An old threat has returned to terrorise Equestria and only one human has the power to stop it. Simple, right?
Noire was not the best person to be around and still is. His apathetic attitude to everyone around him made communication, let alone friendship, difficult. So when he magically appears in the Crystal Empire, his life starts to take a dramatic turn. In good and bad ways (including the threat of global erasure). Follow this college student turned warrior on his journey to become the world's protector.
A fantastic (poorly written) adventure brought to you by WuzzyBlu_92 (LOSER).
It was nighttime in the Crystal Empire, a peaceful kingdom risen from the shadows. Everypony was living their daily lives; the common folk were asleep, save for the night owls, guards patrolled the grounds of the castle, and I finished with the last bit of paperwork for the evening. Indeed, everything was as it should be. Everything was perfect until I heard a warping sound, and the darkness consumed me.
My senses were startled by the mass that had just hit me and I was way too tired to even think about moving but I still did a brief look at my surroundings on the floor. My paperwork scattered around the floor "Darn it, I just finished with those too...Wait, didn't something happen before I blacked out? Yes, something... no somepony did something that led me here, in the middle of my room, wondering how this happened. Did someone break-in? Did they steal something important? Was it the Crystal Heart again?! If someone was dumb enough to try and take that cursed thing again, I'm gonna-"
"Welcome to the world of the living,"
"Who said that?" I asked, shook from my grogginess.
"Me."
"Where are you?" I asked.
"Here."
"What do you mean by that?" I asked.
"You're telling me you can't feel this weight on your head right now? Look at the mirror while I try to get myself off you,"
I did so. This mystery had been plaguing me for the shortest time but a mystery it remained. I looked to my right where my mirror was and saw it- no- him lying on his back, try to lift his leg off me but struggling from the pain. He was on top of me. With my horn in his leg. "So, are you done gawking, or should I wait a bit longer?" he asked patiently. I could not believe it. It was a human, but they have been extinct for 10,000 years. "Ok then, seeing as you are still speechless right now, I will introduce myself. My name is Noire. It is a pleasure to meet your acquaintance, Princess Mi Amore Cadenza," he announced while attempting what I think was supposed to be a bow.
"How do you know who I am?" I asked. I was determined to find out more about Noire and possibly how he managed to get to the Crystal Empire. I mean it's not every day you meet an extinct species lying around without a care in the world.
" Oh, while you were catching some Z's, I read up on some of Equestria's history. Didn't anyone find it weird how Celestia put a stoned god of chaos in her backyard like some kind of garden gnome? Pretty unwise if you ask me. Also, why did you hit a love feeding creature a mega blast of love? That could have really backfired on you and could've spelt the end of Equestria's freedom if Chrysalis remembered she could absorb it." he said in a matter-of-fact tone.
…It always bothered me how Aunty put Discord there. If I knew it was a tyrannical ruler bent on plunging our land into eternal chaos, I would have been slightly opposed to what she did with him. However, this was no time to reflect on our kind's unorthodox methods of punishing villains. "Now while you ponder on that I will bid you ado," he said, taking a deep breath. In one swift movement, he lifted his leg up and off my horn. I quickly got off the floor of my room to chase after him, but my legs were too stiff to run after him. Plus, he was fast, too fast for somepony who got their leg impaled.
"WAIT! NOIRE!" I shouted, hoping to catch his attention. He turned around a gave a 'yes?' face " You're wounded, you'll never be able to leave the castle with that injury! Stay and we can get you treated" he said, hoping he would stay.
"Don't worry that silly little head of yours. I'm fine" he says as if I can't see that hole in his leg dripping with blood. He turned back around and closed the door behind me leaving me in a state of shock, but more worry. About a minute afterwards, my door is kicked open by an even more worried husband.
"Cadance! Are you okay! Your horn is covered in blood!" he says, rushing over to his wife still on the floor. Seeing my husband was always a welcoming sight to the chaos that was and is my life. However, there was a bigger situation at hand. As soon as he picked her up and put her on her bed, he started looking all over, searching for any bruises or cuts.
"Yes, I'm okay but there is somepony in the castle who is very injured, and they need to be treated soon. Gather some guards and catch him before he leaves the castle," she says calmly. Shining looked worried as he began cleaning the blood on my horn.
"Are you sure? It could be here to steal something," Shining says, who was already sent a group with a communication spell.
"First, it is he, Secondly, he won't be getting any far with his injury even if he did steal something," she states.
"Okay Cadance, he'll be captured immediately," he said with a determined tone. He put back on his helmet and walked out the door, leaving Cadance to ponder on the situation. She did not like Shining's wording sometimes, but she still loved him none the less. However, this human was at the forefront of my mind giving her thoughts about whether he was the only one here. Maybe there were more humans like him in hiding somewhere in the far stretches of Equestria. Possibly the Badlands, where lots of outcasted species were banished. These thoughts plagued my mind for a bit before returning to the current at hand; there was a human in the castle, hunted by guards led by her very overprotective husband. They would probably send him to the dungeons or even worse, the medical ward. A large yawn escaped my lips as if saying 'Don't worry. We can work it out tomorrow' and I had to admit it was right. I sent a communication spell to Shining to not put him in the cells and to watch him for the night before rolling over into my bed and closing my eyes.
This human that had just entered my life was so new to me, but I instinctively knew that a lot of lives were going to change because of him, especially mine. It was almost like a power radiated off of him and whether it be from our precious Faust or some darker, more vicious force, only time could tell "Please be okay, Noire," she says tiredly before heading to the land of dreams.
NOIRE POV
"She's nice," I said in his head as he limped on the side of the hallway, my injury creating a trail of blood in his wake. He turned around and looked at the mess I had made "The person cleaning this up is not going to like me" I felt another sting from my leg as I kept walking, but I had to leave before I got caught and thrown in a cell. The worried stallion running to Cadance's room didn't even notice me hiding in a corner but soon there will be at least a dozen soldiers after my ass. The sting from my wound returned even stronger and this time, I could hold out. I fell to one knee as I tried to stop the flow of blood "Damn, that horn is a lethal weapon" I said to myself. I heard the clattering of armour and before I even had time to stand, I was surrounded by at least 6 guards, all pointing spears at my face. I thought this was going to be the end of my short stay in this new world when I heard another sound from behind them.
"At ease soldiers," a voice said from out the circle. the guards quickly lowered their spears and saluted to the new pony in front of me. He had armour similar to the others but with purple and gold, signifying he was someone of importance. "Get him to the medical ward, Silver Flash," he said, "Curdle should still be here. She'll love the new patient," A guard came to the front and picked me up and offering to help me with my injury. I quickly nodded and leaned on him. My leg wasn't in much pain, but I decided to accept his kindness regardless. We walked around a nearby corner and out of sight. It was then I heard a tired and agitated voice in the distance. It was hard to hear with the guard pointing a spear at me yelling to keep moving but I could hear some of what they were saying.
SHINING POV
"The rest of you continue your shifts, you're dismissed," I said. The rest of the soldiers saluted one final time and left the hallway. When I was sure I was alone, I gave out a sigh of relief. Commanding was a difficult job. It kept me away from my bed and my wife for hours, possibly days on end. "And I was just about to get some quality time with Cady today. She's probably asleep now." I groaned, walking to the medical ward to keep an eye on the creature for the rest of the night.
SOMEWHERE, UNKNOWN POV
"It seems that he has arrived at the Crystal Empire, safely," I said while staring into my crystal. A slendermare with a scar on her cheek walked up next to me and silently pointed at the hole in his leg "Okay, not that safe but he's alive."
She shrugged and walked back into the darkness. These slendermares were not the best at socializing and refuse my offers at giving them faces but they're at least good at giving me a good night's fun. I turn back to my crystal and watch my brand-new puppet blankly stare into his brand-new world. "This experiment may provide more results than I anticipated."
"They could have at least given me a bigger bed," I said groggily as I slowly opened my eyes from my slumber. I looked around the area; there were many other beds around me and dull white walls. It reminded me of the time I broke my leg and had to spend a week in the hospital. It was a hell of an experience. Lack of entertainment, terrible food, the itch I had for an hour, everything about the hospital makes me want to look twenty times both left and right before crossing the street just to avoid going back there. "I must be in the hospital; this place is way too serious to be anywhere else. I hope the food is good here or I might seriously kill myself,"
"Close but no cigar. You're currently in the medical ward inside the Crystal Castle. Also, you'll be eating in the dining room, so you won't have to worry about bad food," a voice called out from across the room. The pony turned out to be a mare a bit taller than me with pale white fur and a red mane in a bun. She wore a lab coat over a long, red sweater stretching down to her knees and high heels. "My name is Doctor Curdle, it's nice to meet my new patient," she said with a warm smile on her face. It reminded me of how my father used to smile at me when I was little. It was... comfortable to say the least.
"I am going to assume your full name is Blood Curdle," I said plainly. She responded with a slight blush, twiddling with her fingers and avoiding eye contact for a few seconds before calming herself down. I assumed she was a bit sensitive about the topic, so I decided to change the subject to avoid creating a bad impression, which I tended to do often. "Were you the one who healed me?" I said, causing her to light up instantly. I will spare you long, boring details about all the spells used just to stop the bleeding and the even greater amount to close the wound. I tuned out to most of it, except for an interesting thing. She informed me of my partial immunity to magic, reducing the effects of any spell cast on me, which is certainly going to help me if any unicorns decided to try anything.
"Your wound should be healed externally for now but try not to put too much stress on it, the healing magic was applied very recently so it should take at least another 24 hours for all the internal damage to repair itself," with that she walked to a far off corner of the room, where I could see a door with a sign saying 'STAY OUT! NO ENTRY PERMITTED!' in bold, red letters "Oh! Before I forget, Princess Cadance wants you in the dining hall for breakfast. Something about getting to know our new intruder," With that in mind, I left the medical ward in search for Princess Cadence to discuss the possibility of getting home. However, I ended up bumping into a familiar face right outside the ward. I immediately recognised the sparkling armour that could only belong to the Captain.
"What are you doing outside the medical ward?" he said in an obviously spiteful tone. His eyes were clearly bloodshot from the lack of sleep he got. I hoped I wasn't the cause of that but from his angry tone, it was safe to say that I was. I wanted to explain to him how I wanted to talk to Princess Cadence about finding a way home or at least some accommodation apart from the hospital bed but the guy was just too self-absorbed or spiteful to let me respond and instead continued complaining. "Do you have any idea how long I had to stay up just to keep you from doing anything stupid," he asked, eyebrows twitching with infuriation.
"From your expression, I'm going to assume-"
"THE WHOLE FUCKING NIGHT!!!!!" he exclaimed. He stepped incredibly close “Now listen here human, you may have the princess intrigued with your disgusting, furless skin and short patch of hair but don't go walking around the castle, acting like hot shit so unless you want to be thrown in the dungeon. I suggest you go back to the hospital room and await further orders." I was about to try again at explaining my presence out of the ward, but Cadence's voice echoed through the halls.
"Noire! Can I see you in the throne room please?"
" Thank the Goddess"
CADANCE POV
I felt bad for having Shining stay up all night watching over Noire, but it felt assuring how my strong, dependable husband was watching over our new 'guest'. "Noire... what are those eyes of yours hiding? Why does your blank expression intrigue me so much? I know you are a human but there's more to you than meets the eye, I just know it," I thought "I can't endure this curiosity anymore. I have to talk to him" I said, resting my quill on the desk. I impatiently walked over to the door and peeked through it to find any sign of him. Fortunately, I found him in the middle of the hallway, listening to a very pissed off Shining Armour "Oh Shiny..." I whispered to myself. I shouted down the hallway for him to come to me and he responded quickly, leaving Shiny to his ranting and went over to me. Noticing my lack of courtesy in shouting for him to come over, I blushed intensely. I quickly ducked back into my quarters.
"Princess?" said Noire with a confused look "May I ask why you called for me?"
I snapped out of my jumbled thoughts and saw Noire standing in front of me, looking very confused "Oh Heavens I'm sorry, I must have been lost in thought but before we begin, may I ask how much of that you heard" I asked, quickly removing any traces of embarrassment of my face.
"I just got here and saw you quietly mumbling to yourself. As for what I heard, nothing really," I gave a long sigh of relief.
"As for why I called, I just wish to talk with you about you and your species". I let Noire into my office and inspected it silently. It is what you would expect a pretty, pink, pony princess' room would look like. Pink walls, pink chair, Pink EVERYTHING. Sometimes I wonder if I should tone down the pink, but it would be a pain to just change everything based on an inconvenience. I look back to Noire who has already sat down in a chair.
"So Noire, how is your leg doing?" I asked, looking down at the hole in his pants where my horn used to be. "It appears that Doctor Curdle did a good job patching it up". He looked down at the hole then back at me then smiled.
"Oh, don't worry, she fixed me up really good, so good that I almost forgot there was a hole there" he answered. We laughed for a bit then delved into the subject of his species. What he told me left me astounded. What a wonderful species they must be to have made such mechanical wonders, like these 'planes' which fly you places without having to be a Pegasus. Oh, and this delicacy called 'Pete-za'! He assured me it is safe to eat and offered to make me some if he finds the chance to. He didn't ask me any questions as he already knew about our history and culture from a book he found. However, he did ask about any chances of getting home.
"Princess, do you know of any way of getting back to my planet?" he asked politely. That was going to be a challenge. His entire species was previously thought to be extinct for centuries and this planet he refers to as Earth does not appear to be a planet in our solar system, rendering any form of teleporting him back impossible. This would be more in the league of Auntie Tia and Lulu. Maybe even Twilight.
"I'm sorry, Noire but I don't know of a way back, but I know of a few alicorns who may!" I said cheerfully. Noire responded with another smile, but this smile seemed more forced than any of the smiles he gave during our conversation. Maybe it meant he didn't want to leave, or he was hiding some kind of anger about waiting. Noire did not seem like the impatient type, so I assumed the former.
"Thanks for listening and I hope we can have more conversations like this, Princess," he said, standing up, ready to go but I grabbed his hand with mine.
"Cadance."
"Huh?"
"My name, it's Cadance,” I said.
"OK then Cadance." I let go of his hand and let him go back to his room. However, as I relax in my chair, I quickly reminded myself. He does not have a room "Oh. He must be going back to the medical ward then. I must sort out a room for him if he is going to stay here for a while". I leaned forward in the chair, picking my quill back up.
I haven't told anyone this yet, but I have secretly taken an interest in Noire (I know, it’s pretty obvious I do). There is so much about him I still don't know his family, his dreams, his morals. Shining, on the other hand, has no problem telling everyone, including myself, how much he hates Noire. I saw him yelling at the poor soul about how I had him stay up all night guarding him in the medical ward. I thought he would be able to handle it, being the captain and all that. However, I can understand where his anger is coming from. You've had a healthy relationship with your wife for several years and suddenly an individual from a thought-to-be-dead species drops in and gets pampered in less than a day while you get pushed to the side. Maybe I should treat him to some "candy" sometime. Back to what I was saying, Noire is a very interesting fellow, but I see something in him, a darkness. Not an 'I'm an evil tyrant' darkness but more of a 'Don't come close or I'll freeze you solid' darkness. I wonder if it has something to do with planet he spoke to me about, Earth. I'm going to have to ask him about it when he's comfortable enough around me. I must also get him an actual room, I feel that if I don't, he'll go deaf from listening to Curdle ramble about pony anatomy.
Closing my diary shut, I looked out into the bright moon, shining through my window. I wonder if Noire would answer all my questions tomorrow.
NOIRE POV
It's 10:00 P.M and I'm still here in pony wonderland, the land where all bronies want to go to escape their mediocre lives. It was a funny thought; the person who least wanted to go to the land where ponies could beat people to death with their feelings and seizure-inducing rainbow beams is the guy who gets to go there. Yes, I wanted to start a new life, but Equestria was the last place I thought about escaping to. Possibly a place where I didn't have to worry about my depressing life gaining the attention of princesses. Someplace where I could pursue my dreams of exploring the world. A place of true freedom. To escape the terrible world, I stood on. I can still remember my last day on Earth fresh in my mind.
FLASHBACK
The sun was at its highest and people were enjoying it's hot, summer rays like it was the last time they would see it again. It was always like this in Florida; bright, sunny and cheerful all day and all night. Then there was me. The young man who could stay cold even in the hottest of summers. People who knew refer to me as 'Blank Face' as my expression rarely ever changed from a flat face. There was nothing to read on it, like a blank piece of paper. My eyes were very, very dark brown, almost black. Due to this, people rarely spoke to me and prioritized keeping their distance. The handful who did muster the strength found me monotonous, dull, and stopped talking to me in less than a week. That meant there wasn't much to do in terms of entertainment except for playing videogames, watching TV and walking aimlessly to locations I may or may not have seen before then walk back to my apartment. I just laid there on the bed before the realm of dreams started to take me "I wonder what nothingness I shall dream of tonight" I whispered before my eyes completely shut. Darkness.
…
"Hello there, young one" called a voice from... somewhere. I still couldn't see or feel or anything of that sort. All I could do was listen "I have watched you for many years, young one. I can tell your life has not been easy and with the way this world is, I can see no salvation for you while you remain here," that didn't shock me at all. I knew that no hope awaited me here "However, there is still a chance for you; transcend this world and save another one from an evil only you can defeat, find friends, family and a new life. A new opportunity lies with your choice. Will you accept?"
I thought to myself "Is this even a choice?" The opportunity to restart and live life differently, to escape this hopeless world filled with nothing but hurt? Who wouldn't agree? My thoughts were interrupted by a chuckle from the disembodied voice.
"I see that this information has interested you. A fresh, new start would appeal to anyone who's had an unfortunate life such as yours; cursed with heartache. Do not fret, young one, for I shall gift you with an escape from this world". The thought of freedom from this world made me hum in delight. "However, the scars you bear will not fade easily. You must befriend many people and embrace their strengths and weaknesses as well as your own before you can complete your rehabilitation and can be truly become free". Before I could even think the words "thank you", I was embraced by a feeling. A feeling of falling. I was on my way to a new possibility.
I woke up and looked outside at the bright sun through the window. I must have dozed off in my reminiscing of days gone past. I wondered; is it really possible to go back to my shitty life. In my shitty apartment, eating shitty ramen while listening to the shitty news of how my world is so shitty. I hoped not.
"Excuse me, mister human," said an unknown voice. I turned around and found an alabaster earth pony in a maid's outfit. My god... I never really understood the appeal of females being in maid outfits until then because GODDAMN! THIS MARE SO CUTE!!! The mare was now looking at me worried. Maybe my freak out must have worried her. I shook off my shocked stare and recomposed myself. I stood up to my full height and apologised for my impolite behaviour. Her worried stare became a soft smile "Don't worry about its mister human I get that all the time from the guards" she replied, "Anyway, I'm here to tell you that you're expected downstairs for breakfast". Nodding, I went to the bathroom to freshen up; brushing my teeth and combing my hair before leaving my room, and when I say 'room' I mean the medical ward and heading to the dining room. I really need to talk to Cadence about getting an ACTUAL room because SWEET LORD does Curdle like to ramble. Especially about my anatomy. However, on the bright side, I know I have several bone fractures in my leg.
Then my foot hit a corner...
...
CADANCE POV
Shining Armour and I were already in our seats when Noire came in with a pair of crutches and an embarrassed looking Doctor Curdle. "What in Tartarus happened to you? You look like you just got stabbed," said Shining, showing almost legitimate concern in his voice.
Sighing, Noire said in a bemused voice "Actually I did get stabbed. In the leg. With Cadence's horn. I must have forgotten to tell you. Anyway, I only realised the pain until my foot hit a wall. Hurt like a bitch."
I look at him inquisitively, she asked "Wait a minute. That was two days ago. How are you only feeling the pain now?" Noire sighs again and limps over to a seat and sits down. I stare at him very suspiciously and Shining looked at him like he was some kind of spy/traitor/space pirate.
Noire looking at the curious couple "Back on Earth, I was diagnosed with a lot of illnesses as a child, and I had to take a lot of medicine to keep me stable. However, they came with lots of side-effects like a delayed synaptic transmission. A delayed reaction to pain and slow movement in my limbs. I did manage to improve it over time, but the pain was the only thing that was going to stay the same. This made life very difficult for me and especially my parents. Probably the reason for..." He stopped himself for a moment as if he was trying to decide how much to tell "...Never mind, it's not that important". At that moment, I began to understand Noire a little more. I went over to his side and placed my hand on his shoulder.
"I don't completely know what it's like to be human and go through the stuff that you did but maybe if you stayed here in the castle, maybe even work here, we could come to understand you better and find a way to help. Does that sound okay?" I said, embracing him tightly. Noire was silent for a few seconds before embracing her back.
"I would be honoured to stay here and learn about you and your people. However, you're gonna have to stop depriving me of oxygen before we do any of that," Noire said in a raspy voice. I glanced up and saw that he was started to look blue in his cheeks and was struggling to breathe. I quickly let go and repeatedly apologised. We were so distracted by their conversation that they never noticed Shining Armour walking out the hall.
SHINING ARMOUR POV
As I walked down the halls, I felt my fists shake until they suddenly flew at a wall, causing a painting to fall and break. I didn't care. All I cared about was getting that human out of our castle and empire and into a jail cell as soon as possible.
LIES!!! LIES!!! ALL OF THEM, LIES!!! Who would believe such bullshit! That human must be up to something. No-one just appears out of nowhere and just has an immortal princess instantly cares for without any sort of confirmation on who he is! This has gone on long enough! I remember when she told me about her encounter with the human. How he knew a large amount about their lives when he was only in Equestria for less than an hour. He even knew about my own WEDDING, FOR FAUST'S SAKE!!!
Wait ...our wedding...that must be it. HE'S A DAMN CHANGELING!!! It makes so much sense. Why he looks like and claims to be a species that died out 10,000 years ago. Why he knew about our wedding even though he wasn't there. Why he has been with Cadance so much! It has to be it! there's no other explanation!
If I am correct, then the princesses have to know about him immediately. I ran to my office and got a scroll and quill from my drawer. "Don't worry, sweetheart. I'll save you" I said to myself, determined to see it through.
I rubbed my tired eyes and got out of bed. Another night in bed alone. I could not blame Shiny for not being able to stay with me all day and night. We are both ponies with jobs to do; me being a princess, with all the formal meetings and paperwork which came with being one, and Shining a captain of the guard always having to remain diligent in the case yet another force of evil comes to invade. I walked into my bathroom and started my lengthy process of getting all of the bed ugliness off my face. I was interrupted by a knock on my door. It was weird since no-one, not even the maids came to my bedchambers at this time in the morning. The knocking continued until I heard an annoyed sigh and an explosion sounded as my door came flying off its hinges in tiny pieces. I quickly ran back to the room to a shocking sight; Noire on the floor in chains as my aunts in full battle armour stood over him and a smug-looking Shining Armour to their side. Before I could even ask what was going on, a magical inhibitor was wrapped around my horn, and I was hugged by them. I could not even process what was going on as everything was just going on to fast.
"Oh, sweet niece, we are so happy thou art okay," said the blue one, Luna as she nuzzled me and held me even tighter. So, this is what Noire felt when he was hugged but times two "When we received Shining Armour's letter about this foul changeling, and we came as soon as we could".
Then the white one, Celestia held me tighter "We are lucky we got here before they corrupted you completely". I was completely lost then, which did not go unnoticed by Celestia "I see you are confused. You see this changeling was sent to corrupt you but before he could, Shining managed to realise and sent us a letter explaining the situation".
I looked over to Noire. He was bound in chains from head to toe and had a cloth over his mouth to prevent him from talking. However, something irked me. One; he was not resisting, merely laying on the floor with a deadpan look on his face he just heard a terrible pun. Two; Shining was looking at Noire even more smugly than before. Three (probably being the most suspicious one); He was still in his human form. I felt the pieces starting to slowly fit together. I could only sigh in frustration, gently pushing the concerned princesses away from me and walked over to Shining. He must have gotten the wrong idea from my advance since he started to lean in closer for a kiss. In a rage, I gritted my teeth and abruptly stopped him with a slap to the face. I heard the gasp from my aunts behind me as Shining turned back to me with a red hand-shaped mark on his cheek. He yelled "CADANCE! WHAT THE HELL?!!!"
Luna also joined on the shouting "WHAT HAS COME OVER THOU MIND!!! IS THAT SCOUNDREL STILL IN CONTROL?!" she exclaimed, turning to Noire with daggers in her eyes and her hands. She charged towards Noire with a fury until I stood in front of her, arms spread wide ready to defend him.
"Noire is not a changeling, aunty! He is human! Whatever Shining said in that letter is completely false" I said. Luna stood back slightly and Celestia came towards me in confusion.
"Then explain how he knew about the Royal Canterlot Wedding when he wasn't there at the time," Celestia said in her calm tone, removing the cloth from Noire's mouth. I knew she wanted to banish Noire to the hottest part of the sun for what he supposedly did but I couldn't allow a friend to be falsely accused and punished, even if he was of a questionable species. I turned to Noire who now blushed and turned away from me for a second before looking at me with an embarrassed face.
"I found it in that pink book on the floor when I got here," he said, blushing even harder. He motioned at the book on my desk, and I walked over to the pink book. I know this book. It is the one I write in every night before I go to bed or after something eventful happens like changeling attacks or humans falling from the sky (or the fourth wall as Pinkie calls it). He read my diary! I turned to him and blushed madly. My aunts and Shining looked at both our blushing faces and got the hint, except for Shining since he's a dunce.
"Did you read page 47?" I said quietly but at a volume where he could hear me.
"And 78. I didn't know you would've been into... that stuff" he said. The moment was consumed by an awkward silence before Celestia went to Noire and undid his chains and took off the magic inhibitor off me. When Noire had the chance to stand, he was greeted by a bowing Celestia. She apologised for her behaviour and attacking him.
"It looks like I have come to a big misunderstanding. I must apologise for my rude behaviour," This was a shock, you know, seeing as an immortal princess of the sun was bowing to a commoner who hasn't been here for a week yet.
NOIRE POV
It was certainly a shock to hear a princess bow to ME of all people but nevertheless, I accepted her apology and bowed as well. I forgot that the princess was roughly 6 foot 5, and I was a little too close, resulting in me banging my face into the back of her head. The shock caused her to rocket her head back in pain, crashing her head into my chin, causing me even more pain. We grabbed our faces in pain before laughing aloud. "Sorry about that. I did not take into consideration that your mighty height would hurt my face" I said chuckling. Celestia chuckled as well, still rubbing the back of her head.
"It is okay, Mr Noire. At least we know you are not a changeling. Since your pain hasn't resulted in you changing back" she said.
"Thank you, Princess Celestia, and just call me Noire. Mr. Noire is my father" I said jokingly.
"As long as you call me Celestia. All my friends do" she replied. We both shook hands, solidifying our new friendship. I was then shown another bowing princess, this time it was Luna.
"We must also apologise for attacking thou.”
"Thank you too, Luna. Wow, I never expected to have princesses as friends. What next? Is Cadance gonna start bowing to me?" I spoke. I turned to where Cadence was supposed to be only to find an empty space. I also found Shining gone as well. I could only assume they were having a little spat. "I hope those two can make up after this. I don't want a good marriage to be destroyed because of me" I whispered. A hand belonging to Celestia touched my shoulder, reassuring me and giving me hope that this 'power of love' Cadance mentioned in her diary can solve this.
CADANCE POV
I dragged Shining to an isolated room of the castle, locking the door behind me and soundproofing the room. "CHANGELINGS!!! BUCKING CHANGELINGS SHINING?!!! WHAT WERE YOU THINKING?!!!" I exclaimed furiously. Shining only looked at me calmly, enduring the harsh onslaught of swearing and shouting. Before I could go off on another tangent, he closed in on me, grabbing and kissing me passionately. I wasn't having any of it though, pushing him away violently.
He only looked at her calmly and said "Cadance, can't you see what he is doing to us? He has only been here for a few days, and he is already tearing apart years of love. I thought that the princesses were going to get rid of him, but his magic has already infected them as well. He may not be a changeling, but he definitely is something dangerous and manipulative that needs to be contained or destroyed."
I felt my anger rise as my fists clenched and scowled at my husband, yelling once again "ARE YOU EVEN LISTENING TO YOURSELF?!!! Noire has done NOTHING to harm our relationship. We both saw his scans; He has no magic, nothing. If you would look past your petty jealousy, you would realise what is right in front of you; a lost, lonely soul in need of compassion. I thought you were above this, but I guess it will take a few nights away from me to see how much of a fool you've been these past few days." I turned to walk out the door and before closing it, I whispered to myself "I hope you and Noire can actually become friends."
Slamming the door shut with an audible smack, Shining felt his own anger rise as he stood there helplessly watching as the love of his life left him to his thought and feelings. Angry thoughts and feelings. I hope you burn in Tartarus for what you have done, creature... he thought as his palms started to bleed with red, hot fury I hope you burn...
That idiot... what was he thinking? I thought as I walked through the empty hallways, sobbing with each step I took. When Shining was justifying his reasons for writing that letter, almost every fibre of my being wanted to strangle him. The rest of me, however, wanted to agree with him, to hug him and throw Noire out of the Empire- no, out of Equestria for good. That part of me thought if we did that, it would end the current issue we were facing. We would be able to rekindle the love we lost from lack of contact with each other. I still loved him, no doubt about that, but what he's been acting like made me wonder if our love life was about to crumble like one of those tragic love stories. Faust I really needed a break...
I went to my balcony. My secluded area where I could relax and watch the sights without any interruptions... is what it would've been if a rock didn't fall on my head and a voice didn't holler from above me. Looking up, I saw yet another shocking sight; Noire on the roof with a bag of chips looking out at the sunrise. He yelled, "Come up here, the view is great!". I was in shock at the sight. He just recovered from a stab wound and now he is climbing castles?! I flew up to the roof where Noire was hanging out and immediately started chewing him out for his actions. He only sat there, looking out into the horizon, smiling.
Once I noticed he was not listening, I was really upset but before I could go off again, he turned to me, still smiling as he did. "Should I really stay here with you?"
"..." That left me in a perplexed state. Was he... thinking of leaving? Was this to do with me and Shining's fight. I just continued to stare at him, not showing any kind of emotion as to not give him the wrong idea. He finally turned away from me and smiled.
"Don't worry, I'm not too sure either. However, when I saw how it hurt you were to see me tied up How it drove you to defend me from your own aunts when you could have easily let them do whatever they would've done to me and fixed the gap between you and Shining... it inspired me... inspired me to look after you should you ever be in trouble. Even if you may decide to kick me out."
I was still at a loss for words. Noire was willing to help me, a hopeless princess of love that could not even solve her own love problem, even if today results in me throwing him out. I started letting loose a couple of tears before becoming a steady stream. I quickly embraced him in my bone-crushing hug. He did not retreat from it though, only hugging me back, chuckling and sighing as he petered out a few words "Joining the guard may not be a good idea though. I have just gotten this leg fixed. Would not want Shining breaking anything important".
I chuckled as well, loosening my grip on him so he could catch a few breaths "Maybe being my assistant would be appropriate. You did tell me you got high grades in school".
"Perhaps to be a professional note-taker. Don’t count on me too much for that professional stuff," he said, nodding his head slightly. We let go of each other and looked out at the bright sun, gracing the sky, marking a new day for pony and mankind.
??? POV
My plans were coming along quite nicely. Not only has 'Noire' befriended the princess completely but has also gained allies with Princess Celestia and Luna. This new guinea pig proved to me that he would be quite useful in my future endeavours...
I sat in my room, staring, just staring. Staring at the white envelope in my hands. I remember what Aunty Lulu told as she gave me the letter. "Do what you want with it. Having such slanderous letters in our possession about an innocent pony- human- as well as the letter being written by a pony which we held in such high regard is just sickening. We shall not punish him though, his punishment will be yours to decide as the princess of the Crystal Empire and his spouse," I slowly used my magic to open the envelope and take the letter out. The letter was as any letter would look. Written in parchment with a quill and ink. The letter had no creases, meaning it was read recently and was not tampered with since. The handwriting graceful and immaculate, as expected of a brown-noser wanting to impress. However, there were scorch marks on the sides where one would be holding it, likely Aunty Tia's doing. Shining must have really fooled them, almost as much as himself. I finally decided to start reading, fearful of what I might find if I enter...
Dear Princess Celestia,
I would hope this letter would be of better news and during better circumstances but your assistance is required in these most troubling times. (Bucking kiss-ass...) We have been told of the legends of humans and how their mystical prowess had almost pushed ponykind to the brink of extinction before abruptly dying out of an unknown cause. Our kind may be faced by this threat yet again as two days ago we were greeted by one of these horrendous creatures, twisted in every sense of the word. While my wife selflessly assists him with his needs, he has been secretly scheming to destroy this kingdom and my marriage.
At that point, I began to skim through the letter's contents, anger growing with every lie told in solid ink writing. His marriage?! We both forged this union over years of dedication and love and he dares call it his?! I was at the point of him rambling about Noire being a changeling sent to destroy us (still complete nonsense) and was about to burn the letter to cinders when I reached a particularly interesting point...
Before I wrote this letter to you, I checked with Doctor Curdle about the 'human's condition and what I discovered truly shocked me. The monster is absorbing magic from others! She ran diagnostics on him, and it appears he collects more magic the more he comes into contact with ponies. This troubles me even more as Cadence has been meeting him excessively, going as far as to stick his leg in her horn to gain her compassion and hugging to gain her trust. I suggest you come over immediately and bring magic inhibitors for them. I would hate to see what would inequine things he is doing. He could even go as far as to br-
The letter was then set ablaze until it was nothing but ash and left on the floor for the maids to clear up. I was obviously livid, my eye twitching in frustration. All of the lies and mistruths and now he thinks I'm going to cheat on him. With Noire of all people. That was the last straw. He and I had to have a proper conversation about this. I also needed to talk with Noire to prove whether his story is true. Is still want him as a friend but if only to quell Shining's (and guiltily my own) paranoia about Noire. I fell onto my bed sighing in exhaustion. It had only been three days and I already got myself into some drama.
I was taking a nap in my new room Cadence gave me. I thought I would never leave the ward and there would have to be a reserved bed just for me. My joy had nothing to do with not having to hear Curdle's rambling about my biology and pony biology or biology in general... Okay, it had was a small part in it. I digress. The room was fantastic! I had a large, soft bed. Way better than the piece of rock I used to sleep on. The room itself had royal blue walls; My favourite colour. the carpet and drapes were the same colour. In some ways, it kind of looked like Cadence's room except blue. It even had that lamp held by a crystal animal. In Cadence's, it was a pink peacock, spreading its wings out gracefully. In mine, it was a blue wolf with white tips at the end of its tail. Did Cadence pick this one out? Did she look at this lamp and think of me? Probably not. It's probably just coincidence.
Speaking of rooms, that morning in Cadence's room, Shining and the Princesses was certainly strange, weird, abnormal (and somewhat kinky in some regards) but at least there's a chance I won't die of starvation or hypothermia out in the cruel, cold and snowy wastelands. Neither will I have to abandon my new friends. They seem like very nice people inside and out and probably will keep me around if I stay out of trouble. As soon as I said that a knock sounded at my door. I immediately stopped my thoughts and went to the door. There stood Cadence, looking at me with a serious expression, an expression which often signified trouble in paradise, or just trouble if you're having a shitty day. I stood aside to let her in and she walked In silently. No 'Hello, Noire' or anything. Now I know shits are about to go south for me. When she sat down on a chair, she silently motioned for me to sit as well. Nodding, I did the same and the moment I sat down in a chair of my own, she grasped my hands lovingly but her serious expression remained. I was now getting confused. "Cadence, what's going on?. Has something happened with you and Shining again? " I asked, causing her to flinch slightly. Her face turned from serious to sombre. Now I was seriously concerned at that, gripping the end of my pants in anticipation. Whatever she was here to talk about must've been incredibly serious.
"Noire, please tell me. Why didn't you tell me you had magic?"
CADENCE POV
There was nothing but silence as Noire just looked at me blankly. I couldn't tell if he was discovered or if he just didn't know about this. My questions were answered when he burst out in laughter. This, even in these confusing times, was nice to hear. This was the first time I ever heard him laugh. He just continued laughing, his closed eyes crying slightly before he opened them and saw my sad face had remained, instantly stopping his laughing "Oh" he said " You were being serious. Well, I 'll tell you I have no magic. No-one on Earth has magic. The closest thing we can do to resemble magic is an optical illusion and sleight of hand tricks."
I turned my head in confusion "What do you mean by optical illusions?" I asked before he simply just performed that trick where you look like your removing his thumb, causing me to 'oh' in realisation "It may be true that your kind has no magic but I read both Shining's letter and Doctor Curdle's reports on you and it says that you are extracting magic from ponies you touch."
Noire merely put his hand on his chin and looked to the ceiling in thought "Well that's... cool and concerning at the same time" he said, looking down in shame "Does that mean that I've been..."
"Absorbing the magic from me, Celestia, Luna and everyone else you've come into contact with, even if only slightly? Yes," I interrupted. It was hard to ask him such a question but it was needed to confirm Shining's suspicions to be false. However, it seems that was incorrect concerning Noire's abilities. On the other hand, it would be nothing a pair of gloves wouldn't solve. I wonder if he can use them as well as absorb them? Time to find out. "Can you try to move that pen over there with magic?" I asked. Noire merely shrugged and pointed his right hand over to the pen on the desk. It did nothing, causing Noire to grunt and focus harder until a blue aura surrounded the pen and it started to float in the air.
"YES!" he yelled, flinging his arms in the air, causing the pen to rocket towards the ceiling and embed itself in it "Uuuh my bad," he said, bringing his arms and used his magic once more to bring the pen back down. It was shocking. I never expected him to not only succeed at levitation but on his FIRST TRY!!! He could probably be quite a valuable asset to the Crystal Empire if Shining didn't have such a hate boner for him. My thoughts were interrupted by Noire waving a hand in my face.
"OH! Uuh... good job Noire. Especially on your first try at magic. Most unicorns take on average an hour to successfully perform levitation but maybe you shouldn't do that" I said, pointing to the hole in the ceiling, gigging.
"Of course and maybe it will be enough to get Shining to lay off on the hate," he said smiling. How did he know that? Well, he is full of surprises. I mean, he looks like he is smarter than he lets on.
"Well, it seems I can get to my other question seeing as you got my plan all figured out," I said amusedly "Noire, are you really human?"
"Honestly, I don't really know anymore," he said sombrely "No human I know can perform actual magic so probably not,"
I looked at Noire sadly. He seems so happy but when you get personal with him, he just bursts with negative feelings and you get to see just how tormented he is. However, he seems to be trying to work past it.
"I'm sorry to ask even more questions but... What are your feelings about Shining?" I asked hesitantly, scared that it might invoke some form of hatred in him.
Instead, he just shrugged and said "I don't care much for him but I want to", shocking me greatly "I mean I get why he's so angry with me. My existence is destroying his marriage and my powers might harm you. He's scared to lose what he loves. I want to admire him but I can't. I feel like my anger reaches its peak around him but bottoms out around you. Maybe when this is all over and if I'm still here, we can go out for drinks and talk about embarrassing, drunk stories but until then, we'll just have to be worst enemies."
That was certainly disheartening to hear how Noire is unable to see the good man Shining really is when you look past his jealousy and protectiveness of me. However, he did say he would change his mind about Shining if this whole issue could be resolved and maybe they could become friends. That's what I really wanted at the end of the day. It was a struggle having to side against your loved one and the even more heartbreaking to see the people he trusts side against him as well. With all that has been said, I should've been able to convince Shining that Noire's intentions are pure and we can finally resolve this issue on a good note. "Well Noire, I suggest we go find Shining and tell him about all that has transpired and finish this business once and for all," I said, standing up and motioning for him to follow. He nodded confidently and we set off to Shining's office spends most of his time. Hopefully, this ends well.
SHINING POV
I sent off the last patrol to their stations and made my way to my office to finish the last of my paperwork for the morning. This morning was very stressful; I haven't slept with Cadence in days and I've been banished to the guest room due to my little stunt. Damn that Noire! He may have won this round but this is definitely far from over. I just need to find a way to force out that creature's true form and intentions and Cadence will see that I was right all along. Being able to absorb magic is too familiar to a certain shape-shifting race Equestria has become very familiar with; Changelings.
Changelings are an abomination! I still remember what Queen Chrysalis did to me so many months ago. The feeling of having no free will, no way to say no to her. Even now, I still have nightmares of what she did to my mind and that isn't even the worst part.
I still feel it. I still feel the love for her.
It sickens me to the very core of my being how I could love my wife every moment of every day yet still have that feeling of undying love for that Changeling trash that soiled Cadence's lovely face with her wicked smile. The nights of passion we spent together still plagues my thoughts. The moaning, the thrusting, the shared juices mixing together as we came. I will truly never forgive myself for what I've done. That is why I will NOT let Cadence fall to the same fate I did. I cannot allow Noire to taint her, to bend her to his twisted will like what Chrysalis did. I will not stand for such a crime to repeat itself in our family. Not again.
"Shiny!" a voice yelled from behind me. I turned around and found Cadence and the creature chasing after me. I stopped my walk and let Cadence hug me "Shiny I'm so sorry for all that has happened these few days and what my shunning has done to you but I need to have you know that Noire never knew of his abilities and has confirmed that he has no evil intentions".
Noire decided to step forward and put his hand on Cadence's shoulder before quickly checking himself and removing it. "Cadence please, let me speak for myself. He needs to hear the truth from me; the one who started all of this," he said confidently. Cadence opened her mouth to protest but decided to let him speak "I know what has happened between you two and I will refuse to say it isn't my fault because it is. The truth is I don't know if I am human or if I was ever human in the first place but I will tell you now that I never thought for a moment about hurting your wife. She has come to be my closest friend here and has offered me more support than I deserve. So to compensate for causing so much trouble and lounging around your castle, I am willing to accept any punishment you see fit. You and you alone". He kneeled before me like he was about to lick my boots. It was a shocking sight. Cadence was also in shock at what Noire had just said.
"NOIRE! What are you doing! We have enough evidence to prove you are an innocent man so why throw yourself on the chopping board like this?!" she asked, both anger and worry in her voice. Noire did nothing but remain there, kneeling before me as a knight would do for his princess. Like what I should have done to her. Even if only slightly, the wall I put up around me was starting to break down, and I started to see what I had been doing to her and myself even before Noire entered the picture. It pained me to hear her like that. Seeing her sad was never my intentions when marrying her and now I realised it was not Noire's intention when coming here. I was confused about what to do. I could see the strength behind Noire's conviction but there was also the fear of Cadence getting hurt by him, the fear of her losing her magic because of him or even worse.
"Stand up, Noire" I said. It pained me to have to say his name like we were now friends but it seemed like I had to since he just kneeled before me "I want you in guards uniform tomorrow. You'll be training under me personally and with me on my patrols around the city, understood?" I couldn't tell if he was lying or not about him not being evil and whatnot but I could tell he was strong-willed. So what better way to see if he is as good-willed as Cadence says he is by testing him. If he gains my trust then maybe, just maybe I will believe what Cadence says about him. Cadence was at a loss for words at this point and just watched as Noire and I discussed his new job. When we finished our talk, I turned to face Cadence. I didn't know what to say in all honesty, with her kind of blowing up in full. I took a deep breath and let everything out "Cadence, I'm sorry for what I said in the letter. I was trash-talking you and all the effort you put into seeing me every day even though you were buried in paperwork and snobby nobles yet I had the nerve to call our marriage mine. I just couldn't see past my paranoia and jealousy to see how you cared for Noire, not because of any magic but because he was a good man. While I may not trust him completely just yet and for this reason, I will drop all hostilities and treat him fairly"
Cadence was lost for words, merely standing there and watching me pour my heart out on a crystal platter. I sighed out exhaustedly and waved goodbye to her before she quickly grabbed my hand and pulled me in close. She kissed me passionately and I kissed back. Our saliva mixing together as we made out. She leaned into my ear and whispered "Apology accepted" she licked my ear, making me shudder "Though I want you in bed tonight and you're going to give me your 'apology' in full". Those words alone started to form a tent in my pants. Luckily, It was hidden beneath my armour. I blushed madly and Cadence giggled in response until we heard a small cough from Noire.
"Please, can we leave the bedroom talk for the bedroom?" he asked, hiding a blush of his own. Did he know? I didn't really care. All I care about right now is giving all the love Cadence deserves and getting thoughts of changeling queens out of my mind...
...and getting to a bathroom...
CELESTIA POV
I watched from afar at the three adults blushing like fillies, causing me to giggle quietly before Luna came up from behind me. "Does thou think Noire can get Sir Shining's trust, dear sister?" she said, also gigging at the funny scene.
"If Noire is who he says he is then he can definitely pull it off. What worries me is that if he is here and he has magic then the legends could be true" I said, drifting off into thought. Luna merely nodded and went into her own train of thought. If the legends were true then the 'code' could really be returning to Equestria. If this is the case, then the world as we know it could change forever..."
"How do I look?" I said, turning around in my flashy new armour. It was the afternoon, the time where Shining said he was going to pick me up for my first day as a guard. A week had passed since Shining Armour (or 'Captain' when around other guards) recruited me, which was certainly shocking for everyone, even for the princesses. Speaking of them, Celestia and Luna left a couple of days ago but not before giving me some advice. Advice that still confuses me. "'Never think of your power as just magic'" Celestia told me before flying away with her sister in her golden carriage. I remember how serious she looked when she told me as if she had seen the world die a hundred times. At first, I thought she probably was just worried I would launch something more than a pen into the ceiling or just throw the pen into someone's eye.
Anyway, back to guard stuff, the training was exhausting but fulfilling. A whole week. 10 hours a day and by the LORD was Shining tough. He personally trained me to get me in peak condition. Before, I was not that muscular. I had some muscle on me but nothing to turn heads for. Now, I looked like I belonged in the guard, at least a little bit like I did. My muscles were starting to show themselves and I had memorised every form of self-defence and detainment known to guards. Shining spared me no expense, making sure my body was broken just so he could build me back up again like some kind of artist. To say Cadence was impressed was an understatement; she was ecstatic. She loved how Shining and I were spending more time together and sort of getting along. She even took the liberty of getting me my own set of armour. Most of these ponies were around 6 foot and massive, so wearing their armour would look like a child wearing their parents' clothes. The armour was a perfect fit. I don't know for the life of me how she managed to get my measurements though.
"Noire? You okay" Cadence said, waving a hand in front of me to try to get my attention. I quickly snapped out of my trance, looking at her attentively "I said you look like a stud in that. Any maid would jump at the chance to get with you" she said slyly.
"Really, because I think any mare who saw me who didn't know that I was would jump out the window" I countered "I'm not exactly a prize just yet." I knew I should've been used to this now but in my first THREE DAYS I managed to get myself impaled by a horn, almost destroy a marriage and nearly get decapitated by an immortal, moon-moving princess so, at that point, I was waiting for pigs to fall from the sky.
"Nonsense! You're just nervous about your first day. You'll be fine as long as you just listen to your orders, not speak unless spoken to and poker face" she said, showing me her guard impression "Although, that may not be a problem seeing as you look like that every day." I remember a part of my self-esteem shattering at that moment.
"I wonder why you aren't the princess of unintentional insults instead of love," I ask her.
A fully armoured Shining Armour came in, looking as ready as he usually is. "Love sounds nicer. A princess of insults would get a much longer line of butthurt idiots looking for comebacks to stick it to their friends" he said nonchalantly "Time for our patrol. Try to not screw up."
"Ah, I was wondering where my daily vote of confidence was" I countered. Over tie, our 'friendship' has improved slightly through our banter. We also made it easier to be around each other by arm-wrestling and the loser has to pay for the drinks. So far Shining has won every single one but he still pays, seeing as I'm flat broke. He may be warming up to me but I can't tell. Can't really get a read on that guy when he's in guard mode. Kind of like most of the guards around here. Back to the present, Shining gives Cadence a kiss before beckoning for me to follow him.
"Come on, before we go on patrol, we need to get you a sword. A guard without a weapon is useless in the face of danger," he said. I waved goodbye to Cadence and set off with Shining to the armoury.
SHINING POV
Noire looks decent in guard's armour and with his training lessons with me as well as his magic, he could prove to be quite a beneficial addition to our forces. Over the past week, I have come to know Noire whether I wanted to or not. How he feels about me, how he feels about Cadence, how he feels about ponykind in general. I realised he never wanted to harm our relationship and even if unintentionally, opened my eyes to who was really wrecking the relationship; myself. However, I am afraid of how dangerous he could truly be because we know he's more than just human. We ran many tests on him and we came up with nothing. Nothing in his heart, blood or brain that can explain what he could be. Cadence tells me to stop worrying about it but the fear still haunts me, which is why I started having therapy sessions secretly, paperwork and my 'apologising' (Yes I haven't finished; Not until she says so). Speaking of Cadence, our relationship has gotten better than before. We spend more time talking about our days, eat together and well... you know... the 'apologising' has been occurring more often.
"Hey Shining will this one work?" I snapped myself out of my delusion and found myself inside the armoury with Noire holding a longsword. The handle was black with a blue gem inside. I took the sword for further inspection and It was flawless. The blade was so sharp I almost cut myself. This was truly the work of a master blacksmith.
"Where did you get this sword, Noire?" I asked. I never saw this in the armoury and if I did, I would be using this sword myself but seeing as Noire found it he gets to use it. I trust him at least that much.
"It was just with the other swords on the railing. It confuses me though. It looks nothing like the other blades in here and when I picked it off the rail, I could feel it latching on to me" he said looking at the blade ominously "Almost like it was happy to see me."
I gave the sword back to him and he put it in one of the sheaths we had in the armoury "Well if it made you feel like that then it must mean you two were meant to be together. It is a common thing for a warrior to have a bond with their weapon. If a weapon is to light, it is too accepting of you. If it is too heavy, it is rejecting you. A sword must weigh just right for you to know in your heart that this is the weapon for you" Noire only stared at me for a moment before nodding and walking out of the armoury. I went after me thinking to myself When I picked up the sword, it was so heavy I could barely lift the thing but when Noire held it, he did it with no fuss. Does this mean Noire has more potential than me? I guess time will tell.
NOIRE POV
"AN HOUR?!!!" I exclaimed, gaining the attention of several ponies in the area. They were in the centre of the Crystal Empire, where business was booming and the snobbish nobles were abundant. Ever since the Crystal Empire, ponies have come from all stretches of Equestria to trade their products for the empire's large amount of gems. This explained why there were just as many normal ponies as crystal ponies.
"Don't yell so loud. Cadence doesn't know I'm here and I want this to stay a secret to stop her from worrying herself into a grave. Plus, this will serve as disciplinary training for you so suck it up" Shining said, walking into the building "Also, if you leave, I get to dock your pay."
"YOU DON'T PAY ME ASSHOLE!!!" I yelled back but the door had already slammed shut "dammit." I crossed his arms and leaned against the wall of the building, grumbling in anger. I gained a lot of staring ponies but they merely passed by. A lot of nobles looked at me in disgust and a few attempted to prod my side to see if he was alive or not.
Two guards passing by saw me standing and went over to inspect me. One of them, a copper brown earth pony smiled and asked "Who let a midget wear the armour of a royal guard. He looks much more like a bootlicker than a warrior. HEY YOU!!! If you're alive in there, lick my boots. They're getting a little dirty!" I only stared blankly at him. This caused the guard to get angry and readied a fist aimed at his face. I anticipated this, catching the fist before it could reach my face. The guard growled and tried to hit me with his other fist but before he could, I sent him flying back with an uppercut to his jaw. The other guard went over to the now unconscious stallion, yelling about how I would pay for this. I paid no mind to his empty threat and continued to lean there peacefully.
What would baggage Shining has that would need him to go to therapy I thought to myself, completely unaware of the crowd of ponies that had swarmed around me, wondering what they just saw.
SHINING ARMOUR POV
I was sat in a recliner chair like the one my therapist had. Because of my high position, I had the privilege of having Mr Mindful himself see to my therapy. He was a green unicorn with a grey mane. He wore a teal sweater over a white shirt and black tie. He tended to scratch his neck when he was thinking, which is what he was doing before leaning forward in his chair and looking at me intensely. "Concerning these feelings who have been feeling for 'Cadance'," he said using quotation marks as mentioning her actual name would ruin the process "My hypothesis is that this is a side effect of being under her control for a long period of time. You told me that you were under her control for a week, correct?"
"Yes, I remember 'Cadence' casting a spell on me a week ago and then nothing. The memories returned the night after I was freed" I said. I thought back to that night, the nightmare I had about her ravishing me. Me ravishing her. I remember the stain on the sheets when I woke up disgusting me to the extent that I spent half an hour puking my guts out.
"Now before we finish this session, I should remind you of the drugs you've been taking," he said, pointing at the bottle of pills he gave me marked "Neuro-Oxil" "They can stop the nightmares but you must only take 1 per night. Any more could harm your bodily functions we don't even know yet. I only gave you those drugs because you were insistent that I help you get rid of this side of you as soon as possible but I will not have you die for it." It was true that I was very persistent in using the new drug that Mindful had been developing. It helped how I was a prince and Mindful needed a test subject. I was lucky to not have died with the first dose he gave me a week ago and from what Mindful is suggesting, the new one would have the same risk. However, if it helped me recover from my 'side-effects' then it was worth the risk. "Thank you, Mr Mindful. You have no idea how much this means to me" I said, almost outside the door.
"Thank me when you're over her your highness," he said, mocking a bow. I chuckled at the display and left the room.
When I left the building, Noire was standing there silently before seeing me and left his position on the wall.
"So how did it go?" he asked impatiently. I chuckled at the sight, remembering my first day on the job. Being just as impatient as him. I was getting warmed up to him with every passing day and by this point, I could even consider us friends... Wow, that was not something I would've said a week ago. Maybe he just has that likeable personality that makes him easy to get along with. I should probably give him another test to see how he is around other ponies. Now that I mention it, I just introduced the world's first human in over 10,000 years so nonchalantly. Cadence should probably announce him to the public sometime this week. Wouldn't want people thinking he's some kind of monster like I did (and somewhat still do).
I digress, I smiled "Just great, now let's go back," I said merrily "Oh and for the next week, you will be assigned to a squad. I'll give you more details tomorrow," Noire nodded and followed me around the city to start our actual patrol.
It was night-time before I knew it and everyone was either heading to bed or doing their night shift (poor them). I was cuddling next to Cadence, her warm fur next to mine as we dozed off to the land of dreams but as we did I looked back to the bottle of pills and said to myself "I better wake up in the morning or else Cadence and Mindful are going to kill me..." before closing my eyes.
DREAMWORLD
All I could see was darkness until I heard a figure walking up to me. I couldn't see or move, only hear the footsteps grow louder and louder. A voice suddenly called out from the darkness "Why would you want to keep me out, my love?" My breath went cold at the voice I remembered too well; Chrysalis I didn't get i. How was this happening? Mindful's previous drug did the trick and the new one was supposed to be better than the last so why am I here, being toyed with by the woman of my nightmares? How come Luna hasn't picked up on this and stopped this? "I will ask again. Why would you want to keep me out? I loved you. Made love to you in a way that whore that runs around with exotic creatures could never do. She's going to eventually leave you for him, you know and you will come crawling back to me. When you do I will care for you, listen to you and hold you tightly," I could feel two soft orbs slide down my stomach as well as a wet tongue. The painful pleasure of feeling her unbutton my pants and grab my exposed member drove me up the wall. I had to stop her, I needed to stop her but I couldn't. My limbs wouldn't move, I couldn't use magic and a part of me wanted her to continue.
I could feel her tongue slowly wrap itself around my member and forcing it into her mouth, causing me to moan in pleasure. She took it all in stride and played with my balls. I couldn't take any more of this teasing and I raised my arms to hold her in place as I came into her mouth. "No... nononononononononononono" I repeated to myself. I could have used that movement to get away from her but instead, I welcome her love like a piece of scum. It was over though, as I pulled her off my member and forced her down on her knees and aimed my member at her lower lips. All sight returned to me and I found myself in my room with Cadence strapped down in a chair. Her eyes were stained red with tears and she was whispering to herself "Shining, you traitor". Before I could call out to her to tell her I didn't want this, I had already plunged straight into hell.
"Yes, my love..." she said as my vision returned to black...
CADENCE POV
I woke up in the middle of the night to find an empty side of the bed. I got out of bed and looked around to see if there was any sign. I saw a light coming from the bathroom and muttering. I slowly crept up on the door and peeked through the crack. I gasped in shock when I found Shining on the toilet masturbating while crying and muttering to himself.
I was called in from my training to Cadence's personal chambers by a maid. It was weird seeing as whenever I was needed, Cadence or Shining came to see me. I assumed the daily drama was going to be done by the books this time. When I asked what it was about she just said "I don't know, Mr Human. She looked very sad so I did not ask." I set off to Cadence's room, wondering what happened to her to make her this upset after all that has happened. On my way there, I started to notice certain things happening with the staff inside the castle. First off was the maids, who were most likely seen in corners, gossiping about saucy details. From what I'd heard over the past week, the most juice they had was on me. The maids had started to gossip about Shining, Cadence and me. Some were saying that Cadence and I were having an affair, others were saying that the three of us were a herd which would seriously be awkward and possibly even more violent between Shining and me. These rumours made them either look at me in disgust, which I was used to and others look at me sultrily, which I was less used to. That was going to be an issue during heat season. I haven't even found a good hiding spot.
Then there were the guards. On that matter, it was unanimous; they all hated my guts. Hate that could possibly shatter diamonds with its pressure. I can assume they felt this way for several reasons: 1. I was buddy-buddy with their princess making them jealous as all hell. 2. My fight with the guard from yesterday got around in the bad kind of way. 3. I was buddy-buddy (barely) with their captain/prince, which again, made them jealous 4. Prejudice. Need I say more. The list could go on and on but before I could come up with a fifth reason, I was already at Cadence's door. Whenever Cadence and I go into each other's rooms, it is mostly to tell the other some ground-shattering news or vent to each other. We almost never got to talk about how our good days were or anything of the sort. A conversation like that would've seriously been a breath of fresh air. Nevertheless, I still persevered, opening the door with gusto and faced the sad Cadence sitting on her bed looking at a small bottle in her hand.
"I don't want to be rude but after a week of this it has to be asked at some point in time; What did Shining do this time and where is he so I can kick his ass?" I asked, surprising Cadance out of her trance. She looked up to me, seeing my tired expression.
"Is my love life that troubling that you find yourself inconvenienced by it?" she asked dryly.
We both opened our eyes in shock over our bitter exchange of words. "IM SO SORRY" we both yelled in embarrassment. We both fumbled with our words until we checked ourselves and both took a seat at the coffee table in her room. We remained in awkward silence for a bit before I decided to start us off.
"Sorry, let me rephrase. What happened between you two and what can I do to help?" I asked. I was a little concerned about Shining myself. He wasn't like a father or brother to me but I felt a bond grow between us and I didn't want to lose that. I've lost too many people than I can count and I won't let the same happen here with him.
Cadance took another breath before explaining "Well, It has more to do with Shining," she said "In the middle of the night, I found him masturbating while repeating 'I'm sorry' over and over again. I found a spilt bottle of pills next to the door and when I looked back to check on him, he was gone. Look at this," She handed me the bottle and I inspected it carefully. It looked nearly full so it must have been bought recently. The name was 'Neuro-Oxil' which from the 'Neuro' part suggested it had something to do with the brain. If this happened during the night, then something in his dreams could have caused it; maybe a pony.
"Cadance, do you know anyone in his past that he may have sexual desires for? A past lover or something? Anyone you can think of?" I asked. Cadence put a hand on her chin and stroked it slowly. She then took it off and looked at me in fear. Whoever she thought of must have been really scary.
"Queen Chrysalis."
"...Crap". I didn't know much about her but from what Cadance's diary said, we should really be scared. She was very descriptive of what she was. She was capable of seducing stallions and mares alike with her pheromones, tricking them with disguises of their loved ones and then completely controlling their minds. She was also a master manipulator who could fool you very easily. I remember one of Cadence's entries detailing how she managed to deceive the Mane 6 and Princess Celestia. Chances are Shining's still being controlled by her and this whole thing could be a ploy for conquering the Crystal Empire, maybe even all of Equestria if we don't stop her. I started to go through multiple places where he could possibly be. Abandoned factories, vacant homes, anything that screamed 'Evil Villain's Hideout'. I continued to think of places I saw on my patrol with him before a light bulb flickered on in my head, reminding me of the place where one would find the drug "I need to go to Mr Mindful's place,"
"Is he the one who gave Shining the drugs?" she asked. I nodded confidently. I fondly remember yesterday, with him holding a bottle in his hand. He seemed to be walking on air that day, almost like he had been blessed. Now It all starts making sense. Mr Mindful's was also a chemist. It said so on his sign. It was the only possible lead on where he is.
"If I were to guess, I would say he's a changeling and that drug was the exact opposite of what Shining was told it was. We shouldn't bring other guards to prevent any changeling from catching on. We still don't know how many are in the building." Cadance hesitantly nodded and got up to address her guards. I got up as well to follow her, wondering how Shining is doing and how much time we had before Chrysalis' plan comes into fruition.
I was outside the building Shining took me to yesterday. I thought it best to not bring my weapon or armour to prevent any suspicion from any changelings in the area. I was in my normal clothes I wore when I got here; A leather hoodie with a hole in the right shoulder, a white shirt with red sleeves and a pair of cargos tucked into black boots. I also had a pair of gloves to control my magic absorbing ability and my phone on me so I could record and take pictures of anything suspicious. If I was going to get any leads on Shining's whereabouts, I was going to have to do this unsuspiciously. I walked in and everypony was minding their own business like they worked for legitimate business and not an evil queen. I looked around, inspecting the room for anything useful. Nothing.
I continued my investigation at the desk, where a yellow earth pony was sorting through files. She looked at me, unimpressed by my shorter height. "Excuse me ma'am, has Shining Armour been here recently? I'm asking for his wife." I asked. She just looked at me suspiciously before readjusting her glasses and staring at me intensely.
"May I ask for what purpose?" she asked, looking me over again "You don't look like a guard or a servant to me,"
"I am one of her close friends and I have photographic evidence to support this on my phone," I took out my phone and showed her a picture of me and Cadence hugging in a picture. I am so glad I got that selfie with her; saves me a lot of trouble making people believe I am actually who I say I am. She stared at the photo in wonder. I almost forgot ponies weren't as advanced as humans were so seeing a photo in a brick must be a shock for her.
"I-uh-wow. I didn't know bricks could light up like that. I'm sorry for your inconvenience. He was last seen a few hours ago with Mr Mindful in his study" she said, still shocked from being shown such an interesting device for her "Also, please come by again to show me that 'phone' as you call it".
"Where is that? Shining Armour is ill and forgot his medicine pills" I asked. She politely pointed me towards the end of the hall, where a sign that said 'Mr Mindful' was on a green door. I thanked her a hurried off to the room, determined to find Shining. If with any luck, he will be there and this was only a misunderstanding yet again. If he wasn't, that would make finding him much harder. The empire is a large city and would take days to search it all even with all our guards on patrols. When I reached the door, I quickly opened it and inspected the place. It was empty, no-one was around but what troubled me more, was the room itself. There were scorch marks on the chairs, likely the result of magic blasts. Pictures and candles were knocked over and there was a smell of smoke from the room. It was clear that a fight broke out here and either Shining was taken or Mindful. Either way, this needed to be checked out by the unicorn team. If there was anyone who could find out what happened, it was them. I started taking pictures of the scene and looked around more for anything more to use as evidence.
When I searched the walls of the room, I could hear a draft from the other side of the room. On the wall, there was an outline of a button which was probably hidden by a photo and from my experience watching Scooby-Doo that If there is a secret button, you press it. So press it I did and revealed a whole new part of the room.
The secret room was a lab. There were test tubes and flasks on every desk as well as a whiteboard displaying plans for a new Neuro-Oxil. It looked like it was supposed to bring the user good dreams but in Shining's case, it gave him a nightmare that pushed him to leave the castle without warning. I thought to myself Did Mindful make a mistake with it or did he give it to him on purpose? This could only be solved by searching more. I continued searching, recording all of my surroundings as I did until I heard a shake from a closet at the back of the lab. I crept slowly to it as to not let whatever is in it know I'm here. When the shaking stopped, I stretched out my hand and opened the door. Inside was a green unicorn I could only assume as Mr Mindful tied up and gagged. He was crying immensely and was squirming for freedom. I picked him up and untied him, making sure to avoid his shlong.
"THANK YOU!!! I was trapped there for a week and only fed once by those monsters" he exclaimed, hugging me. I immediately stopped him and grabbed a lab coat off the floor and gave it to him.
"What happened here, Mindful? Where is Shining?" I asked him. Right now, he was my only lead on finding Shining and I needed him to talk.
"I don't know. I was taken by changelings and one of them replaced me a little after our first session. From what I've heard from their talks that after his 'rehab', they were going to take him to a bunker and send the signal to Chrysalis that he's been captured" he answered.
"Why Shining though?" I asked.
Mindful only shook his head "He's too valuable. His knowledge of both the Crystal Empire's and Canterlot's defences, His large amounts of magic and parasitic love for Chrysalis growing every day. That was way too much of an advantage for Chrysalis to just let go of. At least that is what I assume,"
He had a point. Shining had intel on every nook and cranny of both the Crystal Empire and Canterlot. Him being married to the princess of love would also make for a good ransom for anything she wanted. The possibilities Chrysalis had with him on her side is endless. "We have to get this to Cadence fast before we're too late".
We went to a writing station but before Mindful could put pen to paper, a magic bullet went through his head, killing him instantly. "Oops, did you need him?" a distorted voice called from behind me. It was a changeling, black, punctured with several holes and completely naked. It was female, shown by her wide hips and small bust "I wanted to preserve him for a bit longer but you know we can't let anyone know about this. Awww, and he was so cute too; pouring out his inner trauma to me. Telling me he secretly had feelings for our loving queen, fantasizing about her every night when he went to bed and even avoiding his inferior wife to jerk off to her image,"
Was it true? Did Shining really feel this way for Chrysalis even after he was freed of her control? I didn't want to believe her but after what Cadence has told me about the two of them not having sex in months and the incident before he disappeared. These thoughts consumed my mind before I was brought back by the hysterical laughter of that witch of a changeling. I couldn't show any weakness now. Not after Mindful just died. I will not allow this scum to kill another innocent "You're going to pay for that, changeling. I'll make sure you rot in a cell," I already knew I had an advantage over her with my magic immunity and absorption. I took off my gloves and got ready for the fight to come. This was already over. I was in my element. I charged at her, ready to absorb her magic until she was a shrivelled up mess. However, the changeling female managed to dodge my attack and shot me with her magic attack. Unlike Mindful, my powers allowed me to absorb magic so it had no effect on me. She looked at my unscathed body in shock.
"H-How? How did you completely negate my attack? Nothing should be immune to magic. Not even dragons!" She zapped me again and again, trying to gain some distance but all of the attacks were just absorbed into my body "No...NO! I REFUSE TO DIE WHEN MY QUEEN IS THIS CLOSE TO COMPLETING HER PLANS!!!" she screamed before charging up to her full power and firing a full-power beam at me. I stumbled a bit but only for a second before running at her at full speed. She backed away in fear and was about to fall over before I caught her by her horn.
This sudden action caused pink lines to appear on my skin and run down my arm until it reached her horn. My eyes began to glow yellow for a brief moment before returning to their normal black. The pink lines disappeared and we both fell over, exhausted. I quickly regained my breath due to all the magic I absorbed and stood over her almost lifeless body. I could see her twitching and muttering "No way" over and over. I would've loved to kill her but to get the location we needed from her, we needed her alive. I went to pick her up and detain her but then a small spark of magic went off from her. This caused me to retract my hand. "I refuse to allow myself to fail Chrysalis. If I am going to die then I'm taking you with me!" She petered out before blacking out. I followed the spark to a desk containing bottles marked 'DANGER! FLAMMABLE!'. A sizzling sound rang from the bottles.
"...Shit..."
BOOM
CELESTIA POV
Off in the distance, I could feel the sudden surge of energy from the Crystal Empire. She looked out at the distance from her throne while a mare whined about her problems. So the code has finally awakened once again and for a human so young and inexperienced. What could come of this new development? I can no longer watch the world fall into chaos again. Now is the time to act.
"I'm sorry but something has come up. The court is adjourned as well as night court." an audible moan sounded throughout the long line of waiting ponies. Celestia ignored this, telepathically calling her sister and magicked a scroll and quill and began writing.
Dear Princess Twilight,
CADANCE POV
I was on my balcony, looking out into the distance and praying Noire made a safe return when I felt a surge of energy and heard a very audible 'boom'. The only thing I could imagine that would cause something like this was the investigation of Mindful's study. The one that Noire persuaded me into doing alone. "Noire, you FOOL!" I yelled, bursting out of my office to fly to Noire's location but Noire beat me to it, standing outside my door, panting heavily. His clothes were torn apart and he was bleeding in several places. In his arms was a female changeling, completely unconscious. What was really shocking was the dull grey lines that ran around his arms and he was completely empty of magic. Whatever went down at the mind study must have been intense.
"Cadence, we got some things to talk about but first get a guard to take into custody and maybe a towel to clean up the mess I made in here," he said before dropping the changeling and falling over, unconscious. I picked him up, ignoring the bloodstains on my dress and taking off for Curdle to patch him up. I hope what he found there was worth all of this.
NOIRE POV
"Uugh, my head," I said as I woke up. I was in my old hospital bed and covered in bandages. However, there were no casts so that was a good thing. I got out of bed and was thinking to myself How long was I out for? Has Shining already been taken out of the empire? My thoughts were suddenly interrupted by a clanging sound from the door. I turned and found Cadance at the entrance. She was wearing the same dress she wore when I left and there were bags under her eyes. Her hair was a mess and there was a bowl of water on the floor, splashing water everywhere.
"Noire is this real? If this is fake then I will beat the ever-loving shit out of you," she said, letting loose a long stream of tears.
"What figment of your imagination would tell you this is not real?" I said blankly. We stared at each other before running at each other and hugging "I was so worried about you..." Cadance almost did a double-take at that.
"ME?! You went into a secret lab facility alone and unarmed and almost got caught up in an explosion! You were unconscious for three weeks!" she exclaimed, whacking me on the head.
"Okay, I get it. You should be the worried one. Speaking of, has Shining left the city or is he still here?" I asked.
She let go of me and shook her head "If she did, Me and Shining's love-link I made would've disappeared. The link doesn't extend into the frozen wastelands outside the barrier". Good, that means we still have time but if three weeks have passed then now would be a good time for the changelings to get everything they needed for smuggling. We had to act now.
"We need more guards at the barrier; we can't allow anyone in or out of the city before this has been resolved," I said.
"Faust, two minutes out of bed and you're already planning a raid. Are you sure you aren't the captain?" said a bemused Doctor Curdle at the door, holding a sedative fluid in a needle "If I were one of those incompetent doctors you find everywhere then I would be telling you to get some rest. However, seeing as it's been three weeks and telling you won't stop you, then I will not stop you from doing what you think is right." She put away the needle and embraced me softly and I hugged back. I could tell what she was saying just from the contact alone. "Get back alive, you suicidal maniac. I'll keep the hospital bed warm for you. You may have survived the explosion somehow but you still suffer from crack ribs, fractured arms and a concussion. I expect there to be more when you get back" she hollered as Cadance and I went down to the barracks.
That made me think of what happened at the lab; when I felt that murderous intent. Would I come back with blood on my hands? Would I actually kill someone this time? How would Cadance think of that? She's the princess of love for Christ's sake! It would be weird to assume she wouldn't be against that kind of thing. However, I have the feeling that I will be forced into that situation. She would resent me forever. "Hey, Cadance?" I said, causing her to turn to me in confusion "If I come back different than I was before, how would you feel?" Cadance faced the hallway ahead and smiled, warming me up a little inside. That smile always knew how to erase any doubt from my mind, no matter how large.
"I would still care about you just fine. Whatever change you go through, physical or emotional, can change how I feel about you. I remember when you first got here. The roles were very jacked up. You had just travelled to an alternate world and somehow I was the one in shock while you were as calm as you are now. You were on top of me and you were the one giving me the relay my own life! It was as if you were already deeply ingrained in my life before you stepped on the planet you're on right now. So I know if you change, I'll be with you for better or worse. You are helping me get back my husband and saving the empire so it is the least I could do,"
"That's a risky game you're playing but thanks, Cadance. Now let's get some guards and plan an attack. We need to get Shining as soon as possible." I wanted to tell her about what the changeling told me back at the lab; about what Shining was feeling but for some reason I couldn't. I wasn't ready to unload such a heavy load on her In the middle of this ball of chaos. I couldn't hurt her like that when her heart was so close to shattering.
I was at my bed, curled up into a ball and trying helplessly to hold back a small trickle of tears from my face. However, I was hanging my head low so the tears just fell on the sheets, forming a dark, wet patch on the expensive sheets I would have avoided crying on. I didn't bother going back to talk to him. He was already gone then; with a flash of magic, I felt his presence grow further away from me. Shining was gone and probably out with another mare. This sounded obvious to me at the time; the distance between us for months, how he never seemed to be available enough to give me more than a kiss on the cheek, him disappearing into the city for a reason he would always lie to me about. He was with someone he loved even more than his own wife. I couldn't even be mad at him; I'm the Princess of Love. I'm supposed to help ponies find love but there was the fact of him loving my nemesis; Queen Chrysalis. There was also the possibility of him being mind-controlled by her, forcing him to think the things he does. I prayed that Shining was going to be okay. Then there was the issue with Noire. He was off to what was expected to be an area full of changelings. He could be hurt, captured or even killed. There were too many worries going through my mind and so little things in my room to quell them so I decided to get off and work my stresses away. That was when a letter fell from under the sheets and onto the floor so I could see it. The letter was written on a crumpled up piece of parchment, a sign that the writer was in a rush and had to finish it quickly. The contents of the letter left my mouth and heart agape, making my tears fall even harder than they did before.
Dear Mi Amore Cadenza,
I want to get to the point instead of dancing around it like a doctor; I can't love you anymore.
I have been experiencing nightmares for a long time, ever since we got married in fact. I have had nightmares about your worst enemy; Chrysalis. Before last night, I hated this feeling I got in my nightmares. The feeling of pure joy at seeing her face and having her pleasure me for the entire night. However, now I can only call those nightmares dreams now and soon a reality. She is calling out to me and I cannot wait for her any longer. Even now, I can feel her voice in my ears and her heart on my chest. I must respond. Goodbye Princess Mi Amore Cadenza.
Hers only, Shining Armour
I couldn't believe it. He couldn't even say Cadence or Cady like he usually does. The Shining I knew was gone "No... No! NO!" I howled out to no-one. I ran out into my balcony and checked my love link with Shining. It would allow us to know where the other was at any time, regardless of the distance. It was weak, so very close to shattering. The only thing keeping it stable was my love for him but even that was slowly fading. I could feel it. "CHRYSALIS! YOU HAVE HURT ME FOR THE LAST TIME! YOU WILL PAY FOR WHAT YOU DID TO MY SHINY!!!". My cries reached the ends of the Crystal Empire but I was overshadowed by an explosion sounding from the general direction of where Mr Mindful's Mind Study. Another sound came from outside my own door. I rushed over to find Noire and an unknown changeling in his arms. There were dull grey lines that ran his arms and he was completely empty of magic. Whatever went down at the mind study must have been intense. I held my hands at my mouth, looking down at the pool of red and green blood that was forming at his feet.
"Cadence, we got some things to talk about but first get a guard to take into custody and maybe a towel to clean up the mess I made in here," he said before dropping the changeling and falling over, unconscious. I could only look on in shock. There was just an explosion and from both his and the changeling's injuries and Noire's significantly scorched clothes, I could only presume they were caught in the explosion for a brief moment before they were teleported. If Noire could flash teleport such a long-distance then how strong will he be when given standard training? I thought as I grabbed Noire in my magic and hauled him off to Doctor Curdle. I would take him to a hospital but I wanted what was happening to be confidential to reduce panic. Plus, Curdle was the only one who knew of Noire's physiology. I ordered the closest guards to take the changeling to the dungeon; I wouldn't have cared if she were to die but we still needed her.
CADANCE POV, PRESENT
I walked back to Noire's room after calling the Crystal Generals but remaining vague on details since this wasn't something to announce just yet. I wanted to talk to Noire about the events of what happened before he teleported back here. Fortunately, he was let out of the ward after a brief argument between him and Curdle, which Curdle surprisingly lost. He was in a new set of armour, much more durable than the one he used to wear. It was like Shining's except some of the armour pieces were missing. All that was left were the white and blue greaves, the breastplate and the gauntlets. He wore this over a black, leather coat. "This feels much better. I swear the armour was so stuffy and heavy, moving at anything above a walking pace impossible. This seems SO much more free and functional" he said, sighing in relief. A black and blue sword was in his grasp and was swinging it around like a pro.
"And the coat?" I asked from the door. The sudden sound caused Noire to jump and quickly turn to me. He lost balance while turning and almost fell over. After a bit of fumbling around, he finally regained his balance and sheathed his sword, pretending the incident never happened. I giggled quietly. Even now, Noire can make me laugh with his antics. He was a long ways away from being a guard but already a capable fighter.
"Ok, the coat is only to look cool but wouldn't it be nice to be looking cool when we kick some changeling ass," he said defensively. I had to be honest; it did make him look cool to an extent and it would help him stand out in front of the guards. Speaking of guards, we had to think of a plan with some of our elites. Those elites were expertly trained in a specific field in order to complete very specific tasks in case Shining wasn't around. Noire finished fawning over his new armour and sat down at the bed and patted a space on it for me to sit on. I accepted the offer, taking a seat next to him on the bed. We were silent for a moment, both of us trying to find out a way to start the conversation. In the middle of my thoughts, the thought of whether Shining should be rescued. If he is 'willingly' co-operating with Chrysalis then maybe he is now a threat to the kingdom, maybe even Equestria. Maybe I should make this a mission to retrieve a wanted criminal I thought to myself.
"Noire, I need to tell you something," I said, thinking that Noire should probably know about this before went to retrieve Shining "Before you came back here, I found a letter from Shining. Just see for yourself" I said, quickly handed him the letter, wanting to be as far away from the thing as possible. Noire carefully went through the letter, studying every single word. Each one caused him to tighten the grip on it before finally having enough, crumpling the paper up and throwing it away. "Noire. I don't think Shining loves me anymore. I don't think he ever loved me at all" I said, tears letting loose and falling like raindrops "I mean how could he ever love such a high-maintenance princess who can't even be around him. I mean, I've betrayed his trust so many times just to feel like more of a princess of love instead of a guidance counsellor. I bet he's having such a great time with Chrysalis; giving him all the love and trust he could ever want. I bet he's loving sticking his dick between that fla-"
I was stopped by a strong hug from Noire. His embrace felt the same as all the others we shared but this one was stronger. I could feel his compassion, It was like a seedling growing in the sunlight. It was growing with each passing second and finally bloomed, letting loose a flurry of emotions that could not be contained or controlled "Please, don't ever call yourself that again! I don't want you to feel bad about yourself for no reason. You are a beautiful, strong and kind woman who should never beat herself up like you are now. Whether you want Shining arrested or rescued or dead is fine by me but please don't make yourself out as the problem. I will do anything to make you feel like a princess now and forever."
I couldn't see Noire's face through all of that but I could tell he was livid and probably thinking of ways to beat Shining into a bloody paste. I couldn't take any more heartache; I needed relief, a break from all of this. Even if it only lasted a couple of seconds. I subconsciously drew closer and closer to the man beside me until we were practically swapping air. Noire was noticeably very uncomfortable and even more embarrassed when I leaned into him and whispered in his ear "Noire. I know what I am about to do may seem wrong for you but trust me when I say I need this from you,".
This caused Noire to grow red in his whole face, literally radiating heat but I couldn't care less. He was right in front of me. I had to take the chance. I backed away from him for a few moments before smashing my lips into his, quickly penetrating through the barrier of teeth and dancing around his tongue. His eyes widened so much, they were almost the same size as my own. He quickly struggled to pry himself away from me, squirming around frantically before slowly resigning himself and kissing back. I could tell he didn't do this often as he seemed to lack the experience but slowly improving in technique. This continued for almost a whole minute before we broke away for air. We could only pant and think over what we had just done, faces were both completely red from the lack of oxygen and the embarrassment. When we finally regained control of our breathing, Noire quickly stood up and readjusted the loosened pieces of armour. "So..... about that plan..... on getting him back..... we should probably get to doing that with those guys..." he said, facing away from me in a desperate but fruitless attempt to hide his satisfaction. I noticed instantly that he was trying to change the subject back to stop the potential destruction of Equestria. I silently nodded and followed him out of the room the same way as if nothing ever happened. However, something did happen; and it was better than I thought it would be.
NOIRE POV
I was shocked. Nothing complicated about it...... Ok, unless you count the fact that I was going to save the husband of a princess I may have just had an affair with. When it happened I didn't know what to think until I remembered the person who was kissing me and thought NO! I can't just make out with a married mare! but when I thought of the person she was married to, I thought 'Maybe just this once...' leaving me confused as to whether I liked it or not. Cadence, from where I was standing, seemed to be going through the same problem. She was avoiding eye contact, looking at random objects whenever she got the chance. Our awkward silence was interrupted by a pair of purple doors outlined with gold. "Noire, can we talk later?" Cadence whispered, still avoiding eye contact.
"Sure" I whispered back, immediately knowing what she meant. With gusto, I opened the doors and walked in with Cadence not far behind. We were welcomed by three ponies. all in very unique looking armour compared to the guards. The first one, a unicorn in white and purple armour stood up first from their seat, causing the other two, an earth pony in white and orange and a pegasus in white and green, to follow suit. They all sat down except for me since I was still just a guard but with the privilege to change his armour.
She put on a serious face, telling all of us that she meant business. We all went silent, allowing her to speak. "I am not going to dance around this with you as this needs to be done as soon as possible. Captain Shining Armour has been taken by changelings and will be taken to Queen Chrysalis within the next 24 hours. We must retrieve him before this or else my bonding spell will dissipate and we won't be able to track him. His knowledge will be exploited for Chrysalis' unknown agenda. We have found the exact location through a captured changeling and have fully prepared our main units. My 'personal guard', Noire here will explain our course of action."
To say I was surprised would be an understatement. I did not expect Cadence to just push the attention of three of the strongest and influential ponies in the Crystal Empire onto me like a spotlight. However, this was not about my issues with talking to ponies, let alone three pony generals. This was about how we were to foil the changeling' plans and rescue or capture Shining Armour so my lack of confidence and experience would have to wait. "We have located the changelings' so-called 'bunker' to an abandoned orphanage on the outer limits of the city. It is surrounded by many large buildings, preventing any pegasi to fly in and forms of transportation like our carriages from being unseen by changelings. However, this also serves to our advantage as there are little ways of escaping. This means that the only way of escaping is through the gates" I laid out a map of the city I got from Cadence and pointed towards two marked areas on the perimeter of the city " This is why we must have guards stationed at these points to prevent any way of escape. We must also have guards stationed around the train stations, stopping any disguised changelings from entering. Finally, we need a large squad of elite guards to infiltrate the building to recover Shining. If he at any time attacks, you will have to incapacitate him as he might be a..... possible traitor"
The generals took the time to let that information sink in. I couldn't blame them; to think their captain and prince could be a possible traitor must weigh heavily on their minds. The unicorn general broke the silence plaguing the room "We will need a distraction to allow the squad to enter. The balconies in that area are high enough so they could easily spot your team a mile away." The unicorn, who I now know is female, made a good point. A distraction would be needed to draw their attention away from the infiltration squad.
The pegasus general stood up and walked over to me, pointing towards two buildings in front of the building's entrance "My pegasus corps are expertly trained in marksmanship. We can easily shoot them down, giving you guys enough time to enter before anyone would notice." I hoped our way of distracting them was a little bit less lethal but I couldn't see another way.
"Okay, this can work. Can I rely on your forces to keep the citizens safe and block off the escape routes?" I said to the earth pony general, only answered by a brief nod. I could assume he was not the talkative type "Okay, we set off in an hour. Is that enough time for you to get your forces debriefed and prepared?" They all nodded in response, standing up and saluting towards me. The pegasus general took the opportunity to hang his arm around my shoulder and ruffle up my hair "You did well for a new recruit. By the way, my name's Windy Wing. The silent one is Burning Fist" he said, pointing to the earth pony "And last but not least, the uptight unicorn is Tidal Horn. I hope you stop by my corps station and see what a true guard can do." He let go of me and walked off with the other generals. At the time, I was in awe of his power. My magic absorption allowed me to feel his magic power and it was immense. Was this the result of extensive training or a rare trait? I wonder if the other two were of similar magical potential as him? That would have to wait; we had the battle ahead to win.
WINDY WING POV
I ran up to the other generals, curious as to their opinion on the rookie. When I caught up to them, I walked in front of them and leaned into the two asking "So, what did you think of the princess' new guard? He sure looked strong from the looks of him." Burning Fist merely shrugged his shoulders and Tidal Horn scoffed and crossed her arms in a dignified manner.
"HA! That boy! A guard!? He couldn't measure up to even ONE of our guards! He'll be lucky if he manages to get two feet into the place before getting his face blown off by a changeling! And let's not ignore the fact he wants us to apprehend our CAPTAIN!!! This is a suicide charge that our princess is allowing purely because she's upset he doesn't have her toys under her heels!" Tidal Horn continued to rant and whine until Burning Fist had enough and stopped her in her tracks.
"Tidal, this is NOT a suicide charge. The boy's plan actually is clever and we must accept it, regardless of whether he is a new recruit. On that note, he isn't a weakling either; he is the one who took out one of my own guards and survived the explosion at Doctor Mindful's study. You have to get over this jealousy you feel for Cadence taking Shining and focus on the mission at hand seeing as it will be your corps that will be the infiltration team along with him" He let go of Tidal and immediately braced for Tidal's terrible response.
"WHAT!!!?"
"Your corps guards are trained in infiltration and stealth. They can also sense other magical signatures. Windy's corps will be observing the entrance from above and I will be at a distance, blocking off escape routes with my corps so yours is the only one left. It looks like the boy's plan is more clever than you thought," Burning said with a small smirk.
"Woah! Talking about the kid made Burning smile?! He must be special!" I was already super interested in our new recruit. Burning only sighed and followed us to the end of the hall where they split into our own paths to prepare for the coming battle.
"Boy, I hope this plan works. For Shining's sake."
NOIRE POV
40 minutes. 40 minutes I spent training up my swordsmanship that Shining taught me. He said that I was learning faster than any guard he's ever trained. However, I wasn't going to be a normal guard according to Cadance. It was only supposed to be a test to see whether I was capable of protecting Cadence and if I was trustworthy enough to be near her. Now, I'm less sure of my abilities and even less sure this will only be a one-time thing. Cadence did announce rather nonchalantly that I was her 'personal guard'. Was she being serious or was it just for show? There was also the Crystal Generals, whose immense power could probably deal with every changeling in the place and Chrysalis if there was time to spare. Unfortunately, I had the privilege of infiltrating the changeling hideout with the unicorn general, Tidal Horn, who I believe hated my guts.
Breaking me out of my thoughts was Cadence, dressed in rather slim and small armour almost like Tidal's except it was ( a tight, pink (duh) outfit "I decided that I had to come with you. I had to face Shining again and make him say what he said in that letter to my face," When she finished, we remained in silence for a few moments before she finally gained the strength to speak again "Sorry about the whole 'personal guard' thing. I just.... liked the thought of you..... protecting all of my subjects and..... me so it just came out." It was obvious that she was having a hard time getting everything out, I was having the same issue. I just stood there and listened in silence. ".....I know you hate me for the kiss. I just wanted an outlet so I satisfied that by using you and it was the greatest mistake I've ever made in my life. I am so sorry about that. I hope... you can find it in your heart to forgive me." She was about to turn away from me before I grabbed her by the arm and hugged her. She didn't move or even breath for a moment before hugging me back. I felt a tear land on my unprotected shoulder and Cadence hugging me even more than before.
"You could do nothing to make me feel any differently about you, Cadence. You were the only one to show me compassion when I first landed here. I still have the scar to prove it. I also appreciate the extra magic boost. Did Curdle tell you about it?" I received a nod from her as a response. Curdle discovered that the more willing the subject is to give the magic, the more magic I receive. However, I could still take the magic, regardless of whether they refuse to or not, but the magic is very small compared to the magic she gave me. It was a lot! Almost three times as much magic as the magic I had before the incident at the study.
A bell tolled from outside the training area, signalling the time everyone would be sent to their respective jobs. "We should get going now. Tidal is a real stickler for punctuality," said Cadence. She quickly grabbed my arm and dragged to the place where we were expected to meet with Tidal and her forces. I could feel the sweat on her hands.
Outside of the castle, a squad of 30 guards stood diligently, all of them unicorns specifically selected by General Tidal Horn for the mission. Speaking of her, she was pacing back and forth, waiting for another guard to show up. "Where the hell is that novice guard!? He was supposed to be here a minute ago," she yelled. She was about to rally her troops and leave without him before she heard two pairs of footsteps closing in. It was Noire and Cadence, getting a rise out of Tidal Horn. "What is she doing here? This is a mission for trained warriors, not a pretty pink pony princess," she yelled, causing Cadence to glare at her which Tidal reciprocated with pleasure.
"She insisted on coming and I'm not one for defying my princess. That would be going against my vow to her and we can't have that, can we?" I said while shrugging my shoulders. This caused Tidal to grit her teeth in rage before resigning herself. She turned away from the two of us and went back to her troops. Noire turned his attention back to Cadence "There's a long way to the changeling hideout. We should get to the carriage and tell Tidal we're ready to go" he said. Cadence nodded and went to the carriage next to her; a relatively normal carriage but necessary as we wanted to have this a secret to the changelings and the public. "Okay Tidal! We're ready to go!" he hollered in her direction but she didn't respond to him. However, she got the message and commanded all of the guards to get to their respective carriages and head to the changeling hideout.
While avoiding Noire and Cadence, Tidal, in her mind, was praying "I hope Shining is okay" Tidal murmured to herself. She quickly snapped herself out of the trance she was in and focused on the matter at hand and addressed her guards "ALRIGHT EVERYBODY! ONWARDS!"
The trip was not long with the pace the pegasi were moving at and before I knew it, we were already at our designated locations. The pegasi and earth pony guards were also at their positions and awaited the signal to start. Cadance and I were at the front with Tidal, with a mental communication spell between me, Cadance and the generals if anything went wrong. "Infiltration squad is at the designated location. Awaiting signal."
As expected, there were changeling guards at the balcony, five to be specific. One at each corner of the building and one at the very front balcony. There didn't appear to be anyone else around it though so it was even more beneficial for us. "All pegasus guards have a shot lined up. Awaiting signal."
At the train station, Burning Fist was with his guard at the back of the hideout, outside of the changeling guards' vision. "Barricade is set and all trains in and out are delayed. Awaiting signal."
The time had come. The time to rescue Shining and foil Chrysalis' plans. It pained me to fight my princess' and best friend's lover but at this point, I couldn't tell what is going on with their relationship. The pain would have to wait for later as I could tell Cadance had enough of waiting for what she was dying to know. "Sending out the signal to move out. NOW!" Cadance said, signalling for the pegasi to commence.
"FIRE!" yelled Windy. Five of the pegasus guards fired lightning on the changelings. All at once, the changelings fell to the ground dead. With that obstacle out of the way, we had a clear shot of getting inside the hideout. Tidal motioned for all of us to go before anyone found out about the dead changelings. Our squad ran to the entrance but left three guards at the entrance as the lookout team.
The inside of the hideout didn't look like an orphanage at all. The walls were covered in a green ooze to the extent that you wouldn't be able to believe this used to be an orphanage. The same went for the floor but parts of it were charred up and there was ash everywhere. However, it didn't look like it was recent. More like it was ages ago.
I didn't have time to think about though as the squad was already leaving the main entrance. The squad was then split into three groups of 11 people to increase the chances of finding the changelings; the last consisting of me, Cadence and Tidal. I followed behind Cadence and Tidal, not saying (or thinking) too much to them as I could hear what was going on and I was sure the others could too.
CADANCE POV
"I still can't believe you let this happen to your husband of all people," said Tidal while continuing her pace through the sticky halls. Everyone knew that her admiration for Shining was stronger than most others but I, with my empathetic powers, could tell it was way more than that. She loved Shining deeply and as The Princess of Love, I couldn't tell her not to. I just remained silent and endured Tidal's verbal onslaught "If you just spent less time pandering to useless nobles who don't even belong here and cared for your husband, none of this would have happened. Makes me wonder if you ever loved him at all..."
That was more than I could take. I couldn't argue with that but it sure as Tartarus hurt. A tear rolled down my face which I quickly brushed off to prevent anyone to see. However, Noire clearly saw me crying and put his hand on my shoulder, calming my nerves. "If this is how you treat your superiors, general, then I seriously doubt your abilities to protect them. Maybe you should go back outside and cool off for a moment before Shining becomes the least of your concerns." he said while glaring at Tidal intensely, causing a similar response from Tidal. They continued this until Tidal grunted in anger and turned away.
With that out of the way, we started our search through the rooms; all of them being empty except for some ooze covering the furniture inside. It looked like the entire building was abandoned and I was starting to lose hope of ever finding Shining until Noire pointed out something "We're having no luck looking through all of these rooms. Shouldn't there be a main hall for the changelings to group up at? Maybe they're all there," he said, getting me to cheer up a little bit.
"From what we saw on the map, there was a large empty area at the back of the building. That must be the main hall" Tidal said. Now I was cheered up even more but also surprised that Tidal Horn, even if unintentionally, was the one doing it. I pushed this aside though, casting an enhanced sight spell to check if there was one. I held back on this as this was a large area and it would take a sizable amount of magic to cast. There was also the fact that I expected there to be a lot more changelings around so I didn't think it would be necessary. I could see in the hallway to the right a large door guarded by two changeling guards but the spell was negated before I could reach any further.
"There is a large, guarded door that looks like it leads to the main hall but it has a barrier so I couldn't see past it," I said. Tidal charged past us and Noire followed suit. The guards and I quietly followed until we reached the corner. I silently commanded the guards to stop and allow Tidal and Noire to take them out. I saw the two guards yell at them and started firing magic bolts but were immediately blocked by a shield summoned by Tidal. Noire quickly charged up to them, slicing off the first one's arm before stabbing him in the throat and covering his mouth to stop him from screaming. Tidal summoned a water sword from thin air and pierced the second changeling's legs, causing him to keel over in pain.
"You won't get away with this, bitch. Our queen will kill you easily. It was a mistake to come to this pl-AAGH!!!" That was all the changeling could say before she plunged her sword through its face, killing it instantly. In most situations, I am against the act of killing but I couldn't care for changelings at all after what they did to me at my wedding. No more needed to be thought about though as Noire motioned for us to move forward to the door. We moved closer to the door and hid at either side of the door. The feeling was nerve-racking; having the final battle so close you could even smell it. The time had come to face him again as either an ally or an enemy. Tidal went up to the door and used her magic to dispell the barrier and without a second thought, kicked it open.
NOIRE POV
The doors led into an enormous hall big enough to fit hundreds of people and ponies alike. However, there was no-one present, neither pony or changeling. The only exception was on a podium at the front for presentations, which was being occupied by a single changeling. However, unlike the other changelings, it can be instantly recognised as a 'she' and had long, blue hair; It was Queen Chrysalis. Everyone who saw her was either struck with anger or fear. Cadence was a perfect example of anger, sending a magic bolt her way which was quickly blocked by a barrier formed by Chrysalis. Tidal sent a signal to the rest of the squad, alerting them of her presence "All unicorn units, converge on my location. We have Chrysalis in our sights and requesting backup."
Cadence marched to the front of the group, crying a little before yelling at her violently "WHERE IS SHINING YOU MONSTER?!!!" She started firing more bolts of magic but were completely ineffective, Chrysalis merely waved her hand and a shield reflected every single one with ease. Noire thought she would do this Of course she would do this. She wants this to be over because she already knows what became of Shining. She knows but is still in denial. Chrysalis merely tisked at Cadence's outburst and looked down on her smugly.
"If you were a good wife, you would have seen the seed of love that had grown within him ever since your wedding day. His love for me is genuine and pure, love at its finest. Perfect for me to use to destroy you all with!" she began to charge a magic bolt. However, it was much larger than any attack Noire had ever seen. As soon as she was going to fire, Tidal gathered everyone and surrounded them in a magic shield. Chrysalis fired the bolt which collided with the shield. Tidal put more magic into the shield, causing it to expand and push the bolt back but it easily pushed back harder. Cadence put her hand upward, adding her own magic to the shield. The shield pushed back the bolt completely and sent it hurtling towards the ceiling. Tidal and Cadence then collapsed onto the floor, only having mere shreds of magic left.
"Awww come on you lot! Can't you stand after even one attack? You all must be weaker than I thought or Shining's love must be a serious magic buff!" she exclaimed, laughing maniacally while firing bolts at the guards, sending them all flying away. Their entire squad was easily decimated by Chrysalis' power, leaving most guards gravely wounded, incapacitated or dead. We were outmatched, unprepared and at that rate, we were going to be dead.
"This power... It is the power of love... It has made her several times stronger than at the wedding. So it must be true... Shining's love for me is gone..." Cadence managed to wheeze out. Tidal managed to keep consciousness for a few more seconds to ask her the question she needed to be answered. She stood up and pointed her blade towards Chrysalis.
"Chrysalis... WHERE IS SHINING ARMOUR?!!!" she exclaimed with all she had left. Chrysalis only smiled and looked at the curtains behind her. She lifted the curtains with her magic to reveal a fully armoured Shining Armour with a giant, black claymore. His armour was of the same colour and resembled the skin of a changeling. He had an empty stare that pierced the hearts of all that was watching. He walked up to Tidal, his footsteps growing louder with every step he took. He lifted up Tidal's chin so she was looking him directly in the eye. He whispered something into her ear that no-one could hear and immediately stabbed her. He retracted the sword and Tidal immediately collapsed. She clutched her stomach, trying to stop an immense amount of blood that threatened to come forth. I saw her then summon a vial with her magic and drink it, closing the wound. However, the pain appeared to be too much as she passed out afterwards. I turned my attention back to Chrysalis, who was celebrating her victory, completely unaware of my presence.
"Oh darling, can you get rid of these pests so we can get out of here?" she called out to him "I can still sense two magic signatures. One of them is very... potent and may pose a threat to us if we don't stop him now," Shining nodded and faced the dust cloud that was formed from the attack. In the centre was Noire, with his exposed hand on the back of the incapacitated guard. He tightened the grip on his claymore and took a stance, ready to begin.
"Thank you all for your magic. I can't do this without you" I whispered before standing up and drawing my sword, ready for battle as well "Shining, I don't want to hurt you but if you won't come with us I will," Shining responded by leaping into the air, holding his sword up high before bringing it down on his descent. "Have it your way," I said. That was the last thing I said before my eyes closed and reopened them as a golden yellow.
Our swords collided, creating a massive shockwave. Cadance slid backwards from the collision while Chrysalis was unfazed "Such power. It looks like that boy has the same power as him..." she said to herself as she took in the spectacle that was before her.
Shining landed behind me and swung his blade at my back but was quickly blocked by Noire leaning backwards with his sword, planting it in the ground behind him. Leaning forward and turning to face my opponent again, I delivered several fast slices at his chest but Shining blocked with the flat of his blade. We continued to swing their swords at each other but we were evenly matched, the other could block and attack just as quickly. After half a minute of an intense struggle for the first blood, it looked like no-one could get a solid hit on the other. "This is getting us nowhere," I thought, charging up my sword with magic, causing it to glow blue and the blade extended. I sliced at Shining's left arm, causing him to scream in agony. I wasn't finished as I went down and sliced the inside of his right leg, causing him to keel over. I stood over the fallen soldier with my sword aimed at him "Please Shining, let's go home. You have a wife, waiting for you and a kingdom that needs you to protect them. Please Shining, stop," I begged "I don't want to have to kill you too,"
Shining growled in a distorted voice and got up from his position "If that poor excuse of a wife and her kingdom are the only people in the way of me being with Chryssie forever" he headbutted my neck causing me to stumble backwards "THEN I'LL DESTROY THEM ALL!!!!" he fired a green magic bolt at Cadance who was still struggling to get up. I responded quickly and jumped in front of the attack, taking the full force of it.
CADANCE POV
"NOIRE!!!!!" I yelled. Noire was still standing but his armour was blown away completely, leaving him in scraps of clothing. This only thing left unscathed was his sword which disappeared in a flash of blue light as he fell flat, unconscious. Shining limped towards us, leaving a bloody trail in his wake "I told you in the letter Cadance; I don't love you" I crawled over to Noire in his nearly dead state. She reached out for his hand slowly "I betray you and this kingdom to be with someone I truly love but you can't have that, can you? You just had to get back your little plaything, didn't you?" Cadence's hand was mere millimetres away from his own "What even are you to ponies; The Princess of Love or the Princess of the Crystal Empire because we now know you can't be one without going against what it means to be the other. However, it doesn't matter anyway" when I got close enough, Iaid on top of him. Even if it was futile, I wanted to protect him as he did for me that whole month "You failed at being both!" He brought his sword done to finish us both. I closed my eyes and drew out every bit of magic she had left to teleport them both away.
CHRYSALIS POV
"Well, that was certainly interesting," I said, walking up to Shining. I embraced him and nibbled his neck before biting it, causing him to wince in pain. Seconds after, the wounds he suffered were completely gone, leaving behind only broken pieces of his armour "Maybe we should keep an eye on that boy. Who knows what strength he will come into in the future."
"What about the other changelings?" he asked.
I laughed at his comment "Oh, I slaughtered all of them except for that girl who disguised herself as your therapist. She didn't have the best improvisation skills but it managed to get you on the right side. Why would I even care about them anyway? They were a waste I kept giving precious love to just to waste it on failed missions. They were a thorn in my side I had to pull out" I turned him around to face me "Now, let us go. We have much more to do and our new 'friend' has some new 'toys for us to use" Shining growled passionately and kissed me before I cast a spell, teleporting us both away.
Celestia, Luna and the Main 6 had arrived at the Crystal Empire's entrance. They were surprised to see that there was only one guard at the entrance. Celestia went in front of the group "Guard? Why is there only one of you here? What is going on?"
The guard gulped and cleared his throat before answering "Your Highness, the princess and her personal guard has taken some guards for a mission with some rogue changelings and some kidnapped civilians. That is all I have been informed, sorry". This got Celestia to frown and open her mouth to ask another question but she heard a flash from behind her. When she turned around she saw something she hoped she would never see in her immortal life; Cadence on the floor and Noire covered in bruises and blood. Luna and the Main 6 gathered around the unconscious alicorn and human.
"By the Heavens!"
"Holy Shit!"
"Oh golly!"
"Oh my!"
"Goodness me!"
"Sweet Celestia!"
"CADENCE!"
Celestia had no words that could describe the pain she felt; sadness, guilt, rage. She pushed past the circle and knelt down before Cadence and asked herself "Who did this to you?". To her surprise, Cadence opened her mouth and muttered two words that sent a chill through her aunt's spine before she fell back into unconsciousness.
"...I did..."
??? POV
I sat on my throne, having just finished watching the entire fight. The fight was short, almost boring, to say the least, but each individual there had the potential to grow even stronger, especially my precious 'guinea pig'. He indeed has shown much promise ever since he showed up at the little princess' doorstep...figuratively of course. My new allies proved to be stronger than them at the moment but that may indeed change with the new 'toys' they will receive will either make or break them. Either way, it benefits me. "I can't wait to see what they do next."
It was dark for a while when I woke up from my slumber. I had no memory of what happened before I fell unconscious. However, I did know that I had been here before. In fact, this was the very same place that ominous voice spoke to me before coming to Equestria. This place was only missing the voice.
"Ah, you're awake."
There it was. Seeing as it has been almost a month since you two talked, there was something important to talk about. However, I needed to know something before they said anything. "Um, mysterious voice? Where am I?" I asked nervously.
The voice chuckled and responded "Spiritually, you are in the space between realms; the gap between all worlds and the afterlife. Physically, you are in Canterlot unconscious. The battle with Chrysalis and Shining Armour left you severely wounded. I was even wondering if I had to intervene just to save your life and before you ask, yes, Cadance is safe." That's when it all came back to me; the mission, the fight, me jumping into that attack, that power I felt within me.
"You are thinking about the power you released in your fight with the Shining Armour. Don't worry, everything will be revealed to you when you wake up" the area began to shake around you "Which seems to be happening right now. Goodbye Noire, protector of the code..." the voice began to fade away as a falling sensation consumed me.
The darkness soon gave way to light as the falling sensation suddenly stopped. I now felt the soft feeling of a bed and a large object on top of me. When I fully opened my eyes, they were immediately overwhelmed by fur and pink.
"HEY LOOK! IT'S WAKING UP!" a rather excited voice yelled. I groaned and looked up and saw a pink earth pony on top of me. Her mane was of the same colour but darker and had light blue eyes. I looked down and saw her bountiful cleavage mere centimetres from my body. My face turned a deep red and on instinct, I pushed the lady off me. She fell on the floor and was rubbing her head which now had a lump on top. I immediately regretted the decision as now a new pony was now on top of me, this time a light blue pegasus with red eyes and a rainbow mane. Unlike the last one, she wasn't too happy.
"HEY! WHAT DO THINK YOU'RE DOING, HURTING MY FRIEND LIKE THAT?!" she yells in my ear. I grew tired of all of the yelling and got out of the bed I was in. The pegasus got off me though and immediately took a fighting stance. I was not in the mood for it though so I just turned to the person that looked the most reasonable. The person that Cadence was so happy to talk about in her diary, Twilight Sparkle.
"Morning Twilight Sparkle, sorry to ask after the whole... 'thing' that just happened but I need to know. How long have I been out?" I asked her politely. She was taken aback by this sudden politeness and was silent for a bit before answering me.
"You've been unconscious for a week now. Cadance woke up a couple of days before you and she seems fine physically except she's been constantly checking up on you ever since. Princess Celestia has also been here while you have been gone and asked us to watch you and tell you when you wake up to go to her. She's in the dining hall right now."
When she finished, I thanked her and went over to the pink earth pony. However, the pegasus immediately rushed over to defend her so I remained at a distance. "Miss? I am sorry for pushing you earlier. I'm not at my best in the morning. I hope you'll forgive me," the pony instantly went up to me as if she just teleported me and started hugging me tightly and GOD did it hurt but that was just because of my injuries.
"Of course I'll forgive you. Nopony's at their best in the morning. Not even ME! I only eat 15 cupcakes when I should be eating 25!" That explains a lot but not explaining how she just teleported to me. I opened my mouth to speak but the orange earth pony in the stetson interrupted me.
"Don't bother, we all stopped trying to understand Pinkie Pie a LONG time ago" everyone nodded their heads at that except the pegasus, who was still being defensive around me but dropped the fighting stance "Don't worry about Rainbow. She's just looking out for her friend. Sometimes her loyalty blinds her to what is a friend or foe," the pegasus that I now know is Rainbow grumbled in response and walked back to the group with Pinkie.
"Anyway, can you gals lead me to the dining hall... and my shirt?" I asked as Twilight lead me down the halls to Celestia while Pinkie Pie hands me my shirt from inside her mane...
She was going to be an interesting friend.
We finally made it to the dining hall where Celestia and Cadence were waiting. Cadence immediately rushed over to me and hugged me, obviously excited to see me conscious again "NOIRE, you're okay!" she said, giving me a kiss on my left cheek, surprising everyone except Celestia. I blushed lightly before Cadance slapped me on my right cheek, with the same result from everyone "and that was for being an idiot. What were you thinking, jumping into that attack like that?!"
My face stung a lot as I chuckled "I guess I wasn't thinking but at least you're okay, my princess" I said, imitating a bow. It was now Cadence's turned to blush and we exchanged chuckles before Celestia stepped in.
"I'm am also glad that you have recovered from such a battle but now we have much to discuss. Now that you have 'awoken', it is time that I explained to you the threat that now poses this world," she said, gaining all of our attention "I know you all have questions so allow me to explain who is behind all of this and you can ask questions afterwards." We all took a seat at the table and let Celestia start her story.
"It all began with a rift in time and space. Nopony knew of where it came from or how it happened. It just... appeared and from it came the humans. Humans from various different universes. At the time, Luna and I were novice rulers, only being in power for a few months after our parents... left and didn't fully understand the concept of the multiverse. We learned from each other and we were a the verge of a new era until we learned of the person who caused this event; Grim." we all took in the information we were just told, especially me. I feel like I had heard that name before but I couldn't put my finger on it. However, I stayed silent and allowed Celestia to continue "The power he wielded was a power even we could not fathom and in a single day, the kingdom of Equestria was overthrown and we were thrown into the dungeons to rot. His reign lasted for a whole century until a lone human who opposed him came, claiming he too possessed the power of the gods, the power that only humans could wield. The power to see and control the pure flow of magic that binds all worlds that he called 'The Code'. Their collision was world-shattering and when the final blow was struck, the lone human came out victorious. After that day, the human returned all of the humans to their original worlds and erased everyone's memory of the event, both humans and ponies. He left us our memories and as he was on his deathbed, he told us 'Grim will return but another will rise in my place. The protector.'"
Everyone turned to me. I was in complete shock over what I had heard but also what was inferred. Could Chrysalis be working with this 'Grim' guy? The chances were very likely seeing as she was way stronger with Shining as a love battery and Shining himself being a lot stronger as well. This could all be the work of this one man. A voice called out in the midst of all of my chaotic thoughts. It was Cadence waving a hand in front of my face, starting to get worried "Noire! Are you alright?! You've been silent for ages! What's wrong?" she asked. All of the thoughts disappeared when she spoke, just like always she had a way of calming me down when I felt so lost and this time was no different.
"Sorry about that, just thinking about if Grim was behind this whole thing all along. With Chrysalis. With Shining..." she went silent at the thought of Shining being under control but shook it off immediately.
"No, I checked every spell enchanted onto him at the time. He was under no spell and had no influences inside him at the moment. That is why I want to finally get those divorce papers done" Everyone, even Celestia, looked downtrodden at the news "Even before all of this, I knew there was no hope for us in this relationship. All we did was work and were barely awake enough to give each other more than a peck on the cheek. The last act of compassion he showed me was telling me honestly that I am a terrible Princess of Love and an even worse ruler. The only thing I can do right realise all of the mistakes I've made."
Everyone remained silent. Celestia hanged her head down low and Twilight clenched her fists at the loss of her brother. I was having none of this sadness and stood up, getting a rise out of all of them. I grabbed Cadence's hand and led her outside of the dining hall. Once I found an unoccupied bedroom, I forcefully threw her onto the bed. She was about to question me about what I was doing but I interrupted her "When did the mare I swore to protect become this? I remember when I used to be the one all depressed and lost but you were the one that reached out to me when everyone, even your own husband thought of me as a freak. I remember when you defied your aunts, the monarchs of the sun and moon, for me and now here you are, blaming yourself for something you couldn't have stopped. When did the Cadence I cared about feel so down on herself?" Cadence remained silent "Cadence, I don't know if what Shining said about you being a terrible princess is true and I don't know if he still truly loves you but if you continue blaming yourself for this, you'll never escape it or move on. Trust me, I know. You've got to find some light in the darkness just like how I found you in my darkest moments and whatever you find..." I grabbed her hand and pulled her up off of the bed "...I hope I'll be there to see it with you"
No more words were required. We just had to stand there, enjoying each other's company. Cadence slowly closed in on me. I knew what this meant and would have been a liar if I said I didn't want this too. I closed in on her myself, preparing for another kiss until...
"Hey, Cadence are you okay in there?" A voice called out from the other side of the door. Cadence and I quickly separated and cleared our throats. Cadence went over to the door and allowed Twilight and the rest of her friends to enter. I tried to push the thought of me and Cadence kissing after this to the back of my head but to no avail.
"I'm sorry to interrupt but we never got the chance to formally introduce ourselves," Twilight said. It was true that I didn't know these ponies except Twilight but only from the diary "My name is Twilight Sparkle but you already now that from Cadance." I didn't quite understand why at the time but I could feel the hate leaking out of her. Then I saw her quick glances towards Cadance and connected the dots. The conversation that was going to ensue was not going to be pretty but it was one they both needed to have. Shaking this from my thoughts, I focused on the other five ponies yet to introduce themselves.
The white unicorn stepped forward to introduce herself "My name is Rarity and might I add that your attire is atrocious! We must get that fixed immediately! Please come to me sometime today so that I can get your measurements" she said. I could already tell she's going to be that melodramatic type. I nodded silently and let the next pony introduce themselves.
"I'm Rainbow Dash: Fastest flyer in Equestria. Also, hurt my friend again and you'll never live to regret it!" the pegasus yelled. She began to get uncomfortably close to me and it was getting kind of awkward. I gently moved her away and moved on to the next pony.
"The name's Applejack: honest farmer of Sweet Apple Acres" it was nice and simple. I liked her for that.
"My name's Pinkie Pie. Are you gonna come to Ponyville because if you are we can throw you a BIG party... OMGIforgottostartyour'WelcometoEquestriaparty'gottagobye!" she said before dashing off at a speed that even Cadence couldn't explain. I was about to question it but Applejack just gave me a look that just screamed 'Don't.'
"Anyway, wasn't there another pony here?" I asked. Applejack moved to the left to reveal a bright yellow pegasus with long, pink hair hiding behind her. She squeaked and tried to hide behind Applejack but she stopped her. She pointed towards me and patted the pegasus on her shoulder. She took a deep breath and walked slowly towards me.
"Hello, my name's...Fluttershy" she seemed to be the shy type (probably should've guessed that from the name) but I went over to her and extended my hand. Fluttershy retreated for a moment before realising my good intentions and shook my hand.
"Well hello everyone, my name's Noire but you must've already known that. I hope we can all be great friends." everyone agreed at that statement. Rainbow seemed to be a lot tamer towards me but still kept that 'I don't trust you' vibe. "Now I need to go talk to Celestia about something if she's available so I will see you when I see you," everyone said their goodbyes and I left the room to find Celestia. Little to my imagination, 'things' were happening in the room that I had just left, the bad kind that always has to be involved with love.
CADANCE POV
As soon as Noire left the room, Twilight turned to me. Fury was plastered onto her face as she stormed over to me. I was going to ask what the problem was (A stupid endeavour, I know) but Twilight swiftly slapped me across the face, getting a rise out of everypony. "Twilight! What was that for?!" I asked angrily. That awarded me another slap.
"YOU KNOW WHAT YOU DID! YOU LET MY BROTHER FALL INTO THE HANDS OF YOUR WORST ENEMY AND A TYRANT!" she yelled back. Her friends were completely silent, not wanting to get in the way of two powerful magic users "AND THAT ISN'T EVEN THE WORST PART; YOU DECIDE TO JUST GIVE UP ON HIM TO GO FUCK YOUR GUARD!"
She must have noticed what happened between me and Noire. I couldn't blame her for how she saw the situation. Giving up on Shining and trying to make out with my personal guard for the second time does seem pretty selfish of me. However, I took Noire's advice and stood up for my actions. "Twilight, I'm sorry about what happened to Shining but I had checked it myself; Shining no longer loves me and I have to accept that and move on. As for what happened with Noire, I just acted on impulse. It may or may not have been love but him and I are working on that and after everything has been resolved, I hope both of us can still be close," Twilight seemed to have calmed down slightly with some input from her friends but she still didn't like my argument.
"What about Shining, huh?! What about my BBBFF that you promised to keep safe when you said your vows?! Will you two still be 'close'?!" she asked me, still shouting but not as loud as before.
I sighed, knowing that the truth might hurt her a lot more than I want it to "If we meet him again and we can't stop him, We may require the elements of harmony or even..." I stopped there as Twilight was left speechless after what I had just said and what I implied. It hurt me too to say such things to the man I once loved but with the revelation of Grim striking once again and this time, with an even stronger Chrysalis and an even more loyal Shining Armour, I couldn't figure out a way to defeat him without killing either one or both.
"I can't believe you. What happened to the loving foalsitter that always told me 'Love conquers all'?" she asked me with a disapproving glare.
"She lost everything because of love and now doesn't even know what love is any more" I replied solemnly. I decided I had enough of this conversation and walked out the door, leaving behind Twilight and her friends "I hope one day you can forgive me, Twilight" I whispered as I walked down the hallways. I needed time alone.
NOIRE POV
I was sat in the dining hall with Celestia, eating breakfast as one usually should in the morning. However, there was too much on my mind which was being excellently portrayed by my barely touched breakfast. Celestia saw this and levitating my fork with my omelette and shoving it down my throat. The sudden action caused me to cough violently, much to my displeasure. She went over to me and started patting me on the back until I stopped coughing. "Oh my goodness, I am SO sorry! I just wanted to tease you a bit," she said sadly, feeling sorry for me.
"It's okay, I was probably asking for it. That was the coldest omelette I've ever tasted" I said. I was really out of it since the whole thing with me having the 'power of the gods' and Grim wanting to destroy us all. "I think everyone is a bit shaken up from what you just told them,"
"Ah yes, I also saw that distress. Especially in young Twilight. She seems to be very upset with Cadence about wanting to divorce Shining and is probably arguing with her as we speak," she said rather calmly. I couldn't blame Twilight for feeling this way. I mean, if I found out my brother was taken by an evil queen and getting divorced at the same time, I would be pretty livid.
"However, that is a problem Twilight will have to overcome herself. Anyway, you came here to talk to me about something, correct?" she asked.
Damn immortal princesses; they could always see right through me. I sighed, knowing dancing around it was fruitless now "Could you teach me how to use this 'code' powers? The first time I used them, I had no idea what I was doing and the second time I was acting purely on instinct and had no control over what I was doing,"
Celestia placed her hand on her chin and thought about it for a literal second before answering me "I don't know much about the code but Luna seems to know a lot more than I do. You would have much more luck with her during night court than me. She, unfortunately, gets very little ponies during her court," she said, chuckling lightly. I mentally noted to talk to Luna when night court started. I nodded and finished my sandwich with a completely clear mind "Oh and before you go, I almost forgot to tell you the state of your unicorn general and changeling that were brought in" she added. That got me to choke on the piece of sandwich in my mouth before swallowing it. How could I have forgotten about her?!
"Don't worry, she's safe in the Crystal Empire recovering. A pegasus managed to get in and recover her and all of the living guards he could find. Quite a fast fellow, he is," she must be talking about Windy. I still need to find out how strong he is but if he has THAT much speed to save multiple ponies without being found, he must be extraordinary.
Celestia finished her meal and stood up "It is time for day court to commence. I will see you later, Noire," she walked to the door and before she left she winked at me and smiled "You must be going as well. Wouldn't want to make your new marefriend upset," she giggled and walked out, leaving me completely confused and questioning how much she knows about Cadence and me.
Speaking of Cadence, I should go find her and make sure she's okay. If Celestia is correct and given by her knowledge, she should be, then I should find her and hope Twilight didn't say anything uncalled for. I got up as well and headed out to where Cadence was. However, before I could find her, I was graced with the presence of Twilight Sparkle once again. "Hey, Twilight? You wouldn't happen to know where Cadance is by any chance?" I asked, pretending like I didn't know about her opinion of Cadance. Everyone flinched at her name except Twilight who's mood instantly turned bitter.
"She's probably off crying about her failures. I don't know where she is and I really don't care. Now if you'll excuse me, I want to finally get something to eat and forget this entire morning," she said, holding her head up high like a noble and walking past me. Everyone else looked at me and her before frowning and following her. From that cruel response, I can see how things went when I left. This was seriously not what I needed; more people who don't like me or Cadence or both of us as a couple. That just seems to be a recurring outcome when Cadence and I are together. We really needed to fix that.
I continued my search for Cadence around the castle, asking nearby guards if they had seen her. I probably should not have done that as some of them went paranoid and started a full-scale search for her. She was certainly not going to like that. After searching everywhere, I was stumped on places she could be. I didn't know the layout of Canterlot so searching there would be suicide. I looked out the window next to me and mentally slapped myself at what I saw; Cadence. On the roof. Of course. Its the only place where she doesn't have to worry about guards or nobles bugging her. I ran to the nearest guest room, opened the window and climbed through to where Cadence was hiding.
She looked less sad than I would have thought. She looked more...lost. I walked over to where she was sitting and took a seat next to her. Looking out, I could see so much more than in the Crystal Empire. I could see many villages and towns. One village was at the very back of the horizon, right next to a very large, dark forest. Cadence looked over to me and pointed to that very same village "That's Ponyville, the village where Twilight and her friends live" she said very sadly "The place where she learns about friendship every day. I hear the ponies there are very kind and friendly. I wonder how many friends she's made since her first day there. Must be a lot," I remained silent and allowed her to let her mind roam free. That lead her to her next thought "Do you think there is a place where I can learn about love?" I had no answer to that. As an inexperienced youth fresh out of college, I couldn't really offer anyone or pony any advice on love. However, if romance novels (NOT the bad kind. Hand on the Bible), then I at least could say this.
"I don't think there is a place where you can learn about love or a person who can teach you. The only way to 'understand' love is to experience it for yourself" I said. Cadence looked at me longingly. I wonder what she was thinking...
CADENCE POV
"Kiss him. I want to kiss him so bad." I thought to myself. He was right next to me, so close that I could feel his skin against my fur. I wanted him so bad but I couldn't. What would everypony think then? Twilight would hate me even more and the others would probably do so too. Celestia would be so disappointed to see me acting like a bitch in heat (Which I wasn't. My heat isn't for another three months). However, their opinions weren't as important to me as the one sitting next to me. What would he think? He would probably say 'Everything's cool', making me feel even worse. Why was he the one always making me feel better? Why do I want him to make me feel better all the time? These questions kept pounding against my head until my heart came to the most logical conclusion. "Because I love him. I want him to hold me every morning when we wake up and every night when we fall asleep". That made sense in my head and my heart at the time. So I did what any love-crazed mare would do at a time like this.
"Are you going to kiss me or am I going to have to make the move on you for the third time?" I asked very seriously. The moment I finished, Noire turned into a flustered mess, fumbling with his words until he got a grasp over himself.
"Cadence? Are you sure about this?" he asked, equally as serious. Neither of us was playing around any more. It was time to settle our feelings for each other. I nodded very sternly and closed my eyes, waiting for a kiss. I expected it to come very gently, like how Shining and I first kissed but no. Noire was nothing like Shining. He slammed his lips into mine as if this was the last kiss he was going to get in his life. I could still feel his tongue's experience, the same as the first time. I reciprocated the force and now we were both fighting with our tongues for dominance until Noire took more initiative, picking me up.
"Where do you sleep?" he asked. His voice was a lot deeper than before and there was an aura of confidence around him. Almost like he knew what to do.
"Third room on the fifth corridor to our left. Do you want me to teleport us there?" I said, gaining a chuckle from this 'new' Noire.
"No need." he merely said as we were then teleported to my room where we made out and snuggled for an hour until we fell asleep.
Meanwhile...
Celestia was on her throne, ignoring more bickering nobles as she looked out of the window, witnessing the new lovers making out "I knew from the moment I saw those two together that they were meant for each other. I should get those divorce papers for her tomorrow. She'll want some time with her new coltfriend," she mumbled to herself. She was soon interrupted by an even louder shout from one of the nobles. "STOP BICKERING IN MY CASTLE AND SOLVE IT YOUR DAMN SELVES!!! I'M YOUR PRINCESS, NOT YOUR MOTHER!!!"
"Why am I in Cadance's room?" I asked myself, half-asleep. We were in Cadance's bed, still in each other's arms. I would've let go but I was way too comfortable and confused at the same time. I stared blankly at the ceiling, trying to process everything that just happened. My memories were completely scattered. Cadence, on the other hand, had full recollection of the entire thing.
We just made out... and cuddled... for the entire day. If that was just making out then how long could we go... 'under the sheets'? Cadence thought to herself. Her cheeks were completely red at that point and grew warmer in her lower lips with each passing second, She turned and looked at me, still blankly staring at the ceiling I wonder what he's thinking right now...
What happened?... and why do I feel something wet? I thought. I turned to meet Cadance's gaze, her cheeks still flushed. He rubbed around the wet area, which immediately was followed by a gasp and moan from Cadence. Wait a minute... Cadence just moaned. Something is wet. Cadence and the wet thing are very close to each other. Am I touching... he quickly retracted his hand, causing Cadence to moan again. She quickly covered her mouth to stop herself but the damage was already done.
Both of us shot up from their positions and got off of the bed. I looked down to find himself in boxers. I looked across to find Cadence in only her panties and her bra. I was even more flustered now, unable to say anything. Ending this long silence, I asked "WHAT THE HELL?! How did I get like this?! How did you get like that?! What the hell happened?!" That reaction wasn't received very positively. Cadence was surprised and angry that Noire had no memory of the event and asked
"What do you mean what the hell happened?! You don't remember?!"
That was when everything came back to me. I carried Cadence to her bed and had the best night's sleep in years. The cuddling and making out noises were playing in my head, causing my blush to grow even more until I looked completely red. I felt like steam was about to blow out of my ears like a steam engine but I managed to cool myself down. Taking a deep breath, I warmed up the confidence to speak up "Okay, how about we get some clothes on and when we are a bit calmer, discuss what this makes us and how we are going to explain this to your friends and family,"
My proposition got Cadence to calm down a bit, losing her blush. She shyly nodded and went to the bathroom to cool off in private. I looked around in search for my clothes and found them laying on the floor on the other side of the room. He picked them up and got dressed. I didn't need to do much for my appearance as my hair was quite short and was always tidy and clean. I brushed off some of the dust on my clothes and silently waited for Cadence to come out.
After five minutes, Cadence left the bathroom. She was in rather casual clothes; a black t-shirt with the words 'Tough Lover' on it, a pair of jorts, pink tights and pink trainers. Not appropriate clothing for a princess' standards but that didn't matter now. Cadence sat on the bed next to me, keeping close to him.
"So... you're a biter," Cadence said, gaining a weak chuckle from me.
"And you like to be bitten," I responded, gaining an equally weak chuckle from Cadence. A pregnant silence filled the room and stayed for a few moments until both adults sighed "We made out... a lot. Does this mean we're-"
"-going to be screwed when we tell this to the others? Going to be criticised by the entire country?" Cadence rambled.
I blushed slightly and finished my sentence "going out?"
Cadence blushed slightly and leaned against my shoulder "I would like that. In the eyes of others, it may seem forced and completely not thought through but I think we can really go somewhere. Solve this issue of Chrysalis, Grim... Shining... What about you?" I was silent for a single moment before pulling Cadence even closer and laying my head against hers "I'll take that as a yes,"
"We gotta tell the others. We can't hide this from them," I said.
"I know," she replied "We can do that tomorrow though. It's night-time". 'Night-time' rang in my mind for a few seconds as I remembered Celestia's suggestion to train under Luna.
"Crap, I gotta ask Luna to train me. Can you wait for me?" I asked, gaining a chuckle as Cadence kissed me on the cheek.
"Of course I will, my love," she said as she pushed me out with her magic "Now go spend some quality time with Aunty Luna," she said gleefully. Once I was out of the room, the door slammed shut, leaving me alone to process all of this.
"Is this what it's like to love a really, really kinky chick? Questions for later" I asked myself as I made my way down the hallways to night court.
"So, allow thee to summarise: Thou want us to train thou in the art of combat as thou wants to master an ageless power, not even we can surpass without the aid of alicorn magic or supernatural magic productions of unity?" Luna asked, with her head tilted to the side in confusion.
"Well, I said 'seizure-inducing rainbow blasts of friendship', but yes that would be the sum of it," I said to Luna who was sitting on her throne. I had proposed the idea of her needing a friend with a less 'influential' description and me in need of someone who had the free time to teach me. Since practically all of Canterlot swarms Celestia with either pandering or paperwork, Twilight hates my guts and Cadence didn't know anything about the powers I had, Luna was the best solution. "I mean, you know why I can't ask anyone else about this and Celestia told me you knew more about the code than she did so you just seem like the best and the only option I have. Please, I got my ass whopped by Shining with just one attack and my best way of fighting is my average level swordsmanship. I need your help."
Luna only remained silent and listened to everything I was saying. I couldn't tell what she was going to do next, scaring the nightlights out of me until she finally spoke "We met with the human warrior who saved Equus from destruction many times. Some would say before he passed, that we were very close friends. We watched him die before my very eyes and tell me that he would be replaced. Now here you stand, ten thousand years later, asking for us to help you become the human we treasured so dearly. What makes you believe we would be okay with that?" she asked, her tone starting to become more solemn, maybe even angry. I could see how this would upset her slightly but I could not waver there. There is a threat that is strong enough to shrug off an alicorn and can grow even stronger.
"If that human was wrong about anything in his life, then he was wrong about ever feeling like anyone could replace him in his life. No-one in this word can be replaced because there will always be people who love you differently. They will keep them in their hearts as a friend, lover, family or even something completely different. You can't give your love for someone to someone else, love doesn't work that way. He... or she will be in your heart and no matter what distance you are from them, the love you give to them will always be for them and only them,"
Luna was silent after my speech, unable to say a thing. When I finished, I waited for her to say or do something. Luna pushed herself off of her seat at walked towards me. I believed that I did something horribly offensive because alicorns can kill people really easily and closed my eyes, prepared for banishment. Instead, I felt a hand on my shoulder, then two hands and soon enough Luna was pushing her entire weight on me. Her being taller than me caused me to fall over with her being on top of me. We stared in silence for a moment until we heard a click coming from the door. We turned to find a reporter pony at the door. Before either of us could stop him, he quickly ran around a corner and out of sight. Luna got up and brushed herself off, pulling me up and fake coughed "Well, Noire, we have heeded your words and agreed to your request. We shall commence tomorrow so we have enough time to prepare a training regime... and find that reporter. Be warned as we will not go easy on you; We will break you and build you up again. So enjoy your last peaceful sleep" I walked to the door, ready to go back to Cadence's room but Luna stopped me "Your words remind us of my dear niece. We see sharing a bed with her has caused her to 'rub off on you'" she said with a playful wink. I blushed, understanding the joke and went back to Cadence's room in embarrassment.
TWILIGHT POV
I can't believe those two, they start fucking around like they're dating after one attempt at rescuing my brother I thought as I sat in a circle with all of my other friends. Pinkie had just returned from... somewhere and I was starting to get really anxious so we all decided to play truth or dare to lift all of our spirits. I had to be honest with myself, I was affecting the group negatively with all the outbursts I've been having lately. I didn't want to cause a rift between my friends but the lines between us were drawn very quickly.
Rarity thought the two looked good together and compared them very strongly to the sappy romances she's been reading and the similarities showed themselves; a distressed damsel forced to chose between two lovers, a knight in dare I say shining armour with a noble and just heart, and a rough around the edges, witty loner with a kind heart underneath the bad boy look.
Applejack openly admitted that she's fine with Noire as she sensed his good soul and drive to protect Cadence and everyone he holds dear. I respected her for her honesty and her ability to be okay with something no matter how severely it might change what goes on her life, something I wish I had. I guess Noire and Cadence being together wouldn't change her much seeing as she likes to distance herself from the snobbish upper class.
Rainbow Dash was the only one, except me, who was against them. However, her reason is much more directed to Noire rather than Cadence. His understandable reaction just didn't sit right with her and getting her to change her mind is about as easy as explaining the Pinkie Sense. This caused me to not back her up as much when she voiced her opinion on Noire and Cadence.
Pinkie Pie and Fluttershy were the only two who were indifferent to the subject. Pinkie Pie was much more interested in having everypony become friends and having fun while Fluttershy hasn't really said anything about either of them.
Overall, everypony was split up about the issue but we put our opinions aside and enjoyed the night. At least we did until Rainbow opened her mouth, something I wish she did less often. "So Fluttershy, we've all told everypony our opinions about Princess Cadence and the hoo-man but you so spill," she said, crossing her arms and floating towards her. Everypony could see Fluttershy getting very uncomfortable "Come on, your opinion can't be that bad. What could possibly stop you from telling us something so-"
"I SAW THEM HAVE SEX!" she yelled out before quickly covering her mouth. Everypony went completely silent, unsure of what to say about this new revelation. I came up to Fluttershy and put my hand on her shoulder. She still had her hands over her mouth and was starting to grow very red in the cheeks.
"Fluttershy, are you sure that is what you saw? Are you sure it wasn't just somepony else?" I asked. My tone made it sound like I was pleading because that was what I was secretly doing in my head.
Fluttershy nodded her head "Yes, I'm sure. I heard moaning coming from Cadence's room. When I went to check what was going on, I saw Cadence and Noire in bed together. Noire was being... very physical," I leaned backwards and stumbled onto the floor, in total shock. My suspicions were true, Cadence was betraying Shining and using Noire as her fall back. I slowly got up and turned away from the entire group. Pinkie's mane was deflating, Rainbow looked outright furious, Fluttershy was on the brink of tears and Rarity dramatically fainted. Applejack was the only one being calm about everything and stood up.
"Ah think we should go to bed. We have to head back to Ponyville bright and early" she said glumly and went off to bed. Every pony else soon followed suit with me being the last. I turned off the lights and went to the land of dreams. However, instead of dreams of my friends, there were schemes of ruining my sister-in-law's life just like she did with my family.
CADENCE POV
It was getting close to midnight and I was starting to get anxious. Noire had only been gone for ten minutes but to me, it felt like an eternity. There was an itch in my exposed loins which I wanted him to 'scratch' but the thought of us having sex literally after ten minutes after confirming our relationship. Fuck, I haven't even completed the divorce papers so this can be totally be seen as cheating. I was about to solve the issue myself until Noire came into the room, causing me to blush while he stared at my open marehood in awe. It wasn't every day something like this happens to a princess so I wasn't entirely sure what to do or say. I was about to speak until Noire chuckled and made his way over to me. His presence made me feel guilty, but a kinky kind of guilt.
"You wanted me to help you with that, didn't you?" I could only blush harder at his comment "I won't hand over my V-card just yet, not exactly fully prepared for that, but I got something else that may help you out, my horny princess."
I was about to ask what he meant but he cut me off by entering two fingers into my marehood. It was amazing! Stallions almost never try this with their mares and Shining was no exception. I thanked the heavens that the human race was not a stranger to foreplay! I thought he was restrained when it came to sex but I was proven very wrong when he suddenly pulled them out and dived under the sheets. He massaged my loins with his tongue "Sweet Celestia!" I screamed. He was working non stop on me, licking my insides thoroughly until I couldn't take any more "Ah! I'm cumming!" I gripped his hair and made him drink all my juices. When the juices stopped, I let Noire and he wormed his way up to me. He smiled lightly, looking over his spoiled masterpiece. I held him tight and started to fall asleep "Next time, it's your turn," I said between yawns. Noire only smiled and held me back, his eyes starting to close as well.
Sometimes I wonder if aunty Tia shines the sun in people's eyes on purpose because if I could do that as easily as she does, It would amuse me to no end. However, until I find a way to stop that vicious ball of fire, I will have to endure. Much like I was doing it that day. "For Faust's sake, I get it; the sun is bright but it doesn't have to rub it in my face," I murmured into my 'pillow' and by that, I mean Noire's chest. I wasn't as toned as Shining's but he was getting there. His training with Luna was going very well, one week and Noire was looking like a champion even though half of the time he looks like he was about to drop dead. Luna's training is NOT for the faint of heart and the weak of will. I can remember every gruelling exercise that he had to endure...
DAY ONE
"FASTER WEAKLING!" Luna yelled into the distance, looking down on Noire who was running laps around the castle. He was completely invisible as to not raise attention to himself. Once he had finished his third lap, he was sweating buckets "YOU FOUND THAT TIRING! WE COULD RUN LAPS AROUND YOU! ANOTHER LAP!" she yelled. Noire didn't bother groaning as Luna would give him another lap, which was how he ended up doing the third lap for.
I was with Luna at the time, watching him run and to be there if he collapsed. In the corner of my eye, I could see Twilight and her friends leaving the castle. Twilight looked up at me and gave me a look that screamed 'I'll ruin you', which in my case, was really likely.
DAY TWO
The next day was even worse than the first. Noire was hiking through the Everfree with a large sack of rocks on his back, panting every step of the way. I had never seen Noire so tired before. When he was training with Shining, the most I would see was some bruises from getting bested at sparring but this was completely different. It looked as if he was close to passing out but he still persevered. Luna was pleased with this "GOOD! NOW YOU ARE STARTING TO LOOK LIKE A TRUE WARRIOR! DO NOT STOP UNTIL I SAY SO!" she yelled, watching over him from the sky.
DAY THREE
Three was a lot tamer. This exercise was based on training his magic. He was ordered to try to sap as much magic from Luna as possible. He placed his arm on her shoulder and instantly felt the pressure of a fully matured alicorn's magic. He immediately fell but was caught by Luna's bust. It was an awkward moment for all of us. Noire was nearly unconscious from the overload of magic he experienced but was conscious enough to notice where his head was. Luna was a deep red and I was in the corner, unable to process all that had happened. We heard a gasp from the door and there was the same reporter pony who caught Noire and Luna the first time, taking photos and scurried off to find some other couple to expose, regardless of whether they were a couple or not. I carried Noire of to bed and Luna sped off after that reporter. It may not have been a long exercise but it was a hard exercise none the less. That reporter to this day still remains free and is officially wanted for ten million bits courtesy of Luna's seething temper and hatred towards him.
DAY FOUR
We decided to continue with the magic training except Noire was draining my magic instead as I wasn't a fully developed alicorn. Noire was against it at first but after some convincing from yours truly, he was sapping away, no questions asked. Luna made sure to lock the doors to make sure a certain reporter didn't spy on us again and was keeping a close eye on Noire's magic levels as well as my own. Noire found this part pretty easy, however, Luna added a twist to it and cast a duplication spell, making another me for him to drain. The clone didn't have as much magic as me but draining two ponies at the same time was a little difficult. He was starting to sweat a bit and his grip on me grew heavier until he reached his limit and fell to his knees. Luna recorded his magic pool at about 1200 harmons. Noire was confused by this so she explained.
"Harmons is the measuring system for magic created by Starswirl the Bearded. The average level of a unicorn's magic is about 1000. From this amount, I would say your magic intake is near the same amount as Twilight's when I first met her by a couple," Noire nodded in understanding and stood up to try again but Luna stopped him "There is no point in continuing. You have shown much improvement and as a reward, you will be allowed the next day off. Go and recover yourself and then we will teach you some basic attack and defence spells" she told him. He and I went off to take a long nap and Luna went to do a long stack of paperwork.
I would go over the other three days but it was primarily spell casting and studying the lore of Equestria, which he was gradually improving in and showed in his tired form and slightly more toned body. I would've woken him up on any other occasion but he was tired so I wouldn't deprive him of precious sleep. However, seeing him asleep made me think that in the end, this relationship would go just like with Shining; we would never talk to each other and constantly be pushing each other away. The thought was ceased the moment it was born though, as Noire turned in his sleep so he was lying right on me. I quietly moaned in pleasure as his length was rubbing up against my now wet pussy. The action made me realise that we would never be like that, Noire was too dedicated to me and would never leave me to think negative thoughts. I smiled and turned over so he was no longer on top of me, letting the man's warm embrace envelop me.
"RISE AND SHINE, SOLDIER!" Luna yelled, startling both of us awake. Luna was dressed in full armour that made her look slightly like Nightmare Moon but without the fur and eyes "YOU STILL HAVE ONE MORE EXERCISE BEFORE YOU CAN FULLY GRADUATE LUNA'S 8-DAY BOOT CAMP!" she fired a spell at Noire which instantly dressed him in the armour he wore during the raid "Ah, one for speed and agility instead of the traditional guard's slowness with their spears. I would implement the kind of military forces the Crystal Empire has, having three corps for each pony race, trained to their full potential but Celestia says we are on a budget after we left Blueblood in charge last month,"
"Luna? What are we doing now?" Noire asked her which was quickly answered.
"Good question, my dear Noire. You shall be going into the heart of the Everfree to hunt an elder timberwolf. This particular one has been causing the ponies in Ponyville much trouble with the hordes of timberwolf it creates to attack anypony that comes close. That is why you must find it and kill it before it causes too much trouble," she handed him a green gem "This will start glowing when you get close to the elder timberwolf. You will have until the end of the day to kill it and prove to me how strong you are. Good luck," she charged her horn to teleport him away but gave him a moment for us to hug and say our goodbyes.
"Don't die."
"I won't." That was all we said before he stood up and allowed himself to get teleported to the Everfree. We didn't have to say anything too mushy; We both knew he was going to be okay and Luna's comedy soiled the mood quite a bit.
"Aunty? Did you really need to dress up in full battle armour?"
"Oh, this is just for appearance. We would've done this yesterday but you looked like you wanted some alone time,"
I groaned in embarrassment, hoping that Noire would fare much better than me.
NOIRE POV
I had just been poofed into a magical forest by a magical pony princess in battle armour to go kill a giant wolf made of wood and for some reason, I had just accepted it and started walking. It occurred to me at that moment that I seemed to accept a lot of what is happening because of magic... I really needed to start asking some for some better explanation as to how magic works here. However, there was an objective I had to do if I wanted to prove I could protect Cadence and everyone I care about to Luna. I continued my trek through the forest, checking the gem constantly to see if I was getting close. There was a faint glimmer when I pointed the gem at a cleared area of trees. It was weird; Why would there be a cleared area of trees so deep into the Everfree? I assumed it was the work of the elder timberwolf so I headed to the spot the gem was leading.
GROWL!!! A loud growl sounded through the entire forest, shaking some of the trees in the progress. as well as the ground beneath me. I quickened my pace, moving branches out of my way to see the source of the growl before being struck by an object. I winced in pain from the impact and tried to move the large object on top of me off and when I did, I saw the body of a large timberwolf. It stood at an impressive 11' tall and about as wide as a car. As expected, it was made of wood but on its face was two large pieces of wood that drooped down, making it look like it had a moustache. "Stay out of my way, puny human. I'm busy," he growled in a grumpy grandpa tone of voice but distorted. I was offended by the old wolf's attitude so I summoned my sword to my hand and got in battle position to confront the enemy. "You want to assist me? Silly human. I don't know how you are still here but I will accept your help. Just don't blame me if you die!" he said charging through the tree leaves, causing me to do the same.
When I exited the wall of trees, I found the elder timberwolf confronting the thing that attacked him. It was some sort of monster. It was humanoid with the body parts of other animals; its right arm was a lion paw and the left was that of an eagle, both of its legs were a wolf and it had a ponytail. The most distinguishable feature was its face, which was elongated but was definitely human. It yelled with an ear-piercing screech but didn't phase we had nerves of steel, only flinching slightly to the volume. I fired a white magic bolt from my hands and once it made contact, a white aura appeared on the monster's flesh, absorbing the attack. The monster screamed more and ran up to us on all four feet. The elder timberwolf leapt into the air and opened its maw, unleashing a green magic bolt on the foe. I was surprised that he could use magic but at that point, I had stopped caring and charged towards the foe. The monster had absorbed the attack, just like with me but this time, a green aura appeared around it. The monster's changing aura gave me an idea "Gramps! Hold the monster off! I have an idea!" I yelled at the elder timberwolf, which I now refer to as 'Gramps'. He shot me an angry glare before muttering to himself "Kids these days... No respect for their elders. FINE! But if this fails, Don't count on me to save you!" he charged at the monster and struck its chest. The monster countered by attacking Gramps' leg. Both growled in pain but continued to attack each other relentlessly. Meanwhile, I was focusing, gathering every bit of magic I had into my sword. The sword responded by creating the blue, ethereal blade. The sword was now a larger claymore and was glowing a royal blue. "Gramps! Out of the way!" Gramps turned to yell at me again but saw me running at them with the ethereal claymore. He jumped out of the way, giving me a clear shot at the monster. It saw me coming through and started to run at me as well but it was already too late. I leapt into the air and quickly descended on the monster, bringing the blade down on its head. A blue aura appeared around it this time but I kept going, exerting even more magic until the monster had couldn't withstand the force of the magic and the aura shattered and the blade cut it clean in two.
Gramps was speechless at the sight of me using magic and whispered "Impossible..." I heard him and turned to face him, causing him to immediately regain his composure "So, human, what are you doing this far into the forest? No pony is strong nor brave enough to go this deep so I don't get many visitors,"
I sighed and told him all about what I was sent here for; the training, the mission and the attacks on people from timberwolves "So that about sums it all up. I was intending to kill you when we finished with that thing but after using all that magic drained me completely and you seem pretty cool but I will have to kill you if you keep attacking innocent ponies,"
Gramps gave out a throaty laugh "That's rich! I don't have any timberwolves and I'm not one for eating ponies; They scream too much. The only other thing capable of creating timberwolves is the egg that releases timberwolves every summer to help with the maintenance of the Everfree. If ponies are getting attacked, they are doing something to the Everfree and that will cause problems for everyone," he said "Because you have proven yourself to be a strong individual, I will allow you to call me 'Gramps' but this doesn't make us friends Now get out of my territory before I devour you,"
That brought about another thought; Luna teleported me in but how am I supposed to get out? "Fuck, Luna probably should've found a way to get me home. This was going to be a long walk and a long story to tell if I could get back in time. I hurried off in the direction I was spawned in and made my way through the trees to find Ponyville.
GRAMPS POV
I watched the human walk off into the distance and out of my sight. I didn't ask for his name but I didn't care; Were probably going to never see each other again. However, the memory of his magic was scorched into my brain That human had the hero's Royal Smasher. Could he have been...No...they have been gone for millennia I thought and shook the thought out of my head and walked back to my cave to clean my wounds and nap. "Godess, my back hurts..."
"Luna, Did you have to send him there of all places?" I asked Luna. Noire had just been teleported to the most dangerous parts of the Everfree Forest and I was already starting to get worried. Luna merely brushed it off and assured me everything was going to be okay. I was reluctant at first but trusted my loving, caring aunt for about 10 seconds before I asked my second question "So you made a way for Noire to get out of the forest, correct?" Luna went pale and froze in her place. I stared at her, confused for a few moments until I realised what she had done; she had just sent my coltfriend into the most dangerous part of a monster-infested forest with absolutely no way of returning. "Aunty, please find and bring back my coltfriend before I send you back to the moon," I politely asked, trying to hold back my seething rage. Luna got the hint and teleported away, leaving me alone to my thoughts.
Oh Faust, What if he gets eaten by a timberwolf? Or by a hydra? Or by a manticore? Or by a colossal cockatrice? Why did Luna have to send him into that forsaken forest? Why isn't Noire here to calm me down like he usually does? Oh, what do I do? These thoughts were running rampant and without Noire or Aunty Tia there to cheer me up, all I could do was be worried. In the midst of my thoughts, a memory passed by. A memory of times when I wasn't worried about marriages and planetary domination and was spent most of my time making others happy. I remembered that fixing people's broken bonds always made me happy. Those were the times when I truly enjoyed being the Princess of Love and didn't worry about many things. Not the responsibility, the pressure from my aunts, not even the nobles. It was truly a happy time and would give anything to have it back. That's when a thought occurred to me; regardless of how bad I am at being one, I am still the princess of love and could still relive those times but better. Through a specific incident involving squabbling siblings and a love spell, I now know to find out their relation first and settle it out without magic. Sort of like a guidance counsellor but not old.
I went to the bathroom to fix my mane, tail and face. I put on one of my casual dresses and set out into the city of Canterlot to help some ponies. I was aiming to focus on myself and the ponies that were in need. I was going to put the impending danger of a psychopathic dictator and my lost coltfriend behind me.
5 HOURS LATER
"Why is no-pony's relationship in need of guidance. Relationships are hard, harder than most tasks. I mean, I'm going through a major decision to divorce my kidnapped and willingly enslaved husband and having a prolonged affair with a human with godly powers. How are snobby nobles managing their relationships better than me; The princess of love?" I said to myself. It has been 5 hours and I had walked around the city so many times that my thighs had swelled in either the good way or the bad way. "There has to be something. Abuse, mistreatment, lack of consent, it could be incest for all I care! Somepony give me something to do!" I groaned. I was on the verge of giving up before I heard a scream and a stallion's voice. It sounded like somepony was in trouble. Sparing no time, I made a mad dash for the voice, desperate to find it and cure my boredom. I followed the noise to a clothing store, where two stallions were arguing while a distressed mare hid behind the one closest to her.
"How dare you touch the behind of my beloved wife! Next time I see you, I swear on my name, Fancy Pants, that you will be hung above Canterlot with bare naked, shaved buttocks to shield your shrivelled up, unwanted, godforsaken manhood!" he yelled. The other stallion, by the name I remembered as Fat Stacks, ran away crying like a filly. The mare who I recognised as Fleur De Lis, stopped hiding and hugged Fancy from behind. They walked off, enjoying their time as husband and wife, leaving me alone in the street, moved by that display of affection and the last shred of chivalry left in Canterlot. However, I was still bored out of my mind and it was getting close to lunch and I was famished.
"Oh well, can't be the hero every time. I should head back and sign those papers so my beloved and I can stop calling this 'an affair'. Speaking of, I wonder what he is doing now,"
NOIRE POV
It was getting close to lunch time and I had not gotten any closer. My afternoon mainly consisted of fighting evil wood wolves and cracking a stupid egg so I can get home to my marefriend. I was on what I am going to assume was my hundredth one and I was starting to get hungry. I looked down at my grumbling stomach and then 20 metres ahead of me, where the egg lied. It was large, large enough to spawn at least 3 timberwolves at a time. If it was not made of wood and didn't leak with ooze, I would say it was good enough to eat but that was only in my dreams and 20 more timberwolves away. I gripped my sword and charged back into the fray, stabbing one with my blade and piercing another with a thrown magic spear, which I instinctively learned in the 5 hours it took for me to get here and Luna's training. "Alright... who's next?"
CADENCE POV
"Are you sure you want to do this? Divorcing him will place him as a public enemy which I don't want you to take the blame for. There will also be explaining it to his parents; they may have the same reaction as Twilight," my aunt said, almost as if she was begging me to reconsider. However, she wasn't one to influence others' choices and even if she was, I still wouldn't go along with it. The evidence was undeniable and the truth was unavoidable; the 'Shiny' we knew and loved was gone and that husk of a stallion was all that remained. I wanted to help him as much as I could but in the end, it was his choice to betray Equestria and all that he stood for. Tartarus, I was still thinking of reforming him back into the stallion he once was but it seemed so hopeless. Noire was defeated by him in one hit because of me and Chrysalis' magic gets stronger every moment she's with him. It seemed obvious what my course of action was next. My decision was final.
I took the quill in my hand and signed my signature next to a signature of Shining. I would almost consider it a blessing how he signed the divorce papers before he left. Celestia sighed and looked at me sadly "What will you do next Cadence?" she asked me. My expression turned from plain to determined, my face radiating motivation and a new goal.
"Shining was right; I failed at being a princess of love and of the Crystal Empire but he was wrong when he told me I can't be both. I am going back to the Crystal Empire and I am going to protect my kingdom" I said before getting up and walking out the door, not pausing for anything, leaving Celestia alone with her thoughts.
"I know you will but how long will it be until you truly ascend?" she whispered.
NOIRE POV
After a long fought battle and dozens of dead wood corpses later, I had finally made it to the egg, the birthplace of all timberwolves. I raised my sword up high to finish it off but what Gramps said before I left echoed in my head "The only other thing capable of creating timberwolves is the egg that releases timberwolves every summer to help with the maintenance of the Everfree. If ponies are getting attacked, they are doing something to the Everfree and that will cause problems for everyone". I lowered my blade and summoned it away "Timberwolves are not responsible for this but no-pony would be stupid enough to be this far into the Everfree. So who is harming the Everfree?" I asked myself.
"Why me, of course,"
I turned around and summoned back my sword, getting into a fighting stance. The voice didn't have a body, just like the voice of the person who brought me here but I still remained ready for anything. "Well, I thought my newest creation would be a challenge for you but you found a weakness that even eluded my sight in less than a minute. You truly are the one," the voice said. The dots connected in my head and realised who I was talking to.
"Grim]," I said with malice. The voice 'hmm'ed in curiosity before cackling in delight.
"HA! This is hilarious! You don't know, do you?! Well, I guess it would make sense. Faust is very selective in what she tells her pawns. It's weird how you haven't been asking as many questions as you should've," Grim's voice was beginning to fade, meaning his time talking to me was running short "When you meet again, ask more 'cause trust me; We have much more in common than just the code,"
That was the last thing he said before his voice was gone, leaving me alone to think about what just happened. We have much more in common than just the code. What did it mean? I was going to think on it further before a flash of light and Luna appeared next to me "I AM SO SORRY! WE SHOULD GET YOU BACK TO THE CASTLE BEFORE MY NEICE KILLS ME!" before I could say anything, Luna teleported me out of the Everfree.
CADENCE POV
It was night again in Canterlot. I finished eating and I was back in my room, the same room where Noire was sent off to do his trial. I hoped that he stuck true to his word and survived that dangerous place. I remembered everything thing I did this afternoon; waking up with Noire, the send-off, the walk around town and finally legally divorcing Shining. I know that I remained strong but I realised how much more fun it would be if I had Noire alongside me. He would've been his regular, supportive self, always being there for me when I felt at my lowest "Wow, I am really in love with him, aren't I" I said to myself, sitting on my bed and laying down. That was when a flash of light and Noire and Luna appeared in my room. I instantly leapt up from my position and tackled Noire to the ground "Thank Faust, you're okay! I've been worried sick ever since you left!"
Noire groaned in pain from underneath me "Glad to know you really care... Now can you get off me? Your boobs are choking me," I got up and lifted him up so we were eye-to-eye "So, what have you been doing since I've been gone?"
I giggled happily and hugged him more gently "You are officially not having an affair with me. You are my one and only now and nopony nor human can change that, not even an evil, world-conquering tyrant,"
Noire sighed in relief but it was short lived as he broke away from the hug. I looked at him questioningly and he got the hint that I was curious to know what happened in the Everfree "In the Everfree, I found the elder timberwolf but didn't kill him. We're actually acquainted with each other and now call him Gramps. We found a... monster in there. It almost looked human but freakishly deformed and had body parts of animals fused together. The only way we could defeat it was with a magic overload as it could block almost all magic" Luna and I looked at him in shock; deformed humans in the Everfree? It seemed almost fictional but from what I've seen with Twilight and her friends, I've come to expect the unexpected "Also, the source of the attacks isn't from Gramps, he doesn't even have any timberwolves. Someone was harming the Everfree, It was... Grim," that caused even more distress but we couldn't ask any questions as he continued "He talked to me and told me that Faust was the one who brought me here and gave me this gift,"
Luna had to intervene at that time "FAUST! DID YOU SAY FAUST BROUGHT YOU HERE!?" she yelled in the Royal Canterlot Voice. Noire nodded and Luna turned pale and left in a flash before I could ask her what was wrong.
I sat Noire down as he seemed visibly distressed from what he had experienced. He was staring at the ground in thought, probably thinking about the future as he always does. However, I brought him out of his thoughts by placing a hand on his shoulder, assuring him everything was going to be alright. "That wasn't all though. He told me we had more in common than just the code. What did he mean by that?"
"That doesn't matter now," I told him sternly. He looked at me in confusion "I know how it feels to feel threatened by the thoughts of becoming a villain. When aunty Tia told me about Nightmare Moon, I had nightmares about turning out the same way but she told me as long as I treasure the good in my heart and the love everypony around me gives, I will never be evil. Now I want you to do the same; treasure the good in your heart and the love I give you every day,"
Noire thought about my words for a second before chuckling "When did you start being the cheering me up?"
I chuckled back "I had a great person to show me how. Plus, I'm the Princess of Love; It's what I do," I pushed him onto the bed and started crawling over him. When I reached his face, I gave him a kiss on the neck "Now I believe I have a promise to keep and I hope will enjoy it," Noire grabbed hold of my breast and started fondling them under my dress before throwing it off my body. I slivered down and teleported off all of his clothes. He now laid there completely naked and me in nothing but my black lingerie. I leaned up and kissed him on the lips, descending down his body until I reached his manhood. Nopony sleeps when I'm in a frisky mood; Soundproofing spells are for the unadventurous.
Cadence now had the tip of my fully erect manhood in her muzzle, suckling gently on the tip before quickly taking it all in her mouth. She bobbed her head at a steady pace, gaining moans from Noire who occasionally jerked his hips to her pace. She stopped for a breath and continued at an even faster pace, producing even louder moans. Noire turned Cadence around so her winking pussy was pointing directly at his face and started lapping away at her marehood like a drinking dog. Muffled moans escaped both of their lips as they continued servicing each other but it wasn't soon before Noire shot his load into Cadence's mouth. Cadence wasn't far behind, squirting into his mouth as well. Cadence got off of Noire but he grabbed hold of her and pulled her in close, groping one of her breasts in the process. "Where do you think you're going? I can go on like this all night,"
"Don't be silly. I know you want to prove yourself but you don't have to overestimate your abilities like that," she said. Noire found himself offended by that remark and pushed her onto the bed. He pinned her underneath him and lined his manhood with her nethers "W-What are you doing?" she asked embarrassingly as it was on the verge of entering her.
"We'll see who's the one overestimating themselves. I don't know how long stallions here last for but I am not one of them. Now just enjoy our night alone," he said. In one swift movement, he dived into her and started thrusting. He pounded away at her, gaining moans with each and every thrust. He quickened his pace every minute and Cadence came twice in the first two minutes. Four minutes later, she was already close to her third. "I'm close, Cadence! Where do you want it?!" he said.
"OH SWEET CELESTIA, DO IT! CUM INSIDE ME! I WANT ALL OF IT! YOUR SEED!" she screamed. She embraced him and let his load bury into her. His warm cum travelled through her and filled her almost completely. "Faust, it's so warm and filling. You're lucky my cycle doesn't start for another month or else I would have you get me a few dozen foals. Your cum is addictive, I tell you," she let go of Noire and allowed some of his cum to leak out of her. "Please tell me you have more in that gold mine of a cock you have there?" she asked beggingly.
Noire responded by slapping her behind "I told you; I can go all night. I'm only worried if you can last that long. I don't have sex with the unconscious." she felt his cock re-enter her and she couldn't have been happier, or more pleasured. HIs cock lacked a knot so it was an easy entry and it could hit her G-Spot every time he made his way into her. It was the ultimate tool of sex for her and she intended on draining it dry.
It had been an hour since and in that time they had tried many positions and they had currently moved on to Cadence's favourite, reverse cowgirl. She slammed her hips on Noire's bulging cock and it at that moment, both were incredibly close to cumming. However, they both wanted to savour the intoxicating feeling they received every time they met with a wet slap "GOD! IM SO CLOSE" Noire said, unable to contain his load any longer.
"ME TOO! LETS CUM TOGETHER AND BE TOGETHER FOREVER!" Cadence replied. With one final thrust from Noire, both came. Their juices mixing together like mixing a drink; drunkenly delicious. Cadence climbed off him and laid on the bed, spreading her legs wide open and sampling a taste of some of their juices. She hummed in delight and motioned for Noire to try as well. He agreed and bent over to lick off some of the juices with the same result of him humming. "I know, right? A mare can get drunk off this stuff. It's a good thing your cum is meant for me and mine is only meant for you or else females of all walks of life would be coming here just to get a taste and there would be none left for little old me," she said, fake pouting.
Noire responded by groping one of her breasts and massaged it "You're calling yourself little with boobs like these. Men would kill to get a suckle on these and they wouldn't have enough for me," he said, pulling one of his own fake pouts before laughing "What have you done to me? I haven't used a pout since I was 6," Cadence giggled at the thought of a little Noire and snuggled up next to him, tired from their exploits. Noire wrapped her with his arms as sleep took them both.
I woke up to the sound of chirping birds and light footsteps. The morning sun burned my eyelids, forcing them open and leaving my tired eyes exposed to the sun's rays. I groaned and tried to go back to sleep but the footsteps grew louder until they reached the bed "Noire you can't spend your entire day in bed. Now get up, lazy bones!" a teasing voice, beckoning me to see who it was. Obviously, it was Cadence, my beautiful marefriend and my 'first'. She was shaking me to get me out of bed but I stuck firmly to my spot.
"Anyone or anypony can stay in bed for the entire day. It's just a matter of perseverance- not laziness," I replied, gaining a 'hmmph' from Cadence. She levitated me in her magic and carried me over to the bathroom where she hovered me over a bath filled with steaming hot water. My eyes widened completely and looked at her beggingly but it was too late. She released the spell around me, dropping me into the water with a loud splash. I remained submerged in the bath for a few seconds before rising out with a scream of pain "JESUS CHRIST CADENCE, THE HELL!" I yelled. Cadence merely replied by sticking her tongue out at me and walked out but not before leaving a blue towel at the door. I took the opportunity to bathe myself and get ready for the day. I brushed my teeth and dried my hair, but left it in it's natural yet intentionally messy state. I left the bathroom and to my surprise, Cadence wasn't there to tease me so I assumed she went down for breakfast. I put on my regular clothes; a red shirt under a leather jacket with cargo trousers and sneakers and left the room. "That's probably going to be a regular morning for me now," I said as I walked down the halls to the dining room.
"Oh god..." I said. Cadence held up a newspaper to my face and in the corner of my eye, I could see Luna blushing vividly and Celestia looking very confused. I focused back on the title of the newspaper 'Unknown Monster gets Princess Luna in the sack!' with a picture of me under Luna "Wait? When did this one happen?" I said, pointing to the picture of my face buried in Luna's bosom.
"Now is not the time, Noire. We have to organise a whole event and confirm your existence to the public," she said.
"Now that doesn't sound that bad," I said
"As well as explaining our relationship and how you shouldn't be burned at the stake for tainting one of the royal sisters," she added. That shut me up completely. Burned? That sounded like something out of the medieval times, which made sense seeing as they were very lacking in technology... and a lot of common sense. "Don't worry, my love, I will not allow you to get burned but when my cousin finds out, he will definitely want your head,"
"Cousin? One of you had a son?" I asked to the sisters. Both of them shook their head with a disgusted expression. I assumed whoever this guy was didn't fall under Celestia and Luna's definition of 'nice'. I was about to ask another question when two guards entered the room and stamped his spear on the marble.
"Now entering the room; Prince Blueblood," one of them said. They marched to the side, allowing the doors to open and a white unicorn stallion with a pampered, blonde mane. As soon as he entered, I looked to my sides and saw all of the princesses putting on a clearly fake smile. I turned back to the prince who was now looking at me with a disgusted look on his face. I could already tell he was about to unbox a truck full of insults at me.
"What is this thing doing in a room for the priveleged, Aunty?" he said to Celestia. Well, who didn't see this coming I thought to myself. Celestia's smile faltered a bit but was immediately corrected. She was desperately fighting the urge to strangle this snob. I should know seeing as I myslf was about to throttle him but Cadence put her hand on mine to bring me back to my senses "Well? Is somepony going to answer me or should I just have my guards throw him out and burn this chair that is clearly covered with his dirt and germs?" he asked.
"Blueblood, this here is Noire, he is the personal guard to Cadence. He and Cadence will be staying here for a few days because of a changeling attack. Shining Armour has been reported M.I.A and I thought it would be safer for them to be here under my protection," Celestia finally replied.
Blueblood seemed to believe it but he still looked at me with that disgusted face "Well, if he is a guard, and a personal guard at that, he should be standing and in his armour. Don't you agree, Noire?" he said while smirking at me. I could see what he was doing without trying and just decided to comply, just for the moment. I stood up and walked back, allowing Blueblood to take my seat. I used my magic and summoned my armour. Blueblood was surprised at the fact that I could use magic but he killed that surprise the moment it was birthed.
"Noire doesn't have to wear armour around me. In fact him and I are-" Cadence was about to finish her sentence but a firm nudge snapped her out of it and stammered "b-best friends from way back. He had to move back to his home country of America with his family,"
"America? Never heard of it. Where might that be?" he asked me.
"Oh you obviously haven't heard of it. It is a small country far to the east. It isn't exactly a place you would want to visit on holiday; too cold for anyone's liking," I said, convincing him once again. He didn't come across to me as the intelligent type but like everyone else, I wouldn't say it to his face as he seemed happy with his 'high-level' intelligence and honorary status so we let him live the lie.
"Well as much as I would like to stay and chat, I have a dinner party to attend and I don't want to be late" he said.
"It's 7:00 A.M" Cadence said with a deadpan expression.
"Yes, I know. It will take me hours to find a good suit that matches my good looks perfectly," he said. He got up to leave but before he left he looked to me and smiled "You know, if you ever are in need of a job with a better pay, my personal guard is one of the most well paid and respected in Canterlot. Just something to think about," he said, smiling fakely and leaving. As soon as he left, everyone sigh in relief and Cadence groaned.
"Ohhh my god, I forgot about paying. How could I forget about that?" she said.
I put my hand on her shouder "Don't worry about it. If I wanted to be paid then I would've asked to be paid. Protecting you plus the free food and room is enough for me." I said. Cadence shivered under the cold metal of my guantlets and I pulled my hand away. The sisters grinned at us, gaining a blush from both of us and stepping a distance away from each other. "So... about this event... introducing me to the public. I've learned from the Crystal Empire's castle that rumors spread faster than spilled milk and I have had enough of the glares I get from the guards and the sultry ones from the maids. Cadence almost broke one maids' arms. NOT a pretty sight." I said, causing Cadence to blush even harder.
"Yes, we should be organise an public meeting today. You would be surprised how quickly a crowd can gather in Canterlot. There we will expose you to the public and maybe even... about Shining Armour..." Celestia said, fidgeting slightly in her seat and looking directly at Cadence. Cadence's eyes widened at revealing Shining's current state to the public before closing them and looking down at her untouched breakfast "Both of you have tried to subdue Chrysalis and Shining Armour with their current power hae failed. We need to join your militia with our own in order to do anything to them. It's obvious now where Chrysalis and by extension Shining have gained this power from... Grim. He is becoming much bolder with his moves on this world and he will soon show his face if he is bold enough to speak to Noire. There is also our mother, Faust's inclusion in this..." all of us remained silent. Everyone in the room knew who Faust was, including me from my studies with Luna. A blessed pony and the first of the alicorns, she was worshipped as a godess until she unepectedly disappeared thousands of years before even the human race found it's way to Eques. I theorised that she was responsible for sending me here and giving me this power but was confirmed after my first encounter with Grim. Speaking of, Grim told me to go to her for answers but at the time, I didn't know how.
"Yeah, about that, Grim told me if I wanted answers, I should go to her but I don't know how. I mean, she's in between realms; not a place I can just teleport to," I said, sighing stressfully "I've only met her twice and that was only when I was asleep, sometimes, when she needed to talk to me,"
Celestia placed her chin in her hand and thought about what I said for a minute "Well, until she reaches out to you, I suggest we all focus on dealing with Grim and his new lackeys. As for you, Noire, focus on your training and think up a good speech to give to our ponies today," she said finshing her breakfast and rising along with her sister "Well, you know how it is with us, work to do, ponies to pander to,"
"I feel like acknoledging the snobbish ponies' complaints is a waste of time and energy when the fate of the world and possibly the universe is at stake," I said blatantly.
"You are correct but we must show all our ponies we love them. Even if they are..."
"Dicks?" I asked
"Yes, dicks" she replied
Celestia and Luna left the room and Cadence and I left to plan our speeches. "You do know I am terrible at talking to a crowd, right?" I asked. Cadence only nodded her head and giggled "This isn't funny Cadence. I have no idea what to say and if I fuck up, all of Canterlot will know me as the 'Illiterate monkey' for the rest of my life! I have it bad enough already that I get some of the maids calling me 'monkey' but this is too much,"
"You're over-reacting, darling. If you can take a hit from an elite guard like Shining, you can handle a bunch of dick-headed nobles," she said cheerfully. She grabbed hold of my arm and walked close to me "Let's not forget I have an announcement to make about him being 'missing'. We also have to make plans to find Chrysalis, which could be incredibly easy with our recent prisoner," She was right; I wasn't handling all of the burden anymore and with the changeling we captured, it could be even easier to figure out where Chrysalis is "However, there's the problem of how we stop her when we do. She managed to drain the magic of an alicorn and an elite unicorn general in just a couple seconds and her guard is almost just as strong."
"Well, you're stronger now and you have that golden eye-thingy. Just do that and I'm sure we'll get them and have plenty of magic to spare," she said.
I turned to her in confusion "Uh? What golden eye-thingy? My eyes are black. Big difference."
"Well, you know, when you got all serious with Shining and your eyes tuned gold like some kind of dragon. I didn't feel any power increase but you definitely were fighting way better than when you did in any of your spars." I was even more confused then. I was doing some kind of transformation without even knowing? That was something I would have to ask Luna about when I saw her again. In the mean time, I had to focus on my speech. I merely shrugged my shoulder at Cadence and continued our walk back to our room.
The hours flew like the wind and just like that, it was time for my reveal. I was sweating buckets, rehering my lines in my head repeatedly, much to the amusement to everyone who knew the mind reading spell so basically everyone in the room except me. Caence took the time from her giggling to come over and see if I was alright, which I clearly was not. "You okay over here, Noire? I noticed yo've been muttering in your head for the past 3 hours," she asked, trying to maintain some control over her laughter.
"Yeah... yeah, I think I'm gonna be alright. I know my entire speech back to front and even if I fail, I won't care that much as 90% of the audience is a snobby noble that wants an opportunity to brown-nose a princess so nothing can go wrong for me today," Luna looked out of the balcony to the conference room where every seat was filled with aristocratic ponies with suits and dresses along with reporters from several tabloids.
"It looks like everyone has arrived. We should address them now before they start coming up with even more terrible rumors. It always makes their reactions to the truth even more infuriating," she said. Celestia nodded and opened the curtains to the conference room. Cameras started flashing and the ponies' mutters grew even louder until she raised her hand and the room went silent.
"Mares and gentlecolts, there has been news spread about my sister being raped by an unknown creature. I would like to confirm that this news is false and all rumors about this be stopped immediately." This incited confused chatter that was mostly unintelligible until a lone voice shouted from amidst the crowd.
"But there was a picture of a monster groping the princess. That could not have been fabricated." they said.
"You are correct, it was not fabricated but the picture you saw was lacking in the correct context. It was merely an accident involving my sister and a unique creature; a human. Some of you must have heard of the myth but allow me to confirm. Humans are real." The whole room gasped "This very same human will introduce himself and what he will be doing alongside us in the near future"
That was my cue. A walked to the edge of the balcony and took a deep breath before speaking "Hello, my name is Noire and for the past few weeks, I have been serving as Princess Mi Amore Cadenza's personal guard. I have devoted my body and soul to the protection of her and all of the ponies she loves. I know some of you mistrust me or find me disgusting but I hope I can gain all of your trust. I will be Equestria's Sword." silence was present in the crowd before a single stallion with a blue mane and moustache started clapping, causing all of the other ponis to follow. Cadence patted me on the shoulder, congratulating me while the diarchs behind us smiled.
"That sounds like an empty promise, a promise that I will soon prove false..." a voice called out from nowhere. The whole room went silent. I looked around for the source of the voice "If you really want to find me, Noire, look up" I followed it's instructions and saw a shrouded figure floating above me but lacked wings. There was no doubt about it, it was the same voice that called out to me in forest, the one who orchestrated everything up to this point; Grim.
"He's here..." I whispered to myself. Cadence, Celestia and Luna preped themselves ready for a fight "Grim."
"In the holograhic flesh, my good friend , and with good news and unfortunate news for everyone and pony here. The unfortunate news is half of you in this room will perish in 3 weeks. The good news is that the other half that remain will be a part of something bigger, a new world." the ponies below looked around in confusion which Grim noticed "I have watched ponykind grow from a chaotic and disorderly species into a peaceful and harmonious tribe, despite the recent attacks by evil tyrants. However, you have grown weak and ignorant to what your so-called 'gods' are up to behind the scenes. How hypocritical of them to educate the virtues of honesty while proving thmselves to be dishonest, hiding earth-shattering secrets like Nightmare Moon's return, Sombra, Tirek. Heck, I bet none of you knew what a changeling was until Cadence's wedding. Oh yes, Cadence, congrats on the divorce, by the way," that gained an even larger gasp "Oh you didn't tell them about Shining being Chrysalis' and my loyal servant? Why am I not surprised? Look at your saviors, mortals, unable to come up with a suitable defence for what seems to be the truth. The time of false harmony is over; I will crush your blackened country city by city and transform it into an empire fitting a vastly superior race to all others" he removed tthe shroud off of his face revealing a pale white face with a diagonal scar running right through it. Veins crawled up from his neck and to his eyes, a deep black similar to my own. In fact, his face was almost identical to my own.
Before my mind could even comprihend what I was even doing, I summoned my sword and instantly transformed it into the magic claymore. I leaped from the balcony and rocketed towards Grim with my sword held above my head and brought it down on Grim. The impact caused a shockwave that blew everyone of their feet and it looked like Grim had been hit but I saw him, with his pale and scarred had caught the blade before it could touch him "Ah, 'The Power of Unbound'. One of the code's many, unique gifts but ultimately useless in it's incomplete state. Try using magic internally instead of externally in this mode," he gripped the claymore tightly before it shattered into pieces and swatted me away. I landed on the ground with a sizable crater underneath me "That was all I had to say. I hope to see most of you in the new Canterlot. You have been an amzing audience. I bid you all farewell," he said before completely disappearing.
A pregnant silence lingered in the room, feeding off of the negativity radiating from each and every person in the room. Celestia was about to say something but was interrupted by an explosion from the wall in front of us, revealing a horde of deformed monsters like the one from the Everfree. The nobles screamed out in terror as they horde approached "We need to get everypony out of here!" Cadence yelled. The alicorns soared down and formed a barrier around all of us. However, the horde pressed on and walked through the barrier like it wasn't there. The crowd was in even more fear, causing the horde of monsters to scream as they were covered with a white aura. I got up and saw the situation they were in; all three alicorns fired at the monsters only for the magic to be absorbed.
"These things must be updated versions of the one I fought and fear seems to make them stronger" I muttered to myself "CELESTIA! LUNA! CADENCE! GET EVERYONE OUT OF HERE! THEIR FEAR IS ONLY MAKING THEM STRONGER!" I called out to them but it was too late. The monsters had already blocked the exit with their presense. I felt weak and my I could feel the cracks in my bones. I could see Celestia wrapping every pony she could with her wings and Cadence was crying. That tipped me over the edge and I punched the floor in frustration, not caring about the fractures in it. My thoughts were a buzz of angry thoughts but a recent memory put an idea in my head Try using magic internally instead of externally in this mode Grim's voice echoed in my head, telling me exactly what to do. I clasped my hands together as I could feel my magic becoming smaller and denser. I could feel my magic getting strnger until...
The horde of monsters approached us slowly, surrounding us in a corner with there presence. I could hear the cries of a mare as one of the monsters was now right in front of her. A ghastly white hand reached out and in its palm was a magic sphere ready to be fired. I wormed my way out of Celestia's embrace and stood in front of the mare, spreading my wings and arms to defend her. The monster persisted, charging its attack until it was ready to fire. I closed my eyes, letting a final stream of tears roll down my face. My aunts tried to stop me, reaching out for me but it was too late. It had already fired. However, I could feel the impact, only a gust of wind. I opened my eyes and saw Noire in front of me. His hair was a little raised and n his skin was pink lines running up his skin but eventually turned black. The monster in front of me was gushing blood from the large slash mark now present in its chest. The monster screamed in agony but still tried to attack us. "How is it still able to move after all of that damage?" I questioned.
"I can feel the determination emanating from this thing as well as all of the others here. Grim made these things with a single purpose; to kill... but..." Noire said. He swung his sword at the monster again and cut dozens of the army along with it "Why aren't the others attacking?" he said, looking at all of the other monsters standing there doing nothing. That was when two unicorn guards charged through the doors, blasting the monsters with everything they had.
A light bulb flickered on in my head and I was shocked into the realisation "Its magic! Magic fuels them!" I yelled as the monsters began running towards the guards. The guards continued shooting them, making them move even faster. Noire moved at lightning pace, reaching the guards before the army and gripped his sword.
"Decode Sword: Longblade," he said. HIs sword responded, glowing blue and transforming into a long, curved blade. He gripped it in two hands. He propelled himself forward and sliced a third of their forces in two. They all crawled towards him, determined to kill as Noire had theorised but he was prepared, releasing a torrent of magic slices with the longblade. The rest of the army stopped their pursuit and started firing magic bolts at Noire. "Decode Sword: Gardnablade" the sword transformed again into a large greatsword, big enough to shield 3 people. Noire slammed the blade into the ground and took shelter behind it. The sword blocked all of the attacks with no scratch left on the blade. Noire lifted the sword from the ground and it reverted back its regular form "This has gone on long enough. The sword that destroys all magic. Final Decode:" he lifted his sword high into the sky. The sword emitted a royal blue aura and created a transparent blade that reached up to the ceiling phased through it, ascending into the sky above Canterlot Castle "Phantom Excalibur!" he brought the sword down on the army but the blade passed through them all. We were all sceptical about whether this 'finishing move' worked but our doubts were erased as the horde fell over one by one "Doctor Curdle is going to have a field day with these" he said, revealing his face. His face had black marking all over and his eyes were gold once again but his pupils were sharper and slit instead of their usual roundness. "Don't worry, princesses. You can have one too," he said. His markings started to recede and his eyes returned to normal.
From the crowd, I saw a noble cheer for Noire's victory "The knight saved us! There is hope for ponykind! Three cheers for Equestria's Sword!" the crowd cheered for him. Celestia, Luna and I smiled, seeing Noire getting the recognition he deserved. However, Noire began to stumble on his way over to us and halfway there, his legs gave out and he fell over. Celestia caught him and carried him bridal style.
"You should get some rest. You've been working non-stop since Shining's departure and anyone, including me, would collapse after using so much of the code like that," she teleported herself and him away, leaving Luna and me to clear out all of these ponies.
LATER IN THE NIGHT, SAME POV
Celestia, Luna and I were gathered around a round table with a steaming tea pot. Noire was still asleep after passing out from the battle. His form was a subject for discussion, which is what brought us to the tea room for. It was an area where no-one would disturb unless there was a serious problem. "So now that we have settled everything outside, there is something I would like to know, Luna, what is 'the code'?" Luna remianed silent "I know the basic lore around it from the lone human but I was never told what it really was. Could you explain, if you know?"
Luna took a sip of her tea and sighed "We all now the magic the pony races possess. The earth ponies' connection to nature, the pegasi's maniplation of the weather and the unicorns' ability to perform spells of high variety. Only a few know of the magic we alicorns possess; arcane magic. The abilities of all three races but higher in potency. It also gives us some level of control over a body. Be it physical, like your sun and our moon, or abstract, like Cadence's love,"
"Please get to the point, dear sister,"
"Only our mother, Grim, ourself and possibly Noire should his transformation give him such knowledge, know of the primal force that has been curtailed and weakened into the magic we use today; the code," Luna paused to sigh again "The lone human confided in us the secret of the code. How during the creation of Equus, our mother created the code, magical force originally created to bond all living organisms. However, the untamed power ran loose, its energy either draining the energy of its surroundings or feeding it too much energy, causing droughts, volacnic eruptions, every life-threatening hazard known to all before our mother absorbed all the magic she could before disappearing and starting..."
"...The dawn magic. Starswirl was working on a theory about it before passing. It was true? That was the birth of magic?" Celestia said in bewilderment. I couldn't believe what I was hearing either. I thought magic was here since the dawn of time but apparently our magic is some 'watered down' version the code.
"If the code is so wild and untamed, how can Noire and Grim able to use it without blowing up or turning into dust?" I asked Luna. Celestia turned to her as well, also wanting answers.
"The lone human believed it was due to trait that he possessed. We were never able to deduce what or who it was and gave up after many years of research producing zero results. We could only simply deduce it to the code that the lone human possessed was less potent than the original,"
"In that case, the potency of the code can vary from user to user," I said, Luna nodded "I'm going to bed. My darling needs love after all he's been through," I was about to teleport out but Aunty Tia stopped me "Yes? Do you need something?" Celestia and Luna shfted nervously in their seats, avoiding any eye contact.
"Would it be okay if we slept with you for tonight?" my jaw dropped "Well, it has been a long day and we were this close to death until Noire saved us all. I would just like to thank him for what he did,"
I turned to Luna "We would also like to thank him. However, the lone human wasn't just known for defeating Grim. He was also known by only us sisters as the best cuddler. I would just like to see if Noire is of the same level of... cuddliness," I was silent for a few moments and took another sip of my tea. I stared back at my aunts, who were now showing their best puppy dog eyes. The adorable eyes of a deity are hard to fight against, making me sigh in defeat and nod my head in approval. My aunts smiled and teleported themselves to Noire instantly.
"I really need to find them a coltfriend,"
GRIM POV
I saw all that went downn at the hall through my orb, impressed by my targets recent growth. He was going to be a very crucial part of my plan very soon. My new loyal followers knelt below me; Chrysalis, the changeling queen who slaughtered her entire kingdom for power and Shining Armour, the new slave, former husband to one of the three princesses of Equestria, the weakest one, I must say. "How much magic have you been able to procure today?" I said.
Chrysalis stood up and motioned for Shining to do the same "We have gathered magic from Trottingham and Las Pegasus. Not taken all of it at once, like you said, but collectng enough for the newest batch of ghouls," she responded. I remained silent. Trottingham had a low population and would slow down the process of collecting energy for my true plan. Chrysalis was so short sighted, only thinking of the power these weak ponies possess when there is so much more to claim. Reforming the world is a difficult climb and the ghouls were just a stepping stone for me to achieve it.
"Move your collection spots more inland. I need magic fast and small towns won't cut it. However, keep an eye on Ponyville. There are a few ponies with arcane magic which we must dispose of at a later date" both Chysalis and Shining bowed there head and I dismissed the both of them, leaving myself 'alone'. "How has my fellow code user been doing?" I asked the shadows. My slendermare emerged from it and handed me a collection of photos, all of them pictures of Noire in his Unbound form. I knew he could do it when given the correct advice; merely using magic is only using a small part of the magic that gave birth to ths world "Say, before you go back to your assignment, how about you and me go a round~? It has been so long since we've been alone together, Slendy~" she replied by taking of her suit, revealing her naked, hourglass figure. You would think a lady named Slendermare would have a more petite form but no, she sported a large DD bra and hips wider than the sea. "I see you're already warmed up~" I said, gently stroking her moist thighs, drenched in her femcum "Now pleasure your master." She dived down to my crotch and undid the robe I wore, revealing my firm manhood. "I love slendermares. So submissive."
NOIRE POV
"Cadence, I know you like feeling my butt but not tonight, I'm tired." I said as what I assumed to be Cadence's hand gripping my butt. However, a voice whispering in my ear quickly disproved my theory.
"My my, I didn't think Cadence would be that touchy with you in bed." the voice which I identified as Celestia. I rose from the bed and saw Celestia to my left, still groping my butt while Luna was to my right, still holding me tight and nibbling on my ear.
"What the h-" I tried to speak but Celestia put a finger on my lips silencing me.
"I know what you're thinking and before you say anything, Cadence approved it and polyamory is widely accepted in Equestria because of the mare to stallion ratio. For every 10 ponies, only 3 of them are stallions so we create herds in an attempt to balance the ratio" I remained silent, accepting that my marefriend's aunts were actually indirectly proposing a herd "You must understand what I'm trying to say and I'm not looking for an answer straight away. We've only been around each for a little over a week. However, I'm not saying I would say no to it. I have grown quite fond of you over the time you've been here. You treat me like a friend and not a god and even now, you don't take me now just for bragging or power. I know a lot of ponies who would kill to be in the same position you are."
Again, I had to absorb what I just heard. Another princess admitting their feelings to me and it was completely out of the blue "I'm assuming by Luna's tight grip that she feels the same as you?" I question, which gained a nod from Celestia "Well, a date with the both of you wouldn't hurt. Though, Cadence and I have sorted out some things back at the Crystal Empire. I heard from Cadence that Burning Fist has taken charge and Windy Wing has been the acting Captain." The thought of the generals reminded me of someone of equal importance "We also need to check on Tidal. Last I heard, she was still unconscious and no-one knows what happened to her."
"It is nice to know you have the well-being of my little ponies in mind. We should get some rest before Cadence comes back and kills us all," she said, drifting off. I soon followed her, my eyelids grew heavier and I gave out a loud yawn before drifting entering the world of dreams.
SHINING POV
I was walking through the halls of the castle I once called home. However, I strived to protect everypony in this castle and empire. Now I walk with a new purpose, to neutralise the unicorn general. The other two were just as big of a threat to our forces but Tidal Horn was the most vulnerable and I was under command of Chrysalis to deal with her first. I made my way effortlessly into the room where Tidal was staying, quickly disabling any guard that I saw before they even saw me. he slept in her bed silently, only whispering a word in her sleep "...Shining,"
"If not under Chrysalis' instructions, I would kill you. However, she made it very clear not to. Instead, you shall be given the honor of bearing child of changeling and pony; mine and my queen's own spawn. This spawn will feed on your magic until you are nothing but a shriveled corpse," I pulled out a small box and opened it, revealing a green egg. Spreading Tidla's legs wide, I lifted her hospital dress and gently slotted the egg into her until it was completely inside. A green glow emitted in her stomach, signifying the mission was complete. I teleported myself out of the castle and back to my queen. Maybe she will be pleased enough to allow me on top this night. Or at least suckle on her tender breasts. Regardless, she will be pleased with my work tonight.
I was not mad. I just had my two aunts bail on me to have a cuddle fest with my coltfriend. I just had to deal with a full night court full of paperwork and nobles who could be better considered as infants and snobs. "They couldn't have at least set the sun and risen the moon? I mean, I may be an alicorn but I'm an alicorn of LOVE, not the sun or moon. That stuff isn't easy," I groaned as I walked lazily through the castle. My loose thoughts went over all the craziness that has happened in the space of almost 2 months. Meeting Noire, Losing Shining to Chrysalis, Grim attacking Canterlot in three weeks, Noire and I being a couple. I was not mad. I was fucking tired. I was barely able to open the door to my room and when I saw Aunty Lulu cuddling Noire as if her life depended on it, I didn't have the strength to shout or complain. In fact, I didn't have the strength to notice Aunty Tia behind me or the strength to jump in surprise when I did. She just smiled and hugged me tightly.
"I'm sorry I haven't helped you much. I've neglected to be by your side in this endeavour and I have made your life so much harder," she whispered in my ear with that motherly tone that could put anyone at ease "I've even stooped to pushing my duties onto you so suddenly to pursue my own personal pleasure,"
"Aunty, if there is anything I've taken away from the past 2 months, it is that while our actions may make us evil in the eyes of others, there will be somepony, or in my case, a person, who supports us. You may not have held my hand the entire time and instead chose to enjoy yourself, I still support you and I still have a great coltfriend who will help me when I lose my way," I shifted my attention back to Noire, who was snuggling with Luna. Celestia saw this and smiled.
"Well then, I shouldn't keep you from him much longer," she picked me up and with her magic, made the bed big enough for all four of us. She set me in the bed and got in herself, kissing me on the forehead and hugging me tightly. I yawned and hugged her back and just like that all of my past stresses were gone. It was just Celestia, Luna, Noire and me. enjoying some well-deserved sleep.
NOIRE POV
"Decode Sword: Longblade" I swang my blade at Luna but she easily managed to dodge and delivered a quick kick to my stomach, sending me flying backwards and landing at the edge of the area we were fighting in. Luna thought to keep teaching sword fighting at night in a dream realm as time can move as fast or as slow as she wants here. For us, we have been here a whole day and it was starting to show on my sweaty face. Luna teleported over to me and gave me a hand up. We had been training for a while and while my swordsmanship has improved, it still can't compare to the years of experience Luna has under her belt.
"Your swings are getting faster but you're slow on the parry. You're losing control of your sword and not stopping your sword to set up a quicker parry but don't fret too much about it as this is the norm for a lot of swordsmen so you should get accustomed to it soon," the area around us started to shake "It looks like we are waking up. We'll do this again sometime and maybe talk about this 'date'" she smiled as my vision went black.
...
"Rise and Shine, sleppyhead..."
"Hellooo"
"WAKE UP!" I quickly jolted up from the bed where a fully dressed Cadence was waiting "So, you must have had a great time with my aunts if you really don't want to leave. Maybe I should just leave you here and go back on my own" she pouted and crossed her arms under her bust. I just groaned, rolled out of bed and did my morning routine; showering, brushing my teeth and putting on my armour ready to go home. I still didn't have any essential items to take with me so there was no need to pack. However, Cadence seemed to have carried her entire wardrobe while unconscious as there were 4 guards carrying pink suitcases. I paid that no mind though as I made my way with Cadence to our next stop, the dungeons.
We walked silently through the hall of the dungeons where not many were present since the crime was almost non-existent in Equestria. However, the cells that weren't empty had other species inside like diamond dogs and gryphons. At the very end of the hall was our prisoner, bound in chains with a magic dampener on her horn. Cadence opened the door to the cell and we both went inside. Once I shut the door, we began "Where is the rest of your hive?" I asked.
She quickly replied with little emotion in her voice "Dead,"
Cadence tilted her head in confusion "How?"
"She killed them all. Except for me"
We both looked at each other, suspicious of what she was saying is false. I went over to her and crouched so we were eye to eye "Tell us everything,"
She took a deep breath and sighed "Ever since you foiled her plans at the Royal Canterlot Wedding, our queen was desperate to keep us all alive. Many changelings didn't survive the attack and most of our changelings were too young to go out and collect love yet. So, our queen went out alone and whenever she came back, she barely had enough love to feed all of us and keep herself sustained. However, when she came back from Las Pegasus, she brought somepony with her. I couldn't see who it was with the cloak covering them completely. She began destroying her own hive, draining all of our love. By nightfall, our entire hive and gone and only I survived, hiding under the rubble. She dragged me out and lined me up with other survivors and told us if we wanted to live, we had to follow her instructions. The rest is history,"
I placed my hand on her head for a few seconds before standing back up "How old are you?"
"18 changeling years" she responded.
I looked at Cadence and she immediately knew what I was planning and hesitantly nodded "I knew that act you put on was a front. When I looked at you when the explosion went off, it was clear you were relieved that it would've been the end for you. I want to give you a second chance if you want to take it but you have to decide now," she looked down for a few seconds before a quiet stream of tears ran down her face.
"I want a place to call home again. Please take me with you," she said. Cadance and I both smiled, knowing she made the right choice. I undid her chains and at that moment I did she hugged me and whispered in my ear "Ayra. My name is Ayra Borealis"
"Hello, Ayra. My name is Noire," I replied.
Cadence just shook her head and sighed "You two are so weird. You're supposed to ask for names first,"
CADENCE POV
"Are you sure you want to go back? If Grim is being serious about his attack then we should come up with a plan," Aunty Tia was always bad at goodbyes. We were at the train station, ready to head back to the empire. As much as I wanted to stay for a bit longer, we needed to organise our troops to come over to Canterlot and I probably had a mountain of paperwork that I didn't want to get any bigger "Also, is it really okay for a changeling to be roaming around the castle?"
"We need to oragnise our troops, aunty. If Grim is being serious, then we need to be ready. Plus, Ayra won't be roaming around. She will be working at the castle and we will have 24-hour surveillance on her in case she's lying" Aunty Tia complied and gave me one last hug goodbye and teleported back to the castle. Across from me, Luna and Noire were saying their own farewells.
"You have gone beyond all of our expectations. You have proven to be a great friend, student and cuddle buddy. We wish you well on your way back," she said while Noire was trapped in a bone-crushing hug. Noire was trying to speak but it all came out as incoherent gasps and gurgles. She only let go to chase after a camera click which came from the same camerapony who took the last two "WHY MUST YOU TAKE PICTURES OF OUR DISPLAYS OF AFFECTION TOWARDS NOIRE?!!! YOU PERVERSE SCOUNDREL!!!" her leaving gave Noire the chance to breathe. He was helped up by a disguised Ayra. She was a light blue unicorn with a green and pink mane.
"Okay, let's head back. Everyone back home must be worried sick about us," I said, beckoning the both of them to get on. The train's whistle blew and like that, we were on our way back to our home. Back to the Crystal Empire.
The train ride back was mosty silent. Noire was fast asleep and Aura was too intimidated to say anything. As for me, I was plagued by thinking. Thinking of how we were supposed to handle a full-scale attack on Canterlot. Grim was cocky enough to tell us how much time we had left so it could have meant one of two things. 3 weeks isn't enough time to prepare for what he has in store for us or it is enough for us to evacuate as many people as possible. All I knew for sure is we are in a tight spot. I could sense the tension in everypony that we passed and the line for the court was swarmed with people petitioning for evacuation. Grim did what he wanted to achieve in that press conference, the whole city of Canterlot is in a panic. With the way things were, Noire is the only one who could effectively dispose of the beasts but getting rid of a whole army is more diificult than a small platoon. More training and defending ourselves was the only thing we could do. After 30 minutes, I started to notice Ayra's eyes were getting heavy and she was clutching her stomach. "Ayra, are you okay? You're starting to look a little pale,"
"Oh! Don't worry about it. It's only a little motion sickness. It'll... wear off...in a...while..." It wasn't too long before she left to the floor of the cabin and reverted back to her changeling form. I got up from my seat and woke up Noire. He immediately went over to her and put his hand on his forehead.
"That's not good. She has a fever and it's only getting worse. She must be starving from the amount of time she spent without love," How could I have forgotten about that?! It's the most well-known fact about changelings. I didn't have time to hate myself though. Her breathing was getting more erratic and I could tell she was in a lot of pain so I lifted her up and put my horn on her horn. I started giving her my magic, hoping it's strong love nature was enough to satisfy her for now and it succeeded. She let go of her stomach and her breathing went back to normal "That was a close one. While what I gave her wasn't exactly love, it should be enough to keep her going until we get back,"
"We should find a way for her to feed off of love without drawing attention to herself. Who knows what would happen if any of the generals found out about this, especially Tidal," Noire said, sitting back in his seat. He had a point; with our castle bustling with guards and maids plus attentive generals, it would be hard for Ayra to feed without getting caught "How about making her your personal assistant? It won't help our current situation but it will give us time with her to figure it out,"
"I guess you're right. We also need to ask her if she knows anything about the attack on Canterlot. As it stands, we are at too big of a disadvantage and the fight hasn't even started yet,"
"I've been thinking on that for a while an I have a theory that if proven correct could turn the tide" I peaked up in the interest of what Noire is theorising "You know I can infuse magic into my sword to give it certain effects. With practice, maybe I coukd apply the same effects into other swords,"
That was something I thought to be worth looking into. With a whole supply of enchanted weapons, we could stand a chance "That sounds brilliant! Maybe we could get them to turn into giant ghost swords!"
"Actually, the sword itself had the ability. The code just allowed me to activate it," I sighed in disappointment. I was hoping for that greater edge in the fight to come but beggars can't be choosers "However, I could feel that there is much more power I can draw out of this sword," he said, summoning the sword and inspecting its blade.
"Speaking of, wasn't its name the 'Decode Sword'? I heard you calling it that at the press conference. They say the bond between a swordsman and his sword will grow stronger when they both refer to each other by name," I said with a sage like voice. Noire guffawed at my silly voice, making me pout at him "We won't be reaching the empire for a couple more hours, you know. Maybe we could have some fun until we get there~" I traced my finger up and down his chest and he immediately caught on.
"Cadence, we are not having sex on a train. Plus, Ayra could wake up at any moment," I pouted once more.
"Not even a quickie?"
"No,"
"Can we at least cuddle?" I begged. My puppy dog eyes were no match for him and just like that, we were cuddled up close to each other "You know, a little blowjob wouldn't hurt anypony,"
"I'm going to forget I heard that and just keep cuddling" and keep cuddling he did. So did I and for the rest of the trip, all our troubles washed away. However, I was still upset I didn't get that human dick.
"Um, sir? We're here," a voice calls out. I weakly opened my eyes and surveyed my surroundings. Cadence was still fast asleep and Ayra was to my side, back in her unicorn form. I shook Cadence lightly, getting her to stir. A light flick on her forehead got her to wake up fully and grasp the spot where I flicked her in pain. When I looked outside, I could see that we were inside the barrier of the Crystal Empire.
"There's no need for formalities around me, Ayra. Just call me Noire," Ayra nodded and stretched a bit before exiting the train with Cadence and Ayra. It felt nice to be back home but a little weird since I had already started considering the empire my home. We were greeted by Burning and Windy with a couple of guards who took care of our belongings.
"It is a pleasure to see you back at the castle, princess. We have been anxiously awaiting your return," Burning said. Windy cut in front of him, which didn't surprise him in the slightest, and began quickly relaying the events which occurred. However, I was distracted by other thoughts. If Grim was coming in three weeks, I need to be prepared. Burning noticed me lost in thought but decided to not say anything and let Windy carry on his rant.
"You should have seen Burning on the first day. The court was so tedious, he ended up stopping it altogether. Isn't that right?" Windy said, jabbing Burning with his wing. Burning ignored this and went over to me.
"I read your letter of the events. Is it true? Is Grim invading in three weeks?" he asked. I nodded, more than enough for him "Then I want to be sure. Sure you can carry the weight of Canterlot's future on your future and the lives of our soldiers under your protection," from the little I had seen of Burning, it was clear he wasn't much of a talker so this was a surprise "I request a duel with you; at full power, no holding back," that added to my confusion.
"Well, this was going to happen sooner or later so why not. I accept your challenge," I said.
Burning pointed to the castle "Meet me at the sparring field once you are fully prepared," he turned and left with his guards following behind him. Everyone except Windy was confused by Burning's behaviour, even Cadence. However, I was more excited than anything. I could feel a grin grow on my face.
"He is an odd one," Windy said from behind me "He's always been like that. Even before he became general,"
"How did he become one anyway? I can't feel a lot of magic from him but I can tell he's strong," I asked. Windy laughed.
"An excellent question, my good friend. It happened during the beginning of Sombra's reign of tyranny..."
BURNING POV, 1000 YEARS AGO
The alleyways of the Crystal Empire were a great place to hide. They led to many places; some the golems couldn't reach you and some they could and as a warrior constantly fleeing through these alleyways, I was well versed in which were which due to my history as a street rat. The downpour of rain soaked my clothes and the blood from my injuries was not stopping but I could not stop now. I was almost home free. A few more turns left. If not for a cruel twist of fate, everything would've gone exactly to plan. If I hadn't taken that one wrong turn that led me right into a golem. It was the end of the line. With my magic depleted and too injured to even stand all I could do was embraced death. Once it dissipated. I found myself cured of my wounds and his magic restored. In fact, I was stronger than ever. I couldn't think about it much more as the golem swung at me which I was luckily able to dodge "Can't think about that now. I need to get this one off me and reconvene with Master," I said as I got into my battle stance ready to engage.
"I couldn't get anything else from him after that point. He just gave a lame excuse and sauntered off. If you want the whole story, you're gonna have to fight him with everything you have," Windy said before flying back to the castle. I held my chin, pondering on Burning's words. Behind his stoic nature lies great conviction and strength. That only got me more determined to prove myself to him. Cadence put a hand on my shoulder to bring me out of my tangent and from her wide expression, I could see she too is left in the dark concerning him.
"You are a mystery. You've managed to get more out of General Fist in a minute than I have in the year I have worked with him. Anyway, we should teleport back but..." she let out a completely fake yawn "I am just exhausted from the trip back. Maybe you could do it this time~" As to how she knew I was now capable of teleporting larger distances were unknown to me but still, I couldn't compete with her right then and there so I complied and teleported all three of us to the castle.
Just like that, we were home. It almost felt like an eternity since I had been home. We all entered the castle and we were instantly met with an excited Doctor Curdle which made me wonder if she knew about my new abilities. Hopefully not, as I was too tired for any blood tests. "Wecome home, Noire! I heard about everything from Cadence's letter and now we have so many new experiments to try. Magic output, psychiatric and physical evaluations and best of all, BLOOD SAMPLES!" She continued to rant about all she wanted to learn about my powers while we all just tuned out, thinking of anything else. By the time she finished, we were already at our room "Anyway, enough about that. It's good to have you all home and with a new friend, a changeling one at that!" Ayra gently held my arm in fear "Oh don't worry! I'm not one of those racists ponies, I just want to know all about you. We can start with a simple blood test. If I could just borrow your arm for a second or two..." Curdle stared at her wantingly, hungry for knowledge. Before this got any crazier, I gently held Curdle back.
"Curdle, while we all would love to give some blood samples, we are just pooped from the trip home so maybe tomorrow if we have the time?" Curdle eyed me suspiciously before smiling and waving goodbye but on the promise that she would get blood samples out of both of us. Me and Ayra shivered at the thought.
"You'll get used to it, Ayra. When I first met her, she took so many blood samples for the sake of understanding alicorns better and only Faust knows how much she got off Noire while he was unconscious," she laughed at the thought while took a double take. She is not called Doctor Curdle for nothing. "Anyway, Noire, don't you have a match to prepare for?" she asked "You can't leave Burning out there to long or else he may start to get impatient~" I didn't know Burning was even capable of getting impatient and the thought had my spine shaking. I quickly teleported all three of us to the sparring field with haste.
BURNING POV
Anticipation cosumed me as I heard the sound of a teleportation spell and my opponent appeared with his princess and friend. I was still wary of her being a changeling but I sensed no ill intent from her so I had no choice but to respect my new ally's judgement. That aside, the two teleported to the spectator's stand, leaving the two of us alone. "You came. Excellent, a stallion who doesn't flee his foe," Noire chuckled at that and got into his position, battle ready. I proceeded to do the same. This reminded me of a time before I was hailed as 'The Burning Fist'. A time where all looked at me as a simple man wating a great change... "I can still fight, sir! I have to, for the empire!" a younger me yelled in my head, past memories passing me by like ponies in the street.
"I admire your perseverence, fighting spirit and good heart. However, this fight is too much for you in your position to handle. You may not fight and die for the empire now but for many years to come, you will be a guiding hand in the darkness that will lead this empire to even greater heights. I will always be with you, my student, my ally, my friend" His final words to me were words that I will embody and I hoped Noire would as well as he became the empire's sword and shield. However, the time was not for rememberance, It was to test his mettle as our hope. It was drawing closer to noon and by then, the clock hand on the wall was 10 seconds away. 9,8,7,6,5,4,3,2...
CLICK
"BURNING FIST: OX!" my fist was set ablaze with an orange flame and I rushed forward at Noire who quickly summoned his sword to block me. However, the full force of my fist sent him back a couple meters away. He quickly recovered and attacked me with three magic slices. I dodged two but the third I barely blocked, sending me back as well. His strength had improved greatly. I counter-attacked by getting in close with an uppercut sending him flying but before he could recover, I quickly followed him and started delivering crosses to his face. On our decent, Noire's sword began glowing blue and transformed into a nodachi.
"DECODE SWORD: LONGBLADE!" he attacked me with a downward slash, denting my armour slightly. When he landed, his sword went back to its broadsword form and he begun hacking and slashing away at me with sword strokes that almost cut the air itself. I had to defend myself so before I was hit with another attack, I managed to grab his sword and throw it and him behind me. Noire landed on his feet, already in position to defend against my next attack.
"BURNING FIST: TIGER" my fist was engufed with flames again but this time, it had taken the form of a claw. I leapt into the air and plummeted towards Noire who turned around. This surprise me but I did not relent. I increased the size of the claw and fell even faster, as if the flames had weight. However, Noire's sword turned blue, indicating it was going to transform again.
"DECODE SWORD: GARDNABLADE" his sword turned into a large greatsword that not only blocked my attack but also absorbed the flames. "Now this one I learned from my dream training with Luna. DECODE SWORD: DUOBLADE" The greatsword grew smaller and split in two, transforming again but into a pair of sabres. He lunged towards me and made an X slash with his sabres, leaving a trace on my armour. I could not continue to me pushed back any longer. I set both my arms and legs ablaze and we both got into linto a cash that began to make shockwaves. This continued until we had each locked in a struggle.
"My Burning Fist: Monkey isn't so easy to counter, let alone block. However, those transformations must take a lot of magic to sustain. I wonder how long you can last for," I said, grinning like an idiot. Noire responded with a goofy smirk of his own.
"Your flames are growing weaker as well so you must be running low as well. I say we stop pulling our punches and finish this before lunch or else Cadence may get cranky" We both aggreed with each in that we would last for much longer with the amount of power we threw at each other. We leaped away from each other until we were a fair distance away.
"FINAL DECODE:" Noire's blades joined back into one and went throught the roof with no trace of damage.
"ULTIMATE BURNING FIST:" my fist was engulfed with crimson flames that extended behind me and began making circles around the sparring field. With a forceful punch, the flames flew past me and straight towards Noire "DRAGON!"
Noire remained unflinching and kept his sword in the air and only once it got half way across the stage did he bring his blade down "PHANTOM EXCALIBUR!" the blade sliced the flames clean in half and passed straight through me. However, the flames exploded, catching Noire in the explosion. Once the chaos of the battle subsided, we both remained standing but wavered every now and again. Both Noire of us made slow attempts at fighting but my flames just died out and Noire couldn't lift his sword for long. It was only until the clock fell onto the floor did both of them fell to the floor, exhausted.
CADENCE POV
"Uhhh madam?" I couldn't turn to meet Ayra's shocked expression as I was locked in awe of what had transpired. Noire had fought my general, one of my best guards to a tie. I knew he gained quite the power boost and the skill with a sword to match but I never expected him to be this powerful. There was also Burning, who displayed powerful magic even though he wasn't even a unicorn. I knew there were items that could grant the wearer or user greater magical abilities but I saw no such items on his person. "Madam? Guards have arrived," I broke out of my trance to look around the feld and saw many guards; some from the earth corps and some from the general corps but all of them sporting dropped jaws and dinner plate eyes. I couldn't blame them. It's not everyday a general goes all out in a fight.
"THAT WAS AWESOME" a guard shouted from the crowd and a plethera of compliments and cheers followed for the two fighters.
BURNING POV
"They seemed *cough* to like it," Noire barely managed to get out "You got to teach me... some of those moves *cough* Can't rely on a sword forever, even if it never leaves your side," I smiled in satisfaction "However, next time, I want to fight you when you're really going all out" It was true that I held back a little bit out of fear of turning him to ash. However, I wasn't the only one.
"What... about you? I know you were hiding *cough* an ace up your sleeve; that transformation you went through at Canterlot," I asked him. We both chuckled slightly before breaking into a fit of coughs.
"I feared that I would have cut you in half plus... I kinda forgot it was a thing I could do. You said it yourself; theses weapon transformations require my code to work and take a lot out of me. Guess we both 'pulled our punches'" I cringed at Noire's terrible pun, wanting the strength to hit him but I was pooped.
"Out of my way! Noire's personal doctor coming through!" the crazy blood doctor came through and rushed to Noire's aid "What were you two thinking?! Throwing such high level magic at each other? You could have both died!" Two of my guards helped me up and Curdle ordered two guards to carry Noire to the medical ward. We all visibly cringed at what she may do when she gets really angry.
We were carried to the medical ward, leaving us with Curdle to rant about how foolish to throw high level magic attacks. I wanted to remind Curdle that we don't have magic in the traditional sense but a fearful look from Noire told me It was better to not anger her more than we already have. Noire had to be bandaged all over for the burns that managed to get through his armour while I only needed rest as Phantom Excalibur only depleted my magic. Once we were tended to Curdle went to off to her lab to let us get some rest, allowing us to talk. "'Burning Fist', huh? Don't you think it is a little conceited to name your fighting style after yourself?" I chuckled, understanding his reaction as it was how most people saw it.
"I didn't name the fighting style after myself; I named myself after the fighting style," Noire looked visibly confused "My master called it 'The art of the Burning Fist'. This style requires control over your heart rate and body temperature, something you learn in your first year. If done unproperly, the flames will burn your arms off,"
"Brutal," he replied "But that brings me to my next question; How do you produce those flames?" I responded by leaning up from my bed and taking off my gauntlets and my bandages underneath, revealing the proof that one has mastered the Burning Fist. Long, black flame tattoos that ran up to my biceps. I demonstrated by taking a deep breath and clenching a fist, causing the tattoos to turn gold and creating a flame surrounding my fist.
"Once you have proven yourself worthy to become a Burning Fist Master, you can take the final exam and awards you with the flames of Efrit for passing. However, mine was given to me by my master before he died in combat with Sombra. During Sombra's rule, the Burning Fist Masters were the main resistance against his forces and I was just a disciple who witnessed it along with the entire school. I wasn't able to take the test to become a master so I do not have the right to pass it onto someone else, the tattoos or the teachings. I am the last user," Noire was silent the entire time. I could only imagine how he pitied me "Sorry, I was rambling. Forgive me, " Noire dismissed the thought with a wave of his hand and got up from his bed and put a hand on my shoulder.
"Don't worry about it. It's okay to vent your feelings to someone you trust. If you hang around me and Cadance, you can see us venting to each other all the time and you may want to vent to someone else. Maybe your fellow generals?," He was right. We three, even though we were so different, we thought of each other as siblings. We always had each other's backs. I was about to thank him when Curdle bursted out of her lab, grabbed the both of us and nearly hurled us into our beds. Our faces were altered to match those of scared children as our minds tried to process how this mare could carry two men on her shoulders like we were pillows. However, we chose not to think or ask out of pure fear as a glare told us all we needed and wanted to know. She silently went back to her lab and we chose to get some needed sleep to recover the strength we lost. Don't worry, master. I will make you proud.
"'Bout time the two of you got out of there. I thought that Curdle turned the two of you into her lab rats," Windy hollered at the end of the hall as both me and Burning left the medical ward, fully healed and rested "Now you've got to tell me what those moves were and all that giant super cool sword thing you did back there," Windy's ranting became to fast to follow as I began to lose interest. I checked outside, the sun was at its peak, meaning we only slept for 2 or 3 hours. Fast healing really has its perks. I turned back to Burning, who was just as lost as me when it came to what Windy was saying but he was more calm about. Figures seeing as he's worked with him longer than I have. Eventually, his ranting became understandable and he began waving a poster in front of us while we walked "... so I've decided that the two of you need to experience that Crystal Empire nightlife! You're coming with me on our day off to the Wub Club!" he finished.
"The Wub Club?" I asked "Sorry but I don't think guards would be welcomed there, let alone mythical human guards,"
Windy only shrugged it off "Don't be such a worry wart! We won't be in our uniforms and I'm a regular there as well as a few of our own guards when they're not protecting the peace," I was about to make another excuse bother he closed my mouth with his finger "And before you say 'I need to protect Cadance. I am her bodyguard.' I already went over it with Cadance and she said you need to make more male friends and who better than your military equals in a booming club,"
I was still hesitant to leave Cadance alone but Burning also pitched in, putting his hand on my shoulder "Your princess is tougher than she looks; She'll be okay. Plus, if we don't go, Windy will moan about it all week," he said, motioning towards Windy's pouting face. It was quite clear he was telling the truth. Realising I was fighting an uphill battle, I sighed and nodded. Windy's frown turned into a cheery smile once again and fist pumped.
"GREAT! I'll see both of you at the end of our shifts, got it?" we both nodded absentmindedly "Good!" he walked away happily, leaving us alone. Burning also left to his business; I guessed being a general was a harder job than it looked. That reminded me I had to my job protecting my princess so I hurried off to the throne.
When I reached my bed, I collapsed on it and embraced my pillow like a baby. I thought that most of the nobles would have at least have a real problem. What made this even worse is that my first and according to Cadance, that was a good day. Sometimes I wish they never decided to move here only because of the fact it was made of crystals. To distract myself from my horrible shift, I turned over and glanced at the open wardrobe, where my clothes from Earth and new uniforms were laid out for me to see. A note was also attached to my casual clothes. I picked it off with my magic and read it:
When I saw your clothes in such a dreadful state from your fight with Twilight's brother, I just knew I needed to help. That's why you now have your clothes back in wearing condition. You also have your regular clothes and a suit for the gala in a couple of months. Make sure you protect Canterlot so we get to enjoy it!
With love, Rarity
"That was nice of her," I said to myself "Also convenient seeing as I have to meet Windy and Burning... OH, SHIT!" I rocketed out of my bed and teleported my armour and uniform off and got dressed. Before I knew it, I was out of my room and running to my destination. On my way, I passed a mentally exhausted Cadance, who gave me a tired smile and wave as if to say "Have fun with the boys!" which I reciprocated. Before I could travel any further, Cadance yelled,
"You do know you could teleport right?!" I facepalmed at my stupidity and teleported to the front gate of the castle.
WINDY POV
"What's keeping Noire? It's been a whole two minutes since the end of his shift," I said, tapping my toe in anticipation "He agreed to come with us to the club and now he's flaking?! I swear when I find him I'm gonna-"
"Noire's a guard and Cadance's personal guard at that. He can't be everywhere you want him to be and on time," Burning said. He was dressed in a grey hoodie, an orange t-shirt and jeans. I was against him wearing that hoodie from the moment I saw it. He had it since before the Empire was sealed away; the thing's probably older than the Crystal Heart! However, he said he had nothing else to wear and he had to hide his marks from the public. I wished the man went out more but seeing as it was already time, I couldn't complain too much.
At that moment, Noire teleported in front of the two of us in his attire. Thank Celestia it looked better than Burning's ancient artefacts he called clothing. "Sorry about taking so long. I had to get changed and I forgot I could teleport half of the way here," he said. I snorted at Noire's stupidity but shook it off quickly as we were supposed to be on our way.
"Save the excuses for later; the Wub Club awaits us!" I took Noire and Burning by the hand and dragged them off to our destination. Behind me, I could hear them whispering.
"Is he always like this?"
"On a good day," I could also hear a loud groan as we continued our trek.
"Welcome to the Wub Club!," I announced, flinging my arms out as Noire and Burning looked at the place. At first, I thought they were in awe as the Wub Club wasn't your average club. The building was completely dome-shaped; large enough to fit 2 stories but still concealed within the streets of the Empire. The neon lights shone through the windows and the sounds of enjoyment were pouring out of every open space. However, the neutral faces on the pair fueled my dissatisfaction "Really?! Nothing?!,"
"Dome-shaped buildings on Earth aren't that uncommon," Noire said.
"There's a giant dome-shaped stadium for the Equestria Games here, Windy. They are not uncommon here either," Burning added.
I pouted my lips and crossed my arms "I'm sorry; Trottingham doesn't have dome-shaped buildings so they're not common to me, okay?," I said passive aggressively "Let's just go in," I motioned for both of them to follow him and hurried towards the building with the pair of them following behind. When we were walking towards it, I could hear their chatter.
"Trottingham?," Noire asked. Burning turned to him and responded.
"It's a town to the south. Windy used to live in the woods, attacking corrupt nobles taxing money out of the poor and returning it to them, much to the mayor's dismay,"
"He sounds like Robin. He did the same thing only he was just folklore in my world," Their discussion took me back to those times, where I yet to meet someone as truly noble as Cadance.
FLASHBACK, TROTTINGHAM WOODS, 3 YEARS AGO
I soared through the dense trees, on my tail was a fleet of Trottingham's finest guard and in my pocket, a small bag of bits belonging to a poor family "GET BACK HERE, YOU SCOUNDREL!," I almost forgot about the no-name noble flailing his arms about in anger as his carriage chased me through the forest due to the dense trees and arrows sent my way. Soon, the canopy of trees cleared to reveal the rays of Celestia's sun; the perfect place to finish this. I stopped and landed on the ground, giving the guards the opportunity to surround me. "Good! He has grown tired of this, as have I. Now return to me my money and I will think about reducing your sentence," the noble then burst into a fit of laughter "We'll reduce your death from tomorrow to today!" his terrible joke made some of the guard facepalms. I got down on one knee and raised both my arms and wings up in the air in surrender. The noble and guards seemed to believe my mock surrender as the noble motioned for a pegasus guard to chain me.
As he approached, he whispered "Sorry, I believe what you're doing is right but a job's a job," it seemed that there were some good guards here after all. Almost made what I was about to do hard.
"Me too," I said with a wink. Before the guard could back away, I brought my wings down with all my effort, sending me soaring into the air. The whirlwind sent a dozen guards flying away as I readied 3 electric arrows and fired at a group of guards, hitting them in the shoulder. In seconds the entire troop was cleared, leaving only me, the pegasus, who stayed in the eye of the storm and the noble, who was cowering in his carriage. I took a deep breath and sighed, just another day.
That was what it was supposed to be until I saw a pink pony above me. A pony with a horn and wings.
All three of us entered the club. As expected, it was packed with ponies drinking partying or trying to get in each other's pants; a classic club setting. I beckoned Noire and Burning over to the bar for drinks "The drinks here are the best in the city; if anything is gonna get you hammered it's this," the bartender served us 3 of the empire's best drinks but the two of them only looked at them blankly.
"I'll have water. I have vowed not to drink by the oath of Burning Fist," Burning said plainly. It was reasonable; gotta stay committed. I looked at Noire for his excuse but he just bottomed the shot entirely. From the squint of his eyes, I could tell that was his first drink. I smiled and passed the other one to him while taking my own shot.
"This stuff is sour as all Tartarus. Got anything with less of a kick, barkeep?" he asked. He served him up a Blue Moonlight; a drink that only started being served when Luna brought it over during her first visit to the Crystal Empire after her return. All three of us kept drinking until the DJ started playing a less terrible song.
"Okay, men! We've had our fill of beverages and now we hit the dancefloor," I yelled drunkenly as I pointed towards the dancefloor.
"I don't dance," both of them said. I pouted and but decided to leave them be. I shrugged and went to the dancefloor but kept my eye on the two to make sure they didn't leave. From where I was, I could see two women approach them.
"Look what we got here, Topaz, a hunky stallion desperate for some action. What do you think of him," said a green unicorn, pressing her boobs between her arms?
"Super handsome! Hey there, stallion, would you like to have some fun with two gorgeous women like ourselves!" said a green Pegasus, turning to the side to show off her ass to Burning. Unamazed, Burning got up and looked at Noire.
"I'm going to use the bathroom. Entertain these two women for me, Noire?" he said as he walked off. Noire was muttering something inaudible but it was obvious he wasn't pleased.
NOIRE POV
"Dammit Burning, couldn't you have held it?" I muttered as the two mares pondered audibly about what to do.
"Celestia dammit, I thought that would've gotten him. Now we're left with his uglier monkey friend," said Emerald loudly. It was like they didn't know I could hear them from less than a metre away. Topaz turned to get a good look at me before turning back to Topaz.
"I don't know, he looks kind of cool with that mane and eyes. Like some kind of strong, silent hero guy," Topaz replied. I was about to leave until two stallions, one red unicorn and a blue earth pony who were supposed to be their husbands came and took them away. I remained in my position until Windy returned, looking a little down.
"I saw what happened. I'm sorry if you're not enjoying yourself and forcing yourself to stay to keep me happy," he said.
"Don't worry about it; I'm used to feeling out of place. Plus, I came here to not only make you happy but to test a theory of mine, which has proven itself to be true," Windy was confused by my statement, his tilt of the head pleading an explanation. I sighed before continuing "Back on Earth, I didn't really connect with others that well and that caused me to become isolated from the world, only leaving my house to get fresh air and food. I wanted to know if I could make friends here in Equestria but so far, it's been proven that I'm just as bad at making friends here than I was on Earth,"
Windy smiled as he sat down in a seat "Silly Noire, can't you see? You already have lots of friends! Me, Burning, Curdle and that changeling chick you came in with," I was about to question him about how he knew Ayra was a changeling but he beat me to it "As for how I know, that's a story for another day. Know like I was saying, stop worrying about the past and enjoy the present you've been given; a new life in a magical world with a super hot marefriend who is also a princess and a super cool dead shot archer," he patted my back in reassurance.
"What am I; chopped tomatoes?" Burning said, re-joining us at the table,
"It's chopped liver but good enough. Now, let's get out of here before you two get hit on again," he said. We all laughed and left the club.
WINDY POV
When we made it back to the castle, I was completely stoned. I decided to take the three of us on a detour, hitting different bars around the empire and drinking until I felt upside down. At one of them, I almost got into a fight with a bunch of stallions and Noire had to take them down non-lethally while Burning stopped me from joining. During the fight, Noire made a brand, new blade shaped like a gauntlet that I named the 'Smashingblade' in my drunken state. We ventured through the halls, Burning and Noire talking about new training routines and attempting this 'code enchanting' Noire thought of on the train. I couldn't remember much but I could hear them talk once they put me to bed.
"So, I kinda know how you joined the guard but what about Windy? He doesn't appear to be a crystal pony so how did Cadance and Shining find him?"
"Cadance found him after he took out a group of personal guards except for one who he considered truly 'noble'. She was interested in his ability with a bow and creating such strong gusts of wind and recruited him and the stallion into the guard after forcing the mayor to step down. That started the idea of three corps of guards of each race trained in their races' specialities but that's enough for now. I'm going back to my room. See you in the morning," Burning left the room leaving only me and Noire.
"Still, I was never told why he started rebelling," he looked at me, pretending to be asleep "Probably because he thought it was the right thing to do," he said before leaving as well. I opened my eyes and looked towards the ceiling, a faint memory passing through my mind, reminding me of simpler times.
"Mom? Are you proud of what I did back then, of what I am?"
Silence had fallen on the empire, even the late night clubs had closed for the night then. It was in this silence that you could hear my footsteps as I walked through the halls as quietly as possible. This would be my first visit to Tidal Horn after the incident, which still bothered me to that day; a few magic attacks managed to put her in comatose for almost a month but how? Her wounds weren't too serious due to her armour and unicorns confirmed there was no spell they could identify. I turned a corner which led me to Tidal's room in the castle. We didn't have enough space in the medical ward due to the number of injured soldiers brought in so she was put in her room where she was monitored. I nodded to the soldiers posted at her door and entered her room. It was a very basic room; purple walls, a desk, a bed and a closet. The only thing that stood out to me was a sword handle that was put on display along with a broken blade that was separated from it. On the display 'The Great Storm Surge' was written and under the display was a picture of a woman with a blue mane, purple fur and blue eyes in armour except for her helmet. I put two and two together and the lights came on; this was TIdal's mother who died in service. I turned back to the sleeping Tidal and went up to her bed.
"I hope you tell me more about her when you wake up. You two seemed close," I held Tidal's hand closed my eyes for a few moments until I felt a strange tingling in my arms. I opened my eyes and found my marks moving along my arms, trailing up towards Tidal's hand. As soon as it reached her hand, it spread onto her and her eyes glowed green. My vision was suddenly fading to white and found myself getting sleepier until the light consumed me.
"Dammit...," I groaned out as my vision returned slowly. I rubbed my eyes and as soon as I removed my hands from my tired eyes, I could see I wasn't in Tidal's room anymore. In fact, I wasn't even in the empire anymore, I was back in Canterlot castle. I looked around and saw guards lining the halls as usual but acted as if I didn't just spontaneously teleport here. I thought it was just their training but a door opened right behind me during my thought but it passed right through me like I was a ghost. "Jesus, that feels weird," before I could return to my thoughts, my attention was drawn to the female guard dressed in similar armour to Shining but she had a purple cape on her back which helped radiate her obvious authority. I followed the female guard until I was walking right beside her.
"Look at you! What beautiful eyes you have!" I looked downwards and saw a tiny foal in her arms, wrapped in a pink blanket. I assumed that this was the mother. She was the spitting image of her mother except for her mane and eyes which were a royal blue compared to her mother's bright blue. Once I saw the baby's face, I realised that the baby in the guard's arms was Tidal and the guard must have been the Great Storm Surge which must mean I was in Tidal's memories. However, Tidal only looked about a few months old. There is no way she could've remembered this far back.
"I'm just going to assume it's the code because everyone else gets to explain anything contrived with 'Magic' so I'm doing the same," I shrugged and continued following. Along the way, Storm Surge kept talking to the baby Tidal, tickling her belly and nuzzling her mane as a proof of her love and reminded me of times with my mother. We weren't as bonded like with Storm Surge and Tidal; in fact, our relationship left much to be desired. Ever since I was born, she was cold and distant towards me and dad was left to pick up the pieces of our broken family. There were times when she would get back from her 'night-job' smelling of booze and we would get into the biggest of arguments. Dad did all he could to keep both me and my mother healthy and happy but all it gave him was a kitchen knife in his heart and an emotionally shattered 7-year-old. The day my mother was carried to prison in a straight jacket was the worst day of my life. Apparently, she was already a psychopath before she married my dad just for a stable living situation and the 'mistake' of having me. The thought of her stills keeps me up for a minute or two at night but lovely moments like this or the smell of Cadence's mane always brings me home.
"Captain! Another attack is coming!"
A voice sounded from the castle, startling me out of my thoughts. I looked up and realised the scenery had completely changed; instead of a grand hallway, I was on a forest path with the castle far off in the distance. Storm Surge was still with me but with no Tidal and she was also accompanied by ten guards. We also were behind a large rock and from above I could see at least twenty gryphons. A hail of arrows came raining down on us, killing three of the guards. An arrow came down and pierced through my leg. Now this memory was starting to make less sense. I went from Tidal's memory where I couldn't get hurt to Storm Surge where I could get hurt. Another hail of arrows came down but Storm Surge drew her sword and sliced through the air. As her blade passed, it started to change into a liquid form which blocked all of the arrows. She then swang her sword back at the enemies, sending the arrows back at them at twice the speed at which they were shot.
"Now is our chance! ATTACK!!!" with a mighty yell, she and her remaining soldiers charged forward and started dwindling their numbers one by one. The battle was looking up for them and as soon as the last gryphon was dealt with, the guards gave a cheer of victory. However, I could sense a remaining magic signature somewhere but couldn't tell where. In what could only be seconds, a magic arrows shot through the darkness between the trees and pierced Storm Surge's chest. She fell to her knees and the crack of a sword was heard. Darkness. I couldn't see anything but I could hear faint words from Storm Surge. "I'm...sorry, my Tidal...sorry...I couldn't...finish our lesson..." The sound of a blade piercing skin resounded through the emptiness. That was it. She was gone. A little began to shine in the darkness of the empty memory.
I wasn't even surprised that the scene had changed to Canterlot castle's cemetery. A funeral for the brave souls who sacrificed their lives for their kingdom. I could see many memorable faces like Celestia, Cadence, Shining Armour as well as Tidal. From her smaller stature, she looked 15 or 16 at most. She was dressed in a black dress and was carrying her mother's broken sword. After a few minutes of silence, everyone began to leave until only she and Shining remained. He walked over to her and hugged her tightly. "I'm so sorry..." he said. Tidal didn't even respond, she just dropped the pieces of her mother's sword and returned the hug, crying loudly, desperately clinging to him as if he was her saving grace.
"This is probably where she started to gain feelings for him. Now, I can see why she was so angry when Shining went missing,"
The mindspace changed once again to night-time in the sparring fields. The sounds of relentless huffing and puffing from an older Tidal could be heard from behind me. I turned to face her, sweating profusely as she swang her blade repeatedly. Each swing carried with it a blade of water which only made it a couple of metres before dissipating. She kept trying to make her mother's attacks work but each time, the same result. Eventually, she gave a loud yell and threw her practice sword to the side and collapsed to her knees crying. I couldn't keep watching her suffer and began to walk towards her. "Stay away from me, you freak..." I couldn't hear her mumbling so I decide to take another step forward.
"STAY AWAY FROM ME!"
She released a mighty burst of magic from her horn. I quickly summoned my Decode sword to block to the attack. However, she didn't relent, continuing to release magic indiscriminately. "WHY DO YOU THINK I MADE YOU FEEL PAIN IN THE FOREST WHERE MY MOM DIED?! I WANT YOU OUT! GET OUT OF MY HEAD!" Her magic tantrum grew so bad, I had to even change into my unbound form to tank the attack. I may have been able to absorb magic, but taking it as an attack still hurts like hell. Eventually, I reached and put my hand on her horn and drained the rest of her magic. She was left there, underneath me and struggling to break free as I tried to understand what was happening. Could she have been here this whole time? A dreamlike state which she refused to wake up from?
"Tidal, I know how it feels to lose someone close to you. To feel so useless without them but staying in the past won't help you move on! You need to keep moving forward!"
"Don't you think I know that?! I've tried to get past the pain of her death but something keeps pulling me back! Back to my weakness!" the field changed to the memory of our battle with Chrysalis.
"My regrets!" It changed again to the funeral with Shining and her.
"My fucking failure as a general!" This time it was a cemetery filled with the tombs of her corps who died in the battle. The mindspace couldn't handle it, shattering and turned to darkness. "I can't come back from this. I just want to stay here and rot like I deserve to so just... go away..." she went limp and laid there in silence. I went silent for a few moments too, trying to find the right words to say. It then hit me.
"If you can't come back from this alone, then rely on us," the darkened mindspace then changed to the deliberation room with all of us; Me, Her, Cadence, Burning and Windy. "We may not have started out on the best foot or hoof but we're here for you if you need us. Don't you remember how you and Cadence worked together to fend off Chrysalis' attack?" The scene changed back to the battle. She looked and saw both her and Cadence, two mares who hated each other at first but were both fighting for a common cause. "It may seem like your weak but inside you are probably the strongest out of all of us. You lasted against Chrysalis longer than Celestia! Don't ask how I know. I just do," The mindspace changed one last time to baby Tidal in Storm Surge's arms "We need you, Tidal. We all care about you and want you back in our lives so please..." Tidal began crying again "Come back to us..."
"Ugh... Was that a dream?" I said, waking up in Tidal's room. I looked at Tidal and froze. She was awake and still holding my hand. She leapt towards me and hugged me tightly, making sure not to let go. I returned the hug and remained like that for what seemed like hours. Soon, Tidal let go and slowly stood up, trembling slightly. She walked over to the mantle holding her mother's sword and magic-blasted it open "WAS THAT REALLY NECESSARY?!" I yelled.
"Can you take me to Canterlot, please?" she said quietly. I was left in shock but then looked at her holding her mother's sword in her grip, understanding what she intended to do. I silently nodded and walked over to her. I put my hand on her shoulder and teleported us all the way to Canterlot.
I was exhausted by the time we made it to Canterlot cemetery but we made it. Tidal walked through the garden of graves until she found a large statue of her mother in all of her glory. She put the broken sword down and used her magic to submerge it "No more lingering in the past. I have to move forward with my new friends and new life but I will always have you to keep me going. See you later, mom," she walked back to me and put her hand on mine, allowing her magic to flow into me "That should be enough to get us back, right?" she asked. I gave a slight nod, too tired to respond with words. Without any last words, we teleported back to the empire.
TIDAL HORN POV
Once we made it back, Noire passed out on the floor. Expected seeing as I had just made him teleport 43 miles and back. "Impressive... for a newbie," I said, smirking. I picked him up and laid him in my bed. I got cosy next to him and pulled the covers over us "Now listen, just because I'm letting you sleep in my bed doesn't mean I like you or anything, Newbie. You're still gonna have to prove your worth to me on the battlefield," Noire responded with a quiet murmur. I chuckled and got closer to him, dangerously close "But I must admit, Cadence got herself a keeper. I wonder if she told him about herds," I said before giving in to sleep.
Morning came slowly over the horizon and its rays once again hit my tired face "Ugh" I groaned as I forced myself to get up, rubbing the crust of last night's sleep from my eyes "Noire, wake up. We have to get ready," there was no response. I turned to my lover's side of the bed to find it empty as I found it yesterday "Weird. He should have been here by now. Where could he have gone to?" I teleported on a dress and regalia and left my room on a search for Noire. It was during my search that a guard told me of how Noire went to Tidal's room but never left "He must have fallen asleep in there. I should wake him up so we can try the enchanting," I teleported to Tidal's quarters where I looked at the empty chair and the empty display case where Storm Surge's sword was kept "Where did it go? Noire? Are you he-,"
Again. Again I found Noire with General Tidal Horn, innocently cuddling. As the princess of love, I would find this adorable. However, I was reminded that; 1) Noire is MY man. 2) I was still a little miffed for Tidal blaming me for Shining's betrayal and 3) Tidal was in a COMA so being the kind, understanding marefriend I was, I kindly and politely woke them up.
"WAKE UP" I yelled in the Royal Canterlot Voice waking Noire and, to my surprise, Tidal up, causing them to fall out of bed with a thump.
"Ow..." Noire murmured from his spot on the ground
"What the hell, princess?" said Tidal groggily as she and Noire got up. I was so shocked by Tidal being awake that I forgot that they were sleeping together. Tidal stood up and stretched her arms and legs before facing me with an annoyed expression "So, are you going to explain what that was about or are we going to stand here gawking at me being awake?"
I shook myself out of my daze and gathered my thoughts "Tidal? How in Equestria are you awake? You've been in a coma for ages," Tidal glanced at the still tired Noire and sat down. She explained everything that had happened when she was in a coma and how Noire had entered her mind accidentally and saved her. Noire discovering new abilities had given me hope that he was getting stronger and could stand a better chance against Grim and his incoming attack on Canterlot. However, I was soon reminded of both of them being in the same bed together "Wait for just a second! This doesn't explain why you two were sleeping together and why Storm Surge's sword is gone! Did someone steal it?!"
Noire took this opportunity to intervene "To answer that, I teleported her to Canterlot to give her mother back her sword and back. I passed out and Tidal let me sleep with her for the night. That was it; no funny business involved," he answered "However, with how hard she was holding onto me, I would say she was very eager to allow me to sleep with her," he mentioned with a cheeky smirk. Tidal's face turned a deep crimson and smacked Noire upside the head.
"DON'T MAKE IT OUT AS IF I LIKE YOU, ASSHOLE!" Tidal yelled. I was left shocked at how much Tidal had changed since we last talked. She was so cold and stiff before compared to now. She looked so... free, relieved of the weight of general and reduced to a simple mare.
"Who knew that the cold-hearted unicorn corps general was a tsundere?" Noire laughed out loud,
"And who knew the shy and unworthy newbie was such a perv? I could feel your head nuzzled between my ti-"
Before Tidal could finish, I stomped my foot and gave another yell in the Royal Canterlot Voice "OH MY GOD! SHUT THE BUCK UP THE BOTH OF YOU!" The two stopped arguing and looked at me as if I were a crazy mare, which I was close to becoming.
"Jesus, Cadence, you should calm down," Noire said.
"I agree with the newbie, maybe you should take some deep breaths," Tidal said. I could see my sanity dwindle as a strand of hair strayed from the rest of my still unkempt mane. Before I could completely lose it, Windy and Burning burst into the room, Windy armed with his longbow and Burning with an ignited fist. Seeing the scene in front of them, Windy just burst into laughter and Burning just stood down and left, having already understood what had happened. It was official;
"I have the most annoying guard in Equestria," I said as I turned and left, not bothered enough to teleport "Screw this, I'm going back to bed,"
After a much-needed rest and shower, I left my room ready to start court. Unlike the courts back in Canterlot, most of the requests I get are constructive such as rebuilding areas that had been abandoned. However, because some of the nobles decided to move here, I still get some silly requests like raising the temperature (which is something I wish I could do to stop them complaining but can't) or somepony accidentally stepping on their shoes. As for my 'mighty' generals, Burning and Windy we're with their corps training and Tidal were with Curdle for a checkup. Noire was in the armoury experimenting with what we've decided to name 'encoding' to see if we can apply this to our weapons.
As for me...
"HOW DARE YOU SPEAK TO ME, LORD NICKABOTOM, YOU LOWER CLASS SWINE!"
"AT LEAST I HAVE SOME CLASS, YOU UPTIGHT FOREIGNER! IF YOU DON'T LIKE THE CLIMATE THEN LEAVE!"
Those were the days I felt more like a babysitter than a princess. I took a deep breath, exhaled slowly and opened the doors to another 'beautiful' morning court.
NOIRE POV
"I'm starting to have mixed feelings about coming up with this idea..." I murmured while I had my hand on a spear, several dozen to my side. I had gone down to the armoury and spoke to the blacksmith about the experiment with what we decided to call 'encoding', enhancing armour and weapons with the code, and he agreed enthusiastically as it gave him the excuse to make more weapons. Fortunately, the experiment was a success and we had a method of fighting Grim's army. Unfortunately, I had to do the same thing to the entire guard's weapons and armour. It didn't require much power to encode each armour set and weapon but do it for a few hundred and you're bound to get a little tired. "I swear to Jove someone better tell this is the last batch I have to do or else I'll fucking die," I said groggily, almost completely out of magic.
It was during my complaining that a fully armoured Tidal entered the room "Stop whining, newbie. This is a win: win for both you and the guards," I looked at her confused and she sighed "Didn't anyone tell you anything about magic? Okay, newbie, listen up 'cause I'm only saying this once; the more you use your magic, the more magic you'll be able to draw out and the same should be able to happen with your code since it is some primal form of magic or whatever," I nodded attentively and looked at the two spears left. I grabbed both of them and put my hand on them. The pink markings on my arms appeared again and I could feel the last of my magic transfer into them, making them glow pink before dying out, completing the encoding "Good, now we can both get something to eat now that I have a day off. I didn't get to eat this morning and Curdle's constant testing and questions about what it felt like to have someone in your head have drained me," she grabbed my hand and dragged my woozy ass to the cafeteria.
TIDAL POV
The cafeteria was a large room where the guard would often be found on their break. It looked similar to an outdoor cafe but designed similarly to the rest of the palace and with a lounge at the upper floor. Some of the guards were talking about how long their shift was while others were arm wrestling, the same old. When I entered the room, all of them stopped what they were doing and looked at me and the barely functioning bodyguard of the princess "Continue with what you were doing. This isn't a circus show," I said plainly as I sat Noire down and grabbed a pair of cucumber sandwiches and two cups of orange juice. Everypony had carried on with their business by the time I had taken a seat next opposite Noire. "Here, eat. You can't encode my armour on an empty stomach." I said, offering the human one of the sandwiches. He scarfed up the sandwich like an animal before choking on a large piece. I sighed and pushed the orange juice towards him "You've changed since the last time we talked,"
Noire put down his drink and looked at me confused "Really? I feel the same as I've always been,"
"From the occasions where I saw you with Cadence before the whole thing with the cap- I mean Shining Armour, you appeared to be a meek human who stayed in his lane. However, you've started to act more like you've been here all your life," I replied.
Noire put his hand on his chin in thought for a moment before responding "Probably because of Shining. With him wanting my head on a pike most of the time and the Chrysalis incident, I felt like I had to stay on my toes and not be too stupid lest Shining take it as an offence and start throwing magic blasts at my face. Even now, I don't feel out of the woods with Grim attacking in a couple of weeks but now I've got people I consider family now. Burning and Windy feel more like brothers to me now than when I first met them and thought of them as invincible warriors,"
"And what about me?"
"You're more like an annoying older sister,"
"Screw you, I'm 20,"
"Screw you, I'm 21," I huffed and folded her arms in a strop "You know I'm not the only one who's changed. You've changed Ifrom the strict, uptight general to the childish mare we all knew was inside you," Noire said, grinning mischievously. I glared at Noire but quickly cooled down. I looked at the clock and saw that our break was almost over.
"Come on, asshole. You've got a 300 spear quota to meet and we don't have all day" I said, levitating our dishes to the kitchen.
Noire slumped back into his chair "Seriously?! I swear if this keeps up, You're taking me out for dinner,"
"Don't push your luck newbie. Unless you want me to send you back to the infirmary with more bruises than Burning did to you. I am not as lenient as those other two," I smirked and looked back at the lazy oaf "Plus, you're the one who should be taking the mare out to dinner, especially your new marefriend. Have you taken her out yet?" The silence was all I received from Noire, answering my question for him "Idiot..."
"Shit..."
CADENCE POV
The night began to fall on the empire once again and I was just about done with ponies for one day. I did not think pony names were dumb until the world proved me wrong yet again with what I could only describe as the dumbest name I have ever had the displeasure of hearing. By then, all I wanted was to get to bed and get some sleep. I had just teleported in my room and was about to collapse onto my bed until I saw a flash from the corner of my eye. It was then I saw Noire looking exhausted "Um, hello, my love? What has gotten into you?"
"Come with me. I've got a surprise for you," he said through heavy breaths. I was about to ask where we were going but he just grabbed my hand and teleported me with him.
"Surprise!" We had arrived at the massage room in the castle's spa "I know you have been super stressed from work and we haven't gone out together for a while so I decided to treat you to a little treat! I've got fruit and the hands of a god so just sit down and relax," his offer was incredibly tempting. I was super stressed out and he was right; we hadn't spent much time alone together since our first time so why not have him treat me to a little something.
"Okay, Mr Handsy, treat me like a true princess and marefriend tonight," I said, holding out my hand for him to take. He bowed, gently held my hand like it was made of silk and led me to the massage beds. When I walked in, I was hit with the familiar scent of lavender from the dimly lit candles Noire had set up to make the scene more romantic "Lavender isn't my favourite but it is a close second, good for you," I said as I changed into a towel outside of Noire's view and laid myself down on the bed closest to me. Noire grabbed a bottle of massage oil and lathered his hands in it.
"What is your favourite scent then?" he asked. I gave him a sly smile and relaxed as he rubbed his hands together and began working on my legs. To say that he was good was an understatement of the millennia; he had the hands of a god that blessed my body with his touch.
"Ahhh~ Keep doing that well and you'll find out~," Noire kept massaging me up to my waist before stopping for a moment. I was about to ask why he had stopped but he had silenced by sneaking up my towel and massaging my nethers. I gave a loud moan of ecstasy as he went deeper into my folds, thrusting slowly but efficiently. This kept on for a solid minute before I noticed his pants barely hiding his erection. I decided that he had pleasured me enough and that it was time I returned the favour "I can see your raging hard-on back there, barely being able to contain itself in those troublesome clothes. Somepony should take care of that, don't you think~," I unbuttoned his pants, removing his underwear with my magic and before he could ask what I was doing, I had his cock in my magical grip. I used my magic to slowly rub his shaft, eliciting a moan from my beloved. He always sounded adorable when he did that.
"Cadence, I'm... close," he said
I smiled "Then cum...ahh... cum all over my candy ass, Shower my ass with your...mmm... love~," His cock heard my lustful plea and obeyed happily, spraying its juices all over my ass, painting it a thick white. However, I wasn't done with my handsome stud "Now do what you should have done a week ago. Fuck. My. Ass," I ordered to which Noire obliged. He spread my cheeks as wide as he could and pointed his dick right at my unclaimed ass. You heard it here everyone; Shining and I never did anal and it was bothersome as Tartarus. Shining was never bold enough to do it even though I asked on several occasions. Good thing my precious coltfriend was more than willing to give his mare what she needs. He pushed forward, slowly penetrating my ass and if I told you it was less than heaven than I would be slap myself. Anal was WAY better than what I heard from mares in the club and sex magazines and he hadn't even started yet. We had to wait a moment for my walls to adjust to Noire's length but it didn't take long until I finally relaxed and gave Noire the signal to start "Take me. Hard," He began thrusting into my ass with fervour, sending me into cloud nine. I couldn't think clearly with his pace sending ripples through my ass and up my spine, distracting me from any thoughts that didn't involve sex. "OHHH BUCK YES! KEEP GOING YOU STUD! FILL ME UP!"
"FUCK, CADENCE! YOU'RE SO TIGHT!" Noire grunted as he picked me up from the massage bed and pounded with gusto. I was almost at my limit and Noire looked seconds away from blowing his load all over this room so I used my free arms to rub my pussy, adding to my pleasure until I finally came, which put Noire over the edge, cumming buckets into my ass. He set me down on the floor. He soon joined me before kissing me on the lips "So how was the surprise?"
His silly question sent me into a fit of giggles "Look at my ass, dripping with your beautiful cum and think about what you just said," I replied
"Third rule of sex for men; Never assume you were good in bed. Makes you look shallow. Although from how frisky you were through that entire ordeal, I would have to say I did my job as your colt/boyfriend very well," Noire stated proudly "Now could you please teleport us to our room. I would carry you but I can barely stand,"
"Cool, I can't walk either," I said as I charged my horn for a teleport spell. Once we were teleported straight to our bed, we passed out in each other's arms. However, one last thought passed through our minds "I just realised we never announced our relationship,"
"Tomorrow," Noire answered before going to sleep.
"Great..." I replied lazily before going to sleep myself.
I walked down the halls of my school, holding a bunch of books to my chest as I quickly made my way to my class, which I was already ten minutes late for. By the time I had made it to class, everyone was already working while my teacher stared at me and then the clock "Only 11 minutes late, Curdle. This is record time for you. What was it this time? Got lost? Missed the bus? Or are you finally ready to admit why you are always late to MY CLASS and ONLY my class?" he said very passive-aggressively. A few of the students chuckled to themselves, probably because they already knew why but wanted to keep it away from teachers.
"I'm sorry, sir," I said quietly. The teacher groaned and motioned for me to take my seat. As I sat down, I noticed a note on my desk signed to 'Freak' who was clearly me.
Don't worry. We won't tell if you don't.
Those words rocked me to the core. I looked around the class and noticed several students looking at me but hiding from our teacher. Questions spiralled in my mind. Who did this? Was it him? Or her? Why is it me who has to go through this torture? As the questions keep coming, faint sounds of a pony trying to get my attention kept playing in the background.
"...Curdle?"
"Miss Curdle?"
"Doctor!" the voice finally became clear to be the new assistant Noire and Cadence recruited, Ayra. I snapped out of my thoughts and focused on the reformed changeling. She had come in for an injury she got on the way to her duties. However, from the appearance of the large bruise on her thigh, it appeared to be intentional.
"I'm sorry about that, just zoned out is all. Now, tell me how you got this injury," I asked as I began administering a pad to the wound. Ayra flinched momentarily but still responded.
"I was on the way to see Cadence for her court when I bumped into a guard and fell," she said.
"Really? From the size of the wound and how quickly it has swelled, this must have been made intentionally. So I will ask you again, dear," I put on my scary face which caused Ayra to stiffen "How did you get that?" She took a deep breath and tried to resist my stern gaze but ultimately failed. She spilt the beans about how she bumped into a guard and he got quite peeved and kicked her to the ground. As I heard about the cruel words that were said to her, I felt my anger rise. How dare a guard do this to an innocent maiden like her?! However, I had to remain professional.
"You do know I have to report this to the princess, right? I cannot overlook this, Ayra," I said as I went to my cabinet and got a small bottle of pills "Take two of these and the pain should subside within the hour," Ayra accepted the bottle and stood up but failed due to the pain. I caught her before she fell "You should stay here for the hour so you can heal up," Ayra nodded and took a seat on one of the beds.
The next five minutes were complete silence as she sat there silently while I was working at my desk. It was when Ayra asked me a very sensitive question that the silence was broken, although initially, I wished it had remained for a while longer "Um, Doctor Curdle? I'm sorry to ask but when I told you about my injury, I felt a lot of anger and... a sense of familiarity. May I ask why you were upset about this?"
"Why do you care?" I answered coldly, trying to avoid the conversation.
"Well, I'm a changeling. Not a lot of ponies know about it except for Noire, the princesses and you so why would you help me even after what my kind has done?"
"......" I wanted to block the memories but failed. They all just returned, playing briefly in my mind but long enough for a drop of blood to fall from my finger. I had pierced my finger with the pe I was writing with. I was tipped over the edge by the sight of a single drop of blood falling from my finger and landing on the counter "I may not be a changeling but I am still a freak..."
CURDLE POV, 9 YEARS AGO
I was with a group of classmates on a field trip to the Everfree. Our teacher reminded us beforehand our task; to split up into groups of three and collect a poison joke flower safely for an experiment involving how irritability affects the poison joke's effect on the victim. I was in charge of collecting the flower because the rest of my group were too scared to pick it and I was the stereotypical, weak, submissive, nerdy girl in glasses and a sweater vest. "Keep up, Curdle or else we'll never find the damn flower," Rain Drop, one of my group members, said from in front of me, beckoning me to move faster," It had already been 30 minutes since we had split off in search of the flower and it was starting to get late. As the sun began to set on the horizon, my anxiety only proved to rise.
"Don't you think we should head back? It's getting pretty late," I said but nobody was listening to me. They were all too busy talking about what to wear to the next party this weekend while I was dreading for my life inside a forest of unpredictability and danger. I tried to catch up to my two teammates but they had already faded from view, leaving me alone. I was alone in the Everfree, lost and scared for my life "Rain! Where are you!" I called out but to no avail. I was starting to lose hope when I saw a pair of eyes watching me from the darkness. I slowly turned around to see what it was when I was tackled by something large. I was pinned to the ground by a manticore. Once I saw the giant beast above me I began squirming, trying to find a way out of this. The beast opened its maw, ready to devour me but I gave a loud scream and blasted the beast straight in the face with a magic blast. The attack did little to harm the creature as I barely flinched and still growled as it tried to eat me again. I had used most of my magic in the attack and in my young, weak and inexperienced self, I had no defence against it.
However, before it could finish me off, its arm twitched and pulsated before exploding violently. The manticore fell on top of me and roared in pain. The manticore's leg then began bubble like it was in a cooking pot and exploded as well. By now the beast was dead but the process still continued until its torso was all that was left. I pushed the manticore body off of me and looked at myself, completely drenched in blood. I looked around me and saw the whole area looking the same as me, covered with blood and small remains of the manticore's body.
"Hey Curdle! Where are you?! We already found a poison joke so stop being so usele-AHHHH!" Rain was about to finish her sentence when she was greeted by a blood-soaked battlefield where only I remained. She looked at the manticore torso and then to me "YOU MONSTER!" she said as she ran away screaming in fear. I was still in shock of what had happened to understand as I was greeted by many emotions; terror... and glee? As if the scene around me was a candy store instead of a war zone. I grabbed whatever resources I could find and made my way back to the base camp, where everypony was probably being told of my exploits.
"But that wasn't your fault! You were attacked and you defended yourself!" Ayra yelled out in anger. I could understand why she felt that way. To be honest, I felt the same but nothing was going to change anything now. The deed was done.
"That's what I wanted everypony to know but society doesn't work that way What they believe first is more likely to be the more accepted truth than what they know second. Such is the case with me," I replied, emotionless.
"Wait? Does this mean you are the same as the generals?" Ayra asked. I guess it kind of made sense. Burning Fist has his pyrokinesis powers even though he is an earth pony, Windy Wing has absurdly strong wings which he uses to create large tornadoes and Tidal Horn has her inherited Wave magic so I guess I am special like them. Although, unlike them, If I were to use my powers, I would be feared more than praised by my peers. Just like with my school. The ENTIRE SCHOOL.
9 YEARS AGO, AFTER THE INCIDENT
When I had arrived at the base camp, it was already too late. Our teacher was consoling a hysterical Rain Drop while others looked at me, drenched in manticore blood and laughed at me. Some looked at me in disgust and tried to keep their distance as I stood there, silently taking the abuse. Our teacher took a moment away from Rain to direct me to the nearest shower in the public bathrooms so I could clean myself off. I thanked him and left but as I made my way there I felt a tingle on my left shoulder. Confused as to what was happening, I pulled down my sweater and saw a cutie mark. While one would often squeal in the delight of gaining a cutie mark, this was less than a joyful moment. Three drops of blood were present on my left shoulder, reminding me of this disgusting power I have. I continued walking and soon the laughs died out in my ears.
When I made it to the public bathroom, I went into a very small shower and turned on the water, washing the blood off of me and my clothes. I didn't care how wet I got, I was already accustomed to being covered in blood so the water wasn't that uncomfortable for me. My thoughts of the incident stopped as soon as I saw the blood trickle down my skin and onto the shower floor. At the time it was hard to describe what the sight was to me; sickening, traumatizing, disgusting. However, as I remembered the feeling of being covered in blood, it became clear to me. I was mesmerized by it. I quickly gathered as much blood as I could with my hands and drank it. It tasted wonderful! I had to have more but when I looked down, I saw the blood had already been washed away "No... I must have more!" I thought to myself when I remembered something that sickened me at first but now I wanted to take full advantage of. The manticore torso I took.
Ayra looked like anypony I would expect to look like after hearing that information and gaining a minuscule amount of understanding as to what happened next "Don't tell me you..."
"Yes, I pocketed the manticore torso with a small pocket dimension spell. You know what happens next but I still feel like I need to tell you the full story" I said quickly cutting her off "You did ask after all," a weak smile appeared on my face momentarily before I continued with my recount.
A DAY AFTER THE INCIDENT
I had gotten as much sleep as I could, given the pure trauma of what I had done and the pure ecstasy that came from the experience, and continued my daily routine; brush my teeth, eat breakfast, leave my house and went to school. The only difference was the new taunts such as how bad my 'period' (which mares can't have) was or the less popular students who kept their distance as to not be associated with me. However, I wasn't bothered much by it. I had another thought running through my mind which was, in my opinion then, much more important; making it to lunch. My first two lessons went as normal; Maths put everypony to sleep and physics made me want to defy the laws of gravity and float out of the classroom but soon they were both over and I went to the one place I wouldn't be caught or interrupted- the abandoned science lab. It had been abandoned because of funding and power was damaged beyond repair so everypony stopped using it except for me when I wanted to be alone. Fortunately, it had been unlocked today so I could spend the entire lunch with my new 'experiment'. I cast a spell, summoning the corpse back and setting it on a table
"Finally, I've been waiting all night for an opportunity like this to strike and I'm not letting it slip through my fingers. I have big plans for you, big boy. Now, May I have a little sample of your blood, please?," I asked the lifeless, limbless and decapitated corpse. No response. In my delusional state, I gave an unnerving chuckle as I went into my bag and fished out a syringe "Why thank you, my kind patient! Don't worry, it will only sting a little," I said as I dug my syringe into the manticore's chest and pulled the plunger back, collecting as much blood as possible. I took out the needle and inspected the vial of blood in the syringe with delight "Oh look at how much you bled for me, my sweet! I thought you would have gone dry after a whole 14 hours but I guess the pocket dimension kept you preserved for me. The more you know, I guess," I said as I held the syringe over my face, right above my muzzle and pushed the plunger back down. Blood poured out of the syringe and into my muzzle as my cheeks flushed and my panties became wet from the juices I leaked. I looked down at the tiny hole my needle made in the manticore's chest and saw a tiny trickle of blood drip from it. I eyed the small stream hungrily and leaned down until I was millimetres from the trickle. I licked the blood off of the chest, putting my finger in my mouth to get a second taste " Who knew manticore blood could taste so good~ Its a shame I can't get any more of this in Canterlot. Oh well, I guess I have to make do with what I have here~" My lips touched the furry chest of the manticore and...
*SUCK*
I began sucking away, draining as much of the manticore's blood as possible. A little voice in my head begged for me to stop but the urge was too powerful. I continued until there was nothing left to take, leaving only an empty husk behind. I wiped my muzzle clean of any excess blood and licked the excess of my wrist. That was when I heard the life-changing sound.
*CLICK*
I turned around and saw a student with a camera pointed at me at the door. Before I could even act, they sped off down the corridor and out of site. I paused in terror of the consequences of the act I had just committed. I had been caught drinking the blood of a manticore on camera. This was bound to make the school newspaper- no- the city of Canterlot would probably know within a day. I would probably have to leave the city for fear of being chased out with pitchforks and torches. I collapsed onto the floor and cried my eyes out, fearing my bleak future that lied ahead.
"So that was why you were so interested in mine and Noire's blood. I thought you were just the creepy, mad scientist who was making their own Frankenstallion," Ayra said, looking less terrified but much more creeped out. However, she seemed quite calm about the issue now. That brought me some sense of relief. I turned around fully so I faced the changeling, sorrow evident on my face as my expression held a sombre tone and a sense of regret and shame.
"Yes, after that the whole school found out and I decided to leave as soon as I graduated and went to Ponyville to try to sate my urges there. However, manticore blood didn't seem to do the trick anymore so when I heard of the new Crystal Empire, I just had to go there. Cadence accepted me as a nurse here and the rest is history. Right now, you are the only one here who knows about my... sanguinarian appetite so I can hope you don't tell ANYONE about this- not the princess, not Noire, not the generals. No-one," I said sternly.
"Don't worry, I won't tell anyone. Besides, you're not the only one who has to hide their appetite so I guess we can be... friends?" Ayra asked nervously. She awkwardly held out a hand for me to shake. This was weird for me; nopony had offered to be my friend ever since the incident. Even when I met Noire and Cadence, it always felt like an unspoken friendship but with Ayra, I felt like she genuinely wanted to be my friend. I awkwardly accepted her hand and shook it.
"Friends..." I said, smiling at her warmly "Now, what's your story if you don't mind me asking?"
"My story?" I asked. Curdle did nothing but nod and took a seat opposite me. I never looked back on my childhood before Chrysalis destroyed her own hive, too many bad memories. Way too many.
"Unless it is uncomfortable for you to talk about. I know more than anypony how terrible recalling the past is for creatures like us son if you don't want to talk about it..." Curdle put her hand on my shoulder, assuring me that I wasn't being forced o do anything here. I already decided on telling her about my past but the real question that plagued me was how much to tell her.
"OK, I'll tell you everything I can," I closed my eyes and took a deep breath before beginning.
1 YEAR AGO
I was in the audience of Queen Chrysalis herself, shivering like a foal in the cold as she looked down at me kneeling "Rise, my faithful changeling, there is nothing to fear here," she said in a benevolent tone that could only be rivalled by Celestia herself. Despite what ponies who have met her may think, she was actually a kind and fair ruler who only used her 'evil supervillain' personality when she was in her changeling form around ponies. Ponies hated us so in her opinion, why try to be friendly to the race that had a long history of prejudice and discrimination towards races that didn't share their so-called 'pure' traits like dragons who were by nature, aggressive and carnivorous and us changelings who 'stole' love. "Today is a very important day for you, you are now ready to go out into the world and collect love for us, young drone,"
A drone is only allowed to begin going into the world to hunt for love when they turn 9 changeling years old, which is only 1 normal year, in our hive. It is when we both have the average size magic pool and control over our shape-shifting abilities to collect love. That day was my ninth changeling birthday and my first hunt, which was considered a momentous occasion in our community. My mom, or should I say my 'delegated caretaker' was ecstatic as well as my older drone siblings. While everychangeling in our hive is technically related by blood, we separate ourselves into families to help with the sharing of love. However, our queen, Chrysalis, was always the one to receive the most love to breed more of our kin. Thoughts ran through my mind like 'What if can't collect enough love?' or 'What if I get caught?' which only added to my hesitation but everychangeling told me it was going to be okay. I was just as skilled as any other drone in the hive and my chosen location was Canterlot, the grand central station of love so nothing could go wrong. "I fulfil my duty to the hive," I said, bowing in respect.
Chrysalis smiled at me and motioned for me to raise my head again "Your companion, Celia, will also be going with you to keep you safe. Remember your training and stay focused, for the hive,"
"For the hive," I repeated back to her.
"Good, you are dismissed," she said. I turned and left the throne room and into the tunnels where I stayed with my family.
On my way, Celia waved from a tunnel above me and hopped down so she was next to me "Hello there, Ayra, heard Chrysalis gave you the thumbs up to go out into the field," I remained silent as Celia kept walking with me. Celia was 2 changeling years older than me so she was able to go out into the field much more frequently than me, a fledgeling "So, how are you feeling, Ayra. I know you might be feeling nervous but don't worry. The most you will have to do is tail some happy couple or family. Simple," She said "Maybe if your lucky, you'll get a stallion to treat you for the night~," she said. I blushed furiously and pushed her.
"CELIA! You know I'm not allowed to do that until I'm 18! That would be against Chrysalis' wishes and you know what happened to the last drone who had relations with a pony while underaged!" I exclaimed. Celia only sighed and placed her hands by her sides.
"That poor soul will never see his little dinker again... if only he waited two more months..." she said quietly. Celia was always the vulgar one, always cracking inappropriate jokes and encouraging me to do things I probably shouldn't. However, she was always the one to motivate me when I was struggling with my training and pushed me to try harder than anyone else so Chrysalis would acknowledge me and accept me into her elite guard "Now for real, how are you feeling about this?" she asked me genuinely.
"To be honest, a little nervous. Everychangeling keeps telling me how important the first hunt is as it is basically the first impression to our queen and decides how much you are respected by the hive and our queen and maybe even a spot on the elite espionage team," The espionage team were able to go on much more missions which meant they got the most love out of all the drones and lived a lot longer. There have also been rumours of Craxis, Chrysalis' right-hand drone, living for almost 100 years.
"Don't worry! You'll be just fine. You are just as skilled as the seniors, which is saying something!" she reassured me "Anyway, my mom is waiting for me to get back, my turn to feed the little one, you know?" she said as she flew off into another tunnel' leaving me alone with my thoughts once again. After that talk, I felt more motivated than get as much love as possible from my first hunt for my family and hive. I let out a relieved sigh and walked tall as I went back to my hole.
"That would probably be the moment I grew to eager, to confident in my abilities to understand what I would be doing fully. If I could, I would slap past me for being such a fool," I clutched my chest tightly as I insulted myself for being so stupid.
"May I ask what happened?"
"It was during my hunt in Canterlot. I was separated from Celia in a crowd when she found a target to follow. I was lost and wet from the rain, so scared that I almost shifted back. A stallion found me in the streets alone and asked if I wanted to go with him to his place so I could get dry but..."
SKIP THIS SCENE IF YOU ARE UNCOMFORTABLE WITH EXPLICIT RAPE
It was going fine when the stallion asked if I wanted to go to his place; I had a large supply of love coming from him and it was enough to feed at least three or four small families. "Chrysalis will be so pleased with me..." I said to myself. I was disguised as one of the mares I was on the streets. I was an amber pegasus with a cream white mane and green eyes.
"What was that?" the stallion asked me. He was a grey unicorn with crystal blue eyes and honestly quite easy on the eyes by our standards. I was expecting my first target to be maybe and old stallion or mare like some of the unlucky ones. In hindsight, somepony old would have been better than him.
"Oh, nothing!" I said cheerfully as I dressed in one of his large T-shirts. I period of silence came followed by a question which changed the course of the entire night.
"So, can we skip the pretences and just skip to the part where I buck your brains out?" he said as he leaned in behind me and took a whiff of my mane. I tensed up at his unwanted touch, his hands tracing my sides until he reached the bottom the shirt and took it off in a single motion. I couldn't replicate any undergarments so I was completely naked in front of the stallion. He smiled from ear to ear as I tried to hide my exposed body "Wow, got all naked for me? You must be a naughty girl, huh?" he whispered into my ear as he kept feeling me up "To be honest, I didn't think you would come with me when I asked. It sounded like an obvious trap when I think on it and ponies here in Canterlot don't exactly know me for my good-natured conduct around mares, especially virgins," the intense pleasure from his touch and the fear completely paralysed me; all I could do was let the stallion feel me up.
He pushed me onto his bed without warning and pinned me down as I tried to roll off and escape "Oh no you don't; you're the first mare who was dumb enough to take my offer this week and as you can see" he pointed down at his hardened crotch "I am quite hot and bothered so calm down and let me do all the work," he unbuttoned his pats with his magic and pulled down his boxers, revealing his stiff stallionhood. It was so large, I was 100% sure I wouldn't be able to take all of him, especially for my first time.
"Please... don't..." I finally managed to squeeze out but he was done with teasing. He spread my legs wide open and...
SCENE END
By then, I was already in tears. I collapsed on the floor bawling my eyes out. Curdle got off her seat and held me tightly. "Don't worry. You don't have to say anything; I understand"
"Your the only person I have told about this since Chrysalis. She said it was okay and tried to assure me everything was okay but it WASN'T!" I yelled "I couldn't tell my family, or Celia or the other drones. All I could do was receive comments on how well I did; like I was being praised for letting myself get raped and they died thinking I was some changeling deserving of their love. I could've done so many things but didn't out of pure fear; Hit him with a spell, reveal my true form, ANYTHING! but all I did was lie there and take it like some sl-" Curdle put a finger to my muzzle before I could finish and waited for me to calm down. Once I did, she removed her finger "I was never the same after; I rejected the offer to join the espionage as I knew it was just out of pity, I was terrified of stallions and had to resort to medication I stole from pharmacies just to stop my nightmares and panic attacks. A lot of them,"
"You do realise those can have quite an effect on your personality. It can cause your testosterone to increase and make you become more violent. It is a miracle an overdose didn't kill you," Curdle said. She picked me up off of the floor and put her hands on my shoulders "You are safe here and have lots of people to talk to about this kind of emotional baggage,"
"Like who?" I asked.
"Burning Fist witnessed the destruction of his clan and is the last one alive, Tidal Horn lost her mother to gryphons and I know about the picture of Windy's mother he keeps under his pillow which is slightly scorched on the edges. Even Noire has some issues he needs to sort out; I've seen it by how he is constantly lost in his own thoughts. You have lots of people here who can help you but only if you let them in,"
"Where would I even begin?" I asked. A knock sounded from the entrance and from it, Noire appeared/
"You can start with me if you want," he said "I'm sorry but I couldn't help but listen and all I say is I won't get any easier bottling it in. Cadance and I talk about our problems all the time and we grow closer with each day. You can do the same with someone you want to truly give your love to,"
It was all too much. Tears rolled down my cheeks once again but this time it was slow, happy tears spoke the words for me. Noire and Curdle hugged me warmly and I couldn't help but hug back; I trusted these two after all "Please help me" Without me even noticing, the wound began to slowly heal.
Time had passed faster than any of us wanted it to but before we knew it, we were five days away from the fated day when Grim would attack us. It took a lot of effort but I had encoded enough armour and weapons for the entire Crystal Empire and Canterlot militia, putting me to sleep for almost a whole day while the armour was being sent to Canterlot. As a great side-benefit, Tidal's words rang true and my mana pool had expanded significantly to the point where I could probably pull off two Phantom Excaliburs and still have enough magic to spare. The rest of our days were limited to training and strategy meetings, giving Cadance the excuse to cancel court for a while, much to the nobles' dismay. I learned how to control my magic better so I wouldn't waste too much of it from Tidal as well as long-range attacks from Windy. Burning was usually my sparring partner and while I hated to admit it during a time of preparation for one of the largest threats to Equestria, I was having fun.
"You're distracted, newbie! Focus!," said Tidal as she swung her broadsword at me. I leapt out of the way and came back at her with equal force. Our swords became locked as we struggled for dominance "It seems like you've been practising, newbie. Maybe I should start trying with you now," she smirked.
"It would be a nice change of pace," I responded. Tidal's horn shined blue as her sword became wrapped in a torrent of water, shaping it into a lance. She backstepped before rushing at me with a flurry of jabs. I jumped into the air and to my surprise, I remained floating above Tidal. I looked down at the field below me, seeing Tidal looking up in awe as well as other guards looking up with a similar expression.
"When did you learn to do that?!" Tidal yelled. I thought back to the day I spent asleep and the unexpected event that occurred.
I woke up in the void yet again. I was expecting the weird, unembodied voice to make itself known but instead another with a familiar voice.
"You are a very difficult boy to contact, you know, so I expect you to at least face the person you are meeting with," my breath caught in my throat as I turned to find none other than Grim standing opposite me "Good. Now we can have a much-needed talk," He snapped his fingers and a table appeared with two chairs. Grim sat down and while I was hesitant to go anywhere near him, I felt as if I could get some answers out of him so I sat down in the other chair.
"What do you want from me?" I asked him coldly.
"To grow stronger. You will need to be to survive what I have planned for you," he said nonchalantly. He leaned back in his chair a bit "You think you are getting stronger but you're not really. All I've seen from you are new forms for your little toy and even then, their true potential is wasted just... wasted," I didn't understand a word he was saying and Grim knew this he gave a long sigh "Let me explain. The code is not just some primal magic from the beginning of Equestria. It is the power to control all existing magic. Of course, there are limits to this power and trying to cross them can lead to... unpleasant drawbacks," he rolled up a sleeve on his cloak to reveal that his arm was thin and pulsing with black veins "However, once you gain mastery over this power, the world is your oyster."
As much as I hate to admit it, he was correct. Even though I was becoming stronger, my skill in using the code was minimal at best and the only one who could possibly teach me at the current moment was Grim. However, I wanted another question answered "Why are you doing this? I find it hard to believe that a person with so much intelligence would just decide to take over the world just 'cause. What's your endgame?" Grim went silent for a moment and looked away fro a moment as if he had trouble trying to answer. After a second to collect himself, he turned back to me and answered.
"I'm doing this because I can't stand this world," I was confused by his answer yet again, "Celestia and Luna told you about how the first humans came from a plethora of different worlds. Well, mine was a post-apocalyptic one where the strong preyed on the weak every day. My friends and family were gone in seconds all because the greed and pride of others. The ones at the top grew unsatisfied with their power and sought more from other worlds. In their pursuit of such knowledge, they assigned me, a scientist with the goal of helping the world one step at a time with the task of transcending dimensions. It took me years to even gather the necessary power and technology to create our world's first dimension gate. However, those greedy hounds tried to activate it while it was untested and unstable, creating a pulse of radiation, killing 60% of the population. The landscape was almost unrecognisable; the ground was on fire, the seas dried up and the wind was almost enraged. My abomination had destroyed my home..." He took a moment to get a breath in, signifying that what he was going to say next was going to be especially hard for him to get out "....and to put the icing on the cake, by some coincidence, BY SOME MAGICAL, UNEXPLAINABLE COINCIDENCE I WAS BROUGHT HERE!" he slammed his hands on the table, startling me a bit "I just woke up in a castle with two bipedal, talking horses with wings and horns looking at me as if I was a freak of nature and it felt like a sign of the gods mocking me for my foolishness. To make things worse, I was told I couldn't go home. I was crushed..."
"...Then you came into the possession of the code..." I continued. Grim gave me an ugly grin.
"It changed everything. While I may not be able to go back to my own world, I still have the power to fix this one. The impurities of this world will be gone in the new one and we can rule over it as it's gods," he got up and extended his skinny, corrupted hand towards me "Join me, Noire. With the power of two code avatars, we can reset this entire world right now and you will be granted all of your deepest desires," Without hesitation, I slapped his hand away from me. In that brief exchange, both our eyes shined for a second before fading. I could see bits and pieces of Grim's memories and from Grim's bewildered expression, he could see mine.
"I'll give you some time to think about my offer. I will be back for your answer once I confirm something," With that, he flashed out of the void. I looked through the knowledge I obtained from Grim and found that by condensing the magic particles beneath me, I could levitate. I was interrupted by the void shaking around me, telling me I was going to wake up soon.
"HEY! NEWBIE!" I heard a loud shout from below me where Tidal was looking very annoyed "Are you going to tell or what?" I lowered myself down from where I was floating.
"I should tell you at the next meeting. I feel everyone will need to here this," I told her " Now, we were in the middle of something," I said while getting back into position.
GRIM POV
"The sharing of memories between code users," I murmured to myself, echoing throughout the halls of my empty palace. While I could teleport, it was nice to stretch the legs while I still have them (Experiments aren't exactly risk-free, you know) "It shouldn't be possible. Not even that cursed hero shared any memories with me during any of our encounters so why does Noire? I can deduce that there should be certain conditions that he fills. The only way he could be compatible enough is if he's a relative or from the same world and both are impossible as, from his memories, he lives in a world that never experienced the explosion..." I stopped mid-step "The explosion... Could it have actually worked?"
Before I could ponder more on the subject, Slendermare appeared from the shadows behind me, distracting me from my thoughts "Ah, Slendy. What do you have to report today?" She took an orb from her coat and revealed a recording of armour and weapons that had appeared to be enchanted " 'Encoding' huh? Catchy name," the scene then changed to Noire floating in the air "So, he's finally taking the next step to mastering his power. Good, that means our next encounter will be a lot more fun. Continue your mission but try not to show my their strategies. Any spoilers would ruin the experience," Slendy nodded obediently but in her mind, I could tell she was rolling her non-existent eyes in annoyance. "Besides, I have something important to do..." Once Slendy had vanished, I teleported to my lab out of impatience.
As one would expect, it wasn't your normal laboratory. To the sides were large glass tubes containing my failed experiments, disfigured beyond any recognition. I can remember the screams of my 'participants' and while a part of me regrets turning them into these, I knew my work would change everything this corrupt world so I considered them sacrifices for the new world. Even with these monsters, the real item of importance was the metallic orb at the back of the lab. It was held behind glass and surrounded by lasers, noting it's significance. It was the power core of the dimension gate I had kept with me for safety "It has been a while, old friend," Call me crazy if you want, you're probably right, but during my time in isolation after learning about my imprisonment, the core that I alone was fit to protect was the only thing I could and wanted to talk to. Celestia and Luna often visited me during these times to try and drag me back to the rest of my kind who were eagerly befriending this weird species but I responded the same every time...
10,000 YEARS AGO
"A simple scientist was all I hoped to be but now I am but a wandering soul who frequently spends his time in caves like one of those diamond dogs, how weird my path led," I said, the power core lying a metre in front of me on a flat rock that resembled a stool. We both sat on rocks in the middle of yet another cave I found on my travels "So... cave number 37 isn't so bad. At least there are no dragons this time, irritable fuckers,"
"So this is where you have been hiding. Not surprised to be honest," her motherly voice was poison to my ears, like most things in this world. I didn't waste time turning around and just walked to the core and put in the side pocket of my tattered and dirty lab coat.
"Unfortunately, 37 has something worse than dragons- persistent princesses desperate to reel in the smartest human out of the bunch and force-feed his friendship. For the last time, I want nothing to do with you or your ponies so leave me alone!" I finally turned to face the alicorn but tried walking past her and onto the next hiding spot. However, Celestia blocked my path with her wing and forcefully brought me into a hug.
"You are hurting. I try to teach my little ponies how to help those who are hurting, even if the ones in pain don't want it," as she kept holding me, I felt my anger rise "Please come back, Grim," I tried to push her away but to no avail "With our magic and your scientific knowledge, we could find a way to take you and any human wishing to return back to the worlds you came from," I could barely hear her through my anger, clouding my vision and my ears "I don't want you to end up like so many I have lost. You are special. I lo-,"
"STAY AWAY FROM ME!" My eyes glowed red and with a mighty push, I shoved her away, causing her to slam into a wall. When my anger quickly subsided, I instinctively ran over to her and checked her over to see if I had seriously hurt her. A trickle of blood ran down from her head and she looked unconscious "I'm sorry, Celestia. I didn't want to hurt you," I looked at my arms and saw long, black markings from my arms going up to my cheeks where tears were beginning to fall "This world truly wishes to destroy me. First by playing with my emotions and now by making me hurt others with... whatever this is. I must know more... but I should deal with that first," I said to myself while looking through my pocket, pulling out a roll of bandages and disinfectant.
I lifted a piece of her ethereal mane to find a cut which was leaking blood "Huh. It's softer than I thought," I whispered as I tore off a piece of my coat and poured the disinfectant over it. I dabbed the wound before wrapping her head with the bandages. I put a clip on the bandages to keep it in place and got up "That should do. Please, stay safe, Celestia. I've grown to actually enjoy your annoying visits," I left the cave, venturing out into the great unknown, with an inkling of an idea growing in my mind.
"Greedy nobles, Discrimination against other species, so many flaws ruin this country and by extension this world. The only means of erasing these issues is a complete reset. Maybe then I can rest, knowing I did something right,"
Interlude III- 'Cause you are all my very best friends...
The days that followed after Grim's announcement of world domination were hectic. Celestia said my friends and I should try to keep the ponies in Ponyville calm as hearing of the biggest threat to Equestria ever seen would inevitably worry some. Once everypony seemed calm for the time being, my mind wandered once again to a thought that scared me even more than Grim "Would we have to... kill Shining?" I heard at the back of my mind. This drove me to study intensely about mind control so I could bring my brother back or a least give me hope that he didn't willingly betray us. This often happened well into the night, even longer than I usually would study for and often led to Spike dragging me into bed. For his adorable size, he was kinda strong. However, that wouldn't tempt me into sleep as I knew as soon as I closed my eyes, nightmares of my brother killing innocents tortured my mind and I would wake up with only half an hour gone. Those nightmares continued for days and with the time until the attack drawing near, I could only grow more frustrated.
"Are you okay, sugarcube?" Applejack's voice found its way to me as I rose from my slumber. I looked to see that Spike hadn't even bothered to drag me to bed as I was still in my work desk with piles of books around but he did put a blanket o me. I wiped a stream of drool from my face and turned to face her. She wasn't alone though as she was with the rest of our friends, even Spike. "Sugarcube?" she asked me again.
I shook myself awake and greeted them all "Morning everypony!" I said with a forced smile on my face "How are you all?" Everypony looked at each other like I had said something wrong, causing my head to turn in confusion "What's going on? Did I say something wrong," Rarity gave a hearty sigh and went over to the closed blinds, revealing a hustle of ponies.
"Darling... it's 4 pm..." she said "We need to talk about all of... this,"
This time it was Rainbow Dash's turn to speak "I know we were all for you trying to save your brother after his... 'transformation' but this has gone on WAY too long. You barely sleep or eat, you haven't bathed in over two weeks and haven't gone outside ever since we were charged with damage control after Grim,"
Fluttershy came up to me and put her hand on my shoulder "What we are trying to say is please, don't destroy yourself over this. When we find Shining Armour, we'll hit him with the Elements and bring him back or force Chrysalis to undo whatever she did to him"
"AND THEN WE CAN THROW A 'CONGRATS ON NOT BEING A MIND CONTROLLED PUPPET' PARTY!" Pinkie added.
Now it was Spike's turn to console me "Just know that whatever happens, we'll be here for you," I silently got up and walked to a nearby mirror. My hair was a complete mess, with split ends hanging in every possible direction. My clothes were ruffled like I hadn't changed, which I hadn't. Finally my face; my cheeks were crusty with tears I had shed but didn't bother to wipe off, my eyes were puffy and red and on my forehead was a piece of parchment. I took the parchment off and looked at it with pain written on my face. On it was a drawing, a drawing I had made many years ago.
MANY YEARS AGO
"Hey, Shiny! Look what I made!" Shining looked up from his comic to see what I had drawn. It was a picture of me and him together. Our hands were joined and above it, Shining was labelled 'BBBFF' and I was labelled 'LSBFF'.
"That looks amazing, Twily but what does 'BBBFF' mean?" he said, tilting his head in confusion.
"Silly Shiny, it means Big Brother Best Friend Forever! It means we'll always be best friends even when you're at guard academy," I said without even looking at him "It needs something else though... Ah! I know! Shiny, close your eyes!" Shining obeyed and closed his eyes and I put the finishing piece on it "Now you can open them,"
When Shining opened his eyes, I swore he looked like he ate a lemon, squeezing his face to hold back his 'liquid pride'. A heart was drawn around the two of us "Now it fully cements our love for each other,"
"Yeah," he said, sniffing intensely "Yeah it does," he brought me into a bone-crushing hug and refused to let go.
"Ah! Let me go, BBBFF!" I squealed.
"Never LSBFF!" he responded.
"Twilight?" Spike said from behind me. By the time I had woke myself from my daydream, tears had begun to flow freely. I collapsed into a heap on the floor and my friends rushed to help me. They all embraced me as I cried and didn't talk as they all knew that all I needed was a big, warm hug.
Cadance, the generals and I were on the train to Canterlot in preparation of Grim's attack. All of us remained in concentrated silence as Celestia's sun was setting on the horizon; we were all anxious about what horrors awaited us tomorrow. It was clear on all of our stern expressions that none of us wanted to be on this train right now, on our way to meet with a threat so confident, they announced when and where they were going to attack. I looked around the cabin, watching everyone looking down on the ground or out the window; even Windy was looking tense, a reminder that the stakes were too high to fail and let Grim take over the capital. Our silence was broken by a Dragonfire scroll appearing and falling into Cadance's lap. "It must be from auntie," she said as she unravelled the scroll and read it, "She said that the Elements have made it into the city and most of the people have been moved to the lower levels of Canterlot. The whole city should be empty and safe from harm,"
"But that doesn't mean we can be lax" Burning added "Grim seems to be confident that his forces could easily wipe out the entire city in one day. With his intelligence and better mastery of the code, we can't even imagine what he will be capable of," Burning was right; when I saw into a piece of his mind, I saw the destruction he wrought with his code, easily disposing of two alicorns and on the verge of world domination. However...
"From what I've gathered from Grim from our interactions, he's smart but no general. His strategies up until now were using brute strength to overpower his foes. He's also not in the best states of mind so drawing him out of the city and to us should be our main priority. The only issue is..."
"Can we beat him with just the eight of us and the princesses? I mean, the princesses were helpless against him and we have no clue how strong he is," Windy finished. Silence filled the room again. We all knew that we had to be the ones to kill Grim but it was easier said than done. It took another master of the code to defeat him and even he couldn't finish the job. I was starting the get a handle on the code but not nearly enough. I only hoped the assistance from my allies would be enough. As we silently thought about the fight ahead, Ayra entered the cabin.
"We should be in Canterlot in 5 hours. Maybe you should all get some sleep for now,"
"Thank you, Ayra. Let's all rest up for tomorrow," Everyone got up and went to the sleeping cabins. As I was about to leave as well, Ayra caught my hand.
"If you see Chrysalis, please spare her; There still might be hope for her," I nodded silently, assuring her I would. Ayra sighed in relief and let go of my hand. As I saw her turn away from me, I almost thought I saw a blush on her. Putting that notion aside, I went to my bed in the cabin and dreamt empty dreams that night.
"Where are you? I'm waiting for you ever so patiently," A voice called to me in empty dreams.
"Nowhere of importance to you. I'll be there to stop you. I'll stop you every time, Grim, and sever your twisted head from your corrupted body," To my surprise, the voice that responded wasn't mine, but another's. My mind wondered about who it could be until I arrived at the only possible conclusion; this was the hero who stopped Grim the first time. This revelation brought about a greater source of confusion as I was dreaming of something I shouldn't be able to remember unless this was another fraction of memories that I receiveD from Grim when we were talking in the dream realm. That night still perplexed me 'Is this another thing the code is capable of? This feels like how I entered Tidal's thoughts but stronger. "You have suffered, Grim. Anyone with a brain could tell you that but know you will find rest in your own soul. Your own soul will look you dead in the eye and end your torment but know you will face it willingly. I will not finish you today; I will be preserving you for your soul,"
And just like that, I was awakening...
I woke up with a start and looked outside and saw it was morning, the snowy plains had made way to the city of Canterlot. 'We managed to get here before Grim. Good.' I kissed Cadance on the forehead, making her groan while I got out of bed. I quickly dressed and went to greet the others. As expected, they all had dressed and prepared for the day ahead, outfitted in their new encoded armour. It looked the same as the armour they used to wear but with modified pieces. Windy had wind patterns on his shoulder plates and a fur hood. He also had reduced armour to make him more agile and quicker. Tidal had the wave patterns on her shoulder plates and was sporting a royal blue cape, resembling her mother's cape she still had in her room. Burning had taken off his arm pieces entirely, leaving only his bandaged arms. The rest of his armour was slimmed to help him move better and I noticed he was wearing a red headband under his charcoal black hair.
"Are you gonna keep staring or are you going to come over here and talk to us, newbie?" Tidal shouted. I snapped out of my lost trance and went over to them "I'm going to assume you didn't wake up Cadance? I swear, sometimes you forget we're in a battlefield," She went off towards Cadance's room. After that, all I could hear was yelling and shouting.
"They'll be fine. Now tell us what's on your mind, Noire," Burning asked me questioningly.
"I'm that easy to read now, am I," I said jokingly. I only got a deadpan stare in response. I gave a long sigh before I began "I got another memory from Grim last night. It was one of his encounters with the hero. I couldn't see anything but I could hear the hero talking to him, saying he was only going to 'preserve' him and that he was going to be defeated by 'his soul'. I still don't get any of it,"
"Maybe he meant Grim was going to surrender, that he was going to crumble under the weight of his sins. You did say he comes off as a little unhinged when you get to know him," Windy proposed.
"It seems unlikely though. To spend 10,000 years plotting and not once regret your actions? If that is the case, we won't be seeing that anytime soon," Burning added. That was when Tidal entered the room with a tired but dressed Cadance. Her armour was the same as the raid, but with stronger metals and encoded.
"Whatever he said doesn't matter now. We got reports from a messenger that a large army was seen marching towards the capital from the west. We should go to the castle and prepare our forces. We all agreed and exited the train, along with the rest of our forces who were all in other trains. It wasn't as large as Canterlot's army but we needed everything we could get to fend off Grim's forces. On the way to the castle, I looked to the empty streets, where ponies, albeit majorly stuck-up, obnoxious ones, roamed.
"This was for the best. Grim's monsters are powered by fear; they would've been in the way," said Cadance, placing her hand on my shoulder. Her warm hand reassured me once again. I smiled before turning back to the sight of the castle gates, where Celestia and Luna were in full battle armour and accompanied by their own army. Celestia had a halberd to her side while Luna had her scimitars; they were serious, as they should've been.
"We welcome you and your forces with open arms in this time of dread, Noire, Cadance, generals," said Celestia "We should go meet his force and the west gate. From all of your expressions, I believe we have a bit to talk about,"
On our march to the west gate, I explained my new dream to Celestia and Luna. Celestia was intrigued by this new information. Luna, on the other hand...
"You are telling us that the hero never intended on destroying Grim forever?" Luna asked. From a closer glance, you could've seen a twinge of pain, anger but most of all, betrayal. I nodded and Luna sighed "Well, whatever he said doesn't matter, it is the fact that you and Grim are connected. I have never heard of two code avatars sharing memories at least from what I've heard,"
"The hero may have withheld that information from us. He was incredibly secretive and vague about everything, including his own name," Celestia proposed. Cadance laughed at that notion.
"You must have caught on to a few of his tricks. It would explain why you always give such vague words of wisdom." Celestia blushed slightly but ignored the comment and we continued marching "So to recall the strategy, The generals will be at the vanguard with the armies will Noire, Cadance and ourselves will be at the rearguard?"
"Yes, we suspect that Grim will expect Noire to be at the vanguard but we must expect the worst from Grim. That's why being supported by strong individuals will hopefully be enough to even up the playing field," said Burning. The gate was beginning to appear in sight. I began to feel butterflies in my stomach; this was the first large scale battle I have ever been in. To everyone else, I may have seemed like some mighty warrior entrusted to save the world- no, the universe and I tried my best to appear fine, but I was still a lame university student with terrible social skills. I don't know how I managed to keep it up for so long but at least I had the assurance that I could still feel nervousness under the visage of a valiant warrior. I steeled myself as the gate appeared in front of us. However, something was off.
"Everyone, I'm not feeling a strong magical signature from this army. This can't be right," everyone looked at me confused until every horned pony in our group searched for a signature and came to the same conclusion I did.
"Noire's right. For an army just as large, if not larger than ours, their collective signature doesn't sum up to even a small platoon," said Tidal. Windy went up high and searched for the army.
"Guys? The army... IT'S GONE!" our eyes went wide as we looked up and saw what looked like a large magic circle, black with red lines coursing around it, in the air. It looked about the size of the entire city. Noone had a clue what was going on until one by one, monsters began falling from the sky. Screaming filled the air as some, instead of falling, flew.
"The marching army must have been an illusion! Dammit! We've been fooled!" Tidal yelled "We have to move fast before we're completely overwhelmed. Celestia, how many soldiers are back at the castle?"
"300 in total,"
"Then we still have a chance to get to them before they take the castle. We'll split into two groups; the generals will go with the Canterlot and Crystal Empire forces and meet with the forces. Celestia, Noire, Cadance and I will go incognito to the castle. Something tells me Grim will be there," We all agreed and went on our separate missions, the generals commanding the armies and going to fight the monsters while the princesses and I went through the residential district to the castle. I silently prayed we hadn't lost the fight before it even began.
WINDY POV
"Bazooka Arrow!" I launched an arrow at a group of monsters. The arrow transformed into a tornado the instant it hit one of their chests, sending them flying and slicing them into bits. I don't know how long we could keep this up but we had to buy as much time as we could until Grim was taken out. From the corner of my eye, I could see Burning and Tidal dealing with their own hordes, as well as the armies fighting back the monsters as well as they could. However, they seemed almost unresponsive to any physical attacks and absorbed magical attacks of low power. They could only be defeated by a large amount of magic absorption. "Burning! You're not putting in enough magic! They won't go down that way!"
He understood this and launched another blazing punch to an amalgamation's stomach, blowing it up seconds later "I know but some of them have a higher resistance than others. We need to take them out in groups!" he responded.
Tidal swang her sword at a group of charging monsters, slicing them in two "Then don't hold out! Pull out all the stops!" her sword became engulfed in waves. She planted it into the ground and out of nowhere, waves came from the ground and were sent in the direction of a large group of enemies "Tsunami!" monsters were consumed in the wave and were sent in the direction of the town square.
"Burning Fist: Monkey," Burning's arms and legs were engulfed in flames and began punching and kicking his way through a crowd, forming a path "To the square, we'll round them up there!" he yelled. I took off into the air and flew in the direction of the square with the monsters in tow.
"Noire... Finish this mess before it gets any crazier..." I whispered to myself as I flew.
CADANCE POV
"Decode Sword: Gardnablade," Noire shielded all of us from the barrage of magic attacks sent our way by three monsters. Once they stopped, Luna leapt and sliced them into pieces before they could even realise what happened. Celestia and I were in the back, shooting down those behind us as we made our way to the castle. However, we seemed to be making no process as monsters kept appearing from the magic circle in the sky and forced us back. "We're getting nowhere like this. Isn't there a way to teleport straight into the castle and save us the trouble?"
"I've been trying ever since we left but whatever that magic circle is doing is interfering with teleportation. I can barely feel the magic in the air anymore; as if it just disappeared," We cast this aside as we continued our way into the city but as we got closer, more complications seemed to arise. Noire began having a harder time keeping up with the rest of us, frequently getting headaches. B y the time we reached the gates, Noire was clutching to his head in pain "Noire! Are you okay?" I asked out of concern.
"He's monologing at me," he said between short breaths.
"What's he saying?"
Noire took a moment to steady his breathing "Something about a 'magic zone' and that the magic here belongs to him. Celestia? Luna? Do you have any idea what he's on about?" they both looked scared at this new information. Celestia eventually told us what he meant.
"Yes. Magic zone allows a magic-user to control all magic in the environment. The range depends on your skill in controlling magic. For example, Tidal and her mother use this technique to fuel their water magic. Grim must be using the largest magic zone he can muster to summon those monsters and stop us from teleporting. It's safe to say that once we run out of magic, there won't be any opportunity to recover any more without beating him first,"
"Then we should hurry before our forces run out of magic and are overwhelmed," and just like that, the gates were opened almost by themselves. Without hesitation, we charged forward into the lion's den.
GRIM POV
I watched from my little globe; my creations wandering the streets, keeping these annoyances occupied. I saw one of those annoyances get consumed, swallowed by my soldier. It was a funny little thing I had come up with after my encounter with Noire. 'If my monsters can already absorb magic, why not make them absorb ponies? They already have magic inside of them so...' and my amalgamations could now feast upon the magic of others, making them stronger and less resistant to overload. It was then during the carefree channel surfing that I had another one of those ghastly migraines "So you have arrived, Noire. We have much to talk about but it can't be here, with so many eyes on us, and I can't make it any easier for you," I said as I continued watching from Celestia's throne. It was super uncomfortable.
NOIRE POV
By the time we made it into the castle, it was teeming with monsters. This came as no surprise but their appearance shook us all. In their flesh was guard uniforms, jutting out of random areas. What came as even worse of a shock was the faces of the guards were also in their flesh. Celestia and Luna bore a look of sadness and rage while Cadance was barely able to stand "Help... us," a voice called from one of the monsters. It was a guard, still alive inside of that monstrosity "Help...US!" they yelled before an abnormally large hand squashed their face, disappearing inside their skin. It was horror incarnate.
"We have to keep moving. If this continues, we'll stand no chance," I summoned my Longblade and charged at the hordes, the princesses right behind me. I sent forth a mighty swing at my enemies, sending a large magic wave at all of them. Once it made contact, they all exploded. I was fuming with anger 'I don't care how much you've suffered, Grim. This must end.'
"I couldn't agree more, Noire. However, allow me to move the finale of this chapter of our tale to a more fitting location," Before I could respond, I could feel myself being teleported. I turned to the princesses, who were too busy fighting off the monsters to come to my aid.
"CADAN-" I half yelled before everything went white.
"Morning, sport," said a familiar voice as I rubbed my eyes, trying to figure out where I was. I caught a faint smell of bad cologne and aftershave. I had recognized this voice almost instantly; it was my dad. The area began to clear of white and found myself in my family's old kitchen, where I sat in my usual chair to the far right of the dining table. There were six seats at the table; one for dad, 'mom', me and three guest seats for visitors we never had. My mom and dad were orphans and didn't have many friends the could talk to very often due to most of them being abroad. 'Busy b*tches' my mom used to call them when she had one too many. I heard the popping of a toaster, it was time for dad's signature toaster waffles. It was the only thing he could make that couldn't burn the house down and what we could afford with the minimal savings we had. I snapped myself out of my trance and looked at myself from the clean plate below me; I was still an adult but my armour was replaced with an orange t-shirt saying 'Kool Kid' in bold, black letters and cargo shorts. I was questioning how much of this was real when I noticed Grim, sitting next to me.
"If you're wondering about how this is possible, allow me to elaborate. My magic zone allowed me to enhance our bond enough to look into your memories again. As this goes on, your friends are valiantly fighting for their lives and we're unconscious on the floor of the throne room. Now my theory is beginning to make more and more sense by the second," I barely even noticed my dad setting my waffles on the plate and how he ruffled my hair as he left to take his own seat at the table "I have made a lot of contact with him over the years but I never got a hint as to his life or name but with you it's different. Ever since that night, I have experienced memories as if they were my own and sometimes even woke up thinking I was lying next to Cadance. I predict you have had such difficulties as well?" He was right; sometimes when I woke up, I tried looking for a magic ball but remembered I didn't own one and often forgot where I was even going "I will take your silence as a yes. You see, I have achieved something great. Something more than what I originally set to accomplish. I didn't travel across dimensions; I created a new one with my entire 'me' being copied as 'you',"
I was lost for words, to say the least. To say the most "If you expect me to believe you for a second, you must be crazier than everyone thinks you are," Grim only smiled.
"I didn't believe it either until I saw the evidence. The explosion that caused my world's end, it's energy signature appeared present on my own as a form of radiation. The same radiation I found in yours which led me to conclude that your code is the same as mine, or at least highly compatible with each other,"
"Aren't you going to finish that, son? You can't go to school with an empty stomach" I ignored my dad completely. A much as I wanted to hug him, I couldn't just ignore this maniac saying he was me. I was still sceptical, with my mind running around, trying to come up with excuses for how we could almost the same code. Grim noticed it and summoned more pictures. One of them was a group of scientists. One of them looked like Grim except he had brighter skin and his eyes were black, like my own. He also had a female scientist at his side, clutching onto his side and a male scientist with his arm around his neck. It looked they were happy. Grim covered picked up the picture with his hands, covering the two friendly scientists with both thumbs.
"This was me before the explosion. See the resemblance?" he was right again, his appearance was basically an older version of me. He wasn't done though as he pulled out another piece of paper, but more aged, worn with time. It was a medical report, for me "You remember this day when you were five. The day you found out there were traces of radiation poisoning in your brain. Miraculously, you didn't die at three. You remember this-"
"-as the day my parents' marriage was ruined. Mom blamed it on dad and dad just sat there and watched as mom slipped into despair and alcohol," I finished for him. It was a miracle how I didn't die long ago but living with the guilt felt like a curse. To feel like the reason my mom becoming a monster and my dad's death. I had heard enough. I slowly stood up, leaving a small boy in my place. My attire changed back into my armour as left. Grim only smiled and followed me. I went to the door going into the back-yard, opening it to reveal a world of white. Without hesitation, I walked into the light. "Dad? When is Mom coming back?" I heard in the background.
During the days when life became too much for me, whether it be 'mother' or school or just nothing going my way, my father would tell me "As long as you have a code to live by, you can overcome any trial before you" in an awful, sagely tone. I didn't understand him at the time and just told him that I didn't get it. However, he would just pat me on the head and tell me that I'll know what it is when I'm older. When Grim told me about who I am -what I am- I could quite solemnly say I still didn't know. I could hear, from the depths of my mind, words I wish I could never say again. The cries of another me who had broken his chains and pulled me into the depths of my anger.
"Decode Sword: Savageblade"
CADANCE POV
When Celestia, Luna and I made it to the throne room, Grim and Noire were already duking it out, zipping around the room, Noire slashing with his blade while Grim blocked with his bare hands. Noire seemed to have the offensive advantage, however, Noire felt different. His aura was darker, his eyes were sharper and the most recognisable sign was his black and red broadsword. It had gaps in the blade and it looked attached to Noire like it was his hand. I looked to Celestia and Luna, both bearing the same worried look. "Aunties? What's happening to Noire?" I asked. Celestia looked to me with uncertainty while Luna continued to look on with increasing anger. I was brought back to the fight when Noire and Grim landed back on the ground in a power struggle.
"Intriguing! It looks like you're my power remains through the fraction of my soul inside of you! It would be great to study a code avatar with two codes!" Grim celebrated. What was he on about?
"SHUT UP!" Noire yelled. He backed away from Noire before coming back with a stronger swing. The impact sends Grim flying backwards 'Has Noire always had this strength?' I silently awed as Noire chased Grim to where he landed and started striking him with his sword repeatedly. " 'I'm a part of you'!?" He swung his sword down on him "All my pain" and again "My suffering" and again "My life" and one more time "because of you!?"
"What pleasant heartbreak. Now you feel the same sorrow I did; the sadness of suffering in darkness because of something -of someone- out of your reach. The only way to avoid ruin is to embrace that darkness as your own. As my own. Become one with me," Noire ignored him and continued to wail on Grim but this time to no avail. Grim waved his hand and a wave of energy sent him flying back to us and landing in a crater.
"We need to go," Luna said, shocking both Celestia and myself. How could she even consider leaving him alone with this monster as he slowly becomes one himself!? "At this moment, Noire's conscious is consumed by his desire to destroy and his code, or should I say Grim's code reacts strongly to that. We cannot save him,"
"No! I refuse to give up on him!" I barged past my aunts and towards the crater where Noire was, struggling to stand. It hurt to see him so angry, overcome by pain "Noire! Please wake up!" Noire didn't respond to my call and continued to limp towards the smug-looking Grim "You have to fight this!" Grim teleported over to me before I could even notice what was happening. He turned his arm into a blade and pointed it at my throat. Celestia and Luna tried to get to me but a barrier blocked them. It was only me, Noire and Grim now. Noire was even more annoyed and enlarged his blade.
"Do you see what is before you, child? Only monsters remain of these two men. So stay out of business between monsters lest you want your head on a platter," His blade began to extend, grazing my neck. I felt the sting and drip of blood down my neck but I was not fazed; I was only concerned about bringing Noire back to his senses, even if it killed me.
"NOIRE! Remember what you told me on the roof!? About if you should really be with me!?" Noire stopped dead in his tracks "Do you remember your vow to me?"
"Don't worry, I'm not too sure either. However, when I saw how it hurt you were to see me tied up How it drove you to defend me from your own aunts when you could have easily let them do whatever they would've done to me and fixed the gap between you and Shining... it inspired me... inspired me to defend you should you ever be in trouble. Even if you may decide to kick me out."
"I was silent then but I'm ready to speak up now!" Noire walked to Grim and me, his pace slow and heavy with each step he took "Don't leave me, Noire! I don't want to live without having to dump you in the shower or hearing you comfort me when I'm unsure about myself or helping me with snooty nobles in court!" Noire was now right behind Grim but still looked lost in his sorrow "I need you with me right now! I lo-"
Slash
Grim was sent flying into a wall before his blade could reach something vital. Noire's aura began to fade and his blade returned to normal "*sigh* Thank you, Cadance. You don't have to say anymore; you'll hurt that beautiful voice of yours," He caressed my cheek before turning to face the tyrant. He summoned his Duoblade, ready to fight for real "I'll never forget my code to live by,"
"Good. Now show him how strong you really are,"
TIDAL POV
It was never going to end at this pace. The monsters continued coming and our numbers were dropping fast. We had been surrounded and it wasn't going to take long until we are overwhelmed "We can't hold out much longer! Isn't there any way to stop these things!?" Windy said as shot another bazooka arrow. Burning had retreated from the front, joining me and Windy in the middle of our crumbling formation.
"Princess Cadance told us that these things feed off of magic to function but they have been moving without much input. They must have a power source; something close to the vicinity," Burning's observation was correct but we were running out of time before we were all dead. I took a quick look at the monsters but they didn't show any signs of having an alternate power source on them. It was until I noticed another monster fall from the magic circle to realise "It's the magic circle! It must be using magic from the surroundings and fueling them! We need to destroy it!" That was going to be easier said than done. As the monsters kept closing the gap, absorbing more soldiers into them, an idea sparked; a simple but risky one. "Windy, Burning! Attack the circle with everything you have!" They both looked at me in shock, understanding what this meant instantly. If we failed, we wouldn't have any means of killing the monsters and we would most likely be killed but it was our last chance. These unspoken words passed by us generals and we all gathered together "Forces! Hold the line!" I commanded as we launched our ultimate attacks.
"BURNING FIST: DRAGON!" Burning thrust his fist to the air, creating a large dragon ascending to the sky.
"WINDY PHOENIX BLAST!" Windy aimed an arrow at the circle and fired. During its rise, he boosted the speed of the arrow with a strong flap from his wings.
"GRAND TIDE'S TRIDENT!" I performed three upward slashes, launching three water blades upwards combining into a water trident. All three attacks hit the magic circle, struggling to breakthrough. However, a crack appeared, and another, and another. Soon the magic circle began to fall apart as pieces fell like glass and dissolve. All three of us collapsed, lying on each other for support. We looked around as the monsters had stopped attacking and faded away like the circle. There were little sounds of rejoicing from the small army we had left alive. The job was not over yet though.
"C'mon guys. We have to help Noire and the princesses," Windy said as he tried to pick himself up but failed. We were all helpless. We could only hope that Noire and the princesses were strong enough to at least force a retreat.
"The rest is up to them now," Burning wheezed out.
"Yeah..." That was all we could say before passing out. In the brief moments, before I blacked out, I could feel a sickly feeling in my stomach. "It was probably just the exhaustion," I thought to myself before I fell asleep, confident that Noire could finish this battle.
NOIRE POV
As I clashed with Grim, I could see a red, green and blue light flash in the sky, hitting the magic circle and shattering it. As soon as it was gone, I felt the magic in the air return to normal, allowing the princesses to assist me which I desperately needed. Despite my newfound control, I was still being toyed with by Grim. "Your allies seem to be bigger nuisances than I thought. No matter, you will all be gone soon enough," he said as he conjured several black tendrils from his arms to tie me up. I felt his grip on me tighten as I was lifted into the air before being slammed back down. Luckily, Celestia caught me in her magic grip. I silently thanked her and activated my unbound state, my eyes becoming the same gold and the black veins spreading across my face. I rushed Grim with incredible speed and assaulted him with several sword strikes. This tactic proved to be more effective as Grim's left arm was unable to take the punishment and was cut off. I saw this as my opportunity to get in close. Changing my sword into its Longblade form, I was ready to cut Grim clean in two. However, tendrils came flying out of his body like sharp harpoons. Luna shielded the barrage of tendrils while I was forced to back away. I was too late to shield myself as I felt a tendril pierce my right leg and left arm, leaving me kneeling on the floor. The princesses came to my aid, Luna charging him with her scimitars while Celestia blasted him from afar and Cadance focused on healing me.
"Why is it healing so slowly?" Cadance said frantically trying to close to holes as Luna and Celestia were holding back Grim. He managed to knee Luna in the stomach and fire a magic blast, sending her into a wall. Celestia yelled and in a blind fury, unleashed a torrent of magic attacks at Grim. It was honestly terrifying to see such a kind soul become so angry but Grim had a way of bringing out your worst. Her assault was brought to an end when Grim teleported behind her and grabbed her by the horn. Celestia gave out a loud scream as his grip tightened. I gritted my teeth and stood up, bearing through the pain but all I could do was watch as Celestia was tortured and thrown aside like trash. Anger filled my being but this time I was in control and focused.
"GRIM! Your fight is with me!" I yelled as I picked up my sword and prepared for another round "Decode Sword: Shootingblade," my sword transformed into a bow. I drew an ethereal arrow and took aim at Grim's chest. Grim looked puzzled by this before letting out a chuckle.
"You think that a new blade will save you? Okay then," he stood in front of me, arms spread wide "Go ahead," I took advantage of the opportunity Grim was freely giving me. I closed my eyes and searched through my mind for a way to solve this hopeless situation and in the depths of my memories, I had an idea.
"Final Decode:" I let the arrow fly, hitting the arrow square in the chest. However, Grim seemed to have taken no damage from it. Grim laughs cockily, mocking my failure but stopped as soon as he saw me smiling "I thank you, Grim. For helping me realise who I am because this may be the first time I am glad to have a part of your soul in me,"
WINDY POV
While we were resting, I looked up at the peaceful sky, rid of evil, and sighed with relief. However, my sigh stopped as I saw another magic circle appear in the sky "Crap! Another circle!" I shouted. However, with all of us depleted of magic, there was no way of destroying a second one. Burning looked at the circle but with relief instead of fear.
"There is no need to worry. The magic it is composed of is pure," the red magic circle began to change into a royal blue "That is Noire's magic zone," A magic weapon began to take shape, becoming a gigantic ethereal arrow.
NOIRE POV
"Phantom Comet" Through the castle, came an ethereal arrow. Much like Phantom Excalibur, it phased through Grim's body, leaving not a scratch on him but he soon staggered, severely depleted. Not relenting, I returned the decode sword to its broadsword and stabbed Grim through the heart. Grim coughed up a lot of blood and slowly backed away from me. I tried to confront him again but the adrenaline finally wore off. I fell to my knees, feeling a scorching pain in my leg preventing me from moving.
"I have underestimated your strength, Noire. You and your allies are much stronger than any foe I have faced 10,000 years ago. I will retreat for now but know that this is only the beginning of my little campaign. Maybe a little tour around Equestria will do me some good before coming back for more," I tried once again to catch him but to no avail as I crumbled to the floor. Cadance came to my aid, helping me up "You will certainly be a nuisance for me as well, Princess," He said, pointing at Cadance before opening a portal and disappearing.
"It's over," Cadance said, sighed a hefty sigh.
"Yeah... we won. This victory...is ours," I stood on my uninjured leg with Cadance for support "C'mon, the princesses need medical attention. Message the troops to return to the castle," Cadance did as I asked, creating a mind link and alerting the army of our victory. We went over to the princesses, both unconscious and began healing them together. They both woke up after a few minutes later.
"Noire, Cadance! Where's Grim!? Did he get away!?" Luna said frantically.
"...He got away. However, now we need to focus on rebuilding and preparing for when he strikes again. He said something about a tour across Equestria. He must be planning on conquering us the long way this time, taking over town by town before hitting us again, even stronger," Celestia and Luna got to their feet, bearing through the pain before the army returned. It looked so small; we must have lost hundreds.
"We have lost many today," Celestia said "However, their lives were not wasted. We have won this day for our loved ones. For Equestria!"
We all raised our fists into the air as the sun was lowered and the moon rose. She was right; after so much struggle, we finally struck back. That day became known as "The Battle of Clashing Codes" by the press and we became known as heroes.
"Shining, you will remain here while I complete my mission in Manehattan," my love ordered me as I followed her through the halls of Grim's palace "Our master wants you to remain here to finish your transformation," During my stay at Grim's palace, I had never disobeyed Chrysalis' orders. Not once. However, when that order left her lips, I felt the urge to defy her. As if my former self was still alive in my heart. That remnant, be it my past or present, was squashed.
"Yes, my love," She turned to give me a kiss goodbye before teleporting away. At that point, being away from Chrysalis for extended periods of time was taxing for me mentally, physically and especially emotionally as my transformation was, while powerful, dependent on my love link to Chrysalis. She paid no mind to this as she was normally away for a day, maybe even less. This was enough to tell myself that I would be okay. For now.
I made my way to Grim's lab, where he normally was, inventing some new way to get the one-up on Noire and his little squad. During our meetings, I would attempt to tell him all the weak points of both the Crystal Empire and Canterlot. However, he would simply bat me away ad tell me he would find our war much more fun if he discovered their weaknesses out by himself, much to my annoyance. "If you don't want my knowledge and have weapons much stronger than me, why did you even have brought here?" I would always find myself asking and always gritting my teeth in frustration when he treated my love like a plaything, a toy, a means to an end. Long story short: I did not like him but I would be forced to work under him until the end. That sickened me more than words can express "This better go well or else, Goddess forbid, I may actually think of punching him in his delusional face," I heard myself mutter before I found myself in the courtyard.
It was scary how similar it looked to Canterlot's courtyard. The bushes were laid out exactly the same, creating a small forest. The flowers were of a different colour, with black and red roses decorating the place. The whole arrangement felt like he was trying to impress somepony or like a party was about to be hosted. Strange seeing as the only ones to even see them were himself, Chrysalis, I and the monsters that stood, guarding the castle. "Quite a lovely garden, I know" that disgusting voice sent shivers down my spine "Shame it will have to get a little roughed up. Training never crossed my mind when designing this place," That was the last thing he said before I was shot my a magic blast, sending me through most of the bushes before landing in the fountain. When I climbed out, I saw who had attacked me. A slendermare.
Grim had many of them around, as his personal spies. I never saw them often but one time was enough to discover how terrifying they were. From thin walls, I had heard of just one defeating an Eques Gigas. I had not seen one but it was said to put every alicorn's physical strength combined to shame. I took a battle-ready stance, drawing my claymore from my back, and charged at the slendermare at full force. However, as I tried to take a downward slice at her legs, she managed to leap over me and throw me back once again. She did not give me an opportunity to breathe as her arms extended, grabbing me by my legs and threw me in the other direction. I crashed into the wall of the castle and felt some of my bones crack from the impact. I looked down from my position, embedded in the wall to see the Grim, standing behind the slendermare, with a shit-eating grin on his face. I snarled in anger as I teleported back down to face Grim. I tried attacking him but a kick from the slendermare to the head had me falling to the floor, panting wildly. I roared at the top of my lungs, but with no direction.
"What an impressive power I sense from you. If Chryssy was here, you might be wiping the floor with Slendy here. However, that cannot be the case all the time and we cannot have my only fully conscious soldier be as animalistic as a timberwolf on fire every time his mate is not a meter away from him," 'Slendy' pinned me to the ground with her foot, forcing me to taste the gravel. I couldn't care less as I tried to escape, but teleporting wasn't working "Don't bother using magic. Slendermares are proficient in blocking magic by striking vital nerves in the neck. They are such a vital role when it comes to stealth and recon missions,"
"And what about me? What purpose do I have in your grand scheme? ANSWER ME, YOU BASTARD!" Grim seemed to ponder on that for a second before responding.
"Defeat Slendy and find out, little flag boy" His teasing had struck a nerve nopony had ever stepped on before. I swore to myself that I would cut his limbs off once I was finished with his bitch. I channelled every bit of magic I could muster into my sword, levitating it into the air and whacking the slendermare away. I soon found my full magic return to me, but it felt much stronger than before. I felt my wounds heal and my armour melt around me, becoming one with my flesh.
"When I finish off your bitch, you're going to give me a decent enough answer, scumbag," I said, not even turning to the man in question as I gripped my blade and charge at the slendermare once again. I was much faster than before so she was forced to dodge but I had her beaten already. I created a barrier around her feet, trapping her in place. In a panic, she summoned several miniature blades and throw them at me. I created a barrier in front of me as I charged, absorbing the hits. Once I was in striking distance, I sliced her chest open. I heard a horrific scream ring from the slendermare before she collapsed, dead. "Now," I said, turning to Grim, who was smiling with glee "Answer me: What is my part in your scheme?"
"Simply to be the new ruler of Equestria."
"Don't fuck with me, Grim, or so help you, I'll-"
Grim put his hands up in mock fear "Honest. I know that my "evil" presence may be a concern to some, making some doubt my leadership. However, the former captain of the royal guard, former lover to Princess Cadance and Prince Consort of the Crystal Empire? That sounds like a much better resume," He walked over to me and put his arms on my shoulder like my father would when he wanted to inspire me "You have the potential to be a force to be reckoned with but your monarchs, your sister and a fledgeling code avatar to outshine you; in power, politics and even your domestic life. I requested Chrysalis to 'recruit' you as we both were aware of how you were wronged and wish to correct this,"
"He is correct, my love," I heard Chrysalis say from behind me. I turned to find Chrysalis in her beautiful form. She looked and felt even more powerful than before "This 'metamorphosis' into a changeling king is only the first step to correcting this crooked world."
"'Changeling King'? Wait, why are you here? I thought you were on a mission," I asked. Chrysalis merely chuckled.
"Grim made me stay away from you to test whether you were capable of acting independently without losing control. Most changelings I tried to turn into kings couldn't control the power they were granted and went insane, forcing me to put them out of their misery. However, you seem to have a grasp over your emotions now," The past month and a half began to make sense. When I looked to Grim, I no longer felt the same hatred. Maybe I felt such hate due to him being so similar to Noire. Nevertheless, I was complete now.
"So, now that you have confirmed my potential..." I asked, "What comes next?" We all smiled. We all could see the joy one would find in the conquest
"The dragon lands. Our legion must and will grow," Grim said sinisterly. At that moment, another slendermare entered the scene from the shadow of a bush. She looked at us, huddled together like villains from a pantomime, and a slendermares corpse "Oh! Hello, my darling Slenda. What graces me with your presence?" 'Slenda' crossed her arms and her non-existent brow furrowed in frustration "I'm sleeping on the throne tonight, aren't I?" Slenda turned away and walked back into the shadows.
Awkwardness. The invisible tension between people that cannot be filled no matter what you say. Small talk could make the gap seem smaller but a sudden silence can make it feel even wider, wider than canyons, expanding until oceans couldn't fill its space. "It appears as if we cannot socialise as well we hoped we would..." The blue alicorn took a long sip of her tea as we sat in a cosy, but unbearably silent tea room in Canterlot Castle "We... I am still getting accustomed to new Equestrian 'slang but allow us to alleviate both of us from this painful situation by asking 'how is the marefriend?'"
I took a longer sip of my tea ad sighed heavily "It's actually 'how's the wife' but I this case, it makes sense" Luna seemed a little proud of that development of her language "As for Cadance and I, I don't think it's going well. Ever since we pushed Grim out of Canterlot, there has been a lot of work to do to prepare for when he attacks again. There have been requests for more guards in other cities, encoding more armour since most of it was damaged from the fighting and no-one's has been able to properly fill in the spot of guard captain since Shining's 'absence'. All of this just piled up and I didn't even notice how Cadance and I haven't even slept in the same bed until two weeks had already passed,"
"It sounds like you have had a lot on your mind. Having all of this work suddenly thrust upon you must be stressful. I remember wanting to go straight back into court without learning about how nobility had changed..." she shuddered from the memory. I laughed weakly. I was so tired.
"Luna, I'm scared that our relationship is going to end up the same as Cadance and Shining's and I don't want that," when I looked at my teacup, I could see the ripples warping my image until I couldn't even recognise the man that returned my gaze. Whether this warped image was a product of my hazy, sleep-deprived eyes or my terribly nervous hands was anyone's guess. Luna comforted me, holding me tight. This warmth was exactly what I needed from someone that day. I could feel the memory of Cadance's sad or even scornful looks, etching themselves into my eyes, judging me for making the same mistakes "What do I do? I don't want to lose her..."
Luna carefully stroked my head as she consoled me "Now Noire if you realise you're making a mistake, beating yourself up about it and wanting to fix it, aren't you already doing better than Shining?" I looked up to meet her firm gaze, her caring royal shining through "I don't know much about relationships and not much more about Cadance and Shining Armor. However, from what I can summarise, I assume their romance fell apart was due to a lack of effort on both of their parts. They both excused their distance due to their duties and never bothered to make compromises to satisfy both themselves and their responsibilities, leading them to become more roommates than lovers. You already want to solve the problem way before it becomes the same. You are already on your way to fixing it. You just need Cadance to put in the effort herself now,"
"Wow, that is the most consistent equish I have ever heard you speak. It seems that you're getting used to new equestrian quite well," Luna blushed a little from my compliment. We had both grown from his awkward tea party. My reflection was as clear as day and stared at me with determination "Thank you for the tea, Luna, but now know what I have to do next" Luna said her farewells before I teleported away.
"I could only speak such good equish because of you, Noire. You are a sense of relief for me,"
Once I arrived at the castle, I searched all over for Cadance. In her room, the halls, the courtroom, even the training grounds but she was nowhere to be seen. Soon, I spotted Tidal roaming the halls "Tidal!" I yelled after her.
"Oh, hey Noire. What's got you up in a bunch?" She asked, looking over my tired body.
"Have you seen Cadance anywhere I've been looking all over the castle but I can't find her," Tidal pondered on my question for a moment before answering.
"Oh yeah! Right after you left for your little date with Luna, she said something about visiting Ponyville with Ayra for a couple of days," I was a little confused bout her answer, mainly why Cadance would go to Ponyville of all places. Little did I know, that one trip to Ponyville was going to change a lot of things about our relationship.
When Cadance said we were going on a trip to Ponyville for the weekend, I can't lie, I was a bit surprised. At both the sudden trip itself and how moments before, I could swear on my life, I heard a curse and cracking sound. However, as I sit with my princess\boss across from two of the most important ponies in Equestria, Twilight and Applejack, I didn't dare ask what happened. Back to my situation at the time, I was a spectator to a silent war between former sisters. Twilight had on her face a critiquing gaze like she was a boss, a parent trying to intimidate their child. A look that confirmed that she had not forgotten the past. Opposite her was Cadance, holding strong with a cold glare but more out of defiance, the need to stand her ground, than any justification of innocence on her part. Both mares looked as if they could destroy the whole library if they wanted. That didn't scare any of us though. What scared us was who was going to speak first. Cadance spoke.
"Don't worry about residence. Rarity has already offered me her guest room."
"Why are you here, Cadance?"
"To get away from things," she quickly responded. I didn't dare breath as this quick exchange of snide remarks continued.
"To get away from what, might I ask. Paperwork? because I don't think you should be wasting your time relaxing when there is so much at stake. Especially when you don't even consider letting us elements help,"
"Noire can handle a little extra work,"
"On top of managing the guard?"
"It seems as if he enjoys his work."
"You make him sound like Shiny." That froze her. It felt like the world froze at that moment. We watched Cadance in anticipation of her next move. The move never came. She merely stood up and left the room. Check and mate.
I tried to follow suit but I was stopped by Twilight "Stop. I want to ask you some questions." she asked. No, ordered. There was no escaping this one. My exit was frozen shut. I sat back down as she cleared her throat. For an advocate for the magic of friendship, she didn't come across as too friendly to me "How long have you been working for Cadance?"
"Almost two months," I said, trying to keep my answers as brief as possible to avoid suspicion. Behind Twilight, I could see the element of honesty stare at me intensely. She was the lie detector in this interrogation. Questions came rushing at me like a powerful gale. I couldn't waver.
"Not that long after the changeling kidnapping. Very interesting. Why would you want to be Cadance's assistant in the first place? You could have applied to be a maid or at least a position with less stress and over-emotional princesses,"
"I wasn't in a good place when Princess Cadance found me. Her and Noire offered me safety in the Crystal Empire. As for the stress, she just has me run a few small errands here and there. I am grateful to both of them for the kindness they have shown me. Now, I think you should stop to act like a child badly hiding a secret and get to the part where you tell me you knew I was a changeling from the moment I walked in," The chilling silence returned but unlike last time, it was more bearable. Like a cold gust, the silence was only brief as I stood up to leave. I was only introduced to this squabble for five minutes and I was already sick of it. 2 months of this was way too much for me and everypony here "Please consider forgiving Cadance before it is too late."
I looked everywhere for Cadance. My initial thought was that she went to Rarity's place but when I arrived, I was met with a chilling truth.
"Cadance never asked to stay with me, darling. Nor did I offer, even though I would if I knew she was coming. I'm sorry. I hope you find her," She had been lying this whole time. That was the first time I was thinking of punching my boss.
It took an hour of searching. Looking around both Ponyville and the Everfree before a kind zebra guided me to the Castle of Two Sisters, where she saw the princess storm in the direction of. When I found her, she was sat on a rock, on her haunches, looking at the ruined walls. The princess of love in my sight was a shell, the appearance deity betrayed the child in front of me. "Isn't she a princess?" I thought to myself. I had enough of babysitting and made my way to Cadance, making each step louder than a drum so she knew I was coming. She turned to face by the seventh step and barely flinched when she saw my angry expression. She knew Twilight was the least of her problems.
"I'm sorry for-"
"I don't want to hear it." She shut up. The calm was over "It has been months since Shining left. Left. I know that Chrysalis was responsible. I know that I was one that gave him that stupid aphrodisiac but for Faust's sake! Both of you are acting like children! One of the changelings responsible is an evil tyrant and the other was in the same room! But NO! Both of you decide it is okay to direct your anger at each other instead!"
"But-"
"NO! I've been trying to atone for my sins all this time. Killing Mindful, drugging Shining, hurting so many people just to survive but it feels as if I've gotten nowhere and you've only grown more bitter ever since this month started. I've sorted your paperwork, cleaned your office, even endured the looks of some of the guards," I managed to gasp the last words out as I threw the last of my oxygen at her "Have I not tried hard enough for you?" I nearly collapsed but Cadance wrapped her arms around me, keeping me on my feet. I hesitated for a moment before returning the gesture.
"I'm so sorry. I swear I'm not bitter because of you. I've just been feeling... lonely," I spared her that time. By the wet sensation on my shoulder, I could tell she needed some leeway "I'm such a bad ruler, aren't I?"
I laughed weakly. My lungs were still in agony "Sure, even Chrysalis, before she was corrupted, had some control over her emotions and cared for me and all my kind. However, you've seen how she is when she gets desperate. We can't all be perfect." We both laughed and sat on the cold stone of the castle. We were tired, cold but at least the worst of today was behind us "Hey, do you want to go stay with Rarity for the weekend?"
"Hell yeah. It just means free dresses for both of us." I smiled. For the first time since I lost my entire race, I felt like I had a best friend again.
TWILIGHT POV
"What was that, Twilight?" Applejack asked. I didn't respond. Couldn't respond. I could've told her how I had already begun to forgive. Not forgiven, but trying to. I could've told her how nightmares of Noire and Cadance killing Shining in cold blood persisted for weeks and how I had to put up a mental barrier around my house to prevent Princess Luna from finding out. I could have told her, one of my best friends, the truth. But instead, I fell to the floor and cried. Applejack held me close, saying something I couldn't hear over my wails. I cried myself to sleep that night.
"If pain were a four-letter word." Those words spilt from my lips as I stared at the shattered glass that was once a lamp on the floor. I didn't dare look up at the rest of the mess our room had become. I didn't dare look at the pillows and sheets tossed about in our one-sided argument, or the torn curtains or even the tiny, wet tear stains. I could only look at the broken lamp and mutter the words I often heard my father say after arguing with my mother for hours "If pain were a four-letter word."
MOMENTS AGO
The door swung upon to reveal Cadance, looking bright and confident as ever. That was what I would say if her confidence wasn't with a hint of smugness, as if she is expecting my anger and has the perfect counter. Like she was a child who heard something on TV and was just begging for the opportunity to show it off. At that moment, I was tired, stressed and frustrated with a lot of things. I was forced to take on the role of guard captain as no-one was experienced or available enough to fill in the shoes. Cadance had randomly gone off with Ayra to Ponyville for a weekend to 'relax' and didn't even tell me. That made the whole weekend even worse. The memory of having to address a line of ponies like an imposter king scared me more than the nobles. To summarise, there was no happy reunion to reassure either of us that everything was fine. We were not fine.
"So how was your trip?" I asked. I was trying.
"It was just wonderful. Ayra and I had a lovely time bonding." Couldn't she see that I was trying not to be a repeat of Shining? "We even got some dresses from Rarity. Aren't they just wonderful?" she said, using her magic to show off all of the dresses. I couldn't see them very clearly. They were circling around me so fast that all I could notice was the sparkly, red dress. Just red.
"Please stop."
"I'm sorry. Are the dresses-"
"Please stop ignoring this!" Silence drowned the sounds of the moving world. My plea had trapped us in a still room where we could do nothing but address the lingering feeling we have neglected "I can't take this rejection from you any longer. First, it was prolonging court; you never make court, the worst part of your day, longer. Then it was sleeping in separate rooms again and now you just leave me with all this!"
"It was just a weekend!" Cadance rebuked. I clenched my fists and stood up. The contents of the room rose with me like it was in suspense.
"I need you with me to get through this. I don't know the first thing about politics or paperwork or anything about royalty. I try so hard to not let anyone down, especially you, but all this tension and distancing is too much. I need you back, Cadance. The one I fell in love with." I finished my rant, blazing tears streaming down my face. I look to Cadance, internally pleading for a hug to tell me everything's okay. Let me reiterate: there was no happy reunion to reassure either of us that everything was fine. We were in shambles.
"Why does it have to be you who needs help!? Don't you think I need you as well? Ever since you began taking on all this work nopony asked you to do, you've left me alone and cold just like Shining did. It doesn't have to be sex, cuddling or even kisses on the cheek. I just want you to be here for me!" That last shout was enough for the lamp next to me to tip over and everything in the room fell unceremoniously to the ground. A knock sounded through the silent room as we tensed up. "Did anyone hear us?" I thought. I pray to Faust no-one did. Cadance went to the door to find Ayra standing outside.
"I'm sorry to disturb but Princess Celestia and Luna are here to discuss the way moving forward concerning Grim," she said quite timidly.
"Shit. She heard" I thought.
"Thank you Ayra. I'll be right there. Noire just needs to suit up and he'll be there," she said before following Ayra out the door. Without a loud sound, my greatest fear was confirmed: I wasn't going to be able to fix this with words of comfort this time. With a sigh the very cosmos could hear, I got changed into my armour, ready to start the day.
"Pain is not just a four-letter word. It's way worse."
"Greetings, Noire. Thank you for joining us." Celestia said with her warm smile. Across the dining table was Cadance's cold indifference to my presence. This was not going to be an easy meeting.
"It is no problem, Celestia. Anyway, let's get on with it. What's the next step?" I reluctantly sat next to Cadance "Ever since the attack on Canterlot, Grim has remained silent; no announcements, no activity, nothing. If we let him take action first again, we will lose."
"That is why we have been scouring across Equestria and beyond to find any trace of Grim," Luna chimed in "Our largest lead was when he teleported away. While flash teleporting is an easy way to travel long distances, it requires a lot of magic..."
"And is easily tracible." Cadance finished, still avoiding eye contact with me. She really wanted to leave this meeting. Grim was the least of my problems right now. Even Celestia and Luna could feel the cold barrier keeping us miles apart.
"...Yes. However, Grim's trail hs been found in two places: Manehattan and the Dragonlands,"
"I feel like the Dragonlands would be the most obvious place for him to hide. He hasn't made himself known there and with the landscape, he could easily avoid encounters with anypony. It's the most likely location." Celestia said, "However, there have been rumours and reports of ponies vanishing for the past week which could be tied to those monstrosities."
"Chimaera." I found myself saying "There called chimaera, according to Grim." Another memory from our mind bonding experience. That was the first time that had happened in a month. I needed to find a way to stop that from happening to prevent Grim from discovering something he shouldn't.
"Whatever he calls them, we need to stop their production as well so Manehattan is also am area to watch over." Luna responded, "Which is why I think it best we search both areas."
"Two teams should travel to both locations: one to the meet with the current dragonlord, Torch, to warn them of Grim and another to Manehattan to investigate the current incidences."
I needed time away from Cadance. Cadance needs space from me. We both came to this conclusion when we heard the plan to split up. For the first time during this meeting, we looked at each other with empty looks. Of loneliness, stress, longing. We both decided that we needed a break. Before things got even messier.
"I volunteer to go to the Dragonlands. If Grim is more likely to be there I should be there in case we encounter him." I quickly offer.
"I should stay here; the Crystal Empire still needs a ruler. However, General Tidal Horn can come with Noire to the Dragonlands while General Windy Wing can go to Manehattan." Cadance offers just as fast. Our abnormal behaviour barely slips by the princesses as they go over who they will be sending. I did not pay attention to a word, I could only think of meeting Grim again. The red dress appeared before me again, clouding my vision. The red dress of destruction.
"Noire? Are you listening?" Celestia asked me with a worried tone.
"Oh, sorry. I guess I'm still a little tired," I excused myself. Celestia looked at me, assessing me but I held strong. I assured her I was alright which I silently hoped she believed "So who else is going?"
"Twilight will be going with you. I went over the plan with the elements yesterday and Twilight and Spike seemed adamant about going to the Dragonlands. As for who is going to Manehattan, Rainbow Dash offered to go as well as Fluttershy, oddly enough. I will have a platoon go with them to Manehattan but your team will have to go in as the dragonlord Torch is not exactly fond of ponies so having as little as possible go will be the safer option." That was unsettling, to say the least. Going to violent dragon territory with the chance of encountering the psychopathic mastermind I barely beat a month ago? This was not going to be easy.
"How long will both teams be out for?" said Cadance. It was like she begging for me to leave ASAP.
"For at least a couple weeks. At best a month." Cadance leaned back in her seat. I needed to end this so asked my last question and prayed it would be over.
"What about the guard. Without a captain, the guard would be completely unorganised." I asked.
"We are aware of how the guard has been faring and we have a highly experienced guard to take your place. Silver Knight would have been guard captain over Shining if not for... medical reasons but he has offered to see over the guard here." I breathe a sigh of relief. If I had to come back after 2 weeks of searching scorching hot landscapes for a psychopath to find an even more stressed, emotionally vulnerable princess, I think I would go insane "With that out of the way, may we stay for breakfast before setting out? If it isn't too much trouble?" Celestia smiled innocently, clearly oblivious to the tension between us. Luna looked hesitant to stay but didn't go against the decision.
"Of course you can stay for breakfast!" Cadance said through gritted teeth.
"Stay as long as you need!" I add, mentally screaming.
We enjoyed our breakfast as quickly as possible, only looking at each other to turn beet red. Was this what a 'break' was like?
NIGHT-TIME
The one thing I missed about Earth was the rain. The Crystal Empire didn't have a weather team nor did it ever rain in the frozen north so the rain was absent. I always liked how the rain knew just when to trickle, drizzle and come pouring down on your tragedy like party streamers on a descent. All I could look at from the balcony was the slow flakes outside, patiently waiting for them to reach their destination. "So, what has the princess' consort and bodyguard sulking at this time of night?" I heard Windy say from behind me.
"It's night?" I hear myself say. Windy, for once, looked worried.
"Okay, now I know something's wrong. Come on: tell your Big Bro Windy. Tell your BBW-"
"Never say that again." We stood outside in silence for a few moments taking in the snowy wasteland beyond the city walls. My mind wandered back to Earth, in a specific graveyard where I would find a rock with the words 'Noire Q Amblert. 1963- 2016. Gone but not forgotten.' "Do you ever miss home?" I ask him. The wind around me suddenly blew colder as Windy took a deep sigh.
"Not really. Most of the people in Trottingham used to shame me for being another street rat even when I protected them from greedy nobles. I knew they were only doing it to protect themselves from their wrath and now that I'm going to be travelling to the city nearest to Trottingham, I can just tell that I will meet some people I never want to see again. However, knowing that I left for a good reason, that I am doing good, is one of the ways I keep smiling through this new hell." Is that how I get over this hell? Think that I am doing 'good'? Is what I wanted to say but he continued "However, what I suggest for you is that you stop getting in WAY over your head,"
"What do you mean?" I asked him.
"You're trying to be so many things for so many different people: A knight, a captain, a coltfriend, a politician, a saviour even though you have been here for what? A few months? Shining tried to do the same while battling the influences of Chrysalis and we both know what happened to him." He looked at me like a stern, older brother as he placed his hands on mine shoulders "From a bro to another, don't just treat this mission as a break from all of this but use it as an opportunity to ask yourself 'What one thing do I want to be?' You find that when you find your answer, you'll see everything a lot clearer than you are now," with that, he left with his signature wink and flew around the castle to his duty. I was left alone to ponder on his simple yet effective words. I wondered if Windy had a brother.
CADANCE POV, THE NEXT DAY
Last night was hell. Noire and I slept in separate rooms as ours was a mess and we couldn't stand being in the same room. Aunty Tia and Luna decided to stay for the night so dinner was especially painful. Having to smile and pretend we were a happy couple. I was waiting for this chance: to forget about the love for a spell. As a stand at the train station, where everyone; Celestia, Luna, Twilight, Windy, Tidal, Rainbow Dash, Fluttershy and Noire were going to set off. The Manhattan Team was going to be dropped off first and the Dragonland team were going to get the airship in Canterlot. I couldn't wait for that ship to take off so I could be a princess again and drown out the wailing siren calling for Noire to stay. I drown it in the words proven to true by a long-gone lover.
"You failed at being both!" I didn't fully understand what that meant even after some thought but now that I'm watching my second lover leaving, also seeing this as an opportunity for a much-needed break, I cannot help but feel those words ring with much clearer sound.
"Cadance?" Noire tapped my shoulder, waking me from my trance. I stare into his silent gaze, wondering if this is where he says it: that we are taking a break. I wait for it with bated breath but never came "When I come back, can we talk? About us?" I think I saw some heads turn from his question but I only look at him, staring back at me with a pleading look. I couldn't say no. Not to him, especially not now.
"Okay... I'll wait for you" We shared a long hug and before I knew it, the train had disappeared into the horizon. However, not before leaving me a new addition to my forces.
"Silver Soldier, reporting for duty."
SHINING POV
"Just because I can sustain myself without my queen doesn't mean I now like being away from her," I say while tapping my sword on the metal floor.
"Oh, keep your panties in a fix, you can get your dick wet after we're done with my new experiment. If this works, we can destroy several towns within a day, maybe even take Canterlot." He responds without even meeting my glare. However, he was right: with this weapon, Equestria would be under our control soon enough "How about you make yourself useful and get Chrysalis on the line. I want to know how our operation in Manehattan is doing,"
With a roll of my eyes, I comply and mentally ask Chrysalis how things are progressing "It is slow. People are now beginning to lock themselves in their homes and putting anti-magic charms everywhere they can. I may need Slenda to deal with this."
"She says Manehattan is locking themselves in their homes with anti-magic and is asking for Slenda."
"Fine then. Her recon mission ended a while ago so she is available. I'll send her in today." I message this to Chrysalis and continue watching the weapon from its tube. It opens its eyes and lets out a powerful roar, shaking everything around it.
Anxiety festered in our car and leaked into the rest of the train. Even though the princesses had reserved a whole train car for our group, we could not avoid the ponies and the whispers began. It started with a simple "What are so many important ponies doing here?" Then it turned into "It must be because of that Grim guy. He's causing a lot of problems." We didn't notice it at first but as this murmuring chaos ensued in the car in front of us, the reality of Grim's impact on Equestria couldn't be ignored.
"It seems that Grim has made a splash in gossip around Equestria," Tidal said, reading from a book with a white cover and blue water symbol on the front. I had never seen that book before.
"It was much easier to cover up the incident at the Crystal Empire by saying it was just renovation but after Grim's flashy entrance and his attack on Canterlot cannot be excused as a simple 'construction accident' considering the damage and casualties. This was bound to happen," Windy included "That's why you princesses are staying in Equestria, right? To keep spirits up?"
Celestia nodded "Yes. If we were to leave, our ponies may fall into despair and chaos as well as Grim attacking when we are vulnerable. That is why we are preparing these." She summoned four scrolls and gave them to Tidal, Noire and I "If Grim decides to attack while you are away, we have prepared teleportation scrolls to send you straight to Canterlot should we call for you,"
"And what is our next step when we arrive at the Dragonlands?" Tidal asked. I really wanted to ask about that book.
Luna responded "You are meeting with Dragonlord Torch to discuss lending aid to the fight against Grim. We have yet to establish any alliances with the dragons due to some... prejudices but now is the tie to set apart our differences to combat the greater good."
While the rest of the team were talking amongst themselves, Spike tugged at my arm "Twilight? Is that the human you talked about?" He whispered, pointing to the sleeping human in the back seat.
"Yes. He is." I replied quickly, leaving Spike to look at Noire with curiosity. I still didn't know how to feel about him. He seemed to be a good guy but during the ride, he had been particularly silent and cold. It reminded me of how Cadance was behaving when she visited Ponyville "Were they... having problems?" I thought to myself but quickly extinguished such a notion. If Cadance had screwed up her relationship a second time, I don't think I could contain my anger. I distracted myself by asking the two generals about their abilities, especially about Tidal's book.
"The Wave family has grown with the water for decades, centuries even. We have developed our magic to achieve a kind of hydrokinesis to the extent that we can draw from the moisture in the atmosphere to empower our magic. However, most of our family use their magic to guide ships or fish, just living a peaceful life. Only in my mother's and my case did we use our magic affinity for water in combat. As for the book, it's my mother's journal meant to record all of our knowledge concerning our magic. I still don't know why, even with the knowledge of my power, that Cadance thought it was a good idea to send me to the Dragonlands when the high temperature weakens my water magic." She grumbled into her book and continued reading.
I turned to Windy for his response but h left me with more questions than answers. He merely shrugged his shoulders and said "I don't know much about why my wing strength is so much stronger. All I remember is flapping my wings one day and the stallion who was unfortunate enough to be 3 feet behind me was blown into a stand. Probably just good genes." I hummed in frustration "Sorry, Trottingham doesn't have much in terms of research so I was just the rogue archer with strong wings."
Rainbow decided to chime in by being her overly confident sense "Does that mean you're fast!? 'Cause I've been dying to race against you ever since I heard about you from Twilight."
"Maybe when we're done with our mission. Just remember to be on your best behaviour as we'll be working with the guard already stationed in Manehattan and your timid friend warned me of how reckless you can be," he said, much to Rainbow's dismay. She stood and looked to Fluttershy in shock while the mare hid behind her mane, barely muttering out a 'sorry'. Rainbow sat back down with grumble of annoyance.
"To change the subject, what is he doing back there? He's been back there ever since we left," Rainbow asked, looking back to the sleeping human.
"Sleeping. He's had a rough month and some rest wouldn't hurt before we reach Canterlot." Luna answered "However, when I tried looking into his dreams, there was a mental barrier. This could mean that he is seeing something he doesn't want anyone else seeing or..." Luna paused.
"Or what?" I asked.
"Someone else is in there. Talking to him." We all looked to the sleeping human, wondering what could be roaming inside his mind.
NOIRE POV
It's pitch black again. This may have only happened twice since I arrived here, but it always meant that I was waiting for someone like I was sitting in an office for my boss to enter and tell me some horrible news. "Who is going to appear behind those invisible doors?" I said to myself. She responded. I thought I was never going to hear her again but I received so much more. It was her again. Faust in all her visible glory. She was a tall grey mare wearing a long-sleeved, white dress and a red mane and tail to complete it all. Something about her felt divine but humble at the same time. It was as if we were meeting on equal terms.
"It has been a long time since we last spoke, Noire. It is nice to speak to you again," she smiled warmly. It was apparent where Celestia got her smile.
"I could say the same, however, I fear that this isn't just a little visit for a chat over tea," Faust's smile weakened at my statement. I put a hand to my mouth, realizing how rude I must have sounded "I apologise. I shouldn't have been so rude,"
Faust raised her hands, deflecting my apology "No need for apologies- If anything, I should be. I have been watching you for a while and can see how charging you with this mission has affected you. However, after your last encounter with Grim, you can see why you are the only one who can defeat him." she said apologetically.
"Hey," I walked over to her and placed my hand on her shoulder "I was the one who agreed to do this. As such, I should take responsibility. Now, let's stop with the all the sad talk get onto why you have come," I said sincerely. Faust nodded and began explaining.
"Ever since Grim's attack on Canterlot, his soul has been resounding within yours much more aggressively. By now you must have noticed its influence once or twice over the past month?" I immediately remember the red dress.
"Yeah. What's going to happen to me if this continues?" I asked her. Faust's tone turned dark.
"Your soul may succumb to Grim's control and be swallowed. You may die, fuse with him. Honestly, I know not what will happen exactly but I know it will not end in your favour if your control over your power remains the way it is now." Faust raised both hands and two floating orbs appeared, one red and one blue " While 'the code' is powerful, it is by nature, primal and incomplete. The way it grows is dependent on the user. The red orb represents how Gri uses his power to destroy and manipulate. This is why he has powers such as large-scale magic zones and has better control over dark magic and corruption. The blue orb represents your power to protect and resonate with life itself in a more positive manner. This is the cause of your power to absorb magic from those who ally with you as well as your access to memories and dreams. However, your power is weak and must be properly trained."
"Is this why you're here? To train me?" I said, trying to restrain my excitement. This did not slip past Faust and she giggled at me like she was teaching.
"Yes. This training will not only strengthen your abilities and unlock new ones, but it will also allow you to combat the code os destruction festering inside you, making your soul completely your own." Faust merged the two orbs together, creating one white orb "We will begin once you reach the Dragonlands. You should go back to your friends, they are waiting for you to wake up." As soon as she said that, I was abruptly shaken awake by a bemused Tidal.
"Wake up, Noire!" Tidal rocked me back and forth as my eyes tried to adjust to the light. Once they opened fully, I could see Tidal, Twilight, Spike and the princesses looking at me with concern. The others were nowhere to be seen and I assumed they had already gotten off at their station "Faust, you are just the heaviest sleeper and I've tried waking Windy up. What were you dreaming about? You were muttering weird stuff in your sleep," she asked.
"I was speaking with Faust." Tidal paused and let go of me, her face changing to an expression of embarrassment as if she screwed up big time. Celestia and Luna looked to me in shock "She wants to train me to better use my code of protection." I got up from my seat and went over to sit closer to the group with Tidal next to me.
"You spoke with mother?" Celestia asked.
"And what is this about a 'code of protection'?" Luna asked. I decided to tell them about my talk with Faust; her explanation of how Grim and my powers differ and how Grim's soul and mine are locked in a struggle to which mine was losing and how this training could resolve this. When I finished, everyone was astounded by this development. Twilight was the first to speak and by her tone, she was excited.
"This does make a lot of sense! Magic can become stronger due to powerful emotions- it makes sense that the code, which is a primal form of magic, is subject to the same thing, but to the point where they dictate your powers entirely!" She said, scribbling furiously into a notebook "However, I don't understand the 'incomplete' part. What did she mean by that?" she asked.
"She did not say exactly but I think it has something to do with it becoming more controlled when the user fully adopts a belief or conviction, occasionally during times of emotional stress." Twilight looked confused so I tried explaining "My powers at first were uncontrollable like my magic absorbing ability. It used to happen passively, whether I wanted it to or not but after the battle with Chrysalis, I could control how much I took and by the Chimaera's attack, I could fully control when and how much magic I could take. I saw when Grim first gained his powers as well. When he tried to flee from Celestia, he gave in to anger and directed it towards Equestria, explaining why his magic destroys and manipulates." Twilight was hanging off my every word, scribbling everything down. I laughed at her enthusiasm "I'm going to be starting my training with her when I get to the Dragonlands." I looked to the princesses to see how they would respond and noticed that Celestia was acting particularly fidgety. Even Twilight and Spike noticed her behaviour.
"Um, Celestia, Are you okay? You seem really... flustered all of a sudden." Spike asked. Celestia turned a deep shade of red.
"Uh... Noire? How much of that encounter did you see?" She asked. Now Luna appeared to be curious as to the reason for her behaviour.
"From when Grim found the cave. When he accidentally hurt you and then left. Why?"
"So you heard what I said?"
"Yeah? What about it?" I asked. My mind looked back, through the entire encounter, the conversation That was when it hit me smack in the face.
"I lo-" It resounded in my head over and over like an echo over the mountains.
"Were you... Did you... Are you... Sweet Christ," I looked to her in awe as she looked like the sun itself, burning hot.
"I mean, at the time I was but not anymore," she responded in a whiny, child-like voice.
"What?" Spike asked. The others were just as confused. Celestia looked to me with a longing, pleading look.
"Please don't tell them," she begged in my head.
"Of course not I'm not going to tell your sister and student that you were crushing on a now homicidal megalomaniac! I like living!" I turned to Twilight and Spike "It's nothing to concern yourselves with. She just ripped her dress in a cave and forgot he could teleport so she walked all the way to the castle half-naked," It was a terrible lie but it worked. However, Celestia did not look less embarrassed. In fact, she looked equally embarrassed and pissed. Twilight froze in shock, Spike turned beet red and Luna laughed into her hand. That was a better outcome. Before Celestia could respond, the train conductor announced that we were already in Canterlot. "Saved by the bell. Thank you, random train conductor guy." I thought as we all exited. When we all got off, we headed straight towards the airport and as we walked, my mind roamed into dangerous territory.
"Hey. Do you think Celestia secretly enjoyed being chained up by Grim 10,000 years ago?"
Walking through the depths of Tartarus brought back many feelings. The cages reminded me of my anger and the creatures inside, some of them my own creations, of my humiliation. I remember being in one of those cages. It wasn't long but long enough to engrave itself in my memory for the next 10,000 years. The suffering that comes with loss, with defeat. However, after a century of planning in my mind, witnessing my several hypothetical defeats, these feelings do not harm me. That was what lead me to Tirek.
"What are you doing here?" The former tyrant was a mistake the first time around. When I was too inexperienced to ever use a pawn such as himself. With the power to absorb magic, I could have achieved my dream so easily, so long ago. However, he was too power-hungry and tried to take my power. I had no choice but to release him to the wolves, let him fend for himself against the princesses and his brother while I started over from scratch. This time it will be different.
"Don't worry, you shrivelled, old fart. I haven't come here for you. I have come for your abilities."
Tirek laughed before breaking into a fit of coughs "And we both know what will come of it," Tirek tried to laugh once again but to no avail.
"True. However, I believe we are talking about different abilities. You think I am after your power to absorb magic but I tell you now, you are not as special as once thought," I showed him pictures: one of Chrysalis and one of Noire "I have found others that can absorb magic or emotions, which in itself can aid me in my goal. Either of these two can be my vessel." Tirek was silent at first but he spoke up once again with more fear in his voice.
"So... what do you want from me?" He asked, his legs beginning to shake. That was good, that was how I loom ever closer into his mind. I broke the cage around him and before he could even think of fleeing, I bound him with my shadow hands. With one of them, I tilted his head up so his forehead was completely exposed. He was panting heavily as my own hand grew closer to him.
"... A distraction..."
"aaAAGHH!"
NOIRE POV
As soon as we got on the ship we introduced ourselves to the captain, Captain Seahoof. He was an old, but muscled, earth pony with blue fur and a white mane. When he shook my hand, I thought the stallion was going to rip off my arm. Celestia had informed us that we would have to finish our trip in under two weeks as our ship was only allowed on foreign lands for that amount of time. Any longer and we may be attacked for betraying their agreement. So before we knew it, we were already taking off to the Dragonlands. I took the time away from a desk or battlefield to relax. While the others were talking amongst themselves, I snuck away to the back of the airship and gazed at the water below us. Within that moment of relief, Windy's words wormed their way into my head once again.
"However, what I suggest for you is that you stop getting in WAY over your head,"
"Am I?" I said to myself "I mean, isn't this what I was summoned here for? To protect others?" A large hand pulled me from my thoughts.
"What's got you back here when you could be at the deck with your friends?" He asked. I turned to face him.
"Just thinking about things," I responded, gaining a chuckled from the veteran. I raised a brow in confusion, which Seahoof quickly picked up on.
"I apologise but the way you were staring back at the ocean reminded me of how I used to look when I was missing my wife more than anything in Equus." I turned beet red "Hohoho! Don't worry, you young whippersnapper, you'll see her again." I wondered how Cadance was doing without me. I imagined she was doing just fine without me causing her so much stress. I turned back to the sea, my only distraction from my thoughts.
"Yeah. I only wish I had left her on better terms." I could feel Seahoof frown at my remark but not for long as his cheery expression returned.
"If you are head over heels for this mare then it'll solve itself soon. Maybe you'll find a way to make up with her in the Dragonlands. They do have a lot of jewels. Could make her a fancy necklace or even better-" he drew closer and whispered "A ring."
"W-we haven't been together for that long!"
"Sometimes it doesn't matter how long it takes, true lovers will always find each other." He patted my shoulder and left me to my thoughts, which were now buzzing with thoughts about if proposing would be the best way to make things up with Cadance. The ocean was not going to distract me from thinking about Cadance anymore, let alone Cadance in a wedding dress.
I was startled from my daydreaming by what could only be described as a wave of dread "What was that?" I asked myself, looking back at the small visage of Equestria from our airship. As soon as the sensation appeared, it had vanished like a bolt of lightning in the distance, as if I had imagined it. However, I shook myself free from the thought "I can't be getting paranoid. Everyone will be fine," I reassured myself as I returned to the front of the deck where Twilight and Tidal were chatting, with Spike copying everything Tidal was saying. Tidal looked back to me and smiled.
"So, you finally decided to join us, Mr Loner," she teased "Get over here. We need to talk about what we'll be doing once we arrive in the Dragonlands. This won't be as simple as other diplomatic meetings." I obeyed and walked over to the three of them. Once we had found seating at a nearby set of lounge chairs "Now, once we arrive at the Dragonlands, the most logical approach would be to seek an audience with Torch."
"I'm hearing a 'however'," I interjected.
"However, for a 50-foot dragon, he's pretty elusive. Only showing himself when and if he wants to. Nopony or dragon knows where he sleeps or keeps his horde so we can't just go around looking. We're going to have to grab his attention somehow." This mission was already proving to be a challenge.
"Should we ask around? Maybe someone close to Torch would know where he is or at least how to get his attention" Twilight asked.
"Guys." Scratch, scratch, scratch.
"According to the princesses, Torch doesn't have close companions. He's a strong believer in the 'friendship is for weaklings' argument. Any other ideas?" Tidal responded.
"Guys." Scratch, scratch, scratch.
"What about causing a commotion? Dragons do like fighting, right?" I asked.
"No. Dragons don't involve themselves in conflict if their land or horde is not at risk."
"Guys! A little help!" Spike pleading from behind us. We turned around to find that the baby dragon, glowing and scratching every inch of his body. He looked really distressed "I tried to hide it when we got on the airship but it's out of control now!"
I went over to help Spike but the ship suddenly shook violently. Tidal went to the bow of the ship to see what was going on "A dragon hit us! A big one!" She yelled as we were hit again. I left Spike to Twilight and went to the side of the ship. As I thought, another dragon hit us and by the hole left in the ship, it was pretty rough. Seahoof was already trying to land the ship as safely as possible. Before anyone could respond, we were overcome with a petrifying, sinking feeling. We were falling.
"Hold on to something! This is going to be a bumpy ride!" Tidal and I grabbed onto the side of the ship, however, Twilight and Spike weren't so lucky. As soon as they were about to grab the mast of the airship, another dragon slammed against the side of the ship, jerking it to the side violently and throwing the unicorn and dragon of the ship.
"Twilight! Spike!" I yelled. Without even thinking, I jumped off the ship after them.
"Noire!" I heard Tidal scream from the distance. I reached my hand out to Twilight, who was out of her mind with panic.
"Twilight! Reach for my hand!" I yelled at her. She stopped her screaming and reached for my hand while trying to keep a good grip on Spike. Our hands were inches apart but the sea was growing closer and closer. Before we hit the water, I barely managed to grab her and pulled her close to me. I closed my eyes waiting for the impact.
Splash.
TIDAL POV
Noire!" I yelled but he had already jumped "Faust, we've haven't even started and this already going wrong." I teleported to Seahoof "Captain. We're abandoning ship." Seahoof looked at me, disgusted.
"A captain never abandons his ship. You go on without me! This old man stays!" I wanted to slap him but I was taught to respect the elderly.
"This is a private ship, property of Princess Celestia. Therefore, this is NOT your ship. Now let's go." I grabbed Seahoof's hand and jumped off the ship. Before we hit the ocean, I made a water bubble to protect us. When the crashing waves from our impact cleared, I moved over to Noire, who was carrying an unconscious Twilight on his back and an unconscious Spike under his arm.
"Well..." he sighed "This could have gone better..." I took Spike off his hands while he lifted himself and Twilight onto the makeshift magic raft. Once we were all aboard and had recovered, Noire and I used telekinesis to move onto the shore while Seahoof tried to wake up Twilight and Spike. As we were closing on the shore, Twilight began to gain consciousness.
"Ugh... what happened?" she asked between coughs.
"Well, from the giant, glowing dragons that passed us moments ago, I'm going to assume they are going through the same thing Spike was, whatever that was," Tidal answered "They probably were using the ship as some kind of scratching post. Assholes..." Seahoof managed to wake up Spike before we made to the shore and in seconds, Spike was glowing once again and scratching all over his body.
"Somepony help, please!" he pleaded. Everypony was confused about how to help but Noire decided to step forward. He placed a hand on Spike's shoulder and pink lines began to glow on his arm which spread until it reached Spike's shoulder.
"He's being called. By Torch." We all went silent.
"Are you sure?" I asked. I knew I shouldn't have doubted Noire's capabilities but the convenient timing left me a bit sceptical.
"Yes," he responded "I can hear him. He's saying "All dragons, return to Shatter Mountain. The next Dragonlord must be chosen."
"Well, that's good for us. We've got a location. All we need to do is find it," I looked back to Seahoof, who, looked incredibly confused "We should also ask for another ship for Seahoof. Can't be having some old man in the Dragonlands,"
"Excuse me!" he exclaimed "I may be old but I am far from defenceless! If anything, I should be worried about your arrogant behind! I swear is she always like this!?"
"Eh, you get used to it...eventually," Noire answered "Anyway, it would be better if we brought him with us. We can't exactly leave him here or wait until a new ship arrives. Plus, he'll be guarded by a general or the unicorn corps, a code avatar and Princess Celestia's student."
"And a dragon!" Spike included.
"And a dragon. He'll be fine," Tidal opened her mouth to argue but couldn't find the words. She sighed and brought the raft onto the shore. The Dragonlands were exactly as I expected it to be. barren lands with cracked rocky surfaces and baked soil everywhere, volcanoes painting the horizon and the overwhelming scent of ash invading my nostrils. The roaring of dragons could be heard in the distance, alerting us that the dragons were already meeting. "We should get going. I have a gist on the direction we need to go," I said, motioning for everyone to follow me. With that, we were on our way to Shattering Mountain but once again I felt an alarming shock. "I hope everyone's doing okay," I thought as I continued leading the others.
We had spent an hour venturing through the steep and craggy mountains and the toll of the journey had taken its toll on everyone, some more than others. Spike was exhausted and Seahoof's legs looked so shaky I swore they were leaving afterimages. I offered to carry Spike on my back while Tidal had the 'luxury' of carrying Seahoof while listening to his rambling and insults. Lots of them. About half an hour in, they started arguing and had no intention of stopping.
"You should be thankful I was generous enough to carry your bony ass! Especially after you had the nerve to call me arrogant!"
"Why you little- YOU should be thankful I took the time to sail your cocky behind to this wasteland when I could be spending it with my wife!"
I was at my wit's end and was about to give them a piece of my mind but Spike tapped my shoulder, gaining my attention "Do you need something, Spike?" He looked nervous with how he was fidgeting with the collar of my coat. He was managing the effects of his summoning much better but his glow was getting brighter: a sign that we were getting close.
"I was wondering... how did you manage to win over Cadance so quickly?"
"Uh... what?"
"I mean, how did you manage to make Cadance fall for you? Even if her relationship with Big Bro Shining... didn't end well, I don't get how she fell for you so quickly afterwards. Was it the 'hero' thing? Did you bring her lots of flowers? Help her with her work?" I looked back to Twilight but she was preoccupied with Tidal and Seahoof's arguing.
"Well, I didn't help her with the intention of getting with her. It just kinda happened. Maybe a little too fast, now that I think about it." I replied shyly. It actually made me think why Cadance fell for me in the first place "Anyway, why do you ask? Is there a certain filly you're trying to impress?"
"No. It's a mare. Rarity, to be specific." I looked to him, bashfully playing with his claws and blushing under his scales. He looked seriously in love with this mare, which frightened me; I knew from experience how first crushes usually go "She's just so beautiful, kind and, of course, generous but she seems oblivious to all my attempts of winning her over." Spike paused for a moment and let out a long sigh of emotional exhaustion, or possibly relief "What do you think I should do?"
At the time, I was hesitant to give him advice in fear of it completely backfiring on him but the way his eyes were practically begging for the advice of an older, more experienced 'romantic' was just too much. I thought for a moment before responding "Have you tried straight up confessing to her?" Spike looked at me inquisitively, seemingly offended that I asked him what could be seen as me mocking him "I know it sounds incredibly stupid and patronising but stay with me. Back on Earth, my home planet, I had watched so many people try to make their person of interest notice their love for them through subtle acts that no sane person or pony would see as romantic. I think the best way for you to make hr at least acknowledge your feelings is by telling her. Maybe over a picnic or dinner so you don't look too unromantic but one way or another, it's got to come out. Get me?"
Spike pondered for a second "Yeah, I get it! I just have to tell her how I feel! Thanks for the advice, Noire!" He got off my back and raised his claw, motioning for a high five. I kneeled down a met his claw with my hand. I stood back up and we continued on our way to the mountain. It seemed close as we could hear the roar of several dragons nearby. The sound managed to shake the ground and even ended the argument behind us.
"Was that Torch?" asked Twilight.
"Sounds like it and he's not alone. Let's pick up the pace." With that, we all trekked over the last rocky valley before arriving the our first destination in the Dragonlands. Shatterback Mountain was almost exactly like it sounded. There was what looked like a gigantic stump of a mountain which could still tower over every dragon present. However, half of the mountain's top was left undamaged, making it look like a throne. At the mountain's base, was a ring of smaller mountains which confined all of the dragons inside. From our view from above, it looked like the announcement hall in Canterlot, but less refined. For some time, nothing was happening besides some chatter amongst the dragons but they were all silenced by a large shadow looming over the dragons, swallowing them with its presence. Without warning, the wings of the shadows sent powerful winds, forcing us to take cover behind a large boulder to prevent us from being blown away. Once we gained our bearings, we checked the situation again. We found that the shadow was produced by a dragon larger than any of the youths below. His scales were a dark blue and had a black chestplate. His wings and horns were a bright orange and atop his head was a crown made of jewels. He was large enough to fit the large throne completely.
"That must be our dragonlord," Tidal said.
"For now. Remember: he's called this many dragons here because he's going to select a new dragonlord," I added.
Spike let out an exasperated groan "Oh Goddess, Garble's here." We all looked to him "Look at the red dragon at the back middle," he said as he pointed to the dragon in question "During the migration, he and a few dragons were causing trouble, even trying to steal a phoenix egg to eat it. If he becomes the next dragonlord, we're never going to get the dragons' help: he doesn't exactly have the best opinion on 'namby-pamby ponies'" he finished with air quotes "He even said he would get revenge on us and with an army of dragons, he could do just that."
"So we need to find a candidate that we can trust to help us. The problem is who?" Tidal deduced. We looked back at the large group of dragons for anyone who could be at least trustworthy but was impossible with the distance. We were contemplating going down for a chat with Torch himself until a voice rang out from above. We saw a small, blue dragoness descend from the sky. She landed on Torch's shoulder and began yelling at him.
"What the hell, dad! Why did you leave me behind!? I can become the next dragonlord. It's practically my birth right!" she yelled furiously into his ear. Even though she was almost a speck compared to him, he recoiled at the volume of her voice.
"You know we don't do 'birth right' here! The title of dragonlord is earned through strength and a little girl like you has no chance. Now go back home to your mother: I'll be home when I'm done here." the little dragoness huffed and flew off into the distance "Now that that is out of the way," he muttered "The rules of the Gauntlet of Fire are simple; navigate the water geysers and fly to Volcano Island," he points to an rocky island off in the distance with a volcano peaking amongst the surrounding rock "Make it through the tunnels of stalagmite and crystal traps get the bloodstone sceptre from its hiding place. First one to seize the sceptre and show it to me shall become the next dragon lord!" The dragons all cheered and roared at the promise of such a title "So what are you waiting for? GO!" With that, all the dragons flew off in the direction of the island. We were about to follow suit until Torch spoke up "I suggest the ones hiding behind that rock show themselves before they are burned alive!" he yelled.
With our cover blown, we stepped out from our hiding spot while Torch rose from his throne and flew dangerously close to us. "What is little pony and," he paused when he stared at me "A human doing on my lands! Speak now and I may not burn you to a crisp!" he opened his maw and the inside of his mouth began to glow orange.
"We came to ask for your assistance against a new threat and Equestria- no- all of Equus!" Twilight answered.
Torch closed his mouth and chuckled "What's new?"
"Have you ever heard of Grim?" I asked. Torch's chuckling immediately stopped and his tone turned dark and cold "He's back,"
He's leaned even closer to me "One does not speak his name so freely without fear. Who are you?"
"My name is Noire. I am a code avatar like him but I am here to destroy him for good this time," I answered.
Torch scoffed at this "The last human who was out to stop him failed. What makes you, a fledgling think you have a chance?"
"Hear us out and you'll find out all you need to know."
We stared at each for a while before Twilight spoke up "Where are the others?" I looked behind me to find that Spike, Tidal and Seahoof were gone. I turned back to Torch for a response, but he merely shrugged.
"The baby dragon you were with left for the sceptre a while ago and I suppose the other two you speak of went after him, for good reason of course. I know of many unfortunate events that befall those unworthy of the title." Twilight went pale with fear and tried to run after them but I stopped her. She looked to me with rage but I held my grip.
"They are going to be fine. Tidal won't let anything happen on her watch. Trust me." Twilight resisted a bit but ultimately agreed. I turned back to Torch, who was looking incredibly frustrated "We believe that Grim is hiding somewhere in the Dragonlands and we need your help to beat him. So, what do you say?"
Torch stared at me, unamused "My ancestors spoke of these 'code avatars'. They said they ALONE had the power to destroy countries, continents. In fact, this land itself is a consequence of their bout," I raised his arm, pointing towards the chaotic land stretched before us. "Do you have any sense of pride in your power or are you just that weak?"
I was about to respond but he silenced me "No more words! There is only one way to earn respect amongst dragons. Show me your strength. I will decide if you are worth listening to afterwards."
TWILIGHT POV
"I will gladly show how strong I am. As long as you keep up your end of the bargain," Noire teleported down to the ring of stone and summoned his sword. Torch grinned and met his challenger, leaping into the ring and sending winds Noire's way. I made my way down to a safe spot to witness the clash of such titans.
"Then come." Noire wasted no time in sending three magic slashes at Torch but were swatted away with a flick of his claw "Is that all the new hero is capable of?! Show me your real power!" Noire summoned his longblade to attack Torch, leaping up to slash at his face "Weak!" Torch opened his maw and sent torrent of flames. When they had died down, Noire was nowhere to be seen. Torch looked around, frustrated "Come out, coward! Those flames weren't nearly hot enough to kill you!" I too searched around for him until I looked up and saw him floating above Torch.
"Decode Sword: Gardnablade." He summoned an even larger great sword and threw it straight at Torch's face. Torch was barely fast enough to react and was slashed straight through his right eye. He let out a blood curdling scream as Noire lowered himself down " Savageblade." The sword returned to its broadsword form but this time it was black and crimson colour and looked distorted.
"Noire! What are you doing?! We are supposed to be asking for his help- not killing him!" I yelled at him, appalled at his behaviour. However, Noire turned to me and revealed his red left eye. He countered my rage with a calm, cold demeanour.
"We do not require a weakling like him," he said. He was starting to resemble Sombra, with his black hair adopting a shadowy effect "We came to speak with the Dragonlord but Torch has already retired from his title. The way I see it, he has no power over the dragons anymore. I can even see that mot of his power came from that bloodstone sceptre. Pitiful that he would dare mock my weakness when he held up by an undersized walking stick. Final Decode" He let go of his sword but the sword floated up into the air and grew in size. He aimed the sword at Torch's head "This was shorter than I expected but this outcome is fine by me."
"NOIRE! DON'T!" I screamed.
"Murasame"
NOIRE POV
Within the abyss of darkness I found myself in, I could hear so many voices. Some I could recognise: Twilight, Celestia, Grim's but there were some I could not recall. However, in the sea of voices, two resounded in my ears more than anything, drowning all of the others out.
"What are you doing with that, Amanda?"
"Amanda? Remember when it was 'honey' or 'darling' or 'sweetheart'? But ever since the pregnancy, the depression and the drugs, we lost all of that! All because of that brat!"
"Put it down!"
Then came the sobs and wails.
"I'm sorry to say that your control over the piece of Grim's soul is weaker than I thought. I can help you hold it back enough for it retreat but this will hurt. You will start training at night." A light appeared in my vision stirred me from my slumber "I am truly sorry."
"AAAH!" I cried with agony as I lost control and dropped the sword, letting crash to the ground a mere inch from Torch's head. I couldn't care less as I felt like I was being torn apart and put back together. I could feel Twilight to my side trying to help but to no avail. However, as quickly as pain shot through my body, it quickly dissipated, leaving me in a sweaty mess of gasps and fuzzy memories. As soon as I could regain my senses I asked "What happened?"
Twilight seemed looked at me in disbelief "You don't remember? You lost it and almost killed Torch!"
I searched my memories for this event but all I could remember was Torch challenging and then a sensation of drowsiness. I looked to Torch, who was unconscious due to the pain and went over to him. I placed a hand over his wounded eye and tried healing him "I've only just learned this healing spell but this should at least stop the bleeding." Once I had finished, Torch began to rise. He looked down at me and looked at his newly acquired scar across eye "You have earned my respect."
"Wait what?" I asked.
"It has been many years since a creature came around strong enough to wound me. Of course, your princesses could but they are too restrained by their 'friendship'," he squirmed and shuddered at the last word "But you have shown you have he power and the ruthlessness to oppose me. I will listen to you but first, you will have to meet the new dragonlord and voice your request to them. It seems that somedragon has already claimed the title." He looked to the sky, towards the figure in the sky holding the bloodstone sceptre. When I looked closer, I could see that it was the blue dragoness, Ember, holding onto Spike, Seahoof and Tidal. She looked like she was struggling and before long, she had given out and dropped them. Tidal was quick enough to create a water bubble to protect them from the fall but were left very wet.
"Sorry about that. Tidal was too heavy for me carry," Ember apologised, landing next to the group.
"EMBER! I thought I told you to go home! A small dragon is not fit to be dragonlord!" Torch yelled. However, Emer was stood firm.
"NO! YOU LISTEN TO ME! YOU DON'T HAVE TO BE BIG TO BE STRONG!" she countered with her own yell, which seemed to make Torch shrink a few inches "YOU ONLY NEED A STRONG HEART! MY 'FRIEND' TAUGHT ME THAT!" she pointed at Spike. Torch was taken aback at her response and was silent for a while.
"I guess if my little dragoness is strong enough to claim the throne, then I have no choice but to accept you as the new dragonlord." He looked up to see the defeated dragons flying back to the mountain "Now go solidify your legacy." Ember flew up and hugged her fathers face before standing atop her throne and let out a loud roar. All of us looked to the new dragonlord and the dragons let out their own roars.
I went over to Spike "Hey, so what happened back there?"
"It's a long story," he responded. Before I could say anything more, Twilight moved me aside and hugged Spike.
"I was so worried! You are so grounded when I we get back, mister!"
As we soared above the clouds on Torch's back, I thought back to the fight. Bits and pieces started to form like the Savageblade reappearing and what I said when I was like that. The tone of my voice, the memories that were not my own flooding in and the pain I felt when it was all gone. I couldn't shake this disgusting feeling inside me and it wasn't over yet: I could tell. "We should be arriving at my home soon. You're gonna love the place: Mom designed it all herself," Ember said. She was not wrong. We found ourselves going deep inside a crevasse, twisting through the craggy walls and at the bottom lay a castle of crystals. The walls seemed to be made of all manner of gemstones, which radiated with all the colours of the rainbow as it complimented the sun that hovered above. The crystal palace reminded me of matters I had left back home and the longing pain from the ship resumed.
"I wonder how Cadance is doing?"
CADANCE POV
Time felt to be moving at a fraction of its usual pace as I had to listen to the endless drawl of pointless woes. The first one started talking about taxes and everything began to tune out. I was lost in a thought, a request "When I come back, can we talk? About us?" I promised to wait for him, leaving me in stasis like I never left the station. Like a wife with a husband at war, I counted the seconds passing by. 6 hours felt like days and I was still counting.
"Princess? Court has ended. Would you like me to escort you back to your quarters?" The guard assigned as my personal guard asked emptily.
"Goddess, I already miss him" I thought "I need some fresh air. Accompany me to the gardens, please," I stood up and without even making eye contact with him, quickly walked out of the hall.
On the way, I was met with Silver Knight, who was instructing a pair of guards. He spotted me and excused himself and joined me. What I found suspicious was that when he left them, they were both holding their mouths over their mouths and giggling, leaving me to assume they were female guards. "Greetings, your highness," he said, walking beside me. I may have lost my touch when it came to love at the time but anypony can spot a charmer. A shameless one, at that.
"Greetings, captain. I'm happy to see you are getting well acquainted with the guard here." I smiled through gritted teeth. It was apparent how Silver Knight almost became captain of Canterlot's guard- he got along with so many of the female guard, which outnumbered the male guard, that he was nominated for the position.
"I am happy to hear you say that, princess. I do strive for a good relationship with all of my fellow guards and that doesn't exclude the guards here." He smiled as he followed me to the gardens, talking non-stop about how the fate of his former captain hit him hard and that he's glad that I found happiness once again while tried to stay as silent as possible, giving out a 'yes' or 'thank you' or 'yes, thank you', begging for somepony to shut him up. However, even my personal guard grew tired of his babble, looking off to the side and letting out quiet sighs of displeasure. I silently begged that he wouldn't accompany me to the gardens and soon enough, our blessing came in a member of the earth pony corps (a stallion, thankfully) telling Silver that he had to meet with Burning to discuss the training regime as well as his paperwork. "Oh well, I guess I can get to know my princess a bit later," he said as he followed the guard in the opposite direction, out of sight and earshot.
"Permission to speak, your highness?" the guard asked.
"Permission granted."
"That guy is way too into himself." I laughed at their joke. Maybe this new personal guard was just what I needed to get my mind off Noire.
"May I ask for your name?" I asked.
"Sugilite, your highness," the stallion guard answered.
"Sugilite. That's a nice name."
NOIRE POV
"Cadance must be doing a whole lot better than me..." I thought as we landed right outside of the massive pair of doors that lead to Torch and Ember's home. It looked just as beautiful on the inside as it did on the outside, with crystals and gemstones decorating the entire space. It resembled a lavish apartment combined with a sauna, with its lavish walls and dragon-shaped ornaments contrasted with a pit of hot rocks with a large piece of meat cooking on top. However, our attention was immediately turned to the figure next to the pit, humming a delightful tune. Once she heard the doors closing behind us, she turned around to reveal an 8-foot-tall dragoness with orange scales which faded to blue and crimson wings. She quickly ran over to Ember and they both embraced.
"Oh! I knew you were good enough to become Dragonlord, I just knew it!" She said with glee.
"Wait! Are you saying that you allowed for her to participate?!" Torch yelled, much to the dragoness' disdain. She grew until she stood over Torch.
"Yes, I did! You should be ashamed of yourself! You should know more than anyone that size does not mean strength! I can whoop your ass in any size I want!" She was absolutely fuming as she tore into Torch with the fury of a hundred dragons.
"Ember?" Spike asked "Will I be able to control how much I grow as well?"
"Of course: All dragons can do it once they pass their molting stage but as for when they get full control, the latest I've heard is around 100. However, my mom can grow larger than my dad because she's a part of the royal bloodline."
"Royal bloodline?" Twilight asked, holding a notebook.
"Yeah. Dragon's used to flock around kings and queens but after a battle that left almost all of the royal family either dead or crippled, they all vanished from Equus and the dragons started to fight amongst each other to decide the new king. Somedragon managed to quell the fighting, becoming the first dragonlord. My dad has always been about preserving this way of life while my mom wants to restore the monarchy."
"So, does that mean that Torch is adopted royalty?" I asked, withholding my laughter. Torch took notice of this but couldn't respond as his wife was still grilling into him. At that moment I felt his intimidating and powerful aura fade away, leaving behind a prideful and arrogant dad. After a bit, the dragoness noticed us and shrunk back down to her previous size.
"Oh, and my darling Ember brought friends! Hello, all of you, my name is Ignia," she said politely.
"Yes, I am Noire, a code avatar, and this is my group I'm travelling with."
"I am Tidal Horn. A general of the Crystal Empire."
"I am Twilight Sparkle. Princess Celestia's student."
"Seahoof, your highness. Just a humble sailor."
Ignia's expression turned serious "A code avatar. Like him?" She asked gravely.
"Yes, however, I am not like Grim. I have come here because we have had reports of his magical signature here in the Dragonlands and want to stop whatever he has planned." Ignia stared at me intently, judging whether I should be trusted. I gulped. I could tell that this royal dragon was way stronger than the dragonlord I fought before, and she could easily stomp me if she thought I was lying or a threat. However, my fear was proven groundless as her serious expression quickly reverted to its sweet and kind shape.
"Well, we can discuss all of that after dinner." She looked to the ponies of the group "Oh, I'm sorry but we don't get many herbivore visitors so we only have meat and gems," she apologised. Tidal assured her that it was alright by summoning a bag full of food for everyone who couldn't eat meat. Ignia led Tidal, Twilight and Seahoof to a comfortable place to sit while Spike, Ember and I sat close to the meat "Now, I'm sure you are wondering how I know of code avatars when Heros wiped everycreature's memories of them, am I correct?" I nodded "Well, that is a long story."
OVER 10,000 YEARS AGO, THE BADLANDS
My progenitor, the first dragon king, was one of the most powerful in his time and even the princesses feared his might. However, he was also one of the only ones to have a code of honour, defending weaker dragons. Before the formation of the Dragonlands, he lived in a remote cave in the Badlands like most dragons did those days, waiting for the opportunity to bring about what he so desired: the unification of dragons. He waited until that fateful day when a crash was heard from outside his home.
"Who goes there!" The dragon yelled. He stepped out of his cave, revealing a large dragon covered with dark blue scales, white, leathery wings and amber eyes. He sniffed the air for any trace of a dragon "If you are out there, reveal yourself!"
"Calm yourself, dragon. I have no intention of hurting you." An echoed voice said. A figure appeared from behind a rock revealing a hooded figure. The dragon could only see the ragged, brown cloak they were wearing. The hooded figure coughed before speaking once again "I apologise for the noise. I had run into an altercation with a group of dastardly lizards pretending to be dragons and you know the rest. Now, would it be too quick to ask for a place to rest before I head off on my journey."
Without question, he offered the stranger refuge for a short while; after all, mysterious strangers often told great stories.
"I do not believe you and your lies. Dragons are the mightiest race next to alicorns and I don't even smell blood on you! You couldn't have killed a single dragon, let alone a group!" The hooded figure looked up towards the dragon's hateful gaze. He slowly lifted the hood of his head, showing his long, silver hair and strange, pink eyes.
"So, to have you believe my words and allow me refuge in your home, I must show you my power?" He deadpanned. The dragon arched his back and grew until he became twice his original size and stood on four legs. He took in a deep breath and shot a fireball straight at the man, who still did not move. Before the fight ensued, he only muttered "Very well..."
A LITTLE LATER
Their battle was intense but ,in the end, the strange man had barely won against such a terrifying foe and once the wounds of their battle had faded, they talked all through the night. About their lives, their goals and how they were going to get there. They practically knew each other by the time the sun rose.
The sound of crackling wood woke the slumbering dragon. With a quick jolt, he stood on his two legs and came to lots of shocking realisations.
1) He had been knocked out of his mightiest form, back to his normal height, and unconscious for the whole in one hit by a creature not even a quarter of his height. 2) That man was now sitting next to him, cooking meat. and 3) He had a large knot on his forehead where a magic blast had hit him.
"No way..." the man looked up at him curiously.
"Oh. You have awoken. Good, the meat is ready," he said, barely looking to his surprised host as he cooked a large piece of meat, the size of an adolescent dragon.
"No way..." the dragon muttered.
"Seeing as you are a dragon, you can have the larger portion. Or do you not need it, seeing as you are now my height?"
"No way..."
"I'll take some more anyway. I need my energy for the trip. Consider it my reward."
"No way..."
"Can you say anything else besides 'No way...' or did I happen to hit you too hard?"
"Impossible! You must be in some possession of dark magic! How did you manage to defeat me, Ignius, the mightiest dragon in the Badlands, with one hit?!" he yelled, closing in on the man's face. His response was short, and bitter to the dragon's ears.
"I am not in possession of dark magic. I am Heros from the planet Haven. The code avatar of chivalry."
"What in Tartarus are you on about?! What is this about being a 'code avatar' and from this 'Haven'?!"
Heros sighed as he lifted the meat of the fire and put the fire out with a wave of his hand "The code avatars are rare people with the ability to draw upon the power of the goddess and control the most powerful, original form of magic, the very same magic the goddess Faust used to create this world. Haven is my home planet. Faust summoned me here because of a threat to this world, this universe's very existence. His name is Grimoire."
"I heard of such a man but the princesses can handle him just fine. He's just another 'evil threat' that pops up every so often. Tartarus, they even had to seal away the Crystal Empire a while ago due to Sombra being a power-hungry shit."
"He is very real and dangerous. The princesses have already been defeated and held prisoner in their own castle."
"Why should I believe you? Just because you beat doesn't make anything you say true. All this stuff about code avatars and other worlds seems too farfetched for a dragon who only cares about power."
"Hmm. Then how about this? I will teach you this little magic trick that some of my dragon friends know and you will give me this whole slab of meat. Deal?"
Ignis pondered on this for a while. He knew very well that dragons had little to no magic so Heros' teachings could be useless to him. However, his desperation to gain the power to defeat the other dragons who were a threat to dragonkind and become the dragon king. Plus, the look in Heros' eyes felt trustworthy.
"I will agree but you only get the meat if this trick is good enough for my standards."
"Deal," Heros smiled "The trick is using the small amount of magic in your ignio-respiratory sac to it's utmost limit and in a pinpoint direction to unlock what could be a dragon's most powerful ability." He paused, letting the dragon's impatience grow.
"So?! What is it?!" Ignis yelled. Heros pointed to a stalagtite with a finger and shot a beam at it, shattering it completely.
"Plasma breath."
Ignis looked at Heros in bewilderment. He thought that such a thing was impossible but the human had no reason to lie besides from earning a chunk of dragon meat, which Ignis knew was hard and tough to chew for anycreature besides dragons. He accepted this knowledge and allowed the human to eat the meat.
"Ah! This tastes awful and why is it so hard to chew?!" Heros exclaimed.
"It's dragon meat. Did you expect our muscle to be soft like your deer or fish?" He laughed.
NOIRE POV, PRESENT TIME
"By the time morning came. Ignis found that the human was gone and he also set out to unify the dragons. He quickly found the plasma breath technique to be real and used it to defeat countless dragons with it, earning his title as dragon king." Ignia finished her story, sighing wistfully as if recalling a pleasant memory, We all were dumfounded by all this new information. Spike was in awe of learning more about dragons, Twilight was practically glued to her notebook, which looked almost full by then. As for me, I was just surprised to learn 'the hero's name and that Heros knew of the code and mastered it so quickly. That was surely something I would have to discuss with Faust later. "Any questions?" She asked.
"Yeah," Spike responded "Can I learn how to do that plasma breath thing?"
"You can learn but with your small size, you may not be able to do it practically. Your flames would most likely die out before it could reach the right density." Spike sighed in disappointment and leaned back as Twilight patted him on the shoulder.
"Don't worry, you will be able to do it when you're older," Twilight said.
I was deep in thought when Ignia looked to me "Noire? Is anything was wrong?"
"It's just that something about the story." I thought back to Celestia's story "Heros supposedly wiped everyone's memories of him and Grim so how did Ignis pass down the technique if he didn't remember Heros teaching it to him?" I wondered.
"Maybe he only erased memories of the ponies and the others tribes were excluded. The Badlands are very far away from Equestria: his reach may have not gone that far." Tidal suggested. It was a valid explanation but there was still some questions left that I had to ask Faust tonight.
"Grimoire?"
Just like Faust said, once I closed my eyes and went to sleep in a comfy sleeping bag, I reappeared in the void between worlds. Where Faust was ready and waiting for me "It's weird that I've spoke with you 3 times already in the past week. You don't show yourself very often, do you?" I ask. Faust frowned at my statement and I retreated in fear that I may have angered a god.
"It is true that I don't have much impact on Equus as a whole. My final act as Controller, creating Equus, relinquished me of my physical form. I can't even speak directly to my daughters, Celestia and Luna, through anything more than premonitions within dreams." She teared up a bit upon the fact but quickly collected herself. She was here to train me "Onto the matter at hand. From your demonstration of your ability, I can see that Luna trained you well in combat and your mastery over my gift to you has increased rapidly. However, as for your control over the code, it is safe to say that you have only lost control after your realisation of your origins."
"Wait. What gift are you talking about?" I ask.
"I'm talking about the Decode Sword. It was once meant for Heros as a way for him to learn his power: like a learning assist but as he was already well versed in magic, he didn't need much more than an explanation of the situation and he was set."
"That makes sense but I'm still left with some questions: Why did Ignius remember Grim? What was Ignia talking about when she mentioned Grimoire and why didn't you tell me about him before you sent me here?" Faust seemed a little ashamed of herself before answering.
"For your first question, it is as your unicorn general friend said: Heros' reach did not extend to the Badlands. He only erased Equestria's memory as Grim was unknown to most countries. Grimoire was, as you may have expected, Grim's original name. He abandoned it after the incident but some individuals had the right to call him that like Celestia. As for why I didn't tell you, I foresaw you agreeing even with an explanation and I feared any knowledge of your spiritual counterpart may result in you joining him instead. I wanted to know if I could trust you, which I now know I can. Now that all of your questions have been answered, are you ready for your training to begin?" I took a deep breath and nodded before Faust's figure morphed, twisted and disappeared from sight, leaving only the darkness "Good. Now overcome this trial of the mind, maintain the strength of your ideals."
WARNING! DARK SUBJECTS SUCH AS TOXIC RELATIONSHIPS, DOMESTIC ABUSE AND MENTAL HEALTH ISSUES. THIS PORTION MAY BE DISTRESSING FOR SOME READERS SO PLEASE EXERCISE DISCRETION WHEN READING AND SEEK HELP IF NEEDED.
I opened my eyes and found myself in a race car bed way too small for me. It had a flaming '1' on both its sides and was my favourite colour: blue. I quickly rose from my place on the bed and looked around. Everything was like I left it; the walls were a royal blue, the generic ranger action figures and plushies scattered about from my adventure with mom and dad when I was still bedridden. We defeated a dragon and saved a reluctant and bored looking princess. She was almost spiteful when she left to make dinner.
"Mommy has been acting weird since I was last in the hospital," I found myself saying out of nowhere "I wonder if she's getting better like daddy said he would." This was different to when I was merely watching Tidal's memories and dreams. I was front row and centre to the worst day of my life. I subconsciously stood up to clean my messy room when I heard light footsteps. She was coming.
The door flew open to reveal my mother, a remnant of her at least. She wandered her way into the room like a giddy child in a candy shop. I was naïve back then but now I could imagine her twisted perspective now. Her eyes replacing the bed with designer clothes and the toys with jewellery. I was frozen staring at the glock in her right hand while she painted the walls red. She hated blue. "Mommy?"
"Soon you'll be gone," her back was turned, looking a the shelf where my favourite picture of us stood. I was five year old and we were at an amusement park where we all got to take a picture with the rat mascot "I never wanted a child but Lux was so happy when he found out I was infected with you. Everyone was so fucking pleased you were festering inside, plaguing my dreams and my life. You stole our love, the spark, the magic between us was gone and it's ALL BECAUSE YOU CAME BETWEEN US!" she turned and pointed the gun straight at me, right between my teary eyes. Mommy's long gone.
"Mommy? What are you doing?" I asked innocently. So innocently that she had to jerk the gun forward to shut me up.
That was when she started laughing to herself "You'll die soon. We keep taking you to the doctors but something new always pops up. It's only a matter of time so why don't I speed up the process!" The door flew open again and found my dad, my hero, standing there. I wanted to run to him for safety but the pressure from being caught between my salvation and certain death kept me locked in place. This wasn't like the fairy-tale games where dad and I fought together. I was back in reality and dad was forced to defend me.
"What are you doing with that, Amanda?"
"Amanda? Remember when it was 'honey' or 'darling' or 'sweetheart'? But ever since the pregnancy, the depression and the drugs, we lost all of that! All because of that brat!"
"Put it down!"
"No! He needs to die for us to be happy!"
"Noire, it's going to be okay. Daddy's got you." He spoke to me in the gentlest of words like always. For a moment, I felt like this was another day. Sure, mom and dad were fighting but surely everything was going to turn out okay, right?
"HE DID NOTHING. IT WAS YOU WHO REFUSED TREATMENT. IT WAS YOU WHO DISTANCED HERSELF WHEN EVERYONE TRIED TO HELP!" the hero yelled back. She took the safety off. Finally, the moment came and how quick and horribly it past. Dad had made a mad dash to shield me from the inevitable. His figure consumed me with darkness, protecting me
Bang.
The darkness fell like a lifeless body and like that, it was the end of my mother's trial and she was obviously found guilty. From the scene of the crime, several reports of gunshots in the area and a traumatised child forced to suck up his tears and give a statement, she was carried of in a matter of an hour. When she was being carried away by two bailiffs, I could feel the restraint on my body lift. I was finally free to pursue the one responsible for destroying me.
"Get back here," I said as I ran after her. However, the hallway the woman was led down seemed to stretch infinitely.
"You deserve more than this." I felt the Savageblade in my grip and the gap between us seemed to close.
"I DESERVE BETTER THAN THIS!" Her head was within range.
"Get back here... SO I CAN FINISH WHAT YOU STARTED!" I raised the sword high, preparing to finish the bitch who wasn't even brave enough to finish what she started.
"DIE!!!"
I was stopped as I woke up and found myself back in the dragon's castle, on top of Tidal, with the Savageblade mere inches from her throat. I was frozen in place as her saw her blue eyes staring back into my black and red ones.
"Noire?" I managed to shake Noire from his trance before the blade got any closer. However, we were both left with silence, save from the snores coming from the dragons in their own sleeping quarters. I couldn't do anything to this corrupted Noire, nor did I want to, even though with me in a simple, white tank top and uniform pants, leaving me completely vulnerable. Noire seemed to regain his sense and quickly got off me, throwing the Savageblade to the side. I remained in complete silence, trying to analyse the situation. Noire was a mess. HIs pitch black, right eye was replaced with a crimson red one and his hair seemed to float with a shadowy effect to it. "Are you okay?" I asked him sincerely. He avoided my gaze and investigated the crystalline wall behind me, noticing his corrupted state. He recoiled backwards in pure shock, clutching the sides of his head, and forcing back a grunt. It was just us and he was terrified. I had to help him.
"I can't be near you right now. He's starting to take over. Please don't follow me." He quickly teleported out of the castle. I followed him outside, but he was nowhere to be seen at the entrance. As I looked around for him, I heard a yell from above. I looked up and saw a bright red light. He sounded like a wounded beast lost in a forest, crying for help. I had no choice but answer. I thought back to our time in my dream/memory. "He saw past my bitchy behaviour and brought me back from my grief. Now, this was my time to help him," I thought to myself. I quickly tied my hair back into a ponytail and teleported up to the top of the crevasse. While it was exhausting to teleport such a long distance, I succeeded "Faust, and he teleported me halfway across a continent." At the surface, I could see Noire huddled in a ball, whispering to himself. I took a step towards him, but he immediately noticed me and stood up.
"What are you doing here? I told you not to follow me," he asked in a panic.
"I am technically your superior now that somepony's taken your place as captain, so I don't follow your orders, rookie. Now tell me, what's wrong?" I asked. Noire was silent, refusing to say a word. He tried to take a step back, but I summoned a water whip to grab him arm, binding him to me "I wasn't asking. I can't afford one of my allies to be suffering alone."
Noire was silent, contemplating whether he should let me in. The longing part of him that begged for help gave in and his form seemed to dissipate slightly "I'm going through a lot of things. I don't think I- AAAGH!" Before he could finish, he began clutching his head in pain. I dissipated the whip and went to help him, but he summoned the Savageblade and swatted me away. I barely managed to dodge the blade, cutting my white tank top. Noire let go of his head revealing both his eyes to be red with black sclera. Something told me I wasn't talking to Noire anymore. He quickly charged at me, preparing another attack but I summoned a water sword to block him. We became locked in a bitter struggle with whatever I was fighting trying to break through my defence. I backed away before my sword could break but the deranged Noire thrust his sword forward, making it extend and cut my cheek, just under my left eye. It retracted and jutted forward once more, managing to cut the side of my leg.
"Noire! I know you're still resisting! Don't lose to whatever you're going through like I did!" 'Noire' responded by throwing the blade at me. I dodged but with a flick of his wrist, he was controlling the sword's flight. He aimed it right at my chest, but I did not take my attention from him. I took a risk and charged at 'Noire' and tackled him off the cliff.
"DO yOu THInk tHis CAN Stop ME?" His distorted voice carried another voice within it but fear had no place in this confrontation. I knew that within this monster, Noire was still struggling for dominance. He threw the blade into the air and it stopped in mid-air "fInAL DEcodE: MUraS-" I headbutted Noire in the face before he could finish, leaving him unconscious. That got rid of one problem but there was still the ground which was growing closer with every passing second. Before we hit the ground, I created a magic bubble around us to shield the impact. With a crash, we both hit the ground and darkness consumed my vision.
When I woke up, the first thing I saw was a field of stars shining on a pitch-black canvas. They didn't feel natural or real, like they were painted on but with what had transpired, I wasn't entirely focused on blurry stars. I got up but winced as I felt the aftermath of my little stunt. It turned out that I couldn't shield us from the full impact. I found Noire still unconscious, but he was not on a rampage, so this was good enough. However, he woke up with a start, getting up almost immediately. He looked around frantically before feeling the force of our impact himself. He clutched the front in head and lazily fell back to the rocky ground, joining me as we panted, groaned and clutched our wounds for what felt like hours before we were, once again, silent, watching the static sky.
"I failed my trial." I turned my head to face Noire's, who was still looking at the sky with little interest "Faust wanted to test how I handle controlling my power under emotional stress but I lost control once I saw her,"
"Her?" I asked.
"My mom. If I can even call her that. Ever since I was born, she was either spiteful, high, or drunk. In her mind, my existence was just a burden on her and her marriage. She pulled a gun on me and my dad took three gunshots for me."
"By the Goddess..." I muttered. I had never heard of mothers even hurting their children, let alone trying to kill them "That's horrible. Why would she do such a thing?" I asked incredulously.
"Like I said, in her twisted mind, I was a leach feeding off her money and food. The pregnancy left her with post-natal depression and before anyone could get her the help she needed; she was already too far gone. She took drugs to alleviate the stress and drank after the fights with dad. However, she played quite the good wife when around others. The only thing I can reluctantly commend her for, really. Dad did tell of how my mom was before birth. Apparently, she was beautiful, kind and loving, singing me lullabies every night when I was kicking and neither of them could sleep. Even said my name was sort of her final gift to me, naming me after her favourite kind of movies and with the weather being a rainy day, it was the perfect name for me. You could say that was when my real mother died..." he let out a hefty sigh, like a weight had lifted from his chest. I was left heartbroken for this man. I thought that Noire was the type of kid that was well put together, albeit a bit awkward (and how could you not when in another world) but now I found some clarity to the situation. Noire had just fallen apart on me. With tears rolling down his face, betraying his stoic expression.
"Why didn't you tell any of us?"
"Because I didn't want to be pitied. After my dad died and my mom was sent to the slammer for life, I had to take care of everything myself. Food, clothes, education. Everything. I think I even began to believe what her words at some point." I couldn't feel anything in my left leg so I crawled my way over to Noire and hugged him tight. He returned the hug tightly and we remained that way, hugging on the rocky floor like reunited lovers for a while. I was more comfortable with this arrangement than I would like to admit, growing red in the cheeks but with my position, Noire could see how nervous I really was. Afterwards, he lifted me up into a sitting position so he could see the damage he had done "I hurt you..."
"I'm fine, rookie. That manic state of yours wasn't too much for me to handle," I said, regaining my composure.
"Your face..." He caressed the cut on my cheek. I held his hand with my own, locking us together.
"I'm a tough mare, Noire. I wasn't made a general on accident," I dismissed his worry with a wave, however, I was internally panicking "Oh sweet Faust, Is this my chance?"
"A beautiful one too."
"...What?"
NOIRE POV
"Why did you say that?!" I asked myself as my face burned hotter than the sun and turned away from the beautiful mare in front of me. Even though I had roughed her up minutes beforehand, my eyes couldn't help but wander. trekking up her thighs, held tight by her uniform pants. Her white tank top hugged her slim but muscular body and large breasts "How in Tartarus haven't I noticed this before?. Then there was her face. Even with the cut, her features were still beautiful. "Seriously why did I say that?" I thought "Am I really thinking of Tidal like that? Does she even think of me, a rookie, like that?"
"Well... I think you're pretty handsome for a rookie. I bet you have a line of mares trying to make a herd with you," she said jokingly.
"You know, Celestia and Luna have teased me about being their boyfriend but apart from that, not much else. Wait? What do you mean 'herd'?!" I said, whipping my head back to her.
"Since mare outnumber stallions by almost three to one, a stallion can have herd of three to five mares. Herds with anything more than that have tended to cause more harm than good. I think there was even a coup once or twice. Of course, they both failed." Tidal paused for a moment, looking like she was pondering about something. She gripped my hand tighter as she prepared herself "Noire? Can I test something on you?" I looked to her in confusion but ultimately, I nodded in agreement. Nothing could make this night worse.
What happened next can only be considered magical. She filled the distance between our lips in a single second, keeping me wrapped around her arms. I was in shock a first but before I could act, she pushed me away just as fast as she pulled me in. It was now her turn to get embarrassed as her cheeks burned up "I'm sorry, I just wanted to know if this feeling was really what I thought it was. You can understand that being a general has left no time for love and all that jazz... Noire?"
I was muted by the passive yet so aggressive confession of love. I could do nothing but reflect on everything that had happened. Not just that night but ever since our first meeting. It was true that I had found some respect for Tidal, even though her first impression being a bit... bitchy. I noticed the similarities: Our losses, our diligence, initial lack of social skills, and the bitter truth that we suffered in silence for a long time. After my visit into her head, we had become friendly and in retrospect, I should have noticed every moment her hips swayed a little more than necessary, or when she called me 'rookie' in a slightly flirtatious manner. This anxiety was both suffocating and exhilarating " this. Suffocating and exhilarating. Yeah, I think this is what love feels like."
"What are you- mmph!" Without warning, I gave her a kiss of my own. Tidal quickly returned the kiss and parted my lips to play with my tongue. We were already taking in every part of our bodies, without overstepping any boundaries, of course. Tidal groped my butt while I undid her ponytail and ran my fingers through her thick, blue locks. While I felt guilty for what felt like cheating on Cadance, I couldn't hold back my emotions anymore. They were rushing to the surface faster than I could push them back down. I almost went as far as to touch her breasts, but a remnant of my sense opted against it. We weren't official yet and I didn't want to scare her. Our tongues resumed their struggle, with Tidal's forcefulness bowing under my experience. We parted lips, leaving a trail of saliva between us "Wow... talk about a great first kiss," she uttered between pants.
"Yeah.... Wow..." I repeated "Wait, first kiss! That- I- was her first kiss?!"
Tidal laid her head on my chest and gave out one final sigh "So, now that I finally got it through your thick skull that I like you, I guess this is better opportunity than any. Can I be a part of your little herd?" she asked. I laid back down on the ground with Tidal joining me, using my chest as a pillow.
"As far as I'm concerned, yes. However, there is the issue of getting Cadance to agree to it. I'm assuming that if you joined, she would be a head mare or something, right?" Tidal nodded "Yeah, then I will have to sort out our little squabble when we get back. So, for now, we're going to have to keep this under wraps. That shouldn't be too hard unless you want more than a make-out session?" I teased the poor unicorn. She blushed and lightly hit my chest.
"Shut up, rookie. As for that 'squabble' thing, I don't know all that much but all I have to say is you better because I don't think I could give this up for anything on Equus," she patted my chest and yawned "But also... you could have just asked for help from the generals. We have to do this... all the time,"
"I didn't want to burden you and the others. Plus, I wanted to prove that I could be useful,"
Tidal giggled a bit at that "Your useful enough without you trying to play politician. We don't need you handling diplomacy: we just need you to protect Equestria from your crazy, psycho spirit clone. Don't overcomplicate it... Noire..." Like that she was fast asleep and wasn't far behind. My eyes grew weary and the chalk stars seemed to fade from sight.
"Wow, you're... actually calling me by my name now. I guess I have no choice now. Okay, Tidal. I'll... just stick to protecting you lot from psycho me... I'll keep you safe..."
"Congratulations. You didn't pass fully but you made progress and you gained new love to strengthen your power. This will do for now..."
When the morning came, I woke up to find myself back on the crystal floor instead of a rock and dirt and Tidal was safely tucked away in her sleeping bag. Upon closer inspection, it seemed that her wounds from our small bout were non-existent. That led me to one conclusion: during my trial, I accidentally entered our shared dream space. This was good as this meant that no-one would know of our little make out, as long as we kept it professional. I crawled out of my bag and made my way over to Tidal "Hey, beautiful, wake up," I whispered, rousing her from sleep. She got up with a yawn and paused, noticing where we were.
"Was that all- Did we- but it was-"
"Great~" I finished for her.
"Yeah~" She pecked me on the cheek and got out of her sleeping bag "Now, shoo. We need to get dressed and actually get started on our mission, finding Grim," she ushered me away, to which I obliged, walking away and covering my eyes as I knew my horny mind would try something "Oh yeah, you should probably hide that before you wake the others~" I looked down to find a bulge in my pants. I magically equipped my armour as fast as possible and tucked Noire Jr into my belt. With that out of the way, I went around the living room area, waking up the rest of our party. Once we were all awake and dressed, we discussed our next course of action.
"Now that we've got our dragonlord, the next step would be to have her agree to an alliance between ponies and dragons. Seeing as the new one is a lot more agreeable than that scalehead, Torch, that should be easy. The hard part would be to pinpoint where Grim's trail ends specifically. Noire, you should be our best bet when it comes to finding him but..."
I knew where she was going "Yeah, the whole 'sharing our memories' goes both ways. Forcefully trying to get a location out of him may cause him to know exactly what we're doing and can strike before we can even get to him. We should save that until we know we have no other options."
"Maybe Ignia knows where they are. We could ask her she knows where he is or at least how to find him." Twilight proposed. It was the only other option we had: If she did know something, we could maintain our location hidden from Grim. Right on cue, Ignia entered the living room area with Torch and Ember.
"So, what's with all the chatter?" Ember asked.
Twilight was the first to pipe up "We were going to ask if Ignia or any of you would know about Grim's location right now since his trail does lead here in the Dragonlands. There is also the matter of improving relations between ponies and dragons." It looked like Torch wanted to say something but Ignia stood on the giant's toe, keeping his mouth firmly kept shut.
Ignia shook her head "I'm sorry, dearie, but I have no idea where he is. Us dragons aren't that magically entuned so sensing other magic like you can,"
"However, we should be able to improve relationships a bit. Even though dragons are wanderers at heart and are quite scattered. I should be able to call them over and tell them any violent acts against other species will not be tolerated as long as I'm dragonlord," Ember said proudly, lifting our spirits a bit.
"Well, that leaves us with only forcing the connection to get his location," I concluded. That was the last thing I wanted to do: with the risk of losing control and the chance Grim will learn of our presence, this could have really put us on the back burner. Easily slipping into my manic state again was a feeling I didn't want a repeat of. These were reason enough to not do it but a soft look from Tidal, telling me we had no choice, overruled any other argument my mind could conjure up "...I'll do it, but once we're a distance away from the castle. We can't drag Ember and her family into our mess," With that, we packed the rest of our stuff and Ignia ordered Torch to fly us out of the chasm.
CADANCE POV
Life in the castle since Noire left had been nothing but a slog. Paperwork was not an exception. The pile of business proposals, renovations, proposals to increase tax (those were particularly prevalent amongst nobles) had led to my evening being comprised of reading a paragraph of a sheet and burning any of the nonsensical ones. This cycled continued until I reached the halfway point, where I found the proposal of turning the abandoned orphanage into a school. I instantly perked up at the thought of getting something productive done. I instantly wrote a letter of approval and laid my head against the mahogany table. "Goddess, I'm only halfway through and this is the first useful thing I've done since I sat down." I groaned in exhaustion "I'd rather be in bed, dreaming of mountains of cotton candy and chocolate. I'd rather be soaking up rays in the Bahaymas," I tilted my head to the side, facing the window leading into the bright night sky "I'd rather be in bed with Noire right now."
Some may ask me why I was arguing with Noire one day only to miss him terribly the next. To those ponies, I would remind them the saying 'Absence makes the heart grow fonder.' Every moment that passed, I was thinking of Noire and what he was finally going to say to me. I imagined of several scenarios; one where he's the one apologising, one where I'm apologising, one where we make love passionately. I couldn't wait for him to return but there was still the part of me that was royally pissed at him for leaving me alone when that was exactly what happened to me and Shining. Of course, I didn't expect him to get seduced by the being I hate most in the world, but it still hurt to see the cycle repeat itself. I leaned back in my chair and sighed, confused, tired and about to call it a night when Sugilite abruptly entered the study, panting heavily, with a sun shaped scroll in his hand "Princess Cadance, you might want to read this." He handed me the scroll and I read the scroll with bated breath and sweaty palms. It was until I read one sentence that I dropped the scroll and bolted out of the study, with Sugilite following me.
Once we found what was presumably a safe location, far away from the castle, Noire sat on a nearby rock and closed his eyes, concentrating on finding some memory of Grim's location. We were all aware of the risk but at that point, we were running out options. "What will we do if Grim senses Noire trying to enter his memories?" I asked Tidal, still concerned about the plan.
Tidal answered "We continue onward. Grim's last attack was a warning that if we keep letting him do what he wants, we will keep losing ground until he swallows Equus with his quickly rising forces. This is still a recon mission though: the princesses have given us strict instructions not to engage until we are absolutely sure we've found his lair and have an army flown here to attack at his most vulnerable."
"But if he notices us, he'll either flee or fight us right away, and we're not prepared or equipped for either. If only our ship was intact, we would be in a better position."
"It doesn't matter now. We just have to carry on with the cards we've been dealt. We also have to keep you out of harm's way, so only Noire and I will be going." I wanted to oppose the idea but chose not to. Despite my skill in magic, I was still a student tasked with establishing relations between ponies and dragons. I completed my part of the mission, so I only had to let Tidal and Noire do their job. The thought led me back to Seahoof, reminding me that we should definitely send him home before things get hectic. However, there was the fact that we only had enough teleportation scrolls for Noire, Tidal, Spike and I, which meant one of us would have to stay behind. I wandered to Seahoof, minding his own business, exploring the blue skies while Torch was not so quietly muttering to himself.
"Still mad about your daughter becoming dragonlord?" Seahoof asked, noticing his foul mood. Torch leered at the speck below him gave out a frustrated huff "I don't understand much about what's going on but I know that if my kids or grandkids did something as amazing as what your daughter did, I would be over the moon with joy. Take this from an old coot: It's useless trying to control the younger generation. They are like children with colouring books, always exceeding the boundaries set for them."
"It's not that simple, pony."
"Then explain," Seahoof responded.
Torch gave out a long sigh before explaining himself "Of course, I'm proud that my offspring succeeded me as the dragonlord. Better her than any of the other simple-minded fledgling drakes lusting for power. However, there is still the side of me that wants to keep the tradition of dragonlords. For me, a Dragonlord should be the one that proves themselves to be the strongest of their kind but ever since Ignia came into the picture, I was thrust into conflict with the other side of the argument: that for the royal dragon family, who have lost everything to war, this is their birthright." He looked up at the clear sky absent-minded "And Ember. By the progenitor, once Ember entered the picture, it immediately felt like I was being colluded against by my own family. So how am I supposed to react when Ignia wants me to retire as dragonlord and hand reign over to Ember, skipping right over the Gauntlet of Fire? My ancestors would be ashamed at how easily I gave in, at how even after forbidding my daughter from participating, she still won the title."
The two elderly males sat in silence, absorbing all that had been said and heard until Seahoof decided to speak up "Maybe instead of telling me about this, you should talk about this with Ember." Torch looked down at the stallion in confusion "The way I see it, Ember is the embodiment of both the parents' ideals: both blood and power, but also so much more. I saw myself what she was capable of and I have to say she will be a fine dragonlord who can satisfy what both you and Ignia want. She won the title not just because of her blood, but her strength, intelligence, and ability to accept others and another way for a dragon to live. If you took the time to talk to her about what you've said to me, I'm sure she'll understand where you're coming from and be an even better dragonlord as a result. In shorter terms, trust your family with your struggles and soon you'll find that you can all work to a greater future together than what you could do alone." Torch was left silent in front of the wise, old man, pondering on his words of wisdom while I hid behind the rocks. After a minute or two, Torch finally responded.
"What is your name?"
"Captain Seahoof. At your service," he said with a tip of his sailor hat. Torch chuckled to himself as he began to shrink in size, matching the size of a human.
"Seahoof. I will remember your words and that name for as long as I live. I thank you." He extended his claw to Seahoof, which he reciprocated, leading to a hoof/clawshake between not a dragon and pony, but between equals. I teared up a bit from the beautiful display of a budding friendship, feeling a warm sensation in my chest like drinking hot chocolate on a late night. Fulfilled. Before I could jump out and congratulate the two, I heard Noire gasp and fall off the rock he sat on. I ran over to him, where he was being tended to by Tidal.
"Did you see anything, Noire? Do you know where to find Grim?" Tidal asked.
"More importantly, did he notice you?" I added.
Noire was left in a daze for a couple of seconds " I've got good news and bad news. I found him and I don't think he saw me," we all gave out a sigh of relief "But he's got something with him. Something terrifying."
WINDY POV, THE PREVIOUS NIGHT
Once we had arrived in Manehattan, we were soon greeted by the mayor, Mayor Judicia, and were brought up to speed about current events. Ponies have been frequently disappearing at night and without a trace for us to follow. That was until we had been informed that Judicia had already pinpointed a possible hideout "14 hairdressers, 2 construction workers, 2 models, even a public influencer. Chrysalis had taken very random ponies, so it was hard to find a common thread to trace to a locale. I had questioned the missing ponies' friends and colleagues about places they had frequented in the week before their disappearance but all of the places were too varied. That was until Chrysalis gave us a very significant clue." She slid a picture of an incomplete building with a stallion in a suit in front of us "Carat Gold went missing the day before you arrived here and one place he went to on a weekly basis was his restaurant that was under construction before it was stopped due to all the disappearances. All of the places the missing ponies work are within a 2-mile radius of this building. I suspect you'll find your bug lady there. You will have usage of Manehattan's police department. Go stop her before I lose anypony else."
As I looked down at the building from above, I thought back to my conversation with Rainbow and Fluttershy. As I was warned, Rainbow instantly wanted to jump in and take her out but with a lot of arguing, I managed to get her to settle down in our hotel and wait with Fluttershy. As for her, she came up to me and explained her reason for coming all this way "I came because I wanted to see what happened to the missing ponies, maybe see if there was a way to help them. However, I can see that won't be possible now so I can only ask this of you. Please, if you find any of those chimaeras, don't kill them if you don't have to. There were once ponies like you and me."
I was silent for a moment before nodding, assuring her that I would try my best. I could see why she was the element of kindness. Everypony was caught up in the chaos of Grim's attacks that we forgot that his army was built of the lives of innocent ponies and other creatures. I was stripped from my daze when I saw a light flashing from a hair salon on the east side of the restaurant, followed by two flashes from the store on the west side. The signal that the forces I requested were in position. "Looks like it's time to begin. Wind Sniper's Cloak." A vortex of wind covered my entire body, leaving me completely invisible. I swooped down and through an open window frame and scoped out the inside. As expected, most of the area was completely empty, excluding some construction material laying around. The lighting was almost non-existent, with only streaks of moonlight to guide me "Now to check the area. Wind Sniper's Sight." Gusts of wind were sent forth, sweeping the entire area. Within a few moments, I could feel the entire building. Most of the building was normal: empty and incomplete, however, I could feel a crack in the wall that left a piece of it capable of moving "A secret room perhaps?" I silently made my way through the building, making it to what appeared to be the makings of a kitchen to find the cracked wall. I pushed the broken part of the wall to find that it could rotate. It spun 90 degrees, opening a way into a dark room, illuminated by green goo. Once I confirmed that I was the only one, I dispelled the cloak and searched the room. Lining the lab were pods like the ones changelings use to capture their prey. It was evident that this was where Chrysalis was storing her victims. It was in the middle of my search that a unicorn guard, Captain Metal Star, contacted me using telepathy.
"Have you found anything, General Windy?" the stallion asked.
"Yeah. There's a secret room in the kitchen. Seems to be empty though" I continued looking around for the missing ponies but all I could find was empty pods "It looks like all of them have been moved to another location but they couldn't have gotten far. The goo from the pods the victims were kept inside are still wet. Stay in your positions for now while I look for any more clues." I waited for a response but none came "Do you read me, Captain?" Still nothing. I quickly ran out of the restaurant and kicked down the door of the east building to find a pool of blood beneath my feet. I followed the trail for only a second and met the lifeless gaze of a dozen men, chastising me for my failure. A pale, faceless mare dressed in a black catsuit with a katana stood in the midst of death and turned to meet my fury. There was not a moment to be spared as, without a thought, we both engaged. We caught each other's attacks and were locked in a bitter struggle. I could feel the assailant gaining ground and before she could overwhelm me, moved to the side ad aimed "Rifle Arrow" and fired several arrows at blistering speed. The mare managed to dodge every one of them with the greatest of ease but I wasn't finished with her "Bazooka Arrow" I launched a larger arrow which was also dodged but she wasn't prepared for the explosion of wind that followed. She was blown back into a wall but quickly gained her footing. She attacked me with multiple magic slashes. The speed of the attacks was eventually too much to handle, sending me flying into the air and into a wall. The moment I spent reeling from the pain, the faceless mare leapt up to my level to deliver a final attack but I smirked as she was obstructed by an invisible wall "Wind Wall. I planted that friendly little thing when you threw me into the air" I didn't waste the chance as I rammed her in the gut and collided into a wall. She dropped her katana and before she could draw it, I took her secondary weapon, a dagger, and held it to her throat.
"West team, I've got an assailant who appears to be working with Chrysalis. I need a squad to take her in ASAP" Silence rang through the dark empty salon and found myself surrounded a six more of these faceless mares "Shit." One of them aimed a crossbow at the back of my head but I was already preparing my escape. As soon as she fired, I flapped my wings and summoned a gust of wind to send the arrow of course. I used that opportunity to fly as fast as I could out of the store. As I saw the salon disappear from my sight, I thought back to the mayor "Fuck, this is bad. I should head back to the hotel. They shouldn't be able to tail me back there," I said to myself as I flew away.
I opened the door to the hotel room and turned the lights on to reveal an empty living room. I checked the bedroom but there was no trace. Rainbow Dash and Fluttershy were gone. In their place was a letter with a sun-shaped seal. "A letter from Celestia?" I picked up the letter and began reading.
To General Windy Wing, Rainbow Dash and Fluttershy,
I am unfortunately writing to you to inform you that Tirek, a powerful centaur with the ability to absorb magic, has broken free from Tartarus. He has already struck in the form of kidnapping Luna. I require the elements to gather at the Tree of Harmony immediately with General Windy's protection. I have already prepared a carriage to transport you back to Ponyville. Be safe.
Princess Celestia
From her short letter and messy handwriting, I could tell this was bad "This is the worst timing," I said as I took off out of an open window "I need to get to Ponyville ASAP."
TWILIGHT POV
By noon, Noire and Tidal were already on their way to Grim's location to scout it out while Seahoof, Spike and I were left with Ignia and Ember at the castle. As we watched Torch take off, both Ignia and Ember looked like they were pondering on something "Is something wrong, Ember? You seem distant," I asked.
"It's just that dad hasn't been that talkative since he got back. I would almost say he looked... renewed. Like he's a different person from how he was when he wouldn't let me join the Gauntlet of Fire. It's weird," she responded.
"I have to agree. He does seem a bit more humbled than when he left with you. Would you know anything about that?" Ignia asked. I was about to tell them about Seahoof and Torch's conversation but Seahoof cut me off before I could speak
"He'll probably tell you all about it when he gets back. Speaking of, Twilight has there been any progress on getting me back home. As exciting as this adventure has been, I'm in need of a good, home-cooked dinner and a bath," he said, stretching his tired joints.
"Same here," Spike added "After the Gauntlet, I could go for some food right about now." They were right. With our mission complete we could go home and let Tidal and Noire finish the rest. However, with a loud burp, our longing for home was going to have to wait. A letter with a sun-shaped seal appeared right in front of our eyes. I hastily opened the letter, wondering what Princess Celestia had to say.
I need you back in Equestria immediately. Tirek, a powerful enemy who can steal magic has broken free from Tartarus. You need to meet with the elements at the Tree of Harmony. The power to defeat him lies there. However, before you do, use the teleportation scroll to teleport back to Canterlot. More instructions will be given to you then. Be safe.
Princess Celestia
Once I had finished the short letter, I felt my mind panic as I began hyperventilating. "Who's Tirek? Why is he here? Why now of all times?" I felt my mind bounce around many questions with no time to answer, but a claw had poked my side. Spike had picked up the letter that I had dropped prior to my panic.
"Twilight, we have to go." He said with all the confidence he could muster. That alone was enough to get me back on track. It was a shame that we were leaving Tidal and Noire but all we could do was hope they would be okay. I pulled out the two scrolls and a thought quickly came to me.
"Seahoof, you're going to have to stay here a bit longer. Equestria is under attack and we can't bring you into the middle of it. Once we're done, we'll have a ship ready to pick you up." Seahoof nodded in understanding and Ignia put a claw on his shoulder, assuring me he would be in safe hands. I gave one of the scrolls to Spike and we both unravelled them. Instantly we were teleported back to Canterlot Castle.
NOIRE POV
Torch had dropped us off a mile away from our destination ,to prevent any suspicion, and before leaving, he gave us a bit of advice "That place you're going to better be left without a scratch. The place you said Grim is hiding is the corpse of Ignius, the first dragon king himself. While I don't value bloodlines as much as Ignia, I do respect our progenitor's grave. Plus, if anything happens, you will be incurring a wrath mightier than the princesses," he said in a dark tone before taking off. I kept his words in mind as I had the feeling that the wrath of a dragon queen was something I was not ready to confront. For a while, Tidal and I walked in silence, the only sound being the rocks from beneath our feet. However, I was distracted from my mission by a feeling of dread, the same cold shiver along my spine that I felt when I was on the boat. This time, I couldn't deny it anymore: something is wrong. I thought of Cadance and if she was okay as the dragon skeleton came into view. At that point, the mission began to blur in my mind as the sensation grew. I was pulled out of my messy thoughts by Tidal, who quickly noticed my distant look.
"You said that the entranced was in the skeleton's maw, right?" she asked with a straight face. My mouth wouldn't move enough to say 'yes' so I simply nodded and continued walking "Stay focused, Noire. We're here." She sternly directed my focus back on the skeleton, reminding me we had a job to do. I found myself wondering for a brief moment how much of her no-nonsense attitude I would have to experience when/if we became a couple. With my focus restored, I inspected the remains of the dragon king. The skeleton was easily as big as a football stadium, with the remains of its wings acting like a roof. As we approached the maw of the corpse, I ran my hand along the bony surface, hoping to find the way to activate the secret entrance but to no avail. "Have you found anything yet?" Tidal asked, checking the empty space where organs would originally be.
"No. It's weird but I can't sense Grim anywhere around here. Normally, I can feel his presence but instead, there's this... emptiness."
"Because we're in a skeleton corpse?" She asked with a deadpan tone. I rolled my eyes at this.
"Yes, that but also the feeling we're being watched. Can't you feel it too?"
Tidal was silent for a moment before answering "Now that I think about it, I have felt weird, discomfort in my stomach since we got- AH!" I heard her scream and without question, rushed over to find her on the ground in pain and menacing knight standing over her, with a black and green great sword in hand. He was covered in black, chitin armour with a short, green cape. While his appearance was even more different than our last encounter, I was sure it was him. I was reunited with Shining Armour.
"It's good to see some of my close friends but I gotta ask the hell you think you're doing," he said with mock joy in his voice "In fact, I should be asking if you really thought if you could really snoop inside Grim's mind unnoticed, a novice like you?"
"Shit. So he knew the entire time," I cursed to myself as I helped Tidal to her feet "Tidal. What do we do? Do we retreat and regroup?" I asked her. Once she had regained her bearings, she stood tall once again and summoned her broadsword as well as creating a water sword.
"We stay and fight. If they are so eager to defend this place, it probably has something important and Shining is just here to stall for time while Grim packs up and retreats. If we leave now, this whole mission will be for nothing. Understand?" I simply nodded and summoned my blade, instantly transforming it into its Duoblade form.
"Good. Now let's see how you do against a Changeling King!" he said before charging at us, swinging his sword at me first but Tidal summoned a wall of water to stop him. However, Shining merely swung his sword at the wall and immediately stormed right through it. I got in front of Tidal and clashed with Shining, our eyes inches away from each other "How's it been, Noire? Paying colt- I mean- boyfriend to the princess of love?" He sent me flying backward with a wave of his sword, sending shockwaves throughout the area.
"He's strong. Even stronger than the last time we met." I teleported behind him and attacked him with two sword waves in the shape of an X. He blocked them easily, but I didn't relent, throwing several attacks at him, forcing him back a bit.
"Not well, I'm presuming. She was always a romantic type. Always about the beauty of a relationship. Handholding, kissing, whispering sweet nothings while cuddling in bed. It honestly makes me want to puke when I think about it now." He went back on the offensive, attacking me with an overhead swing. I attempted blocking it but the impact still hit me hard and I buckled under the power, collapsing to my knees "I was held back from fulfilling my role because of her selfish need for affection, for validation as the princess of love, but that's over now. I may have betrayed my country, but I've found my place. As her majesty's knight!" He tried attacking me once more to finish me off, but a barrage of magic blasts sent him back, right into a nearby rock, creating a large explosion. Tidal stood above me and lifted me back to my feet.
"Our Shining really is gone. It would be better to call him a ruined set of armour than anything," she said as Shining- or should I say Ruined Armour- slowly got back to his feet with a sickly look on his face "No more holding back. Fight to kill." At first, I couldn't believe what she had said but she was right. I took a deep breath, summoning my Longblade, but something in me said if I was aiming to kill, I need more power. My swords, glowing blue, changed to glow a deep crimson, forming the Savageblade instead. This still wasn't enough. I entered my unbound form, with my right iris turned red with a black sclera and my left eye turned golden yellow. Tidal took notice of my transformation and asked, "Are you still in there?" with a hint of worry in her voice.
"Yeah. Just fine."
WINDY POV
I barely managed to reach the Everfree Forest by sunrise and I was tired as all Tartarus. I was charged with protecting the elements until Tirek was defeated and I was going to see it through. However, my thoughts went back to those faceless women, wondering what their connection to Grim was. "Were they a black ops squad tasked to pick us off while Chrysalis escaped with her captives?" I thought, remembering the scene of gore I had witnessed. I clenched my fist in anger "Dammit. He was one step ahead of us the entire time. This is no different from back then," I immediately brushed those thoughts out of my head "Stop reminiscing. You've got a job to do." I thought as landed at the entrance to where the Tree of Harmony used to be. Instead it was replaced with a crystal podium, bearing six key-shaped holes. I saw five of the elements in the cave where the podium was stored but Twilight was found. "Where's Twilight?" I asked.
"She's supposed to be coming soon." the white one, Rarity, said.
"I hope she doesn't get hurt on the way here," Fluttershy added.
"Oh, don't worry Fluttershy. Twilight's a tough cookie. Ah' believe she'll get here just fine," Applejack patted the pegasus on the back. While we were waiting, we heard the sound of foot steps from outside and Twilight and Spike stepped into the cave. However, Twilight was a bit taller than usual, standing just as tall as me, and was sporting her own pair of wings. We were all surprised to say the least.
"Twilight! Are you an-" I asked but Twilight cut me off.
"An alicorn, yes. Princess Celestia and Cadance had to give me their magic to prevent Tirek from getting it," she interrupted, with a few tears streaming from her face. I took this as a sign things had gotten worse.
"Does this mean-"
"Yes. Celestia and Cadance have been taken as well." The cave fell silent for a moment before Rainbow decided to speak up.
"Let's look on the bright side here guys. With Twilight with the strength of two alicorns, she should easily take care of this clown!" she said optimistically.
"Yeah we can beat this sucker!" Pinkie added.
"No, we can't." All eyes turned to Twilight. She looked absent, staring at nothing.
"What do you mean we 'can't'?" I asked. Twilight was silent so Spike told us everything.
SPIKE POV, MOMENTS BEFORE TIREK'S ATTACK
As we fled from Canterlot, Twilight began to feel really antsy, as if she was a bottle full to bursting. I was worried that all the magic was too much for her to handle. I knew she was the element of magic, but she looked like she was going to explode any minute. Even the guards were getting anxious. "Twilight. Are you okay?"
"Yeah. I'm just fi-" That was when she felt it. She started frantically begging for the guards to turn around. I tried calming her down, but it was no use. She was completely hysterical. "PLEASE! PLEASE TURN AROUND! IF YOU DON'T, CELESTIA AND CADANCE WILL DIE! PLEASE!" I tried holding her back, but she was too strong. She eventually jumped out of the carriage and was about to fly to Canterlot, but it was too late. A large dome of red, black, and green energy consumed the city until it quickly vanished. Twilight looked at the city in horror. The city was intact, every stone was left unscathed but she looked at it like it had been reduced to ruins. I could tell what had happened as well. The sudden emptiness in the air was undeniable. That was when a red and black centaur blew a hole in the castle and slowly walked in our direction, shooting lasers from the space between his horns. All around us, domes of the same energy appeared and vanished. We could feel Tirek look at us with such a maniacal grin and continue his stride. Twilight got back in the carriage.
"Go faster." The pegasi did not resist and flew at top speed. They knew the horror we had just witnessed.
WINDY POV
"Tirek is even more powerful than we imagined. He stole all of Equestria's magic in a matter of seconds." Twilight said simply, huddled against the wall like a scared filly. I wouldn't blame her after what she had witnessed. All Equestria had been stripped of magic and her princesses, her mentor and once sister-in-law, captured. Potentially dead if Tirek is willing to go that far. "His power exceeds that of two alicorns now."
"What about here? How come the attack didn't take any of our magic?" I asked.
"Possibly because of the artefact," she said, pointing to the podium "It must have a field that he can't absorb."
"So, we still have a chance. Whatever is inside of this box must have the power to defeat Tirek if he can't-"
"BUT WHAT'S THE POINT!" she yelled. We all were shaken by her outburst "We don't have enough keys to open it and Tirek will be here in a matter of minutes! We don't have time for another friendship adventure. There's nothing to do but wait for the inevitable. My brother is gone to the enemy and my ex sister-in-law is a whorse who probably has her man-slave tasked with killing. My mentor is captured, possibly dead, and everypony's telling me to look on the bright side BUT WHERE IS IT?! Let's just face it: we lost this time." Her words were like shards of glass, wounding her bit by bit as she let months of pain free for her friends to hear. Pinkie's hair had flattened and everypony else was left either shocked or downtrodden by her words. However, I saw my reflection in those glass shards. Of a pony who lost too many things. I crouched down and gave her the biggest hug I could give.
"I know this pain, Twilight. I know the feeling of loss. I'm sure you've been keeping this inside for a while. However, I need you to stand. Celestia would want you to. We all need you to. Don't let this be for nothing." Twilight looked at me with bloodshot eyes and a snotty nose. I pulled out a handkerchief and gave it to her. The handkerchief had scorch marks on its tips, but it worked fine. "You have to be very lucky to go your whole life without losing something and a lot of the ponies you've thrown the blame at aren't that lucky. I saw Cadance and Shining's relationship fall apart for a while. Longer than anypony else. As for Noire, he's working hard to protect everypony, not just Cadance, because he has a kind soul. Too kind, if you ask me, but whatever. What I'm trying to say is you need to shoulder your own losses or else you'll fail everypony who have put their faith in you." Thuds began to ring from outside, shaking the ground "So stand, Twilight. Stand." The thuds became impossible to ignore as they threatened to destroy the cave. Rocks began to rain down from the roof and the five elements huddled together. As a large rock descended on them, a bubble of magic appeared around them, shattering them rock. They looked to Twilight, standing tall.
"Thank you..." she trailed off.
"Windy Wings. Or Windy to my friends," I said stretching my hand to her. She happily accepted and we shook hands. With that, she quickly flew out of the cave to face Tirek.
TIDAL POV
"Buy me some... time," Noire said through clenched teeth. It was clear he was struggling to hold back Grim's influence on his soul. I silently and rushed Shining with a flurry of sword strikes from my broadswords, which Shining almost managed to block before receiving a harsh stab to the gut. e let out a guttural scream and threw me away, dropping his great sword and holding his wound. I stared at his hand, leaking green blood.
"So that's it. Normally he would be able to block all of those attacks with impeccable defence, but something's different." I thought as wound began to heal "He's not accustomed to his new, changeling body. This is most likely his first fight after his transformation. Noire! It's now or never!" I yelled at him as I kept attacking him with multiple magic blasts to keep him at bay. Noire threw the sword high up into the air only for it to stop in mid-air.
"Final Decode: MURASAME!" The sword rocketed towards Shining like a rocket and stabbed him right through the chest. The sword then made a U turn and delivered several more attacks relentlessly and finished by descending on him, creating a large explosion. The explosion was so large, even I was blown back but was caught by Noire, who appeared to be losing more control as his left sclera was black, maintaining its yellow iris "Are you alright?" He asked with concern. I dusted myself off and lightly punched him on the arm. However, I kept my eyes on the dissipating dust clouds.
"I should ask that to you. You're losing it again." I said angrily.
Noire summoned the blade back to his hand and looked at his reflection within it. With the realisation, he felt the pain of a thousand knives at his brain, falling to his knees "Is he... dead?" I looked at what remained after the attack and I'll say, while he was still alive, he certainly should've been dead. One side of his head was completely fleshless, leaving behind a skeleton while other areas like his legs, right arm and chest, looked decimated. However, this didn't seem to faze him for long as he regenerated with more changeling features, including a sickly green iris with a black sclera.
"You know... that wasn't bad. Its a shame my love for Chrysalis has made me nigh invincible. However, you have succeeded on one end." He levitated his sword to his hand and split it in two, creating two large longswords "You have ROYALLY PISSED ME OFF!!!" His magic began to expand exponentially, creating shockwaves just by standing. I was beginning to think of retreating. I was terrified of this monster that was born before our eyes but Noire began to smile sinisterly.
"You know I was beginning to think I was wasting my time here but I can see getting the opportunity to kill you after you beat me last time makes this trip worth it..." A red aura began to ooze from Noire body like tendrils "Now let's begin our rematch. One on one," he finished, pushing me aside. He succumbed. His left iris turned red, completing his transformation. He shot towards Shining and locked blades with him. They both grinned ecstatically at each other before they both kicking the respective fighter's gut. They staggered back a bit before re-engaging, matching the other's attack blow for blow. Each clash resulted in a wave of conflicting energy that threatened to destroy the entire skeleton. I stretched an arm out to the silhouette of my love but another hand held me back. I knew that if I went any closer, the violent energy would quickly destroy me. Even as I stood as far away from the conflict as possible, I felt my armour starting to melt. I quickly took it off and threw it aside before it turned into a puddle of metal. I moved further away from the battle from then, although it still hurt.
"Noire! Please snap out of it!" I pleaded through our mental link but hit with a mental slap to the face as Noire pushed me out "Please. I can't lose you too..."
GRIM-NOIRE POV
I was fighting Shining, relentlessly attacking him. However, what I saw was a destroyed land, barren and burning with the flames of war. In front of me stood Grim, looking down on the chaos. "I will reset it all. Equus, the galaxy and from there, the universe. I will become God to erase any speck of darkness, creating an Earth where I will have never failed."
The flames died out and were suddenly replaced with a field of flowers. In the distance was an alabaster figure, Celestia, in a wedding gown. His normal black cloak was replaced with a tuxedo as he ran towards her "And will have never made the mistake of hurting you," he said, his voice now become less distorted and more human "I will know rest." As soon as the couple united, they shared a passionate kiss and the expanse seemed to be bathed in a blinding light. It was then that I understood.
"We really are becoming one and the same." I thought as I saw my fight with Shining going rather poorly, with me losing more ground, receiving more injuries and eventually being stabbed in the chest. I heard a loud scream from next to me and saw Tidal yelling out my name but with no words coming out. She ran to me, tearing up as she summoned a large water trident. "I became more obsessed with taking everything on myself," I said to myself as I slowly walked to my beaten and bruised body. As I walked, memories started to appear one by one "I thought I had to bear it all, and I pushed away a lot of loved ones," I passed by an image of Cadance yelling at me "I thought I had to take every role to be of some use," Above me was Windy, giving me his words of brotherly wisdom "I thought that if I did all of this then maybe," A lie formed before my eyes. A picture of my mother smiling at a little me "I could feel like dad didn't raise a doomed child,"
"But that was all wrong." I pushed the lie aside.
"I don't need to be everything. I want to be me." I walked up to my body, collapsed and barely breathing, with Tidal holding me tight and healing my wounds. Shi- Ruined Armour stood above her raising a blade before bringing it down on us. It all seemed to pass in slow motion. I picked up my broken body and walked inside, as if possessing an old body. Or a new one.
"I will protect you all. My family."
I stood tall and caught Ruined Armour's blade with my hand "Tidal. Thank you for protecting me," I said graciously, crushing the blade in my grip. Shining stood back, astounded by my feat of strength "Because you protected me..." I turned to face her, revealing royal blue eyes "I have found my way once again."
With my sense and will restored, I felt a new power rise from within me, waiting to be released. I looked over to Tidal who had new wounds: a broken arm and fractured rib "She's handling it well but she's in terrible shape. We need to end this quickly." I thought as I placed a hand on her chest. She was caught off guard at first but noticed my hand glowing a royal blue and her wounds began to repair themselves. Once I was done, I turned back to my opponent who was gaining his bearings after my attack.
"Colour me intrigued. What new trump card have you pulled out of your ass this time?" He asked as he fired three magic blasts at me. I simply raised my hand and all three disappeared. He grunted in frustration and went for a swing at my head with his remaining sword, but I ducked under his attack and kicked him straight in the gut. He reeled from the shock and fell to his knees.
"I said so before. I have found my way, my code, once again. You have a code avatar for a master so you should know this power well enough," I said calmly before changing my sword back to its base form and began slicing Shining's armour and flesh at blinding speed. I finished my assault by stabbing him in the chest and throwing him back several feet "This is a complete unbound form. All my abilities are at their current peak so why don't you surrender? Despite all that has happened, I still want you to come back to us." I walked towards Shining, battered and bruised on the ground. He tried desperately to get up but his legs weren't fully healed, having been cut at the tendons "Both you and your queen are victims to Grim's influence but it doesn't have to end like this: with one of us dying. Just let us help you. Both of you." Shining looked at me with sickly eyes but instead of the malicious glare I expected there was a slight grin.
"You remind me of me when I was in the academy. So full of dreams and the ambition to protect everyone. I'll put an end to them. GRIM!!!" He yelled at the top of his lungs and the ground began to shake and crack up as Tidal and I raced to each other and surrounded ourselves in a magic dome. The ground burst and out appeared a dragon. Its appearance was ,in simple terms, horrifying. With faces of ponies and humans alike imbedded in its skin and metal tubes protruding from its flesh. It gave out a mighty roar, with traces of human screams in its tone, and the skeleton began falling apart. I teleported the both of us away from the wreckage to see the carnage the beast had caused. The skeleton had collapsed like a house on fire, and the bipedal dragon chimaera had risen from the bones of the past like a phoenix. Shining sat atop the dragon as its tamer and looked down on us confidently "You like? This one of Grim's newest experiments. Genetic modification with Ignius' bones and his usual chimaerification process created our sure-fire way of ending both you and all of Equestria!" e announced. Tidal seemed unimpressed.
"How far the mighty have fallen. It's clear you're just throwing a hissy fit now. It honestly made me think why I ever admired you in the first place," she said before re-summoning her weapons. We could see how powerful this thing was, oozing with the magic of so many ponies and humans with the addition of the power of a dragon. I focused my power into my sword and slammed it into the ground.
"Final Decode: Encode Boost!" A blue wave of energy burst forth and covered the battlefield. Tidal became covered in its glow, empowering her abilities dramatically. In her heightened state, she would be much safer. We both charged at the beast, attacking it from both sides. Tidal summoned several water chains to hold it down while I sliced the dragon's tendons. However, it easily shook of the chains and was not fazed by my attacks. We needed another approach "Hit the kneecaps with all you got. That should stun it long enough," I told her mentally. I summoned the Gardnablade and levitated it at the dragon's kneecaps while Tidal summoned two large tridents.
"GRAND TIDE'S TRIDENT!" "GARDNA IMPACT!"
Both our attacks struck the chimaera but nothing happened. It remained in its place while Shining laughed at our futile attempt "If you're done. I think I'll have my turn now." That was all he said before the faces opened their mouths and started unleashing a barrage of attacks. We couldn't stop all of them and they sent both of us back. I was left in awe of the chimaera's power, unable to move due to the pain. I looked to Tidal a few metres away from me in the same state, but it looked like she was about to throw up and pass out at that moment "You look a lot worse than Noire over there. I hope the egg hasn't been giving you too much trouble." She was confused by what he meant but shrugged it aside, determined to beat him. I too began to get to my feet with renewed vigour "Never mind, I guess you have a lot more to worry about like how you're going to survive," the faces opened their mouths once again and fired another barrage. However, I teleported to Tidal and used to Gardnablade to shield us. I punched the sword in frustration, angry that even though I had gained a significant power increase, it still wasn't enough to put a dent in the chimaera.
"Noire, Look at Shining." She pointed at Shining, who was still grinning ear to ear but upon closer inspection, I could see him sweating and panting profusely "He needs magic to regenerate but is feeding his to the chimaera to keep it moving. At this point, he should be able to manage one more attack with that thing. As soon as it stops, go straight for Shining. I'll cover you." I gave her the thumbs up and she moved out of the Gardnablade's protection. I moved in the opposite direction and began making a final charge towards the chimaera. It swiped at me with its claws, but I leapt over them effortlessly.
"It's getting slower. I ducked under another swipe and levitated the Gardnablade to block a descending fist.
Meanwhile, Tidal was attacking the mouths to prevent them from launching another barrage "87 mouths. This should be enough," she said as she created several balls of condensed water surrounding the chimaera at all sides. She simultaneously launched them into every mouth on the beast's body, excluding its head. The balls quickly froze and turned into ice, leaving the mouths useless.
Shining visibly became even more frustrated by this and gave up the last of his magic to the chimaera. The beast got on all fours and opened its maw to unleash a laser breath attack. I barely blocked the attack and it moved me back several feet. I was about to lose my ground and succumb to the attack when Tidal teleported behind me and pushed back with all of her remaining magic. With her help, we outlasted the plasma breath and resumed our final attack. I transformed my sword into the Duoblade and threw them both at the disabled Shining. With no magic to heal himself or the strength to stand, he was completely open to the attack. The force of the swords pierced him and knocked him off the dragon's head and onto the hard ground. Without its source of power, the chimaera fell to its knees, the green light in its eyes fading. Once we were sure it was over, we took a deep breath, with Tidal falling from the exhaustion. I picked her back up and assisted her to where Shining was. Fortunately for him, the swords only hit his shoulders, but he was definitely going to be out of commission for a while.
"We should bring him back with us. We could get a lot of information from him," Tidal proposed between pants.
"What happened to killing me, huh?" Shining barely managed to utter in his half-conscious state. Tidal stared at the bound man with a static look of indifference.
"That's still not off the table," she stated simply. Shining chuckled hoarsely at this "What's so funny?" she asked.
"You'll have to wait a bit longer to kill me." He mustered the last of his strength to pull a device from his pocket, a small remote-like device. He pushed it and a column of light surrounded him. I tried to go through it, but it burned at the touch "I'll be back for my tie breaker," he said before the column quickly consumed him and vanished, leaving us alone in the landscape. Tidal and I looked to each other and to our side, where a destroyed skeleton remained.
"Who do you think Ignia's going to kill: Shining, Grim, or us?" she said with a hint of fear. I couldn't blame her: I was asking the exact same question. I didn't have time to answer as I could an orange drake high above us.
"Ask her." I said, sweating buckets.
TWILIGHT POV
I took off, leaving a crater in my place as I stood face to face with Tirek for the first time. HIs hulking figure stood metres over me to the extent that I had to fly up over the trees of the Everfree and even higher just to meet his eyes. "Tirek!" I yelled furiously "I will defeat you and I will take back all of the magic you've stolen from Equestria!" After my bold proclamation, he laughed before uttering in a slightly distorted tone.
"Just try, puny whelp." While this did disturb me, I did not back down, firing a powerful beam at him. He countered with one of his own, resulting in a clash that shook the Everfree with the shockwaves emanating from it. Both our attacks dissipated, giving me the opportunity to fly behind him to blast him in the back. However, he created a shield, blocking my attack. I tried again with more power, but he stretched his hands outward, causing the shield to explode. This explosion sent me back miles away and into the side of a mountain. I coughed a bit and saw a collection of blood spurt out of my mouth. My observation wasn't wrong after all- Two alicorns, while powerful, wasn't enough to conquer this tyrant. The centaur came charging at me with horns pointed at me, charging another blast of energy.
"WINDY PHOENIX BLAST!" An arrow hit Tirek in the side of the head, knocking his head back a fraction away from me but enough for his blast to miss me by an inch. I looked in shock at the hole left in the mountain while Windy distracted him with a barrage of arrows. Tirek merely walked towards to pegasus without even flinching.
"Is this all Equestria has to offer me? A fledgling alicorn and a weakling pegasus.I'm almost ashamed to admit it took me this long to conquer all of Equestria." A red, black, and green struck Windy and siphoned his magic, causing him to fall from the sky and onto the ground. He looked down to find all my friends rushing to my defence "More pests," he said as he did the same to them and trapped them all in bubbles with little effort "I know about all of you and the tricks you were planning to use. Some power of friendship or something. It's a good thing I had a little friend to tell me all this." He said as he summoned another bubble with Discord inside, crouched in shame "What a little traitor, betraying his friends in an instant when promised something greater." He levitated all of them in front of me. It was like dangling keys in my face, enticing me to reach out to his incoming offer "You can't move and I'm feeling nice, so I offer this one chance at survival. Give me your magic and all your friends will be freed. Deny me and they can easily be crushed" He offered. He confirmed his threat my slowly closing the bubbles in on them.
"Don't do it!" I heard all my friends yelling through their confinements. All except for Fluttershy, who looked at Discord with tears in her eyes.
"Discord..." she said, tears beginning to stream.
"I'm sorry, Fluttershy..." was all he could say. I was left paralysed by the weight of my decision, but I already knew what I had to do. I looked down at an unconscious Windy and began to tear up.
"Just take it." Tirek grinned as he shot his magic draining beam at me and began taking all my magic. All my mentors magic. Cadance's magic. I imagined them both looking at me with such saddened looks "I'm sorry, Princess. I failed you. Cadance. I wish I could apologise to you for treating you so badly. You were suffering just like me but I made you the monster just so I could vent out my own suffering, I was terrible sister to you. I'm sorry. So, so sorry." Once he was done, I could feel myself loosening from the mountain's cold grip as I fell. Luckily, I was caught by my friends, who were all released from their bubbles. All except for Discord. "All of them." Tirek looked at me in slight confusion before shrugging, releasing Discord.
"Now that that's been settled...Die." He prepared a large blast, ready to destroy all of us. We all huddled together to go out together. I even allowed Discord to join in our embrace as the ray began to consume us.
"Are you all okay?"
I opened my eyes, clenched shut from the fear, to see Noire, standing over us with Tidal on his back, fast asleep. He had blocked the attack with a giant sword. Tirek stepped back in shock of the human's power. I was as well: I didn't remember Noire being this strong before "W-We're okay..." I said with shaky breaths "but Tirek. He has all the magic in Equestria right now. I don't know if we can beat him." Noire looked at me with a confident and determined look. He gently set Tidal on the ground.
"Then I guess I won't hold back," he said before reverting his sword to its base form and pouring all his magic into it "Final Decode: Phantom Excalibur!"
I watched as a giant sword exploded forth from his magic, causing shockwaves with its presence. I could see from the strained look on his face and the injuries on his body that he was already running on fumes and had to put everything he had into his attack. Tirek tried stomping on us yet again but Noire swung his sword and cut his leg. There was no physical damage left but Tirek was visibly terrified of the technique as I felt his magic power draining away "Anyone who can move, pick up the wounded and get out of here," he said calmly, never keeping his eye on the enemy. He made a downward slash, forcing Tirek to back away. This gave us enough time move back into the Everfree. Rainbow carried me while Applejack carried Tidal and Discord got Windy, who had regained consciousness, up. As soon as we were back in the cave, the others instantly started to berate Discord while lied against the while to support my injured back.
"You told him everything about us!" I heard Rainbow yell at the draconequus.
"How could you do such a thing!?" Rarity said. Discord didn't respond, seemingly lost in a void of guilt until a tug on his arm alerted him.
"Tell us what happened. Please," Fluttershy asked quietly, barely loud enough for all of us to hear. Discord sighed and sat down on a nearby rock.
"I was planning to stop him, I truly was, but I was scared. I had witnessed him take all of Equestria's magic in seconds and the princesses were gone without a traced. So when he appeared before me, I was shaking, and in my moment of vulnerability, he promised me something greater than friendship," He pulled out a pendant "However, I see that was a lie. I should have never agreed. He gave me this pendant as a symbol of our friendship," He stood up and walked over to me "However, when I give it to you, Princess Twilight Sparkle, I am telling the truth."
NOIRE POV
"Why can't I deplete his magic?" I thought as I dodged Tirek's energy blasts. I pierced him with Phantom Excalibur again but to no effect. His magic seemed to deplete entirely but reappeared just as quickly as it left. With a smirk, Tirek used his magic to levitate chunks of the earth off the ground and launch them at me. He knew Phantom Excalibur couldn't harm physical objects and was using this to his advantage. With a swipe of the blade, I launched a wide wave of magic and destroyed every single one of them. However, this caused the sword to shrink to half its original size "Dammit! I don't have much left in me after fighting Shining and now I have to deal with this crap!?"
"Looks like your sword isn't as mighty as it was before. It was a big mistake challenging me to a battle of endurance!" He said as he levitated the ground above me, launching me into the air.
"Wait. Endurance." That was when I felt what had been giving him the edge. thousands of tiny threads spreading throughout Equestria. I noticed specifically three which went even further "He hasn't stolen magic from anyone. He stole their connection to their pools of magic. Every time I deplete his magic, he just uses someone else's to fuel himself back up. I can't beat him in a marathon battle like this- I need to overwhelm him before I'm tapped out." I saw him preparing a massive beam, using the magic of hundreds of ponies. That was my time to smirk.
"You're challenging me to a battle of power!? I'll be happy to oblige!" I yelled at the centaur. As soon as I reached the peak of my ascent, I focused my magic into the blade, causing the Phantom Excalibur to disappear and leaving the Decode Sword shrouded in a royal blue glow. I was reminded of my humble beginnings at that moment. Dropping out of a princess' ceiling, bumbling through fights and all the new friends I had made on my journey. All these things built what I was in that moment. As well as what I am today. "One final attack to put you down! Final Decode!" The magic aura around my sword burned brightly and spread to the rest of my body. Even bits of my hair turned the same shade of blue "Blazing Excode!" I descended to meet my foe, who was just as desperate to finish this. It seemed like he noticed who he was dealing with finally.
"DIEHUMAN!" Tirek fired the most powerful beam I had ever seen, burning away most of the area around him. Once my blade made contact with the attack, the power the beam had carried threatened to push me back and overwhelm me. This was a battle of who's magic was more potent. That was why I was not going to lose to him. The blue flames burned even brighter and started to erase the beam. Tirek noticed his attack crumbling away and gritted his teeth in anger. With a mighty roar, he sapped even more magic, pushing me back. However, it was too late. The attack had already started to crumble away like ash and in one final swing, I had cut the attack clean in two. As the magic began to dissipate, Tirek's mouth was on the floor as I, still descending towards him, made one more attack, making several magic slashes at the magic threads, cutting most of them. The rest was up to the others.
"That should be enough," I said as I fell to the ground, losing consciousness.
I felt something soft and warm like a pillow below my head, rousing me from my slumber. I sat up to find myself in the void once again. "Congratulations on your awakening. It seems that you didn't need much of my help after all." I turned to face Faust, who was sitting beside me "I wanted to congratulate you when you were asleep, but you fell in here so early so I had to take the opportunity. I never got to experience motherhood in a traditional sense." We stood up and the goddess embraced me tightly. I welcomed the embrace wholeheartedly "You have grown so much in so little time."
"I have to if I want to catch up to Grim. He has thousands of years of experience on me."
"That is true, and I will be helping you master these powers you've been granted, however, I wasn't talking about that. When I found you, you were nothing more than an insecure, shy child who gave up before giving the world a chance. Now you have grown into the confident, young man I had always hoped you would become. I just want you to know that in the 23 years that I have watched over you, I have never been more proud of you than I am now," She said, smiling at me warmly.
"Wait. 23 years? But I'm only twenty-" The void around us started to shake and i was consumed by a feeling of falling.
"Happy Birthday, Noire."
When I woke up a second time, I found myself in a town square, surrounded by several ponies. When my ears had adjusted, I began to hear cheering from them. My eyes immediately noticed Windy and Tidal in the foreground.
"Nice work, buddy!" Windy cheered, lifting me up and patting me on the back "If it wasn't for you, we'd all be screwed. If you're wondering about Twilight and the others, they're still healing everypony in Equestria, giving them their magic and whatnot. Though it would have been better if Tidal had joined in, seeing as she was the only one in Equestria with magic, right? Tidal?" Tidal silently walked up to me, punching Windy hard on the arm on her way, and as soon as she was in front of me, I could feel her arms strangling the rest of my body. Both I and Windy, still holding his arm in pain, were shocked.
"You scared the crap out of me, asshole. Never leave me like that again." She whispered this to me in a not weak, but caring tone. I smiled and stroked her blue locks of hair from her face.
"No promises." Tidal immediately recoiled from our hug and punched me so hard, it felt like my arm was going to fall off. While everyone was laughing at this, I noticed something was up "Where's the princesses?" Both generals went silent at this. I began to get worried as I looked back and forth between them, searching for an answer. However, it came from a flashing sound and another pair of arms wrapping around me. I could feel the wet tears streaming from the stranger's face as sobbing could be heard throughout the square.
"Cadance?" I asked.
"How could a couple of days go wrong so fantastically?"
"Cadance?"
"I thought a break was what we needed but now I just don't want to let go."
"Cadance."
"I was praying for you to come save me from Tartarus the whole time I was there-"
"Cadance!"
"-wondering if you were even going to come at all." I couldn't take any more of this. I turned around, freeing myself from her, and kissed her on the lips. That shut her up real quick as she sank into my act of passion. I shut out the cheering and 'woop's from Windy as I just held her. As we kissed, I thought about how I had gone a month without even kissing her and mentally berating myself for being so stupid. We let ourselves go and I looked back to Tidal, who looked a tad jealous, but also happy.
"Don't forget," she silently mouthed to me, to which I nodded.
To top off the moment, a rainbow appeared and from it, the elements appeared, looking a lot more... colourful. However, they all went back to their normal forms. Twilight quickly ran over to the other princesses, hugging her mentor tightly. No words were shared as they held each other. Everything was as it was supposed to be. Except for one thing, poking at the side of my head ever since I woke up.
"What is that?" I said, pointing to the giant, crystalline castle, sitting in the distance.
"A sweet, new place to throw your birthday party!" Pinkie cheered.
"...Oh yeah. That's today. Wait, how'd you know!?" I asked incredulously.
"Don't question it," the rest of the main 6 said.
Night had fallen and the stars shone brightly on the castle, creating a soft glow that made the castle seem like a gift from the heavens. As I stood out on the balcony of the new castle, my mind wandered to all the things that had changed. Due to her courage in fighting Tirek, who was back in his prison in Tartarus where he belonged, she had fully ascended into an alicorn and gifted the title of Princess of Friendship. Fitting. As for the birthday party.
"WINDY! GET OFF THE TABLE!" I heard Twilight yell with her new Royal Canterlot Voice, shaking the castle. I was glad I made the excuse of being tired to step out of that mayhem.
"NOW THE FUN HAS BEEN TRIPLED!" I heard Luna cheer merrily.
"What are they doing down there?" I asked myself. Fortunately, someone answered. Cadance walked up from behind me and leaned on the railing, looking out into the starry beyond.
"Windy, Rainbow and Luna are drunk as all tartarus and Twilight just fell into your birthday cake trying to stop them from painting the walls of her new castle green with their vomit." I laughed at the thought of it "I also got to talk to Twilight about the whole Shining Armour thing and we seem to be on the same page now."
"And that would be?" I asked curiously.
"Do whatever we can to save him," she said simply "He may be better off without me but anything's better than with Grim." We went silent once again. She was right. I still remember when I saw his letter to Cadance before he went off the deep end. He still had his sanity somewhere. It was just clouded by his love and dedication. However, there still was a chance that we would need to kill him if it came to it. Cadance knew that very well so I didn't bring it up. "So, about that talk?" she said out of nowhere. I was not surprised she was going to bring it up. I finally turned to meet her gaze.
"Yeah," I said anxiously. No amount of power-ups was going to make this not awkward "Now that I recall our fight, I can see that we were more telling each other our feelings while angry than actually 'fighting'," Cadance laughed at that. We were acting like children, yelling at each other but never listening to the other enough to realise we wanted the same thing "However, I can't help but feel guilty for ignoring you for weeks. I was just so determined to prove myself that I ended up pushing you and the other generals away and doing such pointless things outside my skillset. I was still damaged from my time on Earth, from my mother." Cadance looked at me in confusion "I'll tell you about that later." She sighed and sat on the railing, looking up at the sky.
"I feel a bit guilty as well. I was so demanding of both you and Shining to satisfy what it meant to be a lover that I was blind to how both of you were feeling and I ended up hurting a lot of ponies. That isn't a redeeming quality of a princess at all. So this time, I'll do better. I'll be more patient and understanding with you," she said with a determined look on her face. That was good. It made the next bit of news a bit easier to tell.
"Good, good. So... I have something to confess." Cadance turned to face me "So on that little excursion. I had a lot of time to reflect, bond with my party, shared some fun times. Wait, has Seahoof even gotten home yet?" I said to myself.
"Safe and sound. Now get to the point."
I gulped "Well, I had an 'incident' and Tidal was there to support me. We ended up falling off a cliff..."
"Noire..." Cadance leered.
"TidalandIkissed!" Silence, the scariest torture technique known to man, reared its ugly head and polluted the moment with its presence. I was left only to wait for Cadance's face to change, let alone say something. Was she going to dump me immediately after we resolved our situation? Was she going to confront Tidal and Windy and I were going to settle our bet on who would win in a fight? These thoughts circulated in my head until a chuckle broke through the cycle. Then more. The she bellowed, laughing so hard I stretched my arm out to prevent her from falling. This went on for what felt like hours until she gained her composure.
"Finally! I was wondering when you two were going to realise you were made for each other!" She said, still clutching her stomach and drying her tears.
"You knew?"
"I may have been doing a crap job at it but I'm still the Princess of fucking Love! I knew you two were going to band from the moment you two walked out of her bedroom, insisting it wasn't what it looked like. It would take a blind man to not to see the sexual tension between you two, but it wouldn't matter because your flirting would immediately tip them off!" Her cheeks puffed up adorably, threatening to burst with her laughter while I was left in shock, embarrassment, relief, and a bit of disappointment that I would see that catfight "Anyway, If you're wondering about the herd thing, of course she can join but first-" she hopped off her seat and closed the distance between us "-we need to finally go on a date. Just the three of us~" I was a bit blank faced until I realised that I've been dating Cadance for almost three months, with her heat fast approaching, and I had never even taken her out on a date.
No lunch date. No fine dining. Not even a trip to the coffee shop.
I was still a newbie to love after all.
I silently whispered "Idiot," to myself and kissed her back "Of course! I'll just tell Tidal about it and we'll be golden!" I began to walk back into the castle when Cadance magically dragged me back to where I was. I stood there confused as Cadance looked at me like a piece of meat.
"Let's not forget that you haven't made sweet, sweet love to me in over a month now darling," she said, wrapping her arms around my neck and her legs around my waist "What are you waiting for, love? Saddle up~"
The rising sun woke me from my slumber as I got off the guest bed and reluctantly embraced the morning. My armour was almost completely destroyed from my battle with Shining, with a missing chestplate, cracks within every remaining piece, and torn clothing, so instead I dressed in a spare tank top, white cargos and boots and walked out of the spare room ready to seize the day. Passing by the meeting room, I saw Windy and Rainbow passed out on the floor "I swear the kitchen was around this corner..." I murmured, ignoring their pathetic, drunken state, and making my way to the kitchen for something decent to eat "Has Twilight even stocked up her kitchen with anything?" I said to myself as I entered. Inside, I saw Noire, dressed in a simple blue t-shirt and black jeans, making himself a cup of coffee. I yawned, which gained his attention and he greeted me in a tone which screamed half-asleep.
"Oh, morning Tidal. Sleep well?" he asked, yawning loudly.
"Surprisingly well considering this castle came out of the ground just yesterday. Speaking of, was all of this here before or after?" I asked with genuine curiosity. You could get all the scientists, scholars, and magic-users you could, but no matter how you argue it, magic is just weird sometimes.
"After. Pinkie brought this all over during the party. Still questioning how she got all of this but at this point, I'm too tired to think," he said as he took a sip of his coffee "Want a cup?" I nodded as a took a seat on a wooden dinner table. I stopped and looked at the table, which seemed to stand out amongst the crystalline kitchenware "Don't ask about that. I'm just as confused." Noire brought me a cup and sat down beside me. As we sat together, sipping away at our coffee, I noticed a familiar scent on him. He reeked of cotton candy. I snorted, trying to hold back my laughter.
"Smells like you had a long night~" I said, wiggling my eyebrows at him. He rolled his eyes and took another long sip of coffee.
"Yes, I did. Cadance can be very... persistent when she wants to. I only got an hour's worth of sleep before that stupid ball of fire tried to burn my eyeballs," I chuckled at that. It was true that Celestia's sun did always seems to be angle itself just right to have a clear shot of one's face during one's slumber. It was very annoying and wouldn't be surprised if the long lines of ponies at court were angry, totally not morning ponies. "Speaking of Cadance, I told her about what we did back in the Dragonlands. Everything," I held my breath for what felt like an eternity before he finished his coffee "She was surprised we didn't do it sooner." I almost blew coffee out my nose, coughing up a storm "Yeah, when your marefriend is the princess of love, you should expect her to pick up on these types of things."
"So, are we, is 'us', a thing?" Noire held my hand and looked at me lovingly. Those perfect, black eyes were enough, speaking volumes in seconds. I wrapped my hands around his and leaned in for a kiss. He welcomed it eagerly, gently meeting me in a soft, but beautiful kiss that sent shivers running through every part of my being. I felt tears of pure joy run down my face. With every tear, a weight was removed from my shoulders as I leaned more into the kiss. My hands found their way underneath Noire's shirt, feeling his toned body like a mare in heat. Only the sound of somepony's gasping broke us out of our embrace.
"Noire! Tidal!" In the doorway, we found a small crowd of ponies watching. Cadance was in the background, smirking like the devil while Windy and Rainbow had started cheering and Twilight looked like she was having a mental breakdown. I stared at Noire, and back to them, blushing madly. Noire, however, was perfectly composed as if he was expecting this.
"Anyone want a cup?"
As soon as we arrived back in the Crystal Empire, a thought ran through my mind as quickly as the stomach pain that surged through me so suddenly 'I hope the egg hasn't been giving you too much trouble.' Those words rang in mind as the pain began to swell like a growing balloon in my body, stretching me out as I exited the train. I tried my best to overcome it. It should have been easy- I had experienced more pain from even greater threats in those two days than most. I was a general, a member of the Wave family! I should've been fine... but I wasn't. Clutching my belly, I tapped Noire on the shoulder, gaining his attention. I leaned in and whispered in his ear "Something's been bothering me for a while. Can we stop by Curdle when we get back to the castle?" Noire responded with a thumbs up and looked down at my hand, holding my stomach.
"An injury from Shining?" he asked in a low voice.
"This has been bothering me ever since the battle at Canterlot. Can't be that." While we were talking, we failed to notice a white blur rush past the crowds of ponies and between the two of us. Once the blur had entered our conversation, we turned to meet an ecstatic Doctor Curdle holding a syringe in her hand.
"So, it's true you've changed on your little trip. Significant growth, minor hair colour change, more defined muscles. I wonder..." she played around with the syringe, waving it around like a toy "You wouldn't mind if I took just a little..." Before she could proceed, a hand belonging to Burning grabbed the syringe out of her hand. She pouted at him, but his stoic expression was unchanging as he silently reprimanded her.
"It's good to have you all back. Especially you, Princess." Cadance, who was quietly hanging in the back, sorting out her unkempt mane, perked up "You have a lot of paperwork to catch up on. Ayra has already cleaned your office so it would be easier for you," he said with a hint of humour in his voice. Cadance groaned as she walked onwards to the castle as everypony else followed behind. I was glad to see that not much had changed but also glad to see how things had changed for the better. Burning actually showing a sense of humour, Windy acting slightly more mature than usual, and Noire, the once inexperienced rookie, was now my slightly more experienced rookie who had saved the world. Of course, he was much better than a rookie then, but where was the adorable, and kind of seductive, nickname in Noire?
Back at the castle, Curdle, Noire and I split off from the group to run some tests. Cadance was quickly met by a worried Ayra, who hugged her tightly and asked repeatedly if she was okay and left to make a start on the paperwork she had neglected. On our way to the medical ward, I had discussed with Curdle all my symptoms since the battle at Canterlot, random migraines, unbearable stomach pain and vomiting. At first, it was minor but after going to the Dragonlands, they had just gotten worse. Curdle listened attentively, noting all of my symptoms, and by the time we were at her private area in the medical ward, she had prepared an analysis spell. However, she was very uncomfortable, even scared, while she was preparing. Almost like she was reassuring herself i would be fine. That look of anxiety irked me and was not going to let up as she turned to us to explain the procedure.
"This should notify me if anything that shouldn't be in your body is there and give some clue as to what we're dealing with here. At best, it's just a bug and will pass by soon. At worst... a tumour." Both Noire and I shuddered at the possibility.
"Tumour?" I thought to myself "It couldn't be that, right?" Curdle started the spell and released a wide, blue ray of magic from her horn. It slowly scanned my body, working its way down from my horn. The sensation was uncomfortably cold, causing my whole body to shiver while it descended until it reached halfway down my body. The ray turned red and Curdle disengaged the spell "What was that?" I asked, growing even more worried by the second.
"It appears to be something in your..." Curdle coughed into her hand "...uterus," The silence that lingered after that word was practically feasting off our shock, pouring from our open jaws "However, the spell wasn't able to identify if whatever it is could be malignant so I'll just do a manual scan and we should have the full picture." As she went into her drawers for some equipment, I felt my hand around Noire's and gripped it tightly like he was the last living thing I was going to see. We didn't share words as neither of us felt anything would improve or worsen the situation. We just held hands and prayed. "Just to lighten the mood, are you two dating 'cause you two look like you just got married," Curdle asked while roaming through her drawers, fetching out a small device that looked like a paint roller with a magic gem in the centre.
"We're dating," Noire immediately answered.
"Well damn, if I knew you were about that life, I might ask to join during heat next month," I mentally cursed when I realised that heat was next month. That was always the most embarrassing part of the year for me. Two weeks of enduring an incredibly enhanced libido, changing clothes every hour, and all of this while balancing the roles of a general. A recipe for disaster. I had heard some of the mares call me 'Typhoon Tidal' as no-one was safe from my angry outbursts, not even the princesses. I was snapped out of my daydreaming by Curdle who was pulling up my tank top to reveal my belly, which seemed...larger than before. Curdle began rolling the device up and down my belly, running it all the way down to my region. Noire looked away but a tickling sensation began to consume me, alerting his attention. I had to cover my mouth to stop myself but Noire had already taken notice. I saw him smirk, mentally saving that information. After a couple minutes of torture, she removed the device from my belly and plugged it into a monitor which produced a picture of my uterus. Curdle covered her mouth to stop a gasp and turned back around to face us with her head down low to meet eye level with me and fidgeting with her fingers.
"G-give it to me straight, Curdle. What is it?" I said, trying to sound composed, but came out in breaks and high pitches. Curdle sighed before answering.
"It seems to be a malignant tumour, but from the way it's located on your uterine lining and growth estimates, it looks to be a... baby. A changeling baby."
SHINING POV
When I woke up, I was greeted by the cold, dark roof of a room in Grim's castle. At first, I was unsure where I was until I sat up and felt a weight on my legs. It was my queen, sleeping like an angel on my lap, quietly snoring. This was a rare sight to see such a vulnerable side of Chrysalis, a rarity I got to experience every morning. As I ran my hand through her long, green mane, she began to stir and woke up to the sight of my pleased grin. She sat up straight and tried to hide her blush, but I knew he loved this just as much as I did. "You're awake. I was so worried when I saw Slenda carrying your bloodied body into the castle. Just what happened in the Dragonlands?" She asked me, genuinely concerned.
"Grim sensed Noire approaching and sent me to stop him, but he was so much stronger than before, surpassing me completely. I even had to use the new chimaera just to gain some advantage. It seems that I haven't gotten fully accustomed to this new body, but soon I will and then put Noire back in his place!" I declared, trying to stand tall but failing miserably. Chrysalis rolled her eyes at me.
"You will, you stallion, but first, you must rest. Your magic reserves are still recovering from feeding that chimaera, which was incredibly reckless, mind you. However," she pushed me back down and began crawling over me like a widow catching it's prey in a web of lust "I think I know just the thing to top you off~" I smirked and began kissing her neck while her hands made their way underneath the sheets to grab my member. I moved away from my love to lift her nightgown from her body, leaving her completely exposed. She aimed my length directly at her entrance "Don't you even think about moving. I'm taking the reins tonight, my sexy stallion," and with one simple motion, she had engulfed it whole. She let out a guttural moan while she began gently bouncing on my length. My hands were begging me to grip something; her breasts, bouncing in rhythm to her siren song of ministrations, her ass, perfectly round and soft like pillows, or at least her face, flushed and beautiful. "Go ahead, Shining. Touch me. I've been waiting for a moment alone with you!" She fondled her right breasts as my hands sprung forward, wrapping themselves around my queen and gripping her ass. She moved even faster, adding some grinding to her dance, and by my queen, they were working. I could barely control myself as I groaned in pleasure while she laughed to herself. She loved seeing me in such as state, completely under her control.
However, I could feel my magic reserves filling back up as I regained feeling in my legs. I didn't let this opportunity go to waste as I took control. As she rose back up to my tip, I tackled her, leaving her below me with the tip hanging above her like a snack out of reach. Chrysalis bit her lip as I forced my way inside her, pounding her lips with renewed vigour. As if scared I would stop, she had wrapped her legs around me, moving in tandem with my thrusts. "I'm close!" I managed to say as I grunted, feeling a wave of cum rushing to the tip. I tried to hold it back as I knew her situation with children.
"Don't worry! J-just do it, fill me up, you handsome stallion you! My king!" Those last words pushed me over the edge as my cum erupt, filling my queen with savoury goodness. Satisfied, I rolled over and held my love in my embrace. However, her sombre look convinced me that there was something that irked her, leaving her too distracted to feel pleasured.
"Is something wrong, Chryssy?" I asked, curious as to what left her unable to feel my embrace. Chrysalis rolled over to look me in the eye, those precious jewels threatening to water.
"I miss my children..." she said, hiding her face in my chest "I know about my promise to Grim. I can't have any more children until his goal is complete. I honestly don't care for his 'reset': I just want is for my kind to know peace for once." I silently listened to her lament, stroking her hair once again "I know I had to destroy my own kind to prove my loyalty, but a part of me screamed to stop. Yet another said they were all going to die anyway. Whether it was by starvation or by my own hand, the current changeling race was destined to suffer from this damn world and its creatures." She paused for a moment, catching her breath "So why do I hate myself so much," she finished, her voice shaky and breaking at every chance. I didn't say anything as I knew there was nothing I could say now to ease her suffering. I simply held her as she sobbed.
"Please don't do anything that reckless again, Shining. I don't want to lose the last person I have left."
"I won't, my love." We fell asleep holding each other tight, like we were going slip away in our dreams. However, I knew we could only dream of us.
NOIRE POV
The news had hit us like a freight train, leaving us breathless while Curdle continued to explain the situation. However, Tidal was hardly even there, looking like her soul had been stripped of her body. "I know this is hard for you to hear but please, Tidal, you need to hear this," Tidal said nothing and before anyone else could convince her she teleported out of the room. Both of us sighed, expected such a reaction from her. "Are you going to follow her?" Curdle asked.
"No. I think she needs some space to process this. Plus, someone needs to listen to this. So, what's her condition? Will she live?" I asked. At first glance, I may have appeared to be the calm one, but inside I was terrified, my hands shaking with both fear and anger.
"She'll be fine for now, but these symptoms will keep getting worse as the egg grows. I'm afraid that if she gives birth she'll..." She could barely get the words out, covering her mouth and sobbing to herself. I didn't want to cry. I had just realised my love for her.
"Can we save her?" I said, taking a seat in front of Curdle, holding her hand to soothe her. She wiped the tears from her face as she saw tears threatening to fall from my own.
"Surgery is the only option, but the egg's protective layer is incredibly thin. The smallest mistake could break it anything could happen; we've never seen a pony giving birth to a changeling before. Worst case, it would devour her magic to sustain itself as emotion is directly tied to one's magic. Surgery would only be an option once the egg has grown to its full size." Once I had fully absorbed all I needed to hear, I stood up and tracked Tidal's magic, leading me to her room.
"Thank you, Curdle. I appreciate it." That was all I said before teleported to Tidal's room, leaving Curdle alone.
"I hate this part of the job."
Once I arrived in her room, I immediately felt a pillow hit me in the face. It was Tidal, huddled in a ball with a blanket with puffy, red eyes, confirming she had been crying a flood since she left. "Asshole. Don't you know you're supposed to knock first!" she said angrily. Upon closer inspection, I saw that underneath the blanket, she wasn't wearing anything. Nothing but her purple skin. I blushed furiously and turned away. I heard her get out bed and change into something. "You can look now." I turned back around to find her in pink pyjamas. Before I could even to explain, she walked away from me, lying back in bed and covering herself with the blanket "So, what do you want?"
"To talk. There's still a chance to help you. We're expecting-"
"EXPECTING!!?" She yelled, rising out of her sheets like a angry dragon.
"Okay, bad choice of words, but let me finish," Tidal calmed down and sat up, ready to listen "The egg is only going to get bigger until it's ready to... come out, but it can be operated on then. If not, it could kill you." As expected, she only got more agitated by that.
"So why don't we do it now and get it over with?" She asked, growing even more angry until a sting of pain ran through her stomach, causing her to clutch the area in agony. I came closer, taking a seat on the bed next to her. She was shaking immensely but trying to hide it from me. She was terrified. I held her hand and tried to calm her for the rest of what I was about to say.
"If we operate now, the egg could break and kill you immediately. We need to wait until it is fully grown to increase the chance of success," I finished. The look of shock and anger I was expecting was replaced with one of endless sorrow. I suddenly felt her tackle me with a strong embrace.
"Why did this have to happen? I had finally moved on from Shining, I had found somepony to love, but now I get the news that I'm going to be carrying a changeling baby that could kill me!? It feels like the universe is conspiring against me! I bet it was that bastard who did this to me! I'll kill that shit stain of a stallion!" She repeatedly hit my chest as she vented out all her frustration. This was different than before, when I had no idea how to approach the situation: I could help her now. I lightly pushed her away so she could see my calm expression. I let my hands cup her cheeks, holding her beautiful face.
"Calm down. The Tidal I know wouldn't be cowering here, complaining about how terrible her life is. I mean, even when she lost her mother, she soldiered on and rose to the rank of a general of the unicorn corps. That's the Tidal I know and love," she frowned slightly, but more due to her realisation that my words rang true "Whatever this egg has in store for you, I know you can handle it. 'Cause you're Tidal Horn. The strongest unicorn in the Crystal Empire." Tidal remained silent for a moment before moving away from me in embarrassment. It was shocking how much of an effect some affection had on her.
"Of course, I know that! It was just a moment of weakness! Believe me when I say this thing won't slow me down even a little bit... but please don't tell anypony else about this. At least until I'm ready. I don't want anypony doting on me or treating me like glass just because I'm...Crap, does this mean I'm actually pregnant or what?" She whispered to herself, but not at a volume that I couldn't hear. I gently placed a hand on her belly, causing her to blush.
"We can call it that if you want. I wonder if this means you'll be getting..." I trailed off as I saw Tidal's expression turn one of unbound fury waiting to be released. I didn't dare finish that sentence and tried to find something to distract her with. I didn't take me long as Tidal let out a strange moan of relief. I was left confused, wondering what provoked such a reaction until I saw my hand, still on her stomach, glowing blue, as well as a feeling of magic leaving my body and entering her.
"Is this-" she moaned once again "-one of your powers? If it is, keep going this is amazing~." As uncomfortable as this was, I obeyed, feeding her my magic, with a suspicion that this was more than a new power.
Five days had passed since we all resumed our daily lives, albeit with some bonuses. My relationship with Cadance seemed to be back on track, stronger than ever even, and Tidal and I have been open with relationship while still maintaining a level of professionalism. We still kept everyone in the dark about Tidal's 'condition' but it was bound to get out eventually. However, the change that had grown more apparent day by day was in Burning. During our sparring sessions, I noticed a hint of anger in his eyes. If not that then desperation, which was weird for Burning's often calm demeanour. His punches were less precise, attacks missed more often, and our matches were almost always in my victory. I had grown tired of winning against a warrior who wasn't fully in it and confronted him about on the fifth day.
"Burning? Is something wrong?" I asked him that day in the training grounds. It was noon and the guard were out on patrol, allowing us to talk without fear of being noticed.
"What do you mean, Noire?" he replied, taking a seat on a nearby bench and grabbing a bottle of water.
"You're getting sloppier by the day and you look like a wild animal while we spar. This isn't like you."
Burning feigned a smile "Maybe you're just surpassing me. That recent power-up of yours has done you some favours," he said. He was deflecting, and poorly at that.
"That would be the case if you at least managed to hit me during our spar, but that hasn't been the case for many rounds now. Burning, we can't afford to be slacking behind right now, especially after Grim's shown to be improving his forces. What's wrong?" I persisted, leaving the stallion with no choice but to relent. He sighed as I sat down next to him, looking at the ground beneath him.
"Noire, I'm scared." I looked at him like he told me pigs could fly "Ever since Grim attacked us in Canterlot, I've felt myself feeling... insufficient. While all of you, Windy, Tidal, the princess, the elements, and you, all did your part to defend Equestria from Tirek, I was stuck lying on the ground, feeling helpless! It was just like..." He cut himself off there, feeling his anger getting the better of him. I placed a hand on his shoulder and immediately I understood in a short flash of memories.
"Master! Let me help you! I can help!"
"This is not your end, Iron Soul!"
Burning remained silent but noticed my saddened expression and the hand on his shoulder quickly being removed. He instantly connected the dots and realised what I saw "You now really understand what I am. The last member of the Burning Fist School, crushed by Sombra's power and have no right to pass on the torch or even bear its name..." He got up and walked out of the grounds, leaving me to contemplate my friend's struggle.
After his outburst, I left him be for a while and continued with my duties. However, that look of anger and self-loathing never left my mind. Even during the night that followed, I couldn't shake my concern. That's what drove me to research the Burning Fist School from whatever history books I could find from the library and find a way to help Burning become a master without having to pass a dumb test. "So, Burning is feeling unworthy of being the last user because of his failures and not being a master?" Cadance asked in our study. Yeah, our study. While I wasn't pretending to be princess and captain anymore, there should have been no need for a study, but I still wanted to help Cadance however I could, so I moved a desk into her study and helped her out from time to time. It really helped lighten up the mood during the daily grind. "It does seem unfortunate that the rules dictate that only a master can pass on the teachings of the Burning Fist, but no matter what either of us say, he'll never disobey that rule. To him, it would be like betraying his masters and peers." She was right, Burning would have never gone back on that rule, even if it killed him.
"There's got to be another way to become a master then besides completing a test," I wondered "If only this stupid book would give me a clue as to how their teachings worked at least. Whoever these guys were, they were not the most inclusive." I was about to give up on this book, 'The Fist of Dragons: The History', presuming I had taken the wrong book, until I found myself on an eye-catching page. It's contents included a wheel of several animals and an earth pony doing step-by-step movements, each representing one of the animals. I looked at the movements with curiosity.
"Well you have sparred with him a lot. More than, most. Did you pick up on any trends?" I thought about it for a while, the common threads started to untangle as the moves displayed began to become more coherent. The attacks he used in every fight; attacks mimicking animals like monkeys, tigers, even a dragon when he gets serious. The same moves I was staring at in the book. The page across from it had my final piece of the puzzle to helping Burning with his only wish.
'Ashen Flame, the first student of the Burning Fist School to become a master, not by mastering all techniques and passing the required test, but by inventing a new technique. The Burning Fist: Dragon.'
"That's it!" I exclaimed, standing up abruptly, almost startling Cadance with my sudden outburst, but before she could question me further, I gave a quick peck on the cheeks "Thank you, Cady! You're the best! Got to go, bye!" I said, rushing out of the room, leaving Cadance to her paperwork. She cutely pouted her lips and puffed her cheeks as I left.
"Just the cheek?" she said, dissatisfied, but her attention was quickly turned to her cheek, rubbing it affectionately "He called me 'Cady'..."
As I expected, Burning was still in the training grounds, practising. However, from someone who knew how Burning fought, it was obvious his wild attacks looked more like an attempt at catharsis. The flames from his fists felt weaker as he struck the empty air, and his frustrated expression grew tighter as he noticed the emptiness of his opponent. That was when I decided to approach him. "You're not going to get much of a workout from the air," I said as I summoned my sword and got into my stance "Why not fight against something that can fight back?" Burning was silent as he stared at me "Or are you going to run away from me too?" That got his gears turning. His right fist became cloaked in a roaring flame and he got into position "Good." Without any words left to exchange, we began.
"Burning Fist: Monkey!" He leapt forward with great speed, closing the distance in an instant "Tiger!" he almost struck me with a flaming claw but a simple step to the side left his attack useless "Horse!" he got on both hands and kicked me in the stomach with both feet. His strike sent me backward a few feet, but I held strong. I could tell he was trying to finish this fight as quickly as possible as he prepared another attack, not giving me room to breathe "Snake!" he extended his arms outward and the flames were sent out like whips, wrapping around my arms. He bought the whips back to him, sending me flying towards him. He was about to hit me with a flaming claw but I teleported out of the way, moving to the air. I retaliated with a few magic blasts to keep Burning at bay for a while, but he was relentless, punching through my attacks while trying to catch me with his flames.
"I've never seen him this aggressive. Has he been keeping all this rage inside for over a thousand years?" I thought to myself, but I had no time for idle thoughts as Burning charged his feet with flames and leapt to the sky to meet me. Before he could deliver a powerful kick to my face, I blocked with the Gardnablade, and flung him back down to the ground.
"I'm assuming that was your Burning Fist: Rabbit, right?" Burning looked up to me in surprise "I'll tell you how I know if you can beat me." I came back to the ground, transforming the Gardnablade into the Duoblades and began my counterattack. I threw my left blade at him, which he also barely dodged, and began pressuring him with a flurry of attacks. Burning got into a defensive stance and blocked them all, albeit with a lot of effort.
"Burning Fist: Ox!" his whole body became wrapped in flames, forcing me to back off. He charged at me with both fists reeled back but a sharp sensation rang through his back. He stopped and looked back to see my second blade, glowing a royal blue, wedged in his back. He grabbed the blade and removed it but was surprised to see no wound left.
"I figured it was time to change my style a bit. My Phantom Excalibur has evolved even further now." I levitated both blades into the air and summoned four more of them, having them form a ring around my back "Final Decode: Phantom Crown," I charged at him with all six blades in tow and assaulted with attack after attack. With Phantom Crown, I was able to use my magic draining ability much more effectively. With each strike, his flames shrunk until I sent all of them towards his chest in a horizontal buzz-saw shape, pushing him back a few feet and off his feet. However, instead of using this moment to teleport to him, and forcing him to yield with a blade at his throat, I waited. Burning was laying on the cold hard ground, staring at nothing.
BURNING POV
Laying on the ground, I found myself in the same position as when I was in the Crystal Empire. The darkness that had consumed my vision for what seemed like eternity and the helplessness that followed. When the black faded away, I was left with an illusion of my own master, looking down on me like filth. That illusion was replaced with Noire's expression of what felt like disappointment. "If you can't even beat your junior, maybe I should tell the princess one of her generals has resigned," I stared wide-eyed at him, wondering if that was yet another illusion made by my mind "We haven't gotten any closer to even putting a dent in Grim's plans. These months have probably been nothing but a game for him. However, the games are over. I know that, He knows I know that, and he will come at us seriously next time. We can't afford to take another step back any longer or it will be the death of all of us. So, I'm giving you two options: stand up and fight me or stay there and rot away in your own self-loathing. No-one can pick you back up except for yourself." The illusion of my master appeared in front of me once again, reaching his hand towards me with a gentler look. That calloused hand that taught me everything I knew to this day. I wanted to feel its rough texture once more. I reached my hand to grasp his own, only for it to slip through his ghastly limb. My hand hit the ground in a clenched fist. I was not mad that I had lost my master, I was mad that I was the only one left. I was alone. Noire was right. No-pony was going to save me. No amount of sentimentality was going to magically lift me off my feet like angels. I had to get up and rejoin my new friends, my new family, in the fight against the very thing my school stood against.
"RAH!" With one mighty battle cry, I rose to my feet, flames roaring from my arms. I howled to the sky, as if I was speaking to all the lost souls I had let down for so many years. I charged forward at Noire with the last embers of my strength, fuelled by my own determination. We both knew this was the final attack. I was at my limit, and if I missed this chance, I would most definitely lose. Noire readied his swords, charging them with magic, and charged forth to meet me.
"Burning Fist: Phoenix!"
"Blade Emperor!"
CADANCE POV
I was preparing for a night's rest until a heard a loud explosion ringing throughout the castle. I immediately tracked Noire and Burning's magic to the training grounds, and teleported there to assess the situation. It was as I feared. They had both gone over-board again. A gigantic hole was left in the wall, scorching with flames. Burning was on the ground, unconscious, while Noire was looking wide-eyed, shocked out of his senses by the attack that only managed to scorch a bit of his hair.
"That missed me by hair..." he murmured, barely noticing me. However, he managed to regain his senses as he turned to face me, glaring at him intensely. He sheepishly rubbed the back of his head. "So... the lounge?"
"The lounge," I said through gritted teeth.
BURNING POV
When I came to, I was laying in my bed. The results of last night's battle had still left me exhausted and sore all over. "By Faust, Noire could have gone a bit easier on me," I said as I surveyed the damage. Luckily, I didn't have any new scars or broken bones to worry about.
"Don't worry. I stopped my attack before it hit." I looked to the doorway to find Noire, standing outside "May I?" he asked, to which I nodded. He walked in and sat beside me while I twisted myself out of the sheets so I could sit in front of him "So, how much of last night do you remember?" His question rose some alarm. I could only remember the fight up until I got hit with his swords. "After I knocked you off your feet for a bit, you got up and charged at me with a flashy, new fist. I didn't know they taught you an attack like Burning Fist: Phoenix. Or maybe they didn't?" my eyes opened in disbelief. A new fist?
"I was never taught that, but how would you know that?" I asked.
"I did some digging and found that the techniques were based of the Chinese Zodiac from my world. Also, if that fist really is a new fist no-one's thought of before, you should be able to become a master." My incredulity only grew with each passing word. I was never told this alternative method, and it angered me to the extent that I thought for a moment that Noire was lying.
"Don't give me false hope by spouting lies, Noire!" I yelled, catching him, and even myself, off guard. However, Noire quickly steeled himself.
"'The Fist of Dragons: History'. Does that ring any bells?" It did, but my memory of its contents had become blurred in the many years I had gone without reading its contents. The thought of remembering my fallen comrades and the times we spent in training haunted me to the point I avoided it all together and hid it deep in the library "If you invent a new technique, you can become a master. There is still a chance for the school to return." At once, I felt memories I had hidden deep inside rush back to the surface like a flood. I heard my master's words, really heard him, grace my ears once again.
"I developed my own fist to gain my master flames." He once said during a training lesson, as he unravelled his bandages and revealed his flames, one of the many differences that separated the beginners from the elite. His flame markings grew to the ends of his fingers, almost cloaking them in black while ours were small and only covered our right hands "However, do not think that only the power of the body and mind are needed to truly expand this style of martial arts. You must also bear a strong and noble heart. One that leaves all hatred and confidence behind and embraces the true meaning of the Burning Fist"
"To burn away all hatred and evil. That is the way of the Burning Fist." I whispered to myself. It had become so much clearer. My self-loathing blinded me for so long, I had almost forgotten the way of my school, the school I swore to preserve until my final breath, and destroyed the last of it with my own hatred for myself. "I must thank you, Noire. You have saved the Burning Fist School from my own hatred. However, as for my master flames," I removed the bandages around my arms to see that my master flames still had not appeared, only my current, senior ones "I have still a long way to go to truly master this new technique. I hope that you will help me with this." Noire simply smiled and nodded. Before he left though, I still had one question for him.
"By the way, would you have seriously had me resign if I didn't get up?" Noire had a flash of concern on his face before looking a bit embarrassed.
"Most likely, but that was mostly Grim talking, heh," he chuckled before leaving the room.
Two days after my little brawl with Burning (and being banished to the lounge), I was finally staring upon my beginning and end. A large, wooden sign with 'The Emerald Standard' written in green cursive was hanging above me. The fanciest restaurant in the Empire, deserving of its reputation due to the chattering of many, both inside and outside of the building. "You know, most first dates on Earth comprise of a coffee date, maybe a walk in the park or beach, or perhaps even a trip to the movies. This..." I gestured towards the restaurant, practically glowing with elitism "Is not what I was expecting at all." Cadance chuckled at my bewilderment and intimidated look. She was dressed in the very same red dress she showed to me over a week ago, however now I could take in all of its beauty, The red, silk dress clung to her figure tightly, allowing her curves to go noticed by everyone in the area. The dress was cut at the side, exposing a bit of her leg, which looked more toned than usual. "Has she been working out?" I thought before Cadance wrapped her arm around mine.
"Don't worry! You'll be fine. You've survived many foes and two nights without this fine ass to grope. Surely a fancy dinner wouldn't scare you, right?" she questioned me mockingly, poking at the antisocial college student that lurked within the man in the generic tuxedo.
"Of course I'm scared! But not for the reasons you think. I still feel like we should have brought Tidal along with us,"
"Nah. She hates place like these 'Which is kinda why I chose this place'. Plus, she said it was cool if I got my turn with you first. Now what are we waiting for? Let's get this date night on the roll!" She proceeded to grab my hand and whisk me away to what was going to be a magical night.
It was magical, all right.
TIDAL POV
As I stared at the ceiling of the medical ward, I thought back to my talk with Noire. The offer to join him on a date with Princess Cadance, my refusal and the immediate regret that I felt in my chest once he left. At the time, the news of my growing 'child' had been overwhelmed by what my past self thought to be more important. "Ugh." I groaned while Dr Curdle sat at her desk, probably experimenting with her new blood samples "What do you even do with the blood you collect anyway, Doc?" Curdle turned to me with a straight face.
"I try to understand my urges to curb them. Maybe then, I would feel a lot more comfortable going out without lusting for some unfortunate pony's neck. Of course, I drink some of it, but only in small doses. Long periods of time without it leave me very... hungry, no matter how much I eat," She shifted uncomfortably in her seat "So, what's got you so down, general?" She asked, begging to change the subject.
"Noire's going on a date tonight. With Cadance." I said, blushing slightly.
"And? With all that has happened, they deserve it. They've been so distracted with hunting down Grim and the problems of the empire that doing anything romantic was almost impossible," she replied.
"I know that. I just..." I couldn't finish. I felt like a schoolfilly around her crush. Utterly hopeless. I couldn't bring myself to say that I was jealous of Cadance. That she was a better choice than me. That Noire might understand this and drop me. I stood up with renewed determination "That's it! I'm going!" I said, grabbing Curdle's hands "And you're coming with me!" Curdle's bewildered expression slowly turned to one of pure terror.
"B-b-but I can't! I can't handle being around so many ponies!" she exclaimed as I carried her out of the ward. I was going to join them, no matter the cost.
NOIRE POV
I was right to be intimidated. The inside looked like I had stepped into a little slice of heaven. "Isn't this place just lovely?" Cadance said as I looked in shock at my venue for the night. The restaurant had quartz pillars decorated with flowers, in the centre was a fountain, even the waiters and waitresses were dressed like they belonged in the 1%, their uniforms practically glowed in the light of the chandeliers, which managed to blend perfectly with the natural backgrounds. If I had to describe more sparingly, I would compare it to a lounge in ancient Rome. A luxury reserved for Aphrodite and the divine like. No wonder Cadance loved the place so much. However, the place, at the time, felt overly gaudy to me. Like it was begging for me hate it more openly, for everyone to hear and berate me for seeing it from such a commoner perspective.
"Yeah... 'lovely'" I responded, trying desperately to hold back my sarcasm. Fortunately, it went unnoticed and we proceeded, being escorted to our table, eloquently dressed by the fountain "Jesus, even the tables are dressed better than me. What next? Are the menus going to be encrusted with amethysts?" I thought to myself.
"We are happy to be serving two of the Crystal Empire's most important ponies- I apologise- pony and human," our waiter corrected himself "Your menus. May you have a fine evening." As he excused himself, I couldn't help biting my tongue once I saw that the menus he gave us were encrusted with not amethysts, but gold. Fricking gold!
"So, Noire? What are you going to order?" Cadance asked me, happily searching through her options. I shock myself from my thoughts and opened the menu, trying to find something reasonable to eat. The food options, much like everything in my new hell, were infuriating. Most of the courses were incomprehensible to the human eye, written in some deviation of French, but even harder to translate. I tried my hardest to find the most comprehensible word on the menu and, luckily, two managed to stick out. Just in time as well as our waiter had quickly returned, ready to take our orders.
"Are you both ready to order?" he asked, notepad at the ready.
"Yes, May I have the Nicoise salad with a baguette and butter?" Cadance ordered
"I think I'll have the Caesar salad with sweet potato frites, please," I added.
The waiter quickly jotted down our orders and politely exited, leaving us to our devices. "You've been capturing a lot of attention. haven't you, Mr Popular~" Cadance teased as she glanced around her. I was so consumed by the restaurant that I had completely ignored the patrons, most of them staring at me with a mixed bag of faces: some in awe, some concerned, some angry, even some flirty looks were sent my way but a quick turn over the shoulder from the princess was enough to banish those stares.
"Come on, they must be looking at you. I mean, you are their princess," I proposed as I looked for a drink.
"No, you 'come on,'. Ever since you saved Equestria from Tirek, you've been painted as a saviour. You've been the talk of the empire and beyond since." She was right. Ever since Tirek attacked, the guards have been more respectful compared to when I was just attached to Shining's right and maids have been giving me some... concerning looks. Probably a warning of things to come "Anyway, I was thinking of sharing some champagne. What do you think?" While we chatted away, I noticed a familiar presence, but was too concealed to distinguish. I brushed it off as nothing important and continued chatting.
TIDAL POV
"There they are," I whispered as Curdle and I sat at a nearby table, close enough to spy on their date but far enough so we weren't noticed by the couple. I was disguised in a long, sleeved, black dress with a black sun hat while Curdle was in a blue dress that clung to her tightly at her bust, exposing a lot of cleavage. Way too much. Curdle was constantly tugging at the dress, which looked like it was about to rip, and moving strands of hair out of her face. It was clear that she was incredibly uncomfortable.
"Now that you're here, can I leave? This dress is way too tight for me," she said, hiding her face from all who could see.
"No! You have to be here, so I don't chicken out!" I said, slamming my fist on the table "Besides, it's your fault you picked out a dress you wore during prom. When was that, nine years ago?"
"Eight! You don't have to make me sound so old! And speak for yourself!" she said, pointing to my whole ensemble "You look like somepony just died!"
"It's to conceal me!"
"You're literally the most noticeable thing in this restaurant!" She exclaimed, disrupting a few ponies. With fresh pair of eyes upon us, we apologised simultaneously and went back to our business. Fortunately, Cadance and Noire didn't notice us. "What are you even going to do now that you're hear? Just watch them like a weirdo for the rest of their date?" Curdle had brought up a good question. My decision to follow them was only motivated by regret and jealousy. Any semblance of planning had gone by the wayside until now.
"...Yes. It would be weird to just intrude on their date."
"But- EEP!" As Curdle lifted her arms in dramatic fashion, the bust line of her dress started to sink, allowing her breasts to move upward, almost exposing everything. She quickly stuffed them back into the tight space and let out a relieved sigh "This is so stupid."
"You are unusually aggressive today. What's going on with you?"
Curdle frowned and rested her head in her hands "Besides the fact that I have been strung along by a hormone-driven, socially incompetent idiot on her stalking mission, I haven't had any blood yet, so your neck is starting to look very delectable right now," I covered my neck with a hand, now fearing the consequences of my actions much more than before "In addition, Ayra and I were supposed to be hanging out right about now," she had said that with a less angry tone, beginning to simmer down as she looked out the window wistfully.
"Cadance's personal maid? I didn't know you two were hanging out."
"Never asked," Curdle simply answered, looking back to me "So, for both your sake and mine, please just go to them and talk before you make yourself look like more of an idiot than you appear to be right now." She had made her point clear. Clear enough for me to realise what I was doing.
"Yeah... I should have just been more honest with myself. I feel like an idiot now. I'll just go talk to them for a bit and be on my way." Just as we were about to stand up, we heard a loud 'Hey!' coming from behind us. We turned to face the origin of the noise to find a young couple with their waitress, looking very displeased.
"What are you doing at our table!?" The mare asked angrily.
NOIRE POV
I was finally able to relax more. After talking for a bit, I began to experience the restaurant's beauty in a much better light. I could begin to smell the fresh food coming from the kitchen and other tables, giving off a relaxing air, and the flower arrangements gave so much more life to the white quartz like a painting. I could finally enjoy a simple dinner with my marefriend. At least until a loud 'Hey!' could be heard from across us. Both of us were distracted by our talk to see a couple with their waitress arguing with a weird pair of mares.
"What are you doing at our table?" A mare asked angrily, staring at them with malicious intent. Both the mares stood from their seats and tried backing away, but the mare was having none of it.
"Honey, I think they are backing off. You can calm down now," the stallion beside her said meekly, but the mare quickly shut him up.
"No! Our date night has gone terribly. Our carriage broke down, my heel broke, I got splashed on our way here and now some whorses in terrible fashion have stolen our table. I won't calm down!" She exclaimed as she walked towards the mare in the blue dress "Do you how much I've waited for this! Don't get in our-" she was quickly interrupted by the mare's bust beginning to rise until her breasts completely spilled out for everyone to see. The snooty mare was left silent as she backed away from the mare and returned to her shy husband, blushing a deep crimson. The most I could hear from her was that "They're bigger than mine" as she looked down to her inferior rack. The mare in blue tried to cover herself in the dress once more but in was no use. The dress was stuck and not daring to move. The mare screamed in embarrassment and ran away with her face in her hands. She was so distracted by her shame that she didn't notice she was running straight towards us, and tripped right into the water fountain, drenching both me and Cadance with the resulting splash. I was mostly okay, however, Cadance was less fortunate. Her mane was completely drenched, clinging to her face, and her dress was soaked. As for the mare, she was discovered to be our resident doctor, Curdle. Her long, dripping mane obscured her vision, not allowing her to see while she attempted to get out. She tripped on the edge of the fountain once again and fell directly onto out table, spilling its contents. Fortunately, that time, we both stood up before we could be hit again, but Cadance's dress was covered in salad, as was my suit pants. Once we were sure the storm was behind us, I went to go help Curdle to her feet.
"Allow me to help," I said, offering her my hand. Explanations would come later.
"Oh, thank you, Noire. Faust, why does this happen every time I go out? This is why I never leave the castle," she said, covering her chest. I took off my jacket and covered her with it to salvage the situation.
The mare in black ran over to us, who was also revealed to be Tidal "Curdle! Are you okay!?" she asked. Now I was just more confused as the scene continued to play out in baffling fashion.
"Yeah, but I could with a bath, and some new clothes. This one's going to the fire," she said with spite as she buttoned the tux. As this continued, I realised Cadance's lack of inclusion in what was happening. She was still stuck by the fountain, drenching, with her mane covering her face. However, I could hear her mumbling to herself.
"My first date in a year... ruined..." I went over to her to check if she was alright, but she simply teleported all of us out of the restaurant. Leaving the patrons in a haze of confusion. The door would later swing open to reveal an angry chef, looking out at the remnants of the chaos we had left.
"Ce qui c’est passé!"
We arrived at the door to our room, soaked and dishevelled, however, that was not any of our concerns at the time as we waited with baited breath for Cadance to say something, anything, to relieve the tension. "I'm going to take a shower and go to bed to forget this ever happened. I suggest you all do the same," and with that, she turned away, entering the room and slamming the door shut with enough force to leave cracks throughout the frame.
"Yeah, I'm going to take that advice. I'll see you all tomorrow," Curdle said, walking away. That only left Tidal and I standing by the entrance. Tidal was looking down at the ground, playing with her hands while I was terrified of the horrors that awaited when I entered that room. Silence reigned like a tyrant for what felt like eternity until Tidal decided to speak up.
"I'm sorry for all the trouble I've caused you both. I don't know what made me follow you two: my idiocy, the hormones, but I-"
"It's okay." Tidal paused, looking to me to check my face. I was smiling a bit, though mostly due to anxiety "We'll talk tomorrow. For now, let's just get some rest. It's been a night." Tidal silently nodded and we both wished each other good night. A lingering thought pestered my mind once I entered, removing my cold, wet clothes "Maybe I should've kissed her good night?" I wondered as I walked into the bathroom with Cadance. She was in the shower, cleaning off all the food that had gotten on her. I snuck my way in and embraced her. However, she didn't even seem to notice as she lost in her own thoughts.
"You okay?" I asked, curious about how she was feeling after that whole debacle.
"I'm fine, just disappointed. This was supposed to be our first date. Faust, we've been together for 3 months and we've never gone on a single trip outside the castle, not even a coffee break!" She flew her arms in the air and stormed out of the shower in a huff. However, it was hard to focus on her being angry after watching her exit without even a bathrobe, but I still followed her to the bed, where she laid, face down in submission. "This was supposed to be our night..."
"These were a very hectic three months though. Megalomaniacs, changelings, dragons, defending Equestria and beyond even our own failure to communicate. We've had to deal with a lot of stuff, but it has made us a stronger pair, and true, our date ended... unfortunately..." Cadance let out a loud groan "But it was pretty nice having some time to ourselves, wasn't it?" She remained silent "Plus, I think Curdle had a way worse night than us." I was relieved to hear a small giggle coming from the sheets "Oh? Does our princess like her subjects humiliated? Maybe she should be punished~" I grabbed her by her sides and began tickling her relentlessly. Cadance caved before me, twisting and turning to get me off, laughing hysterically. I finally stopped and we both laid down, holding each other.
"Tidal made a pretty big mess, but on the bright side, I think we all are starting to get herd life isn't just love with inclusion," She said with a soft yawn "But that can wait for tomorrow, Goodnight, my love."
The morning after our unfortunate evening, the signs of awkwardness was plain to see. Apparent from the moment our eyes crossed. Tidal looking at me, Me looking at Cadance, Cadance looking at Tidal. There was an instant kind of tension that drained the life out of a room, making it difficult to breathe, let alone talk to alleviate said tension. The most we could muster was a 'good morning' with a nod of our heads and head in our own directions. However, this type of suspense doesn't fade with simple words. Especially when the cause is walking beside you. "Shoot! I forgot I promised to help Tidal train the unicorn corps," I thought to myself loudly. Sometime during the encounter, Tidal had taken the place of Cadance as we made our way to the training grounds, and I was left struggling for a place to start. "So..."
"Goddess, I must have royally fucked up if 'so' is where we're starting."
The words that I wanted to say whimpered in my throat as they begrudgingly crept out of my mouth "Yeah, anyway, now that we're clean and rested, we can talk. What happened back there? I thought you didn't want come?" I asked her, a tint of annoyance colouring my voice. Tidal had shrunk at my tone.
"It was all my fault. I was jealous and stupid and hormonal so I just dragged Curdle with me so I could watch you two," I raised an eyebrow in confusion "I know, it was stupid! Curdle even called me out on my bullshit before that couple came in. So, if you want to dump my fucking stupid ass, I won't-" I stopped her with a kiss. I remember seeing mom do it with dad when he was angry. In hindsight, probably not a great influence but it did the trick. Tidal quickly sank into it and it wasn't long before we were hiding in a conveniently placed closet. I was dying to get underneath her armour but there were still roadblocks. Make-outs don't solve all our problems, but at least it solved Tidal Horn's dirty language. We were like that for quick five minutes before I broke the kiss. "I didn't know you had such a dirty mouth on you," I said, wiping a trail of saliva from her lips.
"Sorry," she apologised, turning away to hide her blush "Terrible orphanages. You might know how it goes."
"I might," I said, holding her soft cheeks in my hands, gently turning her to face me "However, I want you to know that you aren't second best in this relationship just because I fell for you after Cadance. Hell, you tackled me off a cliff while I was 'Grim'ing all over the place, and I can't thank you enough for doing that. Yeah, having to share myself between you two may be difficult but we'll manage eventually. Until then, we'll have to manage with Cady sneaking into your bed when I'm sleeping with you and vice versa." Those words seemed to touch her heart just as much as they touched mine as she trapped me in a tight, but warm hug.
"Thanks for calming me down. However, don't let this fool you into thinking you're my equal now. You're still my rookie."
"We'll see when we get to the training grounds who's the rookie," I said mockingly as I teleported the both of us there. To avoid being noticed and all.
With yesterday's incident officially behind Tidal and I, we were able to give our all against Burning. Both her and I promised to help him perfect this new technique he had stumbled upon. However, it was clear from the start that he had no memory of doing it or any knowledge on how. That left us at a stand still.
Tidal paused her 'sparring' match with Burning as she saw no need to continue a pointless fight. I use 'sparring' very sparingly as her form of sparring was rather intense, throwing several magic attacks to goad the power out of him. I was even forced to make a magic barrier to prevent the other soldiers from being hit by a stray blast. The result was an exhausted Burning and a heavily damaged sparring area. "This is getting us nowhere. Without any knowledge on how this technique works, all we're doing is beating the crap out of each other. Noire, you were there when he did it. Do you remember anything about it?" she asked. I looked up at nothing as I thought back to that final attack.
"Burning Fist: Phoenix" Burning yelled as he charged at me. The flames his fist emitted were small, but they were hot enough to feel from a large distance. The flames were shot forward, taking the shape of a small bird. I had immediately stopped my attack, feeling as though it was excessive, and also due to the pure fear that coursed through me as the bird flew towards me, melting the very ground beneath it. I felt the fire graze my skin, burning the side of my face, and crashing into the nearby wall, leaving behind a large hole. I stared back at the hole left behind by his attack, like a bullet hole.
"It was the density..." Burning and Tidal looked at me in confusion "I'm not an expert on magic, but the attack seemed to follow code magic principles. Highly condensed magic." I said, rubbing my left cheek, remembering the intense heat that left it slightly burnt, but would heal. I turned to Burning "If you can match the same density of flames as you did back then, then maybe you can master Burning Fist: Phoenix and get your master flames," Tidal was about to enter the conversation when she saw a group of earth pony soldiers lazing about. Some seemed to be taking an interest in her assets as we could hear the cliché question asked by all young males about any above average female.
"Would you tap that?" I was tempted to put them in line myself, but that would draw suspicion I didn't think Tidal would want. Plus, she could handle herself
"Excuse me, I think I should deal with your goofs personally before you do," she said before making her way to the now scared stiff soldiers. Burning and I went back to our discussion, with the berating of a ill-tempered general in the background. Some may find it distasteful, but to me, it's her greatest quality.
"About your theory, condensing my fire, that may prove to be more dangerous than fruitful," I raised a brow in confusion "While unicorns and pegasi have a direct connection to their magic, allowing them to use it actively, earth pony abilities are purely passive, leaving us with no direct method to draw upon our magic."
"What about your mark?" I asked.
"Yes, the mark of flames is, in a way, an apparatus which allows us to use magic. The problem is the technique is highly dangerous for our race." Burning drew a body in the dirt with his finger and laid out several dots in the body "The mark allows us to use our 'magic paths', points in which magic flows in a more concentrated state. We unlock certain paths to augment certain abilities, the fire is a simple side effect, the concentrated magic being released. For example, certain paths in the arms can improve strength while others can improve striking speed. The issue is that if magic were to be more concentrated in a path, it may not be able to withstand it, causing a disruption and..." He drew a hard line straight through the arms "exploding..." I shuddered at the images of his arms exploding during our fight. That left us with another road block, finding a safe way of mastering this new technique.
"It would need to be released quickly then, building it up at the end of the path and released. Leaves a lot of room for inaccuracy, but that would have to be improved with practice," I muttered as I stared back at the sketch. However, I saw that persistent look of worry on the general's face.
"I'm not that good with precise magic control though."
"That's why you asked for our help." Tidal walked back towards us, with the soldiers from earlier gone, probably dead. I don't know; I never saw them again and Tidal refuses to tell me what she did "You've got a unicorn general with years under her belt and a rookie with a fairly good idea on the nature of condensed magic. If anypony or human can figure it out, it's us three."
"Four!" A wild Windy entered the conversation from above, giving us all a fright "I'm good with that stuff too! Plus, why would you leave me out of a growing experience? We all need to get better if we want to stick it to Grim and his lackeys,"
"As much as I hate to admit it, he's right. If we all learn from this we could become even more powerful," Tidal said, letting out a sigh "However, if we want to do this, we should probably do it in a less populated area," she added pointing to the hole in the wall, begging to be included "I don't think we want anything like that going in any vulnerable areas." A loud ringing sounded through the grounds, initiating the next shift and corps to take over the training grounds. As the earth pony corps filed out of the area, the pegasi corps filed in, carrying their weapons in hand, ready to shoot.
"We should do this after after heat though. Wouldn't want to be around 'Typhoon Tidal', let alone training around her. With weapons," Tidal stared daggers into the poor stallion as he waved us goodbye, casually flying away to guide his corps. He was right again. Heat was starting next week and stallions were already organising hiding places, evident by the dwindling number of stallions in the city, moving of supplies out of the empire.
"Anyway, I got a hot bod to guard so I'll see you both later," I said as I teleported myself to the throne room, where Cadance was already waiting, fake smile at the ready, to greet the recurring crowd of idiots. As I made may way to her throne, standing beside her, a thought wormed it's way into my head "The norm's starting to look pretty nice right now."
NIGHT-TIME
As the sun began to set on Equestria, giving way to the rising moon. I looked in awe of what I was going to be cuddling tonight. Tidal had just walked out of her personal bathroom already in a pair of blue panties and a black sweater saying 'Keep me warm tonight'. "What are you gawking at, rookie~?" She said teasingly, striking a pose. I could feel my groin grow a few sizes bigger beneath the shorts I was wearing. The only thing I was wearing.
"You," I said simply, as I strolled over to the bed, laying into the comfy mattress and hiding myself underneath the blanket "Now let me keep you warm tonight~" Tidal grinned and joined me in the bed and we laid together in perfect silence, with only each other's warmth and a ray of moonlight illuminating our huddled bodies. However, the temptation of the body in my arms was too much to handle for me. My hands were unexpectedly moving across her torso, down to her waist, and slithered under her sweater where her soft, purple fur was found. I could hear her stifled moans as I rested my hands on her breast. 'She's not wearing a bra.' I thought as I continued to feel her mounds. It wasn't just them: my whole body wanted a piece. My head found solace, perched upon her shoulder as a hand strayed from Tidal's breast, making its own way down to wear her panties. I stopped for a moment, allowing my conscious to return. I didn't want to take the next step until i got her approval. My lips parted as the words 'May I?' began to form in my throat, but a voice pierced through the silence, forcing the words back down.
"What's stopping you? You know she wants it," With my sense restored, the feeling of another's hands became noticeable. I turned my head to find exactly who I expected. Cadance laid by my side, with a ugly grin on her muzzle. Had this been a few weeks ago, I may have been surprised, however, I knew this was coming since the moment she called me out for my crush on Tidal at Twilight's. At that point, I would compare to that nosey mom who innocently cuts into a make-out session and instantly ruins the mood. 'Fortunately, she's not my mom,' I thought as I gently flicked her on the forehead.
"I know you like watching young couples like some voyeur, but can I get some privacy? We talked about this," I said in a bemused tone. Cadance took the hint and got up from the bed.
"Okay, Casanova, you do you. I can wait until heat to get in a nice threesome. Have a nice night, you two~" she sing-songed. As I heard the relieving sound of a door closing, Tidal let out a tired sigh.
"I knew she was going to do something like this," she said, finally turning around to face me "I wonder if she'll do this to any other mare you fall for," She mused as she felt my body. Her hands glided down my torso, making sure to grab a quick pinch at my nipples, until she found my underwear. We were stuck in animation, our hands paused at each others hidden treasures. We waited for one of us to break the silence and give the thumbs up. "You're... quite big..." Tidal murmured barely above a tone that I could hear.
"Really? I've always thought myself as 'below average'," I said to myself "Wait, how do you know? Is this not..." I trailed off.
"No, still a virgin. A mare just knows, not that it matters how big you are. You are still my little rookie~" She teased. A tint of red tinted my cheeks. That nickname still had some magical effect on me. "So, should we cut with the light fondling and get to the good stuff," She lifted her sweater off and tossed it away, allowing her breasts to finally be gazed upon. I could also feel her legs jimmy their way out of her remaining clothing. She was a mare on a mission tonight, and she wanted to score.
'Christ. she can be really forward when wants to be, can't she?' Of course she could. She was Tidal Horn: Unicorn general, water magic prodigy, and my marefriend. I quickly grabbed the hem of my shorts and forced them off me as quickly as I humanly could, and pounced. The blanket covering both of us fell to the ground and a breeze lifted the window curtain. In brief moments where the moonlight passed through the curtain, it gifted us the sight of our naked forms. Tidal breasts were the perfect size, and the dark purple areolas only enhanced their beauty. Further down was her dark purple pussy. It looked like a flower, her wet folds blowing like petals. However, I can't say that I noticed any of these until the next morning, as all I could see was her. Those sparkling eyes that complimenting the dim light of the moon. "God, your beautiful," flew out of my mouth without warning.
"You too, sexy. Now don't play with me, rookie. I want you inside me; right here, right now," she said as she looked at me with a determined expression, then down to my dick, which was already grazing the entrance of my lips. All I had to do was thrust. Tidal took a deep breath, preparing herself for what was sure to come, and gave me a look, telling me to start. I leaned into her as I gave her a soft kiss, and pushed myself inside. I didn't stop, even as I felt the wall of her hymen tear and break. A squeal of pleasure and pain rang through my throat as Tidal felt my length fill her. I also had to get accustomed to the new space my cock found itself in. Unlike Cadance, her entrance was new, untouched, tight, very, very tight. "Fuck, it hurts so much... but feels so good~" She said as she broke our kiss "Don't move for a bit. Still need to get used to you." Whether by impulse or cruelty, her pussy decided to clench themselves around my member.
"Hnn! Jesus, you're tight!" I groaned.
Tidal kissed me on the cheek "Poor rookie. Don't worry, you'll have lots of opportunities to stretch me out in the future." She let out a sigh of relief as I could feel her relax "I'm ready." That was all I needed to hear. I retreated from her vagina until only my tip was left inside before filling her back up again. The moans that came from her lips were like a siren song, dragging me back into her depths. "Oh Faust! Faster! Harder, rookie!" I obeyed her command, hilting myself inside her with gusto. Tidal's arms found their way around my neck and locked me tightly in her death grip of passion as I continued thrusting. As we continued like that for who knows how long, I began to lose stamina, easing up on her bit by bit. As my pace became more tame, a frown formed on Tidal's face. "You must be tired after such a long day, aren't you, rookie?" She cupped my left cheek with a hand "Don't worry. I never intended on allowing you to be on top forever anyway~" With a simple turning motion, she found herself on top, like a queen of the hill, staring at me like a piece of meat. Speaking of, mine was exposed to the cold air as its warm home hovered above it like bait. Any attempt to take back the space was left futile as I was held tightly within a blue glow, restricting my movement. "I'm sure Cadance has had a hell of a time riding this. Now's my turn." With that, she dropped herself onto my member with all her might.
"FUCK!" I swore, both out of the pain coursing through my pelvis, and the intense pleasure overtaking me once again. She mockingly grinded on me, moving her hips around like a belly dancer before she continued making me hers. I was too far in Candyland to moan, much less speak as she bounced on me, all the while her mad grin being the only thing I could see. "How *pant* are you *pant* so good at this! Ugh!" I managed to say before another slamming sensation knocked the wind out of me yet again.
"Talent *pant* rookie," she answered, trying to hide her exhaustion. I wasn't the only one who had a long day, clear by the mare's sweaty face. She was beginning to lose to her endurance, but Tidal's willpower was something to be feared. She fell onto me, her magic hold on me failing in tow. However, that didn't stop her her from continuing her service. I decided that I had enough cooldown and added my own thrusts to the tune. Both our eyes were clenched shut as we felt a long awaited climax. Feeling our bodies next to each other, smelling our sweat and pre juices, hearing the sound of clapping as our members fought to be the last one to cum. This was pure bliss.
"Shit, I'm close!" I said, going even faster "Where do you-" Tidal cut me off by grabbing me once again, keeping me from pulling out.
"Inside! I'm not wasting my first stallion's seed!" She exclaimed. With one final meeting, we both came (Though Tidal still claims that I bowed out first) and fell into each other's embrace. The feeling of my cum filling her was one I would never forget, but more than that, I will never forget what Tidal had said next.
"Okay, maybe 'rookie' isn't an appropriate nickname for you... 'cause that load was anything but small."
I immediately told her to forget that. I was her 'rookie' now and forever.
On these occasions, where mares run around the city, looking for their prey, you would think stallions would be elated to have a mare hop on them, however, after many injured, raped, and one casualty (Don't ask how. That information is still confidential to this day), mares in heat, in the eyes of the male population, appear less like figures of desire and more like sex zombies. Fortunately, laws have been put in place to prevent any other incidents from happening. Just the standard, like no sexual action can be taken without consent, any injury caused by sexual acts can result in charges if the victim wants to, and the like. However, the anxiety that lingers in the air for that week is to dense to cut, and it can simply take one wrong step, one slip of the tongue, for those rules to come crashing down.
"STOP SPACING OUT, ROOKIE!" A frustrated general yelled as I narrowly ducked under an incoming attack. This performance had been constant for days after heat week started. I had already slept with Cadance more times then I had fingers, but Tidal remained firm by her stubbornness. She refused any kind of relief, saying something along the lines of "I'm fine!" with a touch of strain and dismissal. I love her, truly, but those stubborn streaks can really wear down a guy's patience. I could tell it was putting much more of a strain on Tidal too as her legs were shaking as her eyes began to leer at my lower body. I sighed mentally and took the opportunity to sweep her legs and have her by the neck.
She was a mess; uncombed mane, untucked uniform, sweat, sweat everywhere. One would think she walked out of a tornado by her unkempt state. "Tidal, I love you, but this is too much. Your sweating so much, you might have left a trail coming out of your room. Now will you come with me to bed so we can deal with this?" Tidal silently nodded and stretched her hands, motioning me to carry her. As expected, she was unable to walk. I dissipated my sword and carried her, bridal style, out of the training grounds, ignoring all the stares we received on the way out. It was not like we were trying to hide it anyway.
TIDAL POV
I thought that Noire would take me back to my room so I could wash myself off at least, however, he had taken me to the last place I wanted to be in the world. "Oh, hi Noire! Hi Tidal! I knew you would buckle! Come, let's have some fun~" the pink mare leaned over the bed frame, champagne bottle in hand.
"Why the hell would you take me to this drunken idiot!?" I yelled incredulously.
"Be nice. You two are herdmates now. You're going to have to learn to get along eventually," he reprimanded "Come on. Let's go give you a bath."
He led me into the bathroom and began to take off my armour, piece by piece. He knew either of us could magic it off as we pleased, but he was enjoying his temporary power over me, and afraid as I am to admit it, I was enjoying it too. Once I was completely naked, I used the last of my strength to walk into the tub while Noire stripped down as well. While he removed his armour, I used my magic to fill the tub with warm water, a great benefit of being part of my family. Noire joined me in the tub, sitting behind as he took a bar of soap and scrubbed my back. The water loosened my muscles as I relaxed for the first time in days. I grabbed another bar and washed my front, moving up from my feet to my torso. I was about to wash my breasts when Noire cut in, groping both in his soapy hands. He gently massaged them, drawing circles around my areolas with his thumbs, trying to get a rise out of me. I tried to hold in my moans of pleasure, but as I felt my nethers swell, I let out a satisfied sigh as I came.
"That was a good performance, however, I think there's someone who needs my attention, don't you think?" I teased, feeling Noire's cock rub against my ass. Noire tensed up as I lessened the gap between us, sandwiching his dick between his skin and my fur. "Ever since our first time, I've been wondering how it would feel: having your cock deep inside a different hole~" I began shaking my ass, sending waves of pleasure through his body. I grinned as he let out a shudder, and gripped my cheeks like they were the last thing he'd feel. His groans began more guttural and his hold more fierce, signalling he was getting close. Before he could release, I stopped and turned to face him, his face a mix a pleasure and disappointment.
"Why did you-"
"The only place you get to cum is in my ass today. I'm not so sex-drunk that I immediately ask for babies I don't really want yet, nor do I want to get dirty just after you cleaned me up." I was surprised at how put together I was compared to a few minutes earlier. Sure, I was still going to ride that precious, even if a little weird-looking, cock until we both couldn't walk, but at least I was going to be more sober when I did. "Now, let's get out of here before we turn into prunes," I said as I got out of the bath and took a spare robe. Noire followed close behind as we exited.
CURDLE POV
Ayra and I were hanging out in her own quarters today, something about me needing to get away from all the chemicals and blood for a bit. I was a bit hesitant at first, but talking to her was a great distraction from the heat between my legs. "And then I fell into the water fountain..." I finished as I watched Ayra's face turn red and burst into a fit of laughter. I had just finished telling her how stalking on Noire and Cadance's date went, and I swear, there was some sort of glow to her, even in her changeling disguise, even as she fell of her chair, arms flailing everywhere. Something about how her smile framed her face made my face blush.
"Woah!" She tumbled and landed on her back, still giggling a bit from the hilarity of it all. I laughed at her embarrassing display, and helped her up. Once we had both calmed down, I asked her about her time as Cadance' maid. Her glow seemed to fade a bit as her smile started to strain. Her hands joined together as she started, a sign she was about to lie "Oh, I've had a great time here! Everypony is so nice and-"
"Ayra, did you know you clap your hands together when you lie?" I asked her. She looked down and saw exactly what I said. Her face fell as she slumped back in her chair, hiding her face from my view. "Remember what Noire and I said those months ago? That you can rely on us?" Ayra remined silent for a moment before she started confessing.
"I've been having some difficulties with the male guards. Some have been coming onto me, and it's been triggering flashbacks of that incident way back when." I clenched my fists in anger at the thought of one of those barbarians doing something remotely similar to what Ayra had experienced. It would've also been bad if they had discovered Ayra's identity as a changeling. She still didn't want that revealed, and we weren't going to push her to. "It's gotten to the point where I'm scared to even have another male around me, except for Noire and the other generals. I didn't want to say anything to avoid any confrontation, but you're probably going to do it anyway, aren't you?" She looked to me with reddened cheeks "I mean, you have expressed some interest in me ever since I came here." My face became a rosy tint as I realised that she could feel my emotions, that she knew , probably before even me, that I was in love with her.
"I was honestly surprised when I felt that surge of love coming from you for the first time. It was so potent that I didn't even need to feed off Cadance for a day or two. I kept coming back to get my fix, and not long after, I noticed you blushing every so often when we're together, and connected the dots. I was going to wait until you were ready to tell me, but I've found myself suddenly ready to tell you instead," a bead of sweat rolled from my forehead as Ayra took a long breath, preparing herself for what would come next "I-I love you, Curdle. I don't know what else to say except that. You don't need to respond right away," I was left speechless, unable to even breathe, much less respond "I made things awkward, didn't I? Sorry, you are the first person to feel this way about me so I'm not sure how to really do stuff like confessing." My mind may have failed me, but my heart and body were as fast as ever, maybe even faster. With little thought as to what I was doing, I tackled Ayra onto the bed, and layered her face with kisses. She let out a fit of giggles as I tickled her face. So much so that her disguise dissipated. Her fur gave way to a black carapace, and her eyes changed to a light blue. However, instead of her mane vanishing, leaving what was supposed to be black fins on her head, it turns to a web-like thickness, light blue with pale green streaks.
"You look even more beautiful without the disguise," I said, cupping her face with my hands, and kissing her on the forehead "Have you always looked like this though?" I asked, just realising this was the first time I had seen her changeling form.
"Look like what?" she asked in confusion. I let her go, allowing her to walk over to her mirror and get a good look at herself. She took a few steps back as she registered what she had become, her face trying to decide whether to be overjoyed or not. "I thought Chrysalis was here for a moment! Why do I look like this!?"
I took her by the hand ad led her back to the bed, the heat returning inn full force "Questions for later. For now, let's just enjoy this moment~" I said as I leaned in for another kiss. Ayra met me halfway, and we were practically joined as one, locking lips for the first time. We were going to enjoy this moment, as well as all the others we were to share together.
NOIRE POV
As Tidal and I exited the bathroom, we were quickly reminded of the drunken, horny princess we had left unattended. She was out of bed, completely naked, and eyed both of us like pieces of candy. "Yew shure like to keep a mare waitin', dontcha?" she slurred, stumbling over bottles to meet with us. However, it was all in vain as she stepped on a bottle, breaking it, and imbedding many shards in her foot. She didn't realise it immediately, but by the lack of pink in her face when she looked down, we both knew that she had picked her poison and painful, sobering pain, evident in one long, agonising scream that shook the castle to its core. Once her shout had subsided, we both took our hands off our ears and took one long look at each other.
"This has been a rough heat season for you, hasn't it" Tidal asked me, now beginning to notice my baggy eyes.
I silently nodded "Yeah... Fun fact: Alicorns may be difficult to get drunk, but their also difficult to sober up." I walked over to the drunk princess, laying on the floor, with a shards of glass lodged in her foot "Hold still, Cady. You did yourself no favours with this."
"No shit!" Cadance said through gritted teeth as I delicately removed each shard with my magic, and closing the wounds left behind. Once I had finished, I set her on the bed and kissed her on the cheek.
"I may have healed the wound, but I didn't take away the pain. You should keep off the floor for a while." I looked back to Tidal "You still want to stay?"
"And miss drunk Cadance in all her glory? You wish." As Tidal sat on my left on the bed, with Cadance on my right, we all basked in the silence of a peaceful moment. A moment quickly interrupted by a scream from outside, along with heavy footsteps. I quickly checked the hallway to find Ayra, not in her pony disguise, being chased by a group of guards, with Curdle on their tail.
"Tidal, stay with Cadance please. Ayra is in trouble." Before she could ask what was happening, I had already teleported away "Christ, it never ends," I thought.
"Could someone explain to me why in hell Ayra is now a changeling queen, and why our guards are chasing her halfway across Equestria!?" I asked as a carried an exhausted Curdle on my back. I had attempted several times to teleport in front to cut them off, but couldn't keep up with their pace, or risked being caught in their hoard. As we ran from hall to hall, eve more guards, both male and female were strangely draw into the mix like a snowball effect.
"I believe it's Ayra's pheromones making them go haywire. When she changed, I felt this wave of ectasy flowing through me, and I was about to... you know... well..."
"Rut her-" I finished for her.
"Yes, that, but then a bunch of guards burst in and tried to put their grubby hands on my mare!"
"Care to explain that?" I asked, giving her a mocking smirk. Curdle blushed and hid her face in my back.
"Care to stop them before they rape my marefriend!?" she rebutted. I relented and teleported to the end of the hallway we were in. I watched as the screaming, fledgling queen leapt behind me, and in that short second, I made a magic barrier, stopping them in their tracks. I let Curdle down, and she hugged the shaking changeling.
"What just happened?" Ayra said, barely in control of her panting breaths.
"Let's talk about that later. We're going to my room, and as for them," I directed myself to the guards, who were beginning to come out of their stupor "Take a breather, a cold shower preferably." With that, I teleported all three of us to my room where we could finally relax.
Once I was back, I witnessed the weirdest thing I have seen here to date; both of my marefriends, Tidal Horn and Princess Cadance, the most bitter, and petty, of rivals, locked in a passionate kiss. I would be lying if I said that didn't turn me on. Curdle and Ayra were also at a loss for words. What made the whole room turn even more awkward was that they didn't even notice us enter, forcing silence down our throats until we choked. We three all shared a look, begging for one of us to speak, however, the duty was on me, the boyfriend. I had to break the silence, breathing a new kind of awkwardness into the room in one, long, "Umm..."
Both mares snapped their necks at us, realising we were watching. "How long have you been there?" Tidal asked me.
"Depends. How long have you two been making out?"
Tidal and Cadance shared a long look of anxiety before Cadance answered "Five minutes or so."
"Then let's say two." Silence. "So~, we have a new development with our resident changeling," I directed them to Ayra's new form while Ayra shyly waved "Cadance, I don't suppose you could help her with her whole pheromone problem in private."
"Of course! Follow me, dear. We'll have you in control in no time!" Cadance took Ayra's hand and led her into the bathroom. Once the door shut, both Curdle and I let out a sigh of relief. My crotch felt ten times less hot, and I could see Curdle unknotting her legs. I could now focus on the unicorn in front of me, keeping her gaze away from me to hide her blushing cheeks.
"I thought this was the last place you wanted to be today," I said, sitting next to her "So were you lying to me or is there another explanation?" Tidal hit me in the face with a pillow.
"Oh cram it! You were the one who said I needed to get along with her!" Out of the corner of my eye, I saw Curdle exiting the room. I remained silent, waiting for her to give as I knew a response would only fuel her hot temper. Eventually, she cooled off, and was ready to explain "When you left, Cadance and I had a talk about us, whether this relationship would just be you simply being with us or all three of us being able to love each other equally. I've seen multiple polyamorous relationships, and they all just felt like harems instead of actual relationships. Almost all of them ended in one or multiple mares leaving because the stallion picked a favourite and neglected them. I don't want to be tossed aside, Noire. I want this to last. I thought building a relationship with Cadance would help that." It seemed that I underestimated how much Tidal was in doubt over our relationship. However, I also seemed to underestimate how determined she was to be with me.
"I promise I will never leave you. Cross my heart, and hope to fly, stick a cupcake in my eye," I said while doing the actions that Pinkie Pie taught me during the party "Now, if I do, Pinkie Pie will come after me with the might of a hundred Grims if I break that promise. I am bound to you-"
"FOREVER!" Pinkie's disembodied voice yelled.
"I guess it would be unfair if I didn't do the same. I promise I will never leave you. Cross my heart, and hope to fly, stick a cupcake in my eye." Tidal made the same promise, doing the same actions, and kissed me on the forehead "A little bonus."
"AW!" Curdle said, bursting through the door.
"THAT WAS SO ADORABLE!" Ayra yelled.
"I KNOW, RIGHT!?" Cadance followed suit. Both of us were assaulted by a group hug from the three mares "You two are just the cutest, little things."
"Now I'm thinking about joining you in this little herd of yours, you charmer!" Ayra added.
"Maybe let us have some time to be a couple first, Ayra," Curdle said.
"You two are dating?" Tidal asked.
CADANCE POV
As Celestia set her sun, and Luna raised her moon, Tidal raised a very intriguing question.
"Do you want to go on a date?" I raised an eyebrow at this. Ayra and Curdle left to their quarters (at least one of them~), and Noire was dragged to another stallion's night out, so we were alone. "I mean, as an apology, for ruining your date with Noire, and to get to know you better." I decided that she was going to have to suffer first for my agreement.
"I don't know, you don't seem to know a lot about table manners, or manners in general..."
"Wait wut?"
"My tastes may not be to your... ability."
"How dare you! I have great abilities in all facets of life!"
"Except for anger management-" For a second, I thought I heard shots, but I wasn't done yet "and fashion sense."
"...please..." Tidal said meekly. I never thought I could see Tidal look so defeated, and I saw her take a greatsword to the gut by her crush. I couldn't help but laugh "For fu-" She stopped herself for a moment, inhaled, exhaled, and spoke "Cadance, I want us to get along, so can we please just leave that business behind us, and go on a date?" She asked again. I decided she had suffered enough. Plus, it was nice to see her, so different from when she openly insulted me in front of my guards.
"I'm just messing with you. Of course I will," I agreed, and Tidal let out a long sigh "However, I might need to help you pick an outfit."
"I hate you." We both shared a little laugh as we basked in our own silliness. We laid on the bed staring up at the ceiling, silently wondering about how much we had changed in so little time. It hadn't been half a year, but I had already gone from a princess, a wife, and an emissary of love, to a mare, a part of a herd, and had almost no idea what love was anymore. For the fist time since I met her, Tidal was smiling, like she was finally at peace with everything. In that moment, I made a daring move, snaking my hand around hers, joining them together, and gripped. Tidal's eyes widened in shock, but never left the ceiling. However, she gripped back.
"I wonder how Noire is right now."
"He'll be fine"
NOIRE POV
"So, how has your first heat season been for you, Noire?" Burning Fist asked me. I turned to him and shushed. We were in an alleyway, hiding from a group of angry stallions, searching every nook and cranny for us. Windy was already a lost cause.
"You know we are elite soldiers. We could beat them all if we wanted to."
"Yeah, I know that, but I want Windy to suffer a bit longer. He just had to grab that mare's ass."
"I thought it was a stallion's ass he grabbed?" I sighed but cut myself of when I saw a stallion peer around the corner we were hidden behind, but failed to look down at us huddled like children. In a few seconds, he retreated, and I used that opportunity to teleport both of us back to the castle. However, I couldn't help but hear the shrill scream of a pegasus general. What happened to one of the strongest ponies in Equestria to reduce him to a screaming infant, I refuse to know.
The last day of heat had come and instead of draining my love dry, I was scheduled for a date with the last pony I would have expected to go anywhere on a casual basis with, Tidal Horn. However, this was an opportunity to understand each other a lot more. It was mostly Noire who helped change Tidal from that stiff, yet hot-tempered water user to a more the stunning mare she is. Now it was my turn to see her. She sat opposite to me in a diner I was dying to try out, ignoring the eyes all pointed our way. "I'll have a chocolate crepe and a strawberry sundae," she asked the waitress as she scribbled down her order.
"Make that two." The waitress took both our orders and left to the kitchen. At first, all that lingered between us was air. How are you supposed to start a conversation with somepony who you hated? The last time we talked, excluding the one from yesterday, involved Tidal publicly shaming me for being a terrible wife. Luckily, Tidal found the answer way faster than I did.
"I'm sorry. For what I said about you back when we fought Chrysalis." I was silent as she continued "I can see now that you were going through way more shit than I was, and you just took it. I don't even remember why I said that," she said, rubbing her neck in embarrassment.
"Probably due to your massive crush on my husband."
"Faust, was I that transparent?"
I let out a chuckle "To everypony except Shining. As for your apology, consider it under the bridge. I have to admit, some of your claim was true." I sighed as the waitress returned with our food and drinks. I held my glass with a firm grip, recalling all I had done before the chaos with Grim and Noire came in "I have to admit, I was behaving a bit selfish at times, forgetting I am a princess and shunning others for trying to do their job instead of tending to me." Now Tidal listened to me, quietly sipping her drink "I did it to Shining, and we all know how that ended, and almost ruined my relationship with Noire in the same way. I was a wreck after our fight."
"Oh, if you thought you were a wreck, I can guarantee you Noire was a thousand times worse. I have a few scars and experience in falling from cliffs that can testify to that." We both shared a laugh as our conversation turned more light-hearted. It was nice talking to her, like a had another friend who I could have some fun with. It was only at this point that I began to see Tidal as a mare. If it wasn't for that no-nonsense attitude in the workplace, I would question why nopony asked her out sooner. Her body was equal parts muscle and curve, her breasts being almost a s big as mine, but pointlessly hiding behind her baggy, grey bomber jacket. Her face was another marvel; two pure blue eyes, soft purple fur, and to complete her, long, braided, blue hair that reached down to the middle of her back. Gorgeous. "Um... Cadance?" I rushed back to my senses I found myself caressing her cheek with one hand while another was in her hair "Can you not? We're in public." I saw many of the patrons looking at us with mixed reactions; some with shock, interest, some even with disgust. I could not retreat in time avoid a loud click, and found a photographer aiming a camera at us. They quickly bolted away before I could stop them either.
"I didn't know that guy moved here after being banished by Luna." Tidal said "We should go before somepony starts asking questions." I left a bag of bits on the table and we left the diner. Once we were out, Tidal turned to me and asked "So, where to next?" I pondered on that for a moment before coming up with something.
"To Celestia's Secret!" I yelled, grabbing Tidal's hand and rushing off into the city "We need to be sexy tonight~!"
"You really don't care for public image, do you!?"
"Nope!"
NOIRE POV
"HOW COULD YOU LEAVE ME LIKE THAT!?"
"It was incredibly easy. Simple teleportation, and faith in your abilities as a general. Or perhaps disregard for your safety." I answered, calmly taking a bite out of a dandelion sandwich in the cafeteria.
"I think you should go with the former." Burning advised. I shrugged, and continued eating while Windy continued his rant.
"They were EVERYWHERE! They tied up my wings so I couldn't fly, and then they- they-"
"Kicked your ass?" I asked.
"Robbed you?" Burning asked.
"They made me kissed their boots for my freedom!" Burning and I shared a long look before we both busted out in laughter. "IT'S NOT FUNNY! They stepped in dirt, trash, maybe even some turd!" We grimaced at the thought. With his outburst over and done with, he relaxed and took a seat with us "Faust, sometimes I think Tidal rubbed off too much on you. You're ruthless now." My thoughts travelled back to the purple beauty. I hadn't heard from her in a bit. She had told me she was going out with Cadance and left the castle.
"Honestly, I'm more concerned with Ayra being a changeling queen now. Cadance and Curdle said she would help her get more accustomed to her new form, but I wonder what this means for her now." Burning and Windy agreed with me there. After we had gotten Ayra into a state where she could be introduced without being attacked, we introduced her to the guard and corps, telling them she was not to be attacked. As for whether she was still going to be Cadance's assistant was up to them.
"I don't know about Cadance, but I have a very good idea of what Curdle's method is if you catch my drift~"
"Were you eavesdropping?" Burning asked sternly, making Windy sweat a bit.
"No! I just happened to... bump into them," Burning's stare turned more intense "ACCIDENTALLY! GEEZ! I have a lot more tact than you give me credit for. Anyway, back to what I'm actually here for." He stood up and pointed a finger at me "So far, you've fought alongside Tidal, and fought Burning twice-"
"To no absolute conclusion-" Burning added
"Shut it- now your final challenger has arrived. I, the master of the skies, Windy Wings, challenge you to a duel." The whole cafeteria perked up at the mention of a duel "The loser will have to kiss the winner's boots!" Even though Windy was only doing this to get revenge, I stood up as well.
"I accept your challenge, Windy Wings!" The cafeteria roared with excitement as we shook hands and made our way to the training field.
Our duel, much like Windy himself, was all over the place. His wild and unpredictable fighting style meant that even without his wings and my levitation, a set handicap for both of us, I was always too far to fight close quarters. At one moment, I was close enough to strike him, but he used a bazooka arrow to launch himself high into the air, barely avoiding my attack. I switched to Phantom Crown and assaulted him with each sword from different angles, while Windy kept shooting bazooka arrows to keep himself in the air. Finally, he decided to come back down once. "He must be low on arrows" I thought as I prepared a sword strike from above, but once again, I was proven to be underestimating of Windy as I felt and arrow graze my cheek. I looked up and saw multiple arrows descending from the air "When did he have time to shoot this many arrows!?" I panicked raising the swords high above my head "Gardnablade!" I used the large sword to block the flurry of arrows that attacked me from above.
"You must be wondering how I did that" I turned around to find Windy behind me, upside down, aiming an arrow "I might tell you after I win." I could see each finger on his bowstring letting go in slow motion. One. My eyes felt like they were going to burst. Two. My body turn on instinct, sword gripped firmly. Three. The arrow was released, and was cut in half almost instantly. The arena was left silent as Windy landed on his feet, shocked that I managed to block it. To be honest, so was I. Neither of us spoke or moved, just stood their in awe. Our silence was interrupted by the ringing of the bell, announcing the end of break. "Oh well, guess we have to call this one a tie, but when we start our training together, I will be getting a rematch with a clear winner. See ya then!" With that, he left. I was still left wondering about him. After all of my spars and full on matches against the generals, this was my first against Windy and he managed to completely overwhelm me the entire time.
"Overwhelming, wasn't it?" Burning asked "It would be wise to brush up on some more long-range combat before that rematch. You wouldn't want to underestimate the first general," I made sure to take that advice to heart. Even though he said that it was a tie, my mind was telling me I lost, and I lost hard. I let out a frustrated sigh and teleported to the throne room, thinking that listening to someone else's problems would distract me.
Once night came, I was practically dragging myself to my room, magically removing my armour and clothing, and landing face first into the sheets "Jesus, I'm tired. Windy sure kicked my ass. I still feel sore." As soon as my eyes shut, I began to hear hushed voices and the weight of another person on the bed "Cadance?" I asked.
"Wow, rude much? You have two marefriends, you know?" A voice said.
"Two marefriends who are gonna give you one hell of a night~" Another voice said. I opened my eyes to find both Cadance and Tidal, Cadance in front of me and Tidal next to me on the bed. They were both in nothing but tight, lingerie: They were in the same set but with Cadance in white with red velvet bows on the waist and chest while Tidal was in black with blue velvet bows. Tidal was gently stroking my chest with a gloved hand while Cadance crawled onto the bed, staring at me with half-lidded eyes. If it wasn't for their pony features, I would have taken them for succubae ready to feast on their prey.
"Aw~ He's already undressed himself for us. How nice~ As a reward-" Tidal's hand went down to my already stiff cock, licking her lips "How about you undress me while Cadance over there takes care of that little rookie you got?" I silently nodded and Tidal smiled, climbing on top of me. My hands instantly went for the large bow on her chest, unravelling it, and releasing her breasts from their restraints. Tidal let out a groan of relief "You have no idea how tight that thing was," she said in gratitude. I continued unwrapping her, undoing the bows at her waist, removing the whole top section of her lingerie. Meanwhile, Cadance was gently licking entire length, up and down, and kissing the tip each time. On her fifth run, she slowly enveloped it, taking it all within her mouth. I tried my hardest to lose focus Tidal, but Cadance was a pro at her work. Tidal noticed my struggled and kissed me passionately, wrestling with my tongue. I returned the kiss with equal passion, embracing her tightly. Eventually, I felt myself getting close. I wanted to hold it back for a bit longer, let the moment continue, but it- they- were too much. With a muffled moan, I felt myself cum for the first time that night. Tidal backed out of the kiss, and I felt Cadance release my cock.
"Delicious!~ Hey Tidal, you wanna try some?~" Cadance asked, mouth drooling with cum.
"Why, of course! Hold tight and enjoy the sight, rookie! This isn't just for you: this is the night we officially become a herd," She turned around to face Cadance. I could see much, but I could tell by the lust-filled moans of delight, that they were making out hard. I felt drops of warm cum drop onto my bare stomach, and the straying hand of Tidal as she rubbed my cock. However, her attention was still on Cadance as she laid on top of me legs spread wide, obscuring my view. It was clear that I was going to taking a back seat for a while
TIDAL POV
Cadance leaned towards us and began servicing my vagina furiously; the droplets of saliva that fell on me told me so. I held back a loud moan as I felt her tongue do up and down, in and out, in any way it pleased, and pleased it did; I felt a sudden surge of arousal as I jerked away from Cadance and let out a loud scream, releasing a spray of my juices. For a moment, I was shocked, Cadance was shocked, Noire could barely see but could tell some shit went down. Cadance broke the silence "Well~ This just made tonight much more fun~"
"What's happening?" Noire asked, tickling my back as he did.
"The 'Tidal' part of her name isn't just for semantics, my love~" Noire 'oh'ed in realisation, worming an arm out to try me out himself. He slipped an arm out and began to grope by breasts while Cadance went back to licking me, drawing circles around my clit. I was getting dangerously close again, but this time I didn't back away as I squirted once more, drenching the princess in my juices again. She took a hand, wiped a dripping part of her face, and put a few fingers in her mouth.
"Watermelon, who would've guessed?" Cadance undid her own top and crawled further up the bed "Okay, Tidal, I think it's time I got some pleasuring from our dear human. Can't be hogging all the fun," I let her have her fun, rolling off the human, and allowing him some air. Noire took deep breaths as Cadance took my place on top of him, aiming her loins above his crotch "My turn, my love~" and dropping down, taking in al of him at once. They both moaned loudly, moving in complete unison, meeting their hips in a beautiful clap. I watched as Noire held her hips, guiding his dick to all of her weak spots, while Cadance moved her hips like a dancer, gracefully, but with such an impact that even I felt the pleasure that came from them. Maybe it was the love magic, but I could feel the love between them, almost feeling jealous of their bond. However, that jealousy disappeared as soon as I felt the combination of both their magic, stroking my clit. Even then, they wanted to include me in their love making. Soon enough, we all climaxed together, our sounds of pleasure mixing together like a symphony. Cadance smiled, lifting herself off Noire's dick "Your turn~" She beckoned me over with a hand. I gratefully took it and my place on his dick in one swift movement. However, I was facing away from him as soon as his hands tried to reach for my breasts again.
"I've got more than just boobs, you know. You were awfully friendly with my ass too~" I said as I wiggled my butt on his dick "Now no moving. I'm in control, rookie," I lifted myself until Noire's cock was almost out, then came down with a loud clap. Noire couldn't contain his arousal as I had my way with him, bouncing on his cock like rabbits in spring. Cadance couldn't help herself and decided to have a taste of me again, latching on to one of my breasts.
"Faust, you two are like new-borns with these things," I groaned.
"I'm not apologising for loving your body," Noire said.
"Same. I wonder if they'll get bigger?" Cadance added. I sighed and let the two have their fun. I felt a warm liquid leaking out; Noire was about to come inside me, and I welcomed it with. I dropped onto his cock one last time, and his banks rushed forth, triggering my orgasm as well. I rolled off him and we cuddled for a bit, my eyes getting heavy as sleep was beginning to overwhelm me. I could hear both their voices as I drifted off to sleep.
"She must have overworked herself. I remember her lasting longer," Noire said.
"Well, when your getting pleasured my the princess of love, of course you would have a hard time keeping up," Cadance said with that annoying voice of hers.
"Careful, lovebutt. Pride comes before a fall~" Noire rebutted.
"Really?~ Then fuck me so hard, I'll fall for you a second time~"
"Jeez! Noire and Cadance have had an eventful heat!" I was reading another letter Cadance had sent me, telling me all about how they were starting a herd with Tidal Horn, and how Ayra, the changeling they had found, evolved into a changeling queen, making me itch with excitement to visit them again. After we had made up and repairs in Ponyville were completely, things had gone smoothly. The giant castle seemed a bit excessive, but nothing I couldn't handle. The problem I had to deal with next came in the form of two large wings on my back.
I began noticing the problem as soon as I laid down in my bed for the first time. The new, sudden pressure I felt, pressing my wings onto the mattress. They demanded recognition. They demanded air. I sat up and stared at nothing as the realisation dawned on me like the sun on the horizon. "I'm a princess." I wanted in that moment to rip off the forsaken things, and run out of this gaudy room, and find where my library had gone. That was home. The soft mattress begged my return with a long creak as I got out of bed and went out to my balcony, where the stifling feeling did not feel so overwhelming. I leaned on the railing and sighed.
I could recall my friends staring at my new form back at the party, but I never quite noticed the change until then. I was a head taller, my stature, much wider. It was like I was just bit closer to the sky than I was before. The sky... My wings started to expand against my best wishes. I wanted to deny this feeling because deep down, I knew. I closed y wings with cruel authority "I don't deserve this."
My ascension was a matter of circumstance. I was granted power I couldn't control as a last ditch effort to save our nation. I kept wondering why we couldn't simply band together like we always did, confront the enemy like we always did, and come out victorious like we always did. I wanted to trust in them like I always did, but this time, when the threat of death felt closer to our necks than ever, I just couldn't shake that feeling. If Tirek hadn't spared them, simply killed them out of spite, I wouldn't know what to do with myself. Becoming the sole monarch of Equestria, seemed like a fate worse than death.
"It seems you are also having some trouble sleeping," the voice of my mentor sounded from behind me "May I ask what keeps you up?"
"Only if I get to ask you the same," I said with confidence, or perhaps exhaustion. The body and mind's condition were easy to confuse. I quickly realised what I had said and jumped to a start "OhmygodCelestiaIamsosorrypleaseforgivemeformymisconduct-" I was interrupted by a soft hand on my shoulder.
"Calm yourself, you have done nothing wrong. Honestly, I am happy you are finally beginning to loosen up around me. We are both princesses after all." That word slapped me in the face with such brute force, I had to turn away, because I was scared of crying in front of the pony I respected more than almost any creature in Equus. Celestia noticed my anguish and took a spot beside me "I see you are not taking your title with as much joy as you did during the party."
"It was probably because of the adrenaline rush, but I hardly noticed what a pair of wings on my back and horn on your head really meant. Now that I've cooled off, I can feel everything much better than before. I feel like I could beat Applejack and Rainbow Dash in arm-wrestling at the same time," I let out dry chuckle, with wet tears falling into my mouth. Celestia brought me into a warm hug. It was both suffocating and suffocating "We could have taken them together."
"Maybe."
"I wouldn't have needed to accept this power."
"Possibly."
"We could've won.
"I know."
"Dammit, don't you have anything else to say for yourself!?"
I was in the midst of a good book when Chrysalis stormed into my throne room, eyes like fire, with her personal boy-toy king in tow. From the look in her eye, she seemed determined to get something out of me. There was no way she was mad at me. Beneath those eyes lied a desperation. "A FUCKING GALA!? We're detouring of our plans to go to a fucking waste of time for stuck up pricks we're supposed to want dead. I've put up with these absurd plans you have cooked up but this is where I draw the line! We're sticking to the plan!"
*FLIP*
"ARE YOU EVEN LISTENING!?"
“Victorious warriors win first and then go to war, while defeated warriors go to war first and then seek to win."
"...What?"
I showed her the book I was reading, Sun Tzu's The Art of War "This man truly knew how to sound like an insightful smartass, but had some really good points. Maybe if you read this you wouldn't have failed so fantastically at your own invasion." Chrysalis gritted her teeth while I got up from my throne "You seem to have grown more complacent in your role as my co-operator. You should know not confuse my services to your goal as a part of our deal, not kindness. You kill your hive, save for a few, and give me their bodies, and I give you, as well as your entire kind, a chance to be free in the new world. No more persecution, no need to steal love form others for survival, a utopia where you rule beside me." I met her gaze with one of my own, hushing the air and chilling everything around me. Chrysalis' determined look went out like dowsed flames, and was replaced by a kneeling, subservient pet, with a quivering king beside her, trying hi hardest to resist my power "When I attack, I attack not for the sake of it, but because I have something to gain. When I showed my face in Canterlot, it was reduce moral, to take the ponies' faith in their only hope. When I attacked Canterlot, I now know Noire just as much as he knows himself. A mere shadow of who I once was. When I sent you to Manehattan, I got supplies. When I went to the Dragonlands, we got a valuable test subject and an assessment of your king's abilities. So when I send you and Shining Armour to the gala- the first gala to be held at the Crystal Empire-" I hand them a photo "-I better see him with you when you return. I don't care what you think, or what you do. Just do what I say, and you get what you want. Are we clear?" I stared down at the two with withering patience.
"*pant* Yes, Grim *pant* I understand." Chrysalis got up with shaking legs and tried her best to leave with dignity, but it was too late for saving face. Shining followed suite, shooting me an icy glare before leaving.
"Slenda, please keep an eye on those two. This step is too important for them to screw this up." Slenda, who was hiding in the shadows, sunk into the darkness until I could no longer feel her presence. With an exhausting sigh, I sat back in my throne "If only I had her as my queen..."
CHRYSALIS POV
He was right. I was mad that he was right. I was mad that I even had to become a part of this life, but you don't get a lot of choices when you're faced with extinction. Most would tell me 'hold fast to your pride, Chrysalis! Don't fall to the dark side, Chrysalis!', yet no creature wants to admit that morality is nothing but a lie that gives us some sense of virtue as we burn our kin, that gives us a feeling of shame as we do the best we can. It seems like I am one of the only ones who has to bear this burden.
"Chryssy? Are you okay?" Shining Armour's voice pierced through my thoughts, waking me from my mourning state "Is it what Grim said? Believe me when I say I'm not particularly happy about returning to an old home. I'm here for you if you need anything." He was so devoted. I was mad that he was still so devoted. Like a lost puppy following the only creature to feed it. Like salvation. Like a drug.
"You may call me your lady, and I hope you have a better hold of your shapeshifting. I do not need the former captain making a scene at the Gala." I said, facing away from his face, which drooped with sorrow.
"Yes, my lady." That was okay for me then. Keeping him at a professional distance made his loyalty feel a little less like love (even if it never was), and cooled my rage somewhat. I was still mad. Mad that even though I was the one to reel him in, I am the one playing me. I still wonder if he saw my tears that afternoon.
SHINING POV
My lady. It worked with what our mission entailed, however, there was so... little in her voice, like she wasn't even there. I was still getting the hang of being able to read emotions, so at first, I thought the flurry of emotions around her was just me. As we exited the castle, the view of an eternal night was seen overhead. Another thing was the slendermare in a butler's clothes that always stood at the castle gate, leading into nothing. Chrysalis spoke, lacking all of her former arrogance and confidence instead with a cold "the Crystal Empire." The mare waved her hand over the gate and it lit up, revealing a portal to the furthest corners of the Empire, where nopony would notice our entry. The mare gave us passage, bowing before us as we passed through. When we were told of the gate's ability to take us to anyplace in Equestria, granted we had been there before, we were also told of the ensuing nausea that would envelop you due to the sensory overload if you had your eyes open. That would explain why she threw up when we passed through. Sensory overload. I went to check on her but she put a hand up, keeping me at a distance so she could steady herself.
"Are you okay?" I asked, again with no reply. Chrysalis simply transformed into a simple blue unicorn mare, and turned to me, issuing me to transform as well. I chose to turn into a green unicorn and I followed her into the streets. As we walked through my old home, I couldn't help but feel awkward. Before this, Chrysalis would have at least given me some love to sustain me, however, her body radiated this sickly feeling of anger, sorrow, confusion, and betrayal, all mixed up into one. To try to get something out of her instead of cold indifference, I tried to ask how we were getting into the gala. "Did Grim even give us a plan of how we were going to get in, much less how we are going to get this guy away from guards and out of the castle without suspicion?" I asked through our mindlink.
"Simple. This is the first gala ever held in the Crystal Empire. Every pony will be talking about it, and among them will be-"
"Do you see this? A ticket to the first gala in the Crystal Empire!" An overly excited mare with hair worn upward in a bun only a noble would dare leave the house in. We both stared at the mare with blank expressions.
"There's bound to be someone bragging about it. Each ticket includes a plus one, so that saves us the trouble of looking for another victim." I finished.
We proceeded with the infiltration, following that one blue mare across town until she was alone, which was hard seeing as she went through many shops with the intent to find 'the perfect outfit, that would fetch the eye of some accomplished knight'. WE frequently had to change our disguises, with one of us changing in some alley while the other kept watch. The mare, Azure Glide was her name, finally made her stop at her abode, allowing us to progress to the next step.
"Is she stopping anytime soon?" Chrysalis asked, joining me on a building roof. I used a 'see-through' spell to spy on her through the walls.
"Two guards outside her room. She's alone."
"Good. We'll go in and subdue her, then I'll ask for one of the guards to come in. That's when take him and take their places," Chrysalis said. She flew off towards the window where Azure Glide's room was, with me following in tow. Once we were at the window at her balcony, her blinds closed firmly, she gave me the signal to wait. She teleported inside, then silence, except the subtle sound of a body hitting the ground. She must have done this too many times for her to count. In a moment's notice, 'Azure Glide' welcomed me inside, dressed in a fancy, orange gown with green laurel leaves hanging from the waist. I quietly entered, and hid myself with a cloaking spell. As soon as I was properly concealed, she called for one of the guards "Excuse me! May one of you come help me with something!?" On cue, one of them walked inside, a tall, brown stallion appeared, dressed in a neat suit.
"Yes, Miss Glide. What do you require of me?" he asked. Chrysalis slowly walked over to the stallion, with a fake smile plastered on her face.
"I'm sorry, would you so kind as to tell me your name. It seems to have slipped my mind."
"Cobalt, ma'am" he responded anxiously. That was her pheromones, eroding his composure so what she would ask for, he would provide without question. She leaned into his ear and whispered.
"Would you like to join me?"
"At the Gala!? I thought Mr Linen would be accompanying you. Why bring one of your guards to such a high class event?" he asked. I made a slight glance at the wall, where a picture of 'me' with a distinguished stallion with black, gelled hair was hung.
"He could never satisfy me. Perhaps you could instead? Those stares you've been giving me made me feel like you felt the same way, or am I mistaken?" Words began to fail him as he slowly shook his head. 'Azure' smiled as she wrapped her hands around his head, moving it closer towards her own, "Great, now let 'us' become one," before sending a small jolt of magic through it, rendering him unconscious. She dragged him into a closet, where the real Azure Glide was hidden in one of her pods, and threw him inside along with her before closing the pod and closet. I dispelled the cloak and took the stallion's form. I hated that. I knew this was probably just routine for her, but to hear her flirt with that stallion like I wasn't in the room? Maybe I read too much into it, but it felt like she said everything she said because I was in the room. 'Azure Glide' and 'Cobalt' strolled out of the room, down the stairs, and to the front door where a carriage awaited us (It had been a while since I had partaken in the luxuries of high society living). By then, the sky had already begun to turn and bright orange, while the moon began to rise from overhead. We entered our transportation and we were off to the castle. The plan was coming along incredibly well. If only Chryssy was happy about it.
CHRYSALIS POV
As we flew above the city, I felt 'Cobalt's hand graze my own like nails on a chalkboard. I swiftly moved my hand away "When is he going to get it? He's just a pawn, not a lover. I'm tricking him for my own selfish gain, nothing more." I wanted him to stop loving me. For him to stop treating me like I'm some perfect mare, but he was still looking at me. He was at least disappointed. His feelings of rejection were like a knife to the heart, but I didn't know why "Do I actually care about how he feels? No, it's just him potentially running out of love. He has used a few spells today, and isn't as used to remaining in his disguise for long periods of time. He might expose me. That's why. Yes." As I pondered on these confusing feelings, I felt a tap on my shoulder. 'Cobalt' was looking at me lovingly.
"The night looks lovely tonight doesn't it?"
"..." I fondly remember begging Faust to save me from this lovesick stallion.
After that goddess-awful carriage ride, we were at the Crystal Empire's castle. It was the same as the last time, except for the crystalline flowers that littered the way to the entrance, and the massive amount of ponies that came for the event. I would have said that this Grand Galloping Gala was going to be the same as all the others I've infiltrated heard of, if it wasn't for the element of the mission that made it almost impossible to accomplish. Several others made their own entry. Dragons, yaks, minotaur, and griffin royalty were all making their entrance, landing from the sky or walking with an entire entourage of guards. However, most of these people didn't matter that much to me. The threatening words of Grim echoed in my head as I stole a glance at tonight's target. Richter Gillahaut, sovereign ruler of the Griffin Empire. Over his white and gold-trimmed suit, he was adorned in silver armour. From what I had heard of him, it would be difficult to lure him away in pony form. He saw them as weak-willed and ignorant to the ways of true hardship and struggle, something that I wholeheartedly agreed with "We need to grab his attention without exposing ourselves. Perhaps a minor mind control spell. A simple command. I just need to make contact with him" Shining tapped me on my shoulder, alerting me that everycreature was going inside. I needed to forget about Gillahaut. I needed to figure out how to get past Cadance and Noire without them figuring us out. They were welcoming all of the attendees, especially the foreign royalty with plastered smiles on their faces, and we were about to be next. As we drew closer, I cast a spell to conceal our presence, allowing our identities to remain unknown as we said our greetings and went inside. I remember sighing heavily as I past them "Since when have I been afraid of those two?"
The hall was finely decorated and well suited to each races tastes without becoming offensive. The had a separate section for the carnivores, composing of fish and cockatrice wings, as well as an area of very fragile furnishings with a sign saying 'Smashable items here'. They were placed in a way that didn't have argument over eating habits starting but didn't categorise the races either. They really wanted this to go well. It was a shame they didn't show this level of compassion to us sooner, or there wouldn't be a need for what I had to do. I kept my eyes firmly on Gillahaut all night, while I mindlinked Shining my plan.
"I'm going dancing. Stay here unless things get dicey." I went off into the crowd while Shining waited at the booths. I felt the sting of my neglect hit him like a knife, but to console myself, I kept my eyes on the mission. However...
"Azure!" I heard a voice call out to me. I turned to meet a well-dressed unicorn stallion with slicked back, black hair and alabaster fur
"Goddess-fuckin'-dammit Hello, darling, how are you?" I said, gritting my teeth as I embraced and pecked him on the lips.
"I had arrived at your house to meet with you, as we planned, but you, along with our carriage had already left."
"Oh, I was so excited to see all the royalty that were attending, I rushed off early. I am SO sorry, Linen. I should have waited for you like you always have with me," I said, placing my hands on his chest. He blushed at my touch, and reciprocated by wrapping his hands around my waist. I was disgusted by his touch for some odd reason.
"Don't worry about it, honey. This is a monumental event, after all. Royals from other regions coming over to our event? Who would want to miss that. I am slightly jealous that I missed it." I laughed on cue gave him another kiss. I could hear a glass shattering in the distance, but I paid that no mind as I lured him closer to the Griffin royals. "If you are so keen on accompanying me, Mr. Linen, then you shall be my partner in crime. Get me close to Gillahaut for just a moment, and I'll be all yours tonight. A win-win." I didn't even feel the tap on my shoulder, but could still feel the presence of Shining getting even more annoying than before.
"It would be best that I stay by your side, my lady. For protection." I barely nodded and moved towards the griffins. As soon as we managed to get within earshot of their conversation, we were stopped by a pair of guards blocking our path. However, they were dismissed by a hand from the king himself.
"Let them through. This is an international event. We should be accepting of others, especially in their own territory." They stood aside and let us pass. Gillahaut stood by the meat buffet and took a sip of his wine "Now, what has brought you to me this evening? I doubt it is to partake in the food," he said casually. I took a silent breath before responding. I had to play it safe with him.
"I was just here to talk amongst the other races. It is not everyday that almost every race in Equus is seen in one room, and not tearing at each others throats." Gillahaut gave a hearty laugh before taking another sip of his wine.
"Hah! Well, there is more to this event than just a simple get-together. We have to show our power. Look at Ignia over there." I stared at the other end of the table, where Ignia, Torch, and Ember were talking with Celestia and Luna "She hasn't shown her face in public in decades, and with the news of this 'Grim' fellow, she's gone and crumbled before those weaklings. The yaks will most likely follow. The minotaur, possibly, and we don't need to talk about the seaponies and changelings!" he laughed as he took another sip. I had a quarter of a mind to break that glass and shove the shards down his throat, but I withheld my emotions and continued conversing with the king. Linen was also able to make some decent conversation with him as well, but mostly kept to the side, terrified of the mighty king. Soon, the orchestral music began to play and I made my move.
"Well, would you like to show me your power on the dance floor?" I asked. Gillahaut took my hand and we positioned ourselves in the middle of the dance floor. Unfortunately, there were ears everywhere. Powerful magic users at every side, practically cornering us in the centre like a pair of caged rats. However, Gillahaut and I glided across the dance floor, leaving the stallions accompanying me in a state of disbelief and envy. I almost enjoyed this attention. It was what I was used to.
"So, is the lady impressed?" the king said teasingly. I fake giggled and leaned into him.
"Very~. In fact, I'm so impressed that she would like to see you after the gala, if you would tell her where your going to be tonight~." As my mind compelling magic took effect, Gillahaut's eyes turned a slight green. Cadance almost took notice, but to obscure her view of him, I pulled his head down, bringing it to my level.
"I'll be staying in the Crystalfly Hotel. Room 509."
"Then I'll see you there~" As the music came to a close, I removed myself from his arms and backed away into the crowd of ponies. As I returned to Linen and Shining, I could see the look of jealousy written on their faces.
"You were radiant out there. Although, I wish you had danced with me first," Linen said, kissing me on the forehead.
"Well, they're about to begin the next song, so how about you show me how well you can move." I took Linen's hand and we took to the dance floor once again, leaving Shining in a fit of rage. "Good."
The night went on longer than expected, and pandering to Linen's almost suffocating treatment felt like I had two loyal dogs at my feet, leaving me in a state. However, instead of feeling elated, like a true evil queen should, all it did was make me feel worse. Once it was time for all the common ponies to leave and all of the royalty had left the room (what they were doing, I honestly didn't care about) I had finally gotten rid of Linen, telling him I was going my own way. I was about to head out when my eye caught something, threatening to bring me to my knees. With an alabaster unicorn was a changeling. I hadn't seen her in the party, so she must have waited until they had all left. I casted an invisibility spell leaving Shining confused, and walked closer to catch their conversation.
"You look beautiful, my queen~" the unicorn mare said teasingly.
"I thought I told you not to call me that. I'm not a queen of anything," the changeling said with a timid voice I recalled from long ago. It was Ayra. The rest of the voices faded away as I stared into her beautiful form. She was almost as tall as me now, dwarfing the mare with her height and curvy figure. I felt like dropping to my knees as they danced to nothing. She was a queen. I was flattened by a bombardment of questions rushing into my mind, and left with words as I tried to figure out how I even felt. My race was supposed to be gone. Just Shining and I. I found myself asking the same question I asked myself when a hooded man came to my aid, when I was tired and hungry on the streets of Las Pegasus, unable to speak or move.
"Does my race have a chance?"
I was pulled out of my daze by Shining, who instantly teleported us out of the hall, and into the alleyway where we arrived. My spell came undone, and Shining bore witness to my tear-filled eyes. "What happened back there?" he asked as he kneeled before me, reaching his hand to my face. Everything came loose when I slapped him right across the face.
"Faust! Why do you keep caring about me you buffoon!?" Before he could answer, I slapped him again, the loud crack sounding across the alley "I'm supposed to be your captor, a evil queen who wants the world to burn. Hell, I killed my entire hive just to get into a psycho's good graces. So why do you care about me! I'm horrible! A disgrace to my mother's legacy! A psycho bitch!" I went for another slap, but couldn't muster the strength to lift my arms. I hadn't absorbed any love since I left and used spell after spell until my reserves were dry "Why am I doubting everything now?"
"Because you're not as evil as you want everypony to believe." Shining took my hand and I felt his magic flow into me. It wasn't much, but enough to help me stand. "You're doing what the only thing any creature can do in your situation, anything they can."
"Don't give me that inspirational bullshit. You're only with me because-"
"You tortured and brainwashed me I know. However, what else can I do? By the time I could think rationally, I was already in too deep. Defecting now would only lead to my demise. Tirek should be a good example of what happens to traitors." I had never thought of Shining like this. I thought he was only my prisoner, but forgot he was Grim's prisoner even more "I stopped being your slave a long time ago, Chryssy. You made stupid mistake and now we're both just a pair of reluctant confidants in Grim's grand scheme to remake everything. So, can you stop trying to annoy me and just let me help you get through this with as little emotional baggage as possible?"
"...When did you grow a pair?"
"You kinda have to when your queen doubles as a psycho bitch when her boss is around."
"So does this mean you love me or hate me?" I asked curiously.
"I love you so much that I hate you."
I laughed. I laughed and just kept laughing as tears ran down my face. They weren't happy tears. I was still in so much pain, but I had so much hope that by the end of this, whether I lived or died, that I did something right.
"That went awfully." The Grand Galloping Gala was a shot at not only having the first Gala at the Crystal Empire, as a sign of our unity, but an opportunity to bring the leaders of almost every race under the same roof, save for a few that have not been seen in ages. We started off well, and by the time we had announced our first attempt at a coalition of nations, we had gained support from the dragons. Ember and Ignia, who was for the first time in centuries, outside of her region immediately offered her help, saying that desecrating the resting place of her ancestors was a crime she could not abide by. However, our issue lied with Gillahaut.
Moments ago, we were answered with a laugh of condescension before slamming his fist onto the table "How tragic for you, princesses. A threat that can't be resolved with your pony magic, and you squirm for more powerful allies. I refuse to lend my aid to a weak-minded, lesser species. This is your problem, and if this Grim shows his ugly face on my land, we griffins will deal with it with our own power, like we always have. Good day." With that, he had left with his men. The princesses had expected things with him to go nowhere. The minotaur, who were attempting an alliance with the griffins, also declined.
As for Yakyakistan, Prince Rutherford said, in the shortest, plainest, most direct way possible "Must consult the council," and left as well.
As the princesses and I sat around the table, Cadance and I were simply amazed at how quickly negotiations had dissolved. On the other hand, Celestia and Luna seemed to expect it go bad from the beginning. "I expected the other countries to not be interested in helping us. An outcome only due to my inability, or more bluntly, my unwillingness to support other nations during my time as the sole leader. However, now we can work on improving relations between the other nations. Luna, can you call in the Elements and generals?" Luna nodded and exited the room as well, leaving only Celestia, Cadance and I. "Before we have to get into the nitty-gritty, I would like to ask if you felt anything off about any of the leaders, Noire?" I raised an eyebrow at her question, to which she responded "Grim has already attacked another nation besides our own, and has created a weapon on par with an awakened code avatar and general. If Grim manages to get to the Griffin Empire's collection of magical artifacts, then we might be seeing perfected versions of the chimaera you previously fought." The dragon chimaera was strong while in beta. A perfect one could destroy cities with enough sources to feed it.
"But what can we do? The Griffin's borders are practically impenetrable with our relations, and for all we know, Grim may not be there," Cadance argued.
"He would be a fool to not get help from the second most powerful nation on Equus." The doors opened and everyone else entered. We were ready to make the next step.
CHRYSALIS POV
Most of the pieces were in place for their next step. Gillahaut was sufficiently compelled to storm out of that meeting room, and make his way to the dark alley where we arrived. It didn't take that long at all either. "Maybe I didn't need to compel him that much. It seems like the good griffin has come out of his own volition," I said, half to myself, as I felt his presence, free of any compulsion. As soon as his large silhouette revealed his regal self, along with his increased entourage of guards, he stopped a good distance away from us with his arms folded in curiosity.
"So, changeling queen of nothing, you made your intentions very clear with your stunt tonight. Now make my silence worth it." He spoke with a cold and blunt arrogance that came from pain, and living through it. Anyone who knew his story would have the same feeling. The scratch marks adorning both sides of his cheeks, and a giant scar going through his left eye, were nothing to his hard stare of thinning patience. I chose my words quickly, but carefully.
"My associate, a power beyond Equus, has declared this world wrong, and his ambition to see it destroyed. To those that stand against him lies only ruin. To those who band with him-" I open the portal to our HQ "-see their greatest desires achieved in the new world. I have been given the chance to see my race thrive without senseless persecution. My lover, his due recognition and respect. I am sure your dream can be accomplished much sooner with our cooperation. Is that worth your silence and mutual cooperation?" I wait for his answer.
"Hmm, now exactly why do you think my dreams align with yours?" He asked.
"We don't all have to be ponies to get what we want. Shining Armor has found his new body much more satisfying than his old one. Plus, a world without them is a world I wouldn't be against in the slightest." For a while, we only had his silence as he stared at us, and then the portal before he walked past us and through without so much as a batted eye. I smiled to myself as I internally celebrated a job well done.
"I thought this would be a lot more violent. We know his track record of picking fights with royalty." Shining said as we headed through the portal,"
"Yes, well, even the strongest can be swayed to work with you when you offer a good enough shortcut. Let s report our success to Grim and get some sleep. This dumb dress is beginning to cut in."
CADANCE POV
It had to have been a joke. My mind began racing as I processed all that I had heard from Ayra as she came bursting into the meeting room, panting and white as if she been reborn. Those four words clung to my chest and was pulling me towards the door, urging me to find her. "I saw my mother!" she had said with such fear in her voice that everypony in the room felt it themselves. Even Tidal, sat right next to me, was tapping her feet aggressively, in a mix of rage and anxiety. It took Noire taking both our hands to calm our nerves. "I'm sorry for barging in, but I felt her here! And she wasn't alone!"
"Shining..." I murmured to myself, before steeling myself in the change in conversation to come. Noire spoke first.
"We expected something like this to happen, Ayra, but can you tell us anything else?" He asked. Ayra shook her head apologetically. It made sense that they had connections all over Equestria and beyond, however, just knowing your former love and the one who took him were here, watching, made me feel useless in the face of this threat. Even Celestia and Luna had something to provide, even though they were defeated in their encounter with Grim 10,000 years ago. All I could do was send my soldiers to fight for me. It was scary, but even more infuriating.
"The best bet we have for their motive has to be the leaders. Their looking to recruit another kingdom. Most likely the Griffin Empire," Celestia proposed. Gillahaut had to be the worst possible person to join their side. With his massive army, double the size of both Canterlot and The Crystal Empire. That along with their assortment of magic artifacts made their force one to be reckoned with. Gillahaut himself wasn't a griffin to be trifled with either. His hatred of ponies is known throughout Equus, along with his justifiable reasons for it. "If his refusal is in any way related to that, we have to make our move on him before he does to us."
"But we can't just attack him unprovoked, can we? That just makes our situation worse," I added. As if Faust herself was watching, the fates aligned for us perfectly in the form of another intruder. He was a griffin with a black panther's body and angular head shape, mimicking that of a crow or raven. His head feathers were styled upwards and around his neck was a cape, with a symbol of the royal guard. Everypony was on alert as he rose shakily, but calmed as he reached out a hand to Noire.
"A-are you the sword?" he said with his remaining energy. Noire remembered this name from his speech in Canterlot, and nodded his head yes as he gave has arm for the griffin's support. As he was held up, he muttered his ;last words before passing out.
"The Empire... it needs your... h-help."
GILLAHAUT POV
As the throne room doors opened to reveal a sickly pale man, an almost exact replica of the human I had met before, on his throne, reading a book. He didn't look like much at the moment, but his aura was intense, like a heavy wave that could knock you off your feet and drag you into the depths. When the doors closed, he turned to look at me, and then to his subordinates, Chrysalis and Shining, with a small grin. Both of them stood either side of me as a preventative measure, and bowed as soon as they were close enough. This was all very intriguing. I wanted to know the man who could inspire a changeling to kill her own kind, and a captain to betray his wife and kingdom for his torturer. He spoke with efficiency "You have returned with our new benefactor. Good work. Now leave us." Without missing a beat, they bowed once more and left the halls immediately. Once we were alone, excluding my entourage who had followed me, we began this negotiation. "I take it my subordinates have explained the details of my offer to you, your highness?"
"Enough to bring me here," I answered "However, there is a few things I need to know." I took a few steps towards him, and "I may have been intrigued by your subordinates' promises of my dreams fulfilled, however, I refuse to work with someone unless I hear the bargain from them personally. Plus-" I made a dash at the crippled king, vanishing for a mere moment before reappearing in front of him. I brought down my hand in a swift chop, but was met with equal force "I want to see what has the ponies shaking in their fur." I threw several more punches but his hand deftly blocked all of them. He didn't need to use magic.
Grim was unfazed by our collision, and stood to meet me eye to eye. "Yes, you two are practically twins, though you look like you got crapped out. May I ask why that is?"
"Until I know that can trust you, be content knowing we are kindred spirits," he said.
"Fine then. My second question. Can you destroy Noire? If I decide to join you, he, as well as the rest of Equestria would become a nuisance to me, so I want to know if you are stronger than him." Grim took his time answering that one, placing his head in his hand before answering.
"In strength, I would say we are equals, but he would still lose to me. However, for my plan to work, Noire will be one of my vital assets, whether he likes it or not. The only reason I have spared him is because I cannot remain in Equestria for long. The strength of the seal that keeps me here is weakening, but I should be free soon enough. Any more questions?"
"Can you really create a world with no ponies?" I said almost desperately, losing my regal composure for a moment. Grim smiled as he patted my shoulder.
"If everything goes the way I wish it to, everyone will benefit. I could make everyone griffins if you want, make a whole new race for you. As long as you are on my side, of course." He extended his pale hand to me, crawling with black veins, signaling for me to make my decision now. No 'I'll think about it'. Immediately. I was no fool. As soon as I approached him, I knew he was more powerful than anything I could muster. From the news I had heard through the grape vine, he sounded like a frivolous child, acting on a whim, but now I see a king. I don't know what happened to provoke this change, but at least it made my choice easier on my shoulders.
"Your going to kill me if I see you again, Guila, but I have to do this." I thought as we shook hands.
THE NEXT DAY, THE OUTSKIRTS OF THE CRYSTAL EMPIRE, NOIRE POV
"Welcome to our training facility for the day!" Windy cheered was he presented us with a frozen cave, littered with stalagmites and stalactites surrounding a large, empty ring.
"... Next time, I'm picking the location," Tidal said.
As Windy showed us the place where we would be training for the next 48 hours, the rest of us shared a momentary glance at each other, and relented, deciding to just go along with this. The cold climate and large space was a decent place for us to push ourselves. "As for how we're doing this, I'll be fighting Noire deeper in the cave. We still need to finish what we started. Burning can take on Tidal. Sound good?"
"Of course not. Let's go Burning," Tidal wasted no time in drawing her sword and striking at Burning's chest as Windy and I ventured deeper into the cave. Windy had already split us up to pair both me and Burning with our worst match ups. If being in hot environments weakened her, then Tidal could easily counter Burning's fire in the cold and Windy's fighting style was the one I understood the least, as well as his domination over the air making close range near impossible. After a two minute jog, another arena was found, darker than the last. Windy flew into the center, pulling out his bow. His arrogant smile was an invitation to attack him. I summoned my sword and entered the ring. There was silence throughout the cave, save for the dripping of water, drawing my attention for a split second. Windy took advantage of the distraction, throwing a dagger at my head. I managed the catch it in my hand, but was caught off-guard by its dull blade, and was swept off my feet by a wind arrow behind my legs, making me fall forward. Before he could shoot another arrow at my back, I teleported away, reappearing in the air. Strangely enough, I did not move as high as I wanted to.
"That was another defeat, Noire." Windy met me face-to-face in the air "If this was a real fight, you would have died already. Your large amount of magic may be able to defend you, but if you are not constantly perceiving your surroundings properly-" An arrow appeared out of nowhere and pierced my left shoulder, paralyzing it "-you will not live long enough to regret it." I summoned Phantom Crown to compensate for the lost use of my arm and chased Windy, who was flying around , shooting arrow after arrow "You may be a code avatar, but your an intermediate at best. With your code, all us generals could achieve way more than you." I felt sweat dripping over my furrowed brow as I repeatedly missed Windy "Prove to me that your victories weren't just flukes, that you can win with skill, not power, or else,"
"Or else what!?" I asked as I grew exhausted.
"Or else you're not coming to the Griffin Empire with us. You'll stay here. Gillahaut cannot be beaten with just power,"
NOIRE POV, YESTERDAY
We watched as the griffon woke from his momentary slumber. Through healing magic, we managed to get him well enough to explain more thoroughly.
"The Griffin Empire is currently in the middle of a civil war. Emperor Gillahaut said he has grown tired of the ponies and planned to declare war before receiving the invite to your gala. He came only out of curiosity. Currently, his son, Gilgamesh, has formed a resistance to overthrow him before that. He has asked me to send you this letter to plead with you to help in his endeavor. Please help him, he wishes to end this before even more of our kind are slaughtered in the crossfire." He let out a throaty cough and laid back in his bed.
"Well this couldn't have come at a better time," I said "Should we go to assist?"
Luna finished reading through the contents of the letter, by Gilgamesh's own hand "From this letter, it sounds like the resistance has set up base near Griffonstone, two days by air ship if we bring forces from both kingdoms. If this is true the resulting war would lead to several casualties to both sides. The prince is wise to want to avoid this. We should at least meet them."
Celestia nodded and stood "Do we all agree?" Everybody agreed, nodding their head "Then Luna, you will lead our army to Griffonstone to meet with Prince Gilgamesh" She turned to Cadance and I " Noire, you and the generals will go with your army as well,"
"I'm going as well," Cadance interjected. Her aunt looked at her with an expression of both defiance and worry "Aunty, I cannot stand by and watch my ponies fight for me anymore. I have to at least be there to represent my nation. We will organize our defenses amongst ourselves." Celestia could not deter Cadance, relenting to her niece's wish.
"Very well. We will go in three days time!"
"STOP GETTING DISTRACTED!" Another arrow hit me square in the forehead, causing me to lose control of my levitation, and crash into the ground. I struggled to stand as I looked up at the general, staring at me intensely. My former impression of the pegasus was long gone, replaced by a battle hardened archer, who was skilled enough to inspire a whole new form of soldier in the Crystal Empire.
"How is he doing this" I thought as I blocked a bazooka arrow from behind "He barely draws his bow and yet arrows seem to appear from thin air!" Another arrow appeared above me, which I leaped away from before it exploded "Thin air... It couldn't be" another arrow flies "It's impossible... isn't it?" another arrow appears, grazing my cheek, while another hits my right leg, paralyzing it "Did I walk into a magic zone!?" By the time I realized it, I was already on my knees watching Windy finally pull his bow, but the arrow didn't appear in the bow, instead the biggest one I had seen Windy make hovered above my head. "I finally get it. Your bow uses your own magic to use for spells, similar to a unicorn's magic. You laced this entire arena with your magic with all those wind arrows to create your own magic zone." Windy smiled, then he laughed.
"Bingo, my friend. My magic zone, Assault Wind Jail, and my bow, Wings of Boreas, allow me to fire arrows anywhere I please and limit the magical abilities of my opponents, but explaining won't help you now. Imma knock you out for a few hours before we actually start training," I could see all his fingers let go, and the gigantic arrow to fly towards me. I couldn't run with a paralyzed leg, and wasn't able to teleport far enough to escape the blast radius.
"Don't worry. You will see my skill before we leave this cave."
BURNING POV
A loud crashing sound rang through the cave, and could feel the cold wind from deep inside the chamber where Windy was fighting "So he finally used his Zephyr Comet."
"Focus on the fight!" I just barely blocked another strike at my chest by Tidal's sword, but she released a blast of water from the tip which pushed me back several feet, nearly knocking me into the spiked borders. I re-oriented myself as and threw a snake whip towards her "Too slow!" she coated her blade with water and cut the attack in half, before charging at me once again. As I tried to block her strike, I felt the wet sensation around my legs become a freezing cold as ice began to crawl up my legs, stopping at my knees. Tidal made a quick swipe at my chest with a horizontal slash. "I really am the worst match up for you, aren't I, Burning," she teased as she pointed her blade at my neck "You're lucky I was forced to dull my strikes to not kill you. However, I'm still looking for a fight, not I one-sided beatdown like Windy's probably giving Noire, so stopping blocking and hit me already!" Tidal began assaulting me with slash after slash before sliding backwards and creating a water trident with her sword at the head, throwing it at me "GRAND TIDE'S TRIDENT!"
I raised my arms to defend myself, however a flashing memory of my master reminded me. I coiled my fist back and struck the trident head on, no flames used at all. The impact was enough to stop the attack, causing Tidal to call her sword back to her "These fists were made to protect others, not myself. Blocking isn't an option any more." I broke the icy grip at my feet and flash-stepped in front of the general, throwing a right hook at her face. The impact sent a shockwave of fire ringing throughout the arena, melting even more of the ice. However, I did not relent, following up with a left hook, creating the same effect. "Burning Fist: Dog" I threw both fists at her gut, but stopped just before impact. I stood back and let Tidal stumble back a bit before falling on her haunches.
"You stopped." She placed a hand on her stomach "Don't remember telling you about this thing inside me."
I knelt down in front of her "Curdle had informed us all about it. I believe it would highly advised against to strike a pregnant mare." I smiled at her, as she groaned and gripped the sides of her ears, out of both pain or irritation.
"Ugh, don't even. It makes me sound old. Let's also remember the fact that this thing is killing me."
"But when your 'thing' out, what are you going to do. Regardless of it's conception, it is still a foal, a life. Will you turn it away?" Tidal couldn't respond to that at that moment. How could she have? Less than a month ago, she was declared 'pregnant' with a changeling foal that was killing her.
"I couldn't tell you a month ago, and I sure as hell can't say now. I at least know I can't go to Griffonstone. Doctor's orders," she huffed as she lied on the cold surface "Noire's screwed."
"Ye of little faith."
NOIRE POV
As I drifted through the darkness of unconsciousness, I once again met with Faust. I did not see her, but I could feel her presence "Hey."
"Yes, hey indeed. I see your having a rough time."
"His level of experience is way beyond mine. I've been fighting for a little over a year. Windy's fought his whole life. He's managed to complete a magic zone, something I've only seen Grim do before."
"Magic zones are high level spells for unicorn's, yet a pegasus achieving it, even if through magic equipment, is very impressive. However, all magic zones can be overcome through destroying their circles or incapacitating their users. One requiring power, the other skill." I immediately caught onto what she was saying. Windy wanted me to not resolve this by simply overpowering him, which I could've done easily, but use my combat knowledge. "What can I do though? He still has the advantage over me in technique, and I can't tell where his arrows will appear." Faust came into view and held my face.
"That's why you have to think with what my daughter has taught you, but in your own way. Stop using magic and use your code." As I regained consciousness, I could feel the magic within me fade away.
"Rise and shine, sleepyhead~" Windy sang as I rose from my light stupor "Well, its about midnight, which means you can make up for all the time you spent unconscious practicing!" I turned my head in confusion "To gain my approval to go to Griffonstone, where the strongest fighters can be found, you must defend against 50 of my arrows. Do that, and you can come with me." I looked at him incredulously, wondering he saw in my shitty performance a few hours ago that made him think I could defend against a fraction of that.
"Sounds impossible-"
"Which makes it perfect for you, since you basically are the most impossible thing that exists here right now. Now no complaining!" Windy flew high above me and readied his bow. I got on my feet and tried to summon Gardnablade, only to find the sword unresponsive.
"Christ is Windy working with Faust or something!? I can't use magic anymore?" I quickly cut through a bazooka arrow, however I was now aware of the magic that quickly surrounded the area. I decide to run around to make it harder for him to summon arrows in my immediate area. It worked for about one other arrow before he created multiple around me, and sent me flying. "Just as hard as I thought," I said to myself as I got into my stance again. I had to stand still to properly read the location of the arrows. Windy resumed silently by shooting an arrow. I successfully blocked it, and another which appeared to my left. That was when I began to notice tiny changes in the air. As he fired an arrow, there was a small delay where wind had to accumulate to form and fire arrows. I began to get overconfident as I blocked three more arrows, causing the arrow from overhead to knock me off my feet "It's still too fast!" I thought as a concussive arrow hit me in the forehead. We started again, however I closed my eyes. accepting that seeing the arrows weren't going to help. Hearing or feeling them wouldn't either. "Stop being childish, Noire. You've focused on seeing his shots when I should have been focusing on-" I blocked an arrow aimed at my head "-was the magic lines throughout this entire magic zone." I was able to feel the strings of magic that extended from overhead, probably from the bow, all around me in the form of a spherical cage. Four pulses resounded, meaning four arrows. I blocked one aimed at my right arm, right leg, chest, and left arm successfully.
"Gatling Arrows!" More arrows fired rapidly, leaving me unable to distinguish the order they were going to hit. I backed away from where I stood and dodged what I could now feel as ten consecutive shots. "You correct yourself quickly, but how will you dodge when the attack's this large?" He prepared another Zephyr Comet, causing all of the magic lines to pulse violently. There was no escaping this one. As I felt the large arrow fly towards me, I rose my sword horizontally in an attempt to block the attack. Surprisingly, it worked, telling me the arrow was more similar to a bomb. However, the attack wasn't dissipating, instead I could feel it weighing down on me.
"If the code can allow me to see and manipulate the flow of magic, maybe I can reverse the flow. It has to be all at once, one slip-up and this will blow up." I focused on every single thread connecting the attack to its user, Imagining the same pulses that resounded before it fired. With a yell, I batted the attack away, but not directly back to Windy, sending it into a nearby wall. The explosion resulted in the whole cave shaking from the impact. "Block out all other information. Sight, sound, feeling. Just focus on the magic." I closed not only my eyes, but every sensation I could. Even the lines began to fade. The next minute felt like a blur, as pulses rang through the emptiness, and thought became a nuisance. In one last movement, I made an upward slash, opening my eyes to see a cave littered with holes and an exhausted Windy descending to the ground.
"Faust, that was some quick growth. You didn't even use any weapon transformations-," he said, panting and sweating like he had ran a marathon "-but you still need to work on air combat. Something you'll get used to when you do it more."
"I guess I had the skills all along. I was just too focused on using more powerful magic. Does this mean I pass?" Windy patted me on the back as we headed up to the entrance where Tidal and Burning were training.
"With flying colors!"
"..."
BURNING POV
After our warm-up, we began training to control my magic better, which amounted to just shooting flames at an ice wall. "You're getting impatient. Take time to build up your magic," Tidal advised. I took a moment to breathe, focusing on my fist and threw another punch, however, while the impact was stronger than the other blanks, it was still not on the level that I achieved last time.
"Why is it still so hard?" I said, looking and my shaking hands, sore from effort "I was able to blast a hole through a barrier and solid concrete, but now I can't even make a dent in ice."
"It just happens. Believe me, when I first tried my hydromancy, I nearly flooded my mother's house. After I got actual training, it got significantly weaker. I believe a theorist said when a magic user unlocks their abilities, it all gets released with no restraint. After they gain control, it becomes weaker, and they have to train even harder to reach that same with the control they currently have. 'The Theory of Ascension' it was called."
"Power and control. A good union, but difficult to achieve to the same degree." I sat down for a break when I saw Windy and Noire emerge from the depths "Evening, you two. I take your training is going well."
"Just perfectly! Noire here is a quick learner. How about you?"
"I'm making progress on the precision, but the force is still lacking. I could hardly pierce through armor with the level it is at. Even after I pour all of my energy into my fist, it just feels wasted."
Noire put his hand on his chin, thinking over it for a moment "What if you just don't channel it?" he said.
"...What?" we all said.
"Well from the little I know of CQC, you're supposed to throw your whole body into your attacks, not just a single part. In theory, if you pour all of your energy into a single place the magic still won't hit as hard. Your not accumulating enough momentum compared to the rest of your body."
Tidal chimed in "I think I understand. If you throw a punch with magic spread through your entire body, the magic will just move along with the kinetic energy. It does sound good on paper."
"Using all off my magic paths will be incredibly strenuous, though." I countered.
"What you afraid?" Windy added "It's basically your new ultimate move. It's supposed to tucker you out. It won't hurt to try."
"From how Burning phrased, it most likely will," Noire corrected "Still worth it."
I relented, thinking that the crazy option was often the best way to go. I readied my fist, charging not just it but my whole body with magic. "I didn't think I was like the others, but now I see that to be as reckless as them to get as strong! Don't think about condensing it, just do it!" I threw my whole fist into the wall, unleashing a flaming bullet shaped like a bird's head. It strikes the ice wall, smashing it to pieces. It was not on the level it was when I first used it still, but it was a huge leap in progress. I exhale, looing at the increase in damage "It seems your craziness has rubbed off on me. Thank you," I said, bowing to all three of you.
"It that how he really sees us?" Windy asked.
"I wouldn't go that far..." Noire said to himself. We all laughed as we took a much needed break. However, we were alerted by a tremendous magical presence and a rush, freezing wind, surrounding us in thick fog. A piercing roar parted the fog, revealing a large lion with a white and dark blue mane. We looked upon its gigantic form with awe, as we had never seen or heard of this beast living in the icy wastelands before.
"Ye all... hath trespassed on my domain... and disturbed my slumber. Prepare yourselves... FOR BATTLE!"
The large beast let out another piercing howl as it charged towards us. We all leapt out of its path as it passed, yet still hitting us with a wave of chilling ice, knocking us off our feet. Noire was the first to rise, and raised his hands towards the lion in an effort to promote peace. "We did not know you were resting here. We apologize and promise not to return." The lion responded in a low growl.
"By stepping foot into our domain, you have already issued a challenge to us, Frost Regulus. Thou would be cowardly to walk away, and cowardice is rewarded with pain. Now fight... or perish." Another wave of frost covered me as I dodged another charge, however, due to my reduced speed, was vulnerable to the jagged ice that came towards me. Noire came to my aid, summoning his Gardnablade to block the attack. Frost Regulus? I had not heard of him from any legends, making his appearance in a random cave in the middle of the freezing wastelands even more strange. Tidal and Windy went on the offensive, hitting him with wind and ice attacks, yet couldn't make a dent in the beast defense as he stood unflinching.
"Noire! Boost me!" Noire nodded and encoded my whole body. I jumped off of his sword and struck the lion with Burning Fist: Tiger, which forced Frost Regulus back a bit. It seemed to be immune to wind and water-related magic "Windy, Noire, synchronize your attacks with mine! Tidal, use pure magic to disorient it!" Tidal fired a charge wave of magic at Frost Regulus' face which left him dazed. With that opening, Windy launched a Zephyr Comet while I fired my new attack "Burning Fist: Phoenix Bullet!". Noire fired a wave of pure magic, which encoded the fiery comet. The impact created a massive explosion, and we all watched with baited breath to see how much damage we had done. The obscuring smoke cleared to see the lion with a few scratches, but looked fine.
"This guy must be built like a deity to take this much. Did you hold back or something?" Tidal questioned as Frost Regulus made a speculative look towards me, and then turned his gaze to Noire. He then took a large inhale.
"We smell a familiar scent in the air, yet different. Ah, yes, a human's scent. An avatar, it seems." Noire perked up at his deduction "How long before you show me your true power?"
"Everybody! Attack him with everything you have!" Noire leapt into the air as all three of us prepared a focused attack.
"ZEPHYR COMET!" "GRAND TIDE'S TRIDENT!" "BURNING FIST: DRAGON!"
All the attacks gathered around Noire as his sword burned a royal blue. "BURNING EXCODE!" He unleashed a magic slash, carrying all of our enhanced attacks. However, Frost Regulus looked up at the.
"Thy strength is praise worthy, and the growth we have felt within this lair is commendable." The dark blue of his mane began to flare up, and the fog rose until we were left blinded for a moment "As reward for not dying too easily, we too shall, as the new blood say-" an ear-piercing roar deafened the area and the fog parted almost immediately, revealing a human figure where the beast once stood, with all our attacks missing their mark "-go all out."
The new phase of the battle proceeded very differently than the last, with Frost Regulus charging faster than we expected. He grabbed Tidal by the face and slammed her into the ground, leaving her unconscious. Windy tried to gain an aerial advantage but his body was frozen by a wave of frost that left in a hole in the wall , shaking from the cold. Noire and I were the only ones left standing. "He took out Windy without even touching him. Just what the hell is he!?" As I began to panic, Noire yelled at me to grab the others while he kept Frost Regulus busy. I made my way to the knocked out Tidal, carrying her to the side, and rushed to Windy's aid. Frost Regulus tried to take me out as well, but a powerful wave of magic knocked him away slightly. Enough for his punch to miss, making a crater in the wall next to me. The beast made his way back to Noire, who was beginning to shake from the cold, but held fast and clashed with his Longblade. As I carried a shaking Windy to a safe location, I could hear him murmur.
"Burning.... the c-cold... it makes him... bulkier..." With that, he finally passed out. I laid him next to Tidal, who beginning to shiver as well. At that rate, both of them were going to die of hypothermia, if Frost Regulus didn't. I extended my palms and flames were released from them, surrounding both of their bodies.
"My Burning Fist: Rat should keep them alive at least, but not for long," I looked to the battle behind me, with Noire taking a punch straight to the gut, sending him flying. He countered by throwing a Phantom Excalibur at him. The sword, however, was frozen by another wave of frost. "The frost makes him more susceptible! I'll hold him while you hit him with the biggest Phantom Excalibur you have!"
"Great plan and all, but I need him still for it to work or else he'll just dodge!" He nodded and floated in the air, lifting his sword high. Frost Regulus saw this and tried to stop him but I took both his arms and hooked his legs to the ground.
"Burning Fist: Full Body Concentration!" My entire body tensed up, and an intense pain surged through my body but I felt unmovable like this. It seemed to work as even though Frost Regulus fought with all his might, he was rooted to the ground.
"Final Decode: Phantom Ascalon!" I could see the tip of a lance descending towards us, and as a last resort, he let out a loud roar, releasing all of his cold energy. The resulting shockwave stopped the blade from making contact, but was gradually getting closer. I fought against the cold wind long and hard, but was losing my grip. I felt hands hold onto my sides. I looked down to see Tidal and Windy holding onto me. The lance came closer, I could see it slowly, but surely absorbing the magic of the cold wind, turning it a pale blue.
"It seems thou are... all brilliant warriors." With his final words, everything went black.
When I came to, the first thing I notice was the hot spring water I was laying in, and that I was stripped down to my boxers. I looked around to find the others in a similar state, rousing from their slumber and surprised by their lack of clothing. Tidal took it especially poorly by slapping Windy, who was unfortunately placed right next to her, giving him a free look at her sports bra. "Evening to you all." We found Frost Regulus, in his lion form, sitting by the springs. We all were on alert until we found ourselves too drained to even stand "It would be best to relax. The rejuvenating waters should help you recover your strength and magic. Plus, we have things to discuss, starting with you, human. Explain why look and smell like Grim but newer, somehow," Frost Regulus asked.
"Well, I'm a part of his soul that fragmented before he came to Equestria. That would explain our similarities. In more ways than I would like..." he said as he look at his reflection in the waters "But now we have to know who exactly you are. You feel familiar but-"
"We are the guardian of these lands, Vindr, known as the Frost Regulus. The reason why thou feel a familiarity towards us is because we fought against your originator, along with the other Reguli."
"There are others!? Are they as strong as you!?" Windy asked.
"There were six of us in total. Along with us, there was Ignius, the Flame Regulus, Prusilla, the Vortex Regulus, Aes, the Terra Regulus, Squall, the Gale Regulus, and Lucus, the Woodland Regulus." Some of those names were recognizable, with Ignius being the first Dragon King. "We were all simply companions of that Heros before being taken to distant areas of Equus to serve as guardians, given immense power through the code." That explained why it took all of us at our best just to weaken him. It was evident he was the victor of our bout, from how he managed to carry all of our unconscious bodies to this spring. "Now for my next question. Why are thou here?"
"We came to train and get stronger. Grim has returned and is intent on remaking Equus, recruiting other nations under the promise of creating an 'ideal world'. His next stop is Griffonstone, so we're preparing for the worst." Windy said.
"Thou hath proved your strength in combat. Unicorn, pegasus, thou battled through my freezing winds in critical condition. Earth pony, do not think I didn't notice your co-ordination of thine allies, and human, while you still have much to learn about your own abilities, your power is not one to scoff at. However, I do wonder why we smell Lucus' scent on you." We all looked to Noire in curiosity as he held his chin in his hand.
"That old timberwolf in the Everfree! He's a regulus!?"
Vindr let out a wry chuckle "Yes, Lucus is a good friend of mine. One of the few that remain. It is sad to say that Ignius was not the only one to perish in the battle 10,000 years ago." The lion's body became transparent "Ignius, Aes, Squall, and myself fell in battle, confined to our domains in spirit by Heros, while Lucus and Prusilla were the only surviving members."
"Guys, we should get back to the castle before everypony gets worried. We were supposed to be back by now," Tidal said as she exited the spring, and found our items. We all followed and as we equipped ourselves, Vindr began to fade away.
"It seems we expended more magic than we thought. May you depart with this warning. The Reguli's blessing does not extend to you alone." With that he vanished and we left the cave, alive and well. However, we left wary of the threat we may find in Griffonstone, and the reality that we were far from ready to end this war.
By the time we returned, it was already midnight, and Cadance, Ayra, and a platoon of guards were at the entrance, talking about recovering us from wherever we had gone. However, Cadance's eyes landed on me and she hurried to my side. "Noire!" she yelled, checking my battered armor " I was so worried about you all. You were supposed to be here hours ago. I feared the worst."
"It's a bit of a story, but right now, we're all okay-" I reassured her. Burning let out a big yawn, and Tidal quickly followed "-though we could use some sleep. I'll tell you everything on the way to Canterlot. We'll be with you by 3:00" With that, the generals and I all trudged through the gates and to our rooms for some much needed sleep. As we said our farewells, I entered my room where Cadance was patiently waiting for me on the bed. I fell into her bosom, and we laid together until we were taken by slumber. "I should pay that old man a visit..."
With three hours rest, and a coffee under our wings, we carried ourselves out of our beds and all the way to the train station. When our train was prepared to leave, Tidal gave a warm hug, and along kiss. We didn't know what we were going to encounter in the Griffon Empire, and how long we would be gone. "Both of you better come back in one piece," she pointed at Cadance and I "Now don't keep your soldiers waiting. Get going!" she ordered, saluting the both of us. We complied, hopping on the train and we were off to Canterlot.
Along the way, we finally had time to discuss last night's adventure. We explained to Cadance how we met the Frost Regulus, and how there were others across Equus. Cadance listened to all that we had to say "What you say about the Reguli acting as stores of knowledge does seem to make sense. You only started effectively using magic after you left the Everfree Forest-"
"-and your skill with a sword seemed to improve rapidly just by being in Vindr's cave," Windy added "If Aes is somewhere in the Griffon Empire then we should find him as well. We don't know if Grim is going to be there or not."
"The Griffon Empire is supposed to be the second biggest kingdom next to Equestria though. Aes could be anywhere," I said "I only managed to meet Lucus and Vindr by chance."
"There is no such thing as chance. Everything settles into it's path eventually." In a flash of light, Luna teleported into our train car "Greetings everypony. I hope you all are well," we all nodded "I happened to hear a bit of your conversation, and it seems Heros' companions live on. My sister and I thought most of them had perished 10,000 years ago."
"Most of them did, excluding Lucus and Prusilla, but persist as spirits. If finding them means learning more about my power, it's worth finding them but they could be anywhere."
"If Heros truly preserved their spirits for you to find them, then you shall find them. Lucus is more of a solitary soul, and Vindr could have been in any cave in the wastelands, but you still found them. Just let the opportunity come to you." With that out of the way, we discussed how we were going to proceed into Griffonstone. We were updated on the situation the empire closing its borders since the civil war began by the griffon soldier, and how any ships that got close were shot down on sight. Travelling by airships was going to be difficult, and walking would take way too long. "That prince is a clever one. He specifically retreated his forces to Griffonstone, a land not only under his control, but along the border to allow us easy access without being noticed by Gilgar. Only half a day by airship as long as we keep it cloaked." Through the speaker, the conductor announced our eventual arrival in Canterlot "We still have some preparations to make with our troops. We will see you at the bay." With that, she left us to enjoy a few moments of peace before the train made its stop at Canterlot.
We had left so early in the morning as to keep too many ponies from seeing us and keeping the public's morale high, however, that proved to be futile as we passed many from our way from the station to the air bay. I silently prepared for gossip to spread throughout, but was surprised to hear more reinforcing words from the city.
"Hey isn't that Noire, the knight that stopped Tirek?"
"Yeah, I guess they're going on another mission."
"I wonder if I can get his autograph..."
"Good luck, all of you!"
I could feel the uplifting words of everyone motivating the troops and I. "It seems somepony got popular after defeating Tirek," Burning teased.
"I just softened him up for Twilight and her friends to finish the job. Though, I won't lie: being praised like this doesn't feel too bad. Speaking of Twilight, are any of them coming?"
"Not this time," Cadance answered "No matter how strong they are together, they are still civilians and this is still a war. If we intend to join, we will not bring civilians to fight." I nodded "Plus, she just got back from another dimension. She must want some rest right now." That almost made me trip over myself.
"Another WHAT!?" I exclaimed incredulously "Why wasn't this never been mentioned?"
"You never asked so it never came up," she shrugged. I looked at her with expression of shock, confusion, and a bit of frustration before relenting. Some things in this world are better left unexplained, like magical mirrors to other dimensions, but a brief thought of visiting Earth did cross my mind. While my life their was far from pleasant, it would be nice to see how long people have assumed I was dead for. I couldn't spend too long on that thought as the bay came into view with Celestia and Luna chatting as people were moving boxes onto our ship.
"I'm glad to see you all made it here safely," Celestia greeted us, and we her "I will have to stay here for the safety of the kingdom, but I have faith in Luna's diplomacy during war. You will be in good hands. Sorry to make this short but every second I spend here is another file of documents to slave over. I bid you all farewell." Celestia had left quickly, leaving us to make the final preparations. 1000 soldiers boarded four airships, all enchanted with cloaking magic, and as we left Canterlot behind. we turned east. To the Griffon Empire.
We were high up in the clouds four hours in, just as another precaution, watching nothing in particular. It felt like everyone was in a world of their own. Windy and Burning were talking amongst themselves, Cadance was resting in our room, and I was with Luna, watching the horizon. "Luna?" she turned to meet me "I'm sorry if brings up more bad memories, but what was Heros actually like. Everyone talks about him being strong, a hero, and my fate, but never talks about him as a person." She looked back at the sky in front of us, and let a chuckle out.
"He was the arrogant type. He also seemed like he knew what he was doing, probably because he had already saved a world with magic so fighting Grim was par for the course. At first, I thought he was just some random idiot way too confident for his own good."
OVER 10,000 YEARS AGO, LUNA POV
"So, if we art hearing thou correctly, you want us to-"
"-withdraw all of your troops, yes I do believe I said that ten seconds ago," the man said to me. He was wearing old cloak over what I could see to be gold armor "I'm going to break it to you as gently as I can: all of your soldiers WILL lose their magic. They WILL lose the energy and/or will to fight, and then crushed under Tirek's hoof. Then they WILL be scraped off by the next pitiful wave of resistance you try to send his way." I was about to rip the man's head, lifting myself out of my seat until he continued "Or I go out there in their place, and do what I was sent here by your mother to do. Be a hero." I was left speechless by what he had implied. Mother was alive? She was well? I wanted so many answers, but my sister spoke first.
"We can feel the faint presence of our mother on thou, so we can believe your claim to have been in contact with mother. We will take you to Tirek, but be warned: It took Scorpan sacrificing himself just to weaken him, and now he is inexplicably more powerful than ever. Thou still wants to do this?" The strange man only nodded, and my sister complied, teleporting us to Tirek's location, the edge of the Everfree. Right outside our front door. Our last line of resistance. I was aware of our mother's contact with him, but the fool really intended on confronting Grim's most powerful ally alone. I was equally sure that he was doomed. However, he had no such fear. He removed his cape and his eyes turned a bright gold. The once faint presence of our mother began to hit me like a wave. As if mother was right next to me. He extended his hands outward, and a portal appeared right below Tirek, and he began to sink. He tried to escape but several chains held him down. In a minute's time, Tirek had disappeared. I was left in awe. This man had ended crisis that threatened our whole world in a minute.
PRESENT TIME, NOIRE POV
"When I asked the fool who he was and why he was here, he told me 'I have long forgotten my name. As for the why, I made a vow to help anyone in need, whenever they needed it. To conquer evil at any cost. People tended to call me Heros back on my world so I guess that works." I remained silent, letting her look back for a few more seconds "He told us all about the code and how he was summoned to seal Grim away. We had thought Grim was gone, or dead until Celestia spoke about the last time she saw him, awakening to an unknown power. It was as he once said concerning the coincidence of them acquiring the code at the same time. Whenever once power rises, another must rise to match. Everything has its equal." I looked at the magical veins across my body. What once looked like curving strands were sharp like wiring. "I proposed to him, you know," she said nonchalantly, causing me to recoil "He said no. Didn't want me being tied down to someone who was destined save worlds. He could have been whisked away again, and I would never see him again. He could disappear without warning. There was no telling how he would leave. Its kind of ironic: he made endless preparations to be taken away from this world, and he leaves in the last way he ever expected. Of old age, surrounded by his loved ones. The only ones who knew of his deed." She kept staring at the sky. The bright. blue, endless sky. I patted her on the back while the tears fell down her cheeks and a smile spread across her lips.
"That dumbass."
I decided to take a nap before we arrived in Griffonstone. I cuddled up next to the sleeping princess, nestling my face within her bosom, and hoped for peaceful dreams. However, as soon as I closed my eyes, I felt myself leave my body, and go someplace darker, and then brighter than I could imagine a nightmare to be. I was awake. In someone else's bed.
I had closed my eyes for a moment, just a second or two, but in that moment, I felt something dragging me away from everything, and once I opened my eyes once more I was in bed, next to her. "Morning, my love~" she purred as Cadance stroked my chest "Time to get to work. You know how Tidal gets when you're late." As she rolled out of bed, the sheets unveiled my new (or should I say old) body. There were no signs of my magic veins, and my skin, pale from lack of sunlight, was brighter, with more muscle underneath. The body I once had before being sent to Equestria. I got out of bed and hurried to the bathroom where I checked my complexion. I looked like Noire, or more accurately, the me of the past.
"Is this some kind of messed up nightmare or did I die in my sleep and get sent to Hell?" I said to myself, now aware that voice had lost its deep tone. Cadance looked at me with a worried look on her face "Don't worry about me. Just my inner evening person." She shrugged it off and left for work while I pinched myself to make sure I wasn't dreaming. No pain. A dream, but a very weird one. "I don't know how Noire's room looked so how do I feel like this is his room to a T? More importantly, why can't I destroy this dream?" I decided it would be best to play the game for a bit. I didn't know how I got here, but I thought surely the answers would show themselves soon. I got dressed in what seemed to a red and black version of Noire's armor, and headed to wherever I needed to go. I followed Cadance down the hall, running to catch up with her. When I caught up I asked "What's first on the checklist?"
"You need to meet with Tidal. She's been asking for you, Noire. So has the baby~" she mused as she made a turn while I stopped in my tracks.
"..." I was silent as we walked out of the castle. I observed the people around. They were happy, peaceful, yet I could see the cracks in this world the moment I laid my eyes on it. The moment I woke up and rested my eyes on Cadance's bedside dresser, half-open to see a picture of Shining and her during their wedding. What utopia has a woman clinging onto the man that broke her? "A world of pain" I thought. Without noticing I was in the hospital, I saw the unicorn woman, Tidal Horn. She was cradling a little ball in her hands.
"Look, your daddy is here," she singed as she held them up to me. As she did, I saw that she couldn't lean forward at all. She had a C- section. As I took the child in my arms, I looked down to see a pair of bug-like eyes. A changeling birthed from a pony? The child I had asked Shining to implant in the female general to kill her? Why would he want to keep something like that in his ideal world? Does he even want this world to change? These questions birthed further questions as I looked at the spawn. "So did you think of a name?" Tidal asked me.
"I guess a good name would be..."
NOIRE POV
"Celestia, what am I doing in Canterlot?"
"You live here, silly~"
"Okay. Why aren't we heading to Griffonstone like we planned?"
"Griffonstone? Why would we be heading there?"
"Good to know. Last question, I promise: Why was I in your bed?"
"We were sleeping together. Then we went to sleep~." She wiggled her brows suggestively as I trying to figure out what kind of wacky dream I was having. I would never dream so lucidly unless I was talking to Faust or I was... "Now come on, Grim. We should get ready to meet King Shining Armour and Queen Chrysalis."
"...shit..." I looked at my body, but nothing was out of the ordinary. However as I walked to the bathroom to check my appearance, I saw my eyes were a bright, red hue. "This has to be my dream-walking kicking in again, but why Grim? Why now?" I concluded that venturing through this dream would give me the answers I needed. I got dressed in my royal attire and followed Celestia to the council room. As we walked through the halls, I came to another harrowing realization: the ponies that walked through the halls, guarding the area, talking amongst themselves, they were NOT ponies. They were HUMANS. I decided to test something "Wow, everypony is active this morning," I said to myself, but loud enough for Celestia to hear.
"I think you mean everyone. Hard to say 'everypony' if I'm the only pony," she chuckled to herself as she walked. It was as I thought. A world without ponies. I kept silent and followed as my mind was buzzing with questions as to why Grim would dream a race out of existence save for Celestia, but the sound of opening doors and the polite greetings of two of my biggest enemies pulled me from my thoughts. While the three chatted away, I looked to Chrysalis and Shining, happily married as I had heard it, with the changeling race thriving without a need to feast on love.
"It was all thanks to you, Grim. With your magic, changing the very anatomy of our race, we have no need to prey on innocents, creating false images of our people." I did not need to respond for them to continue talking, discussing the attempts of moving to new worlds to establish interdimensional connections. While they talked, I began putting the pieces together.
A new world was Grim's desire on the most surface level, but from everything else I had heard:
There being no need for changelings to absorb love and the race being treated like equals. Chrysalis' desire.
The erasure of all ponies. I was told of Gilgar's hatred for ponies. Hatred that could arouse the thought of erasing them. This wasn't simply a dream.
"This is our new utopia." Grim's disembodied voice echoed through the room, followed by a piercing pain in my chest, leaving my writhing on the ground. None of them came to help and just kept talking, even as the world was erased around them. Only darkness and us remained. Grim stood above me looking down on me as I recovered from the experience "You only saw a fraction of the justice I will bestow upon this world. Equal rights for all races? I know you want it. I saw your ideal world too. A happy family, peace across Equestria, and no threats like me there to harm either. If there was no role switching or memories of reality to get in the way, our worlds would be indistinguishable. We both yearn for true peace, but the world you try to protect is the fallacy. That everyone still has to suffer." He extended his hand to me "I'm going to ask you one last time. All you have to do to save everything you love is to take my hand. We can end this pointless war and you can have anything you want in the new world. Your loved ones as you know them. No more pointless suffering because of differences. Everything will be-"
"Do you ever wonder if your followers are tired of listening to your preaching?" I asked as I slapped his hand away. He seemed unfazed, knowing I would refuse "Your world will be the fallacy. We live through our pain,-" my mother appeared behind me "-our losses,-" followed by my father "our own personal hell so when we walk out, we can stand tall with the people who helped us get this far." Every person I met on my journey joined my side, with Cadance right next to me as she held my hand "We don't need you. So I make this vow to you as not the opposite of you, not another half, as Noire: bodyguard, lover, and friend." I extended my hand to Grim, and my arm began to light up a royal blue " I vow to protect every life on this planet with everything I have, so we may all find our own utopia. Made by good."
Grim reached out his crimson red arm and grabbed mine in a handshake "Then I will make this vow to you. I vow that every life on this planet will wither, fade, die, and be reborn in a new world made by its new god: Grim, the avatar of destruction." Like that, I felt what was once keeping us together fall apart, severed by our vows that cemented our journey. As not just enemies, but beings that could not exist in the same world. The abyss that surrounded us began to decay, but not before Grim told me one last thing "I'll see you at the controller."
I woke up covered in sweat, panting heavily as Cadance rose from her slumber as well. "Noire? You look like you just ran a marathon. Bad dream?" she asked, rubbing her eyes. I felt my code coursing through my veins with a refined tune. I git out of bed, and looked out the window at the border of Griffonstone in sight.
"We need to talk with others. I think I know what Grim is doing."
After my encounter with Grim in the dream realm, I immediately called everyone for a meeting before entering Griffonstone. Once everyone was gathered, I informed them of what happened in the dream. "So, what does this mean for you and him?" Windy asked.
"It means our souls have been cut off permanently. He can't see into my head, nor can I see into his. Probably for the best: I did not want not know what would happen to me if I killed Grim while soul-linked." I imagined the scenario the way it most likely would have ended: with me dying along with him. "However, the most important part is what he said to me before we were cut off 'I'll see you at the controller'. I'm guessing that's going to help his endgame of recreating the world."
"It would make it child's play." All of us turned to Luna "Heros mentioned it to us. It is supposed to unlock a code avatar's full potential. They can initially control the nature of the magic around them according to their will, but is limited by range, their own mana pool, and their subconscious. Grim only seeks destruction, no matter what he says about this 'new world', so his code reacted to that desire and can only destroy. Objects, both physical and magical, as well as psyches from what we saw of Tirek. With the controller, his subconscious limitations would be released-"
"-And he could do anything he wanted," Burning finished "The experiments, though: How do they help?"
"Not only are they added muscle to his forces but from how they can react to emotions like changelings, absorb magic, and hold an incredible amount, it's safe to say he's trying to create a vessel. One with an incredible amount of magic." I answered "The only thing I don't get is why he needs it. This controller sounds powerful enough on its own."
"So it seems he needs enough magic to find it," Luna finished.
We sat in silence and thought. Grim was always one step ahead of us, like he had the whole puzzle figured out in his head and just had to actually put it together. "He needs power. Enough power to find this controller, with enough power to make a world." Like a flash of lightning, it hit me "He needs the full power of the code just like..." I summoned my sword, fully aware of who gave it to me "Faust." The rest soon followed, with everyone realizing. Several expressions were found amongst us. Shock, clarity, but most importantly, fear. "He knows where she is." Luna had the most intense reaction, with her magic spilling out a little, but enough to shake the ship, which was beginning to dock far out of the range of any patrolling forces. Cadance placed a hand on Luna's shoulder, and encouraged her to relax. Just as quickly as it started, the shaking stopped.
"If what you say is true, we should find her as soon as possible. I would say locating an area with exceptionally high amounts of magical defenses would be easy but if she was dormant for this long without anypony noticing, then finding her conventionally would be impossible. Noire, you and these monarchs may very well be the only clues we have to her location." The sound of the wind had ceased, notifying us that we had touched land. We instructed the troops to remain here until we had discussed the situation with Gilgamesh. Under the cover of an invisibility spell, we snuck below the notice of any griffons and were in front of the concealed hole in the walls. "Remember Noire-" Luna said before we entered "Aes is now you second most important mission here. If you feel anything similar to Lucus or Vindr, tell us immediately." I nodded and we all proceeded into Griffonstone.
A couple of miles from our hiding place was our entrance, a hole made from a recent confrontation that was concealed by the guise of bushes and trees. From above, you could see griffons guarding the walls with unrelenting focus. As the situation with Gilgar's forces within Griffonstone remained a mystery, staying unknown became an absolute must. As we passed through the hole, a bustling town unfolded before us. Guards littered every corner and a couple could be seen passing through with every second. Regular civilians were few, with the exceptions only outside to carry as many supplies as possible before the inevitable came knocking on their doorsteps. War was coming.
"This place looks like a train's going to run through it: everyone's desperate and frantic. So, this is happening" I thought as I stayed closed in on the edge of the undergrowth, where Gilgamesh's contact should be waiting. Just as he planned, his contact was here. A small boy sitting on a tree singing a little ditty without a care in the world.
Guilatea, bless our soil, to summon our libations Guilahad, please strike the hen, to promise our protection~ Guin'vera, dress the boys and girls, sing to us 'Rex in Terrum' so Aes from Elysium may guide us to our freedom!
The little griffon jerked up when he heard the rustling in the leaves. He jumped off the branch and landed right in front of us "So you five must be the intruders! Welcome to Griffonstone! We don't have much, but home's home!" He turned right around and marched onward "What are you standing around for? Let's get moving," We shook off our surprise at this child's ability to see through our illusion but carried on anyway. As we passed through the streets, my eyes were drawn towards the jewellery attached to the boy's waist, an aquamarine gem fixed to an ovular brooch, making it resemble an eye.
"It seems the charm the boy has allows him to see through magic spells. Are artefacts this accessible that a child can get one?" Luna asked.
"I don't think so," Windy replied "Gilgamesh must have given it to him so he could find us. This prince is meticulous."
"When fighting a war, especially one against your father, I guess you would have to be," Cadance added. I noticed we were drawing closer to a manor. There was only one guard posted by the gate and from one gaze at the small boy and our direction, he silently bowed and allowed us entry.
"It should be safe now. You can get rid of the disguise now," Luna lifted the invisibility over us, and we continued into the manor, already open for us. The interior was your typical level of extravagance: red silk carpet laid over checkered, marble tiles, paintings of several griffons hung over every wall, and gold accented the staircase, where at the summit stood a tall griffon with honey yellow fur and white feathers. He wore a long, deep brown coat, black pants, shoes, and gloves, and a purple scarf around his neck to complete the look of a distinguished gentleman, who wasn't afraid to get his hands dirty. He quickly descended the stairs to greet, and with a bow, announced himself.
"Welcome to my abode. As you may already know, I am Gilgamesh von Griffonia. My apologies for the trouble it took for you to get here, but from what you have seen, the reasons should be clear." The boy walked to the prince and handed him the brooch. He accepted it, and in exchange, handed him a bag full of bits. In a hurry, the boy left the house. "Things have been getting difficult when our scouts discovered plans for an attack on the resistance, with assistance from our common enemy. Let us move to a more comfortable place so we can discuss a plan of action." He led us up the stairs to a lounge, with a couple of maids present with a tray of tea and biscuits. The room, much like the rest of the house, had portraits of griffons. With each one looking slightly more modern than the last. We took a seat on the sofas available, and Gilgamesh sat on his chair.
"Thank you all for coming to hear my plea. I know that you all are going through a much bigger crisis, so make yourselves comfortable."
"Worry not, Prince Gilgamesh, we are more than happy to help your cause, especially since our crises are now one," the prince looked at confusion "The threat that has appeared in both Equestria and the Dragonlands is most likely the one who started this civil war in the first place. The one behind this, Grim, won't stop until all Equus has been destroyed and reborn under his rule." Luna informed the prince of everything that had occurred, with the attacks on Canterlot, defilement of the first dragon lord's remains, and the release of Tirek.
"I see. This issue does require an alliance to confront if Grim is this powerful. However, with our nation divided, with many on my father's side. Even if we manage to succeed, we wouldn't be able to give you much support. Many believe that ponies are not being the best ally themselves with." He sighed as he took a long sip of his tea, preparing himself to say what may be hurtful to his goal "Not just us, but other races do not have positive opinions of you, with one half thinking you're weak, and others thinking you are self-righteous, always preaching about friendship, but never open to other races." It would be a lie to say that what Gilgamesh had said did not have a lot of truth. From the discrimination of changelings, which ultimately led to their demise, to the profiling of dragons and griffons as brutes, we didn't have much of a leg to stand on when it came to negotiating. No one had much to say after that, until Windy, like the unfiltered pegasus he is, broke the silence.
"It would be a lie to say we gave the best reputation, and that we haven't done some damage to each other. If Tidal were here, she could testify to that, but we can make a decent start by dethroning your dad, and proving we can all get along. would be pretty good for the papers, don't ya think?" He took another biscuit from the trays a maid was holding and took a leisurely bite. Gilgamesh stared at him for a moment before letting out a small laugh. This first time we saw him break out of that gentlemanly role.
"You would be correct, Sir Windy. That is why this alliance must happen. As not only the end of this war but the start of talks for an alliance between all races. My father's parasitic hatred, while understandable, has gone on long enough." I perked at the mention of Gilgar's hatred for ponies. This was the second time it was mentioned, and by the sombre looks on people's faces, as they recounted it, it sounded like it was understandable, almost warranted. That was a question I was going to get after that meeting. As for that moment, Gilgamesh's attention was drawn to me and he stood up, walking over to me. He looked into my blue eyes, inspecting them like one admires a painting. "Apologies for my rudeness, but I must ask, do you house more than your power?" I stared at him silently, unsure of how to answer "Allow me to rephrase. Your ki does not have the essence of you alone, but another. At first, it was hard to tell due to the two being so similar, but now that I am in closer proximity, I can feel another soul dwelling beside yours. Have you had another being come into contact with your soul?" I took a moment to think about it. I thought of Grim for a moment but remembered we were cut off. There was Vindr and/or Lucus, but I couldn't remember them coming into contact with my soul. No one else came to mind
"Sorry, the only thing I can tell you is that it is not Grim. Our souls were separated before we got here. Once we resolve this, I need your help with something, but that can come later: we still need to know how much time we have before Gilgar comes knocking," Gilgamesh understood and moved back into his desk. He took out a map and handed it to me. The map of the empire had a red line, coming from what I assumed to be the capital, extending to the south-west, where we were.
"My scouts found the enemy army marching in on the southern roads where all the trade routes were. They're making no effort to hide their intentions. If we are fortunate, five days tops. However, we have no way of telling what kind of firepower they have at their disposal. Intercepting them now would mean engaging in our more populated areas, Guin'vera, and the sacred grounds. It would be a disaster. So, unfortunately, we have no choice but to remain here and evacuate as many civilians out of Griffonstone as possible. Guilatea Town's the best place we can think of until this dies down."
"We can help with the evacuation. We packed lots of food to last." Cadance said.
"Escorting them to Guilatea Town will be our pleasure as well," Burning added. Gilgamesh bowed to us.
"By Aes, I don't know how I could thank you enough." I got up and put my hand on his shoulder. Upon closer inspection, he looked completely ragged, held together by what I could assume to be coffee and the notion of passing out in front of guests to be unsightly. The weight of a prince was taxing, but one with goals that went against his legacy? It was a miracle he hadn't collapsed by now unless he already had before we met. I patted both of his shoulders.
"For a start, take a nap. We can get a fresh start in the morning. A leader ain't useful when he's about to keel over. Plus, we're going to talk about Aes after we deal with those forces." With that, he sighed and nodded. We all said our goodbyes and left the building. To save time, we teleported back to the ship to get some of our business affairs. We needed soldiers to help give out food and with the escorting. From the map, showing a blue line stretching north to Guilatea Town, it would be a two-day trip, both there and back. Lots of time to organize our troops for the battle.
After a long day of work, I plopped my butt on the nearest chair and stretched. Cadance joined me and we both watched Celestia's sunset, bathing the horizon in an orange glow, giving way to Luna's night. As we relaxed, Gilgar entered my thoughts again. Everyone spoke of him as a legend, and a tragic one. I couldn't take not knowing and just said it. "What happened to Gilgar?" Cadance turned to face me with an expression of discomfort "Whenever he comes up, people either consider him a tragic legend. What's up with him?" Cadance shuffled in her seat, moving it so she faced me, now serious.
"Gilgar was and still is, a good man. He was recently crowned king of the empire after his father went mad with magic poisoning," I raised an eyebrow at the magic poisoning "Some creatures aren't capable of handling massive amounts of magic like you and I, Noire. When that creature has entered its body too much, with no way to release it, it poisons their bodies and minds, and go rampant. That made it even more painful when Gilgar was forced to strike him down before he killed his wife and children. We all thought that would be the end of Gilgar's suffering. We were wrong." I leaned in closer, hanging on to every word "When Aunty Tia and I were on a trip there to discuss a trade of their artefacts for our magical knowledge to prevent incidents like that, and as we were talking, his wife went to go check on her daughter. It was all such a rush when we heard screaming and found both their dead bodies found, with the daughter, Guinavera, in worse condition. The killer was one of ours. A soldier who saw an opportunity but lost control of the situation very quickly. Gilgar lost it at that point. He told us both to leave before he lost what was left of his self-control but left the murderer there. We complied."
I was left speechless. Any man goes mad when he loses everything. Cadance continues with clenched hands around each other, seeking solace in her warmth "The events that proceeded were what gave him two titles: the Solitary Lion and The Crownless King. We weren't there, but he executed the stallion himself: tore him limb from limb, and Faust only knows what, and after all, was said and done, with his wife and daughter buried, he melted his crown to engrave their names on their tombs. He had barely stepped foot out of his room, let alone his country, until the Gala. That was the biggest surprise of them all. Now I fear there's no other choice but to end him. For his own sake." A tragic legend indeed. I only held her hand and nodded in understanding as we turned our gaze back to the complete night. Luna had done a wonderful job on the constellations tonight. We took solace in the fact that we did everything we could today, and would do the same tomorrow. However, we remained aware that past the sacred grounds and to the capital, Griffonia, Gilgar was doing everything he could to erase us.
GILGAR POV
"Guinavera, Selene, you will be avenged," I prayed to their grave, their names inscribed in this country's finest gold, written by my own crown. Such a thing was, and still is, pointless to me. I value them more than this crown, this country, this reality. I walked back to my office in deadly silence, gazing out the window. Somewhere on that horizon, the last piece of the family I had left was planning my downfall, my own demise. A part of me was shattered to know that. That I had to be the one to right this injustice, and the only griffon to remember this tragedy, but a part of me felt empty, so accustomed to losing that my own son leaving was nothing more than an inconvenience, or an inevitability. I did teach him to value people over everything. I sat in my chair and looked at my mounts. Monsters that I had slain were aesthetic, and looking at them was not pleasing anymore but one sight was slightly gratifying like I had performed a righteous act. The pony head, contorted into an expression of pure agony. I wonder what he thought as he took my last reason for living. I wonder if he had felt true remorse for his actions, or if he had anything to lose if he died, perhaps a family like mine, "Agony. Is this what it feels like?"
As dawn, we rose to action, quickly assigning our roles. A bulk of our forces were stationed by the outposts where the enemy army will come from, organised by Luna herself. Burning and Windy have assembled a small force along with one of Gilgamesh's lieutenants to escort the civilians away from the conflict. As for Cadance and I...
"I feel useless." Cadance was leaning on the balcony of Gilgamesh's mansion as we looked out across the town. There were people; knights, commoners, and even children, scurrying through the city. They were working to ensure this town's survival. Meanwhile, we sat by, doing nothing but watching them.
"Same here. It was times like this when my initial response would be playing some game on my phone to pass the time."
"Whatever happened to that device?" I looked back on what felt like years ago, to my first mission, and the events that transpired in that poor doctor's clinic.
"Phones aren't exactly explosion-proof. Either way, we have our mission: protecting the town with all the magic we have left." The plan was simple: Cadance was to create a large barrier to keep the enemy out while I kept to the rearguard as a last line of defence. I objected to this many times, claiming this would mean we're taking the path of higher casualties but a majority vote silenced my fears.
"I'm just worried about if I'll even be able to do this. What if Chrysalis shows up? She could break my barrier without breaking a sweat. If she's here..." I looked back to the griffons and ponies passing through the streets, and my mind wandered to a time when we failed. The roads were paved with fire and the stench of death. A smack of bitterness was left in my mouth when I thought of us failing.
"She may be here but so will we. We're stronger than when we were when this all started, and we're not done yet. So if it's too much..."
"I'll rely on you guys, got it." That seemed to alleviate some of her anxiety, but the boredom never left, "I'm checking up on Gilgamesh. If I have to keep waiting, I'll go crazy." She turned and went to Gilgamesh's study, and with nothing better to do, I followed suit. We searched the mansion for him when we couldn't find him in his study, tracking him to the gardens. There was a multitude of flowers, some familiar and some so exotic I couldn't even guess what they were. He was tending to a large golden flower. Its petals had three layers, curving downwards, outwards, and upwards. Almost like a lion's mane. He gently stroked its petals, looking at it with a sad look. When we were close enough, he spotted us and quickly composed himself.
"I suppose I should've known you two would not have been content with simply watching. If it weren't for this garden, I would've gone mad with boredom as well." We almost forgot that as he was practically the figurehead of the rebellion, he was confined as well.
"If all we can do is wait then can we at least ask you some questions, especially about Aes?" He seemed a bit surprised but accepted, guiding us to a table set by the roses.
"Among wanting to help the resistance and creating an alliance of all the races, we need information about Aes, anything that could tell us where he is." Gilgamesh's confusion rose more with our statement, so we informed him of everything we knew. About the Reguli, Faust, the Controller, and how Aes was one of the few that could tell us how to find it or what we needed to enter. He listened carefully and once we were done, pulled a crest out of his breast pocket. It was of a lion with a sharp mane, reminiscent of shattering earth.
"Aes, or the Terra Regulus as you call him, was our founder, and the one who guided our kind to this land, as the legends say. According to legends, he sent messages to three griffons to gather their people from their once divided towns and gave one instruction to each of them in dreams. Guilatea, a farmer, was told to bring a small pouch of seeds, Guilahad, a paladin, was told to bring a cockatrice, and Guin'vera, a caretaker was taught a song and told to teach it to all the orphans. All of them, while having different instructions, was told to go to the same place: the supposed haven of the Earth King, Opus Terrae." I remembered the song that child sang before meeting us. 'The Three Saints of Aes' was what it was called by many around town. "The rest is different depending on who you ask. Some say when they arrived, Aes gave them blessings, others that the mountain we use as Aes' temple was born, along with other editions from children to adults, but what can be verified is that Opus Terrae is a blessed land. Abundant fields, fertile crops, and a devout following with soldiers ten times as strong as the average griffon. If Aes is going to be anywhere, it will be there." His gaze became fixed on me again, examining me as if something had changed about me. After a few seconds of this, I became uncomfortable.
"Is something wrong? This isn't the first time I've caught you staring," I asked. Gilgamesh corrected himself, bowing his head in apology.
"My apologies, but your ki is simply fascinating. Like a nexus of different magic merged into one, new soul." I raised a brow at his statement. being the second time he had referred to my 'ki' "I see you're a bit confused. Ki is just what we griffons call magic. We believe the energy that inhabits our body is just an extension of Aes but changed by our souls. With training, sensing the nature of one's ki, and by extension, soul, is incredibly useful. It has saved me from many assassinations in the past." The thought of learning this crossed my mind, and Gilgamesh immediately picked up on it. He stood from his seat and gestured to an empty spot in the gardens "I could give you some pointers to you. To you both." He turned to Cadance "It would be helpful to at least sense danger while protecting the town. What do you think?" I looked to Cadance, who looked receptive to the idea. We both agreed and we followed Gilgamesh for training. As we walked, my mind wandered, thinking about how Tidal was doing back at the Crystal Empire.
TIDAL POV
I was worried. Anxious. Even a bit scared as I paced the floor of the medical ward. Curdle was busy checking the test results of my 'situation'. The changeling in my body was a concern, yes, but what occupied my thoughts was a Noire fighting out there. "He'll be fine," I thought "He's a strong kid and has Cadance, and an army of... to help him. He'll be fine." I stopped and gazed at the floor, then out the window "So why am I so tense?"
"Maybe because you're not as fine with this as you thought." I spun around in shock to find Ayra in a seat, watching me worry like an overprotective mom. I sighed and took a seat on a bed. "I'm sorry. Your emotions were so strong I couldn't help but speak out. Do you feel like talking about it?" I was about to say no but she interjected "Just so you know, holding this in is definitely going to result in an explosion. Like Noire and Cadance's first date." I killed that thought immediately.
"Fine. I guess I thought I was past all of this. After Noire consoled me after what happened to my mother, I thought I was okay but now he's in their homeland, fighting in a civil war. What if history repeats itself? What if something happens, like Chrysalis, or Shining, or Grim!? I can't stand being out of the loop like this!" I fall flat on the bed. I look at my belly, looking a bit larger than it was a month ago. Small, but worrying nonetheless. "Do you think I'm pregnant?" Ayra almost choked on air for a moment, hearing her coughs from across the room "I know everyone's been avoiding the subject but I want to know from you. Is this... situation a child? A tumour? If we get it- him? her?- will it be breathing? Will I have to be a mother? Will Noire and Cadance want to keep it? Just so many questions that I barely know where to start." Ayra just sat quietly, listening to me rambling on until she came over to me and held my hand.
"Tidal, I have no idea what is happening to you. We normally come in eggs and take weeks to come out, with at least 2 months until we become mature enough to perform our duties. I've never seen a case like yours. I don't think even Chrysalis knew what she was doing when she did that. However, what I do know is that this... whatever is happening to you, belongs to you. It is your choice what to do and how you see this child. The best we can do is support whatever decision you make." I gave her a tight hug, silently thanking her for her words.
"When did you become so good at this?" I asked.
"Well, working with the Princess of Love and evolving into a changeling queen does have some benefits."
"Yeah! Like that ass!" Curdle yelled as she pushed herself away from her workstation and towards us. Ayra gave her a playful punch as she gained a tinge of red in her cheeks "Now enough therapy! We got your results and we got answers to some of those questions. Like the ~gender~" Curdle singsonged the last part as she explained what was happening. Noire was in for a shock of a lifetime when he got back.
"Yes, he will come back to me. I know he will."
NOIRE POV
The both of us sat in front of Gilgamesh as he demonstrated the fundamentals of ki. While explaining beforehand that ki was essentially magic for griffons, some things set both of them apart. Most importantly, how they are used. ON Gilgamesh's arms were two gold bracers with two garnets embedded on the back and front. He took a seat on the floor in front of us and changed his breathing. As he did so, I was able to see the magic as it began to pulsate from the ground, through his veins, and eventually to his arms. The garnets glowed dimly before Gilgamesh stopped his breathing and the magic. "Should I have brought a pen and paper?" I said jokingly
"Perhaps but I have been made aware of some of your abilities so this should be a relatively easy explanation for both of you," Gilgamesh responded as he stood up, got into a stance and punched the air, creating a small shockwave "Nature, nurture, action. Those three consecutive steps are fundamental in how your ki develops. It is not like magic where it increases through training or ascension: your ki never gets stronger. It only becomes purer as you train it to communicate with the earth. In short," he sent a kick towards us, sending an even stronger gust of wind that almost knocked us over "Create a circuit between your body and the earth. This circuit can increase all your abilities, including magic spells as well as alert you when someone else's ki is nearby."
"Just how far can this technique go?" Cadance asked in curiosity. Gilgamesh responded by asking her to stand. Once they were at least three metres away from each other, it began. I activated my vision again to see Gilgamesh's circuit extending, attaching itself to her. Cadance, once it was established, was shocked by the sensation but calmed quickly.
"If you train it enough, intercepting attacks is a common ability. High-level ki users can sense from greater distances and, if you know the person well enough, identify them specifically. They can link to others to share their enhancements and in the situation where two high-level users enter battle, they can enter this sort of 'showdown' where their ki is linked to one another, turning into a measure of skill rather than power. An easy way to even the odds with those of a higher calibre." He disabled the link, causing Cadance to calm a bit, her power decreasing as the circuit retreated from her body. After that demonstration, we were both eager to learn; Cadance was even more so, potentially as a way to grow to at least be on her aunts' level.
The easiest and quickest way to develop ki enough to at least accomplish the basics was joint meditation. Alone was helpful but creating a circuit with a trained user helped speed up the process. However, the hard part was remaining focused enough to maintain the circuit. With the experience I had in magical circuits, it was easier for me but Cadance struggled. Often our circuit was broken due to a loss of focus on her end, with no warning. After a few failed attempts, we broke off for the day to rest. Cadance was feeling down on herself so I led us inside to our guest bedroom to relax a bit. As she lay on my chest, I noticed her thoughts growing more irritating to her as her brow furrowed. "Careful. Think any harder and your brain may explode." Cadance flicked my nose and sat up.
"I messed up. I could barely manage simple meditation." She laid backwards on the bed, arms splayed out in exhaustion "I know what you said about me not being inadequate but it's hard when people repeatedly show you how incompetent you are in something important. Chrysalis, couldn't handle a shield and an inexperienced knight, no offence, with a month's sword training defended me." Cadance gripped the sheets in frustration and closed her eyes, thinking back over our many battles. I just sat beside her, allowing her to let out all her feelings. "Canterlot, dwarfed by my aunts. Tirek, I was useless. Now we have another invasion, and I can't even focus." She covered her face with her arms "I'm doomed to be bad at what people need me to do."
"Maybe you're thinking about it wrong?" Cadance lifted her head slightly, curious "I mean it sounds like your focus isn't where it should be. Remember when I stupidly decided to take over captain duties I was not equipped to handle." She giggled as she recalled my face a week in, eyes so baggy and brow so furrowed, you could've mistaken me for a shelf. "When I finally stopped doing everything and thought about what made me special, it became so much clearer. It wasn't my authority or my powers, it was what I wanted to do from the very moment I saw my father die. I wanted to protect. It sounds like you need to go back to basics too."
Cadance pondered on that for a moment before crawling back up to me, holding me down on the bed. "The basics..." she said "Like back when you first got here. When I thought I had my life together. When I had something to cherish with all my might..." she laid a kiss on my lips for a while, sucking the very breath from my lungs "I love you, Noire."
"I love you, Cadance," I breathlessly replied. With no words exchanged, she lowered herself onto me.
WINDY POV
We were about 12 hours away from Guilatea Town and behind me, I could feel so many emotions; anxiety over the future, sadness over their present, and some little specks of righteous fury. It was all so familiar I couldn't help but chuckle a little, causing some of the guards to look at me in disdain. They probably didn't understand, likely because most were griffons, accustomed to the belief that ponies were strangers to true conflict. They were correct to some extent. If you were in Canterlot, or some of the well-known cities, you were safe, save from the occasional attack from a magical foe sealed thousands of years prior. However, those tiny towns, towns you would have to look closely to find on a map, had less fortune. I wanted to turn around and say it would be alright to those fretful citizens but I had lost faith in promises a long time ago. Instead, I did the only thing I could do to provide some safety. If not for them, then myself.
"I'll go scout ahead," and I took flight far ahead, searching the roads and expanse around me for anything suspicious. Half a mile, nothing. A mile, squirrels and the like. 2 miles, nothing but my thoughts of Trottingham's fields. The place where I had first learned to take my first shot, was my teacher. A handy griffon he was. I was about to make it 3 miles away when I noticed something on the ground. I descended for a better look. Footprints heading back to Giffonstone. Made by one person. "Who would go this far to Griffonstone alone?" I flew back to the troupe escorting the refugees. Most of the guards were displeased with my departure.
"Did you enjoy your little break?" One asked sarcastically. I ignored him and went straight to Burning and one of the griffon lieutenants, Gato. I informed them of the footprints I had found, quietly enough to not disturb any of the refugees behind us. We moved further away to discuss this in private.
"This could be just a dud. Just a traveller. We have many of those coming to and from towns, looking for adventure," Gato reasoned.
Burning interjected with his own opinion "Perhaps but a lone traveller heading to Griffonstone of all places, right as a civil war is underway. Plus, no creature of the sort has entered since we got here and we haven't seen one since we left so either this is a dud and some griffon just left their town and wandered into a dangerous area or somebody knows we're heading to Guilatea Town."
Gato sighed and turned to his guards "Either way, we can't turn back now. If anything happens, we have to believe we are prepared. For now, we'll just be extra cautious. As for you, General," he said towards me "Please stay close to the group from now on." I merely shrugged in acceptance and Gato went back to inform the troops.
"You've been quiet," Burning said. I wasn't fazed by his comment, inevitable by that point "Wanna talk about it?"
"It's nothing you haven't heard before. A place that reminds you of home, and home is not exactly my favourite place to recall." I couldn't help but remember the night I had decided to become a vigilante, stealing from rich snobs to give to the worse off folks. Coming back from another secret archery lesson by my master, only to find the burning remains of my house. My desperate attempts to enter but denied by the roaring flames. I could only wait for them to die out. "Remember what I told you when you got out of your 'history catch-up class'? How you weren't the only one with nightmares?"
"Watching on helplessly as the one thing you treasured was reduced to nothing? Yes, I remember that talk. You shared your past so I didn't have to feel alone in a new era." We both walked on silently for a time until the refugees began lagging, forcing us to take a break. They all took seats wherever they could, basking in momentary relief. Meanwhile, we remained stood, wary of any threat we might encounter. Burning and I continued to talk about the old days; training together, drinking, causing some mischief on my end, but all of those things were turned sour by a realisation that Shining intruded every memory. We did all those things with him once.
"Can you believe that we've never seen what's become of our best friend?" Burning let out a sigh of relief as Windy uttered the words that lingered in his heart for months.
"I have to." We didn't say anything else, just staring at the horizon for the enemy, praying in our minds that Shining Armour wasn't on that path. At least not today.
NOIRE POV
Another day had passed and now we could feel a tension in the air. The hustling and bustling had quietened as civilians were taken to Guilatea Town, leaving only a deadly silence. Gilgamesh, Luna, Cadance and I took to the walls as I had terrible trembling in my stomach. We watched the horizon like gunslingers in the west, waiting for the enemy. I could feel her, that same sickly aura stacked at least fifteen times. Gilgamesh started the day sceptical of me but soon realised the weight of the situation as the aura got closer. At the rate it was moving towards us, there was no way a confrontation was going to be avoided dangerously close to our walls.
"It's disgusting, malformed. Was she anything like this when you fought her?" Gilgamesh asked.
"It wasn't this strong, but it took both me and a general to stop one of her attacks," Cadancr responded "and I don't think she was using her full power then. If she's gotten this strong then-"
"Then we show her we weren't twiddling our thumbs waiting for her," Luna interrupted "Gilgamesh and I will join the vanguard while you two stay in the back." I wanted to stop her and say I was going as well, but I knew this needed to happen deep down. I was stronger than anyone in that army in terms of magic but also a glaring target for an attack and I was needed to defend for this battle. As Luna and Gilgamesh teleported away, I felt Cadance take my hand.
"We'll be fine."
"Yeah, I know. We'll be fine." By the time we had managed to steal one more kiss, the horizon turned a sickly green, a light in the distance indicating their arrival. Chrysalis had appeared. As I was about to head to my position, a scroll appeared in front of Cadance. A letter from Windy and Burning.
The king is here.
LUNA POV
By the time we arrived at the vanguard, we could already see what had produced such a powerful aura. An army of chimaera like the ones that attacked Canterlot trudging along towards the battlefield, with a large draconic one behind them. I clenched my teeth, watching amalgamations of ponies mutated, merged, or both. Upon closer inspection, I could see them twitching and writhing but remained limited by an unseen grip, like being dragged along the dirt by a puppeteer. Said puppeteer walked in front, a face full of confidence. It was Chrysalis as expected.
"I hope I didn't keep you waiting too long, Prince Gilgamesh, Princess Luna. I had my preparations to make." She gestured to her legion of chimaera, growling and crying out. I felt my grip on my blade grow tighter, my breath heavy as the tide.
"You have defiled our nation for far too long, pest. I swear on my title as a princess that every wound you've inflicted on our subjects will be returned a hundredfold. You are not leaving this battlefield in one piece."
Chrysalis ate every single word with an irritating smirk before raising her hand to me "Then I'll make sure princess isn't inscribed on your grave." With a flick of her hand, her army charged at us, obscuring her behind their amalgamated forms.
I took to the skies to search for Chrysalis: she was the weakness of the entire army. "Once she goes down, everything else follows," I thought, but as a bolt of magic struck my side, I knew this wasn't going to be as simple as that. Chrysalis, a few metres away, gestured to me. Give it your best shot, without so much as a word. I charged her, both of my blades ready. I layered them with magic. I sent two, blue magic slashes at her as I approached, both of them impacting before she could react. However, she seemed unaffected. In retaliation, she met me halfway, colliding in an explosion of blue and green as our magic collided. I continuously hacked and slashed while she defended, blocking with her magic and occasionally firing bolts. It was clear that while I had the advantage in speed, her defence was too much to overcome with simple magic. Chrysalis began to tire of our exchange and forced me away with a powerful laser. I was caught off guard and was pushed back down to the ground, right at my allies. My all of my strength, I raised my blades to stop myself and stop the attack.
Some of the ponies and griffons looked up to see a giant pillar of green descending upon them, with only myself to save them. Some of them cheered for me, but I was too busy to notice. I wanted to yell at them to focus but any focus away from my task would cost me. With a loud battle cry and a swipe of my blades, I managed to cut the beam in two, sending them far away from the conflict. "I see why Cadance and General Tidal had so much with you," I said as I enchanted my wings and jetted towards Chrysalis. Chrysalis was caught even more off guard as she wasn't even able to reply before I left a large gash in her torso. She cried out in pain as she turned around to see my blades shining an even brighter blue, almost like Noire's own magic. "You're using arcane magic."
"A gift from our saviour: a redistribution of power. You ponies shouldn't be the only ones with it," she quipped, the wound already beginning to heal. "You know better than anyone else here that they're selfish hypocrites that can't handle the truth that their world isn't as pure and happy as they think. That someone can come along and truly knock them off their thrones."
"Is this an attempt to turn me to your side?" I said as I subtly readied myself for a surprise attack. A well placed cut to her head and it would be over.
"Oh no!" she replied mockingly. I could see her fortifying herself with arcane magic. "I know your history with Grim. We already know you would never side with the enemy of your one that got away. Don't worry-" I shot at her mid-sentence, blades aimed at her neck for a quick and clean decapitation. I could feel them about to enter but a tendril wrapped around my waist, suffocating me in its grasp. I traced its origin to the chimaera dragon's tail, extended to reach our height. Chrysalis leaned into me with a smug grin "- you'll be reunited in the new world Grim has for us. Maybe." With a downward motion of her hand, the tail pulled me down to the ground, shaking the ground on impact. Perhaps as an act of mercy, she permitted the tail to release as I collected myself. I observed my surroundings.
Gilgamesh was dispatching chimaera by the dozens with each strike of his gauntlets. We were outnumbered, but overpowering the army. However, I knew it would only take an order from Chrysalis to have the beast destroy the entire army and what chance we had of opposing Gilgar. I could not leave her idle. In the few moments I had left to recover, I sent a message to our rear guard.
NOIRE POV
I could see our forces colliding, the juggernaut standing above the conflict, and trails of blue and green soaring through the skies. Some time into the battle, I could feel both powers rising, almost to a level I would consider a code avatar to have. I turned to Cadance, whose hands began to tremble.
"Why does their magic feel so similar to mine right now?"
"They're using arcane magic now. Aunt Tia and Luna refrain from using it unless it's necessary. As to why it feels like yours, it's because arcane magic is 'pure magic, straight from the origin of magic itself.' At least that's what Aunt Tia said. If I had to make the distinction, imagine the taste of pure squash. What's worrying me is that Chrysalis has it. Shining's simple unicorn magic was able to counter you and Tidal. Arcane magic fuelling it would practically allow it to move on its own."
It was during our talk that I felt a ringing in my head. I could hear Luna's voice, laboured and hoarse 'We need you to get rid of that dragon. Now. Cadance stays back.' I saw Cadance frown slightly at the message she must have overheard. I pulled her in for a kiss and placed my forehead on hers.
"I'll be fine. When have I ever not come back to you?" I whispered.
"I know. Go play hero," she replied as I took a step back and took flight, charging straight at the dragon. From my view of the battle below, we were winning for now, but looked like Chrysalis was starting to get bored of her duel with Luna, defences tightening as Luna's attacks were beginning to have less of an effect.
As I got in range of Luna and the beast, I harnessed my magic into my blade "Final Decode: Encode Boost!" before releasing it in a wave. Luna's sword glowed even brighter as they left a cut on Chrysalis' cheek while I charged straight at the dragon's face, shooting a beam of magic into the beast's maw. It could do nothing but take the attack, its face beginning to fall apart from the heat and damage. Meanwhile, Chrysalis was in shock, but too preoccupied with the barrage of attacks she had to counter to stop me. However, I saw her look at her pawn, causing her to take several more wounds to her arms. They fell limp to her sides, and as Luna prepared herself for a killing blow, she vanished from sight. She had teleported straight to the dragon's back.
"It looks like Tirek really did help you grow stronger. I knew that was a bad idea," I tried to close in on her but I was pushed away by several magic beams. All across the dragon's sides were faces. Ponies, humans, and even some griffons were included "However, I can't return to him without some results, so I'm going to need you to step aside while I get rid of this pesky rebellion!" With that, she sunk into the dragon's flesh. The eyes of the faces turned from a pale white to a sickly green and through many distorted voices, she spoke "COELESTIS ASSIMILATION!" The army looked on in horror as the beast began absorbing all of its surroundings, tentacles protruding from the faces' mouths and grabbing any soul or soulless being unfortunate enough to stand in its path. Chimaera, griffon, and pony alike were grabbed and consumed by the beast.
"RETREAT!" I heard Gilgamesh cry. Luna and I flew as fast as we could around the beast, cutting as many tendrils as possible, all the while dodging tendrils from grabbing and consuming us too. However, there were too many to cut, and they kept regenerating.
"Noire! We have to go!" Luna yelled.
I turned to her, incredulous "What about-"
"There's nothing we can do! We need to help the retreat!" she dove down to the fleeing army. I clenched my fists, fighting with myself when I heard that sickening voice speak again.
"Awww~ Are you leaving already~? We were just getting started." Her mocking was what finally see me off. I called forth two Phantom Excaliburs and threw them at the dragon's torso. They passed right through but noticeably weakened the body, its glow dulling significantly. Chrysalis re-emerged from the torso, panting as she tried to collect herself. I rushed to chop off her head but tendrils wrapped around my arms and legs. "You'll suffer a hundredfold for that!" She spread out her hand as the tendrils began to pull at my limbs. I cried out in pain as I felt bones break, and I was about to be pulled apart when Luna cut me loose and caught me.
I couldn't tell what was happening, the pain, dulling all of my senses as I felt the wind rushing against my form. We retreated in utter defeat.
The flight back to camp was a blur as I recalled every soldier I saw getting absorbed into that monstrosity. The fear, sorrow, and desperation mixed into one long wail from the chimaera. That I did not need to recall as I could still hear, see it in the distance, mocking my utter failure. Luna practically dragged me the whole way back. Back where we started, with defeat hanging in the air. As I felt the ground once more, I sat on the ground, head hung low.
"I'm sorry," I said, forcing the words out of my throat.
"It's not your fault. You did what you could." I heard Gilgamesh approach. I raised my head.
"How many did we lose?"
"We haven't been able to do a full count yet, but easily half of our forces."
The weight of that word, half, hit all three of us. We had barely left Griffonstone and now we were forced back with our tails between our legs. My head was returning to the dark inside myself, but Luna grabbed me by the collar and lifted me up, so my feet were dangling above the ground. As I was forced to face Luna, my mentor in swordsmanship, I saw her tears for a second time. Her teeth were gritted in a look of pure rage, but softened, then resharpened into a burning gaze of conviction. "If thou art looking for an escape, thou shall find none here, child. Thou hast chosen to come here, to fight amongst thine allies and reclaim what was lost. And failed. Is that what thou wanted to hear? You failed half, possibly more, soldiers, and they died because of it. So did I, and so did the prince. We failed them, Noire." Every sentenced threatened to destroy me but she was unrelenting. She turned and pointed to the best miles away from us. It was moving.
Her gaze turned back to me "Dost thou see that. The beast is moving. Towards the second half of our troops. Towards the town we swore to save, and the people beyond who need us. Prince Gilgamesh and I shall re-engage with what remaining troops that can fight, and we need you. So shall you fight, or flee?" I felt the tears I was about to shed burn away as I took in her words. I had to fight. I levitated out of her grip and into the sky. Once I had a good look at the chimaera, I found some glimmer of hope. Hundreds of tiny specks of light, of magic, of souls, still fighting the assimilation. I lowered myself back to the ground.
"The chimaera is slowly absorbing the soldiers it took into its body, but a lot of them aren't yet a part of it. If I can sever Chrysalis' hold on them, we should be able to save a few hundred of them." Luna placed her hand on my shoulder, looking out to the beast as well. I could tell she wanted to compliment me, but we had little to no time for that. Those lights, while numerous, were fading with each second that passed. "I can do it, there was just the issue of Chrysalis using that spell again."
"Gilgamesh and I shall distract it while you get in close. I have faith in you." With that, Luna took Gilgamesh into the air with her. I followed close behind.
"Just you wait, Chrysalis. We'll turn the tide in just one attack."
WINDY POV
It was the worst-case scenario. We were attacked while transporting the refugees out of the town, and at the forefront of this assault was the same faceless mare that I encountered in Manehattan, backed by a small squad of faceless look-a-likes. "This Grim just loves getting weird with his help, doesn't he? " I thought as I shot another arrow into the throat of a faceless soldier. The lackeys seem like small fry compared to the leader of this squad. She, somehow, was effortlessly keeping up with Burning in hand-to-hand combat.
Burning a barrage of punches at her, but she dodged with small movements and retaliated with jabs at his heart, head, and gut. She was tiring him out. I threw caution to the wind and prepared a Bazooka Arrow. With one shot, every lackey was blown away, and I shot another at the mare. She was too occupied with Burning to see it and was launched back a few feet. "She's too dangerous to handle one-one-one." I said as I shot at her again. She managed to catch it, but was grazed by Burning's fist, which she barely dodged. Taking out a longsword from her back, she cracked her neck and got into a stance that I remembered. I didn't have the time to react before she blitzed past Burning and came straight for me. I blocked with my bow but struggled as she executed a series of slices at my arms. I flew up to get a height advantage but was caught off guard by what happened next. She threw the sword behind me and with her outstretched hand, I saw it. A mouth.
"gaRdNABlaDE." The sword transformed behind me into Noire's massive greatsword. I slammed into the flat of the blade, making me miss a key beat in the fight. She took this moment and called the sword back to her, making me fly into her range as well. Once I was close enough, she pulled out a secondary, shorter, but sharper blade and did a spinning slash. I felt time slow as the blade inched towards my neck, ready to take it straight off, however, I was not out of the fight just yet. I rolled in the direction the blade was coming from, managing to just barely escape from the trap, just in time for Burning to deliver a powerful punch to her face.
We could not give her a moment to recover. I took to the sky and aimed my bow at her head while Burning got into his Dragon stance.
"WINDY PHOENIX BLAST! "
" ULTIMATE BURNING FIST: DRAGON!" As both of our attacks landed, a large explosion formed, but not by us. As it reached us, I noticed the smell of chemicals.
"Shit! She-" by the time I opened my mouth, I was already falling to the floor. My sight was obscured, but I could see Burning on the ground as well, and a figure stumbling away. Our attacks must have forced her to retreat. Recognizing this as the safest time to keep moving, I mustered the last bit of strength in my wings "Come on wings. I need you now. " I flapped my wings as hard as I could to disperse the smoke away from all of us before darkness overtook me. I noticed the other guards approaching us through a clearing I had made.
"God, I hope Noire and Cadance are having a better time than us."
LUNA POV
The beast was proving to be a nuisance as it fired a series of lasers at us as soon as we entered Chrysalis' sights. With Gilgamesh hanging onto me, it was harder to evade all of them, causing a stray beam to take a piece of my leg. Gilgamesh looked back at my wound worriedly. "Princess! Drop me onto the back!" I saw his look of determination and let go of him, letting him fall. I used the freedom to rise even higher and shoot a large beam of light down at Chrysalis herself. In response, she summoned a hexagonal shield to deflect the ray. In that moment of distraction, Gilgamesh landed on the back with no obstruction. He got into a stance, stamping his foot on the back of the beast, causing a golden ripple to move over the body completely. Gilgamesh charged at Chrysalis with incredible speed. She, however, noticed him the moment he landed and summoned tendrils and sent them towards him like spears.
Gilgamesh looked completely in the moment as he dodged every single one of them. It was as if he knew where each one was coming from and how much force to put into every movement. Chrysalis grew more frustrated as the griffon prince evaded everything she threw at him until he was face to face with the queen. "This is the power of ki. The power to understand yourself and your opponent enough to predict their movements." Gilgamesh's fist glowed a radiant gold as he threw a punch at the queen, but unfortunately, she moved her shield just in time to defend herself.
Chrysalis seemed angry that someone got that close to her and pushed the shield back, sending Gilgamesh back, and off the beast entirely. She yelled "You worms still think you can win! You can't even touch me!" and deployed several more shields until her main body was surrounded in a bubble.
"She really loves her safe space," I murmured to myself as I descended to meet her head on. She wasn't the only one with access to the arcane stage of magic. I crossed my hands, so my blades made a moon shape. The skies began to darken, as if night had descended early. My eyes glowed a bright white. "Congratulations! You have pushed me to join the likes of Noire and the generals. I have something just for you!" My blades glowed a bright white and grew. From a distance, you would compare the sight to seeing a crescent moon in the sky. "Crescent Moon's Punishment" With a swing of both blades. The crescent moon descended on Chrysalis and her shield collided with it. Chrysalis was struggling, witnessing the bubble begin to crack. She responded by layering the shields. I wasn't giving her any sense of safety as I flew past her and took the same position. "CRESCENT MOON'S PUNISHMENT!" Another moon wave came at her from behind forcing her use half of her shields to block. She looked desperate as she was sandwiched between the two moons. I landed on her beast, right in front of her, with my blades held to her throat. I did not hesitate as I swung them right at her head. Time slowed to a crawl as, in the peripheral of my sight, I could see the back of beast glow green. Streaks of energy converging on Chrysalis as she began to lower herself, into the beast. My blades nicked her horn as two moon shaped waves of energy zoomed past her. A rumbling began from inside the beast, but quickly turned into laughter.
"Aww~ The princess was so close to beating me, but in her folly, she forgot one, ver simple fact." Tendrils sprouted from the ground and wrapped around my arms and legs before I could fly out of her range. In my entanglement, she lured towards the face of the chimaera. Its maw opened to reveal the fallen queen, hanging upside down in the mouth. "A queen is always one step above a princess."
I couldn't help myself from letting out a chuckle "You know, I was hoping I would get to fight you one-on-one after you embarrassed my sister at my own niece's wedding. I wanted to see the conniving fiend who almost ruined what was supposed to be a day of love, but all I see is a broken husk. One that is not above killed her own subjects to get what she wants. You are no queen. You are a pawn that's out of her depth. A glutton whose satisfaction is more important to her than her own people's lives and most importantly, a fool who couldn't notice her own undoing underneath her very feet." Chrysalis gritted her teeth in anger until she processed my words: the face she made was one only I saw and would relish for the rest of my days. "FINAL DECODE:" The royal blue glow was blinding her, burning her as I could sense her magical hold on every soldier, she assimilated inside of that body snapping. Including her.
"BLAZING EXCODE!" Chrysalis fell out of the chimaera's mouth, barely catching herself from falling with her wings. With new freedom, I flew up to meet her. From beneath her, I could see Noire rising with his Longblade. Chrysalis flew as hard as she could to escape, but her left leg found itself falling to the ground. She screamed in pain as green ooze gushed from the wound.
"You fucking wastes of space! I'll destroy you myself!" She gestured towards the chimaera "COELESTIS ASSIMILATION!" The defeated chimaera's mouths opened once again and released another wave of beams, ready devour us whole. I flew down, evading beams to collect Gilgamesh and all three of us flew as far away as we could but the beams were about to reach us. With less targets to focus on, they were even faster. Hope seemed lost as green consumed us.
"KEEP AWAY FROM MY FAMILY!"
CADANCE POV
Frustration. That was all I could feel as I saw everyone fighting a large chimaera. From the war veteran Luna down to the mere foot soldier, they were all fighting. Then all I could below me were injured soldiers mourning their lost comrades. We had enough people to surround the entire front wall, now we had enough just maybe defend the front gate. Noire, Auntie Luna, and Gilgamesh were still out there, fighting, and I was just here. Doing nothing. Fed up with being safe, I got down from my perch, and to the closest soldier in need, a griffon soldier with a broken leg. Using healing magic, I managed to mend the bone and torn muscles.
"Princess Cadance. You're supposed to be on the wall."
"And your leg isn't supposed to be broken. So, I guess we're partners in crime." That got a chuckle from him before he winced a bit from the pain. "What's your name?" I asked.
"Quill of the Bronzebeak."
"Quill of the Bronzebeak, you fought well. Now rest." I gave him a peck on the forehead and stood up and addressed the rest of the soldiers "Bring all of our wounded to the wall and get every unicorn with healing magic. I will tend to as many of you as I can." Everycreature got straight to work establishing a medic tent. We had at least over fifty wounded and eight medics. I was informed by a soldier that, unfortunately, most of them were consumed in that last attack. With that I sought to heal every single pony and griffon I could, praying for my family's success. With the help of the remaining medics, we managed to get all of them in a stable condition but were still in no condition to fight.
I tried looking out into the distance, where Auntie was and found her, Noire, and Gilgamesh flying away from the same attack that devoured our army. Instead of frustration, there was desperation growing within my chest. A longing to help them just this once if I ever had to. I took off towards them at full speed. No more watching, no more being the victim, no more being the one that gets consoled, and coddled, and protected. I was going to save my family this time. "KEEP AWAY FROM MY FAMILY!" I yelled from the very depths of my heart as I released my magic all around me. A bubble appeared around the three, shielding them from the rays. Not only that, but I could see Chrysalis being repelled by my explosion of magic.
"NO! NOT THIS TIME, YOU WANNABE PRINCESS!" she said as she pushed back. I felt love coursing through my entire body. I still had more to give. My love for my aunties, for the generals, for my citizens, for the griffons, for Noire, it all came out.
"That's the difference between you and me. You love to live. I live to love." With one last push, I managed to push Chrysalis back, sending her flying back. As soon as she was out of sight, I let out a sigh as the last bit of magic left my body. I couldn't help but laugh weakly "Did anyone else get a sense of Deja vu?" I felt myself fall, but quickly found myself in the arms of my beloved. "You see that? I can fight too." Noire kissed my forehead.
"You sure can, Cadance. You sure can." That affirmation was all I needed as sleep consumed me.
WINDY POV
When I came to, I found myself in a tent, lying on a blanket on the floor, and my head spinning like a top. I carefully got on my feet and stumbled outside. Once I was out, I could see that the sun was beginning to descend upon Guilatea Town. I felt relieved that we made it to our destination. Many tents were already set up to house the refugees. Nearby, I could see Burning, banged up but conscious, being tended to by a medic. I was quickly taken to him by another medic to check my injuries. Turns out that mare's final effort was a powerful drug, explaining the drowsiness. Turns out our encoded armor came in handy as I took the brunt of our damage. It didn't take too long before we were back on our feet.
Burning came up to me once we were up and about with an update of what happened while I was out. "We've gotten all of the refugees situated, and the griffon guards that came with us have proposed to stay with them for protection. I wanted to wait for your input before we regroup with the others."
"It would be best. We don't know how many guards are stationed here and how many are on Gilgar's side. We should cover all our bases."
Burning nodded in acknowledgement and went off to inform the troops, giving me a small moment to myself. Griffonia, the land of griffons, brought back a lot of memories for me. I had never been here before now, yes, but it made me remember my younger days. When I scavenged, and sometimes stole, to feed my mother and I. How my desire to save us from our terrible life made it even worse. My home, with my mother in it in the blaze of society's greed, mine included. My saving grace was a griffon that taught me how to use my exceptionally powerful wings to my advantage, how to shoot a bow like no other, and most of all, how to abandon self-loathing and greed to make room for genuine compassion. I only knew him for a month before he left but his impact had led me here, and I will always be thankful for it. I began to walk back to the troops but as I passed a group of griffons, I caught a glimpse of an old, grey feathered griffon being praised by the others in the crowd. From the talk amongst them, he led them all here when we were knocked out. I decided to go over to thank him for his help, but he caught me first.
"Windy! It's nice to see you up and about again!" That cheerful expression. The scars along his left eye and beak. The bow that he swore by for decades. No doubt it was him.
"I have a question." Noire and the generals all perked up as I walked up to them after a hard day's training "Why do you call out your attacks like you’re in a comic book? Doesn't it seem a little embarrassing?" They all looked at each other, seeing who would respond first. Noire spoke up first, with a small blush on his cheeks.
“Okay, so I may or may not have picked it up from Tidal.” Tidal faced Noire with a neutral expression, waiting to see if she needed to be disturbed or mad. “While I was still being trained by Shining, I used to go out at night for walks around the castle, and there I would regularly find Tidal training. She was always calling out her moves and I thought it was just a thing ponies do here so I ran with it.”
Tidal’s face turned into a frown “I never noticed. You never asked to train with me at that time.”
“Because I didn’t know you were at the time, and I was too nervous to ask. Plus, I’m 90% sure that you didn’t like me back then.” Tidal tried to defend herself but gave up. She would have never agreed to even share her name back then. How time has changed.
Burning sat on a nearby bench, cleaning himself of sweat. “I believe a text in my monastery said that saying it acts like an incantation. I asked my master about the credibility, and he confirmed but didn’t know the specifics.”
“Wait, so we’re not saying it out loud because it’s cool?” Windy added.
“No,” the rest of them responded. I giggled a bit as I watched them banter. I was never like this a few months back then. The generals we’re close, but close colleagues before Noire came into the equation, and now, even Tidal and Burning’s cold exteriors were melting, and they could act like they all were the best of friends. This is what I had always envisioned: all three races, working together to protect the empire and the kingdom.
Tidal spoke up, gathering everyone’s attention as she tapped her practice sword against the ground. She looked like an instructor, teaching her underlings. “The incantation part is a valid part of vocalizing your magical attacks. It’s basically to change the form of magic quicker and easier. Say I wanted to make a magic wall in the shape of a triangle,” Tidal puts her hand out and a blue triangle appears “I would have to summon my internal magic to show external magic how to behave when I’m casting this spell. However, it takes time for my internal magic to memorize my command, especially with spells that have specific shapes, effects, requiring an even greater amount of internal magic. Horns can reduce the time it takes, but not by much. That’s where incantations come in.”
“So, you do it as a command to your magic to do as you say?” I asked.
“Yes. It starts out slow at first, but as your magic begins to memorize instinctively how you want it to behave, it makes the difference between those who use incantations and those who don’t. Eventually, you won’t even need it for some spells; that’s when your spells begin to become second nature to you.” I nodded in understanding. “But yes, even I can admit it’s a bit embarrassing, which is why I pray I get to the point I don’t have to use them for any of my spells anymore comes soon.”
“I guess I understand why my power is called 'the code' now. This sounds like coding back in my world."
"If you want to make that comparison, sure. In theory, you should not even need the use of an incantation." Tidal said to herself. She looked up in contemplation before setting her eyes on Noire again. "Rookie, use magic to make a dodecahedron. Now." Noire raised his hand and closed his eyes and the shape quickly appeared before him.
"Woah! I don't even know what a dodecahedron is," he said in bewilderment that he made such a complex shape so quickly.
"As I thought. Your code makes intermediate magic casting look like an infant could have done it. The exception that proves the rule," she said mournfully as she sat on the ground. Noire walked over to her and placed his hand on her shoulder. He began consoling her.
"If it make you feel better, I'll pretend I need to use them." Bad move. That struck a major nerve in Tidal as she fired a torrent of water as him, sending him back to Windy, Burning, and myself.
"Don't act like you're above me, you rookie!" Tidal yelled as she huffed and stormed off. I walked over to Noire, face first into the ground, and gave him a towel.
"You pressed her 'better than you' button. You shouldn't a' did that."
PRESENT TIME
They were right: the first time's always the most tiring. I felt a wave of catharsis wash over me when I saw Chrysalis being sent flying like I had swatted a fly. It was so relieving that the amount of healing and protection I did finally caught up to me and I began to pass out, falling out of the air. As I passed into unconsciousness, I felt Noire's loving arms around me and his words in my ear. This felt great, but one last thought occurred to me as I fell asleep.
"It's starting to show, isn't it?" I asked Curdle and Ayra as the doctor checked my exposed belly for one of my daily inspections. I had noticed a while ago, but wanted to ignore it since it felt so weird to think that a life was growing in me. Thinking back on it now, I don't think it was a good idea for me to be a mother with that attitude. Which made the conversation much more impactful.
"Well, that's to be expected of a changeling child. Our incubation takes place over a matter of weeks," Ayra said as she stared at my exposed belly "Though it's almost been four months, and nothing has happened to it."
"Actually-" Curdle interjected "- when I took a sample of your blood-"
"-samples," I said bemusedly.
Curdle cleared her throat "Your results did not resemble anything like pregnancy. You also seem to lack many of the symptoms. Morning sickness, cravings; perhaps the occasional exhaustion but apart from that, the condition resembles more of a parasitic relationship."
"Isn't that what pregnancy basically is?" I asked. Both mares looked at me in horror.
"No!" they both yelled. As both of them began 'instilling the beauty of life into my ignorant self', I tried envisioning myself with a child. I know for a fact if I keep this thing for the long haul, Noire and Cadance will be sure to support me every step of the way. Those two would definitely have their own child: the only thing stopping them is a megalomaniac. I could even see myself having a tiny me or Noire running around with them. We would be one big, happy family. However, these three months haven't made me endeared in any way. Life is beautiful, I know that for sure, but if I keep it, I'll only be able to see him. The one who betrayed us all and put this thing inside me to kill me. I try to see me caring for this child, them calling me 'mom', me making them little lunches and playing outside. Reading and singing to them at night, eventually watching them go off and starting their own life. I can't see myself smiling for this child, loving this child. Ever. Keeping them would only hurt both of us in the long run. I didn't want to be a deadbeat mom. I wanted kids that were proud of me and I them. Just like I was proud of mine. The thought of disappointing her by resenting this innocent life was enough to steel my resolve.
"Curdle." I said halfway through her lecture "I want this 'child' out of me." The silence that came after my decision could make a pin drop sound like thunder.
"Tidal, are you sure? This would be incredibly dangerous. We've already identified that this entity is parasitic in nature., but the unknowns are still numerable: When will it emerge? What will happen if we remove it prematurely? What will become of it when it is removed? If we removed it now, we could not guarantee your safety, or even our own."
"Curdle, you're a good doctor, despite your eccentricities. Don't think I don't know that you take extra blood from us every chance you get." Curdle looked down, surprised and ashamed "However, if you can get so much from my blood, then you should know how strong I am. I'll survive. We can have people around to isolate the 'child' if it is as dangerous as you think it is." I took a hold of Curdle's hand and tightly squeezed it. "Please, save me." Curdle pondered for a bit, but she relented in time.
"Okay, okay, I'll do it. Noire's going to kill me for this so expect me to be much greedier with samples. At least another litre for the month." Ayra quickly hit the doctor over the head.
"You'll do it for free because that's what friends do. Right, honey?"
"Yes..." Curdle answered, rubbing her head "However, I will need ponies with experience in C-sections, some mages, and at least 10 elite guards. 2 inside and the rest outside." Speaking of guards, one came in at that moment, witnessing me with my near exposed chest. I gave him a fierce glare to make him turn away.
"My apologies, General Tidal Horn! I was just coming to say that we have a long line of ponies waiting for court."
Ayra let out a sigh "That is my cue. I will take my leave now. Just remember that I'll stand with your decision no matter what, Tidal." With that, she left with the guard to court. Ever since Cadance had left for Griffonia, Ayra had taken over many of her duties, despite the princess’ insistence that she didn't. She was doing an outstanding job at it too. Crystal ponies were much less afraid of her due to never suffering from changelings in the past and her less intense appearance as a changeling queen. It was impressive how even the migrants from other towns, especially from Canterlot, left satisfied. Turns out Ayra was a good mediator.
"She's so hot when she takes charge," Curdle said as she swooned.
"I did not need that mental image, Doc." I was about to get up to leave when a letter adorned with the mark of Princess Luna landed in my lap. “What’s this?” I cautiously opened the letter and read its contents. When I finished, I felt a burning desire to be with my team, my allies, my friends. This was Chrysalis’ idea, taking me out of the fight to weaken us. This letter emboldened me, strengthened my resolve. I put the letter away and looked at Curdle.
“How soon can we get this done?”
BURNING POV
"Windy! My boy!" The old griffon said as he casually threw Windy up in the air. He was a large, bulky griffon, despite looking to be in his 50s. Dull blue feathers and a grey body that appeared to have gone through many battles. There were scars littered on his face; one on his beak, right cheek, and one large scar across his left eye. The left eye seemed to have lost its light, but his expression matched his sons in its optimism and cheerfulness. I along with other onlookers were dumbstruck by this strange reunion. I had already condemned myself to only knowing a fraction of his tale, with the rest being conjecture, but nothing prepared me for this. I did not even know ponies and griffons could reproduce. It would explain his larger, stronger wings compared to other pegasi. It did not take long before Windy had brought him along to meet me. “You must be Burning Fist, Last Hand of the Lost Martial Arts! The greatest earth pony my son has ever known! Nice to meet you!” He grabbed my hand and firmly shook it. “The name’s Galon, like ‘a gallon of mead’ that we’ll have once that bastard is returned to Aes!” The feather did not fall far from this griffon.
“It is a pleasure to meet the griffon who raised a fine archer and friend. Though I wonder why I’ve never heard about the man who raised such a talented stallion?” I stared at Windy with confusion and bemusement towards this abrupt meeting. Windy could only reply by shrugging his shoulders.
“That would be because I didn’t!” he said with a tone that almost sounded like pride. “Windy was always more of a free bird. I taught him how to shoot a bow before I taught him to walk, and his mother, Aes bless her soul, was a better domestic than me so he learnt his way of life all on his own. Couldn’t be prouder!” Galon wrapped his son in his wings and gave him a strong noogie. Watching the two of them play around in such dire circumstances was vexing, but the fact that Windy had stayed chipper despite our near defeat was uplifting. Practically suffocating as I watched an older clone of him shove some of his baby pictures in my face, reminiscing all the while. They really never stopped talking.
“I hate to put a stop to your reunion, but I would like to know if we have received word from Griffonstone. What is the strength of our forces? What of the enemies?” Galon sighed before his face settled into a serious half squint.
“That’s what I’d like to know. I had only arrived in Galatea Town a couple days ago from Yakyakistan to learn that this ‘Grim’ fellow had declared war on all Equus, and Gilgar had cast his lot with him. I thought I would help with the refugees when I saw you two sleeping like babes in a carriage. The only thing I can say is that while I was patrolling the skies about 3 hours ago, I saw some crazy lights and something flying off west from here. I believe that fighting back there is over, but the details are a mystery to us both.”
“Maybe they retreated?” Windy proposed.
“Likely, but we shouldn’t get our hopes up for a happy sight when we return to Griffonstone.”
Galon placed his hand on his son’s shoulder “He’s right, son. You can win a battle, but nobody wins a war. Your best option is to leave now while the sun’s up and pray your friends are still in one piece.” As I was about to inform the guards of our departure, a letter appeared in a puff of blue flame. Upon closer inspection, the scroll bore the mark of Princess Luna. “Well, I guess we don’t need to wait that long. Don’t keep us waiting, general, what’s it say?” I opened the letter to find a detailed letter. I scanned over every word and by the end, I felt something, deep inside, roar. It reverberated within my heart. I could tell by the determined look on Windy’s face, who had just received a similar letter, that we were of the same mind. In fact, every soldier I could see had a similar looking letter in their hand. I rolled up the letter and stowed it in my pocket. We knew what had to be done. “I know that look. It’s the look of a warrior with a fight ahead of them.”
“Windy.”
“I know, I know.” Windy landed on his feet and gave his father another big hug “Gotta go dad. My friends need me.” Galon was confused for a second but smiled and returned the embrace.
“I’ll work with these forces here to situate the people and protect them from any more attacks. You go end this civil war.” They separated and bid the old griffon farewell. We left immediately for the rendezvous point. Three days is just enough to get there. As we made our way with the pack of rations and gear with us, Windy broke the silence.
“Haven’t seen my dad in five years, you know. Ever since she died, he couldn’t bear being in that place for any long period of time. He did show up enough to teach me how to shoot and steal, though.” I stayed silent and simply listened to him. “I know, from that, you must think he is a deadbeat, and he kinda is, but he cares a lot. Not just about me but about anyone he thinks need help. That’s why he travels a lot. He can’t imagine a life where he sits still for a day, let alone eleven months.” He sighed a bit and stretched, looking up at the peaceful sky, not a cloud or enemy to plague it.
“He is a man of his principles but knows when to set them aside for a greater cause. I respect men who can sacrifice like he just did, regardless of his nature. Does that put you at ease?” Windy looked shocked at my statement, like that was the first time someone had complimented his father, but quickly returned to his relaxed expression.
“I wasn’t worried at all.”
“…He talks a bit too much, though.”
“I know right!”
“…”
NOIRE POV
After everything, I wanted nothing more than a soft bed and a week’s worth of sleep but from the looks of everyone, I would need to buckle up. Luna, Gilgamesh, Cadance and I were gathered in a tent discussing the plan I devised. “Are you sure this is the best course of action, Noire? If we fail...” Gilgamesh was right to be concerned. What I proposed was crazy, suicidal even. I looked back out of the tent, to the troops. After Cadance had given us a temporary victory against Chrysalis, we managed to rescue most of the soldiers we had lost. However, some were reduced to nothing but hollowed out corpses: their muscles atrophied, eyes sunken, and all colour drained.
“We don’t have the troops to stand against Gilgar's; that is just a fact. Coming at him conventionally will only get more people killed in the long run. Grim has relied on nothing but trickery and misdirection since he emerged, and he’s only found more ways to overpower us in a direct confrontation. If we don’t change our way of attack, he’ll win. That’s why we must do this.” I then placed my finger right on the castle where our enemy was residing. “You, Cadance, and Luna will go to Opus Terrae, and you’ll use the cavern system infiltrate the castle. Meanwhile, I will meet with Windy and Burning and be the distraction for any of Grim’s faction. If all goes well, we should be able to perform a two-pronged attack on Gilgamesh and whoever is with him.” After I explained the plan, I gave a moment of silence for anyone to interject, but from the looks on everyone’s faces, they either agreed that this was our best shot with the state we are in or couldn’t come up with a better idea.
“And what of the remaining soldiers?” Cadance asked.
“They need to recover. We’ve lost enough of our army to be delayed by weeks. They won't expect any attacks from us. If we do not take this chance while they're guard is lowered, they'll crush what left of us and we'll effectively lose the support of the griffons in this war. We should leave now while there is daylight.”
"Then you should speak with them before we leave. You are the leader of this charge," Gilgamesh said. Outside, all of the soldiers were still a bit scattered; many were still being tended to, some were talking with other soldiers. They were clearly still divided: ponies and griffons do not reconcile in a week. There would not be a civil war if they could. We probably had about 6 hours of daylight left, so I decided to speak with them all through a quick and easy method.
“Soldiers, do you hear me?” The whole camp went silent. “It seems you can. I am Noire, a traveller from another world who has taken up arms in defence of my new home.”
“This is not just Equestria, but all of Equus. Our home. Another traveller, Grim, came here long ago and attempted to destroy this world, and create his self-proclaimed ‘utopia’. He has returned and to achieve his goal once more, he is willing to erase everything. Our homes, our families, our lives.”
“You may look around you and see people you saw or still see as enemies. I am aware of the bad blood that has separated us, but now is the time to set our grievances aside for a better future. To create a better future for the people who will live in it, we must fight our common enemy. Gilgamesh, Princess Luna, Princess Cadance, and I will storm the capital. It is our best opportunity to defeat Gilgar. If any of us do not return, I would like to speak on all of my comrade’s behalf and say thank you for standing with us. Regardless of your race, it was an honour to stand beside you. ”
With all that said, we exited the tent and bid our farewells. However, as we left, we saw every soldier standing in salute. Those who were injured helped each other stand to the best of their ability. At that moment, we were a united front of pony and griffon.
“May Faust be with you!”
“May the blessings of Aes protect you!”
With that, I cast a spell on Gilgamesh to help him fly along with us, and we took off. During our travel, I remembered something I had forgotten to ask due to the frenzy.
“That was an excellent speech, Sir Noire.” Gilgamesh said, causing me to blush.
“It was so embarrassing! I came up with that on the spot!”
“Welcome to the club, Noire. It was so good, I simply had to send written copies to the soldiers in Guilatea Town.”
“…What was that spell by the way, Cadance? It was way stronger than any other barrier I’ve seen you make.” I asked.
Cadance could only shrug in response. “I honestly don’t know. I just wanted to save you both, and it just happened.”
“With the strength to push Chrysalis, with all her love enhancements back, it had to be arcane magic.”
“It was also very similar to the ki I had taught you briefly, however, I felt that yours was not just a zone around you but connected to specific people.” What they seemed to be getting at is that she combined the ki zone training she got from Gilgamesh with her love barrier to create a targeted defence spell. Cadance blushed slightly from the praise as I silently beamed with pride. I knew she had it in her. She wasn’t an alicorn for nothing.
“Well regardless of what she used to do that, what is necessary is that it gets a name,” I said . Everyone stared at me like I had said something stupid. “None of you can judge me here, especially you, Luna. Crescent Moon’s Punishment?” It was Luna’ turn to blush.
“I… I came up with it years ago, long before any of your parents were even born,” she said, trying to defend herself. It was obvious she just didn’t want to be left out.
“In that case it’s practically tradition, meaning that Cadance should name the spell.”
“Okay, okay! If it will make you happy-“
“-It will.”
“If it will make you happy, I will name it ‘My Love’s Embrace’ because I love you all so, so much!” she said as she hugged me mid-flight.
“You are all… very strange, but I am very glad to know you.”
CHRYSALIS POV
When I had come to, I found myself deep in a crater, still warm from my landing. I could barely move from a lack of love. That chimaera was still too inefficient: I could have handled all of them just fine if that thing had not drained over half of my energy just for two attacks. I tried to stand up but failed miserably, landing on my face. “What a pitiful sight to behold: a fallen queen desperately clinging to scraps.” I looked up and saw Gilgar standing on the edge of the crater.
“That would make two of us, Crownless King. Now did you come here to help or to mock me further?” He seemed to ponder for a bit, stuck between the logical choice and the choice that amused him. Fortunately, he proved his wisdom and jumped into the crater, lending me his shoulder to lean on. “You are very kind, Gilgar. Just as I suspected.” As he jumped back out of the crater with me and began to walk me back to the portal he must have used to get here, a wicked thought crossed my mind. “However, your shoulder is not what I desire…” with the last of my energy and push him to the ground and straddle him “I need your love.” Before he could protest, I began to drain some of his love from him. His was different from others. Not in the way it tasted, but the lengths I went to obtain it. His was a hidden buffet: delicious, plentiful, but hard to reach. As I milked him for all he was worth, I felt his resistance grow, but a little delusion would settle him. In a flash of green fire, my black chitin was replaced with golden fur, my green eyes turned an azure hue, and Gilgar’s resistance vanished immediately.
“Vera?” His voice wavered, reaching for my face. I obliged, letting him touch me. Whatever kept him docile. Grim was right: the magic in his body made even the most obvious manipulations effective. His mind must have been teetering on the edge for a while for him to believe a lie like this.
“Ah, the most broken ones often have the most to offer. The desperation makes the love so bittersweet. Luckily for you, I don’t mind the taste.” I dove down to seal the deal, planting one right on his lips. That act alone gave me everything I needed to get back to at least 80%. With that, I got back up and walked back to the portal. “We’ll continue this another time. Wouldn’t want you croaking when you have so much left to do. Right, my love?” Gilgar rose to his feet and followed me to the portal.
“Yes, my wife and daughter await me in the new world.” As he approached me, I noticed he mentioned his wife, but not fast enough to stop his hand from gripping at my throat. He tightly wrapped both his hands around it as my disguise dissipated. “The only reason you are alive is because Grim needs you. Do not test it or else you may find out how fragile your safety net is.” He let go of my neck and walked through the portal.
“Grim told me that he should be a delusional mess by now? Is his resistance beyond Grim’s analysis?” I thought before entering the portal myself. “No matter. By the time Noire appears to face him, he will be fully submerged in his agony.”
TIDAL POV, THE NEXT DAY
While I laid on an operating table, I went over everything in my head. Just like the night before, I tossed and turned, considering whether I was making a mistake again. Curdle and Ayra were in the room, along with a lot of doctors. “You sure you can do this, Curdle?”
“I have the best doctors here to help me, an IV filled with magic to keep the entity from trying to drain you dry while we remove it, and soldiers to assist if it goes on a rampage. We’ve got this. I should be asking if you can do this. This is your last chance to back out. Once you wake up, it will be out.”
“I can do this. I’m not letting this put me out of the fight.” Curdle studied my face for a moment of indecision or regret, but once she was sure I was sure, she turned around and instructed everyone to get to their stations. Ayra came over and grabbed my hand. “A changeling child, huh? Probably one of the last ones besides you, Chrysalis, and Shining.” Ayra looked at me and shook her head.
“Don’t make this about me. I’ll find a way to restore my race. Becoming a queen has made it possible now. Just focus on yourself right now. I’m with you, dear.” She gave me a quick hug as Tidal came to me with a mask. Once it was fit around my face, I felt the gases numbing my body, starting with my feet and rising to my chest. Once I was awake, I would be able to join my comrades in the fight. The only thing I regretted was not being able to know what they all thought of this. My head felt heavy, my eyelids slowly closing.
“I wonder what mom would have thought.” I thought.
“Why don’t you just ask me yourself?” I opened my eyes to find the voice that cut through my thoughts like a sword through butter, but the sight was too much, forcing my head down unless I started to cry like I was actually fifteen years old again. I was sat at a café in Canterlot, with the smell of freshly made bread wafting into my nose. This was my favourite place in the city: Brick Oven, best bread makers in Equestria. A strawberry sundae and croissant were on my plate. My favourite order when I was a kid. “I didn’t pay for that sundae for you to have a staring contest with it, you know.” I finally decided to face her once again. Queen of Waves. Commander of Tides. Worst Baker in the land. The Great Storm Surge.
“Mom?” I stood up from my seat and walked over to her, eyes beginning to leak. She met me half-way and took me into her arms.
“I know, baby, I know. I’m here.” We stood there for a long time, just embracing as the ponies past us by without care in the world. “You know I’m not real right?”
“I know, but… I really wanted to see you again.” Once we parted, we sat back down and enjoyed our meal. My croissant was still warm, indicating that it was as I thought. This was just a dream. “Why is this happening though? I don’t recall having this dream.”
“My- or should I say your- best guess is that this is a memory you are recalling from your childhood. The magic being inserted into your system while that entity is being removed is causing a temporary state of magic poisoning. While the side effects do include a deficit in critical brain functions, it can cause people to recover memories long forgotten.”
“Yes, I remember this. I did well in my magic training and you rewarded me with my favourite food.”
“You always liked dipping your croissants in strawberry cream.”
“It was for added taste!” We both said at the same time. We laughed as the memory I was recalling was becoming clearer. The clock strike 10:00 AM and Mom immediately stood up. She looked as if she didn’t even know why she stood herself, but we both knew it was for some reason. Something had to done at 10:00 AM. “It seems we have to leave,” she said.
“Then I will come with you.” I followed where her legs guided her. Out of the business district and into the provinces, and finally into the castle. I blinked and the scene changed. We were in her room, and she was putting on her armour to go somewhere. “What are we doing here? What are you doing on this day?” I looked to her for answers but as she said before, she was a figment of my imagination, a side effect of the excess magic in my system. If I didn’t know, why would she? I looked around the room for any clues. Was it a meeting? Was she going to fight? I checked the desk for any times, but the dates were all scrambled. “Stupid memory. Can’t find any clues about the date if I don’t remember the date.” Mom had already finished dressing and subconsciously left the room. She had not even spare me a look, as if I wasn’t even there. “Mom!” As I tried to grab hold of her, my hand fell through her body. I was not a part of this memory, or perhaps I was just imagining this scenario. I followed her down the halls until we came face-to-face with Princess Celestia and a younger Shining Armour as one of her personal guards. This meant that this had to be at least 10 years ago, when he joined her personal guards and I was still being trained.
“Greetings, Captain Surge,” Celestia said.
“To you as well, your highness,” she bowed and followed the alicorn down the hall. “I assume you were going to my quarters to alert of the situation at the border?” Celestia remained stone-faced as they walked.
“If you know why I’m here, then I assume you know what I have to ask of you?” Mom just nodded and kept walking with them until something I did not expect happened. Around the next corner, was me. A fifteen-year-old Tidal Horn, clutching her practice sword with enthusiasm. Like the end of the world had never crossed her mind. That was when I knew when this was. The adults stared at her, so sad and so mournful, as if they knew the innocence of youth was going to die today.
“Your highness?”
“I implore you to spend this time with your daughter.” Celestia continued walking, with little me bowing in her presence. She knelt to me and said “I see such ambition in your eyes, my little pony. Like powerful waves on the rocks.” That was all she said before she and Shining vanished from the memory. There was only the mother, the child, and me in that hallway. Anyone who was there at the time was simply washed away, out of my child self’s notice.
“My sweet, sweet child,” Surge touched my face and brought me into a hug “I have to go. I have been summoned to the border.”
“But why?”
“Griffons have been causing a ruckus again. Celestia needs me there to protect the ponies in the outskirts before things get out of hand.”
“When will you be back, Mom?”
“…I don’t know.”
“Then take me with you!”
“No.”
“No?”
“No. You are not ready for the battlefield. It is not a place for a child.”
“I’m not a child anymore! You said yourself that I’m strong! I’m even better than you were when you were my age!”
“It’s not enough, Tidal!”
“YOU DON’T KNOW THAT!”
“I’M YOUR MOTHER! I KNOW YOUR LIMITS!” They both stopped to calm themselves. This is the first time they’ve ever had a fight like this. This isn’t them: it’s just their emotions. Mom was right though: if I went to the border, I would have died just like she did, but every teenager thinks they have everything figured out until life make them see that they’ve only seen the edge of the small pond, and just observers to the ocean. Mom took a deep breath “Follow me.” As we all rounded the next corner, the hallway dissipated and turned into a training ground, the same one I trained at as a child. There, she picked up a practice sword.
“One round. No holding back. If you win, I’ll let you come. If I win, you stay. Agreed?” A part of that girl was scared. She had never seen the full might of Storm Surge, but another part of scared that this would be the only time, and that made the fear turn to courage. Foolish, but unrelenting courage. She drew her blade, summoning her water magic as the two faced each other. Mom looked to a soldier that was handling a few swords to officiate, a hard glare being enough to get him to comply. He dropped the swords and raised his hand. I was already sweating: a bad sign. Mom was radiating an aura that screamed for her to surrender, equal parts intimidation and desperation. However, Tidal Horn’s ambition was her greatest strength. Once her mind was set on one path, one objective, it was hard to shake her. Unfortunately, it kept her in place until the soldier’s hand signalled the start of the ‘fight’. I say ‘fight’ because Mom disappeared and Storm Surge appeared behind her, swift as rain, and everything went dark. She had knocked me out in one hit. Fortunately, I was conscious enough to hear her last words to me.
“One day, my daughter, you will be able to take to the ocean. Guard, take her to my office.”
When the pain from the blow subsided and I could see again, I was watching my younger self in Mom’s office. I remember how once I was conscious, she had already left, and I refused to leave the room unless it was to train. I was in my first week, and Shining Armour returned. I was so happy, I ran past him to greet Mom, but she wasn’t there.
“Where’s Mom?”
“Tidal.”
“Shining, where’s my mom?” My voice came out like a nervous wreck. “Is she outside?”
“She-“
“Is she with Celestia?”
“Listen.”
“I’ll go find her.” My younger self tried to leave but Shining held me in place. I tried to break out of his grip, but he was too strong.
“She’s not here anymore.”
“What? That’s silly. She’s just with Celestia if you just let. Me. GO!” Shining turned me around and pulled me into his arms. I struggled with all my might, but his embrace was enough to tell me everything I didn’t want to believe.
“She’s not here anymore, Tidal. I’m so sorry.”
“No. No, NO, NO! WHERE’S MY MOM, SHINING?! WHERE IS SHE?!” I felt myself shake in his arms, not out of resistance, but pure agony. Even if he wasn’t holding me, I probably wouldn’t have been able to do anything but, cry, scream, and writhe in pain. She was dead. My only guiding light. My friend, mentor, family. She was dead. Killed by griffons. Reality had come crashing down on me and all I could do was wail. The room began to burn my eyes as it filled with salty water. I felt my feet being lifted from the ground as the room became submerged in water.
It hurt so much.
“I thought I had overcome this a while back. Noire had made it into my mindscape and freed me from my self-inflicted torment, but this hurts so much more than back then.” I thought.
“You did, but in another way, it was just a deflection.” A clear voice cut through the water. Mom had returned, but her voice was different. It was layered, lighter, and echoed through the motions of the waves. “Noire had helped you escape from your mind, but your mind is as turbulent as the waves. One moment, you are at peace. Another moment, submerged, and with every storm that rages in your mind, another has come to clear it. Storm Surge was your guide, then you made Shining take her place, then when he left, your lover replaced him.” The unknown person masquerading as my mother drew closer, holding my face. “Now he is not here to guide you, so who will guide you now, I wonder?”
“Who are you?”
“Just an observer.”
“Where am I?”
“The true depths of your pain.” The entire mindscape began to shake as something shot through my body once again and I clutched my stomach in pain. “It seems the entity is fighting back. If this continues, you will die of magic exhaustion. What will you do?” I began to choke on my own pain as it grew, and the waves around became more chaotic.
“So you say my dependence on others to guide me is my weakness?”
“I merely state a pattern in your behaviour.” Her passive behaviour grew irritating. I had enough of her. With a gargled battle cry, I swam deeper into the water. The bottom seemed unreachable, but my greatest strength was and is my ambition.
“I won’t let that rookie get ahead of me. No-one will ever again!” A small glint of light could be seen at the bottom. However, from the surface, black tendrils wrapped around my body and tried to hold me still until the pain had taken hold. However, dream or not, I was in water, and water was my domain. The waves chaotic movements began to bend to my will, slicing the tendrils away on my command. “The only pony I will follow is my own ambition!” The light grew brighter and brighter as I reach my hand. “So observe this, bitch!” I grabbed hold of the light, a sapphire, clean and pure. Once it was in my hands, the water began to drain from the mindscape like a plug was pulled from the sink. As the water vanished, the lady did as well, but not before one more exchange.
“So this is your resolve. I look forward to seeing the fruits of it very soon.”
“Thank you.” The lady shook her head.
“Do not thank me. Thank your mother: she’s the one who asked me to give you that 'smack to your behind'.” I could not ask more as the water had completely drained from the mindscape, and the mystery lady had vanished. All I could see was a blinding light that was pulled away from my eyes as Ayra came into view, with a small changeling in her arms. I looked around to find Curdle, frantically pacing back and forth, muttering something.
“Curdle! She’s awake!” Curdle and Ayra ran up to me to check if I was okay. Surprisingly, I felt amazing, as if the surgery never happened. They were saying something, but I was still coming to and they were talking over each other, making everything unintelligible. Ayra was the first to calm down.
“Tidal?” I looked over to her, and the child in her arms. Yes, once it was out of me, in front of me for the first time, I could acknowledge that it was a child.
“How are they?”
“He’s… doing fine.” She leaned forward to show him to me. He had black chitin, but it faded into a deep purple at his limbs. His hair and tail were a midnight blue, and his eyes were yet to open.
“Please take good care of him, Ayra.” I realise in hindsight that I forgot to ask Mom what she thought of my choice, but at that point, her opinion didn’t matter. I was my own guide.
NOIRE POV
We had arrived. Opus Terrae. A lush green field, with flowers and crops growing almost endlessly. On the horizon, a great mountain stood, piercing the clouds and a city rested on top. Griffonia was right in front of us. Despite our expectation of a fight once we approached the fields, but surprisingly, no-one awaited us.
“It seems they are expecting us,” Cadance said.
“You can sense it as well, can you. The ki at the top of that mountain…” Gilgamesh looked to the peak. Once I looked up, it was clear: magic was swarming around the castle like a storm, dark and perverted. However, that didn’t seem to shake anyone’s resolve. The only concern was where Windy and Burning were.
“Hey guys~!” A familiar voice sang from behind us. “Your favourite pegasus has arrived!” Windy and Burning had arrived just on time.
“Cutting it close though,” I added.
“Travelling to Griffonia on foot isn’t exactly an easy trip, Noire, and we don’t have near infinite magic at our disposal,” Burning countered, shutting me up.
“The caverns are on the west entrance. Once you three begin the plan, we will take the quickest route into the castle. It should take us at least seven minutes to get there.”
“So, we have to keep them distracted for 7 minutes? We can do this, right guys?” Windy and Burning both nodded in agreement. With that, the royals all left to take the caverns while we made our way to the mountain. We had no idea of the events that would transpire over the next 24 hours, but for better or worse, this day was known forever more as ‘The Great Incursion’.
