spell with a grunt as this alone will exhaust me.
Once done I cast a healing beam at her and heal the wounds that remain. After a few seconds she gasps for air and screams in fear.
"Shhh, you're fine now, calm down. We need to get you to safety," I tell her and pick her up. I then turn to a pegasus guard and hand her over. "Get her to wherever the town evacuated," I order her.
"At once, my King!" she replies and flies off with another pegasus following her.
I turn back to see Celestia in a frenzy as she teleports and flies between the invaders carving them up like no tomorrow.
"CHRYSALIS! THOU HAST BROUGHT TARTARUS ITSELF UPON THY DOORSTEP! WE'VE BEEN TOLERABLE OF THY ACTIONS SINCE NOW! BUT THY ACTIONS HERE TODAY HAST SEALED THINE FATE, FLEE WHILST THOU STILL CANST FOR WE ART COMING FOR THEE!" Celestia shouts at the top of her lungs in a rage I've never seen before as the flames of her hair and tail swirl around her like a tornado.
I cast my air wings spell and fly up to her back and quickly wrap my arms around her waist ignoring the heat that is slowly burning me. "Tia, calm down, don't let your anger consume you. She'll get what's coming to her but please don't become her. We're trying to save the changelings under her rule not wipe them out, she will suffer for what she has done but those under her are just following her out of fear," I tell her and tighten my hold as Celestia breathes heavily and is shaking with anger, but her hair and tail slowly return to their natural state.
I watch as Luna finally arrives with some sloop airships following behind her.
The remaining changeling forces retreat back into the Everfree Forest as the cannons and rifles take shots at them.
"SISTER!" Luna yells and also joins in on the hug. "Sister! Calm thyself, do not follow the path we took," she begs her sister with fear on her face for the white alicorn.
Celestia closes her eyes and takes a deep breath and repeats the action for a few seconds before her shaking ceases, though she still has a deep scowl on her face.
"The filly is safe, Tia. I managed to revive her but I'm too exhausted to do it anymore..." I tell her in hopes to calm her further.
The heat from her body dies down and her scowl fades to a frown. She then looks to the town and tears begin to flow down her face.
Over three quarters of the town has been burnt to the ground with guards, changelings, and a few of the town’s ponies dead in the blood soaked streets.
We slowly descend down onto the ground where Celestia starts sobbing. "Where is Twilight, the element bearers, and the town’s ponies who made it out?" I ask the guards nearby.
"Fortunately our changeling guards sensed Chrysalis' changelings only minutes before they attacked. We evacuated most the town to the Lapis Hive before they ambushed us. Four of the bearers stayed behind to help protect those fleeing... but two of them were severely injured in the attack," a female guard replies.
Celestia's eyes go wide and before we can say anything she takes off towards the base of Mount Canter.
I cast my fast glide wings and Luna drags me along to follow our distressed wife.
We arrive after a few minutes of flying and see a depressing sight. Ponies and a few changeling guards are laid out on cots and makeshift beds as a couple of human mages are casting life beams at them to heal their wounds, though a few have blankets over their faces indicating they didn't survive...
"TWILIGHT!?" We hear Celestia yelling inside the Hive looking for her student.
Luna and I run inside and after following directions we arrive at a room where four of the bearers, Spike and Celestia are gathered around two beds.
On the left bed rests an injured Rainbow Dash who is missing her left arm and on the right is Twilight... where her horn is missing just a centimetre from the base. They both along with Pinkie Pie and Applejack have a lot of cuts and bruises as well.
Celestia is stroking Twilight's hair and whispering to her, telling her everything will be alright.
Although I told Tia to calm down before, my own anger and rage is starting to build.
I walk over to the other bearers. "What happened?" I ask them.
Pinkie turns to me and what I see makes my heart break, the happy go lucky woman I met when I first got here is now replaced by a defeated looking girl. Her hair is no longer poofy and vibrant but straight and dull, even her eyes have lost that spark of life.
"We were having a p-picnic at the park when we h-heard the town's warning bell go off,” she replies with a dead tone. "We made it back to town where the guards w-were guiding everypony to the Hive... then the sound of hundreds of screeches fill the a-air as the mean changelings swarmed out of the Everfree and b-began to overrun the town..." she tells me but puts her face in her hands and falls to her knees.
Applejack kneels down and hugs the distraught girl and continues for her. "From there everythin' just went ta Tartarus. The guards did all they could ta fight back those varmints but there was just too many of them... we tried to help push them back an' protect the towns folk an' we were doing alright until they brought in these big heavy armoured changelings. Twilight's magic was just bouncing offa them without leaving so much as a scratch," she tells us as Pinkie cries into her shoulder.
Rarity then speaks up. "It was a nightmare... those brutes were cutting through the guards like they were made of cloth. Rainbow tried to kick one in the head, but it managed to avoid her and... and... well, you can see what happened," she says with a pained expression as she points to Rainbow's missing arm.
"Even poor Fluttershy tried using her stare on the brute... but it just ignored her and went for Twilight. She tried to teleport away from its attack, but her magic failed when it got near her and it cut off her horn before some guards managed defeat the ruffian," Rarity finishes while hugging a scared Fluttershy.
One of the changelings in the room raises her hand. "That brute was one of Chrysalis' mindless drones," she informs me.
"I see..." I reply and frown as I look over at the injured girls.
I walk over between their beds and Rainbow looks up at me with a tear stained face. "Hey, big guy. Sorry you have to see me like this," she says quietly and slightly slurred, she must be on medication to dull the pain.
"Don't worry about it, just rest and get better," I reply. "We'll make Chrysalis regret everything she's done to you and everyone else," I tell her.
She smiles faintly and holds her closed right hand up. "I know you will," she says. I smile sadly and bump her fist with mine.
I turn to Twilight who looks like she's given up on life. "Hey, Twilight. How you feeling?" I ask her.
Her eyes turn to me but other than that she says nothing.
"It'll be okay, Twilight. Everything will be fine," Celestia tells her, but it sounds more like she's telling herself that.
"No it won't..." Twilight says and looks back at the ceiling. "I can't use my magic anymore, a horn doesn't grow back... I'll never cast a spell again, my talent is now useless... I'm now useless..." she replies and continues to mumble about being useless.
"Tia, is there anything we can do to help her?" I ask my wife.
She sighs and shakes her head, but Twilight speaks up in an emotionless tone. "When a unicorn loses their horn it can't be reattached or regrown..."
'There has to be a way...' I think to myself as Luna grips my hand and pulls me away.
"Give them some time to rest, we need to discuss what we shall do to answer this atrocity," she tells me and we sit down on a bench across the room.
While the others try to comfort their two friends Luna is talking about how we'll retaliate but my mind is more focused on thinking of a way to help them. The life element can't restore lost limbs and I don't know anything about pony magic... I don't know what I can do for Rainbow and the only way Twilight could ever cast a spell again would... be... Of course!
I get up and walk over to Twilight with determination in my eyes. "Twilight, there may be a way for you to use magic again," I tell her and she looks at me with hope. "You're right, you'll never cast another spell again as you are right now," I say and she looks sad again. "but would you be willing to learn my kind of magic?" I ask her and she gasps.
"Are you saying you want me to be a human? Like my brother did?" she asks me.
"If you want to, it might not have the diversity of your pony magic, but it's still better than nothing, unless you'd like to be an elf instead? Their magic has more variety to what they can do, like portals, enchantments, nature magic, and runes," I reply.
Life returns to her eyes at the prospect of not only having her magic back but as a new kind of magic. "I... I can learn a new form of magic?" she asks as she sits up slightly only for Celestia to push her down gently.
"There's plenty of time to decide later. First we need to deal with Chrysalis before anything else," I tell Twilight who nodded at me. I then put my hand on Celestia's shoulder. "Come on, Tia. I'm going to ask Vortigan for a favor,"
Celestia remained at the Hive to watch over the girls, Shella, Mavis, and protect the Hive from another possible attack while Luna and I returned to Canterlot and to the portal to Terra.
We cross through and ask a Terran guard to escort us to Vortigan.
"So what is this favour thou wish to ask the King?" Luna asks me as we walk through the halls of the Castle.
"I'm going to ask for some forces to attack Chrysalis. We'll bring some juggernauts in to push through the Hive and take most of the blows with Clerics following behind them healing along the way. We'll then subdue the changelings that fight back with elven enchanters and when we reach Chrysalis... I'm going to kill her," I reply with a frown.
The bitch is going to regret attacking my home and its people, especially for hurting the first friends I made here.
"What if the Changelings resist to the end?" she asks me.
"Knock them out or if there's no other choice, kill them. Chrysalis' personal guards will have to be slain as well," I reply as we go around a corner and come face to face with that fatass noble who insulted Luna when we first arrived.
"YOU!" he yells in anger and gets right in my face blocking my path. "What are you doing here you barbarian!?" he demands.
I'm in a bad enough mood as it is. "Mr. Thornston if I remember correctly? Move aside or I will move you aside," I threaten him.
"How dare you speak to me like that! Royalty or not I am a high ranking noble of Elysium and you will sho-" he replies but I cut him off by spraying him with a single shadow element silencing and deafening him.
He goes wide eyed as I casually push him aside and walk past him. He tries yelling at me but nothing is said and he grits his teeth in anger.
We finally reach the throne room and Vortigan looks up at the sound of the door opening. "Adrian! To what do I own the honour of this visit?" he asks me with a smile, which fades once I remove my helmet and he sees the frown on my face.
"I wish it were under better circumstances, but one of our towns was burnt to the ground by a changeling Queen by the name of Chrysalis. I've come to request aid to siege her Hive, kill her and show her changelings that there is a better way," I reply and request.
"I see, and do you have a plan?" he asks me.
"The start of one, if you can offer any advice I'd welcome it," I reply.
He hums for a few seconds and then nodded. "Very well, please come with me and explain in detail what has happened and what you plan to do," Vortigan tells me and gets up.
We follow him into his office and over the next three hours discuss a strategy of assaulting Chrysalis' Hive.
We've come to the decision of sending ten juggernauts first followed by ten clerics who will also be protected by our guards and his battle-mages while a squad of elven enchanters use sleeping spells to pacify the attacking changelings. Although lethal force is recommended if needed. Vortigan himself said he would be honoured to join us in battle.
So after five long hours gathering our forces together we stand outside the Lapis Hive with Shella and Luna beside me while Celestia is staying behind to protect the Hive and the element bearers.
Shella with her own changeling guards are coming along to persuade Chrysalis' changelings to join her by showing them the healthy condition they're in and the fact they're allied with Equestria while Luna will be acting as Shella's bodyguard.
"You've all been briefed on the plan, we are to assault the Jade Shell Hive and subdue its population while hunting down their Queen Chrysalis and end her cruelty. Lethal force is authorised if you cannot subdue them," Vortigan shouts out to our forces.
I then speak up. "Battle-mages! You will periodically cast the nullify spell as changelings can disguise themselves with a spell as another person, so keep an eye out for that!" I tell them, getting cheers in return.
"Juggernauts! You'll take point! Push into the Hive and repel the changelings as we head for their throne room!" Vortigan tells his forces and the large armoured soldiers slam their shields together eager to get started. "Clerics! Keep them alive! Battle-mages and pony guards! Keep the clerics safe!"
Once everyone is ready, we march into the Everfree with a force of five-hundred soldiers while following the directions of the changelings who converted to the Lapis Hive and are with us to help convince the others.
We were attacked by a few of the beasts of the Forest like manticores and timberwolves but they were easily dealt with.
After a couple of hours navigating the vegetation, our changelings inform us that they've detected Chrysalis' hive mind network nearby, and that she most likely knows we're here as well.
The entrance to the Hive is up ahead which looks like a fortified cave opening with barricades and about twenty guards posted there.
"Vortigan, once we find Chrysalis I need you to put a barrier around us so no one will disturb us," I tell him as I look at the entrance.
"Very well. So then, shall we begin?" he asks as the guards at the cave are now looking in our direction.
"Let's go say hello," I reply and look back to our forces. "Juggernauts advance!"
The Juggernauts take the lead and charge at the entrance with the clerics and elven enchanters following behind them. Vortigan, Luna, Shella, and I follow after them with the guards and battle-mages around us.
POV: Twilight Sparkle
After Adrian left with Luna and Shella, Prin... Queen Celestia has been trying to comfort me from the loss of my horn. I feel like I've lost a piece of my soul, what makes me... me.
"Don't worry, Twilight. We'll help you get your magic back," Celestia tells me while holding my left hand.
"B-But I'll have to give up being a pony for it..." I reply with a sad frown.
"Is it really that bad? Your brother became a human just so he could protect Equestria better. It doesn't matter what you'll look like, you'll still be the student I took in all those years ago. You'll still be the same mare you've always been, nothing will change that," she tells me and squeezes my hand.
I reach up with my right hand and gingerly touch the stump of what's left of my horn. I then look on the table to my right where my horn has been cleaned and preserved. I reach out and gently pick it up and hold it in front of my face, tears slowly falling down my cheeks as I'll never be able to use it again.
"Have you decided if you'll take Adrian's offer?" Celestia asks me.
I remain silent for a few seconds before looking back at her. "I'm not sure, while his magic is fascinating, it just seems bland and limited... but the elven magic sounds more versatile and has much more functional uses like our magic. If I had to choose, I guess I'd pick being an elf," I reply, but can I really just give up being a pony just to have my magic back?
I gasp as I feel a gentle warmth coming from my cutie-marks, as if they're telling me to go through with it. Magic is my calling, it's who I am, it's what I love doing... More tears flow out as they're right. It doesn't matter what I'll look like, I wouldn't be me if I couldn't study and practice magic anymore.
"I'll do it. I want to be able to use magic again," I reply and start sobbing quietly.
Celestia gently hugs me and wraps me up with her wings as well, I've missed these hugs from her. "It'll all be okay, Twilight. Once Adrian returns after putting that vile mare down, we'll help you get your magic back. So just rest for now and try to cheer up," she tells me while rubbing my back.
I nodded and just hug her back.
POV: Adrian Stormsword
The juggernauts barrel out of the tree line and charge right at the terrified looking changelings as the hulking heavy armoured men slam right through the barricades with ease pushing the changelings aside where the elven enchanters put the knocked down guards to sleep.
The clerics follow right behind them and cast healing beams at the juggernauts periodically as they stomp through the entrance. As we reach forks in the tunnel, a juggernaut, a cleric, two elves and ten guards break off from the main group and begin sweeping the Hive subduing the soldiers that are resisting.
The changelings that converted guide us through the Hive as we battle our way through.
One of Chrysalis' changelings manages to squeeze through and charges at me with a pair of daggers. I hold my shield to my right and once it gets close I sweep my shield to the left and slam it into the changeling's head, knocking it out where our guards tie it up and leave it at the side of the tunnel.
This is a new type of changeling I've not seen before. It's smaller at roughly three feet tall, thinner and much more agile looking, explains how he got past the juggernauts easily.
Vortigan thrusts out an armoured boot into another one of the small and slender changelings face with a nasty cracking sound as the carapace on her face cracks open and knocking her out.
"So these are what Chrysalis’ changelings look like..." he says as he picks up the small changeling he knocked out by the collar of her armour and looks her over.
"Well I haven't seen ones this small before," I tell him and slam another changeling in the head with my shield.
"They're infiltrators. their job is assassination and stealth," Shella tells me while Luna is protecting her, although when Chrysalis' changelings see her they hesitate for a second before they're knocked out.
"Then why doesn't the Lapis Hive have any?" I ask as one of the little buggers jumps on my back and tries to stab me through my armour which held strong.
Vortigan then grabs the pest off me and throws it into the wall and then kicks it in the head knocking it out.
"Chrysalis took all of the military lings back to the main Hive when she destroyed our town..." Shella replies with sadness in her voice.
I frown and look forward again. "How much farther is Chrysalis' room?" I ask.
"We're almost there, but I can feel a lot of lings there waiting for us!" one of our changelings replies.
The wall to our left crumbles and a flood of changelings swarm out and threaten to overrun us.
We're not going to be able to knock them all out without casualties... I channel four fire elements while Vortigan channels five and we cast a torrent of flames into the hole in the wall and roast the changelings inside as their cries of pain and agony echo throughout the Hive.
After a few seconds we cancel the spray and then some unicorns cause the new tunnel to collapse in on itself with their magic.
"Good job! Let's keep moving!" I yell out and our forces cheer in response, despite losing a few of our own forces during their attack.
'Soon, Chrysalis. Your head will be stuck on the tip of my sword for what you've done,' I think to myself as we continue to push forward.
We continue to push our way down the tunnels of Chrysalis' Hive towards her Throne Room while knocking out or killing her forces along the way.
Shella is alerting us that some of her changelings have arrived at the main city area with some of our forces, they incapacitated the guards and are showing the drones and workers what we can offer and even have begun to feed them with their own life wands as proof.
She can even feel new changelings connecting to her hive mind and abandoning Chrysalis' hive mind as we continue to move on.
We pass what appears to be guest quarters while we carefully check them. One of our earth pony guards opens a door next to him only to receive a gryphon's talon to her throat. One of the elven enchanters quickly casts a healing spell on the downed guard closing the wound on her throat.
The difference between human life healing and elven healing spells is that a powerful life element restores the body to it's original state leaving no scars, though weak life spells will leave scars like the one on my chest did. Elven healing is much more complicated as the elf is weaving the damaged skin, muscle, and tissue back into place which will leave a scar.
I drop my shield and sword and take on my life aspect's physical form as I don my thick bark armour and charge at the gryphon. My large left bark covered hand grips the gryphon by its throat as I tackle it into the back wall of the guest room with my right shoulder into its chest.
The gryphon attempts to claw, bite, and kick me away, but I've planted roots from my boots into the ground to anchor myself and it in place.
I lean back and pull my right hand back before thrusting it into the Gryphon's face repeatedly. I stop once it's knocked out in a bloody mess. I'm taking it alive as I want to know why it's here.
"Tie this gryphon up and take it back to the Lapis Hive now, ask Celestia to find out why it's here, this is a high priority order!" I shout out as I cancel my form and retrieve my equipment.
Four unicorns tie and lift the gryphon up and head back down the tunnel with an escort to protect them.
As we approach the Throne Room doors, a feral sounding scream of anger sounds out from behind them.
The doors, are blown out towards us where the juggernauts take the brunt of it and stumble back. After the debris is pushed aside, we look in the room to see an enraged Chrysalis glaring behind me at Shella with the bodies of changelings around her, withered and covered in holes.
They must have been her personal guard and she drained them all dry.
I then turn to Vortigan. "Vortigan... we'll both teleport to her and you throw up a barrier while I distract her," I tell him and he nodded.
"On your mark," he replies.
"The rest of you, prevent anyone else from entering or leaving the room," I tell them and they nodded as well.
I channel the elements for a teleport spell and look at Vortigan. "Now!"
We cast our spells and I appear in front of Chrysalis who looks surprised while Vortigan quickly casts a barrier spell over both me and Chrysalis while channelling his mana to maintain it.
I take advantage of her surprise and try to stab her in the chest, but she recovers and teleports away, only to end up next to the barrier with a shocked expression.
"What is this!?" she shouts and glares at me with a snarl.
"You ain't getting away this time, Chrysalis. You may have escaped from Luna's wrath at the Badlands, but now you got nowhere to run!" I tell her and take on my fire aspect's magic form.
My shield turns into a swirling wall of flame on my left arm while my sword turns into a three metre long spear with an extremely hot blue flame on the tip.
But instead of fear or surprise she just grins and her horn glows as her hands turn into ice covered claws. "You think you have me trapped? I've been gathering my power just for this moment! And you've gone and cut yourself off from your pathetic friends and allies," Chrysalis coos maliciously and then looks over towards Shella. "Once I'm done with you, I'll tear that disgrace of a Queen apart! I made a mistake of letting her get away, I won't make it again," she says and teleports next to me.
She swipes with her ice covered claws and a hiss of steam comes off my flame shield. I grunt in slight pain but I ignore it and attempt a shield bash. She again teleports and swipes my back.
"Argh!" I yelp in pain and quickly swing my shield at her.
I make contact and she's sent into the barrier before hitting the ground. I frown at her and charge with my fire spear at the ready to impale her.
She grins and teleports again behind me and swipes for my back again, but this time I quickly release a nova and blast her back onto the barrier which ripples from the blast.
Chrysalis gets back up where her dress, hair and tail are slightly singed with small wisps of smoke coming off them.
"I'm going to enjoy draining you of your love and ripping your wives and hatchlings apart," she tells me with a sadistic grin.
I scowl at her as Infernus speaks up. 'Why are you toying with her!? End this now by filling this entire barrier with flames fuelled by your anger and rage!' he tells me.
POV: Celestia
'I should have been there for them...' I think as I look from Rainbow Dash to Twilight.
Twilight seems to have calmed down now and is sleeping peacefully with her horn still in her hand.
'I should have been there to protect her... I should have taught her how to defend herself better...' I think to myself with a sad expression.
'Worry not, Celestia. Once she becomes an elf, she'll have access to magic she never thought possible,' Lux tells me.
'Lux? What do you mean?' I ask him.
'Elves have a high pool of mana within them by at least half of what you possess and their magic, while not as combat orientated as the humans, is capable of great feats,' he replies.
'I see, but... I had high hopes for her as she showed great potential... I was actually grooming her to be the alicorn of magic, but that's no longer possible without her horn...' I reply with an internal sigh.
'She may yet still ascend,' he tells me.
'What? How?' I ask with confusion.
'Elves are a member of the fae race, or fairy-folk. Once they've reached a certain point with their magic, they have the chance to ascend into a fairy, they grow large white wings similar to yours, their magic will be on par with an alicorn, perhaps slightly lower and they become ageless. This is very hard to accomplish and only two elves have ever reached this state since the beginning of Terra’s creation,' he replies.
I just stare at Twilight with wide eyes as there is yet still hope for her.
POV: Adrian Stormsword
I gather mine and Infernus' mana as the flames on my body and weapons burst outwards like an inferno as I prepare to unleash all the anger I have towards this monster.
Chrysalis' horn glows as a shard of ice the size of her arm is formed above her horn, she then extends her left arm as if commanding the shard and it soars right at me.
I hiss in pain as it evaporates against my chest leaving a two inch deep hole in the flames which slowly refills.
She then starts rapidly firing shard after shard as the holes on her arms and legs start to multiply, but I am undeterred, the pain insignificant compared to the need of getting rid of this threat and free changeling kind from her cruelty.
POV: Vortigan Llywelyn
Incredible! The power Adrian is gathering is immense, I don't think I'll be able to hold the barrier with what I believe he is going to do.
And his eyes, the rage and anger behind them as they burn brightly on his almost featureless face as this tyrant's attacks are barely affecting him... I suddenly feel a shiver run down my spine and I get the feeling we should be running.
"ALL UNITS! FALL BACK AND GET CLEAR NOW!" I yell back to the others and channel the elements for a teleport spell.
"WHY WON'T YOU JUST DIE ALREADY!" the tyrant screams at Adrian in anger as our forces head back down the tunnel, though two juggernauts remain behind with their shields pressed together to form a wall blocking off the tunnel.
Adrian doesn't answer as the fire around him continues to build up. Chrysalis conjures a spear made of ice and grasps it with her hands, she then thrusts it into Adrian's chest where it starts to sizzle and give off steam.
"Nnngh. That it?" Adrian grunts and taunts. He then thrusts his own spear at Chrysalis, she tries to dodge but gets hit in the shoulder and pinned to the ground.
"AAAARRGH!" she screams as the wound is cauterised instantly.
"This is the end for you, Chrysalis!" Adrian yells in her face and grips her horn with his left hand cutting off her magic and slowly melting the horn as she screams in agony, his body is also starting to get whiter and whiter.
That's my cue to leave. I cast the teleport spell and stand behind the two juggernauts and then cast a wall barrier to take the brunt of the blast.
The next thing I see is nothing but fire rushing past us as a massive explosion shakes the Hive. I cast a healing beam on both of the juggernauts to heal the burns they're no doubt receiving under their armour while protecting me from most of the heat.
After a good ten seconds or so, the fire dies down and the juggernauts step aside to reveal Adrian no longer in his fire form and a pile of ash beneath him.
He turns to look at me but I can't see his face behind his helmet as he then collapses onto his side.
I rush over to him and quickly cast a healing beam at him to heal any damage he may have received.
POV: Shella
We retreated back to the residential area of the Hive to escape that massive explosion that shook the Hive.
I can no longer feel Chrysalis' hive mind pressing against my own and tears start to flow down my face as she's finally dead and my mother and friends have been avenged.
Luna notices this and hugs me, I return the hug and smile.
"It would seem our husband was victorious!" she exclaims happily.
"Yes, I can no longer feel Chrysalis or her hive mind, the changelings are now free," I reply.
The changelings under Chrysalis rule all look scared and confused as their hive mind has been cut off.
"What will happen to us now?"
"How will we survive?"
"Are the Equestrians going to kill us?"
And many more questions are asked as the changelings begin to panic.
Luna then nudges me towards them. "Go ahead, show them what thou canst offer them," she tells me and I look at all the changelings looking towards me with awe and or fear.
"Ahem... Hello, my name is Shella and I am the Queen of the Lapis Hive and mate to King Adrian, Queen Celestia, and Queen Luna of Equestria," I greet them all as whispers are shared throughout the crowd. "I've come to offer you all a better life, a life where we no longer starve and no longer need to hide or foalnap to survive," I tell them.
"But how is that possible? Queen Chrysalis never told us of another Hive or Queen..." one of the changelings asks.
"She wouldn't as you all would have left her to join us, we live with the Equestrians and we help each other. We have our own Hive at the base of Mount Canter which is prospering with other races even coming to trade and visit," I reply.
More murmuring spreads in the crowd and a little filly hatchling walks up to me with wonder. "So my mommy, daddy, and I don't have to hurt anymore?" she asks me.
I smile and pick her up. "That's right, we're all going to live a better life now." I reply to her and give her some of my energy to feed her.
She gasps as her holes begin to close and she lets off a small burp. "Thank you!" she says and hugs me tightly.
"You are welcome," I say and then put her back down.
"Thanks to my husband King Adrian Stormsword, the Equestrians have found a way to feed us without the need to drain anyling else," I tell the crowd and one of my guards passes his life wand to me. "With these life crystals we will never go hungry again," I tell them and point the wand to a very malnourished changeling mare who looks like she can barely stand.
I activate the wand and a burst of life energy soars towards her as she gasps and weakly raises her arms to block it. The energy is absorbed into her hands and she gasps as a few holes close.
She looks to her hands and then hops on the spot feeling more energetic than she did before.
"I would like to join your Hive!" a changeling calls out followed by more and more until the whole Hive is practically begging.
"We will have to expand our Hive but you are all welcome to join. Unlike Chrysalis, I will not abuse my position or any of you," I reply to them and they all cheer out as I can feel more and more connect to my hive mind.
I smile as we've finally freed my kind from centuries of suffering and subjugation by the hands of Chrysalis. A changeling who wiped out all the other hives just so she could be the sole ruler of the changeling race.
Luna turns towards the entrance to the tunnels and gasps, I turn and see Adrian limply being dragged by Vortigan.
We rush over but I'm not worried as I can feel his emotions and steady heartbeat. Luna sits down and rests his head on her lap.
"The battle is over and the tyrant Queen is nothing more than ash now, though he did receive some wounds but I have healed them already," Vortigan tells us.
"We thank thee for aiding our husband, Vortigan," Luna tells him and removes Adrian's helmet.
"You're welcome, I owe him for both defending my city and stabilizing relations with the orcs," he replies and takes his own helmet off.
I lean down and kiss my husband on his forehead with a smile. "Thank you," I gently whisper to him.
I just see a faint smile spread on his lips as I rest my head on his chest.
I yawn as I open my eyes to see I am laying on my bed in my room. I slowly rub the dust out of my eyes and smack my lips together. 'I'm thirsty...' I think to myself as I then just notice Cadence and Luna cuddled up beside me.
I frown for a few minutes as I don't seem to recall how I got here...
"CHRYSALIS!" I then shout out as I remember what happened before I passed out. I reduced that monster to ash.
"AAAAAHH!" "STARS PRESERVE US!" both Cadence and Luna scream in fright from my outburst as they cling onto me tightly.
"Adrian?" Luna asks and I turn my head to her.
"Good morning, Luna. How long was I out for?" I ask her, my throat feels like I drank sand.
She sighs and nuzzles me. "We art glad to see thee awaken so soon after thy display at the Hive... and it has been only two days," she replies to me.
"I see... and how is everyone doing?" I ask with a cough.
Cadence then speaks up. "Well... Ponyville has been destroyed and it will take a long while before it can be rebuilt, so the town's ponies are currently taking refuge at the Lapis Hive or have left to family elsewhere."
"And what about the bearers?" I ask next.
Luna sighs and rests her head on my chest. "They are staying in the Castle for now. Fluttershy, Rarity, Applejack, and Pinkie Pie art fine, just some cuts and bruises. But Twilight is still depressed and Rainbow is adjusting to the loss of her arm," she tells me.
I remain silent for a few seconds before speaking. "Where is Tia and Shella?" I ask them.
"Tia is overseeing court while Shella is aiding her new changelings to settle in at the Hive. They've already begun their transformations to the Lapis Hive's appearance," Luna replies.
I cough again and rub my throat. "Can I have some water please?" I inquire my lovers.
"Oh right, here," Cadence says and levitates a glass of water from the nightstand over to me.
I grasp it and chug down the cool refreshing liquid and sigh in relief. I then thank her getting a smile in return.
"So why are you both here? Not that I'm complaining or anything," I ask them and sit up.
"It was our turn to watch thee, our love. Tia and Shella watched over thee yesterday," Luna replies and leans against me.
"Alright, so-" I say but get cut off as my stomach growls.
"Come, let us get thee something to eat," Luna tells me and gently pulls my hand.
I smile and get off the bed and stumble slightly, but Luna and Cadence catch me before I fell. "My legs feel a bit numb..." I mumble and start stretching the muscles in my legs. My whole body feels stiff.
"Don't worry, we'll help you until you get better," Cadence tells me and I reply with a kiss.
"Thanks, now let's go get some grub... I got a craving for bacon," I tell them and they both giggle.
Guards and maids bow to us with smiles and get well wishes. I return the smiles and nodded politely as we pass by.
We arrive at the Dining Hall and enter to see Blueblood sitting at the table and Rarity sitting on his lap, Fleur Lily their adopted daughter sitting next to them eating a piece of fruit and Thraxx is standing by the wall behind them.
"Good morning," I greet them, getting their attention.
"Adrian darling! Are you alright?" Rarity asks as Luna and Cadence guide me to my chair.
"I'm fine, just still stiff from lying down for too long, but how are you and the others?" I reply and ask her.
She sighs and cuddles up to Blueblood. "I'm okay, but poor Twilight has locked herself in her old room and refuses to come out until you speak with her. Rainbow Dash though is getting better but is finding life hard without her arm... though she said she's glad it was her arm she lost and not her wings," she replies with a sad expression.
"We'll find a way to help her, but for now we must focus on rebuilding Ponyville and helping the changelings we liberated from Chrysalis," I reply as a waiter takes our orders.
Blueblood then speaks up. "That reminds me, how did you defeat that brutish Queen?" he asks me.
I recount to them what I remember from our battle.
"I see, quite the nasty way to go..." he replies with a shudder.
"Where were you during the attack?" I ask him.
He sighs and shakes his head. "I was here in Canterlot going over some paperwork on the nobles taxes and that's when I saw Ponyville burning from my window... I wanted to take a carriage down there but the guards wouldn't let me," he says sombrely and hugs Rarity to his chest.
I understand his frustration, if someone I cared for was in trouble and someone stopped me from coming to their aid I'd be pretty pissed off as well.
"So what will you all do now?" I ask Rarity.
"I'm going to open my own boutique here in Canterlot with Blueblood's help, I may be a princess in title now but I can't stop doing what I love. Rainbow is now applying for a spot on the weather team here and has also adopted Scootaloo as her sister while Pinkie got a job at Doughnut Joe's. Fluttershy is looking to be the animal caretaker in the royal gardens while Applejack and her family are at a loss... Sweet Apple Acres was almost completely destroyed, only a few apple trees survived the fire," she tells me and takes a sip from her tea.
"I see, and planting a new orchard would take years," I say and frown... wait a minute. "I think I might be able to help with that actually..."
"How so?" she asks with a raised brow.
"Mother Gaia, she and I could help grow the trees for them when they are ready to start again," I reply.
I tap Gaia's orb and speak to her. 'is it possible?' I ask her.
'Yes, but with your current skills it would take months to grow them, and it'll go by quicker as you continue to practice. This was the next lesson I was going to teach you anyway, though the circumstances are not ideal, it is a good opportunity to learn,' she replies.
'Alright, I'll go visit Applejack and see what they plan to do later,' I tell her and look back to the others.
"That would be very kind of you. Applejack and her family have just been sitting around with nothing to do since they got here," Rarity tells me.
"I see, well after breakfast I'm going to visit Tia and then talk to Twilight," I reply and wait for our food to arrive.
After a few minutes we receive our food and dig in. Rarity, Blueblood, Lily, and Thraxx say their goodbyes and leave the room.
Once we also finish, we head to the Throne Room where a long line of people are waiting to enter. The guards at the door bow to us and let us inside where Celestia is sitting on her throne with Valiant in her arms.
"I would like to make a donation of three-thousand bits towards the rebuilding of Ponyville," I hear Fancy Pants say as he pats the small cart next to him. The sound of coins jingling slightly echoes throughout the room with each pat.
"Thank you, Sir Fancy Pants. This will be a great help to start the rebuilding process," Celestia replies and then spots me. "Adrian!" she nearly yells and quickly walks over to us and hugs me with a kiss while squashing poor Valiant between us.
"Hello, Tia. I'm sorry for worrying all of you again," I tell her and rest my forehead against hers.
"It's okay, you won and you're fine. That's all that matters," she replies and pulls me along to our thrones.
We all sit down and I have Valiant on my lap who is giggling and slapping me on my chest. Court continues and a lot of the people express their relief that I'm okay making me smile. It seems since the new laws started the nobility are starting to change, though some are still stubbornly trying to resist.
Four hours later
We head out to lunch where I decide it's time to talk to Twilight. Silk Sheet's is pushing a cart behind me with mine and Twilight's lunch as we make our way over to her old room.
After a long and tedious climb up the stairs, I knock on her door and wait for a reply... none came.
"Twilight? It's me Adrian," I call out to her.
I hear shuffling and the door opens to a rather ragged looking Twilight who looks like she's not slept well.
"King Adrian... erm, please come in," she says quietly and steps aside.
I first turn to Silk. "Thank you for your help, please go and see if Tia or the others need any help as I'll be here for awhile," I tell her.
"Okay, Adrian. I'll see you later," she replies and heads off. She’s one of the few staff members who treats me like a friend instead of her boss.
I walk into Twilight's room with the cart and sit down on a couch. Twilight sits across from me and sighs.
"So, Twilight. How are you feeling?" I ask her.
"Better, but I just feel empty without my magic... I haven't slept well and I keep having nightmares," she replies and lowers her head.
I get up and sit beside her and give her a gentle hug. "It'll be fine, Twilight. We can still help you cast magic again, it'll just be different from what you know, you like learning new magic don't you?" I ask her.
She leans into the hug and starts sniffling but nodded.
"And you'll have a long time to learn it, did you know elves can live up to three-hundred to five-hundred years old?" I tell her and she looks at me with surprise.
"Really?" she asks and I nodded.
She's silent for a few minutes as I prepare our lunch with my right hand.
"What kind of spells do elves have?" she finally asks me.
I chuckle and gently rub her back with my left hand. "Mostly nature magic, like aiding in the growth of plants and healing, but they can also create powerful portals and enchantments, manipulate the mana in the air as well as understand runic magic. They also have very good eyesight which makes them exceptional archers and their ears are also better than a human's," I reply and hold a cup of tea out to her.
She takes the cup and sips slowly. "I'll admit the portals, runes, and enchantments sound fascinating..." she says but trails off.
"But?" I ask.
"I'm a pony... how will others see me if I become an elf? What would my friends think?" she replies and asks with doubt.
"They'd still be your friends. It doesn't matter what you look like as long as you stay who you are. If they leave you just because you’ll look different now, then they never were friends to begin with. But know that me, Tia, Luna, Cadence, Shella, Shining, Spike, and many others will always be there to help you," I reply and pat her on the head.
She slowly smiles and sighs as she reaches out and takes a cucumber sandwich. "I know, but it's still a scary thought," she tells me before biting into it.
After a few minutes of eating silently I speak up. "So, are you ready or do you need more time?" I ask her.
"I've been thinking about it over the last two days... I want to do this, my cutie-mark is telling me to do this, but I'm just scared I won't be me anymore," she replies.
"You'll be fine, only your body will change," I reassure her.
She sighs and nodded. "Alright," she says and I help her up.
After letting her make herself more presentable, we both head down to the Throne Room where Celestia and the others are on their thrones.
"Twilight!" Cadence yells and rushes over carefully as to not injure herself or her baby.
"Hello, Cadence," Twilight replies and hugs her gently.
"Are you feeling better?" Cadence asks her.
Twilight nodded to her. "I am and I'm ready to get my magic back,"
I look over to Celestia who has a sad smile on her face.
Two hours later
Shining Armour and Spike are here along with Twilight's parents, Twilight Velvet and Night Light. Also with us is Vortigan along with his best elven enchanter Elune who Celestia and Luna will use as a template.
She has light pale skin like most elves, green eyes and long blonde hair. She’s wearing an elegant white dress with a staff on her back.
Twilight is nervously standing between the two alicorn sisters as their horns begin to glow.
"Are you positive about this, Twilight?" her mother asks her with worry.
Twilight smiles at her and nodded. "I am, I'd like to have my magic back," she replies and takes a deep breath.
"Just relax, Twilight. This won't hurt at all," Celestia reassures her.
Twilight's eyes close as Celestia's and Luna's horns glow brighter and the elf glows slightly before the light then transfers to Twilight who is then enveloped in a cocoon of light.
Just like with Shining, an outline of Twilight is seen as her legs change from a three joint to a two joint structure and feet form from her hooves while her tail hair falls off and the stump recedes into her.
She gains an extra finger and her ears travel down to the side of her head but get thinner, although they retain their long pointy appearance.
She also grows to be the same height as Celestia and looks more slender.
It takes ten minutes for the change to complete and both alicorn sisters gasp as they finish the spell.
The cocoon fades away and Twilight now has pale skin, long deep blue hair with her purple and pink highlight through it, which is strange as elves have blonde or silver hair. Even the female elf used for the template looks surprised.
Twilight blinks a few times before looking around and then looks dizzy. Celestia and Luna quickly catch her and set her gently down to the floor.
"Twilight? Are you alright?" Celestia asks her with worry.
Twilight looks at her and nodded gently. "I feel dizzy, but okay," she replies and then looks at her pale hands. Her expression drops as she notices her cutie-marks are gone.
She silently examines herself as her mother kneels beside her and gently strokes her hair.
Twilight then gasps. "I feel something within me... is this mana?" she asks with fascination.
The elven enchanter Elune stands in front of her and looks down at the new elf. "Indeed. I have been assigned to teach you how to access that mana and how our magic works," she tells Twilight in a refined and self righteous tone. Argh, elves...
I walk over and hold my hand out to Twilight. "So, are you ready to learn?" I ask her.
She looks up at me with a wide smile spreading on her face as she grips my hand and I pull her up. "I am."
Terracana Chapter 80: Adjusting to Life in Canterlot
POV: Twilight Sparkle
After Adrian helped me up, Spike, Elune, and I head to the Archives to begin my lessons on elven magic. While I am upset I'll never use my pony magic again, learning a whole new kind of magic is exciting!
"So what are we learning first?" I ask Elune.
She looks over her shoulder with a raised eyebrow. "We shall begin by getting you to tap into your mana pool. From what I have been told, unicorns gather it from the atmosphere with their horn correct?" she replies and asks.
"Yes, our horns act like magical muscles able to store the magic around us and then manipulate it into what we need it to be," I reply while Spike helps me walk as my legs feel so strange now.
"I see. We elves use our hands and eyes as the focus for our spells or through staffs to enhance them. Unlike the humans whose magic is blunt and brutish, our magic has a myriad of uses. Portals spanning miles and even dimensions, the ability to grow flora at a rapid pace which allows our alchemists a near unlimited supply of reagents. We can also enchant objects or living things with benefits such as increased strength, agility, and intelligence or hexes to weaken, slow, and addle the mind," Elune explains to me.
"What about these runes Adrian told me about?" I ask her.
"Ah yes, runecrafting is a delicate art that requires years of study. You need to make sure the runes you'll be using for the spell or enchantment are perfect with no imperfections as that could result in a serious backlash. Runes are used mostly in the Reymorian army's weapons and armour. They add elemental effects or resistances, protections, and enhancements. The dwarves have their own variation of runes but they act more like triggers or seals," she replies as I take all this information in.
"Wow, this is all so fascinating!" I say with glee as we just arrive at the Archives.
"Yes it is, and you are acting like a human child who just received a gift on their birthday... No matter, we'll work that out of you as we progress," Elune says and opens a portal where she pulls out some books and crystals.
"What do you mean by that?" Spike asks with a frown.
"What I mean is her current attitude is unbefitting for an elf. We are a regal race and take matters seriously. While you're enthusiasm is all well and good, it'll get in the way of you fully understanding your new magic," she replies.
"So what you're saying is that she needs to act more like you?" Spike growls out.
"Don't get snippy with me lizard! If she wishes to learn our magic then she must respect our ways," Elune retorts with her own frown.
Spike growls deeply with a snarl as smoke comes out of his nostrils.
"You want me to be somepony I'm not!?" I ask her aghast.
"You are an elf now and I shall not have you embarrassing our race with your immature antics," she replies and narrows her eyes at me.
I just stare at her with wide eyes.
"And who are you to tell her to change!?" Spike demands angrily as he lays one of his large wings over my back. Oh how I've missed him over the days he was away, it just wasn’t the same in Ponyville without him.
"I am a high-elf of the Haluran Council and it is we who decide who is allowed to learn the elven arts of magic. If she will not follow our ways then I will not teach her," Elune replies with a scowl of her own.
Before anyone could say another word, Discord appears in a puff of pink smoke wearing a doctor's apron with gloves on his paw and talon. "Alright, what's going on here? I was just about to do some delicate quantum space time manipulation when I felt an unusual flux of chaos..." he demands.
His sudden appearance makes me jump with a yelp. "Discord! What are you doing here?" I ask him as I try to calm myself down.
Though before he could reply, Elune blasts him with a bolt of golden magic into a bookshelf. "Foul beast! I know not what kind of twisted magic birthed you, but I shall not allow you to taint my magic with your dark mana!" she yells at Discord.
Discord literally pulls himself out from under the books piled on top of him and is no longer in his doctor outfit. "Well I never! Madam, I am the Aspect of Chaos! One of the twelve Aspects of Terra!" he roars out in anger and snaps his talon's fingers.
Elune glows and is suddenly turned into a white earth pony mare with a blonde mane and tail, a small chest and slender frame.
The elf turned mare then gasps and looks horrified. "I demand you change me back this instant or you shall suffer the wrath of the fae elves!" she demands but then trips over her hooves.
"Not until you calm yourself down, missy!" he replies and looks to me. "Now then, what seems to be the problem to cause the chaos that it did?" he asks me.
Spike glares at Elune who is trying to stand back up. "She wanted Twilight to change her personality so she'd act more like an elf. Kinda reminds me of the stuck up nobles personally," Spike replies for me.
"I see, and why is she demanding this?" Discord asks while stroking his goatee.
"She won't teach Twilight elven magic unless she does so she doesn't humiliate the elven race..." Spike tells him and snorts smoke at Elune.
"I see. Well then, I have a better idea," Discord says and snaps his fingers again. A green and gold book that looks similar in design to Adrian's spell book appears on the table. "While Starswirl learnt human magic, he also studied the magics of the other races as well. This is all the knowledge he gathered on Elven spells, enchantments, and runes back then," he tells me and snaps his fingers again as another book appears. "And this one contains the more modern spells and such, written by yours truly!"
Elune now looks enraged. "Where did you get those! All books containing our magic are at the Haluran Council Archives!" she demands but trips again.
"If you must know I learnt all about your magic and secrets while I was on Terra over the last thousand years," he replies with a smug expression.
"Impossible!" she shouts as she uses the desk to balance herself.
"Hardly, I just sat in during the classes at your precious Archive, invisible to even your magic," he replies and turns to Twilight. "So what'll it be sparkle? Become like her and learn from her," he says pointing over towards Elune. "or do what you do best and let books guide and teach you?" he asks with a grin.
I look from him to the books on the table and start to drool. All the elven knowledge both modern and old, by Starswirl and the Aspect of Chaos themselves!
Discord chuckles and looks back to Elune. "It would seem she's made up her mind," he tells her.
"You will pay for this humiliation!" she yells at him.
Discord just roll his eyes and snaps his fingers making her disappear in a puff of pink smoke. "The elves can be so annoying... and that's coming from me!" he says and sighs. "I'm warning you now, Twilight. Don't get involved with the elves, think of them as Canterlot's nobles but ten times worse," he tells me seriously.
I nodded slowly before I slowly walk over to the books and gently stroke the binding of the old cracked leather tome. A shiver goes down my spine as I gently pick it up and open it to the first page.
"Well then, if you need a tutor, Sparkle. Just give me a holler, I'd be happy to help you. Toodles!" Discord tells me in a much happier tone and vanishes.
Five hours later
This is all so fascinating! I've already figured out how to access my mana and I’m delighted to discover the elves have their own form of levitation. Although it can only lift one object at a time, it is still nice to have a familiar spell again.
I practice with the levitation spell on a quill and it gently rises up into the air. "You're getting the hang of that quickly," Spike says to me while shelving a few books.
"I know! From what I've learnt already, the elves have many different spells with many different functions depending on how it's used!" I reply and use my eyes as my focus to move the quill around.
The Archive's doors open and in comes my five friends who look tired. "Rough day?" I ask them all. Spike just stares sadly at Rarity before sighing and getting back to shelving books back to where they belong.
At first they look confused and look around. "Yeah... Where's Twilight?" Rainbow asks me while Pinkie is giving me an odd look.
I tilt my head and frown. "I'm right here..." I reply with a confused expression. Oh right, I'm not a unicorn anymore and they were out when I was transformed.
They all look at me wide eyed. "Yeah right... Twilight's a purple unicorn, you look like a pointy eared human." Rainbow says and attempts to cross her arms but forgets her left arm is missing. She sighs and settles for resting her right hand on her hip.
"I'm an elf now actually," I reply as I get up and walk over to them.
"Elf, human. Both the same really," Rainbow says as Rarity goes wide eyed.
"Erm, Rainbow darling? I think she’s telling the truth..." Rarity tells her while pointing to my mane.
The others gasp and swarm around me asking questions. So over the next ten minutes I explain to them what happened.
POV: Adrian Stormsword Two weeks later
Life appears to have settled down for now over the last two weeks.
The gryphons attempted another raid on Trotsburg, a small village on the border, but fortunately the town managed to evacuate and take refuge at Las Pegasus. We also sent a force of two-hundred guards with some human mages with them as well to retake the town and slaughter any gryphons there.
They returned victorious with forty-four gryphons killed and only fifteen losses, without their shields or barriers, and our new weapons from Terra, the gryphons don't seem much like a threat anymore.
Rainbow has adjusted to her new job as a Canterlot weather pegasus, though she did tell me she misses her position as weather Captain of Ponyville. She also managed to save her cloud house from Ponyville where it is now parked near the Castle, she’s even taken in the little orange pegasus I saved named Scootaloo since her parents were… killed.
She's also now used to her missing arm but sometimes gets the sensation that it's still there. Something Twilight told me was called phantom limb syndrome. I've been doing research in a way that could help her and I've discovered something the elves and dwarves are working on together on Terra.
The dwarves have managed to make large stone golems and the elves with their runecrafting have managed to make them into artificial soldiers that can follow basic commands, which are still in development. With this there may be a way to make Rainbow a new arm, but that's still just a theory.
Pinkie Pie's mood has been fluctuating all over the place, happy one minute and a sobbing mess the next. She misses her job at Sugarcube Corner and the Cake family she worked for. She tells me they're fine and are looking to set up a new bakery once Ponyville is rebuilt, but I'm told that may not happen for another year yet.
She also says she's having fun at Joe's place at the moment but it just isn't the same.
Rarity finally found a place to set up shop where Fleur Lily and Blueblood have moved in with her. Her boutique is now up and running and she already has a few orders for dresses.
Applejack has been given some land at the base of Mount Canter near the Lapis Hive and has begun planting new trees and transferring the surviving trees from her destroyed orchard over, I’ll be over in the coming weeks to help her in growing them quickly. A farmhouse and barn are also being constructed for her and her family as well.
Fluttershy is living in a small cottage on the Castle grounds where she is now looking after the animals living there. She's even helping the staff's sick or injured pets as well. Out of all of them she seems to be the most settled after Rarity, though she told me she misses all of her old animal friends back at her cottage, but they fortunately got away before the invasion.
Spike has gotten over most of his depression about Rarity and has moved on from it. He's been helping Twilight learn more and more from those books by getting her the tools and materials she asks for. Even Celestia says the Archives have never been so organised before he took over.
I still think he'd make a great soldier, but if he doesn't want to fight I'll respect his decision.
Twilight herself is progressing remarkably fast. Those books Discord gave her are highly detailed and hold nearly over a thousand spells and uses for them.
I've also told her about the elf who was supposed to teach her, apparently Discord said she was sent back to Vaylen where she remained a pony for a day and then turned back into an elf. She returned to the Castle and demanded that Discord be punished for her humiliation and that the books be handed over.
I told her no as the books didn't belong to her or the elves as they were written by Starswirl and Discord. To say she was unhappy was an understatement, she even threatened to take them by force before I took on my fire aspect magic form and glared down at her, to which she ran as fast as she could back through the portal screaming in the elven tongue.
Just like how they worship Gaia as a goddess of nature, it seems to them Infernus is the king of the demons and is named the flames of death. Sufficed to say, she didn't come back again nor did any other elf.
Shining is coming along well with his element training, he can channel a single life element and has been practising it on injured guards during their training or on those injured in the medical wing. He tried to cast a barrier once... but ended up encasing himself in a small bubble shaped barrier for ten minutes. Twilight was there while practising her own magic and couldn't resist rolling him around while laughing.
For the first few days after the invasion, Mavis was having nightmares from the diamond dog and changeling attack on the Hive while she was there. Luna has been keeping an eye on her and even pulled Shella's mind into her dreams to calm our scared daughter.
I asked why she can't do that for me, apparently my resistance to pony magic only allows her to see and slightly influence my dreams, she can't pull me out... that upset me a little.
Cadence is getting closer to giving birth to our baby, just another month and a half to go! The second Princess egg Shella laid is also close to hatching, just a couple more days Shella estimates and we'll have a new daughter in the family.
My parents visited a few times where Jasmine and Fleur Lily played together when they could. Mom's shop is prospering well thanks to their expansion and the designs she trades with Rarity.
I continued my training with Infernus over the two weeks as he told me I need better control over gathering lots of mana together, the fact I passed out after reducing Chrysalis to ash was an embarrassment to him.
The Lapis Hive has expanded rapidly to accommodate all the newest changelings in the Hive. The changelings that used to be a part of Chrysalis' Hive are showing improvement to both their happiness and health, they've also completed their transformations and now look just like the Lapis Hive changelings.
The Ponyville residents that stayed there are also helping out with whatever they can help with while they wait for their town to be rebuilt.
And so life is going by calmly and smoothly. Celestia has finished her plans for invading Aires Peak and striking down the Elder Council of the gryphons thanks to the info gathered from Hagriff and the images drawn by Venna, they've been scheduled for release after the attack on Aries Peak.
I'm currently sitting on my throne and attending court with Celestia while Luna is helping Cadence to relax as she is getting more moody lately. I was wondering when her mood swings would kick in, I'm surprised it took this long.
Celestia right now is talking to a woman asking for advice about some kind of financial problem.
Shella is currently down at her Hive overseeing its progress. I'm not really paying attention to court as I play with Valiant who is on my lap.
After a few minutes, the Throne Room doors open up and in runs a guard. "Your Majesties! I bring news from the border guards! A blue dragon has been sighted entering Equestria!" she tells us.
Celestia gasps and walks down to the guard. "Can you tell me any details about this dragon?" she asks her.
"Only that the dragon seems to be female with blue scales and only an adolescent close to your height," the guard replies.
“And where was she last spotted?” Celestia then asks.
“The last report said she was just over Nieghagara Falls, at the speed she’s travelling I estimate it’ll take her two days to arrive,” the guard replies.
Celestia frowns for a few seconds. “Get the guards ready and warn the towns from Canterlot to Nieghagara Falls to avoid any contact with her,” she orders the guard.
The guard salutes and heads out the room to complete her order. Why would a small young dragoness come to Equestria?
"What do you think this adolescent dragoness is coming here for? Do you think she heard of the dragons I killed?" I ask Celestia after we had the Throne Room cleared.
"I don't know, I do know that an adolescent wouldn't be much of a threat to us. There has to be something bigger happening in Drakonis and we'll just have to wait for this dragoness to arrive and state her intentions," she replies and sighs.
"We'll deal with it when it comes. Come on, let's finish court and then go back to our room where I'll give you a massage," I tell her, getting a smile in return.
"That does sound nice," she replies and sits back down on her throne.
Six hours later
We took a break for lunch and returned to finish court, we even took turns speaking to the people while the other played with Valiant.
Twilight visited us asking for permission to go to Terra to buy some materials for her elven magic studies and I gave her five-hundred gold coins for her to get what she needs, after she told us what she needed first and why. Don't need her going into forbidden magic now.
She returned a couple hours later and thanked us again before heading back to the Archive.
Once court was over, Celestia and I head back to our room where Silk is waiting for us. "Good evening, Adrian, Celestia. Luna and Cadence are inside waiting for you. Shella also sent a message saying she'll be home in an hour," she tells us.
"Thank you, Silk. We'll wait until Shella returns before ordering dinner," Celestia replies and I ruffle up Silk's mane playfully.
She giggles and bows. "Then I shall return once she arrives, unless you require anything else?" she asks us.
"That will be all, Silk. Perhaps Shining Armour could use your help for now?" Celestia replies with a wide smile.
Silk grins and bows again. "Of course, Celestia. I will be back soon," she says and quickly heads off down the hall.
I chuckle and open our room's doors for my wife and son. "After you," I say and gesture her in.
"Thank you my love," she says and kisses me as she passes by.
I close the doors behind us and then spot Cadence on the bed... with Luna suckling on her chest.
Luna turns to us with a white upper lip which she quickly licks off. "Ah, we take it court is finally over?" she asks us.
I quickly put my fingers under my nose and glad to find no blood this time. "Yeah, I'm about to give Celestia a massage if you're both interested as well?" I reply as Celestia strips out of her dress after giving Valiant to Cadence.
"We'd love one," Cadence replies as Celestia lies belly down on the bed.
I remove my armour and then straddle her thighs where I then begin to massage her neck and shoulders getting a sigh of approval from her.
One day and eighteen hours later
We're standing out in the courtyard with Shining Armour, Twilight, Spike, and fifty guards armed with rifles and spears looking over to the south as reports indicated the dragoness is just a few minutes away from arriving and is being followed by a squad of pegasi as a precaution.
The sun is slowly setting to the west and nearing the horizon. "So, what do you think she'll be like?" I ask my wives who have gathered together while Discord is looking after Cadence, Mavis, and Valiant.
"If she is like any the other dragons we have ever known, apart from Spike, she'll be rude, arrogant, greedy, and aggressive," Luna replies with a huff.
"Well, personally I am hoping she'll be different from the others, she is an adolescent after all, she may have not been around the dragons long enough to pick up their bad habits," Celestia then says hopefully.
The others just give her a deadpan stare.
"There she is!" a guard points out towards the sky.
I look up to see a small blue object heading towards us at a decent pace with other objects behind it. As it gets closer, I can make out a few details, she has ice blue under scales and has two horns on the sides of her head curled downwards till they point forward, she also has deep blue fins on her head and a leaf like tail tip.
We wait for a few more minutes as she lands in front of us with our guards pointing rifles and spears at her.
"State your intentions, dragon," Shining Armour demands of her.
"I've come with a warning as my father plans to invade your lands soon," she tells us, her voice even sounds like a teenager.
I glance to Spike to see what he thinks as this is the first dragon he's likely met. I grin as he's red faced and wide eyed while he stares at her. I also notice a thin trail of blood dripping out his nose, ah that's right, dragons don't wear clothes like us.
I look back to the dragoness and notice she's more bipedal like Spike but unlike Spike, she has three joint legs like the ponies compared to Spike's and my own two joint ones.
"And why are you telling us this?" Shining asks her.
She scoffs and rolls her eyes. "Unlike my father, I actually want to see the world and not slaughter its inhabitants. How am I to learn new things if what knew them is dead? So I sneaked out and made my way here after a meeting my father had with a strange looking gryphon," she tells him.
"Strange looking gryphon?" I ask confused.
"Yeah, he was larger than a normal gryphon and had a face similar to yours actually," she replies with a raised brow at me.
I frown in thought before going wide eyed. "You don't suppose that was the gryphons so called Sphinx God?" I ask my wives but then notice Shella watching the dragoness cautiously. "What's the matter, Shella?" I ask her while wrapping my right arm around her waist.
"Dragons have been known to wipe out entire Hives just to eat us... I'm just worried about my Hive," she replies.
The dragoness then looks surprised herself. "You're a changeling? That complicates things then," she says and looks to the south.
"How so?" I ask as I place myself between them.
She sighs and sits down. "A dragon that has eaten a changeling becomes addicted to the taste and will do nearly anything to have another, they're like a delicacy to them... If the other dragons of Drakonis find out there's a large Hive here as well as a Queen, they'll do anything to get to them," she tells me with a frown.
"Then you should know that we aren't going to let you go now right?" I warn her and frown back at her.
"I don't want to go back as my father seems to have lost his mind and is making preparations to attack Equestria," she replies still with her frown but then looks to Spike. "And why is there a dragon already here?" she asks looking him over.
"He lives here with us and is keeper of our Archives," Celestia replies.
"Interesting... It seems my theory of living with other races wasn't just a theory," she says as she gets up and walks over to him.
The guards stay on alert as she circles around him while Spike's eyes never leave her. "Erm, hi," he mumbles to her and she raises an eyebrow at him.
"What's your name?" she asks him and to his embarrassment she sniffs at him a few times.
"S-Spike," he replies and then yelps as she places one of her claws between his legs.
"Hmmm, you are quite a strong and healthy male despite your oddly shaped legs... how have you survived in a land that doesn't eat meat?" she asks him.
"I-I've ate s-some fish now and t-then along with a l-lot of gems..." he replies blushing furiously. "W-What's your name?" he asks her.
"I am Ember, daughter to Dragonlord Torch," she replies like it wasn't a big deal.
Celestia gasps and walks over to her. "Torch? He is now Dragonlord?" she asks Ember.
"He has been for the last seven-hundred years," Ember replies and continues to examine Spike.
"This isn't good, the last time I saw him is when he tried to steal all the funds in the royal treasury centuries ago before I managed to repel him... If he's now the Dragonlord, why hasn't he attacked again with all the dragons?" Celestia wonders aloud.
Ember looks from Spike to Celestia. "I think he's been waiting for an opportunity to attack for years now, but whatever that strange gryphon told him seems to have given that chance," she replies and looks back at spike who is just two inches taller than her. "I like you, so I shall claim you as my mate!" she declares surprising everyone.
While Spike now looks redder than a tomato, Twilight's notebook and quill drop from her hands and she glares at Ember. "You will do no such thing!" she yells and gets in between them both with a glare.
"Oh? And who are you to deny me my choice in mate?" Ember demands and shoves Twilight aside, fortunately she uses her new levitation spell to hover herself in the air before setting down on the ground.
"He is my little brother and number one assistant! He knows nothing about you and might not even like you!" Twilight tells her and stands her ground.
"Your brother? How? You are not a dragon," Ember asks with a growl.
"I hatched his egg when I was younger and he has been a part of our family since!" Twilight replies through gritted teeth.
"Even so, it is dragon tradition for the females to pick their mate. The males back home didn't appeal to me with their single minded obsessions for gold and gems. Here I find a male who doesn't care for that and is a knowledge keeper as well. I can sate my curiosity for knowledge and have a mate around my age to be with," she replies and before anyone could react, she bites down on Spike's left shoulder hard leaving teeth marks on his scales with small licks of deep blue flames.
Spike's eyes widen and his pupils dilate as he takes a deep breath before returning the bite on her shoulder, leaving his own teeth marks and small bits of green flames.
They both stay like that for a few seconds as their flames both change to a light cyan colour before letting each other go and Spike blinks blankly for a few seconds before hissing in slight pain. "The hay just happened?" he asks us while rubbing his shoulder and head.
Twilight, despite her anger towards Ember is writing furiously in her notebook.
"We have marked each other and are now life mates," Ember tells him.
Spike just stares at her for a minute before fainting and falling onto his back.
POV: Spike Twenty Minutes Later
I blink slowly as I open my eyes and look around. I'm laying on a couch while Twilight and Ember are talking to each other next to a desk. Adrian and the Queens are sitting on the other couch as they let the others talk.
Huh? When did I get into Celestia's office?
"Spike!" Twilight yells as she notices that I'm awake. "Are you alright?" she asks and looks at my left shoulder.
I look there as well and notice the teeth marks in my scales. I then remember what Ember did to me.
"I think so... so what was the biting thing about?" I ask and rub my eyes.
"I have picked you to be my life mate," Ember replies.
"I don't even know you," I tell her and frown.
"And we have centuries to get to know one another," she replies and sits beside me. I look at her left shoulder and see teeth marks on her as well... did I really bite her back?
"Ember told me about dragon courting rituals. I'm afraid this is more than just a marking, you both injected each other with a small amount of your flames... you're basically soulbound together now," Twilight tells me.
I look from her to Ember and then back to Twilight... "So... erm... does that make us married then?" I ask confused.
"What is this married?" Ember asks.
After a long winded explanation from Twilight, Ember gets the idea. "I see, then yes it's similar to that," she tells us.
I frown and lean back into the couch... I just got married without even realizing it. Not how I imagined my wedding day to go. I don’t even know anything about her...
Though I will admit she looks gorgeous and seems nice enough, if a little forward. "So there's nothing we can do about this?" I ask just to make sure.
"No," Ember replies sternly.
"Fine then," I say getting a satisfied grin from Ember. "But I’m taking you on a date tomorrow then. If we're to spend the rest of our lives together, I want to know the mare... err dragoness I'm with," I tell her getting a confused expression from her.
I notice Celestia, Luna, and Cadence giggling to each other while they cuddle up to a smirking Adrian.
And after another explanation from Twilight, Ember gets it again. "Ah, well... I've never known a dragon to do one of these, dates… but I will admit I am intrigued and would like to learn about this, dating," she says.
"Well then. We'll leave you both to get to know each other better," Celestia tells us and pulls Adrian by his arm towards the door, followed by the other Queens.
Twilight sighs and gets up as well. "I'll look after the Archives until you get back." She tells me and heads out the door leaving me and Ember alone... together.
"So..." I start with a nervous chuckle. "what's the dragon lands like?" I ask her.
POV: Adrian Stormsword
"Do you think we can trust her?" I ask my wives.
"For now, but we have some of our thestral guards watching them from the shadows just in case," Luna replies.
"I agree. While her warning is appreciated, she is an unknown and until we get to know her better we'll keep an eye on her. Though I do believe she alone isn't a threat," Celestia says.
"Well I thought she was nice, though the whole claiming Spike as her mate really threw me off," Cadence says with a frown. "There was little to no love there, as if it was more instinctual than anything else."
"We'll just give it time and see where they go, but as for the matter of the Dragon Lord, how do you suppose we deal with the whole of Drakonis invading us. One or maybe two dragons sure, that's possible, but a whole swarm of them?" I ask them with a frown of my own. "Unless Infernus' flames can melt through lava proof dragons I don't have much else..."
We reach our room and I open the doors for them.
"We'll have to ask Ember tomorrow about all she knows and any possible way to deal with her father," Celestia replies and walks past me.
We see Discord on the floor with both Mavis and Valiant giggling as he manipulates a couple of stuffed manticore dolls to cuddle and play with the foals.
"Ah, Adrian! I must say spending time with the little ones is such a delight!" Discord tells me and picks up the foals into a gentle hug.
"Thank you for looking after them while we dealt with the dragon,” I reply and take Mavis from him while Celestia takes Valiant.
"Anytime! Now I must be going, I have a card game with a couple of trolls in Dangurak Marsh on Terra! Ciao!" he says and disappears.
After putting the foals to bed and Celestia and Luna doing their thing with the sun and moon, we all strip out of our clothes and get into our own bed and cuddle up. "Goodnight," I say to my lovers and get one from each of them in return.
'I hope Spike knows what he's doing,' I think to myself with a smirk before drifting off to sleep.
My lovers and I wake up and get ready for the day. After the whole Ember thing I wonder how Spike is doing?
We're eating breakfast in the Dining Hall with Twilight and Shining Armour this time and discussing what to do about the dragons. After a few minutes the doors open to reveal Spike with a deep blush on his face and Ember walking beside him, at least she's wearing a shirt and skirt now.
"Are you alright, Spike?" I ask him, this gets everyone else to look at him.
His blush seems to spread as he sits down with Ember. "I err, yeah. I-I'm fine..." he replies and rubs the back of his head.
I raise an eyebrow at him but Ember speaks up. "We shared his bed together for the night, I do not know why he is so embarrassed, don't mates sleep together here?" she asks confused.
Oh... so he's just embarrassed with sleeping next to her? "Yes we do, we all share a bed together," I reply and gesture to my herdmates.
Ember then turns to Spike. "Then why are you so flustered?" she asks him in a demanding tone.
Spike looks down with a pout. "It was my first time sleeping with anypony... and you were really clingy," he mutters quietly, a faint blush on his face.
I chuckle slightly. "Don't worry, Spike. From what I've learnt during my time here is that women here are very affectionate and love cuddling... at least my girls do," I tell him getting two wings smacking the back of my head.
I look to my sides and see Celestia and Luna both pouting at me, but I notice the little smirks they're trying to hide.
"Oh..." Spike says and looks back at Ember who just raises an eyebrow at him.
Luna then leans over and whispers into my ear. "Heat season begins in two days time, we can feel ours just starting and we look forward to conceiving thy foal," she tells me lustfully.
Oh crap, is it that time of year already?... Well, I'm going to be camping in my room for the week. I'm not looking forward to a repeat performance with Silk again, or with any of the other staff members.
"Oh really?" I ask her teasingly while stroking her thigh under the table.
She gasps slightly and smirks at me. "We also have a surprise ready for thee as well," she tells me with a giggle.
I raise an eyebrow at her wondering what she has planned.
I chuckle and turn my attention back to Ember. "So, Ember. What do you think your father will do?" I ask her. The others also look intrigued for her answer.
She sighs as she puts down a slice of bacon. "My father believes in only power and will most likely lead the attack against you. He's also the largest dragon alive and just as big as your Castle," she tells us and then takes a bite of her bacon.
I frown at that, how are we supposed to fight something that big? I know Gaia and I defeated that undead giant in Terra but we had the element advantage then... I doubt I'll be able to cover him in enough water and generate enough lightning to even hurt him...
I then feel my right hand pulse and I see Infernus' orb blinking so I tap it.
'Ask the lizard how much heat a dragon can withstand,' he tells me.
While not happy with his choice of words, I do as he asks. "Ember, how much heat can a dragon withstand?" I ask her.
She swallows her food and looks back at me. “We can stay submerged in lava for about two minutes before our internal organs begin to burn, why?" she replies and asks me.
"Infernus wanted to know," I reply as Infernus speaks up again.
'Then I may have a solution to our problem. If you can convince her father to a one on one battle, my champion form may be enough to kill or at least wound him greatly,' he tells me.
'And what is your champion form?' I ask.
'He is the creator of hellfire and the god of the wyverns which I have named Heltirius. This form takes on a molten wyvern that can breath flames hotter than a sun and can melt even the most resistant of materials,' he replies in a proud tone.
'I take it just like with Gaia, you assume control?' I ask him.
'Correct, but I shall only destroy those you deem a target,' he tells me.
'Should we test it out first to see how long we can hold that form? I wouldn't like to use it and only have it cancel mid battle and be a sitting duck,' I ask with a frown.
'That would be wise,' he replies.
I look back to the others only to notice they're all staring at me. "Why was he mumbling to himself? And who is this Infernus?" Ember asks with a confused expression.
I sigh and rub the bridge of my nose. I then explain to them about the conversation I just had with Infernus.
"We see, then I recommend testing out this form in the badlands as to not place anypony in danger," Luna suggests.
"Good idea, and I'd like to leave now so I can practice as soon as possible. Ember, do you know when your father will arrive?" I reply and then ask the dragoness.
"I'm not sure, but I would think two weeks to a month while he summons the dragons," she replies.
"I see, then let's get going. I want as much time as I can get to practice," I tell them and then lean over to Luna. "Besides, we'll need to be back within a few days time," I whisper to her making her shiver.
Two hours later
Celestia and Cadence remained in Canterlot to attend court while Luna, Shella, Spike, Ember, and I went on the nightingale towards the badlands.
We arrive and I spot a nice wide open area in the distance.
"Alright, I want you all to stay here as I don't know what will happen," I tell them getting nods in return.
I cast my air wings and glide down to the spot and look around, not a soul around.
‘Alright, so how do we do this?' I ask Infernus.
'Anger and Rage help to fuel the form as does your mana, the more angry you are the hotter your flames will be. To start the form you need to turn into your physical combat form, which we'll need to practice first,' he tells me.
'Okay, so how do I activate that one?' I ask and groan internally.
'Picture the same body structure as your magic form, but with a body of molten lava instead,' he instructs me.
I do so and after five minutes of picturing what I think it'll look like, I feel my body heat up and when I open my eyes, my arms look like lava with bright orange like veins along them.
'Good, now move around like you would in your magic form and get used to this body, it will feel heavier and you cannot hover in the air in this form,' he warns me.
I spend ten minutes getting used to this form and fire off a few spells, it seems projectile spells are more suited in this form as the rock used for them explodes in a shower of lava.
'Now gather your mana into your chest and keep building it,' he tells me and I do so.
Once the mana gets to the point of bursting, I feel Infernus infuse his own mana and my vision turns red with rage and anger filling my mind. My body feels like it is contorting and growing larger as my height increases.
My arms move to my sides and begin to turn into large wings as my hands change into two long molten claws each. A muzzle then appears in my vision as smoke rises out my nostrils.
Legs then form under me followed by a long tail with a spear shaped tip, but all of this wasn't the strangest part. The strangest part, is I am still in control.
'What? This is impossible, only we aspects can control our champions form!' Infernus says with actual surprise.
I lift my right wing up and instantly lose my balance, my face slams into the ground causing the dirt and rock under me to hiss and sizzle. With a groan I carefully place my wing back down making it feel like I'm kneeling on my hands and feet. I then look down and see where my head hit has glassed over.
'What's going on?' I ask Infernus as I can feel mine and his mana flowing through me like an erupting volcano.
'I am not sure, but whatever it is has given you control... this has never happened before, not even with Starswirl,' he replies confused.
'This is certainly strange. I was barely able to keep control when you took on my champion's form,' Gaia informs us.
'What do you believe it could be?' Infernus asks her.
'My only theory is that it could be the alicorn magic from his wives parents he received is interfering. I believe it is growing and expanding his mana pool greatly, even now,' she replies.
I position myself into a more upright stance and spread my large wings, I appear to be nearly half the size of Canterlot Castle now.
'So is this a good or bad thing?' I ask them both as I examine my body.
After a few seconds of silence, Gaia speaks up. 'Both, you'll be able to fight how you wish but you are inexperienced with these forms and their abilities... Infernus would have better luck fighting than you would... but another odd thing is you don't seem to be draining your mana as fast as when I was in control,' Gaia replies.
So I'm not only in control, but it's more stable? 'Are there any negative effects from this?' I ask and then take a deep breath.
'Possibly, this has never happened before. For now, the best thing you can do is focus on maintaining this form and moving about,' Infernus tells me.
With a feeling of nervousness, I slowly nodded my head. 'Alright,' I reply and begin to walk around with my legs and wings.
POV: Luna
By our stars, he's become a large dragon! We didn’t think he would be this big. We all watch from the airship as Adrian looks like a dragon made of lava without arms while he stumbles about as if getting used to his new form... but I thought Infernus would be in control.
'It would seem Infernus is not the one in control...' Umbra tells me.
'How is that possible?' I ask her.
'I do not know, but I will discuss it with the other aspects later,' she replies.
After a few minutes he seems to be getting the hang of it before his form just collapses and breaks away before hardening on the barren ground.
He seems unharmed as he shakes his head and stands up and looks around.
'It would seem he needs to practice holding that form together before anything else. I feel he still has a high amount of mana but it looks like he's physically exhausted,' Umbra informs me.
I spread my wings and jump over the side of the ship. I land beside Adrian and give him a gentle hug. "How art thou feeling?" I ask him.
"I'm okay, just wasn't expecting what just happened is all," he replies and smiles.
"Thou mean being in control?" I ask.
"Yeah, though Gaia thinks it's due to your parents alicorn magic in me," he tells me and sighs as he stretches his back.
"We see... Dost thou wish to remain here or shall we head back to Canterlot?" I ask him.
He hums for a second before nodding. "I'll stay here till the end of the day to get as much practice as possible. I want to make sure I have at least some control over that form, it broke apart the moment I tried to breath fire..." he tells me and then chuckles. "Though I could use a break and get something to eat and drink, that made me very tired and hungry."
7pm
The rest of the day went by with Adrian practising his god of the wyverns champion form as he called it two more times until late in the afternoon.
Though both times after getting used to moving his form collapsed after attempting to breath fire again. It would seem he'll need to practice many more times after the heat season passes, though I hope we have time before the Dragonlord decides to attack. I also need to start learning about my magic form as Umbra told me that my current form is actually my physical one.
We arrive back at Canterlot and head down to the Dining Hall to meet with the others for dinner.
Adrian opens the doors for us and I give him a soft kiss as thanks. We enter the hall and see Celestia, Cadence, and Twilight at the table.
"Welcome back. I hope it went well?" Celestia asks us.
We sit at our places. "There was some... mixed results..." Adrian replies and gives our herdmates their own kisses and hugs.
"Oh? Care to explain?" Celestia then asks with a raised brow.
I then hold my hand out to her. "We shall show thee what we saw," I offer her and she smiles.
"Very well," she replies and takes my hand as her horn glows.
After a few minutes she lets go and goes wide eyed. "That was a lot bigger than I thought he would be," she says but then giggles. "Despite the fearsome appearance, you looked adorable stumbling about," she teases him.
Adrian grumbles and crosses his arms with a cute pout. "Yeah yeah, big bad wyvern tripping over himself like a newborn..." he says but a smirk works its way onto his face.
POV: Adrian Stormsword Four days later
I've holed myself up in my room as the spring heat season has officially started. Fortunately this time Silk has Shining to help her and so far I've been undisturbed as I read and practice more on auras from my spell book. It's been awhile since I last read this, I shouldn't be neglecting my element studies just because I can now use the aspects.
I'm sitting on my bed and I channel a shield and a life element and then self cast it. A green aura encompasses me as I just sit there as I try and keep it stable for as long as possible.
After a good ten or so minutes the door unlocks making me drop the aura and my eyes go wide as two Lunas walk in wearing the same dress.
"Erm... Is this a new spell or something?" I ask her... them?
"Oh no, our love. We art both very much real," the right Luna says sensually while the left Luna closes and relocks the door.
"Oooookay..." I slowly say and frown. "I'm guessing one of you is Shella right?" I ask.
They both giggle at the same time giving them an echo like tone. "Mayhap, but we art in the peak of our heat and art ready to conceive, our love," they both say together and strip out of their dresses.
I quickly get aroused as they climb onto the bed naked and crawl over to me, my book is levitated out of my hands and onto the nightstand.
They pin me down before kissing me together with a hungry look in their eyes.
"It is time to breed us, Adrian," they both whisper into both of my ears.
Chapter 82.5 Part 1: The Fun Has Been Doubled (Clop)
Terracana Chapter 82.5 Part 1: The Fun Has Been Doubled (Clop)
Both of the Luna's slowly strip me of my clothes with their hands and caress me all over. Once my pants and underwear were removed they both lay beside me and sandwich my cock between their breasts.
I groan from the sensation has they begin to move them up and down, each taking turns to lick the head of my dick. My cock throbs when both of them lean in and begin kissing each other with the head of my dick between their lips with two tongues swirling around my member as they both moan into their kiss.
Panting faster and faster I can only watch as they continue to make out over my cock and rub their tits against me and each other, I throb again when I see their hard nipples rubbing against the other.
I reach over and snag one of their ears each and begin rubbing them between my fingers, the soft texture of their fur feels very relaxing.
They both moan in approval and pick up their pace as they break their kiss and take turns sucking on my cock.
This makes me grunt and jerk my hips up, for ten minutes I've been enduring this divine torture and my peak is quickly approaching. As if sensing it, they start to pump their breasts faster and suck my cock harder as well.
"FUCK!" I yell out as I can't hold it no more and cum into the right Luna's mouth, she holds her position sucking on my cock more to get every last drop out.
Once my orgasm dies down, I look to the both of them and get hard again as the right Luna starts sharing my load with left Luna in a sloppy make out session just over my dick.
They then both swallow and turn to me with lustful grins as right Luna gets up and positions herself over my face and left Luna straddles my lap while lining up my cock with her dripping pussy.
I can faintly smell blueberries coming from the wet snatch just inches above my face. 'So this one must be the real Luna,' I think as I quickly wrap my arms around her thighs and pull her down onto my face with a wet squelch, earning a deep moan and more fluids to trickle out of her.
I extend my tongue and lick around her labia making her gasp and grind her hips on me. I hold her tighter to my face to prevent her from moving too much as I thrust my tongue and swirl it around her clit, getting her to yelp in pleasure as it devolves into a deep throated moan.
I continue to swirl my tongue over her clit just as the other Luna impales herself with my cock, her lips spreading and its warm confines welcome my member into its embrace. Another squelch sounds out as her hips meet mine followed by a sigh of satisfaction.
I grind my hips against hers as I then move my tongue higher and thrust it within the Luna on my face. She gasps loudly and starts to gently hump my face, her warm fluids flowing down my taste buds and down my throat make me moan at her delicious flavour and I attack her pussy with renewed vigour.
The Luna on my lap begins to rise and fall, bouncing on my cock and gasping as she continuously fills herself with my spire. I remove my left hand from face Luna and start to stroke lap Luna's thigh with it.
After a good seven minutes both of my lovers tense up and ride through their first orgasm. I latch onto face Luna's pussy as she squirts her cum directly into my mouth while I swirl the tip of my tongue against her clit.
I hear their muffled cries of pleasure letting me know that they're most likely making out with each other. The thought and image of such a thing is turning me on more and I begin to thrust up into lap Luna as hard and fast as I could, making her gasp and moan more.
I then return my tongue back into the warm insides of face Luna to build up her pleasure again.
My mind is lost to the haze of sex, tastes, and scents as my tongue and nose are covered in her juices. I start to go wild and aggressively eat out my lover making her scream out in bliss while I ram myself harder into lap Luna.
I grunt as I can feel my peak approaching but I don't care as the only thing on my mind is filling up my wife and breeding her.
I jerk my hips unsteadily as the first rope of cum builds up and bursts its way out into lap Luna's womb, making her cry out in ecstasy and cum with me as her inner walls clamp down and start sucking my cock dry.
I twitch and shudder as three more ropes of cum squirt out into her. I can feel her shaking on my lap before sighing and collapsing onto her side, making my cock slip out of her making us both hiss at the feeling.
Face Luna then tenses up and cums down my throat again where I eagerly drink down every drop of her nectar.
She then gets off my soaked face as both Luna's then begin to lick my face clean while I grope both their asses and knead the flesh under their soft fur, getting them to both hum happily as they continue to lick me clean.
Lap Luna then gasps and looks towards the baby room with wide eyes. "It's time!" she yells as she's covered in blue flames.
After it was gone, Shella stands up and heads into the baby room on shaky legs while Luna sits on my lap and begins grinding on my cock, getting me hard again.
"Mmmm. Adrian, our love. We have been waiting centuries for this moment. Fill our womb with thy seed and plant thy foal in us," she tells me and I grin.
She yelps as I push her onto her back and her wings spread out wide across the bed, her legs also spread for me as I rub the tip of my dick against her soaked pussy.
"Oh don't worry, my dear. I'll make sure you won't be able to walk for the rest of the day as well," I tell her and then latch onto her left breast and begin to suck.
She gasps as milk begins to pour into my mouth, her creamy taste is delicious and I greedily gulp it down. Her hands wrap around the back of my head, pulling me harder against the soft fuzzy mound of flesh.
"Oh yes, our love. We missed this feeling since our last heat! Hmmmm, drink our milk, drink it all!" she tells me and I happily comply.
Once I drained the left breast, I then turn to the right and latch onto it with a light nibble making her moan and wrap her legs around my waist. My member is still rubbing against her as her panting and tight grip is arousing me even more.
I poke around with my tip and get a yelp of pleasure from her as it prods her clit a few times. I then find my mark and slowly, almost agonizingly, spread her lips and sink my length into her.
She moans the whole way in and gasps once I bottom out.
"Rut us, Adrian. Rut us and impregnate us! We wish to bare thy foal!" she begs and I smile around her nipple.
I pull off with a mouthful of milk and hungrily attack her lips with mine as I force my tongue into her mouth. A wave of her milk follows behind it and her eyes widen before she gulps down her own milk and our tongues battle it out for supremacy.
I begin to thrust in and out of her tight passage as her clenches and moans makes me feel like I've died and gone to heaven. I break our kiss and stare into her eyes as I continue to pound into her.
"I love you girls so much," I tell her and grunt as I thrust particularly hard into her.
She yelps and moans from the rough thrust and wraps her arms around my neck. "We love ahh! Thee too, husband. Hurry and nnggah, put our foal, oooh, foal in us!" she replies and cums hard.
I lean down and capture her lips again while I begin to twist and rub her wing joints roughly. She gasps and groans deeply as I pick up my pace and can feel my orgasm rising.
Our lips break away and I lean my forehead against hers. "I'm close Luna, nggh. I'm going to breed you," I tell her.
Her eyes look wild and her breathing is erratic. "Yes! Cum inside us! AHHHH! Breed us like the broodmare we are! NNNGHH!" she shouts out and clenches me tightly as her blissful screams fill the room.
I grunt and thrust a few more times before blowing my load into her, the pulsing of her inner walls makes me cum harder as they milk me for all I'm worth.
I thrust a few more times to prolong our afterglow as I rest myself on top of her.
She smiles up at me and kisses me deeply while her legs prevent me from pulling out. "We wish to stay like this for awhile, our love," she tells me with half lidded eyes.
I give her a quick peck on the lips and smile back. "Sure," I reply and roll us over so she's on top.
We stay like this for awhile until the baby room door opens with Shella coming out with a new changeling in her arms.
I was getting worried since our new daughter's egg was supposed to hatch days ago.
Shella smiles and brings the newborn over to us and lies on the bed beside me and Luna.
"What are you going to name her?" I ask my changeling wife.
Shella looks down at the sleeping foal and then closes her eyes.
"I think I'll name her... Vespula. Vespula Stormsword," she replies and nuzzles the foal.
"That's a beautiful name," I say and kiss her.
Luna begins to grind on me and sits up with a smirk on her face. "We art not done yet, love. Thou will have to fill us a few more times," she tells me and starts to bounce on my lap.
Oh gods this is going to be heaven and hell by the end of it.
Terracana Chapter 82.5 part 2: Loving the Sunshine (Clop)
The next day Luna and Shella feel much better now that Luna has sated her heat and Shella is increasing her Hive's population again.
It's about just after two in the afternoon and I'm still in my room while Shella is down at her Hive with both Mavis and Vespula. Luna is in the training room by the training grounds learning how to use her magic aspect form since court is cancelled during the heat seasons.
I've also heard that Cadence and Celestia have been relaxing together in one of the guest rooms waiting for their turn with me today.
I yawn as I flip through my spell book while munching on some fruit Silk brought up for me, she's already been satisfied by Shining and isn't pregnant, she told me she just isn't ready to be a mother yet.
I'm reading more on the shadow element to learn why my eyes change colour while channelling it, but so far nothing is here about it.
I sigh and close the book before laying on my back and decide to take a nap.
I open my eyes and blink a few times, something white and pink is blocking my view and it takes me awhile to realize they're two pairs of breasts. More specifically, the breasts of my lovers Cadence and Celestia.
"Well this is certainly a nice view to wake up to," I comment.
They both giggle before leaning forward and squishing their tits right in my face. I have only but one complaint, I can no longer breathe. So I manage to get my hands under Cadence's breasts and manoeuvre my mouth to her right nipple and bite down on it.
She yelps and pulls back as a spray of her tasty milk squirts into my mouth. I lick my lips as she pouts at me and I take a deep breath of freedom.
Celestia giggles and I grin as I turn to her nipple and bite down on it, but instead of a yelp she moans deeply and presses down on my face harder.
Her milk flows out and I waste no time guzzling it down one gulp at a time while I knead her other breast.
Cadence seems to have recovered and has moved around to Celestia's backside and begins to eat her out. The sounds of slurping and wet squelches turns me on quickly as my cock gets harder.
Celestia's moans and gasps increase as she grips my cock with her right hand and starts pumping it up and down unsteadily. I groan at her tight grip and suck harder on her breasts.
She then starts to growl. "I can't take it anymore! I need your stallionhood inside me! This heat is driving me crazy!" she says and gets up onto my lap.
"Have you used your contraception spell? Or do you want another foal?" I ask her as she rubs her wet slit over my cock head.
"I used the hmmmm, spell before we came in... ooooh," she replies and without further adieu, she slams her hips down as her pussy swallows my entire length in one go. "Ooooooohhh yes, I need this so badly," she says and starts to bounce on my lap.
I sit up and wrap my arms around her back and begin to tug and rub her wing joints while I latch onto her left nipple and begin drinking again.
"That's it, don't stop... nnnnggh, play with my tail hole!" she tells me, so I slip my left hand down and start to circle her puckered star before gathering some of her juices for lubrication.
With a gentle prod, my index and middle finger spreads her anus open and slips inside with barely any friction.
"Oh yes, that's it. Hmmmm, deeper, please deeper!" she tells me and grinds her hips against mine.
I comply and plunge my fingers all the way in and wiggle them around getting gasps and moans constantly out of her. I then release her nipple from my lips and kiss her deeply as our tongues swirl around each other, our saliva mixing and dribbling down our chins from the sloppy make out session.
I glance to my right and see Cadence on the bed, legs spread with a dildo in her hand shaped like my dick while thrusting it in and out of her pussy.
She's blushing heavily as she watches us fuck and with a cry she cums on the dildo. I look back to Celestia and lift her up off the bed with both hands on her ass.
She gasps and wraps her arms around my neck as I pin her to the wall and start thrusting up into her repeatedly.
"Yes! YES! Rut me, my love! Aaahhhh! Rut me like the s-slut I am! Nnggh! Fill me like a b-bitch in heat and then fill me again! OHHH!" Celestia begs as her body trembles. I love it when she talks dirty, it sounds so out of place for her.
"YEESSS!" she screams as she then cums hard, spraying my groin with a blast of her juices.
I silence her with a kiss as I continue to hump into her, her nice round ass jiggling with every impact of our hips together. Her eyes roll back and her tongue goes limp as I suck on it in my mouth.
I move back over to the bed and rest her on her back over the edge before really hammering away into her.
Her screams pick back up as I can feel my own orgasm approaching. I lean forward and use both her breasts as hand holds while her hands grip the sheets tightly.
With a final thrust I spill my load into my wife and she howls out in ecstasy as her walls clamp down and surprisingly suck my cock deeper into her.
I groan as another rope of cum splashes into her womb making her tremble in bliss.
I pull out slightly as the third shot coats her inner walls as well, calming the heat in her pussy down slightly.
Celestia gasps and pants for breath looking like she ran a few miles non-stop as I gently pull out of her.
Cadence then crawls over and leans back against Celestia's stomach and spreads her legs, revealing her soaked pussy and bulging pregnant belly.
"Buck me gently, Adrian... I don't want to risk hurting our foal but I need you so badly," she tells me and rubs her clit with her right hand.
I quickly wash my fingers, down a glass of water, and then crawl my way over to her. Once close enough she grips my hair and forces my face into her left breast.
"I need you to milk my breasts, they're sore from so much in them," she tells me and I waste no time latching on and relieving her of her suffering.
She moans happily as I drain her left breast while I replace her hand with mine and stroke her labia. She gasps and grins as I rub her clit and just the edge of her lips.
I then feel her hand snake down and grasp my cock as she gently rubs the head with her fingertips, my cock is still soaked with Celestia's cum making it frictionless and very pleasurable.
After draining both of her breasts I scoot forward until my tip pokes at her flower, she groans at the touch and is eager to get started.
"Buck me slowly and lovingly. I want to feel every inch of you inside me as you fill my pussy up with your love," she tells me huskily into my ear.
I gently prod forward and my cock head slips into her slowly, her lips spread as they glide over my sensitive tip and begin to suck me into her.
I groan as inch by inch I sink into her passage, the both of us short on breath as our hips get closer and closer. After what felt like hours, her clit mashes against my groin and she pulls me into a kiss where she dominates my tongue.
I snake my left hand over to Celestia and gently finger her pussy while I slowly thrust in and out of my pink lover. Cadence sighs and moans quietly as we make love together, I'm in no rush to finish this quickly as we passionately make out.
"A-A little faster p-please," Cadence tells me and I pick up my speed a bit. "Hmmmm, that's gooood," she moans as her hands rub up and down my sides.
I lean my head up and take her horn into my mouth and begin to slowly lick and suck on it. She groans deeply from the added pleasure as she squeezes my ass tightly.
Celestia shudders as she weakly cums on my hand, which I bring up to Cadence's mouth where she eagerly starts licking and sucking on them.
The stimulation finally gets to Cadence and she moans into my fingers as she cums making her horn squirt a tiny bit of magic out.
I pull out getting a confused expression from her as I sit down and lean back a bit. I guide her over to me with her back towards me and gently pull her down onto my cock, she moans deeply from the penetration and sways her hips back and forth against me.
We just sit there for a few minutes, grinding against the other. It's slow and almost like torture, but the pleasure slowly builds up and she then starts to lightly bounce on my cock about an inch each time.
I tilt her head towards me and I take the tip of her right ear into my mouth and begin gently nibbling as I massage her breasts and stomach.
"Oh, Adrian... I love you so m-much. Mmmm, I can't wait for our foal to arrive and, aaahh! H-Have another with you next heat season," she tells me and I groan at the thought of getting her pregnant again.
Images of her belly growing again with another foal makes me grunt and my cock to throb before I thrust up into her and paint her passage white.
She gasps and I feel her walls ripple and clamp down as she joins me in euphoric bliss. Her fluids stream out of her where Celestia has managed to crawl over and begins licking up the excess seeping out of Cadence, I can feel her tongue lapping up at the base of my dick and up to Cadence's clit, prolonging our orgasm's for a few seconds more.
I groan as I pull her off me where Celestia latches onto Cadence's pussy and attempts to suck out my cum along with Cadence's.
I lay down for a minute to catch my breath where my lovers crawl over and cuddle up to me.
"Thank you for relieving me of my heat... you have no idea how much worse it gets once a mare has a mate," Celestia tells me and licks my sweat covered neck. "And you taste so good as well," she says with giggle before returning to licking me.
Cadence also joins in and licks the other side of my neck. "We'll need to be careful not to get drunk off of him, Tia," she says to Celestia and they both laugh together.
I sigh and wrap my arms around them and just enjoy the peace and quiet while it lasts.
Chapter 83: How To Train Your Dragon... Form Part 1
Terracana Chapter 83: How To Train Your Dragon... Form Part 1
The spring heat season has past where I got Luna and Shella pregnant while also relieving Celestia and Cadence. Fortunately none of the Castle staff tried to get into my pants this time.
So now Castle life has returned to normal and I can leave my room again. Though I really need to start practising with the fire aspect champion form before the Dragonlord arrives. I've only got about a week or two left by Ember's estimation.
At breakfast Shella reveals our newest daughter to the staff, Twilight, and her friends as well. Everyone fawned over our new daughter who unlike her sister just looks around calmly with wide eyes.
So while Shella is holding Vespula, I'm holding Mavis who is giggling while poking me in the stomach.
Twilight was actually relieved she wasn't a pony during heat season as elves don't go into heat, so she was spared from that discomfort. She spent her time during the week in the Archives with Spike and Ember learning more from her new books while Ember was learning Equestrian history.
Speaking of Ember, Spike took her out on that date and while he said she was rather cold to people, she enjoyed her time out as they shared stories about their lives. He told me he's taking her out on another date in a few days time, I think he's starting to like her more.
Applejack has begun planting some new apple trees on some land Celestia gave her near the Lapis Hive and she's asked me to help grow them quicker. I agreed to help and will head down later today to get started on growing them.
Pinkie is looking better and not as sad anymore while Rainbow dash is now doing fine with just one arm. The weather has been better since she started working here.
Fluttershy has been looking after Keanu with the stable boy when she could and the other animals in the Gardens with her bunny Angel. Although she does miss some of her animal friends, a few of the birds she knew flew up to Canterlot and are now living in the Gardens.
Rarity's store is now up and running where she's got some of her first orders already. Blueblood helps out when he is able to but he mostly stays in the Castle doing paperwork and keeping an eye on the nobles. Lily is also going to school now with Thraxx guarding her at Blueblood's order.
After breakfast was eaten my first stop is visiting Keanu and checking up on him. He's gotten a lot bigger now and it should only be a few more months before I'll be able to ride on him.
Next up was checking in with my parents and their business is still going well, they're even getting orders for some of the Equestrian styles of clothing. Jasmine has even made new friends in the City of Elysium.
I then went to Vortigan to see how he was doing. His family are fine but they had another assassination attempt, no doubt his brother's doing. No one was harmed and the assassin has been dealt with, he was a human with dark skin, but the strange part was his eyes were completely black.
Mages and Enchanters studied the corpse and discovered dark magic in it, and as such the body was quickly destroyed. I believe it was Grogar who was behind it.
Court has been given over to Blueblood today as my lovers along with the girls wanted to see my training in the badlands.
We're flying on the airship to the same place I first practised so I can continue. Infernus and I discussed many methods on why I couldn't breathe fire and our form broke away over the heat season.
The best theory was that I was trying to use his mana for the breath and my mana to keep the form up, when both our manas broke away it destabilized the form resulting in it failing.
So this time I'm going to practice keeping our mana together.
"So what is this dragon form like?" Twilight asks me.
"It's actually a wyvern. Dragons have arms and are more upright in posture while wyverns use their wings as an extra set of legs to move about... You'll see when I practice again," I reply.
Luna is clinging to my left arm with a dopey smile on her face, since her heat she's been really clingy, kinda like Celestia was during the start of her pregnancy.
"I see. How big is your wyvern form compared to an average dragon?" Twilight then asks me.
"Not sure, but I think I'm about half the size of Canterlot Castle at best," I reply and look over the edge of the railings.
The badlands are below us and we're approaching the site I used a week ago.
"Half the size of the Castle!" Twilight exclaims in surprise making a few of the crew jump.
"We believe so, he was rather large. Even bigger than the dragon we fought in the Everfree," Luna tells the stunned elf.
I gently pry Luna off my arm and jump up onto the rail. "Well then, I better get started!" I say and look to Luna. "Why don't you and Tia practice with your aspects as well? Might as well get some training in whilst we're all here," I tell her and then lean back off the side of the ship.
"Adrian!" Twilight yells as I cast my air wings spell and glide down to the ground below.
I land with a slight stumble from stepping on a loose stone but quickly recover. I then gently tap the fire orb on my right hand. 'So, let's try this again shall we?' I ask Infernus.
'Yes, we need to get you to control my champion's form before this Dragonlord Torch arrives,' he tells me.
I close my eyes and take on my new fire combat form as my body turns to lava and barely hovers above the ground as my legs turn into a powerful jet of flames.
I then concentrate and open my eyes as my body morphs once again into the large lava wyvern form. I shudder from the once again strange sensation of having a different body structure.
Shaking my molten limbs to limber up, I start by walking about just to get used to my temporary body... only to end up face first into the ground again. Doesn't help that I can hear the others laughing at me from the airship.
'I feel so heavy and unbalanced...' I think to myself and get back up.
'That is raw power, you are just unused to so much mana flowing through you and being used. Once we're done here you'll feel lighter and have better control over our mana,' Infernus tells me with a huff.
'Alright, so like we discussed, I just need to focus on keeping our mana together while preparing the breath correct?' I ask him.
'That's right, you just need to siphon the mana from your form's core where the focus of mana is kept and pour it into your lungs. The mana is then converted into super-heated flames which you just need to blow out,' he instructs me.
'Sounds simple enough,' I reply.
I take a deep breath and feel around for my mana, it takes me a minute but I find it and gather some of it into my lungs. My chest feels warmer and it also feels like I need to belch badly.
'Good, now release your breath with as much force as you can,' Infernus tells me.
I do as he says and breathe out forcefully, spewing out a torrent of flames... along with the sound of a loud burp causing the ground to shake slightly. I'm glad this form is red and made of molten rock, I'm sure I have an embarrassed blush on my face.
'That was humiliating! You are making a fool out of my champion's form! Now try again and this time without the vulgarity!' Infernus yells at me.
I growl at his hostile attitude but comply. Taking another deep breath and gathering the mana, I release the breath in my lungs and exhale a large plume of flames. This time without the belch.
It only lasted about three seconds before I ran out of air and stopped.
'Much better. Now keep practising until you either get tired or run out of mana,' Infernus tells me still a bit pissed off.
I grumble to myself and take another deep breath.
POV: Twilight Sparkle
I can't believe what I'm seeing... Spike told me about what he saw a week ago, but I didn't think Adrian would be like this! This wyvern form is so different from a dragon!
I pull out one of my notebooks and begin making sketches of Adrian and taking notes on his abilities and such.
Despite that rather... loud burp he let out earlier, his fire breath is more devastating than any dragon I've heard of. The very ground where the flames touched seems to be glass now.
I watch as Adrian stumbles for a bit before collapsing onto the ground as if he was tired, is this form straining him more than he can handle?
Luna quickly jumps overboard followed by Celestia as they head down to him.
"Wow, that's sooo cool!" Rainbow says and then chuckles. "And that belch kinda reminds me of Spike when he received letters from the princess," she then says making Spike blush a bit.
"Letters?" Ember asks confused.
"Spike is able to send letters to anyone he knows by breathing his fire on it while thinking of the individual," I inform her but keep my eyes on Adrian.
"How can you do that? I've never known a dragon to do so," Ember asks Spike.
"Erm... it was due to Celestia's magic that enchanted my fire to do that," he tells her with a sheepish grin.
Ember has a look of thought before looking at me. "Would she be willing to do this for me as well? This would be a helpful ability to have," she asks.
"Oh erm, you can just ask her once she comes back up," I reply and look down to see Adrian standing back up and shaking himself, bits of lava dripping from his body.
"I see, very well I shall ask her later. Right now I'd like to continue with Spike's flying lessons," Ember says and pulls on Spike’s arm.
"Oh! I'll help ya! I'm the fastest pegasus in all of Equestria!" Rainbow offers with glee, a large grin on her face.
"Very well, let us find an open spot away from Adrian as I would not like to be the one to test whether or not if his flames can harm a dragon," Ember replies and jumps overboard with Spike in her arms.
"WAIT!" he yelps as they go over.
Rainbow giggles and flies off after them.
Shella and Cadence are talking to each other about Adrian's form while Fluttershy is hiding behind Rarity. Pinkie and Applejack are just watching Adrian quietly... although I don't remember seeing Pinkie get that box of popcorn a minute ago...
I shake my head and look back down to notice the Princesses keeping their distance from Adrian.
POV: Celestia
"Are you alright?" I ask my husband as he twists his neck at odd angles. The heat he is producing making it impossible to get any closer to him.
But his only response is a growl and a couple of nods.
"Can thou not speak in this form?" Luna asks him with a raised eyebrow.
Adrian just sighs and shakes his head.
"I see, but are you sure you're okay?" I ask him again.
His bright orange eyes roll and he nodded again.
"Alright... we'll be nearby if you need us," I tell him and fly off with Luna to an open area so we can begin our own aspect training.
'Are thou sure he will be fine? He looked really tired,' Luna asks me telepathically.
'I think so, he wouldn't push himself too far,' I reply to her.
We land a good distance away from Adrian and get ready ourselves.
'Lux, I've been wondering, do you have a champion form?' I ask him.
'I do, he is a guardian of the heavens themselves, he has six wings with a human body structure. His name is Tiberius the Guardian Angel,' he replies.
An angel? 'What are these angels?' I ask him.
'They are the protectors of heaven and the innocent, they bask in the light of heaven and will even sacrifice themselves to protect those they deem worthy if they have no choice,' he tells me.
'I would like to meet these angels one day,' I think to myself and concentrate on my aspect form.
POV: Luna
I look back to my mate and watch as he breaths another blast of intense flames over the ground, turning it into glass.
'Impressive isn't it? The power our champions can unleash... Though only Starswirl himself has ever managed to use them, even if we aspects were the ones in control and for only minutes at a time,' Umbra tells me.
'And what is thy champion's form?' I ask her.
'My champion is named Night Raven. As the name suggests, she is a raven made of the darkest shadows and is the master of the shadows, she can manipulate all the shadows around her and not even sunlight can affect her. She is about twice your size and cannot be harmed physically,' Umbra replies.
'Would we be able to use this form now?' I ask with excitement.
'Perhaps one day, but you still need to learn your magic combat form first. You took on our physical form first since you prefer physical combat over magical,' she tells me.
I turn away from my husband and concentrate on my own training, I want to be ready for when this Dragonlord arrives and fight by my love's side.
POV: Adrian Stormsword
I gasp for breath after the seventh fire breath, my form then crumbles around me and cools off quickly.
Stepping away from the remains I fly back up to the airship to rest and get a drink.
"That was amazing! What was it like being that big?" Twilight asks me once I land on the deck.
"Heavy mostly, which is making me tired quicker and it feels odd with a different body structure, but other than that it's fine," I reply and take a bottle of water handed to me by one of the crew.
Twilight looks around and then looks back at me. "Since I have my own pool of mana now... Is it possible for me to have an aspect as well?" she asks.
Chapter 84: How To Train Your Dragon... Form Part 2
Terracana Chapter 84: How To Train Your Dragon... Form Part 2
"Since I have my own pool of mana now... is it possible for me to have an aspect as well?" Twilight asks me.
"You want your own aspect?" I reply to her question.
"Well... with everything that's going on, and with Ponyville... gone, I want to be of more help than just sitting around. If I can help protect my home and friends then I want to," she tells me with determination.
I take a long sip from my bottle of water and glance back to her. "Are you positive? Once you make a contract with an aspect it's for life, or until you break the contract you made... which will kill you," I warn her.
She frowns and looks down in thought. After a few seconds she looks back up at me. "Yes, I'm positive," she replies.
"Alright then, it's now just a matter of what remaining aspect would like to make a contract with you," I tell her and finish off my water.
"Well, what ones are left?" she asks.
"Water, lightning, earth, cold, ice, and steam. I'm going to make a contract with the arcane myself later," I inform her.
"I see... what about the wind aspect?" she then asks me.
"I plan to ask Vortigan to make a contract with the wind aspect," I reply.
"Okay..." she says and frowns in thought again.
I sigh and look at her. "Take a few days to think about it and what element you'd be most comfortable with. I'll even ask Discord to ask if the others are willing to see you. The aspect will also have to like you as well," I tell her.
"Discord?" she asks confused.
"Yeah, he's the Aspect of Chaos," I reply.
Her jaw drops and she stares at me dumbly. "He's an aspect!?" she yells making everyone jump again.
"Yes, there's also an order aspect who I still don't know the name off... I'll have to ask Discord later," I say and stretch my arms.
"An Aspect of Order?.. So he or she is the exact opposite of Discord?" Twilight asks me with wonder.
"I guess so. I haven't met them yet so I wouldn't know," I tell her and sit on the railing with my legs dangling overboard.
"Could I meet them? I'm interested in that one," she asks me with a smile.
"As I said, I'll have to ask Discord first and the Aspect will have to be willing to meet you," I reply and lean forward, falling off the ship where I land back on the ground and resume my training.
For hours I practised my fire breathing and keeping our mana stable. Twice I lost control and my wyvern form broke away, but I think I'm getting better, I just hope I can hold it before the Dragonlord arrives.
We're now heading back to Canterlot to take the others home, then tomorrow Luna, Celestia, and I will bring their personal airship to camp out in the badlands and train for a week. They also want to prepare in case they need to aid me in the battle. Though I'm not happy with Luna doing so now that she is pregnant... at least it's at the start and not mid way.
I'm sitting on a lounge chair just looking at the horizon when Spike and Ember start glowing.
"What's with the freaky light show?" Rainbow asks them.
"It's the Dragonlord, he's summoning all the dragons to himself. The light is telling us to go to him..." Ember replies and her eyes start to look unfocused.
"Can we stop it?" Twilight asks with panic as she uses her magic to hold Spike down who is trying to jump overboard.
"Is it magical in nature?" I quickly ask Ember while I still can.
"Y-Yes... but I-I don't know how t-to stop it. F-Father never t-told m-me..." she replies and then gets a blank expression as she tries to fly off before Applejack and Rainbow grab her.
I quickly channel the elements for a nullify spell and cast it. The glow around the two dragons fades and Spike shakes his head.
"W-What just happened... last thing I remember is talking to Pinkie and now I'm on the floor..." Spike asks us with a confused expression.
"Apparently the Dragonlord can mind control other dragons," I reply and look to Ember who looks furious. "Do you know how your father did that?" I ask her.
"Yes, he has a sceptre that can forcefully summon any dragon he wants to him... I can't believe he used it on me! He told me he never would!" she fumes in anger.
"Where did he get such a sceptre?" I ask her.
"Since he became the Dragonlord seven-hundred years ago. Any drake that wields it is declared the Dragonlord," she replies.
"So if I were to defeat him, I could take it?" I ask her.
She hums in thought for a few seconds. "I don't know, with that dragon form of yours you could convince the dragons you're some kind of ancient dragon... with the power you posses it could work. You could use the excuse that your current form is for keeping your power contained and not to harm others near you," she replies with a shrug.
"What if I beat him and give you or Spike the sceptre?" I ask her with intrigue.
She goes to reply but stops mid way, she frowns and hums. "Maybe, I am his daughter and technically next in line should he be defeated by anything other than a dragon... but then I'll be challenged for the sceptre by stronger dragons than me," she replies.
"What if you had the protection of Equestria and that should any dragon attack you I'll punish them, severely," I suggest to her.
She looks at me and then to Spike who just shrugs at her. "Don't look at me, I just look after an archive, I ain't no leader," he says and shakes his head.
"Fine, you get me that sceptre and I'll keep the dragons in line," she tells me.
I grin and shake her hand. If this works, we'll have the dragons on our side when we face Grogar... or at least a few of them. "Deal. I've already got enough on my plate as it is, I don't need to manage another race and its lands as well," I reply as we reach Canterlot.
Two days later
Shella and Cadence have taken over court duties while Luna, Celestia, and I head back to the badlands to resume our training. Discord is also playing the babysitter along with my parents and is looking after our children for us while we're away.
Speaking of Discord, I asked him about the order aspect and he gave me an expression of sucking on a lemon, he said he hasn’t spoken to her in over five-hundred years and asked if she was the aspect Twilight really wanted. At my nod he sighed and rubbed his face with his lion paw. He then told me he’ll try and it might take awhile to get an answer from her.
We've also spoken to Celestia and Luna's parents yesterday about our Dragonlord problem, they recommend that I don't play fair or follow their rules of combat as dragons are known to throw them away if it means getting the kill. Why have rules of combat if they don't even follow them themselves? They've also told me they've noticed elven magic near them from time to time and it's getting them worried... I need to figure out a way to get a portal open to them soon. I just hope the mirror can give us a hint on how.
We've set up camp inside of our little airship instead of tents, why rough it out when we have a nice bed and cosy room on board? We've also got a couple of Celestia's and Luna's most trusted guards with us as well, including a human mage that came over with the guard exchange program named Kevin Gilthorp. He's a nice guy if quiet when we talk to him, says he's not used to dealing with royalty.
So far I've lost control three more times the last two days, but I'm holding it together much better than when I first started.
I take a deep breath and gather our mana together in my lungs and then forcefully breathe it out. The ground is scorched and glasses over from the intense heat.
I take a moment to catch my breath, which I turn to see Luna and Celestia practising with their own aspects to my left a good distance away.
Luna has now acquired her magical form this morning, she looks like she's transparent and has a cloak of shadows around her which obscures her body completely, the only thing I can see of her face due to the hood like appearance are her two moonlight glowing eyes, her wings are gone but she can now move in the air freely without the need for them.
Celestia has also unlocked her physical form. Which confused me at first thinking what it would look like as light has no physical properties... Her body still looks like her magic form's but is covered in some kind of golden sleek metal armour that looks like it is containing her energy based body and her wings are back, though they look like they're made of light instead of her natural feathers with the same sleek metal along the limbs.
She also has two swords made from light that cut through boulders and the ground like butter and leave this cool light after effect trail when swung.
'Stop staring at your females and get back to training!' Infernus scolds me.
I frown and grunt in annoyance as I take another deep breath.
The ground suddenly caves in below me and I fall through a large hole in the ground. I roar out in surprise as I flail about trying to right myself back up.
"ADRIAN!" I hear my wives call out and hover over the hole.
I groan in discomfort as I lay on my back, I cancel the champion form and it melts away from me. I rub the back of my head and stand up off the rubble and look around, it seems like an abandoned changeling city that hasn't seen life for centuries.
I look back up out of the hole and call out to my wives. "Yeah I'm fine! Though I think I just found an old city!" I tell them and go back to looking around.
I walk off the rubble as I look around, it looks like a plaza with buildings built into the walls, it also seems I landed on a large statue of a changeling queen. It certainly isn't Chrysalis but shares some of her characteristics, maybe it was her mother? I also notice a lot of bones lying about the ground around me.
I hear my lovers talk to the guards before they land beside me and check me over, Luna more so. "Are thou alright, our love?" she asks with worry.
"I'm fine." I wave her off. "Just landed on my ass," I tell her and walk over to a ground level building with a cracked door. Seems like they're made from the same black organic rock like substance I saw at the small Hive I first met Shella at.
I grip the door handle and gently push the door only for it to not budge, feels like it’s barricaded. I point my left hand at the door and cast a four element earth spell and blast the door open with a large rock. We all then walk in and look inside; It's a small room with three doors at the back, there's an old torn painting of a changeling family on the wall tilted at an angle. Old furniture that looks like it's about to collapse are placed around the room, a couch, table, bookcase with dusty books, cabinet with broken knickknacks on it, and a mouldy and torn pelt rug near the front door.
"What is this place... I don't remember there ever being such a city here," Celestia says looking around the room.
Luna tries to pick up a book, only for it to crumble in her hands. "This place feels older than we are..." Luna says in awe at how old this place seems.
I walk over to the left door and open it. Inside is an old looking bed, but it's what's on the bed that shocks me. A couple of changeling skeletons are laying on the bed hand in hand with their curved horns crisscrossing each other.
"Luna, Tia, It seems something bad might have happened here..." I tell my wives and they walk over to me.
They stare at the remains for a few seconds before I walk in and look around. A wardrobe is to the left and a dresser with a broken mirror is to the right, a brush and some other grooming utensils are on the dresser.
"What happened here?" Luna asks with a frown as she examines the remains of the changelings.
"Let's check the other rooms and see if there's anything of note there," I say and exit the room. Luna and Celestia following behind me.
I open the middle door and look around; it appears to be a storeroom with materials and a foul stench in the air... There seems to be centuries old food now black and rotted on the shelves, what catches my eyes though is the popped cocoon like pod with an earth pony skeleton inside curled up in a fetal position.
Poor sod must of been this family's food source...
I notice some old Equestrian bits on the left shelf and pick one up, it has the faces of Celestia and Luna's parents on each side.
"Bits? And with our parents faces on them... but, how old is this place..." Celestia mutters looking at the coin.
I pass it to her and exit the room. I then head to the right door and open it to find an old bathroom with no plumbing at all. The bathtub is just a tub with what appears to be a water tank behind it, which is bone dry, and is also connected to a sink. Nothing of interest is in here as most of the utensils and objects are damaged or destroyed by time.
I walk out and meet my wives in the main room.
"So, what do you think happened here? There must have been a reason they boarded themselves in here," I ask them and point to the remains of the barricade they placed behind the front door.
"It is too soon to make even a guess. We'll have to consult with the changelings of the Lapis Hive," Luna replies with one last look around the room.
"I agree, I'll send a letter to Canterlot and order some guards and ask the changelings to come and investigate this city... I must admit I am curious as to what has transpired here," Celestia says and summons a piece of parchment and a quill.
"We'll just have to be careful when we're training now as there may be other large chambers nearby," I tell them and wait for Celestia to finish writing her letter.
Once done she sends it off in a flash of magic.
"Let's continue our training, as much as I would like to explore this place and get some answers, we have a Dragonlord to deal with first," Celestia says and heads for the exit.
Luna follows behind her and I stop at the door, I look back at the open door with the two skeletons on the bed. 'What happened here?' I wonder to myself.
The past five days have been interesting, I can now keep my champion form up for ten minutes before I get tired. It's not bad but it could be better. I've also learnt how to spit lava a short distance, though the first time I tried I was choking as I had to force it up from where my stomach would be and then spit it out.
I've also learnt to fly with these bulky wings but only for about ten seconds before I get tired and fall back down... still got the bruise from the first attempt.
Celestia and Luna have learnt new ways to use their aspects as Celestia can now move at the speed of light in a straight line and can give off a constant aura of light that can blind everyone around her, though it's not really good in a mixed battle of friend and foe. Luna can now launch multiple shadow tendrils and spear practically everything in front of her, she can also create two things she calls shadow souls, small waist high miniature looking deathmaws that she can control with a mere thought.
A team of archaeologists and changelings arrived the next day after we discovered the ancient changeling city. Over the days they found out it was named the Onyx Hive, where a breed of pure black changelings once lived. Many books have been found and preserved to be taken back to Canterlot for study, though from what they've found something terrible like a wide scale battle must have taken place.
We're heading back home to Canterlot as word from the border is that a flock of dragons are coming. Vortigan has already been told and has brought a force of mages, marksmen, twenty heavy ballista, and ten long range cannons with him.
The dragons are estimated to arrive at the grassy plains between the Everfree Forest and the dragon borders about twenty four hours from now.
"How will we stop so many dragons from just overwhelming us?" Luna asks with worry.
"I think the best bet is to kill the Dragonlord quickly and take the sceptre from him to force the dragons to stand down," I reply with a frown. Question is how am I going to kill him? I can't use water and lightning elements to weaken his scales in the fire champion form and I doubt that I would even stand a chance without my champion form anyway. That dragon from the Everfree was big, and from what Ember told me her father is massive.
"But what if the dragons attack before you can defeat the Dragonlord?" Celestia then asks with a frown. She's right, they could attack us before I can kill the Dragonlord and attack our people along with Vortigan's soldiers...
"Then I better kill him quickly, if what your parents told us is true, then they won't fight fair and will try to kill us any way they can," I reply and sigh. I hope after this is all over we get some peace and quiet for a while, I want some quality time with my family.
After a few minutes of just flying back home, a pegasus guard flies up to us from the direction of Canterlot panting heavily as he lands on the deck. "Your majesties... The dragons are... about to arrive... at the Prancing Plains in about... thirty minutes," he tells us before collapsing, winded from his apparent hasty flight to us.
"Captain! Change course for the Prancing Plains!" Celestia tells the unicorn currently behind the wheel.
"Aye aye, my Queen," he replies and spins the wheel to the left.
I look towards where Ponyville used to be and frown. 'I won't let the rest of Equestria suffer the same fate as Ponyville, I will kill this Dragonlord,' I tell myself with a determined frown on my face.
We arrive to see an army of Equestrians and Terrans armed and ready for battle, cannons and ballista are lined up and airships ready to engage in the air.
We land near a large tent and enter, a large table sits in the middle with a map of the area on it. Shining Armour, Ember, and Vortigan are talking to each other coming up with possible plans of attack and defences.
"Good evening, though I wish it was under better circumstances," I greet them all.
Vortigan looks up from the map and nodded at me. "I wish the same, though a dragon invasion sounds pretty serious and I've had to pull my best mages to aid in the possible battle," he replies.
We then spend around thirty minutes all discussing what we can possibly do to counter the dragons should they attack during my fight. Vortigan suggests getting the pegasi to push large clouds filled with water into the dragons and his mages will send lightning beams into them to take advantage of their weakness. Ember will also try to convince her father to leave peacefully, but she doesn't believe it will work.
While I face the Dragonlord; Celestia, Luna, and Vortigan will be watching my back in case the dragons try to ambush me during the fight.
A guard then bursts into the tent with a frown on his face. "Your Majesties! The dragons are approaching the Prancing Plains now, there seems to be at least a hundred of them..." he tells us grimly.
Celestia and Luna's eyes widen while Vortigan frowns. How are we going to deal with that many? Possibly even more?
"Thank you for the warning, private. Please return to your post and prepare for battle," Celestia replies and the guard salutes before leaving.
"We hope thou hast learnt enough in the past week to face the Dragonlord," Luna tells me with a worried expression while looking at the tent's entrance.
"Yeah," I reply with a nervous chuckle. "so do I." I then head out the tent and look towards the direction of Drakonis, only to see dragons everywhere in the skies.
I glare at the incoming dragons and start stretching my limbs, I'm too nervous to stand still and it appears my wives can tell that as well.
"It will be alright, our love. All we can suggest is thou try to take him down as fast as thou can," Luna tells me and places her left hand on my shoulder.
"I know, but the thought of facing so many at once is, a frightening idea... As soon as the fight starts, my best bet will be to go for his throat and try to puncture it while spitting lava down his gullet to fry is innards," I reply and take a deep breath.
After about six or eight minutes, the dragons arrive where some land and others stay in the air, but what gets my attention is the very large dragon the size of Canterlot Castle landing in front of them all.
"Puny little ponies, I've heard there is one among you who has slain two of our kind. Claw them over and I may just let the rest of you live!" the hulking blue scaled with a slightly darker scaled underbelly dragon with large horns that go down from the sides of his head and curl forward just under his chin orders us. Gods, he's even wearing a big ruby crown on top of his head that has a sceptre embedded into it along with a large dark grey metallic chest plate that looks like it's made from enough metal to arm and armour three hundred or more guards...
The guards look towards me before looking back at the dragons and ready their weapons, at least they'd rather fight than surrender me over to him to save their own hides.
I step forward and stand ahead of my wives and the others. "I am the one who killed them, they attack us first and I defended myself and my family from their attempts to kill us... If you are here to retaliate for their hostile actions, then you risk not only starting a war with Equestria, but also our allies from another world," I reply and gesture to the humans, elves, and dwarves with us.
The Dragonlord looks around at them and then laughs. "You think these pitiful creatures will be enough to stop us!?" he asks with amusement in his tone.
I frown at him as Ember then steps forward and looks up to her dad. "Father! Please return home and cease this foolish endeavour, you do not know who you are threatening," she tells him. It seems we're going with the whole I'm an ancient dragon ruse.
"Oh? And who is this tiny pony? I see no horn or wings, he doesn't seem like he'll put up any kind of resistance, the rumors that he killed two dragons is obviously a lie," he replies with a scowl at me.
"He is an ancient dragon from the ponies ally's world," Ember tells him and he raises an eyebrow.
"Him? An ancient dragon?" he asks before bursting out into laughter as the other dragons do as well.
"I am, and I challenge you for the Dragonlord's Sceptre!" I shout at him making him and the others shut up instantly.
The Dragonlord growls at me and snorts out some flames. "You dare challenge me!?" he bellows out in anger.
I narrow my eyes and gather mine and Infernus's mana together and take on my physical fire form, from there I advance to the champion form and rear up on my legs, wings spread wide, head pointing to the sky and roar out loudly, making the ground quake and the dragons to look shocked.
I drop back down to all fours and snort out my own plume of flames. I may be a third of his size, but that doesn't mean I can't do some damage.
"And as a dragon, he has the right to challenge you for the sceptre, father," Ember tells him with a frown due to the fact I can no longer talk, and I believe she is still angry at him for trying to force her home.
The Dragonlord snarls at Ember before looking back at me. "Very well, daughter. I accept his challenge, and when I win, I shall take this land as our hunting grounds!" he replies and launches himself at me.
I growl and leap to the right avoiding his right claw as it collides into the ground where I stood, I retaliate by lunging forward and bite down onto his right forearm and cough up some lava from my stomach which seeps into the wound.
He roars out in pain as the lava starts to melt the soft muscle under his scales and I quickly let go as he tries to pull his arm away. He then roars out in anger and a dark green dragon dives down at me, which I roll out of the way scorching the grass with my molten body.
He hits the ground and turns in time for me to leap on top of him before sinking my teeth into his long neck, biting down hard. He roars out in pain and tries to shake me off as I keep putting more pressure on his neck, and after a few seconds the sound of sizzling starts to pick up as my molten maw starts to melt through his scales and then right through the muscle as I bite his head off. Good thing I can't taste anything in this form...
His body begins to flail out of control as his lifeless head hits the ground, I leap off the twitching body and glare back up to Torch who looks surprised that I just bit through the dragon's neck with ease. I then lean back and gather lava from my stomach before spitting it out at the Dragonlord, it hits his chestplate which melts right through and leaves a one metre wide hole in it, but his scales are unharmed.
He snarls at me again before taking a deep breath and breathes fire all over me, I don't make any attempt to avoid it as the flames don't even affect me. Once the flames die down I start walking on all fours towards him as he raises his left claw to swipe at me. Another dragon then slams into my back and pins me to the ground while I was focusing on Torch.
"Adrian!" Luna calls out as Torch brings his left claw down on top on me and the other dragon crushing us both into the dirt. I mentally groan as my body feels like it's just a puddle of lava in a crater. I then feel something disturbing as the corpse of the dragon pinning me down starts to melt and dissolve in my molten body adding more mass to myself.
'Pull yourself together, Adrian! Once you've finished absorbing that dragon you need to finish this damn battle! Now what I'm about to suggest you won't like at all, but I want you to force yourself down his throat,' Infernus tells me sternly while I can barely hear cannons going off around me and the roars of the other dragons mixed together.
'You want me to do what!?' I ask him in disbelief, I've already been down another dragon's throat and barely lived, I don't plan on doing it again!
'You heard me! I want you to get inside him and burn him up from the inside out! It's the quickest way to kill him and he wouldn't be able to do anything about it! Besides, you’re reaching your limit and we’re losing stability!' he replies angrily.
I growl as I finish reforming my body and I can just feel my stamina fading already. 'Dammit fine! But I'm not happy about this!' I tell him and look up at Torch to see him getting ready to breath fire on our troops.
'I don't care if you're happy about it or not! Just get it done!' he retorts.
I raise my wings and fly up to torch's mouth as he begins to breathe out and I force myself with a grimace into his large maw and down his throat. Oh gods this is just as bad as the first time! At least I can't smell anything in here...
I can feel the Dragonlord choke and try to cough me up, but I stab my claws on the middle of my wing joints into the tissue of his oesophagus, I can hear his flesh sizzle where it comes into contact with my body as I forcefully pull myself deeper towards his stomach. I eventually reach it and fall into his stomach acid which starts evaporating on contact with me.
Quickly getting up, I gather mine and Infernus's mana into my own stomach and begin spewing out lava everywhere which quickly melts through his flesh and onto his other organs, I then focus on a specific point to get myself out of this stupid situation and breathe a constant stream of lava, melting through muscle and scale to freedom.
POV: Celestia Ten minutes ago
"Adrian!" Luna calls out to our husband but it's too late as the Dragonlord slams his claw down on top of our love and his own ally. There's a horrific sound of bones breaking and liquids being forcefully spread out under his immense weight.
Luna falls to her knees as tears start spilling from her eyes, the dragons all cheer for their lord's victory. "Adrian?" Luna mutters in disbelief. I'm not faring any better as tears start falling down my own face before an expression of pure rage replaces my heartbroken one.
We'll mourn for our husband later, right now, we're going to make these lizards pay!
Without a sound I take on my physical aspect form and conjure a greatsword made of pure light and intense heat. I then flap my wings, launching myself to the nearest dragon and with all my might, I swing my sword at her and carve right through her torso cleaving her in two.
"OPEN FIRE!" I hear Luna shout out in her own fit of rage as she takes on her magical aspect form.
The sounds of cannons and ballista roar throughout the plains hitting the dragons and either ripping some scales or a limb off with cannon balls, or large bolts piercing into them. The dragons retaliate and swarm over our forces breathing fire and crushing them beneath their weight.
Luna flies up and ensnares a dragon with her tendrils before gripping tightly and crushing his windpipe along with his bones, her eyes glowing bright silver as she quickly moves onto the next.
For eight minutes we fight the dragons before I focus on the bastard who is to blame for all of this, the Dragonlord just smirks at me before swiping with his right claw. Using my new power I move at the speed of light right next to his head and plunge my sword into his left eye. He roars in pain and swats me away before I could react sending me soaring through the air.
'Celestia, you need to calm down or you'll end up corrupting us both! Focus on defeating him first with a level head before you slip up and get us killed, or worse,' Lux tells me firmly but kindly in an attempt to calm me. He's right, I can't risk letting my anger make my decisions.
I recover from the blow and stop in the air, I frown at the Dragonlord and start flying towards him. The airships are firing their cannons and a few are taken out of the skies as the dragons ram into the balloons. The Dragonlord begins to prepare a breath of fire but movement from where Adrian was killed gets my attention.
My eyes widen as I see Adrian getting back up, filling my heart with hope before he then flies up towards Torch's muzzle, making my heart stop again as he plunges himself down the Dragonlord's throat. "ADRIAN!" I scream out at his stupidity as Luna flies up beside me.
"What is he doing!?" Luna says in a panicked whisper.
After a few seconds the Dragonlord starts hacking and coughing as the scent of burning flesh fills the battlefield. All the fighting stops as everypony watches Torch thrash and fall onto his side as he grips his stomach in pain.
"He's killing him from the inside out..." I reply to Luna's question in disbelief as his scales start to bubble and fall off before his stomach blows out with a flow of lava, followed by Adrian as he slips out not unlike a newborn foal and slowly gets up.
After shaking himself a few times he raises his head and roars out loudly. The dragons all look between themselves before some land before him and warily bow to him.
Ember makes her way over to her father's corpse and looks sadly at him, I just notice a few tears running down her face before she wipes them away and then pulls the sceptre from the crown.
POV: Adrian Stormsword
I shiver in disgust as that was worse than the first time... I then look around and see many dragons bowing to me but keeping their distance.
I spot Ember walking over to me with the sceptre in her hands and then holds it out to me. I glance around one more time before cancelling my champion form and walk over to Ember where I take the sceptre and look at the dragons.
"I, King Adrian Stormsword, hereby declare Ember as the new Dragonlord," I announce and give her the sceptre back, doing this gets me angry growls and shouts from the dragons. "SILENCE! I already have a nation to help keep running, Ember will act as my connection to Drakonis, I will help her if she needs it. Also, here's a warning, no one is to harm her. If you wish to challenge her for the right of Dragonlord, you will have to face me first!" I threaten them, getting a few snarls. "Unless you want me bursting out your guts as well?"
That got them to shut up and I turn to the light blue dragoness. "Ember, can you order this lot to go back home and do what you can to restore order in Drakonis," I ask her.
She looks around nervously and nodded. "I've watched my father command the dragons a few times, I know how the sceptre works," she tells me and raises the sceptre up. "All dragons here, return back to Drakonis now," she commands and the dragons all glow gold for a second before flying off back towards the dragon lands obediently. "I'll be back within a week's passing," Ember tells me and looks away. "And keep an eye on Spike for me, hatchling barely knows anything about his dragon heritage." And with that she takes off after the dragons.
My breathing picks up and gets heavier now that I don't have to appear strong in front of the dragons anymore as the fatigue of holding my champion form for longer than I did before catches up to me and I collapse onto the ground. The sounds of yelling gets blurred and fuzzy as I fall into a much needed nap.
I groan as my body is sore all over as I awaken. It feels like I'm laying on a bed with two people pressed up beside me.
Opening my eyes I see I'm back in my bedroom with both Cadence and Shella sleeping beside me. Looking at the clock I see it's seven twenty in the evening. It seems my subtle shifting has awoken my lovers from their sleep and they both gasp before nuzzling me affectionately.
"Adrian! Are you alright? You've been unconscious for two days!" Cadence tells me with relief in her eyes.
"I'm sore but fine, where's Tia and Luna?" I ask her returning the nuzzle.
"They finished court for the day and are having dinner right about now, we had ours brought up to us so we can keep an eye on you," she tells me. I spot the cart with empty plates.
"I see, has anything happened while I was out?" I ask them.
Shella sighs and rests her head on my chest. "Surprisingly no. Ember sent a letter back stating that while the dragons are still rowdy, they're accepting her as the Dragonlord for now, most of them fear you for what you did to Torch and won't dare challenge her," she tells me and I rub my eyes.
My stomach then rumbles indicating I haven't eaten in a few days. They both giggle at me as Shella gets off the bed. "Come, my love. I'll help you get to the Dining Hall so we can get something in you," she tells me.
"I'm just going to lie here for a bit longer, it's getting harder and harder moving around now," Cadence says with a smile while softly rubbing her large stomach.
I can't help but smile as well as I lean down and kiss her stomach gently making her giggle again. "Take as long as you need, my dear. I'll be back up later with the rest of our family," I tell her, getting her to stroke my cheek with her right hand.
Shella and I leave the room and make our way down to the Dining Hall so I can get something to eat. We arrive where the guards by the doors open them for us and after saying my thanks we walk in where I smile at the sight of Celestia and Luna talking to each other while Discord -who looks like a child himself now- is to the side playing with Valiant, Mavis, and Vespula in a large strange looking Castle that appears to made from one giant balloon.
"Adrian!" I hear Luna yell before jumping out of her chair and rushing over towards me, I brace for impact but instead she gently hugs me with tears in her eyes. "Don't thou ever do something so idiotic ever again! The first time twas bad enough!" she yells at me as I hug her back while rocking her from side to side.
"I'm sorry, Lulu. But it was Infernus' idea and I have to admit it was my only option at the time," I tell her calmly while stroking her hair.
She sniffles and looks up at me with a faint smile. "Thou art alive, tis all that matters," she replies and guides me to my chair between herself and Celestia.
"I have to ask, how bad were our casualties?" I ask my wives as Shella sits next to Celestia.
Celestia sighs and shakes her head. "Thirty-two guards lost their lives along with twenty-six of Vortigan's soldiers..." she tells me sadly.
I frown and curse myself for not killing that damn dragon faster, I'm still too weak. I'll have to use what spare time I have to train before we deal with the gryphons or those Black Hoof Clan assassins. "I see... I want some of my funds to go towards their funerals," I tell them getting sad smiles from them.
"That's very generous of you, Adrian. Vortigan sends his regards as he had to return back to his kingdom, your parents stopped by and your mother tried to break into our room just to see if you were okay," Celestia tells me with a giggle.
"That's my mother alright, over protective and prone to worry..." I reply and smile. "So what are the plans for now?" I ask them all.
"I will be finalising the plans for the Aires Peak assault, but our biggest disadvantage is we have no information on what this Sphinx God is capable of," Celestia informs me. She's right, we know nothing of what he's able to do. No doubt I, Celestia, or both of us will have to face him ourselves.
"We shall be practising with our magic aspect form in the evenings when we do not have court duties," Luna says finishing off her drink.
My food arrives and I quickly dig in and sigh as the hunger pains fade away.
"I'll be keeping an eye around the area of Canterlot, both physically and magically," Discord tells me from his bouncy castle in a childish voice. I look over to him and chuckle as Mavis is trying to climb on him while Valiant and Vespula are crawling across the castle's floor bouncing slightly. "Don't want anymore unsavoury types snooping around now do we? I've already set up some wards and sensors around the Castle," he then says as Mavis is giggling on top of his head between his now blunt and rounded looking horns.
"That's good to know, thanks for making sure our family is safe, uncle," I reply making him grin before both Valiant and Vespula glomp him together. Still feels strange that pony newborns learn to crawl very quickly, I just hope Valiant doesn't have any magic surges like unicorn foals do.
After a few minutes of eating and talking with my friends and family, the hairs on the back of my neck tingle as a feeling of elven magic floods the Castle.
"What was that!?" Luna asks with wide eyes as everyone looks around confused by the foreign magic.
Except Discord who starts laughing his head off. "Well what do you know!? She pulled it off! HAAHAHAHAA!" he says with a massive grin.
Ignoring him, I get up and walk towards the door where Celestia and Luna follow me, we make our way through the Castle to Twilight's tower where we fly up and quickly open the door.
"Twilight! Are you alright!?" I yell as I burst through the door only to see her hovering a foot off the floor, eyes glowing bright white with elven magic and what appears to be a purple portal opening in front of her.
I notice spike beside her with wide eyes and dropped jaw as Twilight continues to pump out more and more mana for whatever she's doing.
"Spike! What is she doing!?" I ask him getting his attention.
"I have no idea! She was mumbling about coordinates for the last three days and looking through her elf magic books... she then went crazy saying she figured something out and then started casting whatever that is!" he replies and looks back at the portal which is growing.
Wait a minute, Solaris and Galaxia said they felt elven magic near them over the last week... was that Twilight's doing?
The portal stabilises and after a few tense moments of silence my eyes widen as a pony comes through wielding a golden sword and shield with a very hostile expression ready to fight before he gasps and looks right at us.
"FATHER!" Both Luna and Celestia yell before running over to the alicorn and tackling him to the floor in a bone crushing hug.
"Solaris? Are you alright?" I barely hear Galaxia ask with worry from the other side of the portal.
Twilight still looks out of it, not knowing we're here with her eyes still glowing white, sweat beading down her forehead and she doesn't look like she'll be able to hold the portal for much longer.
I poke my head through the portal and see the same space like area when I first met my wives parents. "Galaxia! Come through quickly!" I tell her and she looks wide eyed at me.
"Adrian?" she asks and then gasps. "If you are here then that means... MY BABIES!" she yells and before I had a chance to move she barrels through the portal knocking me over onto my back with her on top of me. She pulls herself off of me and looks around before spotting Celestia and Luna hugging their father. "Oh my little fillies!" she says making her way over to them and prying them off Solaris who chuckles as he sits back up.
"Mother!?" the two sisters say and cry happily as they hug their mother tightly, almost too afraid to let her go.
I smile at the display before Twilight seems to short out and drop to the floor as the portal begins to destabilise and begins to pull objects not bolted down into it. I yelp as I start sliding across the ground towards the ever shrinking portal. Thinking quickly I cast a shield between myself and the portal and use it as a net to stop myself as well as Spike and the now unconscious Twilight. Solaris has jammed his sword into the stone floor using it as an anchor while hugging his wife and daughters to himself to prevent them being sucked in.
"What in the name of chaos is going on in here!?" Discord yells as he appears in a cloud of pink smoke.
"Portal! Unstable! Do something!" I yell at him as I boost my shield since the pressure from the portal is making it crack.
"Oh... I did not see that going wrong... well then!" he says and with an eyebrow raising act, eats the unstable portal like a cupcake in one bite and belches out a mist of purple mana.
The force pulling us is now gone so I dismiss my shield and stand up with a sigh, that didn't help my sore muscles in the slightest as I stretch.
"Mother! Father! B-But how?" Luna asks with tears flowing down her face as she and her sister continue to hug their parents.
Discord coughs getting everyone's attention. "That would be Twilight's doing. I gave her some advice and pushed her in the right direction as she wanted to do something for you both since you saved her and her friends from the destruction of Ponyville and gave them homes here, and since elven magic is not from Equus, only she was capable of bringing your parents back," he tells her and then looks to the sleeping elf.
"Though it seems it may have been too much for her to perform safely, but all's well that ends well!" he says and floats over to Solaris. "It's so good to see you again my old friend," Discord says to the alicorn with his lion paw extended.
Solaris gets up with his wife and daughters with a grin on his face. "That it is, Discord! I do apologise for what my daughter did to you, she never could take a prank well, but at least it is good to see you hold no grudge against her," he replies and shakes Discord's paw. Celestia pouts and crosses her arms.
"Well then, now that everything is hunky dory! I'll head back down to the little ones, I had to leave Shella with them to see what was going on," Discord tells us before teleporting away.
Galaxia is now balling her eyes out while suffocating her daughters in her chest. "Oh my little fillies! How I've longed to hug you in my arms again!" she says and starts kissing their foreheads repeatedly.
Solaris lets them have their moment and walks over to me as I pick up Twilight. "It's good to be home again," he says and smiles at Twilight. “and we have this young mare to thank for it, though what she did was very dangerous. She could have ended up pulling the whole city into the plane between worlds..." he says and sighs.
"Thankfully we have the Aspect of Chaos on our side," I reply with a chuckle before placing Twilight on her bed. "Spike, keep an eye on her and make sure she doesn't use her magic when she awakens," I tell the dragon who nodded and sits on a chair next to Twilight's bed.
"Now then," Solaris says and gives me a bone crushing hug. "I would like to thank you properly for protecting my daughters from the assassins, gryphons, undead, and dragons. You put yourself in harms way to make sure they remained safe, for that you have our eternal gratitude. If you would allow us, we would once again take the throne so you and our daughters may focus on your family and training," he offers.
No more court? No more dealing with the nobility? More time with my family? "Sounds great, being a King isn't fun at all. Complaints and demands, hardly any time for my family, and nothing but constant threats lessening that time even more... you can have your damn throne back," I reply and chuckle.
He laughs heartily and pats my back, which is still sore. "Oh don't I know it, but being stuck only watching the world go by, it'll be a welcome change to help our ponies again," he says before Galaxia and my wives walk over for a large group hug with me trapped in the centre, but I couldn't be happier for my wives right now.
Celestia then walks over to Twilight and smiles at her. "Spike, please inform me when she wakes up so I can thank her, then scold her for doing something so foalish in the first place without any help," she asks the dragon kindly.
"Sure, but I think she might be out for awhile, that was a lot of magic she used," he replies and tucks Twilight in.
"Alright my daughters, I would like to meet my grandfoals and daughters in law," Galaxia says and eagerly heads towards the door.
"Daughters in law? Cadence isn't married to us yet," I say confused.
"Oh? So you don't plan on marrying her?" Solaris asks me.
"No no no, I do... but I was planning to after she's had her foal… though I guess I could propose later today," I reply with a sheepish grin.
"Then she is still our daughter in law either way," Galaxia says and leaves the tower.
I smile and we all follow her out where Celestia and Luna lead them through the Castle back to the Dining Hall. The guards and maids along the way are stunned and just stare as the two alicorns walk by.
We enter the Dining Hall where the bouncy castle is still there with Shella and Discord inside playing with the foals. Galaxia squeals and rushes over but a giant hand made of clouds grabs her before she could get on as well. "Ah ah ah! Put on some socks before you come on or your hooves could pop the castle," Discord tells her kindly and conjures a pair of thick white socks for her.
Being put down gently, Galaxia quickly puts them on before crawling over to the foals and hugs them all happily. "Oh I'm a grandmother! And my grandfoals are all so beautiful!" she says with tears in her eyes as Mavis and Vespula hug her back feeding on her love for them.
The alicorn then yelps as Valiant tries to breastfeed from her making Solaris laugh before walking over and sitting on the edge of the castle. Celestia and Luna conjure some socks and put them on before climbing onto the castle as well chatting with their happy mother while Celestia feeds Valiant. I pull a chair over from the dining table and sit beside my father in law.
"This was certainly unexpected, I was going to look for a way to bring you back after the whole dragon conflict, but it seems Discord and Twilight beat me to it. I thought it was elves from Terra trying to get to you, maybe Grogar himself, but it was Twilight this whole time... I wonder how she found you in the first place?" I tell him and frown.
"I believe she's made her own magic mirror to try and locate us since the magic we felt was similar to when you contact us through your mirror, just less potent. Then she used the location to create a portal, but it seems she still needs more training and studying to control her magic better," he replies and smiles as Valiant crawls over to him and holds his little arms out. "Hello, little one," he says and picks him up gently, cradling him in his large arms.
I can't stop smiling as I watch the scene before me. "I'm going to go and get Cadence, she'd love to be here right now," I tell them all getting nods and okays.
I leave the Dining Hall and head to my room where Cadence looks worried. "Adrian! What was that magic I felt?" she asks me.
"Twilight lost control of a spell, but there's two people you need to meet," I tell her while giving no details.
"Is Twilight alright?" she asks with concern.
"She's fine, she's just sleeping it off and Spike is looking after her," I reply and pick her up bridal style.
"Okay, so who am I meeting?" she asks with a frown.
"It's a surprise," I tell her and head towards the Dining Hall.
Cadence keeps guessing who it could be but I keep replying with no or nope. We arrive where the guards open the door for us and once we enter, Cadence gasps.
"Is that..." she mutters and I smile wider.
"Celestia and Luna's parents, and your future in laws," I tell her making her look at me with wide eyes.
"In laws? You mean..." she ask with tears in her eyes.
"After you've had your foal, would you marry me, Celestia, Luna, and Shella?" I ask her.
She strangles my neck in a tight hug and cries. "Yes! Yes I will!" she replies and kisses me deeply.
I smile into the kiss and walk over the bouncy castle where I place Cadence down gently after Discord puts some pink and purple socks on her.
"Hello, Cadence. It's nice to meet you face to face," Solaris says to her while Galaxia crawls over and rubs her stomach.
"Yes, it's wonderful to see our family growing," she tells the pink alicorn and hugs her gently.
"So what happens now?" Celestia asks.
Solaris smiles and turns to face her. "You and your family are going to go and relax for a week, and if you'll allow us, we would like to sit on the throne again," he replies.
Luna gasps and looks between her parents. "You mean we no longer have to preside over court or deal with the petty nobles!?" she asks excitedly.
"Yes, we'll get this kingdom running smoothly again, I'm honestly surprised how the nobility got as bad as it did, but we'll set them straight again," he replies. "Celestia, I'd like to look over those plans of yours for Aires Peak, maybe I can offer some advice, though we wouldn't be much help in a battle as we're still recovering our magic after sending my armour to Adrian," he offers his daughter.
"Very well, father," she replies with a smile.
The rest of the day is spent with us all talking and catching up. The time comes for bed where Solaris and Galaxia take Celestia's old room.
"I can't believe our parents are back!" Celestia says happily as she puts Valiant to bed.
"We know! And they're taking the throne back as well, we can now focus on our herd and training," Luna replies and quickly takes her clothes off.
“I’m looking forward to getting to know them better,” Cadence says laying down on the bed carefully.
“I would like to show them the Hive later, get their opinions and advice in what could be improved as well,” Shella says her piece.
We all strip and get into bed once Shella returns from putting Mavis and Vespula to their cots.
Tomorrow we plan to go out for the day and then have dinner with Solaris and Galaxia, before we announce the return of the old King and Queen.
Terracana Chapter 87: Ponies Don't Like Change Part 1
My family and I wake up and go through our morning ritual of washing and getting ready for the day.
Today I plan to take my lovers out for dinner while Discord watches over the foals. Fortunately it's the weekend now so Blueblood is taking over court, despite the protests from the nobles about it, most agreed it's only fair that even royalty needs to relax and unwind.
We meet up with Solaris and Galaxia in the Dining Hall to see them eating ravenously. I guess after so long eating whatever they had in that place, real food must taste divine.
Celestia and Luna smile widely while holding Valiant and Vespula. Shella is holding Mavis and I'm helping Cadence to walk.
Galaxia spots us and smiles at us with a mouthful of apple pie. "My babiesh! Come giff momma a hug!" she says before swallowing her food. Seems she’s still overjoyed at being able to hug her daughters again.
Both alicorn sisters run over and give their mother a tight hug. I sit next to Solaris while Cadence sits next to me. Celestia and Luna sit beside their mother while Shella sits next to Cadence.
"Good morning, my boy! I take it you all slept well?" my father-in-law asks me.
"I always do with my girls, I don't think I can ever sleep peacefully without any of them again," I reply and take a few pancakes for my breakfast along with a glass of water.
"I know what you mean, I don't think I'll ever be able to live without my wife," he says and looks at Galaxia with a fond smile as she talks excitedly with her daughters. He then looks back to me. "Well then, Galaxia and I shall take court for today while you go pamper your mates, we know how much you all need a break after all that has happened," he tells me.
"Oh, about that..." I say getting his attention. "Blueblood deals with the court on the weekends while we get some time to ourselves, and I think it would be best if you take your throne back after we've announced you to Canterlot tomorrow first. I'm not sure how the people will take seeing two unknown alicorns presiding over court, they had a fit just seeing me and Shella there," I inform him.
"I see, that would be for the best, we wouldn't want to cause trouble for our daughters just as we got back... Very well, my wife and I shall remain in the Castle until the gathering tomorrow," he replies and finishes off his breakfast.
I return to my breakfast while Shella feeds on the energy of a life crystal and then shares it with our daughters. Cadence leans against me and hums happily while slowly eating a banana rather suggestively, making me chuckle and look around at the people gathered. It's nice to see them relaxing now and hopefully we get some time to ourselves without someone trying to kill us again.
"Well, I need to head down to the Hive and check on the expansion progress, the newly joined changelings are having to share homes or sleep on makeshift beds until new homes are built. I'll return before our dinner date later," Shella tells us. She gets up and kisses me while passing Mavis to me, she then kisses Cadence who giggles before walking around and kisses Celestia and Luna as well.
We bid her farewell, but not before I order a unit of guards and a human mage to go with her. "Oh, I'm so happy to be home with my little fillies, their mates, and grandfoals!" Galaxia exclaims while smothering Valiant with affection. I'm also giving Mavis my affection and love which she faintly feeds from and then burps quietly.
"It's still strange that we have changelings in the family, after what happened to their capital in the badlands, we thought they would die out slowly," Solaris says while waving a finger in front of Mavis, who giggles and tries to grab it.
"You know what happened there, father?" Celestia asks surprised.
"Of course, it happened a couple hundred years before you and your sister were born... I can't remember all the details as it was so long ago, but I believe it was due to the jealousy of some of the Queens. You see, there is only one changeling king ever born at a time, where a new one will be hatched should the current one be killed. His role was to impregnate the Queens and increase the Hive's population, but he favoured one Queen more than the others, which angered most of them," Solaris explains and sighs.
"A few of them decided that if he couldn't show affection equally with all the Queens, then they'll kill him and lay a new king. They went through with this plan and the favoured Queen was devastated, she went into a rage like none has ever seen and killed off all the other Queens and their offspring, leaving her the only Queen alive for millennia," he says a with a sad expression.
"After she wiped them out, she and her changelings left the Hive and built their own deep within a forest near Gryphonia and slowly began to spread out. The changeling King was a good friend of ours, to learn that his own mates killed him out of jealousy saddened us, we tried to find the last Queen but we never saw her again, only rumours of ponies and other races disappearing afterwards," he finishes telling us.
I frown in thought. "So that last Queen was Chrysalis?" I ask him.
"...Yes, I believe so, but I'm not sure, I can't remember too well," he replies.
"If that is true," Celestia speaks up. "then that explains her hostility towards Shella, she kept that hatred for other Queens with her all these years," she says sadly, but then frowns. "But that doesn't excuse her from foalnapping and killing our ponies making them suffer as she drained them of their emotions, if she kept such a grudge for so long then she was beyond saving,"
So Chrysalis became what she was due to the loss of a loved one? Would that happen to me or the others should any of us get killed?
"Well, for now I'd like to focus on how to reveal Solaris and Galaxia to the people without them... freaking out," I say to everyone.
"We planned to announce their return tomorrow afternoon at the balcony above the Castle's main entrance, we'll have guards spread word today about it," Celestia replies.
"Sounds good," I reply and finish my breakfast.
The day goes by slowly as we wait for our dinner date into the city. Solaris and Galaxia are watching over Cadence and the foals while Luna and I are training for a few hours in the room Discord made. Discord himself has gone off to Terra to let my parents know I'm up and about again.
Celestia has gone up to Twilight's tower after hearing she has woke up.
POV: Celestia
Spike has sent word that Twilight has woken up and is still lying in bed feeling weak. I make my way to her tower and knock on the door.
"It's open!" I hear Spike tell me from inside. I open the door and walk in to see Twilight looking tired despite her long sleep. "Oh, hello, Celestia. I see you got my message... I mean when have you never got my messages before?" he greets and says with a chuckle.
"Every time and in perfect condition," I reply and then look at Twilight. "As for you young lady, what you did was irresponsible and downright foalish! You could have destroyed the Castle, Canterlot, even all of Equus!" I scold her sternly.
She begins to stutter with an upset look, unable to find the right words to say. I quickly stop her attempt and give her a tight hug. "But Luna and I thank you with all our hearts for returning our parents to us," I then tell her, tears on the verge of escaping my eyes.
She looks stunned with wide eyes before a small smile comes over her lips. "I couldn't do nothing after you, Luna, and Adrian not only saved us from the changelings, but helped give me my magic back... I owe you all so much and I wanted to do the best I could," she replies weakly and I couldn't help but hug her tighter.
"I know, Twilight. And we're very grateful, but you need to stop running into things like this on your own, it's a bad habit you have," I tell her and release my hug.
She smiles sadly with a mild blush. "I'm sorry," she replies.
"Just remember that next time, and I'll be scolding Discord for letting you do it alone as well. I'm just glad you're alright and nothing went wrong," I say and stand up. "Just get some more rest, I'll ask Silk to bring you something for lunch in a few minutes," I tell her before walking to the door.
"I've been wondering, Prin... Queen Celestia. Is it possible for me to talk to your parents? They must know a lot about magic being as old as they are..." she asks me with hope in her eyes.
I smile and nodded to her. "I'll ask them to stop by, they wanted to meet the mare that brought them back anyway," I reply and leave the tower and head to the kitchens to get the chefs to send up some food for Twilight.
POV: Adrian Stormsword
I dodge a swing from Luna's wooden sword and block her next attack with the wooden shield I'm using. I then retaliate with a thrust of my own wooden sword and she gracefully sidesteps and slaps me in the ass quickly with her sword.
"GAH!" I yelp and drop my sword to rub my sure to be red posterior.
"Five to one to us," she says with a smirk. She was toying with me until I accidentally poked her in the chest with my sword.
"I need a break..." I reply and sit down on some of the chairs Discord set up along the bar like counter with different drinks behind it.
Luna sits beside me and levitates a couple bottles of water over to us and gives me one. "Thank you," I say and take large mouthfuls of the refreshing liquid.
"Thou art improving, our love," she tells me and drinks her own water.
"But I have a long way to go to match you in skill..." I reply and chuckle.
"Mayhap so, but thy skill in magic is impressive, and thou canst only use four of five elements at this time, we look forward to what thou canst do once thou learn to wield five," she says and finishes her bottle off.
"Perhaps I should focus on my magic for now and learn to use five elements first... I think I'm depending on the aspects too much and not my own strength and power," I reply and frown. It's true as I've been using Gaia's and Infernus' power to solve all my problems lately.
Luna levitates her bottle back over the counter and into a basket of other empty bottles. "Twould be a good idea as thou may not have access to their power in the future, having thy own power and magic to work from would be beneficial."
I sigh and rotate my head getting some clicks from my neck. "Guess I'll start practising with five life elements... maybe I'll go see what Shining is up to and how his magic training is coming along," I say and get up off the stool and then head for the exit.
"We shall remain here and continue our training with Umbra," she replies and heads to the middle of the room.
I exit the building and make my way over to the Barracks to find Shining.
I arrive and knock on Shining's door, after a few seconds the door opens where Shining greets me. "Your highness," he says with a bow.
"One of these days I'm going to plant my boot up your ass if you keep that up," I tell him with a smirk.
He chuckles and lets me in. "Sorry, but it's just fun. So what brings you here?" he asks me.
"I was just wondering how your element training is coming along," I reply and take a seat on the couch to the left.
"Oh, well so far I've got a single life and shield element down, but now I'm learning the water element," he tells me and sits back behind his desk. I notice a lot of paper on said desk.
"What's all this?" I ask and pick up a sheet which looks like a application form.
"These are resumes of humans and other races from Terra, they want to move here and explore our world or learn about our magic and such," he replies but then frowns as he picks up another piece of paper. "But then there's those elves, they want us to send any animal that isn't native to Terra to them... with no explanation on why," he tells me.
"Deny it then, they've been known to experiment on animals before, and while they say they've stopped, they could still be doing it for all we know. The elves are very wary of outsiders in their homeland," I reply and then tap the life orb on my hand. 'Gaia, do you think the elves might still be experimenting on animals?' I ask her
'It's possible, I haven't been able to keep an eye on them since making a contract with you, but I'm sure Discord might be able to find out,' she replies.
'Thank you, I'll ask him later.' I then look back up to Shining and he looks at me confused. "Sorry, I asked Gaia a question," I tell him.
"Very well. So, what do you plan to do now before the attack on Aires Peak?" he asks me and crosses out one of the forms.
"Now? I'm going to enjoy my time with my family and then introduce Celestia and Luna's parents to Canterlot," I reply and he looks at me wide eyed.
"Their parents!?" he asks stunned.
"Twilight brought them back through a portal she made, but yes, they're going to retake the throne and allow us to focus on our growing family," I tell him.
"I... see," he says with a frown.
"What?" I ask him.
"How long have they been gone?" he suddenly asks me.
"As far as I know? A few thousand years," I reply.
"And do they know anything about politics and laws these days? Or do they only know them from back in their day?" he then asks.
I raise and eyebrow at him and think, do they know? "I don't know..."
"Then it's clear the ponies of Equestria might be strongly opposed to such a change, Celestia has been ruling over us for so long alone, her stepping down would cause a panic or even possibly a riot, perhaps give another nation incentive to attack, this would also give the nobles still fighting to keep the old ways alive to possibly take the throne somehow for themselves, we all know how they took to you and Shella joining the royal family," he tells me.
I sigh and shake my head, he has a few points. "I'll ask them before I head out for dinner with my family later, let me know if something strange comes up with those that want to come here," I ask him and he nodded.
"Sure, already had an absurd request of sending the dwarves three tons of different alcoholic drinks in return for some of theirs, couldn't they just send somepony to come and taste test them or something?" he replies and shakes his own head.
I chuckle and leave the Barracks and head back to the training room to start learning how to cast five elements at once.
Terracana Chapter 88: Ponies Don't Like Change Part 2
After a bit more elemental training, the rest of the day passes by and now it's time for dinner, so my wives and I take Solaris and Galaxia out into Canterlot in suits and dresses -although Solaris' and Galaxia's look really old fashioned- where the ponies stare at them in awe or confusion. We've left the foals in my parents and Discord's care until we return.
Solaris takes a deep breath of air and sighs. "It's good to be back after so long away," he says while Galaxia has her right arm hooked around his left.
"I know! And look at all the new clothes and gizmos there are," my mother in law adds in while looking around at the store windows.
Celestia and Luna giggle from their parents excitement as we head towards a restaurant we haven't been to before called the Rose Garden. I've had to push Cadence in a wheelchair as she's having trouble walking again, she's estimated to give birth in another thirty to fifty days.
We enter the building and after a bit of fumbling from the head waiter, we get seated at a large table in a private room, the room looks like an indoor garden with flowers and rose bushes around us, there's even a small pond with colourful fish in it as well.
We've all made our orders and got our drinks, now we just wait for our food.
"I've been wondering... Why don't you both speak like Luna does?" I ask my in laws with curiosity.
Solaris chuckles at the question. "Unlike Luna who unfortunately was displaced for a millennia, we've been watching over Equestria, more specifically Celestia, and adopted the new modern way of speaking," he replies and then takes a sip from his wine. "We're not as in the dark about modern customs as you might think."
We chat for a while and our food arrives, Celestia and Luna just talk with their parents, telling them of their training and new abilities.
Shella, Cadence, and I talk about our foals where we guess what name Cadence's foal will have.
The food was good and after paying for the bill, we head back to the Castle where ponies continue to stare at the two older alicorns. We arrive and head up to our room where we just relax and talk with each other.
Galaxia smothers our foals in affection again while Solaris and I play a game of chess... I lost fantastically!
Hours go by and it's time to turn in for the night, Solaris and Galaxia bid us goodnight and we all go to sleep.
The Next Morning
We get up and have breakfast, the announcement of Solaris and Galaxia happens at midday. First I spend an hour with Keanu where I meet Fluttershy playing with him, I've noticed that Keanu likes her a lot more than he does me. We then go to the Training Room to continue with our training, but Solaris decides to give me a friendly sparring match.
It's safe to say I got my ass kicked, he's damn good with a sword.
Time flew by and it's now ten to twelve. We're all standing on the balcony over the Castle's main entrance where the people of Canterlot have started to gather, chatting amongst themselves.
"I wonder how they'll greet us?" Solaris wonders to himself while stroking his beard just behind the curtains. He's wearing a nice looking black suit with a small cape over his left shoulder.
"I'm sure we'll be welcomed back like that time we stopped those demons from destroying Maneton," Galaxia says. She's wearing a white dress with a small shoulder to shoulder veil on her back.
"We believe they shalt rejoice at thy return," Luna chips in as we wait for midday.
Once everything has been checked, and double checked by Twilight, we're ready to begin.
Celestia and Luna walk up to the edge of the balcony while Cadence, Shella, and I stand to the side each holding one of our foals each.
"My little ponies! Today is a day to rejoice! As mine and my sister's parents have finally returned after millennia of being away. They gave up their ability to stay here to seal away a great evil before even the founding of Equestria! And yesterday, my student Twilight Sparkle has managed to bring them back!" Celestia says to the gathered crowd who mumble to each other.
"Please welcome back our parents, Solaris and Galaxia!" she then says and steps aside with Luna.
The aforementioned alicorns step through the curtains and the crowd go silent. Well this feels awkward...
"Who?"
"The Princesses have parents?"
"I've never heard of them."
"I saw them yesterday! So they’re the Queen’s parents?"
Celestia and Luna look disappointed as that wasn't the reaction they were hoping for. Galaxia looks sad that they've been forgotten while Solaris just looks stoic.
"Greetings ponies of Canterlot. I am Solaris, and this is my wife Galaxia. We are happy to be home after being away for so long. While we may not have been able to interact with Equestria during our leave, we were able to watch over you as the years went by. We are proud of what you have accomplished working together," Solaris says to the gathered crowd.
It takes a few seconds before a few people clap their hands. Celestia then steps back up to the balcony.
"I know this must be surprising, but Luna and I would be very grateful if you would all show them the same respect that you do for us," she tells the crowd.
"So what will they be doing!?" a unicorn man asks. He's wearing a long coat and a hat with a piece of paper with the word 'Press' on it. A notepad and quill is in his hands with a camera around his neck.
Solaris then replies. "We shall be helping our daughters and their herd mates with the Kingdom, we will take over court some days to allow them to rest and relax."
"But we've been perfectly fine with Celestia over the last thousand years, we don't need anypony else!" a mare then says. I notice she's in a fancy and expensive looking dress, must be a noble.
"We understand that, but tell me, would you like to work non-stop for centuries without rest? We alicorns may be powerful, but we too need to unwind and relax," Solaris replies with a raised brow.
"But the Princess has never been tired!" another woman says.
"She may have never shown you, but at the end of most days she would collapse after lowering the sun and raising the moon," Galaxia replies to her with a slight wince as if remembering said occasions. It must have hurt to watch her child push herself to exhaustion and not be able to comfort her.
I frown at the gathered crowd as they continue to say they don't need anyone else besides Celestia. Only a few even mention Luna, Cadence, Shella, or even me.
This goes on for a few minutes before Celestia yells. "ENOUGH! It's true, most days I was so exhausted I fell asleep still in my regalia. Then arrived Cadence who after learning what to do, helped alleviate some of the work for me. My sister then returned and has taken back her care of the moon and stars. Then my herd mates arrived and I've never felt better! Now with my parents back, we won't be so stressed and over worked anymore. I was hoping you would welcome my parents back home, but I see that it is too much to ask for." Her expression goes from disappointed to a sad frown.
The crowd is silent as Celestia breathes deeply to calm herself down.
Solaris then speaks up. "We only wish to help our daughters as any parent would, we are not taking over their positions, but allowing them to have time to themselves and herd mates," he says.
The ponies mumble to each other when a familiar voice speaks up. "I know what it's like working weeks on end being away from the ones you love, you have our support," says Fancy Pants with his right arm around Fleur De lis' waist.
"WOOHOO!" I then hear Pinkie yell from the crowd making me smile.
A few more voice their support while the rest look uncertain.
I then step up beside Solaris after passing Valiant to Celestia. "All we can ask is you give them a chance, like you have for me and Shella," I tell them.
More murmuring and the crowd start clapping together, but it feels like it's not entirely sincere. The crowd begins to disperse while Celestia sighs.
"That could have gone better," she mutters to herself.
"Just give them time, they'll warm up to them eventually," I tell her and hug her gently.
"I know, but I guess I was just hoping," she replies and nuzzles me.
I step back and then turn to the others. "I should get back to training, I want to be able to use five elements as soon as possible," I tell them all and start making my way to my room to get my armour.
"We shall join thee as well, we wish to keep training so we too may receive our champion form," Luna says.
"I'm going to take Valiant back to our room for a nap, all this excitement has made him tired," Celestia says just as our son yawns.
"I'm coming with you, my dear. We still need to catch up on everything we can!" Galaxia says to her and scoops up Valiant from Celestia's arms.
"Hmm, I suppose I'll tag along, nothing really to do until ponies become accustomed to us again," Solaris chips in as he and Galaxia begin to follow Celestia out the door.
"We'll go with them as I'm sure Mavis and Vespula could do with a nap as well," Shella says with a forced smile as she and Cadence follow them.
I look to Luna who just shrugs before pulling on my arm towards our room.
After getting our armour on, we head to the Training Room and continue with our training.
Two weeks later
I'm getting better at controlling five life elements, I just need to continue practising to get used to the magical pressure.
Solaris and Galaxia attended to their first court session with Celestia and Luna nine days ago, at first the people were wary of them, I mean they do look imposing, especially Solaris with his flame like hair, beard, and tail. Though from what Celestia told me it went well enough, the common folk talked to them while a couple of the nobles tried to talk with only Celestia.
Luna and Celestia are getting closer to unlocking their champion forms, Luna managed to form hers for a few seconds before it broke away. A large shadow raven with a sharp looking beak and talons. The blood red eyes were unnerving as well.
Shella is only a few days away from laying her eggs again while Cadence is just about a month way from giving birth. Luna has also started getting morning sickness and tried to strangle me for causing her such discomfort, but immediately tried to suck the air out of my lungs after as she apologised repeatedly.
My in laws over the last two weeks have also taken to walking through Canterlot when they could, just to meet the people and talk with them as equals, they're really earning the common people's respect.
As for what's going on around Equestria, another gryphon attack was reported and a small town just starting up called Trottsville was destroyed and it's one-hundred and three ponies were taken. Celestia has decreed no new towns shall be founded until the gryphons are dealt with as we can't afford to spread our forces anymore than we have.
Undead have also attacked a few towns but they seemed more like scouting groups then an attack force. I think Grogar is just using them to gather information.
Mavis' hair and horn are growing longer and her wings have started to form, they're tiny little stumps for now but one day they'll grow as big and as beautiful as her mother's.
Fluttershy has earned Keanu's loyalty over the time she spends with him, so I've reluctantly let her have him. Besides, why would I need a plains runner when I can fly to my destination via airship or my air wings?
Pinkie Pie has brought some orders for mooncakes from Luna now that her cravings have started, the oddest thing she's asked for so far is hay wrapped in bacon and dipped in some kind of dew grass flavoured paste.
Rainbow dash and the others have also visited now and then, mostly for Twilight who has been questioning Solaris and Galaxia about magic whenever she could. They were happy to answer but finally told her to calm down and give them some space.
Discord has been helping me with my training and has been trying to contact the aspect of order for Twilight, but so far nothing. It's as if she just disappeared and that actually has Discord worried.
Over in Terra, the orcs are trading pelts and other harvested goods for metals and other luxury goods, so relations are going well between the two nations, but people are still wary of the orcs. I won't be going back to the orcs' lands for a long time yet, the battle I was forced to fight in still echoes throughout my mind.
No word on Ortho's whereabouts has turned up either, if he is working with Grogar, then could that mean he's here in Equestria? That has us a little worried and keeping an eye out just in case.
Ember returned from the dragon lands now that everything there calmed down seven days ago. She hasn't left Spike's side since she got back and was very affectionate with him, while being hostile to nearly every female he talked to. Spike keeps telling her that it's fine but she says it's just natural for a dragoness to protect their mate from potential rivals as males or females could take another's mate for themselves.
After waking up and eating breakfast, we do our own things till midday where we gather up together including Twilight and her friends head out for a picnic at the park, it was Cadence's idea.
So here we are talking and eating lunch, I watch as Rainbow Dash flies around doing stunts and tricks making me smile, despite her missing arm she's still as lively as when I first met her. Scootaloo, the little filly I revived in Ponyville is just staring in awe at Rainbow as well.
"This is nice," Cadence says and leans against my left side with Mavis in her lap. Shella is leaning on my right with Vespula while Celestia is behind me giving me a shoulder rub.
"Mmm-hmm," I mumble my reply with Valiant on my lap babbling away at his siblings.
"I know I keep saying this but it's so good to be home," Galaxia says while Solaris is lying down with his head on her lap. He reaches up and holds her hand gently with a smile, getting one from her in return.
Pinkie is talking a mile a minute to Applejack who also brought her little sister with her. Rarity's sister Sweetie Belle is sitting next to Applebloom while eating a cucumber sandwich.
Twilight is going through her elven book again while levitating a daffodil and daisy sandwich next to her. I remember when she tried to eat a daffodil and daisy sandwich again after she became an elf, only to spit it out in confusion at why it tasted so bad. I told her she can't digest grasses and some flowers anymore making her sad as that was her favourite sandwich.
She coughs and spits it out again and opens the sandwich to see inside, just to groan in frustration and pick up another. What she didn't realise is it was a bacon, lettuce, and tomato one. She bites into the sandwich while looking at her book and stops mid bite with wide eyes. She chews for a few seconds before pulling her hand away and goes wide eyed at the sight of the bacon.
It takes a few seconds before she faints at having her first taste of meat. The others laugh or giggle while Celestia places a pillow under Twilight's head.
The picnic continues until late in the evening, now it's time I keep a promise to Applejack. "Hey, Applejack. Want to head to your orchard and see if we can get more trees to grow?" I ask her making her smile.
"Ah would like that, Adrian. We only have fifty trees left over from Sweet Apple Acres, if ya can help grow more we'd be mighty thankful," she replies.
"Then let's get going," I tell her and turn to the others. "I'll see you all later today alright?" I tell my family and they nod in reply.
So with that, I follow Applejack through the city and down the mountain towards her new farm.
Terracana Chapter 89: Sweet Apple Acres Rises Again
Applejack, Applebloom, and I arrive at their new farm at the base of the mountain after about an hour's walk. I see Granny Smith on a rocking chair in front of their house with Big Macintosh sorting a few different kinds of apples in barrels.
"We're home, Granny! Big Mac!" Applebloom yells to her family.
Granny's startled awake and looks around. "Huh? Wha? Oh Applebloom. What's with all the yellin'?" she asks and then looks at me. "Oh! Yer Majesty! Welcome ta Sweet Apple Acres... well, at least what's left of it," Granny tells me cheerfully.
"Thank you, Granny. I'm just here to help grow a few more trees for you," I reply and smile.
"Well that's mighty kind'o ya, sonny. To be honest, fifty tree's just ain't enough ta get by on. If'n it weren't fer the stipend ya'll give us, we would be plum broke," she says and sighs.
"It's alright, so where would you like the new trees to be grown?" I ask her.
Applejack grabs my left arm and starts pulling me towards the trees. "We need ta go further west, then we'll expand to the south later," she tells me. I chuckle as I follow along behind her.
Applebloom tags along as we make it to the area Applejack mentioned. "Alright then, have you planted the seeds already?" I ask her.
"Eyup, they're all planted and growing," she replies.
I take a deep breath and activate my life's magic form. The vines spread over my body and the white flowers bloom over them. Once done, I stand in the middle of the planted area and place both of my hands on the grass.
"Stand back, I don't want the trees to hit you when they grow," I tell them and watch as they move out of the area but still close enough to watch.
'Remember how it felt in Orgrim when you healed the land. I'll let you know if you are making a mistake or not,' Gaia tells me.
I nodded in reply and look back to the ground and close my eyes, I feel for the life force of the seeds and find them after a couple of minutes. I then start pouring life energy into the ground specifically targeting the seeds.
I can feel the saplings start to sprout slowly as they feed on the energy, after about an hour, thirty saplings have reached around one metre in height. I continue to pour life energy into the ground making the saplings continue their growth, though Gaia has told me to slow down as I was overdoing it a couple of times. Once they reach three metres and I'm down to a third of my mana, I stop to take a break.
Applejack and Applebloom then both make their way over to me while looking at the young trees.
"Ooowee! They're looking mighty fine, Adrian," the orange mare says and smiles.
"Well, they still need another boost, but I need a break first to recover my mana," I reply and stand up as my aspect form deactivates.
"Then how about some tasty vittles back at the house?" Applejack offers.
"I could go for a snack right now, sure," I reply and follow her back to the farmhouse.
Once we enter, Applejack directs me to the table where I sit down with Applebloom next to me.
"Ah wish ah could grow trees like that!" she says with a smile.
"It would make growing things a lot simpler for everyone wouldn't it?" I comment and chuckle.
She then sighs with a sad frown. "It's just not the same since the changelings attacked... ah miss the farm, mah friends, the clubhouse... crusadin' for our marks," she tells me, her eyes starting to tear up.
I'm not sure what to say to cheer her up.
Applejack and Granny Smith start making some pies and other types of food. After a good ten minutes or more, the table is covered in food.
Big Macintosh enters while patting his forehead with a cloth and sighing.
"Big Mac, ya'll stored the apples in the barn?" Applejack asks him while setting down a jug of what I assume is apple juice.
"Eeeyup," he simply replies.
"And the vegetable seeds are ready fer plantin'?" she then asks him.
"Eeeyup," he again replies.
"And the apples for the first batch of cider is ready?"
"Eee... Nnnope," he says and facepalms.
"Well ya better get it done after eatin' sumthin'," she tells him and sits down across from me.
Big Macintosh nodded and sits beside her while Granny sits at the head of the table.
"Ah'm just worried, great grandma and pa didn't even have so little to start with when first setting up Sweet Apple Acres... will we be able ta recover from this?" Big Macintosh asks his family with a sad frown.
"Now don't ya worry none, with the king's help, we’ll be back up and running in no time," Applejack says with a barely forced smile. It's clear to anyone that they all miss their old farm.
"I'll do as best as I can, but it will take a while to grow the orchard back to what it once was, and I also have to continue with my training as well," I tell her.
She sighs and looks down. "Ah know, but we're still grateful for the help nonetheless. It's just, we're all still coming to terms that Ponyville is gone," she replies and shakes her head lightly.
"I'm sure that one day it'll be rebuilt, but until then, at least you still have each other," I tell her and take a bite out of the piece of pie on my plate.
"Ain't that the truth," Granny says with a smile. "Ponyville may be gone, but home is where yer family is."
I smile as well. Equestria is my home, where my family and friends live. I'll be damned if I allow the gryphons or Grogar to do whatever they damn well please anymore. Once I've learnt how to use five elements, I'll teach this Sphinx God not to mess with us.
After the food and drinks are consumed, I head back out with Applejack and Applebloom to continue growing the section of the orchard earlier. I retake my life aspect's magic form and place my hands on the ground. I pour life energy once again into the soil, helping the saplings to grow taller.
The process takes a couple of hours and a few breaks to recover, but thirty new apple trees have fully grown and are ready to bare fruit.
"That's all I can do for today I'm afraid," I tell Applejack and sigh as the sun is making its way towards the horizon.
"It's alright. We still have plenty of time to grow more, we'll just have ta make due with what we have fer now," she replies and tips her hat at me.
"I'll try to come by at least once a week to grow more as this is also good practice," I say and cancel my aspect form.
She smiles and nodded. "It's all we can ask fer."
We head back to the farmhouse where I get a quick drink of water before leaving. I stand outside the front door and turn back to look at the family.
"I'll try to come back in six or seven days to grow some more for you, but right now I need to get back to my family. Thank you for the delicious food as well," I say and smile.
"Aw shucks, think nothin' of it, yer majesty. With all yer doing fer us it's the least we can do," Granny Smith replies with her own smile.
"Thank you. Now then, I must be off. Goodbye and I'll see you next week," I tell them and start walking off.
"Thank you fer helpin' us! Tell Sweetie and Scootaloo I said hi!" I hear Applebloom yell out to me making me chuckle.
I look out towards the small orchard as I make my way along the path. 'It may be small now, but someday, Sweet Apple Acres will rise again.'
I turn back to the path and make my way up the mountain back to Canterlot. Now that I’ve recovered a fair amount of my mana, I cast my air wings spell and just enjoy a slow flight back home.
I arrive back at the Castle after just over an hour of flight from Applejack's farm. I land in the courtyard where the guards salute to me and I nod in return.
I head inside and ask a guard where my family currently are.
"They're in the Dining Hall, your Majesty," he tells me.
"Thank you," I reply and make my way down the halls.
The guards open the door for me and I walk in after thanking them. I see Celestia sitting on her chair with Valiant on her lap while Luna and Cadence sit next to her. Shella sits beside Cadence while holding Vespula.
On the other side of the table is Solaris and Galaxia who has Mavis on her lap and is smothering her with affection. They're all talking to each other while it seems they're just finishing their meals.
"I'm back!" I announce getting them to look my way.
Luna and Cadence instantly beam with wide smiles while the others just smile.
"Welcome back, Dear. I take it all is going well for the Apple family?" Celestia asks me.
"Yes, I've grown another thirty trees and will return next week to grow more," I reply and take a seat next to Solaris.
"It is good that you personally go out to help the people, shows them that we actually care about them instead of just staying in the Castle all the time," Solaris says and pats me on the back.
I chuckle and look towards him. "I'm going to return to my training tomorrow, I'm getting closer to being able to use five elements at once, but I think I still have a ways to go."
"Well I'm afraid I cannot aid you in that as I have no idea how your magic works, but I can at least help you sharpen your sword skills," he offers making me wince remembering the last time he sparred with me. I can still feel the bruise on my head even though it healed days ago.
"Sure. Just, go easy on me this time?" I ask him making him laugh.
"Shall we have the kitchen staff bring thee anything, Adrian?" Luna then asks me getting my attention.
"No thank you, I had dinner with the Apple family. We should try to get Granny's pie recipe, it was very good," I reply.
"Very well, we shall be heading to bed then as we art tired and-" She stops mid sentence to stifle a yawn. "-we wish to be well rested for tomorrow's training," Luna then says and gets up from the table.
"Yeah, I think I could do with catching up on some sleep. All these cramps I'm getting is starting to wear me out," Cadence then says and follows behind Luna who helps her out the room.
"I guess I'll join them. Growing so many trees drained me quite a bit," I tell the rest here before standing up and stretching my arms and back.
"Alright, I shall see you in your training room tomorrow morning to help you practice your sword skills, son," Solaris tells me getting a smile out of me.
"Okay, goodnight everyone," I say and head to our bedroom.
I arrive to see Cadence and Luna already getting into bed and they smile at the sight of me.
"Adrian? why art thou here?" Luna asks me.
"I'm tired from using too much mana at AJ's farm so I'm getting in early," I reply and strip down.
They grin at me as I slip under the covers with them and they cuddle up to me.
"Well then our love, may thy dreams be pleasant and happy," Luna tells me and rests her head on my chest, followed by Cadence.
The next morning
I awaken with Shella and Celestia in the bed as well now, both cuddled up behind Cadence and Luna. I then yawn and look at the clock on the wall to see it's five forty-two in the morning.
I just lay in bed and wait till the others start to rise. First comes Celestia and Luna who drag themselves from the bed and put on a robe each before heading to the balcony and do their morning thing. Cadence and Shella then slowly wake up and yawn, Shella gets up and heads into the baby room to check on the foals while Cadence decides she wants to snuggle some more and buries her face into my neck with a deep inhale through her nose.
"Hmmm, this is nice," she comments and just lays there. I just smile and gently rub her stomach making her hum happily.
Shella returns with Mavis and Vespula in her arms while levitating Valiant in front of her. She then sits next to me and I place my left hand on her forearm to let her feed on some of my love for her and the others. She moans lightly as she feeds and then proceeds to feed our foals.
Celestia returns and takes Valiant so she can feed him while Luna goes over to her vanity mirror, but before she could begin brushing her hair she retches and clamps a hand over her mouth. She quickly gets up and bolts into our bathroom where we hear her throwing up in the toilet.
I wince every time she retches and ready myself in case she comes back and has a go at me, again.
After a couple of minutes she returns with a glare in my direction before storming over to her mirror and starts brushing her hair.
I get out of Cadence's grip getting a whine from her and get up out of bed, I then make my way behind Luna who seems to be ignoring me.
"Luna?" I ask her with worry in my tone.
"We art not talking to thee," she replies and huffs as she brushes her hair. I sigh and take the brush out from her hand. "Return that to us this instant," she tells me unamused.
I ignore her and start brushing her hair for her. At first she protests but after a few seconds succumbs and lets me continue.
"We art sorry for snapping at thee like that," she tells me after a minute of silence.
"It's okay, Tia was just as bad with hers," I reply getting a huff from Celestia. I glance to her and notice a small smile gracing her lips.
Luna just hums happily as I finish her hair which she examines in the mirror. "We thank thee, Adrian. Now let us head for breakfast and then continue our training," she tells me and stands up.
The others get up as well after dressing and grooming themselves, following us out towards the Dining Hall once they're done.
We arrive to see Solaris and Galaxia sitting at the table talking to Twilight, Blueblood, Lily, and Rarity.
"Good morning," I greet them and they smile at us.
"Good morning, Adrian," Twilight replies and I watch with a smirk as she's reading her book on elven magic while not paying attention to what she's levitating onto her plate, she picks up a fork and pierces the single piece of bacon she accidentally placed onto her plate along with some fruit and vegetables. She brings it up and bites into it making Rarity gasp and grimace as Twilight chews it slowly before going wide eyed.
She looks at the piece left on the fork and chews a bit again. Her face shows a couple of emotions: one, she looks disgusted that she's eating meat again. And two, she looks like she likes the flavour she's tasting. Yet another victim to the heavenly taste of that which is bacon.
Celestia sits next to Galaxia giggling at Twilight's reaction while Luna sits next to Solaris. Cadence and Shella sit next to me.
"So from the look on your face I think you like the taste," I tell the elf with a grin.
She quickly swallows her mouthful with a blank expression for a few seconds before looking at me. "Is this what the Queens have been eating for the past few months?" she asks me.
"Yes, bacon straight from Terra," I reply still with a grin.
I watch as she looks at the piece still on her fork and the pieces on the table for anyone to take. She looks back and forth for a few seconds before taking another bite behind her book making me chuckle slightly.
"So, Rarity," I say getting the white mare's attention. "Any plans of having a child of your own?" I ask her making her blush hard.
"W-W-Well, we've talked about it a-and we might h-have a foal n-next time I go into heat..." she replies while fanning herself with a hand.
"I see. So how's Canterlot treating you so far?" I ask her and fill my plate from the spread available.
Her blush lessens but still remains. "My new boutique is doing well and I'm even doing better than some others in the city. I've already got a few orders for the next Gala this year," she replies and takes a dainty bite of a cut up banana slice.
"That's good, I might need to make a few orders for casual wear as the ones I have are starting to wear out," I tell her making her perk up.
"Certainly, your Majesty! Oh this will make my store even more renowned for having royalty buy from me!" she replies giddily.
I ignore the 'your majesty' part as she just looks too happy to correct at the moment.
"Blueblood, how does it look with the nobles right now?" I ask him.
He sighs and rubs his right temple. "Slow at the moment. They're so used to being the ones on top that they refuse to be 'equal' with the commoners. The ones that have decided to go back to the old ways are starting to have second thoughts about it. If this continues they'll go back to the modern self-centred pompous bigots they were before," he replies.
Seems the damage Goldrush has caused is still lingering. I hope she and the other nobles in the dungeon are regretting their actions.
"Just keep doing the best you can, if they continue to act like they run the place then we might have to employ new laws," I say getting a nod from Solaris in agreement.
"They were never this bad during our reign millennia ago, we shall see that they are the respectable and dependable houses they used to be," he says in a serious tone. "I will not have them attempt to harm my family again even if it means I have to remove them personally."
Good to know that they're going to be keeping an eye on things now.
We finish breakfast and I notice Twilight has eaten ten pieces of bacon while trying to hide that fact behind her book.
Luna, Solaris, and I say our goodbyes and head towards the Training Room where we meet up with Discord who seems to be wearing a blacksmith's apron in front of a forge... except instead of fire in the forge, bubbles are popping inside it.
He turns towards us while wearing a protective mask and a strange looking hammer in his right hand. I raise an eyebrow at the strange looking sword in his left hand which is resting on the anvil.
"Adrian! Solaris! Good morning, chums! And good morning to you too, wittle Woona!" Discord greets us and teases Luna.
Luna growls and scowls at the Aspect of Chaos while I walk over and look at the strange bright blue pillow like sword.
"Uncle, what's with the forge and strange sword?" I ask him.
He throws the hammer into the bubble forge which squeaks and lifts up his face protection. "This my boy, is your new practice sword!" he tells me and holds it out to me. "It's an enchanted foam sword that's as strong as steel but hits like a pillow! It'll also make a noise when you land a blow on your opponent while leaving out the nasty injuries!" he also gives me a shield made of the same material.
I take the sword and shield and notice they look just like mine and even feel the same weight. Discord then pulls out another longer looking bright orange broadsword next to the forge.
"And I made one just like the one I remember you having, Solaris. Now when you practice with Adrian you won't beat him into paste again," he then tells Solaris and tosses him the sword. The comment makes me look at him with a deadpan expression.
Solaris catches the grip and looks at the sword in surprise. "I'm surprised you remember what my sword looked like, as well as its weight," the alicorn replies and swings it around. Damn thing looks like it could crush stone with the heavy sound it leaves in its wake. The hand guard is wide and has a hook curved inward to the blade on each end, my guess is to lock his opponent's weapon on it to disarm them. The blade looks to be a metre and a half long and three inches wide.
Solaris then looks at me and grins before raising his sword and bringing it down on my head hard.
*Squeak!*
The sword lets out a comedic squeaky sound and the blow felt like someone threw a pillow at my head. The blade even bent like a wet noodle before springing back into a solid straight position.
"Interesting swords you've developed, Discord," Solaris comments and tries to bend the blade with his hands, which didn't move at all.
"Yup! And I plan to make many more for the guards as well, think of it as incentive to practice more without the pain involved!" Discord replies and pulls the hammer out of the bubbles again along with a large ball of foam with it and begins hammering it into the shape of a sword. Each impact of the hammer gives off another squeaky noise.
"Alright, son. Let us begin your training," Solaris says and wields his large blade with just one hand.
I internally groan as I get into a stance and prepare for another beating.
He quickly lunges forward with a thrust to my chest and I parry the strike with my sword. A light ting of metal on metal sounds out which confuses me for a second but I ignore it and quickly swing my sword horizontally to the right.
Solaris easily dodges the admittedly much smaller blade and slaps me in the face with his blade. This time the sound of something wet or slimy like a fish slapping me echoes throughout the large room but I felt no pain nor felt wet.
I hear Luna giggle, whether or not at me or the sound I'm not sure but I hear Solaris chuckle at me.
"Despite the silliness of these swords, they are rather amusing," he comments and gets into a stance again.
I just grumble and get ready again. I start first and make a low sweep at his feet, he jumps over it and brings his sword down to my head. I raise my shield and block his strike making another ting sound, I then lunge forward and bash him with my shield.
*Hooonk!*
A loud horn noise sounds out as he's pushed back a couple of feet.
"Not bad, not bad," he says and gets ready again.
We continue for a good two hours and I'm so glad Discord made these swords. I received no injuries and Luna had to stop her own training due to a laughing fit she suffered when the sound of a loud fart rang out as Solaris hit me on the backside.
Luna for her part is trying to get control of her champion form but is still losing control making it break apart.
Discord has made twenty of the foam swords and has given them out amongst the guards outside before returning to make more. Shining wasn't amused with the sounds but didn't argue their effectiveness. The guards are seeming to have fun with them though.
We take a break and then keep practising. Solaris tells me when I'm doing something wrong and how to correct it, before Galaxia arrives and drags him away to take over court while Celestia joins us for her own training. Silk sheets even came by with refreshments for us before going back out to Shining until she was needed again.
Luna takes one of the foam swords Discord has made and challenges Celestia who thinks it's just a silly game with the toy like swords.
Though when she got struck in the muzzle, the sound of a goose honking sounds out making Luna burst into laughter. This causes Celestia to blush thinking she made the sound before striking Luna on her right cheek.
*Splat!*
The sound of a pie splatting on Luna's face and her shocked expression sends Celestia into her own fit of giggles.
Blushing herself now, Luna swings her sword and spanks Celestia which sets off the sound of a loud vulgar sloppy fart. Celestia blushes fiercely from the noise and stutters before glaring at Luna. I smirk as they start swinging at each other like they're using pillows instead of swords making random noises fill the room.
As they're preoccupied with themselves, I'll just continue my training to use five elements at once.
I spent the rest of the day practising my control with five life elements. I can cast a beam for ten seconds before the strain becomes too much. Celestia and Luna continued to pummel each other with the foam swords laughing like children, but Luna mentioned that these are flawed as without the fear of pain, the guards or us would become careless during a real fight.
So with that in mind, we got discord to rework them. After a couple of hours tweaking every sword he made, they now zap the one hit for a second along with the random sound.
Once we finished practising, Which Luna playfully slapped my ass with a sword which hurt worse than a training sword, though thankfully left no marks. She then apologised repeatedly for hurting me to which I assured her I was fine. We head back into the Dining Hall for dinner, where Cadence and Shella are here with my parents and my wives parents as well.
"Hello, son! How is your training going?" my dad asks me.
"It's going well. I can hold five life elements for about ten seconds now," I reply and sit down.
"That’s great. We've just popped over to say hello since we have a few days off from the store," he tells me.
Solaris lets out a light chuckle. "Indeed. Your father has told us a lot about Terra and its traditions," he says with a smile.
"I see, so what do you plan to do here now?" I ask my parents.
"Mostly look around Canterlot. Rarity has offered to show me some new designs she made while I show her mine," mom replies.
Dinner goes by pleasantly as we talk and laugh. It almost feels like there isn't a psychopathic necromancer or bloodthirsty gryphons out there wanting to kill us all.
When it comes time to lower the moon, our parents are in their rooms while I stand beside Luna and Celestia as they lower the sun and raise the moon.
"Beautiful as always," I comment getting Luna to hug me when she finishes.
"We thank thee for thy kind words, our love. We just hope thou canst put up with our sudden shifts of mood in the coming months," she tells me with a kiss.
"Don't worry, I survived Tia's mood swings, I'll survive yours," I playfully say getting a mock glare from her in return.
With that, we get into bed and go to sleep.
Four days later
My training with five elements is progressing slowly, but my swordsmanship is progressing quickly now that I have the fear of getting zapped repeatedly by Solaris. He is relentless, hitting me as many times as he can to get me to react faster. I believe I have been shocked at least two-hundred times in the last four days... My body still feels kinda numb.
Luna's control of her Champion form is making progress. She can hold it for a minute and twenty seconds before it collapses. Celestia has also begun her attempts at forming her Champion form, though with much less success than Luna. Shella and Cadence are looking after the foals as tomorrow Shella lays her next batch of eggs, and Cadence is just twenty or so days from giving birth to her own foal.
Once Cadence's foal is born, we'll have a small family and friends only wedding with Celestia, Luna, Shella, and I marrying Cadence into our family. While a bit upset, she agreed to the small wedding as to not invoke another possible attempt at our lives.
Shining and Silk have gotten even closer to the point that they've now moved in together at Silk's house near the castle. There's even rumours buzzing about the castle staff that they're thinking about having their own foal in a year or two.
The Lapis Hive and its new residents are thriving with the help of the Ponyvillians that decided to stay there. What books that could be salvaged from the destroyed town was added to their library as well as a new school built where Cheerilee and two changelings are now teaching both foals and hatchlings alike. Though we've gotten a report about a few other changelings detected near the hive, but these aren't Chrysalis' changelings. These are from a new previously unknown hive.
There's been a few more reports of gryphon attacks on our border with a few casualties, but thanks to our mages and weapons from Terra, they're being pushed back and suffering more losses than seems worth it, but yet they continue to attack us. I'm betting it's an insult to their pride that a prey species is pushing them back or becoming the hunters now.
As for undead sightings. Nothing has been seen or heard of Grogar lately, and that has Solaris on edge for some reason. Galaxia and my mother have been doting on their grandchildren every chance they got and the little guys are loving every second of it.
Twilight has been getting worried as she told us she felt elven magic near her now and then, and it wasn't her doing anything. I know elves are very good in portal magic, and I'm thinking they're trying to find a way to either get Twilight's books to stop their secrets on their magic getting out, or both them and Twilight herself. We've had guards posted to her to keep an eye out just in case something does happen. Twilight herself has started studying for a way to block or negate portal magic near her to prevent anything happening.
"OW!" I yelp as I get zapped for the tenth time in today's sparring match with Solaris. Luna is in a corner of the room and has refrained from using the new training swords to prevent any harm to her still growing foal and is focusing on her Champion form from now on.
"Faster, Adrian! You need to react faster!" Solaris tells me sternly and gets ready again. I raise my shield and frown in concentration.
I glance to my right and see Discord hammering his squeaky hammer on new types of training weapons including a halberd, mace, and zap arrows for archery training. Twilight is also here reading her books while practising offensive magic as she's worried about the bursts of elven magic she's feeling now and then, seems she's getting paranoid as she hasn't slept well in two days.
"Hmm? What is it, my dear?" he replies and looks at her while lifting his protective face guard off.
"Have you heard anything from the Order Aspect?" she asks him getting mine and Solaris' attention as well.
Discord sighs and rubs his temples. "Maybe. There's a rumour saying she's been sealed away by some powerful being on Terra. I'm still working on finding out who has her trapped. She can't be contacted through her orb nor can she reach us in the aspect realm," he tells her.
Twilight looks sad but static starts to fill the room as Twilight goes wide eyed. "I can feel elven magic! And it's stronger this time!" she yells and looks up.
We follow her gaze and see a few sparks above us what looks like a portal is trying to open up. Twilight reacts and starts mumbling a few words and her hands begin to glow light purple. The portal above us is trembling as Twilight begins to sweat from the strain she's under.
After a minute of struggling the portal snaps shut and a burst of magic fills the room before fading away. Twilight gasps and pants heavily as she sits down.
"They... they almost got through..." the elf says raggedly.
"Well I say! Those pompous buggers are trying their luck I think," Discord says wearing a fancy suit and tall top hat while sipping from a cup of tea. He's sitting on an ornate looking chair as well. "Jolly good show, my dear. That'll teach those bally seers who they're up against!" He then raises his tea cup up at her and sips from it again.
Discord then stands up and the fancy clothes, tea, and chair vanish. "Now excuse me while I'll go see what they're up to," he tells us and snaps his fingers, disappearing in a puff of smoke.
"Erm. Shouldn't we warn King Vortigan that the elves are up to something?" Twilight says to us.
Before I could reply Discord reappears looking shocked. "Uncle? What's the matter?" I ask him.
"Those blasted elves have found a forgotten relic that can suck out the magic of another being permanently and they had it set up ready to drain Twilight!" he says and gulps. "And they almost got me with it!"
I frown at this new development. "And what can we do to stop it?" I ask.
"Well... my magic would be stronger if I have a contract, but you still need to learn how to control both the chaos and order elements before I can make a contract with you. The best I can do for now is set up a barrier around Canterlot to disrupt their attempts to get in. I would try to pinch that relic, but if I'm caught by it, it will kill me," he replies grimly.
Solaris then speaks up. "Do it, Discord. I'll not have these elves threaten us and attempt to take one of our people!" he says angrily and then heads towards the door.
Luna has been silent during the whole incident before walking over and kneeling down next to Twilight. "Are thou alright, Twilight?" she asks the tired looking elf.
"Yes... but this is getting out of hand... why are they after me?" she replies and asks sadly.
"The elven council of mages are very protective of their spells and magic. The fact you seem to have a near complete guide of their magic is worrisome for them as if they fall into another's hands, they could find weaknesses in them. I would think they're trying to prevent that and since you're not affiliated with them, they want to remove you as a threat," I reply and hold my hand out to her.
She takes my hand and I pull her up onto her feet. "But I just want to learn my new magic! Why are they so against it?" she says with a pout and tears forming in her eyes.
"We know that, but they just don't care. Until Discord gets his barrier up, I recommend staying near your brother or Spike. We don't want them trying again," I tell her.
She nodded sadly and sighs as she sits down on a chair. I glance at Discord and see him fiddling with a crystal ball with a built in stand.
"What's that uncle?" I ask him.
"This will project the barrier around Canterlot. It will need recharging every couple of days but it should keep out the elves... though it won't stop them from making a portal outside of it," he tells me and then fills the orb with his magic.
The crystal starts to glow yellow until a thin, barely even noticeable barrier extends outwards and phases through the training room. We all head outside and look around but can't see it anymore.
"And that should do it. But I wouldn't be surprised if they send someone here to infiltrate and recover the books and or Twilight," Discord says then turns to Twilight. "May I see those books for a moment?" he asks her.
She frowns but hands him the books. Discord casts a spell on them and hands them back. "There we go, anyone other than you or I who touches these will get a rather nasty shock and knocked out for an hour or two. Should help keep them safe," he says making Twilight smile.
"Thank you, Discord. But what will we do about the elves?" Twilight says and asks.
I sigh and shake my head. "The best thing we can do is talk to Vortigan about it and see if he can do something about the elves. If not? Then it would seem you're stuck in Canterlot until we can make a more permanent solution," I tell her.
"Well then. I'll leave this orb in your room so you can just use your mana to refill it every morning," Discord tells me and vanishes.
With that done, Luna and I head to the portal to Terra and make our way to see King Vortigan about the elves.
Fifteen days later
During the last two weeks, The barrier is working wonders as Twilight has felt faint traces of elven magic outside Canterlot's barrier. Though we've not seen nor heard of any elven sightings as of yet. Discord has made a more portable version of the barrier as a necklace for twilight so a portal cannot be made near her while she's wearing it. Including herself unfortunately. But that is the price to keep her safe. Although, ponies can still use their teleport spells as the barrier only affects elven magic.
Vortigan has told us that the elven king Sylvaan denies any accusations of attempting to make portals to Canterlot and says it could be extremists who are still doing experiments on animals and possibly want the ponies for said experiments. All of us agree that is bullshit and Vortigan believes that after Elune turned back into an elf after Discord turned her into a pony told King Sylvaan about the books and Twilight.
The best we can do is keep up the barrier and if an elf comes through to capture him or her and interrogate them.
Shella has laid her eggs and I've impregnated her again. Cadence and Celestia are kinda jealous that she can have so many children in such a short time without the major pain of childbirth. Though, they don't think they could give up a single child like Shella does for her Hive.
My training is going very well. I can now hold a five element life beam for thirty seconds and I've also tried a fire beam, which I can hold for twelve seconds before the strain starts to burn my hand.
The guards aren't fans of the zapping training weapons but agree it's still better than making trips to the infirmary for bruises, cuts, and broken bones.
The Lapis Hive has been feeling those changelings nearby again, some of Chrysalis' old infiltrators say they're most likely scouts getting information on us. Shining has sent a few more guards down to help bolster their defences in case these changelings decide to attack.
Discord has been searching for the Order Aspect and the rumours have lead him to a derelict castle with a cyclops living in it. He says he can feel a faint trace of her in the castle and it seems the cyclops is wearing a crude necklace with an orb attached to it. The problem though is that cyclops are immune to all magic and prevent any spell being cast near them, also they're very strong physically. Though they're dumber than dirt. So Discord is planning to sneak in and take the orb physically before getting out and teleporting away.
There's been a few more gryphon attacks, which one has resulted in a town being destroyed due to the lack of a mage and guns and half its population to get killed or taken. The rest evacuated in time and made it to Manehatten. Celestia is now absolutely livid with the gryphons and is about to lead an assault on Aries Peak with eight-hundred ponies, one-hundred and ten human mages, and four-hundred mixed forces from the Reymorah army sent by Vortigan to repay for our aid defending his city from his brother.
I yawn as I wake up. Today is the day Celestia and Solaris march to attack the gryphon capital Aries Peak. Celestia is cuddling me tightly as this will be the last time she'll be able to until she comes back. We all get up and get ready for the day.
Shella and I will be staying with Cadence in our room with the foals as she'll be giving birth any day now and is getting clingy with me. Luna is starting to show a baby bump after a month and a half of being pregnant but is taking court today with Galaxia.
Celestia, Solaris, Cadence, and I are in the courtyard where the airships above us are stocked and ready to head out with the troops to provide air support.
"This will only take a month at best," Celestia says as Solaris is in a new suit of armour made for him since I have his old set now. He’s taking my place in the attack since Cadence wants me here for when she gives birth.
"I may not be as strong as I could be since sending you my armour and gifting you with our magic, but I still have enough fight in me to take on ten gryphons by myself," Solaris tells me watching the troops get ready.
"Just be careful," I say getting one last hug and kiss from Celestia.
"We will. Take care of Valiant until I get back," she tells me with a sad smile.
"You can count on it," I reply and let her go.
They both get on board the E.A.F Nightingale and order the army to head out.
Cadence is sitting next to me in a wheelchair as it's too difficult for her to walk long distances by herself now.
"They'll be okay won't they?" she asks me with a worried expression.
"Yeah. She has Lux and Solaris to watch over her," I reply and keep watching until they're no longer in sight. I then sigh and start pushing Cadence back into the Castle. "Come on. Shella is waiting for us with the foals," I say as we enter the Castle.
I push Cadence back into the Castle and up to our room where Shella is sitting on the bed with Galaxia and the foals.
Galaxia is using her magic to make a little ursa stuffed bear dance on the bed making the foals giggle and clap their hands. I can't help but smile at their happiness.
She then makes the bear crouch down and shake its backside before pouncing on Mavis who squeals as she falls onto her back and the bear snuggles with her.
Vespula is then tackled by a manticore stuffed toy and Valiant is glomped by a giant parasprite plush.
Each foal is laughing and hugging their toys back while Galaxia has the biggest smile I've seen on her yet.
"Hello," I greet them getting Shella to look at me.
"I take it Celestia and Solaris are on their way then?" she asks me.
"Yes. They've taken one of those portal frames that's linked to another in the Crystal cave, in case they need reinforcements," I reply and push Cadence towards the bed and carefully help her onto it.
"Ohhh. It's getting more and more painful to move about now," Cadence complains as she lays back against the padded headboard.
"But think of it this way, just a week or two and our foal will be born," I tell her making her smile.
"And I can't wait!" she says and rubs her belly.
"Well then, I'm heading down to the Training Room to continue my five element practice. Just send a maid or guard if you need me," I tell them and push the wheelchair to the side of the room.
"Okay, Adrian. I think I'll just take a nap," Cadence says and yawns.
I smile at them and make my way out the room then out the Castle.
I enter the Training Room and spot Twilight with her elven books and Discord watching her as her hands glow with her purple magic.
She grunts as I notice she's holding a cut ruby with an elven rune etched on it.
I walk over to her as her magic flows from her left hand into the ruby and after a few seconds it starts glowing.
"Well done, Twilight!" Discord praises her making the elf smile.
"What's going on?" I ask making Twilight yelp and jump a bit.
"Adrian! Discord's helping me to infuse gems with elemental properties which can then be attached to objects giving them an effect," she replies.
"Ah. So you're going to be making elemental gems for the weapons of the guard?" I ask her.
"That was the idea, but I'm still learning how to enchant gems first," she tells me and holds the ruby out to me.
I take it and examine it. It feels warm due to the tiny flame that can be seen in it.
"Nicely done. You're picking up on your elven magic very quickly," I say and hand the ruby back.
Discord then speaks up. "I know right? She's learning faster than most elves do! And that's saying a lot," he says making Twilight blush slightly.
"Well keep at it and maybe you can even make the portals they're trying to open surge back at them... maybe pull them through instead so we can get some answers," I say.
"Well, as long as that orb is projecting the anti-portal spell, that will be impossible. So that's why I'm helping her learn about enchantments, so she can protect herself better by equipping her staff with different gems," Discord tells me.
"Staff? I don't have a staff..." Twilight says confused.
Discord grins and reaches behind his back and pulls out a long white staff made from elder wood and polished to a shine.
"I-Is that my horn!?" Twilight asks mortified as at the top of the staff is her unicorn horn. It appears to be infused to the tip of the staff with eight indents around the neck of the staff.
"Yup. Now before you have a go at me, unicorn horns are a rare and powerful conductor for elven magic. The strongest of elves have a staff with one on it. But there are only three on Terra as the unicorns are hard to find and there’s so few of them left. So, I took Starswirl's old staff, fixed it up, and attached your horn to it," he tells her making her stutter.
"T-T-This was Starswirl's!?" she asks in awe.
"Uh-huh. This was beardy's staff, and now it's yours," he tells her and holds the staff out to her.
Tears start rolling down Twilight's cheeks as she takes the staff reverently and gently strokes the purple horn on the end.
"I... I don't know what to say..." she says and quickly hugs Discord. "Thank you."
Discord smiles and pats Twilight on her back. "You're very welcome. Now then, why don't you attach that ruby you just enchanted onto the staff? This will allow you to shoot bolts of fire from the tip of your staff by converting the mana you channel through it," he then tells her as she lets go of him.
Twilight wipes her eyes and then lifts the ruby up to one of the eight empty sockets and the ruby fits in perfectly as it glows for a second before returning to normal.
"Now then. Tap the ruby to activate it and then aim your staff at the gryphon, then Just channel your mana into the staff, once it builds enough it'll shoot a fireball out," Discord tells her and creates a transparent gryphon which is making funny faces at Twilight.
She giggles as she taps the ruby which lights up. She then aims the horn on the end at the gryphon. I watch as her hand glows with her purple magic which then travels quickly up the staff and turns red as it passes the ruby and into the horn.
After a couple of seconds a ball of fire about the size of my head fires out and hits the gryphon in the neck. The fireball explodes in a burst of flame making Twilight yelp and hold her new staff to her chest.
"It's that simple!" Discord says and looks to Twilight. "So now let's make an electric rune gem so you can cast bolts of lightning!" he then says making Twilight nod dumbly.
"While you do that, I'll be over there practising myself," I tell them getting a nod from Discord.
After a few hours of practising with five life elements and Twilight making an electric and ice rune which is now attached to her staff, I head down to the Dining Hall for lunch with Twilight and Discord where we see the others already here sitting at the table.
"Hello everyone," I greet them getting hellos back.
"Where did you get that, Twilight?" Cadence asks her with confusion, but then goes wide eyed. "Is that your horn!?" she then asks shocked. Luna is looking at the staff with wide eyes.
"Yes it is. Discord infused it to Starswirl's staff and gave it to me!" she replies and bounces on the spot like a child getting a gift they really like.
"Starswirl's staff?" Cadence asks as Twilight walks over to her and shows the staff to her.
"Tis really Starswirl's staff!" Luna then says and takes the staff from Twilight and looks it over with a look of reminiscing.
I sit at the table as a maid walks over and takes my order of a salad with some ham and a small glass of ale.
"So what will you be doing until Celestia and Solaris return?" I ask Galaxia.
"I will be helping to look after the little ones and take over court for a few hours when the others need a break. Which reminds me, it's your turn later today," she replies and I sigh.
"Alright, I just hope I don't get more stupid demands from the nobles," I say and wait for my food.
The next day
I'm in the Training Room again as I cast another five element life beam at a wall for as long as I can. So far I can hold it for fifty seconds before the strain becomes too much on my arm.
Twilight is here with Discord again practising with her staff and making more enchanted gems for said staff.
So far she has; fire, electric, ice, and wind gems attached to four of the eight sockets. She still jumps when any explosions from spells she casts from her staff go off.
Court last night was a mess as some of the nobles demanded to see Celestia and I told them repeatedly that she is away at the moment. Their constant complaining got me in a bad mood until Cadence was wheeled in by Shella where she then sat on my lap and brightened my mood again.
I yawn as I walk over to the bar area and get a bottle of water and drink half of it quickly. I just watch as Twilight points her staff at a gryphon dummy and fire off a blast of wind that blows it back a couple of metres before fading away.
"Getting better!" Discord tells her and grins. "So, for now I just want you to practice with those four gems and your aim. Once you've gotten the hang of it and no longer jump from the little booms, we'll move onto the next gem," he instructs her getting a nod in return.
"Oh, by the way. When are you going to help the Order Aspect?" Twilight asks him.
"In a couple of days. I need to prepare myself to sneak in without my magic as the Cyclops' aura will even negate mine. So I'll need to make a few things before I go in and retrieve her," he replies and frowns.
"I've read about Cyclops' but never seen one," I comment making them look at me.
"And be grateful you haven't, humans need a large force of marksman just to blind one, let alone take it down. The only reason they're not a major threat is that they prefer to be alone, imagine if there were lots of them and they worked together like humans do? They'd be a serious problem to all races," he replies with a shudder.
"Well I hope you can save her... What is the Order Aspect's name?" I then ask.
"Believe it or not, as my name is Discord, which represents chaos. Her's is Harmony, as to represent order," he tells me.
"I see. Well, I'm going to check on Cadence, she's finding it harder and harder to get around now," I tell them and head to the exit.
Nine days later
For the last nine days I've been training, and now I can hold a five element life beam for a minute straight before it strains me.
I've used the mirror to contact Celestia and Solaris and they're just about to reach the Gryphonia border. She told us to get more troops ready and inform Vortigan that it's almost time to attack the gryphons. Luna went to tell him and once they're ready, the portal to the E.A.F Nightingale will be opened where Vortigan and his troops will go through.
Cadence is having cramps and the doctors think she's close to giving birth any day now, and both Cadence and Galaxia are eagerly awaiting the day.
My parents visited a couple of times to say hello and mom traded a new design she made with Rarity for one of hers.
Shella has been getting reports that those new changelings her Hive have been sensing nearby lately are being sighted now. They have a dark purple chitin with a light purple shell and eyes. Their wings look like a dragonfly but without the tattered appearance. Though once ours tried to make contact they fled.
Discord has left to go get back Harmony, the Order Aspect from the Cyclops that has her with a bunch of adventurer's equipment like tools and armour. It would seem Cyclops’ are nothing to laugh at if even uncle is being serious about it.
Luna is spending more time with Cadence as her cravings are starting to get weirder. She asked Silk to bring her a bowl of chilli flavoured ice cream up which she shared with Cadence. She's also only practising with her magic aspect form when she's here as she doesn't want to strain herself physically now that she's pregnant.
I'm taking a break at the bar area after a long training session while Twilight has her nose in her books. Her training has been going well and she's now reading up on the next gem to enchant.
A guard bursts into the room as she looks around until she spots me. "My King! Princess Cadence is going into labour!" she tells me making me choke on my mouthful of water.
"What!?" Twilight yells and quickly runs for the door.
I cough a few times before following her out and we head towards the infirmary. Once there, we hear screams of pain from Cadence and while Twilight has to stay in the waiting room, I'm allowed in where I see Cadence on a bed with her legs spread and screaming her lungs out. Luna and Shella are in here as well to the side with worried expressions.
I walk over to her side as tears are streaming down her face. She then looks up at me as she takes my hand.
"I-I-It hurts!" she tells me and screams again.
"Push, Princess! I need you to push!" the doctor tells her.
"I AM PUSHING! AAAAAHH!" Cadence yells at her angrily and then pushes again.
For seven minutes this goes on, and Cadence is starting to get exhausted.
"Come on, Cadence. Our daughter is almost here, you want to hold her in your arms don't you?" I try to encourage her and it looks like a fire has been lit in her eyes.
"OF COURSE I DO! RRRAAAAGGGHHH!" she screams at me pushes with all her might.
After a few tense seconds, the cries of a baby fill the room and Cadence can't help but start crying as the little pale pink foal with a blonde mane and tail is cleaned up and then gently placed in Cadence's arms.
Her lower lip is quivering as she stares at her daughter before looking back at me. "She's so beautiful..."
"Just like her mother," I reply and gently kiss her.
After Cadence's lower half is cleaned up and covered, the others are allowed in. Twilight and Galaxia are gushing with excitement while Luna and Shella smile warmly.
Cadence lets me hold her and as I pick her up, her eyes open to show light blue eyes staring back at me.
Tears slowly go down my face as I gently kiss her on the forehead and pass her back to Cadence.
"So, what will you name her?" I ask her.
Cadence just looks at our daughter who is staring back at her.
"Hope... Hope Stormsword," she replies and nuzzles her.
"Tis a lovely name," Luna says as Cadence lets her take Hope.
Everyone congratulates Cadence and each take turns to hold the foal. I use the mirror to let Celestia and Solaris know about it and they congratulate her as well. They let us know they're getting ready to land and take the trail through a mountain that leads into Aires Peak. So far they've gone undetected due to staying low to the ground and away from any settlements.
Once all done, Cadence is allowed to leave and we're now laying on our bed where Cadence can't stop smiling.
"I've waited so long for this moment..." she says on the verge of tears again and looks at me. "Thank you."
"You're welcome. Now get some rest, Galaxia will look after you for now. I need to return to my training," I reply and get up where Galaxia takes my spot.
"Oh she's a little sweetheart," she says and strokes the foal's head.
I leave the mares to fuss over our new daughter while I head back to the Training Room.
After I left Adrian and the others, I warped back to Terra to Beardy's old lab and changed into my human form. On an old stand in the corner is some old mismatched armour with a sword and mace, they're all still in pristine condition even after centuries of no use.
Old Swirly thought I would need these one day, I told him he was the mad one as my magic is second to none... I guess after all these years, he was right.
I slowly take each piece off the stand and put the armour on. The left boot is a dark brown and the left thigh plate is a lighter brown. The right boot's toe cap is white while the rest along with the thigh plate is green. My chestplate is a chocolate brown as well as each pauldron, though the left pauldron is an eagle’s head and the right is a lion’s. My left gauntlet is a bright yellow while my left biceps plate is the same colour as my chestplate, and my right gauntlet and biceps plate are a tan colour.
Finally my helmet is a light grey with two replicas of my horns on top, the visor also hides my eyes and face so all anyone can see while it's on is an empty darkness. There's also two white feathers where my eyebrows would be going off to the sides.
After putting on my helmet, I pick up both of my weapons. The mace is a hot pink colour and has eight different shaped blades facing in different directions, and when it hits someone, it'll sap their strength, as well as most likely breaking a bone or lacerating them in the process. Swirly mostly came up with the sapping idea against armoured targets, so while in case it doesn't damage them, it'll weaken them.
My sword is like a Flamberge and a Kris due to its wavy warped looking blade. It has a powder blue blade, a cotton candy pink sausage shaped handguard and meatball pommel, and a pale green grip. Beardy got it enchanted for me with four different elven gems of four elements; fire, ice, lightning, and wind.
Next is my own personal camping gear. I do so love camping sometimes, while causing chaos and pranks is all well and good, some time to just unwind and relax is just what I need. I really need to visit the Jewelementals near Terra's core again someday.
Unknown to the rest of the world, another race lives near the planet's core with their own culture, language, and civilisation. They're a people made of a variety of living gemstone and don't age, and none of them are male or female as they are asexual. Their voices are pleasant to listen too as well, like the tone you get when you circle the rim of a half empty wine glass of water. Nice people, I really must say hi sometime again.
Once my equipment is all checked and equipped, I grab a large bag of very old gold coins. While most of them are ancient, they're still valid currency. Next I take my old bag of infinite holding, it's just basically a portal in the bag to my own personal storage dimension. With my gear and gold ready, I snap my fingers and appear on the outskirts of Elysium.
With a smile on my face and a spring to my step, I merrily skip down the road and whistle a tune as I approach the now open main gates.
I even notice a couple of orcs leaving the city with some books and materials. I got some... okay, a lot of odd looks as I pass the gate guards who raise an eyebrow at me.
Ignoring them, I continue on to the market area and start buying supplies for my trip. While I mainly feed off of the magic from Terra, I won’t be able to when I come into range of the cyclops, but some food or potions are infused with mana which I can feed from. So I buy some mana potions and food to munch on on my way to get to Harmony and for the trip back.
"I'd also like six of those delightful looking tarts my dear," I ask the young human woman who appears to be in her mid twenties behind the small stall. Her hair is a light brown colour and goes to the middle of her back and her eyes are a deep green, she's also a bit scrawny looking as well. It would seem like she's having a hard time if her cheap but clean clothes and the old condition of the cart stall is any indicator. Also might explain why she isn't getting many customers.
But despite her poor appearance, the food she has for sale looks expertly made, well cared for, and well packaged. I can't help but pick up a small scone, lift my visor up, and take a bite out of it. Oh my, she's as good, if not better than Miss Pie is at making confectioneries.
"Hmmm, I also take ten of these as well," I tell her making her frown at me for eating one before paying for it.
She timidly does so and wraps them all up in a sheet of paper and then looks up at me.
"That'll be one silver and twenty copper please," she says shyly. Oh the poor dear could give sweet little Fluttershy a run for her bits.
I can't help but smile. I fish through my gold and take out twenty gold coins and place them in four piles of five on the stall.
She stares at them wide eyed and looks back to me. "This is too much, S-Sir!" she tells me looking confused.
"Don't worry about it, my dear. Keep the change, these are well worth it," I reply with a slight bow. I put a preservation spell on them and place my baked goods into my pack.
She hesitantly collects the gold and tears start to form in her eyes. "T-Thank you..." she says and quickly deposits them under the stall.
"Think nothing of it. After I finished my task, I may return for a few more, I know a mar... someone who would adore these," I reply.
She smiles slightly and bows to me. "Thank you, I hope you succeed in your task good, Sir Knight," she tells me.
I can't help but chuckle, but the feeling of malicious intent directed towards us silences me. "I hope so as well, going up against a cyclops alone is not an easy task," I tell her making her go wide eyed and gasp.
Before she can say anything, I snap my fingers and turn invisible with a slight poof of smoke, startling her and others watching nearby. I float up into the air and look around for the source, I spot three men in shady looking cloaks near an alley just radiating ill intent. They're all looking at the young baker girl with grins and glancing at each other before stepping deeper into the alley.
'Well, well ,well. Seems there are a few rats infesting the streets. Looks like Harmony can wait for an extra day,' I think to myself and lay back on the air and keep watch.
I idly snack on a scone as time passes, by the heavens this has to be the best thing I've ever tasted, not even Celestia's personal cake baker can compare to this. The market starts to pack up as night approaches. The young woman sighs and starts packing up, only two other people purchased a couple of things from her. But she doesn't seem to mind as she picks up a small tin from under the stall and smiles at it. I smile as well as a tear drops from her face before she puts it back and starts to pull the old cart stall back to her home I would guess.
My attention is brought back to the alley as those same three men slink out and tail the girl while avoiding any patrolling guards. I frown and follow after them. The girl arrives at a small and old but still strong looking three room house and pulls the cart into a large shed next to the house. She locks the shed and carries the tin and remaining baked goods into her home and closes the door.
The three men wait for a few hours nearby before making their move. They sneak up to the house around the back and one of them starts picking the lock. I phase through the house's wall and glance around; there's small handmade knick-knacks around but there's barely any furniture, although there is a nice tidy, clean looking oven and fireplace with a cooking pot inside.
I spot a painting of an elderly women on the wall, most likely her mother or other relative. The woman enters the main room from what appears to be a sparse bedroom wearing a faded cotton nightgown. She looks up to the painting and smiles at it.
"I finally made some money today mother... I couldn't believe it, some strangely armoured but kind knight gave me twenty gold for just some food... I don't know why. But now I can finally fix my cart and get a better oven," she says and giggles. "I didn't even get his name..." she then says and sighs.
The sound of the back door's lock clicking open startles her and before she could react, the three men burst in and draw rusty looking daggers and swords.
"Alright, wench. Hand over the gold and we won't kill you," the middle man demands. The hood of his cloak obscuring his face, as well as his accomplices.
I scowl at him and stand in between them and the girl, still invisible. I can just feel his murderous intent as he has no intention of letting her live.
The woman shivers and just stares at them in fear. The middle man snarls and moves to grab her, but instead bumps into me nose first making him cry out in pain.
He backs off and I fade back into view with a neutral expression behind my visor.
The woman gasps. "Sir Knight?" she asks confused.
I turn my head and glance at her. "I'm sorry for the intrusion, my dear. But I have been watching over you since our encounter due to these three stalking you. If you wouldn't mind, please avert your eyes as I do not wish you to see this," I ask her politely, but with a grim tone interwoven as well.
She nodded and steps back and covers her face.
I turn back to the men and draw both my sword and mace.
"Who are you!? Where did you come from!?" the right man demands making me chuckle darkly.
"Would you believe if I said I was a god?" I reply with emotionless mirth.
That confuses them slightly before the left man cries out in anger and thrusts his dagger at me. I raise my mace and step aside, avoiding his attack. I then bring my mace down and right on his forearm, the bladed head of my mace tears through his muscle effortlessly, the weight and strength behind my blow shatters his bones and rips his arm off just below his elbow.
The scream of agony he lets loose makes me smile darkly while the woman screams in fright. While I detest killing, those who would kill another in cold blood just for a few bits of shiny metal tend to bring out the worst in me. That, and this woman reminds me too much of Fluttershy.
Before he could even writhe in pain, I swing again, this time at his head. The blow connects and his head pops like a water balloon, sending blood, bone, and brain all over the floor, his two companions, and the wall.
His two companions look on in shock and before they even react, I kick forward at the middle man, punting my pointed metal toe cap right in his family jewels and lifting him a good foot off the floor. He screams like a filly and I pull my boot out of his groin, where blood and a testicle drop to the floor.
He collapses and grasps his crotch, still screaming in pain and bleeding out. The last man finally reacts and bolts for the back door. I point my left hand at him and a barrage of silly string flies out and ensnares the man, he struggles as I pull him back in.
Once in front of me, I quickly stab him with my sword and kill him. I then follow it up by decapitating the man I kicked, silencing his cries of pain.
I turn around and see the woman huddled up in the corner covering her ears, eyes clenched shut, and crying. I frown sadly and with a snap of my fingers, I teleport the bodies over the dead sea to the south. I then clean the remaining mess making it look like nothing ever happened.
"You may open you eyes now, my dear. I have dealt with them," I tell her.
She hesitantly glances my way and sniffles, she then looks confused. "W-Where did they go?" she asks.
"I sent them away, they'll never bother anyone again," I reply and put my weapons away.
She quickly gets up and runs over to me and hugs me. "Thank you... I-I was so scared!" she says and cries again.
"You're safe now, I couldn't let anything happen to my new favourite baker now could I?" I tell her and pat her head gently.
She just hugs me quietly for a few minutes, sniffling as she calms down.
I carefully push her away and she looks up at me. I raise my visor and smile at her. "I must be off now, an old friend is waiting for me," I tell her making her nod.
I conjure a small simple plain bracelet made of polished silver and a small oval aquamarine set into it.
I hold it out to her making her look at it in confusion. "Should you need my help again, just press your finger onto the gem and call my name, I shall be there instantly," I tell her.
She takes it carefully and looks back up at me. "And w-what is your name, Sir Knight?" she asks me.
"It's Discord, my dear. And may I have yours?" I reply and ask.
She blushes slightly and smiles. "Clare... Clare Wittell," she replies.
"Well then, Miss Wittell. I shall now take my leave," I reply. Before leaving though, I take out another ten gold and hold it out to her. "For the trouble I've put you through, they wouldn't have even followed you if I didn't give you all that gold..." I tell her sadly.
She tears up again and gratefully takes the gold. She runs over to the table and picks up a few more baked goodies and holds them out for me.
"Please take these... they would be wasted otherwise," she tells me with a bright smile.
Seeing her happy brings a smile to my own face. I happily take the tasty treats and again preserve them before storing them in my pack of infinite holding.
"Please take care, Sir Discord," she tells me and I chuckle.
"I shall, my dear. Until next we meet, farewell," I reply and snap my fingers, warping away.
I reappear in a large dead forest. The leaves and greenery long since deceased due to the cyclops' aura sucking the magic out of the land in the area.
What makes a cyclops truly terrifying is that not only can they nullify nearby magic, they can feed off magic to survive and basically extend their lifespan, kinda like us Aspects. It's most likely why it has Harmony, it is siphoning the magic she gathers, and very likely starving her as well.
I frown at the depressing sight and look ahead to the large derelict castle further up the path. A large hole is in the side, no doubt the front door for the cyclops.
With a deep breath, I take out another scone and nibble on it as I make my way to the castle, I can already feel my magic being suppressed making me get serious. I'm now vulnerable and if I'm not careful, I can be killed.
With determination in my eyes, I trek along the dry road as the groaning of the forest of dead trees wail out as if in despair.
After a few minutes of walking cautiously towards the castle, I reach the hole in the front and frown at all the bones of many different races littering the area.
My attention changes to my surroundings as I look around. The castle has seen better days as the furniture and paintings are damaged or torn. Curtains lay on the floor, moth eaten and shredded while tables and old stone busts lay broken and in pieces.
In the back of the room is a set of stairs leading up, then splitting into a fork to the left and right. The steps themselves are heavily damaged with large foot prints embedded into them.
To my left is a couple of doorways leading to other rooms, their doors long since unhinged and splintered. To my right is a large hole where I guess the cyclops has decided it wanted a doorway its own size to go through.
I wait for a good ten minutes, listening carefully for any signs of the monster. But I hear nothing nearby so I make my way in. I head to the right hole and look inside, seems it was the castle's dining hall if the long broken table and many chairs mean anything.
To the left is another hole leading to a ruined kitchen, the ovens damaged, plates and cups smashed, and utensils all over the place.
The right side has shattered windows overlooking the dead garden out front, while the back of the hall has a large fireplace with many bones filling it.
I decide that this isn't where I'll find the cyclops and head back to the stairs. I head up and take the right turn, slowly tiptoeing to prevent the broken floorboards from making too much noise.
Once at the top, there's many holes in the walls. I see a large bathroom with an unusable bath tub, a bedroom with no bed and a shattered vanity mirror, and a personal library. I smirk and head in to find most of the books damaged, which ruins my smirk as I was thinking of taking some back for Twilight...
"I'll come back later once I've dealt with the cyclops," I tell myself and head back out. I make my way across to the other side and stop as the floorboard creaks loudly, echoing throughout the castle. I hold my breath and curse internally as I wait.
For a good two or so minutes nothing happens and I breath a sigh of relief, but my heart drops as a loud roar reverberates throughout the castle.
"Oh fiddlesticks..." I mutter as the castle seems to shake. I quickly duck into the old bedroom and hide in the wardrobe that only has one door left on it.
The floor shakes as thud after thud echo nearby, getting louder as the source approaches. I gulp as I can hear the cyclops breathing heavily and grunting now and then. I then hear it sniff the air and growl as it moves on.
I carefully peak out and barely see it walk away. It has tan coloured skin that looks like it has a few boils and scars across it. It also has long unkempt dark brown hair and is wearing crude clothing made up from old curtains and bedsheets, and it's about two to three times my size, so it appears to be a young cyclops at least.
It turns around and glares near my area. It looks to be female due to the large and sagging mammaries on its chest. Just the sight is making me cringe and want to change my eyes with new ones... I'll do that once I'm away from here, and a gallon of bleach to wash my brain with.
Its mouth is wide with sharp looking teeth poking out at different angles and warts or boils litter its face. Let's not mention the smell which even from here is making my eyes tear up.
I then smile as I spot an orb hanging from its neck on a piece of string, but my eyes widen as I take a closer look... the orb is cracked. I can barely feel Harmony's presence and she's dying. I need to get her back to Equestria and make a contract with Twilight quickly to repair the damage.
The cyclops then roars out angrily and charges straight for me. I yelp and look around, only spotting the open window.
'I'm going to feel this tomorrow...' I think to myself and run to the window.
I leap out and land on my feet. I stay there for a second as the pain dies down and my legs feel like jelly.
The cyclops makes a hole in the wall and roars down at me. I get clonked on the head by a brick giving me a slight headache, making me look back up and frown. I pull out one of the ten throwing knifes I brought with me and toss it up, aiming for its eye.
It growls as it swipes the knife with its left arm where it gets stuck, it doesn't even register that the knife is even there.
I draw my sword and mace before running around the castle back to the main entrance and hide behind a nearby tree. I hear the cyclops thundering through the castle before rushing out of the hole and looking around with a large piece of a broken stone column in its left hand.
I dash for its left leg, making it turn to me. I swing my sword and cut a deep gash into the back of its ankle.
It roars out in pain and swings its stone column at me. I gasp as the air leaves my lungs from the impact to my chest.
I crash through the castle's large front window and roll a few feet across the floor. I groan as I slowly sit up and shake my head, pretty sure the little missy just broke a few of my ribs... but hopefully I've restricted its movement with the wound I gave it.
Standing up, I shake my head and hiss in pain as I pick up my weapons and head back to the entrance where I see the cyclops limping back to the castle.
I pull out two more knives and toss them at the cyclops the first hits it in the cheek, making it reel back in pain, while the other gets stuck in the fat folds of its neck.
I head towards the stairs and start going up, I have another idea and I hope that its stupid enough to follow me.
The cyclops pulls out the knives before throwing them away with a roar of anger. It then limps after me as I watch from the top railing.
Once it's in the middle of the lobby, I leap from the railing and land on the monster's right shoulder making it yelp in surprise. I waste no time in holding my sword in a reverse grip and plunge it into the cyclops' eye.
It lets out a blood curdling scream as it grabs me and tosses me right into a still standing stone column, which cracks from my impact and worsens the pain in my chest. I drop onto the floor on my right side with a loud thud, groaning in pain as I look up to the still screaming cyclops.
The monster is swinging its makeshift club randomly, hitting the already damaged furniture.
I sit up against the column and groan as my chest and back are throbbing. I just watch the cyclops throw its temper tantrum and smirk. I just have to wait until it either calms down so I can make my move or until it dies of hunger or blood loss.
I grimace as it steps too far back on the foot that I cut and the gash rips open, almost taking off its foot at the ankle. It topples to the ground and roars out even louder this time from anger and pain.
I open my pack and frown as the portal to my storage dimension is flickering due to the cyclops' aura. Guess I'll have to wait till it dies before I can eat something... and I wanted a delicious scone or tart as well while I waited...
I just pout as the cyclops thrashes about on the floor. My eyes then widen as the column its holding flies my way and I don't move in time as it smashes into my helmet.
I groan as I slowly come to. My head is still throbbing and my chest is still in pain, but I don't hear the cyclops' hissy fit anymore. I open my eyes to see the monster laying still and no longer breathing.
With the magic nullifying aura no longer in effect, I use my magic to carefully repair the damage I took. First I heal my head wound and repair my helmet, I may be a bit crazy, but even I don't want brain damage.
After that I focus on my ribs and back, then my armour. The process takes a good two hours to make sure I'm back in tip top chaotic causing shape.
I then float up onto my feet and walk over to the cyclops and roll it over onto its back. I frown at the state of the orb Harmony is sealed in and carefully take it from the thin rope it's attached to.
Once I have it I sheathe my weapons.
'Discord?' I hear Harmony ask weakly.
'Yes, it's me, Harmony. Don't worry, I'll help you get back on your feet,' I reply.
'What took you... so long?...' she tells my angrily.
'We all looked everywhere for you when you disappeared... We thought you left us all in the end after our... argument,' I reply sadly.
'Well.. at least you... found me,' she says and I feel her magic weakening.
'Just relax, let me do the rest,' I tell her.
"That was a big pain in the ass... Thank all that is chaotic that this one was just a small one," I say aloud and stretch my back. The biggest cyclops I've seen is just as tall as this four floor castle is.
I stand up, pick up my pack, roll my shoulders, and brush my armour off from the bits of wood and dust on the floor.
"Now to get back to Canterlot," I say and yawn as it's now very late and a good nap is in order.
I snap my fingers and warp back into the Throne Room, startling many ponies lining up to see the royal family.
"Discord?" Adrian says in surprise, sitting on his throne. "What are you wearing?" he then asks confused.
"Armour Swirly and I designed together. But that's not important right now," I reply and hold up the damaged orb. "I need to get to Twilight and have her make a contract quickly," I tell him and before he answers, I warp to Twilight's location and raise an eyebrow.
She's currently in her shower next to her room with her back turned to me, hands in her hair with shampoo foamed up.
"Excuse me, Twilight. But I need your help," I tell her making her scream in fright.
"DISCORD!? WHAT ARE YOU DOING IN HERE!?" she yells at me and covers herself with the shower curtain.
"I do apologise, my dear. But I have recovered Harmony and you need to make a contract now if we are to save her," I reply and hold up the cracked orb.
Her eyes widen and she seems to forget she's naked and gets out of the shower. "She's dying?" she asks with worry.
I snap my fingers again, drying her off and conjuring a bathrobe around her.
She blushes as she remembers her current state. "Thanks," she mumbles.
"Don't mention it. Now then, please hold out your hand," I tell her and she does so.
I carefully place the cracked orb on her left palm and place Harmony's aspect orb on her right after a few seconds, her eyes widen.
A few minutes later Twilight finally speaks. "I do. I accept those terms," she says looking at both of the orbs.
The aspect orb slowly sinks into her palm and she turns her hand around to see it on the back of her hand in the middle. She then hisses in slight pain as I see her magic flow down her arm and into the sealing orb where Harmony gets pulled out into Twilight and the aspect orb glows as Harmony enters it.
"You'll have to put up with the mana drain for a few days while she recovers, so no using magic until she's healed," I warn Twilight.
"I can't use my magic!?" she asks with worry.
"That's right, just for a few days. You can use this time to visit your parents or friends, your lessons aren't going anywhere," I reply with a smile.
"I guess so..." she says and sighs.
"The only time you can use your magic is if you are in danger. We still don't know how the elves will counter my shield, so keep your staff with you at all times," I tell her seriously.
"Alright. Now that I'm done in here, I guess I better get ready for bed," she tells me and heads for the door.
"Very well, Twilight. As for me, I have one more person to see before I can sleep as well," I reply and warp to my next destination.
I find Luna doing some weightlifting in her gym. "Greetings, wittle woona! I come with a gift from Terra!" I announce myself making her yelp.
"Discord! Stop calling us by that name we curse thee!" she replies and sets the weights down on the bar. She then sits up and wipes her forehead with a towel. "Why art thou here?" she then asks.
I reach into my pack and take out five scones and two tarts and hand them to her.
"I found a delightful stall at the market in Elysium and just had to get a few of these. Thought you and Tia would like to try some," I reply and take out a tart for myself, lift up my visor, and munch on it.
She takes a bite out of it and her eyes widen. "Tis delightful! We must hire whoever made these!" she replies and takes another large bite with a happy moan.
"It was a human woman named Clare. I have to go back and see what else she has tomorrow," I tell her and finish my tart.
"Then whilst thou art there, offer her the job, we must have her!" she says, starting on the other tart.
"I'll ask her, but don't get your hopes up. So with that out of the way, I take my leave," I reply and warp back to Swirly's lab.
I remove my armour and weapons and place them back on the stand and just look around. I do miss the old goat and all the experiments he did... maybe I could bring Twilight here once the elf nonsense has been sorted out.
With everything settled and done, I turn back into my natural form and jump up onto my cloud hammock, where I yawn and watch little sheep leap over my head until sleep takes me.
I yawn as I stretch my limbs and float off my cloud hammock. After smacking my lips a few times, I conjure some water in a glass and chug it down before pulling out one of the few scones I didn't leave with Luna and happily munch on it.
Now awake and limber, I conjure a list of things to do. First things first, I'll ask Clare if she would like to work in Canterlot Castle as a baker there, along with a nice sum of gold to convince her.
Second, I need to observe the elves and find out what they're planning, and if they have any agents in Equestria yet.
Thirdly, I'll help Tia in the attack of Aries Peak when they're ready to make sure she and Solaris stay safe.
With my goals in mind I change back into my human form and don my mismatched armour and weapons. Once equipped, I snap my fingers and appear outside Elysium and make my way through the gates. With more odd looks again, the guards and people I pass just watch with bewilderment.
I make my way back to the marketplace and after looking around for a bit, I notice Clare's stall isn't there. I suppose she would be making use of the gold I gave her to buy new things.
I use my magic to track the bracelet I gave her and feel her to the north. So I with a spring in my step and a tune in my heart, I skip down the road while whistling said tune along the way.
To my right, a young girl no more than six is crying as her little old scruffy teddy bear doll she's holding is missing its left arm while two chubby boys slightly older looking mock her.
"Aw, is the little baby gonna tell her mommy?" he mocks and the other laughs. None of the adults are intervening and keep their distance.
I walk up behind them and with a smile, I poke both of them on the back of their heads turning their skin bright pink, their hair long, curly, and blonde, then turning their clothes into powder blue pretty dresses.
"And why are you little girls picking on her for?" I ask them in a smug tone.
The people around me all stop and stare slack jawed, not sure why but it doesn't matter.
The two boys scream and the chubby one who mocked her glares at me. "How dare you! Don't you know who I am! I am Julian Thornston, Son of Nathaniel Thornston of house Blackthorn!" he tells me angrily.
"And? Is that supposed to impress me?" I reply and flick both of them lightly on their foreheads. "Now if I find you picking on anyone else again, I'll turn you into actual girls," I threaten them and point an index finger at each of them. "Unless you want me to do that now, I suggest you go home," I tell them as my fingertips light up with yellow chaos magic.
They yelp and run off, almost tripping on their dresses as they scream. I huff and smirk as I look back to the little girl crying and hugging her damaged bear.
I smile sadly and hold my hand to her. "Would you like me to fix it for you?" I ask her and she looks up at me with tearful eyes.
She nodded slowly and sniffles as she carefully holds her bear out to me. I gently take it and cast my magic over it, the missing arm regrows out of the joint and the fur is cleaned and the bear now looks brand new. I then smile wider as an idea comes to mind.
I pour more magic into it and the bear begins to twitch until it starts blinking and sits up on my hand before looking around.
The girl gasps and stares in wonder as her bear turns to face her and holds its arms out to her. She squeals and carefully picks the bear up and hugs it as it returns the hug.
"Thank you, mister!" she says with a happy smile.
I can't help but grin behind my visor and gently pat her on the head. "If those boys bully you again, just tell your bear to protect you," I tell her and she nodded before running off.
I've enchanted her bear to grow to her size and keep anyone who would bully her away from her by either being a durable punching bag, or pushing the bully away gently until they give up.
With that sorted and people still staring in awe at me, I continue down the road and spot Clare talking to a cart salesman. She smiles as she pays ten gold for a finely crafted cart nearly twice the size of her old one and has a built in miniature kitchen area.
She's also wearing better but still humble looking clothing as she tries to push the cart but it appears to be too heavy for her.
"Hello my dear, would you like some assistance?" I ask her making her yelp and look at me.
"S-Sir Discord!" she says and bows to me. She then looks back up and smiles. "I would appreciate it."
I chuckle and she moves from the bar and I take her place before pushing easily with one hand making her stare with wide eyes.
"Lead on, Miss Wittell," I say making her snap out of her stupor and start walking down the road. "So I see you're looking much better," I say making her blush slightly.
"Yes, with the money you gave me, I could afford new clothes and this wonderful cart... How did your task go may I ask?" she replies and asks me.
"It turned out well, I saved my friend and killed the cyclops," I reply. "Though I do have an offer for you," I tell her making her look at me.
"An offer?" she asks and I nod.
"The friend I mentioned who would like your baking has indeed liked it to the point of offering you employment," I tell her making her gasp.
"Employ me?" she asks stunned.
"Yes, she's a queen and would like you to work in her castle," I reply making her yelp as she trips. I quickly use my magic to catch her before she face planted the stone road.
"A q-q-q-queen wants m-m-me to bake for her!?" she asks stunned as I help her back up to her feet.
"Indeed, you would even be offered a room in the castle should you wish it," I tell her making her jaw move up and down and babbling.
"I... I don't know... W-W-What if I make a f-fool of myself?" she asks nervously.
"You'll be fine, she asked me to ask you if you would like the position, you'll be well paid and protected of course," I reply and she continues down the road.
She's silent for the rest of the trip back and I leave her cart by her shed which is too small to fit her new cart. She invites me in and I accept as I take my helmet off and sit on her small living room's old couch.
She returns from the kitchen with a basic cheap looking tea set and pours me a cup of jasmine tea. I accept the cup and add two small teaspoons of sugar before taking a sip.
"So, my dear. Have you decided what you'd like to do?" I ask her.
She looks into her own tea with a frown. "What would happen to my home? This house has been in my family for three generations... I can't just leave it behind..." she tells me.
I stroke my goatee in thought. "Then what if I transport your house to Canterlot as well?" I ask and then grin. "I'm sure I can fit it within the gardens and fix it up," I reply and take another sip.
"Move my house?" she asks surprised.
"Certainly. It's not a problem for me in the least," I tell her and stand up after finishing my tea. "So? Will you take my hand and live a better life? Or stay here and continue the way you have?" I ask her and offer her my right hand.
She stares at my hand and then looks around until she looks at the old painting of her mother. After a minute or two she looks back at my hand and slowly reaches out and takes it.
I smile and raise my left hand and snap my fingers. She looks confused for a second but then notices the sounds of the city are gone. I gently pull her along and open her front door. She gasps as hundreds of flowers, along with some trees and trimmed bushes come into view.
Birds are chirping and wildlife are roaming about in the peaceful grove like scenery, she slowly walks out and then gasps again at the sight of the tall white and gold castle nearby.
"H-Hello? I-Is somepony t-there?" I hear a timid woman ask and I smile as I would recognise her anywhere.
"Fluttershy my dear, over here!" I call out making Clare look confused and then shocked as the butter yellow mare comes around the bushes and smiles at me, then she notices Clare and eeps before ducking back behind the bush.
"What... what is she?" Clare asks me.
"A pony, a pegasus to be exact," I reply and walk over to Fluttershy. "It's okay, Shy. She's just your new neighbour," I tell her as I coax her out. She nervously walks beside me to meet Clare.
"Miss Wittell, meet Fluttershy, the local animal caretaker. Fluttershy, this is Clare Wittell, she'll soon be one of the Castle's newest bakers," I introduce them to each other.
"Erm... H-Hello..." Fluttershy says while hiding half her face behind her mane, she always looks so adorable when she does that.
"Yes, hello. N-Nice to meet you," Clare replies and holds her hand out.
Fluttershy, after a moment's hesitation, gently grasps her hand and shakes.
"Wonderful! Now then, I need to introduce Clare to the queens and Adrian, perhaps later you both could get to know each other hmmm?" I tell Fluttershy who looks up at me.
"O-Okay, Discord... Will you be by later for tea?" she asks me with a small smile.
"I wouldn't miss it for the world, my dear," I reply and we say our goodbyes as I guide Clare to the Castle.
She just looks around at the flowers and animals who follow us for a bit until we reach the Castle's back entrance. I open the door for her and she thanks me as I guide her through the halls to the Throne Room. She stares at the guards and maids we pass who just either ignore her or smile.
We reach the Throne Room where a short line of ponies and even a changeling are waiting to enter. I walk up to the door, pull out a remote with a single button and press said button.
The right door starts sliding up and then bends across the ceiling as the sound of gears turning fills the lobby, once high enough, I walk under the door followed by a confused baker who stares at the door as she passes it. I press the button again and the door comes back down.
On the throne is Luna who is happily munching on another scone with a tray next to her with four more and a couple of tarts.
Luna looks at me and raises an eyebrow. "Discord? What brings thou here?" she asks me.
"I have brought lady Clare Wittell who baked the treats you are currently eating, she would like to work here as a baker for the Castle," I reply and smirk as her eyes bug out and she puts the half eaten scone on the tray.
She gets up and walks down the shorts steps and over to us. "Verily? Tis wonderful news, we have taken a liking to thine confectioneries and request to employ thee in the Castle," Luna says without hesitation and holds her hand out to Clare.
Meanwhile, Clare is staring at Luna's ethereal hair in fascination. "Its beautiful," she says in a trance like manner.
Luna smiles and giggles slightly. "We thank thee for the compliment, but thou hast yet to answer our request," Luna replies and smiles wider.
Clare blushes and bows quickly. "Forgive me, y-your Majesty! I w-would be glad t-to work here!" she says nervously making me chuckle.
"Huzzah!.. Ahem, we mean, excellent. Discord, please escort her to the Kitchen and introduce her to the rest of the staff," Luna tells me and heads back to her throne.
"Of course, Woona," I reply making her stop and glare at me over her shoulder. I only chuckle and guide Clare out the Throne Room and to the Kitchen.
"She was beautiful..." Clare says still in awe.
"She is, as is her sister, but she's away on important business at the moment. I guess you'll get to meet the rest of the royal family at dinner time," I reply and after a few minutes, we arrive at the Dining Hall.
We enter and make our way to the Kitchen where we find seven ponies; four mares and three stallions working on lunch.
The head chef turns to look at us and frowns. "We're busy at the moment, so please come back after lunch has been served," she says sternly.
I chuckle and speak up. "I've come to introduce you to a new member of your staff. This is Clare Wittell, and she'll be one of your bakers from today onward," I reply.
"Oh? And what can she bake?" the mare asks me.
"I take it you know what Luna is currently munching on in the Throne Room?" I ask her.
She widens her eyes and looks at Clare. "She baked those?" she asks in surprise.
Clare blushes and I smirk. "That she did, and so Luna asked her to work here. I hope you'll all welcome her here and get along well," I reply and then turn to Clare. "Right then, while you get to know you're new co-workers, I have an important task to do. But, I shall return before the end of the day where we can visit Fluttershy's cottage together, sound good?" I tell her making her nod nervously.
"Wonderful! Now then, if you'll excuse me!" I say and snap my fingers.
I warp myself back to Terra and hover in the air just on the borders of Vaylen, homeland of the elves.
I rub my hands together with a frown on my face. "Now then, let's find out what they're up to," I say to myself as I turn invisible and fly off towards the elven capital.
Large forests with many rivers and valleys pass me by as the towns and villages built in the treetops have no clue I'm here. After a good ten minutes of speedy flight, I arrive at the elven Capital City called Haluran. Most of the buildings are tall ornate stone tree styled structures and appear grandiose, which is mostly a waste of materials and serves no practical function other than to look nice.
I use my magic subtly to make sure there's no detection spells in the area, after a good hour of scanning, probing, and searching, I spot a hole and make my way in. I then head to the Castle and land a good ten feet away.
After a few minutes to make sure no one has sensed me, I start pulling my ears off repeatedly where new ones regrow and they themselves grow arms and legs before running off around the Castle listening in on any conversation they can hear.
I sit down and start sorting out the useless gossip and politics from the actually useful stuff. One conversation gets my attention from the King's office.
"Are you sure they're in place?" King Sylvaan asks someone.
"Yes, my King. The Way Walkers and our best mages have finished setting up their base in this Equestria kingdom. They're now searching for the best way into the mountain city undetected to either recover the tomes and the half-elf, or the source of the interference to our portals," the other elf replies.
"Good, tell them to bring back any of these, ponies that they can safely capture. Especially the horned ones," Sylvaan replies.
"Of course, my King," the other replies and it sounds like he just closed a door.
"Curse that human filth... Adrian I believe his name was. How dare he subdue Lady Gaia and ally himself with that fire demon. I promise, I shall free Lady Gaia from his clutches. But first, that half-elf needs to be removed before she learns too much," he mutters to himself before I then just hear a quill on paper.
I spend another six hours just listening to more gossip and political rubbish from the king. Once I have all I need, I dismiss my ears and make my way back out of the city undetected.
Terracana Chapter 96: The battle of Aires Peak Part 1.
POV: Adrian Stormsword
I yawn as the last petitioner for court leaves and I stand up, stretching my limbs and getting a few satisfying pops from them. Cadence is still in bed with Hope along with Valiant, Mavis, Vespula, Galaxia, and my mother. My father is at the training grounds just reliving his guard years with Shining while Luna is raiding the Kitchen due to a new talented staff member she's hired, or so I've heard.
With that, I clap my hands and make my way out of the Throne Room to pick up Cadence and wheel her down to the Dining Hall.
I arrive and enter our room where Cadence still has a slightly tear stained face along with the massive smile she's had since I left her here. She's hugging her foal gently and carefully rocking her back and forth.
"You all ready for dinner?" I ask them and smile seeing Galaxia and my mother playing with the other three foals.
"Is it that time already?" Galaxia asks surprised.
I grab the wheelchair at the side of the room and bring it over to the bed. "Yes, so let's go and get something to eat. I'm intrigued by this new baker Luna has been so excited about," I say and carefully help Cadence into the chair as she keeps hold of Hope while Galaxia picks up both Mavis and Vespula.
My mother takes Valiant and we all head down to the Dining Hall.
We arrive and I see Luna at the table where it is covered in the usual fair of food, but this time, Luna has a large plate of scones and other baked goods on a tray next to her that she's eagerly eating with a happy smile.
She doesn't even notice us as we all sit down and Galaxia has a smirk on her face as she sits down next to Luna.
"Those must be good," Galaxia says and picks up a scone.
Luna yelps as crumbs and a bit of jam fall out of her mouth and onto the table. She swallows and glares at her mother. "Mother! Do not startle us like that!" she complains as Galaxia giggles.
Galaxia takes a bite of the scone and her eyes widen as she looks at it and chews slowly. She then swallows and smiles widely. "This is the best thing I have ever tasted!" she says and scarf's the rest of it down her throat. I don't think she even had time to taste that.
I look out to the table where I see another plate just with less on it and pick up three scones, one for myself, one for my mother, and one for Cadence. I hand it to them and Cadence takes a dainty bite from it before her eyes bug out and she cutely noms on the rest of it with a moan.
Intrigued, I take a bite and close my eyes as a rich taste of strawberry jam assaults my tongue. I take my time to savour the flavour while Cadence levitates more over to herself.
So now all three mares are gorging themselves on the baked goodies, while my mother and I just slowly eat the ones we have. A poof sound along with pink smoke signals the arrival of Discord but his grim expression is what catches my attention.
"Discord? What's wrong?" I ask him.
"We have elves in Equestria. I went to their Capital for a little spying and their own king confirmed that the elves have set up a base somewhere in Equestria, where they'll try to foalnap Twilight and take her tomes, along with any of the ponies they can safely capture," he tells us and sighs. "They could already be in the city. I'm going to check on Twilight and warn her," he tells me and poofs away again.
I frown and put my half eaten scone down and think. "So what do we do?" Cadence asks with worry in her tone, a bit of jam stuck to her upper lip.
"We art not sure, but we will increase security around the Castle and Twilight's tower," Luna says and then turns to the doors. "GUARDS!" she yells and as one, all the foals start crying from the loud noise.
The others glare at her as Luna blushes and apologises. A female guard runs over and bows to Luna.
"Yes, my Queen?" she says still bowing.
"Triple the patrols and guards around the Castle as well as an elite team to watch over Twilight Sparkle constantly. We have elves in Equestria with hostile intentions. Alert the Captains and inform them to come here at once," Luna tells her and the mare salutes.
"At once!" she replies and runs out the room.
Discord reappears with a worried looking Twilight next to him, holding her staff tightly and wearing a robe that looks like one of the unicorn guard mages robes. The hood raised over her head and hiding the top half of her face.
"Why is Miss Sparkle wearing a guard's robe?" Luna asks confused.
"For protection! It's enchanted to prevent her from being teleported so the elves can't just snatch her and teleport away. It's also enchanted to resist magic spells cast at her. So if the elves do attack, she'll be prepared. I'll also be training her constantly to help increase her power and magic as well," he says making Twilight look at him in shock.
The doors open and Shining Armour along with the other captains run in with a squad of heavily geared ponies and a changeling behind them.
"TWILY!" Shining yells as he runs over and hugs his sister.
"Shining!" Twilight replies and returns the hug.
"Right then, we can begin this meeting," Luna says as Shining sits down next to her while the others sit in empty chairs. "Discord has discovered the elves are here with the intention of foalnapping Twilight and her elven books along with any pony they can find. We need to increase Canterlot's security and find the base of these elves before they can cause too much damage or foalnap anypony," Luna says and the captains nod.
Spitfire frowns as she speaks up. "I'll have pegasi in the air at all times. I'll also send out teams to find this base with magic detectors. We'll need Miss Sparkle to imprint her magic into the detectors as her magic is now elven as well, it'll make finding the base easier," she suggests to Luna.
"Very good, thou shalt report thine findings to the other captains where a team shall be put together along with Discord to raid the base," Luna says and looks at the other guards. "We want the thestrals to keep a heavy watch on the Castle and Miss Sparkle's tower at night. Hammer Strike and Bright Mind, thou shalt manage the guards in the city and keep watch for anything suspicious. Shining Armour, thou shalt be in charge of the Castle's security. Also send out more guards with at least one changeling to the surrounding towns to bolster their defences," she then tells the others.
They all salute and make their way out but Shining stops at Twilight quickly. "Stay safe," he tells her.
"I will, just be careful yourself, you still haven't got the hang of your new magic just yet," she tells him and he smiles at her.
"Of course. Discord, watch over her please," he replies and then tells Discord.
"I'll do more than that, when I'm through with her, the elves will be running in terror from her!" he says with a smug smile.
Shining nods and walks out the room with the others.
"We take it thou art the elite force we requested?" Luna asks the heavily geared team still here.
"We are, your Majesty," the earth pony stallion in thick plate armour replies and salutes.
"Then thou know that thy task is to protect Miss Sparkle correct?" Luna asks him.
"Correct," he replies.
"Then follow and protect Miss Sparkle until these elves are dealt with," she orders them.
"As you command," he replies and the team spread out around the room.
Twilight sits down next to my mother with a worried expression. "This is too much... I just want to learn my new magic in peace... why are they so upset with me?" she asks sadly.
Discord changes into his human form wearing a suit coloured with his original limbs colours and sits next to Twilight. "They've kept their magic a closely guarded secret for centuries, the only people I know of who know or knew their weaknesses are three of us aspects, along with Starswirl and a few other humans who managed to study the magic who have long since died from assassinations by the elves. So right now, I'm the only one who knows their weaknesses here," he says and sighs.
"I will be teaching Twilight the weaknesses as I train her to be stronger, she'll inform the rest of you when she's done. As for me, I think I need to cash in a few favours from the other aspects, specifically Infernus," he says as he picks up one of the scones and smiles as he eats it.
He then goes wide eyed and grins before choking a bit and swallowing. "I know! Twilight, how do you feel about going on a field trip?" he asks the confused elf.
"Field trip? To where?" she asks with a bit of worry in her tone.
"What do you say about taking your training to a little, secure, and safe location on Terra called... Starswirl's Laboratory? No one knows where it is but us Aspects, and perhaps you can make use of his old experiments and relics?" he tells her making Twilight's jaw drop and her eyes nearly bugging out.
"S-S-Starswirl's Laboratory!?" she yells in shock.
"Yup. So, are you interested?" he asks her again.
"Yes yes yes yes yes yes YEEEES!" she screams hopping up and down excitedly on her chair.
"That also means I'll need to bring the guards here with us. A little extra security never hurts," Discord says making the guards around us look nervous.
"Then while our sister and father deal with the gryphons, we shall focus on the elves," Luna says getting agreements from all of us.
POV: Celestia
My father and I stand on the deck of the E.A.F Nightingale looking towards the mountains that we're quickly approaching. We're powering an invisibility spell over the whole ship so we're not spotted by gryphons as we make our way to the pass leading into the back of the city.
"Get the portal ready!" I command as a team of unicorns set up the portal frame. "Helmspony! Bring us as close to the pass as you can!" I then order the helmspony.
The airship slows to a stop next to the cliff face as pegasi secure the pass' entrance. The portal then comes alive and after confirming the pass is secure, reinforcements pour through the portal. Word is then sent through to Terra and after an hour of gathering our forces, Vortigan and his own forces have arrived and we've set up a war camp in a large damp cave just in the pass. This is the first time I believe that Vortigan has met my father since he came back home. I smile as I watch them greet each other with a firm handshake.
This place must have once been a dragon's nest as a few gems and coins litter the area.
In a tent stands my father, Vortigan, and myself around a table with a neatly drawn map of the area by the gryphoness Venna. Along with other drawings of locations and a list of forces and strongholds Hagriff warned us about.
The pass leads into the back of Aries Peak, my father will lead the main force through the City and up towards the elder council's chamber as a distraction while Vortigan and I will take the cloaked airship up to the chamber and ambush the council.
Once everything has been agreed to, we make our attack.
"Be careful, Father," I tell him with worry.
He chuckles and gives me a tight hug. "Worry not, my little sunshine. I may not be as strong as I was before giving Adrian some of my power and armour, but I'm still more than a match for these buzzards," he tells me and gently kisses my forehead.
I smile and let go as he heads out of the cave and starts yelling at the gathered soldiers and guards.
"Well, then. I suppose we should also head out, Celestia," Vortigan says.
"Yes, and thank you for aiding us in this battle," I reply with a small bow.
"I did promise to aid you against the gryphons, and I hold to my word," he says and smiles.
"You've done enough for us already, the Changelings, the dragons, and now the gryphons. I can't thank you enough," I reply and return the smile.
Before anything else is said, a guard comes in and salutes. "Queen Celestia! I have a report from Canterlot that came with the reinforcements!" he says and holds a scroll out to me.
I take it and unroll it.
Dear Celestia.
I'm writing to inform you we have a problem back here. Discord had done some spying on the elves on Terra and that some of them have made it into Equestria and have set up a base.
Their goal is to capture Twilight and her elven tomes while also foalnapping any ponies they can quietly find, mainly unicorns.
Discord will be staying close to Twilight while helping her train, practice, and to keep her safe on Terra at Starswirl's old lab. The rest of us will be trying to find the elven base.
Good luck with the gryphons and come home soon.
Love, Adrian.
P.S. Cadence, Shella, and Luna send their love as well.
P.S.S. Give that so called sphinx god a good plot thrashing! Also, keep your father safe, he's not as young as he used to be. Lots of love, Galaxia.
I frown at the bad news but smile at the end of the letter and roll it up before teleporting it to my Cabin on the Nightingale.
"It seems the elven King is trying to make an enemy of Equestria," I say to Vortigan making him raise an eyebrow.
"Pardon?" he asks confused.
"I've just received word that Discord did a little... scouting in the elven capital and found out the elves have set up a base in Equestria without our approval and not arriving through the Terra portal. Their goal is to foalnap Twilight and take her elven tomes, as well as to foalnap any of my ponies they can find as well. My herd along with my guard are starting their hunt for the base," I tell him making him go wide eyed.
"He wouldn't dare, not after the time he denied the accusations of moving unannounced troops within my kingdom," he replies shocked.
"Discord is many things, Vortigan. A liar isn't one of them," I say and sigh. "Let us get this over with so we may return and find out what is going on. Because if the elven King so much as takes a single pony, he will be sorry he provoked us,"
POV: Solaris
I watch as Celestia and Vortigan head back to the airship. Once out of sight, I turn back to the gathered three-thousand troops of mixed races, and after barely hearing Celestia talking about hostile elves in Equestria, I can't help but suspect the elven enchanters and mages here with us right now.
"Listen up!" I shout out over the mumbling. "Prepare yourselves for battle! Human mages, get ready with your nullify spells to shatter the gryphons barriers! Juggernauts, you'll lead the charge and push the gryphons back! Be careful as they are twice your size!" I tell the large armoured humans who slam their shields together in reply.
"Do not kill any young or elderly unless they make an attempt at your life! We're here for the council and their so call god, not civilians! Clerics, keep everypon... one alive. Battle-mages, keep the clerics safe! Gunners, keep the skies clear of gryphons, we don't want them diving at us!" I then order getting acknowledgements from them all.
After explaining the rest of the plan, I order the troops to move out.
Terracana Chapter 97: The battle of Aires Peak Part 2
POV: Solaris
With the order to move out given, I follow behind the juggernauts with my new sword Discord has made for me. It looks exactly like my old one, the blade nearly a metre and a half long with a golden hand guard shaped like a sun, where two long rays of sunlight stretch to the sides, the pommel also looks like a sun. The grip has black leather around it, but with some new enchantments on it.
It's near unbreakable now where only something with stronger magic can overpower it. It even reacts when I pour my magic into it, creating molten hot flames along the blade.
Since I gave my armour to Adrian, I now have a new modern set of full plate guard armour with more common enchantments. While not as good as my old armour, it'll do for now. Hopefully Discord will be able to replicate my old armour later.
We march down the path with pegasi scouts in the air, watching for any gryphon movement. It takes us a good ten minutes to reach the end of the path.
"Alright! We'll only have a good few minutes before we're spotted! Get into formations as soon as we head out and storm the city! Remember! No killing civilians unless in self-defence!" I order everyone here. They all get ready as I look out at the city.
Like Canterlot, it's a large city on the side of a mountain, but that's where the similarity ends. The houses are more like roofed bird nests with some semblance of furniture and storage. There are a few pathways carved out into the stone cliffs, but most of the gryphons just fly from place to place, it will certainly make getting around without wings a challenge. The bigger buildings are made of timber and stone and seem to have greater purpose than living accommodations. I recognise one being a 'meat storage' building Hagriff described where they keep ponies and other races alive until they eat them.
"My unit will take the storage building! The rest of you cause as much chaos as you can to keep them distracted! NOW MOVE!" I yell out.
We rush out into the more open pathways and begin to swarm the city. Gryphons begin to notice us and while some flee with their young, most cry out with roars and charge at us
Our human allies cast their Nullify spells to shatter the gryphons barriers while our gunners and archers begin to shoot at the gryphons attacking us.
I turn to my unit and point my sword at the storage building. "MOVE IN!" I order them and start running over to the building with my unit following behind me.
The human mages are proving to be a boon as any time one of our own gets wounded, they heal them up within seconds, allowing them to get back into the fight. And with the juggernauts protecting them, the gryphons can't get close enough to kill them.
Not only that, they are also using the stone around us as makeshift cannonballs with their earth elements along with our ranged units to prevent most of the gryphons from attacking us from above.
I ready my broadsword and parry a gryphon's swipe with their left talon. With a quick flick of my wrist, I sever the same talon off their wrist making them cry out in pain as they flap their wings to fly away from me. They then get a rifle shot to the chest before they could get away.
As we continue making our way along the pathway to the storage building, I hear a cry of fear as one of the humans is plucked out of our group by a fast diving gryphon. I take wing after them as the others continue towards the building.
The human mage is struggling to point their left hand up towards the gryphon as she's jostled about in its grip, her right arm bleeding from the talons buried in her arm. I look behind me to notice two more gryphons have given chase after me, I frown and beat my wings harder to catch up to the mage who finally lets off a beam of arcane magic into the gryphon's stomach.
The gryphon squawks as their fur falls off and their skin starts to bloat and blister, making them release the mage who screams as she falls. I go into a steep dive before levelling out and catching her, she grunts from the impact and sighs in relief.
"Thanks, ow ow ow..." she says and holds her right arm while channelling life magic into the wound.
"Just hold on tight, we're not out of this yet," I tell her and make a sharp turn to the left to head back to my unit.
She yelps and grabs onto my neck as I dodge a gryphon's swipe. I perform a barrel roll to avoid the other gryphon and grunt as I flap my wings to go over another one.
"Gah!" I hiss in pain as one of the buzzards manages to slam into my side and latch on. "AHHH!" the mage in my arms yelps and in a moment of panic, blasts the gryphon with a gout of flames to their face, forcing them to back away.
"Now it is my turn to thank you, my dear," I say to the panting mage.
"Y-Your welcome..." she replies and grabs back onto me.
We make it back to my unit who are already storming the building, I gently set the mage back on her feet where she thanks me again and joins the others.
So far we're doing well, I can only see a few casualties among our forces, but the whole place is in a frenzy. Hopefully this will give my daughter and the human king enough of a distraction to take out the council and their so called god.
I make my way into the building to find many races tied up and or caged, even a young white dragoness at ten feet tall who has had their wings cut off.
"Free them and escort them back to the staging point!" I order my unit as they start cutting or breaking chains.
"Sir! We have more Gryphons inbound!" I hear a human mage tell me as he runs over from the entrance.
"Juggernauts! Cover the entrance! Unicorns! Make a portal to the staging point now!" I order with a change of plans.
POV: Twilight Sparkle
"So my dear, are you ready to go?" Discord asks me after we collected everything we would need for at least a three months stay at Starswirl’s laboratory.
"I can't wait! Thee Starswirl the Bearded's Laboratory! Oh to find out what else has he done since the time he was gone! I'm so excited!" I reply while hopping in place. I've already let Spitfire get a copy of my magic's signature just minutes ago.
Discord chuckles getting my attention. "Then let us be off, the sooner we go, the more likely the elves can't find you," he tells me and with just a quick snap of his talon hand, we're now standing in a surprisingly clean and inactive laboratory with many tables, pieces of equipment, and research notes lying about.
Just the sight of it all is making me drool and I rush off to what appears to be a complex and ingenious string of elven runes lined up and linked together. It would appear to be a intricate design for a teleportation grid, allowing people to go to certain points in the world if activated in a certain way. Problem is it appears to be unfinished.
"Ah yes, beardy's plan to make a world wide grid for teleporting. He was going to use it so he could travel anywhere in the world instantly to cut travel costs and time for all terrans. But, Grogar happened before he could finish it," Discord tells me with a sad sounding sigh. "If you think you can finish it, then by all means, go ahead."
I look from him back to the formula and grin, to finish one of Starswirl’s own pieces of incomplete work?
I waste no time as I put down my stuff and sit in the still sturdy chair and begin reviewing all of the notes and runes in front of me. While not happy with the reason of which I got here, I'm not complaining about this one bit.
POV: Discord
With Sparkle now engrossed in her new research, I turn to the elite team that came with us.
"Alright, fellas! The exits are here, here, and here," I tell them, pointing my arms at two doors as a third sprouts out of my back to point at the old and inactive recall pad. While Starswirl never finished its true purpose, he still used it as a recall point should he have needed to make a quick getaway using elven teleportation crystals. He did have plenty of powerful enemies back in the day and had to bug out fast.
"Where exactly are we?" one of the mare guards asks me.
"In the middle of the Dread Wastes, no one comes here due to how toxic the surface is now. So we'll be undisturbed for a looooong time. We have plenty of supplies and Beardy had the foresight to install air filter runes throughout the place. And if we need to, I can bring in more supplies," I reply and look around the old place.
"How long are we staying down here?" a stallion then asks me.
"Until the elves are caught, which could be mere weeks to a few months! So hunker down, set up beds, and get comfortable," I tell him and pick up a couple of old fire enchanted rubies. "Though I think miss Sparkle would like to live here indefinitely seeing how into her studying she seems to be," I say and gesture to the still reading elf.
With everything I need with me I get ready to head out.
"Oh! But first things first!" I say and snap my left fingers, making all the dangerous equipment and materials get up and walk out the room and into a storage room. The guards just stare as the materials walk out single file.
"Hey!" Twilight yelps as the incomplete circle of connected runes starts spinning and flies out above the others items.
"You can read up on beardy's notes before you get into the practical stuff... remember the last time you tried to open a portal?" I tell her in a mock tone of a dad scolding their child.
She pouts and turns back to the notes making me chuckle.
"Now then, I'm off to Aires Peak as I have a feeling Celestia will be needing a helping hand," I say as the storage room locks itself. With that all settled, I teleport to Tia's location before they can say anything.
I look around and notice Tia and some Unicorn's surrounding a head sized crystal on a table and channelling magic into it. Ah a cloaking spell!
"Tia! Have you not reached Aires Peak yet?" I ask her getting most of those present to yelp, except I make my head retract like a turtle as a human archer fires a crossbow bolt at me.
"I SAY SIR! That was uncalled for!" I say as my voice echoes throughout my breastplate. I then slowly raise my head until my visor just reaches over the collar of my breastplate. "Watch where you point that thing, you could take someones eye out!" I scold him making him look nervous.
"Discord, I take it Twilight is now safe?" Celestia asks. I look to the elves present and notice the eyes of two of them widen a bit, so we might have some elves looking for miss Sparkle who came with the terrans forces huh...
"Perfectly my dear, but we'll discuss details later. I had a bad feeling about this so I decided to give you a helping hand," I reply and look out of the cabin window.
We're coming up to the top of Aires Peak and the large building which the council resides in. "So what is your game plan?" I ask and look back to them.
"The humans will remove their barriers and with the rest of our forces, subdue or remove any gryphons attacking us. Vortigan and I will deal with this Sphinx God then with the council," she replies.
"Hmmm. Alright, you deal with Sphinxy and I'll handle the council," I tell her and pull out two of the tarts I have left. "While we wait for our arrival, you must try one of these!" I say merrily and hold one out for her.
She raises an eyebrow and gingerly takes it from me. "What is it?" she asks and sniffs it.
"A delightful tart made by your kitchen's newest staff member," I reply and raise my visor and take a bite out of it. Hmmm-mmm-mmmm! Still as good as if it was freshly baked.
"Oh? When did we get a new baker?" she asks me and takes a bite.
I smirk as her eyes roll up and a rather lewd moan escapes her throat. A lot of the males stare at her wide eyed with a slight sheen of sweat on their foreheads as she takes another bite.
"By your reaction, I take it you approve?" I ask her and finish off my tart.
She licks her lips of crumbs and smiles. "Most certainly. I look forward to what else she can make, but for now we have a so called god to kill," she replies and looks back to the crystal she's still powering.
I look out of one of the windows in the cabin and see the top of the mountain coming into view. A large building decorated with crude busts of gryphons near the entrance, previous elders of the council I believe.
POV: Celestia
After that delicious tart Discord gave me, I return my attention to the crystal and get ready to head into battle. I will test this god to see what he is capable of and if he isn't as strong as he claims to be, I will bring everything I have to bare down onto him.
It takes another four minutes before we reach the mountain peak, the large building of the gryphon council is decorated in kill trophies of pelts and skulls along with wooden heads of former elders.
The building looks old, though the roofing looks like fresh thatch. There are landing platforms near the main entrance allowing gryphons to just come and go, it also prevents land based creatures from reaching it easily.
"Bring the ship to the back and ready the cannons! We'll blow a hole in the side where our unicorns will lift you all in after us!" I say and check my equipment again. With everything set and the ship in position, we drop the cloak and begin.
"FIRE!" I yell as the starboard cannons fire into the building. The wall caves in as nothing but splinters fly about and cries of pain and confusion shout out within.
"Advance!" I yell as Vortigan, Discord, and I fly through the hole and look around.
A couple of gryphons are dead with either chunks of flesh ripped off from the cannon balls, while three others are missing limbs.
I spot a large dark brown furred gryphon with grey feathers and a pale white human like face sitting upon a throne made of bones and pelts with five seats on either side in a crescent formation, each with an elderly gryphon wearing ceremonial robes sitting on them. He narrows his eyes at us while the elders start to look angry.
"How dare mere prey attack us! Hunters! Claim their heads!" one of the old buzzards yells in offence to our presence.
I glare at him for his choice of words and without warning, cast a fireball from my horn at his head. The heat burns his face off leaving the burnt bone of his skull visible as the smell of seared flesh starts to fill the room. He didn’t even have time to scream.
"We are the hunters now gryphons, and we no longer tolerate your hostilities towards us and other races," I tell them as I look back to the Sphinx God.
Something feels wrong with him. I can't sense his presence, and his eyes look like there is no life behind them... Is he just a corpse? Perhaps Grogar is even controlling him?
"So, the prey thinks themselves the hunters?" the Sphinx God says and he slowly stands up on all fours. "Then let us see how you fair against a superior hunter." Without warning he flaps his large wings and lunges straight for me.
Terracana Chapter 98: The battle of Aries Peak Part 3
POV: Celestia
The Sphinx God suddenly lunges towards me with greater speed than any gryphon I've seen before, so I activate my physical aspect form and create a greatsword of solid light. I quickly avoid his strike by side stepping to the left, while he's recovering from the landing, I rush towards him and swing my blade at his exposed right side. Though my eyes widen as the blade doesn't even cut or burn him on contact which just glides over the fur on his side without so much as a singe.
"Mages! Cast your nullify spell!" I order the human mages.
They quickly raise their staffs as their elements form before releasing the magic shattering all active magic in the area. Fortunately, my aspect form remains active, though it did drain a bit of my magic.
I notice every gryphon here has their barriers shattered, but nothing happened to the Sphinx God.
"That was your plan? To disable our barriers and attack? Hmmm, it may have worked for the enchanted bracers, but I am the source of those enchantments. It won't be removed from me that easily," he replies in a neutral tone.
I narrow my eyes at him and glance to Vortigan who is channelling five elements for an arcane beam into the large bracer with diamonds embedded on his left forearm .
"We shall see," I reply sternly with my dual tone voice.
I take another swing at him to distract him as Vortigan casts his beam into the Sphinx God's back. But he blocks my sword with his left talon and appears to be unaffected by the arcane beam, in fact it seems he's absorbing the magic.
Vortigan's eyes widen as he stops and channels five life elements and casts it, making me confused as to why he would heal him. The beam hits the Sphinx God, instead of healing him like I thought it would, he wails out horridly as arcane magic is purged from his body.
"He's an undead! All mages cast life spells now!" Vortigan orders his mages who aim their staffs at the undead gryphon.
'Undead? Does that mean Grogar is involved in this?' I think to myself.
'That is most likely. Only humans can use arcane magic and Grogar is the only necromancer I know of capable of making an undead this powerful,' Lux replies.
Meanwhile, Discord and our forces are battling other gryphons as they arrive, slowly making his way towards the council of elders who are shocked at the horrific noise their god is letting out as he's barraged by life spells.
The Sphinx God opens his mouth wide as a spray of arcane magic is blasted out over the mages. Vortigan and some others get shields up in time while a good nine mages and twenty foot soldiers bloat grotesquely, screaming in agony before popping like a boil, covering everyone near them in gore.
The Sphinx God takes wing out of the hole blown in the wall, flying away before turning around and starts launching blasts of arcane magic at us. Mages set up wall shield barriers deflecting the bolts while Vortigan casts his air wings spell and takes off after the undead gryphon.
I follow him up while the mages continue to cast life beams towards the Sphinx God, some of them hitting us as well, making me feel more invigorated as I fly at the speed of light behind the undead gryphon. I pull him into a choke hold using my sword, making him struggle and claw at my arms to free himself.
I grunt in pain as my arms start stinging, I notice arcane magic oozing from his talons, if it wasn't for my current form, my skin would have blisters over them already.
Brandishing his large axe, Vortigan reaches us with life elements infused into his weapon. A scowl on his face as he roars angrily, swinging his axe with all his might.
The blade slices through the undead with ease, tearing open his gut and expelling a lot of arcane magic.
I'm forced to let go as the magic is too painful and fly over behind Vortigan who has a barrier shield up to block the miasma of arcane magic pouring out of the Sphinx God.
"Fine work holding him in place! Now let's finish the job!" Vortigan yells at me over the mountain winds.
"I'll try to hold him again! Go for the head this time!" I reply and make my way towards the undead.
POV: Adrian Stormsword
I'm with the Captains and Luna in the War-room looking at a map of Equestria while Galaxia, Shella, and Cadence look after the foals.
"Now we just have to figure out where they set up base. It would have been great if Discord found out where when he heard about it, but I suppose at least knowing they're here is better than not knowing," I say to all gathered.
"True, but still would'a been nice to know the exact location," Spitfire says, fiddling with a device that softly beeps every second. "At least Twilight gave us her elven magic signature before discord whisked her away. It has a range of at best five miles," she then says and pockets the device.
"Not very far considering how big Equestria is," Hammer Strike comments with a frown while looking at the map.
"That's why we have ten of them ready. I'll have ten squads scouring Equestria until we find them. Is that anti-portal orb still in Twilight's tower?" Spitfire replies and then asks looking towards Luna.
"Verily. Tis still in her tower and functional, why?" she replies confused.
"When we find the base, we should bring it with us to prevent them from using portals to get away and take anypony they may already have," Spitfire explains with a grin.
I raise my brow as I look toward her. "Hmmm, that's a good idea. This means they'll have no choice but to fight or surrender," I say and look back to the map. "If I had to guess where they might be, it would be here." I point towards the Everfree Forest.
"Why there?" Bright Mind asks me.
"Elves prefer woodland areas, and with how powerful elven magic and archers can be, the beasts and dangers of the Everfree wouldn't hinder them much," I reply with a scratch to my chin. Hmm, seems I have a bit of stubble growing now, wonder if I should grow a beard like Vortigan’s?
"Hmmmmm... I'll take a team there myself," Spitfire says narrowing her eyes at the forest on the map. "If we find any traces of elven magic there, we'll return asap for backup."
"Alright, nothing I can do for now so I'll be in the training room practising my magic some more," I say and make my way towards the exit.
"I'll join you. I need to practice with the life element some more myself," Shining calls out to me and makes his way over beside me.
"Sure, I could help you a bit in how to manage mana flow," I reply and we both head out as Luna finalises the scouting parties with Spitfire.
"So, how are you and Silk Sheets been doing lately?" I ask him as we walk.
He chuckles and shakes his head. "Oh pretty well actually. My parents adore her and my mother is already demanding grandfoals..." he replies with a smile.
"I see. Are you going to give in to the demand next heat season?" I ask with a shit eating grin.
"I don't know... Silk is certainly thinking about it," he says and sighs as he rubs the bridge of his nose.
"Well, whatever you decide, we'll help you through it. Gods know how much sleep we lose when one cries and triggers the others," I tell him with a light chuckle.
"I know, Twilight was like that when she was a foal... constantly crying when she was alone in her room, though the moment my parents moved her crib into theirs, she slept like an angel," he replies and laughs.
I smile at that as we reach the training room and enter.
"Right then, show me what you can do so far," I tell Shining as we stand in the middle of the room.
POV: Discord
I glance at Celestia and Vortigan and see they have that well in hand, so I return my gaze to the huddled elders backing away towards the corner of the room.
"Now then gents, do you have any last words before we end your lives?" I ask them as I swing my mace around in circles from the strap on the bottom.
"How dare mere prey attack us! We shall make sure your race will be put in their place once the Sphinx God ends your lives!" the eldest looking gryphon says in anger.
I look at him with a bored expression as I hold out my right hand and place my index finger and thumb near each other. I then pull back and with a pop, his beak comes off with no evidence of a mouth or nose in its place.
He starts panicking when he realises he can't breath. With no way to breath, he makes no sound as he claws at his own face in a gory attempt to make a breathing hole. I toss the beak aside as he continues to flail.
"The next one who spouts malarkey like that, will have their head shoved up another's posterior," I tell them and frown behind my helmet's visor. "Now then!" I start in a cheerier tone. "Here's what's going to happen. Unless you change your ways and hunt only instinctual wildlife for food, I will have to kill all of you and we'll have to lay down some ground rules for the others, failure to follow these rules will result in a very harsh punishment!" I tell them and toss my mace up into the air.
"You have no right to force us to do anything!" another male responds.
I slowly turn my head towards him, making him flinch. "And you had no right killing Equestrians or any other sapient race, but you did it anyway. It always comes back to who has the bigger stick in the end, and we just so happen to bring a tree trunk sized stick with us this time," I reply as a loud explosion detonates outside. One of the female elders looks up confused as she noticed my mace didn't come back down.
I smirk as her eyes widen and my mace comes back down, now three times longer and with a larger spiked ball on the end. I catch it and hold it with both hands and walk up towards them.
"So what's it gonna be? Play nice with others, or I'mma have'ta smack ya," I tell them as another explosion goes off and the God wannabe comes crashing through the wall in a cut up mess.
The gryphons stare in shock at the condition he's in which only makes me smirk. Though that smirk fades as Celestia floats down through the hole no longer in her Aspect form and bleeding from cuts in several areas. Her skin has some blisters all over her and her left ear has a slight cut in it.
Vortigan looks just as bad but he's casting healing beams at himself and Celestia, slowly healing their wounds and purging arcane magic from their bodies.
"This is surprising," the Sphinx God says weakly as he stumbles onto his feet. "It would appear I will need to accelerate my plans..." he says in a serious tone and then smirks.
Arcane magic starts building at an alarming rate in his chest and my eyes widen. "EVACUATE! HE'S GOING TO BLOW!" I yell and rush over to Celestia and Vortigan. They don't get a say in as I grab them by the arms and fly out of the hole in the wall.
The soldiers and guards with us hightail it out of the room, leaving shield barriers behind to block the doorway. The Sphinx God laughs maniacally as he bloats and after a good few more seconds, detonates. Arcane energy floods the area and the elders scream as they start to decay and fall dead. What worries me though is that they don't stay dead and slowly shamble back on their rotted paws.
The magic doesn't just stop there though as it pours out like a mist from the holes in the walls, flowing down the mountain like a plague ridden waterfall.
POV: Vortigan Llywelyn
I frown as Discord releases us and we take flight under our own power. "We need to get everyone away from here now. That mist is a miasma that turns the living into undead," I warn them both and the sounds of battle below stops before turning into screams of fear as the miasma continues down, and its picking up speed.
"I'll fly to the ship and have it head down to recover our forces, you two find my farther and try to slow the miasma as best as you can," Celestia tells us and I nod along with Discord.
She takes off towards the ship while Discord and I head down the mountain to find Solaris. Gryphons flee from the mountain carrying their young or possessions and ignoring our forces while our mages are using shield barriers and stone walls to divert the miasma away from them. The foot soldiers and other combatants are holding off undead gryphons and some of our soldiers who were unfortunately turned by the miasma.
We find Solaris directing troops and gathering rescued prisoners together. We land beside him and he turns to us with a frown.
"What is going on?" he asks as an undead gryphon dives down at us.
He uses his telekinesis to grab the undead mid flight and slam it into the ground before beheading it with his large blade.
"The Sphinx God was an undead made by Grogar we believe. He self-destructed to create this miasma, I think he intended to do this later to convert the gryphons into undead for his army," I reply and head over to the mages and help reinforce their barriers with my own.
"Such perversion of life, even the gryphons do not deserve this," Solaris says and looks around. "Where is my daughter?" he asks with worry.
"She has returned to the Nightingale to bring it here so we can evacuate," Discord says and uses his magic to create trenches to divert the flow of the miasma.
"Alright, We'll get everyone on board when she arrives and make our way back to Equestria! While this isn't how we hoped things would turn out, at least we hopefully won't be bothered by them for a long while," Solaris says as he uses his magic to burn gryphon corpses to ash.
It doesn't take long for the airship to fly over and pull up beside the cliff-face.
"Bring everyone on board!" I hear Celestia call out as a gangplank is extended across.
The trench is doing its job of keeping the miasma away while everyone evacuates onto the ship and through the portal set up on the deck.
After a few minutes, everyone is through and the portal is closed as we take off back to Equestria. We watch as the mountain is covered in blackish red arcane miasma, the screams of gryphons still there or fleeing fading the further we get from it.
Celestia sighs as she shakes her head. "Our next focus will have to be finding Grogar once we've dealt with these elf invaders," she says in a tired tone, now fully healed of her blisters and cuts.
"And I must return to Elysium. I will see what I can get out of Elune as elves require the coordinates of a location to make a portal near it, and she is the only elf I know of that went through the portal," I reply and stretch my limbs.
"Yes, Twilight has told me how elven portal magic functions, but she also told me she can make a portal to a location where she can see through a looking glass like the old elven one we have, it just takes time to pinpoint the location she wants to go to. It's how she located my parents to bring them back," Celestia tells me with a frown.
With a frown I huff. "I see... I will still keep an ear out for any news or communications coming from Vaylen," I reply and head into the main cabin to rest.
POV: Adrian Stormsword
I can't help but laugh as Shining is frowning while his hands are both encased in shield barriers and he can't cancel them.
"This isn't funny! Why can't I cancel them!" he asks me in frustration.
"Because you didn't cast them correctly! It'll just take thirty minutes to an hour to wear off," I reply. "I did warn you this could happen, but noooo~, you just had to try casting shield elements without proper study first," I then say teasingly.
He just sighs and goes to sit at the bar corner and sips on a straw in his drink.
After getting some more training in with Shining, who's hands are now freed from the shields. I exit the training room to see Spitfire with four other pegasi fly off towards the Everfree Forest, while other groups take off in every other direction.
I frown in thought, why are the elves so damn persistent? Well, hopefully with the gryphons and dragons dealt with for now, and soon the elves, we can focus on finding Grogar and gather any information we can on him.
I enter the Castle and make my way to the throne room, should be time to wrap up and head for dinner. It's only been over a week and I miss Celestia already, I hope she and Solaris are doing alright.
A loud pop sound to my left makes me jump and I throw up a shield barrier next to me. I see Discord standing there with a raised eyebrow at me.
"I think you're getting a tiny bit paranoid... Although that's a given," he says and shrugs. "Just letting you know the so called Sphinx God is now gone and turns out he was an undead made by Grogar. He blew himself up and covered the entire mountain with an arcane miasma that turned thousands of gryphons and some of our forces into undead. Solaris, Celestia, and Vortigan are fine and are heading back on their airship along with some rescued prisoners. They should be heading through the portal in the crystal caves any minute now."
I let out a sigh of relief at the good news, but now knowing that Grogar is behind the Sphinx God is cause for concern.
"Thanks for the info, Uncle. I was just about to head to the throne room to gather everyone for dinner, care to join us?" I ask him.
"Sorry but can't. Now that I've helped Celly and Solaris, I'm going back to Terra to keep an eye on Twilight and continue training her," he replies and pulls his left arm off and flops it about for a second before sticking it back on and sighing. "Oh boy that feels better. Well then, say hi to the others for me and let them know where I am, you can contact me through your elven mirror if you need me!" And with that he snaps his fingers and vanishes in his pink cloud of smoke.
With the good news I head inside the Throne Room and find Luna sitting on her throne with Shella on hers, her belly slightly swollen with her eggs. I think it's fifteen more days before she lays them. Although there's no line of ponies waiting to see them which I find odd.
"Adrian! Are thou done with thine training?" Luna asks me and then yawns.
I smile up to her and walk over to her throne. "Yes, and Shining got his hands stuck in a couple of shield bubbles. Poor guy couldn't pick anything up for an hour," I reply with a chuckle.
She giggles in return as does Shella. "As amusing as that sounds, the air forces are now out to find these elves. hopefully, we'll find them before they can foalnap anypony," Luna tells me as her face turns from a smile to a frown.
"Ah that reminds me. Discord has told me the Sphinx God is dead and was Grogar's creation..." I say and tell her the rest of what Discord told me.
"We see, we art relieved our family is safe, as well as Vortigan. We shall also hold a ceremony for those who lost their lives when our forces return," she tells me and yawns again.
"Tired?" I comment playfully.
"Thou hast no idea, but we shalt push on," she replies and stifles another yawn.
"Then you're stopping for today. Let's get some dinner and call it a day shall we?" I say and hold my left hand out to her while holding my right out to Shella.
They both smile and take them as I gently pull them onto their feet. "So what happened while I was training?" I ask them both as we walk out the doors, each of them still holding onto my hands.
"A messenger from the centaurs has warned us of undead around their borders, and has asked us to send some of the human mages to get rid of them. We've told her we can't just send people who aren't under our direct command and to wait here so she may meet with King Vortigan to make an agreement with him," Luna tells me and sighs as she rubs the bridge of her muzzle with her left hand. "Not to mention some more petty requests of the nobles."
I hum in thought. "If the centaurs are starting to have problems with the undead, perhaps the other races are as well... Maybe we should call a meeting with all our allies? This'll be a good opportunity to introduce Vortigan to them," I tell her with a raised brow.
"It would give us a good opportunity to find out what is happening beyond our borders and if they have any information on Grogar," Shella says.
Luna frowns and nods her head. "True, but first we have to deal with the elves before we call a gathering. From what Twilight has told us of elven magic, they can use illusion spells to disguise themselves as another race for a short time. They could use that to get in with one of the other races visiting."
I sigh as we arrive at the Dining Hall and the guards open it for us. "Thank you," I say to them as we head in and make our way to the table to find Cadence and Galaxia already here with the foals.
"I see you're having fun," I comment as they look up from the foals on their laps.
Cadence giggles as she nuzzles Hope and Mavis. "We are. I take it court and training are done for today?" she asks us with a smile.
"Yes, now we can just relax for the rest of the day. Also, the attack on Aries Peak was a partial success," I reply and then inform them of what Discord told me.
"It's good to know they're okay," Galaxia says with a relieved sigh as we take our seats.
Valiant holds his hands out to me making me grin as I lean over to pick him up off Galaxia's lap and place him on mine.
"And how's my brave boy? You behaving yourself?" I ask him, making him giggle and slap my stomach a few times.
Dinner is ordered and we all talk about the stupidity of the nobles. Now fed, we head up to our room to relax and chat before turning in for the day.
Two days later
After our morning rituals, we have breakfast and begin our day. Galaxia and Cadence once again are looking after the foals while It's my turn this morning for court and again not many nobles in line. They know I won't take their crap anymore so they would either wait to try with Luna or preferably Celestia as Solaris and Galaxia don't take their crap as well.
Although this mare has a legitimate case that her now ex-husband has been selling some of her crops without telling her and keeping the profits in a separate bank account, and with a crystal recording caught him in the act. So I judged him to give her half of the bank account's worth and a restraining order to keep away from her property.
After thanking me, she leaves with some guards to enforce the verdict. Luckily, we've had no reports of kidnappings or missing people yet, so the elves must be still setting themselves up or are trying to find the best target.
We've also made an order for a sword and shield made for Shining from the royal blacksmith as well as the best foci gem we can get from Terra to socket into it. It'll take another three days before they're ready for testing.
The doors then burst open with Spitfire smirking as she walks over to me. "Spitfire? I take it you have good news judging by your smirk?" I ask her with a growing grin.
"I do, your majesty. Just as you thought, we located the elves in the old Castle of the Sisters within the Everfree Forest. The detector found high amounts of elven magic in the area and we spotted two elves in the trees as lookouts. Though we're unsure if they noticed us or not," she replies.
I frown and place my right hand under my chin. "Hmmm, get a few squads ready to surround them while I go get the anti-portal orb Discord made. Also get the guards on high alert in Canterlot in case they try to make portals in the city while we grab the elves," I order her, getting a salute in return before she runs out.
I get up and end court for now before heading out to find Luna and Galaxia. After asking a few guards, Cadence is in our room with Galaxia looking after the foals while Luna is in the Training Room practising with her aspect forms.
I head up to our room first and find Cadence grinning her head off and giggling as all four foals are trying to climb on her. Galaxia is sitting on the bed smiling while Silk sheets is sitting to the right on a chair also smiling.
"Adorable, although I've come to tell you both that Spitfire and her group have found the elves. They're hiding in the old castle ruins in the Everfree Forest. We're getting squads together to ambush them with the anti-portal orb to stop them from getting away," I tell them both making Galaxia frown.
Galaxia stands up from the bed and walks over to me. "Good, then I'm coming with you. These elves have threatened my family and ponies. I will make them regret their actions!" she tells me and her horn glows as a beautiful set of form fitting polished dark blue armour has replaced her dress. It has hardly any weak points and looks flexible. Silver trimming adorns the armour with a shin long night sky themed dress skirt with chainmail on the inside.
In her hands is a finely crafted longbow with the same colours of her armour with a pair of thin silver blades on the front of the limbs. Although there's no bow string or quiver which confuses me.
"Now then, let us be on our way so we may end this threat as soon as possible!" she says with enthusiasm and heads for the door.
I quickly grab her left forearm gently making her turn back to me. "I still need to inform Luna so she and the guards can keep an eye on Canterlot in case the elves try to portal in when we move the orb out," I warn her, getting a nod in return. "Go get the squads ready at the barracks and I'll go tell Luna."
"Very well, I shall meet you there," she replies and heads out.
"You'll be careful right?" Cadence asks with worry. Silk is also looking concerned.
"We'll be fine. I have my nullify spell to cancel out the elves' magic. And judging by Galaxia's bow, I think she'll be quite the asset against their archers," I reply and walk over to give her a quick kiss on her forehead before giving one to each of my kids. "We'll be back soon."
"Okay, good luck," she replies.
I quickly change out of my clothes for my armour, sword, and shield along with my foci-bracelets before I leave the room and head out to find Luna. I arrive at the Training Room to see Luna in her magic aspect form with Shining practising his life element some more.
"Luna! I have news about the elves," I say getting her attention.
She cancels her form and walks over to me as does Shining. "What news? Hast their location been discovered?" she asks eagerly.
I nod and frown. "They're hiding in your old castle in the Everfree Forest. Galaxia and I are going to surround it with a few squads to either capture them, or kill them if they resist with lethal force," I tell her, making her frown.
"Then we shall assist thou with this endeavour," she replies and grins.
"Nope, we need you and the guards to keep an eye on Canterlot as we'll be taking the anti-portal orb with us," I tell her, making her grin vanish. "I know you want to punish these elves for trying to kidnap our people, but you're now nearly two months pregnant and I don't want you risking the foal for this. Galaxia, the guards, and I can handle them."
She sighs and frowns. "Very well. We shalt make certain the elves dare not infiltrate Canterlot," she says unhappily.
"Just be careful if the elves do infiltrate. I wouldn't put it past them to try and kidnap you to use as leverage, though that would be telling everyone that their king is involved," I tell her and give her a quick kiss. "We'll get this done as soon as we can and come back with the orb."
We say our goodbyes where Shining will stick with Luna to keep her safe as well as send two squads of guards to protect Cadence.
I make my way to the barracks and see Galaxia ordering the guards around getting them ready to go just out front. Though most of them look at her in awe as this is the first time any of us have seen her in armour.
"Ah, Adrian. The troops are just about ready to go, are you ready?" she asks me.
I nod to her in reply. "I am, so how do you want to do this? Judging from your bow, you want to keep your distance and see what they have first?" I ask her, getting a smile from her.
"Yes, I have a spell that allows me to see the body heat of living things up to a good fifty meters away. Though the spell loses its effectiveness through walls, trees, or stone," she replies as her horn glows and her eyes change to slitted pupils.
"Fancy. Then while you finish up here, I'll go get the orb," I tell her, making her giggle.
"No need, I just teleported to it and back while you spoke to Luna. Now we can prepare to move out," she replies and holds up the orb in her left hand.
I just stare at the orb for a few seconds. "Ah, well then... let's get ready to go,"
1 Hour and 18 Minutes later
Ten squads with ten ponies each are ready to go, along with Captains Spitfire and Dark Wing. All are wearing camouflaged armour or strange bush like coverings they called ghillie suits. If they stay perfectly still you couldn't even tell that someone was inside it, it was also enchanted to turn the pony's fur wearing it a dark green to blend in with it.
We have fifty pegasi or thestrals and twenty-five unicorns and earthponies. The pegasi and thestrals will carry the non-flyers to the edge of the forest where we will slowly advance towards the ruined castle.
"Alright then, let's get a move on!" I say getting cheers from the others.
I cast my gliding wings where Galaxia grabs the collar on the back of my chest-plate. We take off and fly down low close to the mountainside and then about three to four metres from the ground as we soar towards the Everfree. We don't need them seeing us flying down to them from above.
It takes a good twenty minutes but we land a good twenty metres from the treeline and the unicorns start casting spells to detect life signs nearby.
I cancel my wings and quickly change to my life's magic aspect form, the vines and flowers growing over my body and my vision showing strong signs of life. I only see a few animals who are looking at us through the trees before they run off.
"looks clear to me," I say and look towards Galaxia. Her eyes glowing and slitted again as she scans the treeline.
She readies her bow and I watch as she holds her right hand where the string should be before pulling back where an arrow made of black magic with twinkling dots in it forms. She nods to the bow before moving her hand back and the arrow deforms.
"Then let us go hunting," she then says as we follow her into the treeline.
We slowly make our way through the Everfree Forest, Galaxia at the front with everyone else fanned out to the left and right. We step as lightly as possible and slowly advance towards the castle ruins, the sounds of the trees rustling in the wind and wildlife, with the occasional twig snap can be heard in the air.
"See anything?" I ask Galaxia quietly as all I see are animals either sleeping in their nests, watching us, or fleeing.
She frowns as she looks around. "Not yet, but we are still a fair bit away from the castle," she replies and looks up into the trees.
We continue on and one of the female guards yelps as a large white spider the size of my head crawls up the tree next to her. "Ha! Scared of a little bug?" a male guard asks her, making her frown angrily at him.
"Shut your muzzle, Iron Sabre! I just didn't see it!" she whispers angrily to him.
I chuckle as they’re shushed and focus back on our task, it takes a good hour of slow travel but we're now coming up to the castle.
"Is the orb working?" I ask Galaxia as I spot a couple of elves in the trees just past the gorge that has a very old rope bridge over it.
Galaxia holds her right hand up, signalling the guards to stop. "Yes, it is," she replies and pulls the orb out of a satchel on her hip, then puts it back inside. "Now then, do we attack and ask questions later, or try to get them to surrender?" she asks me, eyeing the two elves.
One of them yawns and looks our way, he then frowns as he narrows his eyes.
"We may have to attack, I think they spotted us," I reply.
The elf that yawned is now talking to the other while pointing in our direction and readying his bow.
Galaxia pulls back on her invisible bowstring and an arrow forms as she takes aim. "I'll take out the right one. Spitfire, go for the left elf," she says, lining up her shot.
Spitfire hefts up her rifle and aims down the scope. "Fire!" Galaxia says and fires her arrow that flies faster than I thought it would, nailing the elf in the forehead. Next is Spitfire's gunshot which frightens off birds and other animals, but also hits her target in the head.
They both drop out of the trees and Galaxia stands up. "Surround the castle! Don't give them any chances to escape!" she orders the guards.
They quickly get to work and carry the non-flyers over the gorge before veering to the left and right around the castle while unicorns teleport over and to flanking positions.
A horn is blown from the castle and the sounds of an elf yelling muffled orders is heard within. I hear more gunshots and see more elves falling out of trees while I hear bowstrings twang in response.
Galaxia grabs the back of my chestplate's collar and carries me over the gorge and to the entrance where about five elves run up to the derelict walls and start firing arrows at us, some with elemental properties like electricity and ice. Galaxia erects a barrier deflecting their arrows while our forces shoot back.
I cancel my aspect form and channel two earth and two fire elements, making a flaming rock twice the size of my fist hover in front of my shield. I then hold it out to the right of Galaxia's barrier and crudely aim at the wall. When I think I have a good shot, I release the spell and the rock slams right into the wall covering two elves, it detonates sending stone, fire, and debris everywhere and the two elves are sent back in a daze.
I feel a bit jealous as I watch Galaxia just fire more arrows through her barrier without any damage to it, but I guess her arrows are made of the same magic as the barrier so I suppose it'll not be affected by them, or the barrier spell is made to only allow her magic through.
Elven mages now arrive each with a staff who begin firing bolts of mana, electricity, ice, or large chunks of stone via levitation at us and our surrounding forces.
Our unicorns are also setting up barriers where earth ponies, pegasi, and thestrals use them as cover to fire rifles or bows safely, while the unicorns holding up the barriers slowly advance forward towards the walls.
I hear more muffled orders being shouted out as we approach the now panicking elves. I see a few of our guards take hits in the shoulders or head, the ones with shoulder wounds have the arrows removed and have healing wands used on them, while the ones hit in the head are left there for now.
Galaxia frowns as we're now close to the castle entrance, it's had its doors replaced and reinforced with fresh wood and iron.
"Cover your ears!" Galaxia commands all nearby as she pulls back hard on her bow, the limbs creaking in protest. The arrow's head is now a large ball of swirling magic which looks more like a galaxy on the end of an arrow shaft. She then releases it and the arrow soars into the doors, blowing them both off their hinges and damaging the door frame.
The sound is deafening as the ground rumbles and shakes, stone and wood sent in all directions as dust, magical mist, and smoke fill the air.
"Advance! Take any elves prisoner if you can! If not, put them down!" Galaxia then commands as we all rush forward.
Guards start restraining the disoriented elves near the door while Galaxia, ten guards, and I flood into the lobby of the ruined castle. A group of six elves are packing up gear or equipment and I see a zebra tied up and unconscious to the left in an iron bar cage.
I frown and look to Galaxia. "I'll get the zebra, you focus on the elves," I tell her, getting a nod from her.
I carefully make my way to the cage, my shield facing the elves while Galaxia speaks up. "Surrender yourselves without resistance and you shall not be harmed, resist and your lives are forfeit!" she warns them with an arrow drawn at the ready.
Arriving at the cage, I use a water element to soak the lock, then use a cold element to freeze it solid. Once brittle enough, I slam my sword's pommel into it, shattering the lock and swinging the cage door open.
The elves look at each other and nod grimly. I quickly cast a barrier dome around me and the zebra before looking to Galaxia. "PUT UP A SHIELD NOW!" I warn them, getting Galaxia's eyes to widen as the elves start charging up their magic, but instead of putting up a shield, she launches a mist of shadow from her right hand at the elves which engulfs them all.
I hear them yelp, startled by the mist but it's followed by six thuds. Once the mist clears, the elves are on the ground fast asleep. The mana they were gathering slowly dissipating away.
Galaxia looks around the room before looking at our guards. "Round them up and bind them, if they wake up, knock them back out," she orders the guards who quickly do as she says.
I go back to checking over the zebra for any injuries but find only a few bruises showing under the white fur. I cast a healing beam at her and the bruises heal leaving only dirt and dust on her fur.
"Is she alright?" Galaxia asks me, she's still on guard for any more elves as other guards start walking in with either out cold or dead elves as well as six dead guards and seven more injured.
"She's alive and I healed her wounds. But she's under a sleep spell which I can just nullify," I reply and channel an arcane and shield element to cast nullify. A small dome spreads around me, dispelling all magic around me and the zebra.
She groans as her eyes slowly open. "W-Where am I..?" she asks slowly as she tries to get up.
I help her to sit up as she rubs the sides of her head. "The old castle in the Everfree. Elves abducted you and put you to sleep, but we've dealt with them now and you're free," I tell her as I then help her onto her hooves and out of the cage.
She groans in discomfort, still holding her head as Galaxia walks over. " Your ordeal is over, we shall escort you out of the forest and arrange passage back to Zebrica if you want," she offers the zebra.
"I thank you for the offer, but my home is within this forest," she replies groggily.
Galaxia nods and smiles. "If you are sure, then I shall have a few guards escort you to your home," she says as she instructs three guards to escort the zebra back to her home.
I look around at the equipment of the elves and don't know what over half of it is even for, I never studied elven magic or runes so I suppose it would be sent to Twilight to figure out what they are and do.
With everything clear and done, I turn to the remaining guards. "Round up the elves and their gear! I'll try to revive the guards we lost while we get ready to leave!" I tell them getting affirmatives as they start gathering up the equipment and materials.
POV: Twilight Sparkle
All this research and the theories Starswirl left behind, extended teleportation range with less mana used, new experimental runes to increase a staff’s magical potential by seventy percent! So many spell formula and alchemic concoctions yet to be tested and made... Oh gosh my heart is beating so fast my excitement is about to make it burst.
I flip through another page detailing the rune network needed for the staff, if I can boost mine, my brother's and Adrian's staffs and shields with these runes, they'd be able to fight harder and take down any threat faster.
The sound of glass shattering on the floor startles me out of my excitement.
"AAAAAAHHH!" I scream and fall backwards off my chair which breaks due to its old age.
I get up and look at a sheepishly smiling guard next to a broken, but thankfully empty, test tube on the floor.
Next, the sound of a pop with a poof of pink smoke goes off.
"AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHH!" I scream again as Discord appears right in front of me.
He winces and rubs the inside of his left ear, making squeaky noises as he does. "By all that is chaos, you have a rather impressive set of lungs..." he says and shakes his head rapidly with a rattling sound.
"Discord... you nearly gave me a heart attack!" I tell him and sigh.
He chuckles and grins. "Sorry my dear, but I bring news. Celestia and the others have defeated the Sphinx phony who turned out to be a puppet of Gorgar. They're on their way back to Canterlot while Adrian and Galaxia along with guards are dealing with the elves in the Everfree. So other than that? We can continue your training and or carefully continue ol' Beard's research," he explains to me.
I grin and retrieve the rune network research. "I would like to continue with this, it could be very useful for making mine, Adrian's, and Shinning's magic through staffs and shields more powerful," I reply and carefully hold out the old papers to him.
He takes them and puts a pair of silver reading glasses on. "Ah yes, I remember these. This and the teleporter runes were the last things he worked on before he was called away to the battle he lost his life in..." he tells me with a sad expression, but then smiles at me and hands the papers back. "And I agree, these will help tremendously. I think you might even be able to improve on it," he says with a wink before snapping his talon's fingers.
An old box floats out of the storage room and gently sets down on the main table. I look inside to see both finished, partially done, and blank stone runes.
"Now then, shall we get to work?" he asks me while wearing a lab coat and goggles.
I giggle happily and start to carefully set the runes out on the table.
POV: Adrian Stormsword
We arrive back in Canterlot, and I have a powerful headache that the life element can't get rid of. I managed to revive four of the six guards before it became too dangerous and too hard to focus to attempt another.
Galaxia gently sets me down as we land in the courtyard, I'm breathing heavily and wincing at the throbbing pain in my head. A guard rushes over to me before I could collapse and holds me up with my right arm over his shoulder.
"Nice catch," I mumble with a weak chuckle.
He chuckles as well as we all head into the Castle with our elven prisoners, the two remaining dead guards, and the elven equipment and gear.
I as well as the four revived guards along with the two dead ones are taken to the medical wing of the castle while Galaxia takes the elves and their stuff to the throne room. I hiss in pain as my headache flares up for a minute before calming down.
"Are you alright, my King?" the guard carrying me asks in concern.
I can only wince as I answer. "Just a bad headache... just need to lay down for a few hours..." I reply as we just enter the medical ward.
After a bunch of commands from the doctors to nurses, we're all taken to rooms where I start to feel light headed.
"Not to alarm you all but... I don't feel too good..." I say lethargically as my vision goes dark.
I groan as I hold my head and sit up, the area around me feels cold and blink my eyes open to find myself back in the Hall of the Aspects place.
"Adrian..." I hear Gaia say to my left, so I turn to face her.
"Gaia, what's going on?" I ask her as I try to stand up, only to fall flat on my ass. "Huh?" I mumble as I try again, only to fall a second time.
"Stay down, Adrian... You've damaged your mana's core when you revived those guards one after the other which put too much strain on it," she tells me.
I groan and just lie back down. "I guess you're going to heal it like last time?" I ask her.
She frowns and shakes her head. "I only stopped your mana from fluctuating last time. This time your core has been damaged. I can heal physical wounds, but wounds and damage to one's mana is different," She explains.
I sigh and rub my eyes. "So how do we fix it?" I ask. If I can't fix it, does that mean I can't use my magic anymore?
"Only two Aspects could help you recover... Aquaria, and Arcanum. Aquaria is currently busy stopping a cult of Aquarians from conjuring a tsunami and so cannot help us. But Arcanum has agreed to help you," she tells me and looks to my right.
I follow her gaze and see Arcanum Mortis standing there.
"Greetings, Adrian," he says in his emotionless tone.
"Hello again. How are you doing?" I ask him as he just stares at me.
"As well as I can be. I will repair the damage done to your core, in exchange for forming a contract with me," he tells me, making me go wide eyed.
"Why do you want a contract now?" I ask as he kneels down and places a bony hand on my chest.
He chuckles dryly. "I want you to use my element for good, instead of evil, I want you to show all that my element is not just for death and suffering, and to finally put an end to Grogar and his corruption," he replies and I see red and black energy flow from his arm and into me. "Besides, you have an affinity for the arcane and shadow elements. I have been told by Gaia that she has witnessed your eyes change when you're angry, the red and black eyes are indicators of a strong arcane mage, the shadow mist that the eyes emit are those who can wield the shadows well," he explains and I grunt as he starts doing something to my mana.
I cry out in pain as something feels like it's being pulled out and then placed back in my chest.
"Do you accept my contract?" he asks me, holding something in place waiting for my answer.
"I was planning... Nnngh.. to anyway..." I reply.
He chuckles again and pushes his mana into me. "Discord has already placed my orb in your body's hand, so with that as our vow, I form a contract with you," he says and I gasp as my breath leaves me and I can no longer breathe.
I watch as my skin and muscle flake off and fade away leaving just my bones left, I now feel strong enough to stand and a tattered but ornate black robes with red trim replaces my clothes and armour. I just stare at my hands and wiggle my bony fingers.
"This is disturbing," I say in a hollow tone, a slight duality to it. The chains lightly tapping against each other as I move.
"This is your magical arcane form," Arcanum informs me. "Hold out your right hand and gather our mana without casting anything," he instructs me.
I do so and watch as a staff slowly forms. the wood a polished ebony black with a bleached wyvern skull on the end.
"The staff of Var'guul, it was a staff made by Grogar himself, but he discarded it once he betrayed me, It amplifies arcane magic but you may not use any other element with it as the staff rejects them," Acarnum tells me.
"I see..." I hold out the staff and stare into the eye sockets, only for them to glow with arcane magic and stare back at me.
"The soul of the Wyvern that skull belonged to is what amplifies the magic," Acarnum informs me, making me look at the staff in horror. The staff is a soul cage?
"Is there a way to free the soul?" I ask him.
He chuckles and shakes his head. "I had a feeling you would ask that, simply break the skull and the soul is free," he replies.
I don't hesitate and slam the skull into the stone floor, shattering it and watch as a small ghostly Wyvern forms and starts hovering in front of me, only to cry out as a skeletal structure forms within it, the shattered skull reforms and attaches to the forming skeleton. The ghostly form is absorbed into the skeleton and it drops to the ground with a clatter of bones, after a few seconds of twitching, the small Wyvern shudders and stands up, arcane magic flowing freely from its eyes.
We just stare at each other for a few seconds before it cries out with a similar tone to mine and flies over to me and latches onto my back with its head over my left shoulder and just looks at me. I shudder as I now have control over the Wyvern's wings and I look back and flap them lightly, a thin skin like layer of arcane magic acts as the membrane of the wings.
"Var'guul has accepted you as his master. Look after him and he will protect you," Arcanum tells me.
I look back to Var'guul and scratch the top of his head between his horns with my bony fingers, getting a happy chirp as he nuzzles back.
I look back to Arcanum while still petting the Wyvern. "Did you know this would happen?" I ask him in surprise.
"Yes. Starswirl enchanted the staff to put Var'guul's soul in a state of stasis. This was a test, not by me, but by your ancestor, to see if you would make the right choice," he replies and I chuckle.
"I see... So how will Var'guul reach me?" I ask.
Gaia keeps her distance from me. "Come to Terra and he will come to you, just make sure you inform Vortigan about him beforehand so you and Var'guul won't be attacked on site," she warns me.
"Okay. So, Arcanum, what is your physical form and your Champion like?" I ask him and stop petting Var'guul.
"My physical form uses arcane chains to bind and harm their targets with arcane mana, my champion, Larion... his form fell as did mine, he was the very depiction of pure magical might, the most powerful of mages. But now... he is a vision of death and destruction as an elder lich," Arcanum says sadly with the first bit of emotion I've heard from him.
I glance down with a frown in thought before looking back at him. "But if we kill Grogar and get your power back from him, your champion will be restored as well right?" I ask him.
"He will, which is why I wish to aid you in ending Grogar's treachery," he says and my head throbs lightly.
Gaia sighs and shakes her head. "It seems your wives are trying to wake you up. We will continue this tonight," she says as my vision fades to black.
My vision returns and I find myself lying on a medical bed in the castle's infirmary. The room is coloured white but empty except for some medical equipment attached to me. I look down to see I'm still in my magical arcane form.
"Adrian?" I hear Luna's voice coming from my left, but it sounds a bit distorted.
Glancing to my left, I see a large mirror covering most of the wall. "Luna?" I reply in my hollow tone.
"Adrian... how do you feel?" she asks me with worry.
"I feel fine," I reply and cancel my aspect form, return to normal. Though the feeling of my organs, muscle, and skin reforming makes me shudder. The medical equipment attached to me pops off and slides off the bed.
I try to sit up, only to find I've been strapped down. The doors quickly open and doctors along with Luna and Discord enter the room.
Discord quickly speaks up before anyone else could. "Told you he was fine," he says in a matter of fact tone to Luna.
"Well excuse us for worrying about our husband!" she sternly replies before placing her hand on my chest. "Dost thou have any inclination to attack anypony?" she asks me.
I raise an eyebrow and look at Discord who is facepalming. "He's fine! Now unstrap him so he can get some rest before he begins practising his new aspect's power. Believe it or not, his arcane aspect will be the most useful against Grogar's magic," he says and snaps his talon hand, making the straps all come off.
Sitting up, I rub my wrists with a wince. "How long was I out for?" I ask them, my whole body feels stiff and sore.
A doctor speaks up holding a clipboard while others use magic detectors on me. "A week. The first six days we've been doing our best to stabilise your magic, but an hour ago Discord placed an orb in your hand and your magic returned to normal, before your skin, muscle, and organs flaked off while your body emitted tremendous amounts of dark magic," he replies.
"Dark magic?" I say confused. "You mean Arcane magic?" I ask.
Discord interrupts the doctor before he could reply. "Yup, it's just ponies and other races just see Arcane magic as dark magic due to Grogar's undead," he tells me. "But as you're now fine, I'm off back to Terra to help Twilight continue her studies, she's really making better progress than even ol' Beardy on some of his projects," he says and snaps his lion paw, disappearing in a puff of pink smoke.
Looking at Luna, I ask her. "Where's Celestia and Solaris? Are they back yet?"
She nods her head and sighs. "They returned two days ago-" she replies as the doors burst open and Celestia rushes over and without warning or hesitation, kisses me hard, forcing me back onto the bed.
"Thank the sun and moon you're alright... No more reviving people until you have better control over it!" she demands and kisses me again.
She pulls back and I stare at her wide eyed. "So you'd rather I just let them die!?" I ask her, shocked.
She glares at me before a doctor steps forward. "We may have a solution to that. Twilight Sparkle has reluctantly discovered a way of trapping a soul within a crystal using elven magic from Starswirl's old research notes. We can then use cryo or stasis magic to freeze the victim's body and thaw it out when you're ready to try reviving them. This way, you won't have to risk damaging your manas core again," he tells me, holding up a clear light blue crystal.
"Although only Miss Sparkle can trap souls as she's the only one who can use elven magic," he finishes and pockets the crystal in his coat.
"I see... So am I fit to leave now?" I ask as my stomach gurgles. "I could use a bite to eat," I say, rubbing my stomach.
Celestia sighs and helps me off the bed. "Fine, but we're not done talking about this yet," she tells me and holds me up as we walk to the door.
I just groan as we make our way to the dining hall.
Luna follows behind us and speaks up. "Today is also the day we release Hagriff and his daughter from the dungeons as they've fulfilled their part of our agreement," she tells me.
"I guess we can do that after we've had something to eat," I say and grunt as I try to get feeling back into my limbs.
POV: Twilight Sparkle
I sigh as I finish writing down the next set of runes needed for the teleportation network. Tapping the quill to my chin as I try to think over what is needed for the next set.
A popping sound to my right makes me jump as Discord reappears. "Discord! Stop doing that!" I yell at him and sigh.
He chuckles and floats over the table. "Oops, anyway, let me see Harmony's Orb," he tells me. I put down my quill and hold out my right hand, which Discord grasps with his left and places his right over the orb.
He hums for a bit and smiles. "Well, it took longer than I thought, but she's now back to normal. You can use your magic again, but first, tap the orb," he tells me.
I tap Harmony's orb and gasp as it lights up with a mild golden colour.
"Thank you for helping me, Twilight Sparkle. As agreed with our contract, for healing and feeding me, I will in turn provide you with my power and knowledge of the elves," I hear Harmony say in my head.
I smile and squeal a bit in excitement. "I can't wait to learn more!"
She chuckles lightly for a few seconds before speaking. "I've noticed from the last week of observing your behaviour, whilst learning all you can is all well and good, you need to take time to relax and go over what you've learnt. Over the next month I will be teaching you how to access my power as well as teach you all about your new race. While the books Discord gave you teaches you about their magic, they do not detail their history or achievements, or their transgressions," she tells me in a motherly tone that is similar to how Celestia spoke to me when I was a foal.
My smile doesn't fade as I go back to completing the teleportation network.
POV: Adrian Stormsword
Celestia, Luna, and I stand in front of Hagriff's cell in the Dungeons, the elves we caught restrained and Discord had their magic sealed in another cell. Celestia is currently telling him of their conditions. "So, you both will have a guard watching over you unseen. If you harm anyone, they'll report it and there will be no second chances, although self-defence will be allowed. You'll be given enough bits to live comfortably, and a supply of either fish, or imported meat from Terra. A house will be provided for you close to the Castle as well."
Hagriff nods his head to her. "We understand, my daughter wanted to be an artist, but such a profession wasn't exactly... welcome with other gryphons... Although, with Aires Peak now in ruin, Gryphons have two options. One, adapt and coexist, or two, resort to banditry or go feral," he replies with a sigh as he stands up and a guard removes his shackles.
"Well let's hope it's option one then, if they choose number two, they'll receive no mercy from us," I tell him with a frown. Speaking of Bandits, I'll have to remember to ask Discord what happened to the bandits that attacked my home and took my parents.
He grunts and shakes his head. "So do I, our numbers have been crippled due to this event and we can't afford to make more enemies than we already have," he says and steps out of the cell, Venna is standing right beside him.
"So what dost thou plan to do now?" Luna asks him.
He hums in thought before sighing again. "I'm a soldier and a hunter, that's all I know, so if you'd allow it, I would like to request permission to join your military. Starting from the bottom of course," he replies to her.
Celestia and Luna look at each other for a few seconds before nodding. "Very well, you'll report to Shining Armour for your enrolment test tomorrow morning. For now, you'll be escorted to your new home with a small amount of bits to allow you to furnish it," Celestia says.
Both Hagriff and Venna bow to her. "We thank you for your kindness and generosity, we shall not betray your trust and compassion," he says as a guard tells them to follow her, we watch as they leave before looking at each other.
I cough and scratch my head. "So... how do you feel about a gryphon joining the guard?" I ask them both.
Luna looks like she swallowed a whole lemon. "It will take some getting used to at first... but should he keep to his word, he would be a great boon against dangerous predators like manticores and cragodiles," she says.
We're silent for a few seconds before I speak up. "Well then, I'm off to the training room to start practising with my arcane aspect's magical form. I'll also need to go to Terra to inform Vortigan of Var'guul and not to attack him or I when I bring him here," I say, making them both look at me confused.
"Whom is this Var'guul?" Luna asks me.
"Oh.. right, I met him within the Hall of the Aspects," I say and begin explaining what happened.
